A new rumour has said that Microsoft Gaming CEO, Phil Spencer will be retiring from Xbox following the company’s next-generation launch.
The news comes from @TheGhostofHope, who has a decent track record regarding Call of Duty leaks.
According to Hope, “Phil Spencer is working closely with Sarah Bond and her team to ensure a smooth transition for her takeover as CEO of Microsoft Gaming once he retires.”
It’s a rumor that I’ve also heard a couple of times this year at the Summer Game Fest, and while I can’t fully corroborate the claims, it’s scuttlebutt that has been circulating for some time. And I guess… It’s probably an easy speculation and expectation.
In fact, and for added context on how often I’ve heard this rumor in the past couple of months, I even had a skeleton pre-write ready for today about Spencer leaving, just in case he stepped down earlier, given today’s recent bloodbath of layoffs.
This current round of layoffs will see approximately 9000 employees across Microsoft affected, including its gaming division, Xbox.
At the time of writing, several Xbox teams and projects have been shut down, including Rare’s Everwild and the complete closure of The Initiative.
Do you think it’s time for Phil Spencer to step down from Xbox? Let us know down below, and join the discussion in the official Insider Gaming forums.
For more Insider Gaming, read about how many people Microsoft is expected to let go in this latest wave of layoffs and what Xbox’s Phil Spencer had to say to his staff about the job cuts. And don’t forget to subscribe to the Insider Gaming newsletter.
Tom Henderson is Insider Gaming's Co-Founder and Editor-In-Chief. When he's not running one of the industry's leading independent video game websites, he's probably playing an FPS like Call of Duty,…
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He needs to go, a lot of people are sick of that “pick me I’m a gamer just like you” attitude that he puts on acting like he’s one of the ordinary consumers, he’s so out if touch and responsible for Xbox going down the drain and ditching the exclusive games idea.
The Activision team should replace him not Sarah and Aaron for sure needs to go. Hire me it would be better than Phil. They already claimed this isn’t happening but I do think he’ll be gone. Sarah Bond won’t be a be shift.