Microsoft quietly retires 'This is an Xbox' marketing campaign
Remember, 'This is an Xbox'? Microsoft made those four words the cornerstone of a marketing campaign it believed would hammer home one key point: Xbox is a platform, not just a console.
Now, however, just weeks after the company appointed a new leader in former AI exec Asha Sharma and bid farewell to outgoing overseers Phil Spencer and Sarah Bond, it appears the company has quietly retied the campaign.
When searching for the blog post that kicked off the marketing beat earlier today, I noticed it has been removed from Xbox Wire (Microsoft's Xbox-focused news repository). In fact, the only post currently available on the 'This is an Xbox' results page on Xbox Wire is the September 2025 update featuring news about the ROG Xbox Ally.
The link for the original announcement remains, but when clicked you are instead greeted by a 404 error message and a yawning blank screen. "We can not find the page you are looking for," reads the small text at the top left corner of the page. Interesting.
The post—which stated that 'This is an Xbox' would usher in an era "where people can play their favorite games, discover new adventures, and connect with friends, wherever and however they love to play"—remains accessible via Archive Today.
Why is this notable? For starters, It has been claimed the campaign was pioneered by outgoing Xbox leader Sarah Bond and was even partly responsible for her departure. The Verge claims the strategy and the way it was communicated offended some Xbox employees, who purportedly weren't impressed by the vast pivot away from console.
It also comes with Xbox firmly positioned as a multiplatform entity. Major franchises like Forza and Halo have been punted over to PlayStation 5, while others are available on Nintendo hardware. The company has even tried to open a dedicated Xbox marketplace on mobile, although we're still waiting for that pitch to bear fruit. That's despite being told it would be arriving in July 2024.
Where is Xbox heading from here? Earlier today, Microsoft committed to placing console hardware at the heart of its business with its next-generation device, codenamed Project Helix.
Yet, given the mysterious system will also play PC titles, it's also apparent that the company isn't ready to abandon its ambitions of a building larger playground for Xbox owners. 'This is an Xbox,' however, might have been uttered by the company for the last time.
During a recent interview with Windows Central, Xbox boss Asha Sharma said "the plan's the plan until it's not the plan." After a winding and decidedly vague statement like that, who knows what's next for the company.
Game Developer has reached out to Xbox for comment.
