Xbox has stated that the release of Starfield will be the "starting gun" for even more first-party releases on Xbox.
At Gamescom, Xbox Chief Marketing Officer Jerret West stated his opinion that Bethesda's upcoming space opera will serve as a "doorway" to additional traditional Xbox exclusives.
West said, referring to this lineup as a "multi-year relay race of first-party titles," "I was sitting there watching the same [Starfield presentation] you were this morning and I was like... this is really the start of something that's going to then lead to Forza, then in 2024 as we go to Hellblade, and we think about Towerborne which is on the show floor, we think about Avowed, and we've got stories we haven't told yet as well.
West went on to talk about Game Pass, as well as the relationships and third-party support that Xbox has with developers, describing it as "critically important."
He concluded, "I think we're entering a time where this is the start of something that's going to be really special over the next few years.
Many of Xbox's recent exclusive releases have disappointed, with its flagship series Halo's most recent offering - Halo Infinite - failing to make a significant impact on the gaming landscape.
In May, Phil Spencer personally apologized for Arkane's Redfall's failure, which was widely panned upon its release earlier this year.
Nothing is harder for me to deal with than disappointing the Xbox community, Spencer said plainly. I've been involved with it for a very long time. Of course, I work for Xbox, am the company's CEO, have a large social network, and receive a lot of feedback. Moreover, I'm disappointed in the community for losing faith in itself. I'm angry at myself.
The executive had previously acknowledged that Xbox had admitted to "too early" game releases in the past.
After all of that, it appears that Xbox is now attempting to turn a corner.
Check out Tom's interview with Phil Spencer for more information on Xbox and its future. In it, they talk about new hardware, price drops, mid-gen refreshes, and why the company won't get rid of Series S.
If you want more Starfield, Ed recently had the opportunity to learn the plot's genesis. More information about the beginning of Bethesda's "irresponsibly large" game can be found here.