Xbox President "Answers" Questions About Closed Studios...Well, Hears Them, At Least

Yesterday, Bloomberg posted an interview Tech Reporter Dina Bass did with Xbox President Sarah Bond. She began the interview by asking about statements made by Bond and Xbox boss Phil Spencer about how the video game industry isn’t growing and asked what the cause of the issue might be and how to deal with it. This question comes on the heels of Xbox announcing the closure of several studios under Bethesda/Zenimax.

Bond’s answer effectively came down to needing more people to get into gaming and how making AAA games is becoming increasingly expensive. When Bass asked about Xbox announcing the closing of several games, Bond replied that it’s “extraordinarily hard” to make those decisions and went on to add that when looking at “fundamental trends, [Xbox feels] a deep responsibility to ensure that the games [they] make, the devices [they] build, and the services that [they] offer are there through moments, even when the industry isn’t growing and when you’re through a time of transition.” The recent closure of the studios, according to Bond, are a result of that as well as a “commitment to make sure that the business is healthy for the long term.”

She then took a moment to talk about the company’s commitment to various areas, including Bethesda, while promoting the Fallout series on Amazon and how it’s brought people back to the game. Although, that doesn't seem to have impressed the Fallout 76 players who keep bombing Phil Spencer's base. Then she made a point to state that the company is focusing on helping the people who were affected by the decision to shutter studios.

Don't get us wrong. The Fallout series is good. We're sure it did bring some players back, but sometimes you gotta read the room.

When asked about the closure of Tango Gameworks specifically, a studio that gave them a popular, award-winning game in HiFi Rush, Bond’s response was to say that what she loves about the games industry is that it’s a “creative art form”, meaning that what makes different games successful is “really unique” to each of them. Apparently, for some games, being played by a lot of people and winning awards does not make them successful. It probably would have been the money the game could have made had it not been a Game Pass freebie. But hey…

Unsurprisingly, if you read through the comments on the YouTube video, viewers aren’t terribly impressed with the answers. Although, some seem impressed by the ability to dodge giving answers of substance.

Those interested can view the video in its entirety below.