Xbox chief Phil Spencer has recently sat down for an interview and discussed the brand’s commitment to continue supporting the digital libraries of players.
During an interview, Spencer reflected on some common player concerns. As Xbox continues to support more third-party initiatives, including launching first-party titles on Nintendo Switch and PlayStation 5, some players have grown worrisome about the future of their digital libraries.
“I want to show respect to the people who voice their concerns,” Spencer says. “To me, I get it, and I would never disrespect anybody who comes to me concerned. I’ve got a library of games on Xbox consoles. I want to make sure I’ll continue to be able to play those games.”
With Xbox taking such a radically unorthodox approach to publishing, many players fear that a day may come when Xbox hardware simply isn’t being supported. Without new hardware, fears set in that decades-long digital library collections will cease to be active and supported. Spencer, aware of these trepidations, addressed some of these concerns.
“Are we going to still do hardware? Are we going to still get to play the games the way we’ve always played? Am I going to have to rent all my games? Can I still buy games? All that. I get it, I get the questions. I think we’ve shown respect for people’s libraries over the generations with back-compat and Play Anywhere, and I want to continue to do that. You can buy every game that’s in Game Pass, we’re not trying to funnel everybody into one business model. Play the games the way you want to play them.”
Many first-party titles have already broken through the veil and made their way onto competing platforms. For instance, in 2024, Xbox began by porting games like Pentiment, Hi-Fi Rush, Sea of Thieves and Grounded to PlayStation 5, and in some cases, Nintendo Switch. This year, we’re seeing titles like Indiana Jones and the Great Circle and Doom: The Dark Ages arrive on PlayStation 5.
Xbox is showing no signs of slowing down on this new initiative. Last year, Spencer remarked that there are no “red lines” for what can be brought to Nintendo or PlayStation platforms in the future. However, it does appear as though players invested in the Xbox ecosystem, whether on console, PC, or mobile, will maintain their current libraries for the foreseeable future.
Source: XboxEra
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