Xbox CEO Asha Sharma begins her new journey as the leader of Microsoft’s gaming business today. Following an underwhelming few years, the CEO has big shoes to fill and even bigger expectations to meet if she hopes to steer the business in the right direction.
Many have weighed in on the topic and shared their thoughts on whether this will even be possible given Xbox’s current state. While some believe Xbox has fallen too far behind, the director of the Ori series believes that a comeback is not impossible.
Following Asha Sharma’s appointment as CEO, Moon Studios CEO and Ori director Thomas Mahler took to Twitter to write a detailed post on the situation. As per Thomas Mahler, it would absolutely make sense for Microsoft to axe its gaming business, judging purely by the numbers, which, as most know by now, haven’t been great recently.
However, he also noted that companies have come back from similarly poor positions in the past. The Moon Studios CEO pointed to Steve Jobs turning things around for Apple after 1997 as an example and stated that Xbox’s situation is at least better than Apple’s was when Jobs took over.
He also mentioned Bill Gates’ insight regarding the gaming business over two decades ago and Microsoft’s decision to pursue the business. According to Thomas Mahler, Asha Sharma has the chance to change things for the better for Xbox.
The game developer noted that this would require making slow progress and potentially radical decisions. As he puts it, Asha Sharma must ‘obsess over quality’ to deliver genre-defining games that help turn things around for Xbox.
“Xbox now has a chance to flip the tables. And it can be done if the person at the top has the right instinct and can rally the right people around her.” -Thomas Mahler
Thomas Mahler concluded his write-up by stating that Xbox’s success would ultimately benefit the entire industry due to stronger competition. Overall, it seems the Moon Studios CEO is cautiously optimistic about Asha Sharma taking the lead role in Microsoft’s gaming division.
