Navigation Drawer
close
Search
Light System Dark
-
Tech
-
Reviews
-
Science
-
Entertainment
-
AI
-
Policy
-
Gadgets
-
Verge Shopping
-
Gaming
-
Streaming
-
Transportation
-
Verge Video
-
Podcasts
Xbox is a disaster
Comments Drawer
Comments
- Column Column Posts from this topic will be added to your daily email digest and your homepage feed.
Follow See All Column
- Entertainment Entertainment Posts from this topic will be added to your daily email digest and your homepage feed.
Follow See All Entertainment
- Gaming Gaming Posts from this topic will be added to your daily email digest and your homepage feed.
Follow See All Gaming
Xbox is a disaster
Major changes are looming for Microsoft’s gaming division after years of bad decisions.
by Andrew Webster
Andrew Webster
Senior entertainment editor
Posts from this author will be added to your daily email digest and your homepage feed.
Follow See All by Andrew Webster
Jul 5, 2026, 12:00 PM UTC
Gears of War: E-Day.
| Image: Xbox Game Studios
- Column Column Posts from this topic will be added to your daily email digest and your homepage feed.
Follow See All Column
- Entertainment Entertainment Posts from this topic will be added to your daily email digest and your homepage feed.
Follow See All Entertainment
- Gaming Gaming Posts from this topic will be added to your daily email digest and your homepage feed.
Follow See All Gaming
Xbox is a disaster
Major changes are looming for Microsoft’s gaming division after years of bad decisions.
by Andrew Webster
Andrew Webster
Senior entertainment editor
Posts from this author will be added to your daily email digest and your homepage feed.
Follow See All by Andrew Webster
Jul 5, 2026, 12:00 PM UTC
Andrew Webster
Andrew Webster
Posts from this author will be added to your daily email digest and your homepage feed.
Follow See All by Andrew Webster
is an entertainment editor covering streaming, virtual worlds, and every single Pokémon video game. Andrew joined The Verge in 2012, writing over 4,000 stories.
This isThe Stepback, a weekly newsletter breaking down one essential story from the tech world. For more on the bleak state of the video game industry, follow Andrew Webster. The Stepback arrives in our subscribers’ inboxes on Sunday at 8AM ET. Opt in for The Stepback here.
How it started
Microsoft closed out Summer Game Fest with a bang. The company’s annual June showcase was packed with crowd-pleasers: Halo, Gears of War, Fable, a translucent Xbox, and even some pleasant surprises like new Persona and Crazy Taxi games. It was the kind of event that harkened back to the boisterous days of E3, when the industry was in a healthier place and game reveals were cultural events.
It was also a sham.
Just three days after the showcase, new Xbox CEO Asha Sharma warned of a “reset” at Microsoft’s gaming division, which would require “making hard choices.” The weeks that followed were filled with reports of impending layoffs, studio closures, and game cancellations. Ninja Theory is reportedly one of the studios on the chopping block, despite having just revealed a new game at SGF. If all this comes to pass, Xbox will be a shell of its former self.
After muscling its way into the console space nearly 25 years ago, Microsoft’s gaming division is at its lowest point ever. And the fallout from some disastrous decisions is going to get very ugly in the coming weeks and months.
It wasn’t always this way. With the arrival of the original Xbox in 2001, Microsoft seemed poised to be a viable contender in the space, with all of its resources helping it play catch-up with the likes of Sony and Nintendo.
Subscribe to The Vergeto continue reading.
Featured Videos From The Verge
The best headphone mic we've ever tested | The Vergecast
Video 161/1 Skip Ad Continue watching after the adVisit Advertiser websiteGO TO PAGE
Your headphones' microphone matters. A lot. And yet we never know how we sound to others, or whether we're clear to our AI assistants! So from time to time, we like to grab a bunch of headphones and put their microphones through some tough real-world tests. This time, with the help of The Verge's John Higgins, we discover the best-sounding mic we've ever tested. And no, it's not on a pair of AirPods. Not even close.
Most Popular
Most Popular
- White House deletes thousands of web pages about energy conservation as heatwave slams US
- Hey number pad lovers, this is a keyboard we can finally agree on
- The square-ish phone that I wanted to love
- Qi fan fan
- Apple TV is hitting its stride
Video 241/1 Skip Ad Continue watching after the adVisit Advertiser websiteGO TO PAGE
The Verge Daily
A free daily digest of the news that matters most.
Email (required)
Sign Up
By submitting your email, you agree to ourTerms and Privacy Notice. This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the GooglePrivacy PolicyandTerms of Serviceapply.
Advertiser Content From This is the title for the native ad
More in Column
Hydration isn’t complicated: Just drink water
Libby will filter out AI content, kind of
Meet the lawyer who beat Elon Musk —twice
The Cube is Jim Henson’s little-known proto-Black Mirror masterpiece
Ad-free streaming is a luxury now
Sometimes, health tracking accuracy is overrated
Hydration isn’t complicated: Just drink water
Victoria Song Jul 373
Libby will filter out AI content, kind of
Janko Roettgers Jun 302
Meet the lawyer who beat Elon Musk —twice
Elizabeth Lopatto Jun 3011
The Cube is Jim Henson’s little-known proto-Black Mirror masterpiece
Terrence O'Brien Jun 288
Ad-free streaming is a luxury now
Emma Roth Jun 28233
Sometimes, health tracking accuracy is overrated
Victoria Song Jun 2613
Advertiser Content From This is the title for the native ad
Top Stories
Jul 4
The fanfiction community is at war with AI — and itself
Jul 4
Jul 4
Flatbush Zombies’ Erick the Architect misses his BlackBerry keyboard
Jul 4
The square-ish phone that I wanted to love
Jul 4
Hey number pad lovers, this is a keyboard we can finally agree on
-
Do Not Sell or Share My Personal Data
© 2026Vox Media, LLC. All Rights Reserved
Notifications Drawer
Sign in to see your notifications or create an account to join the conversation.
Continue reading The Stepback with a Verge subscription Get full access to The Verge and our subscriber-exclusive newsletters for just $2.
LET'S GO
Already a subscriber?Sign inBack toThe Verge Homepage
Opt-Out Request Honored
Privacy Center
When you visit our website, we store cookies on your browser to collect information. The information collected might relate to you, your preferences or your device, and is mostly used to make the site work as you expect it to and to provide a more personalized web experience. However, you can choose not to allow certain types of cookies, which may impact your experience of the site and the services we are able to offer. Click on the different category headings to find out more and change our default settings according to your preference. You cannot opt-out of our First Party Strictly Necessary Cookies as they are deployed in order to ensure the proper functioning of our website (such as prompting the cookie banner and remembering your settings, to log into your account, to redirect you when you log out, etc.). For more information about the First and Third Party Cookies used please follow this link.
Cookie Policy Vendor List
Allow All
Manage Consent Preferences
Strictly Necessary Cookies
Essential
These cookies are necessary for the website to function and cannot be switched off in our systems. They are usually only set in response to actions made by you which amount to a request for services, such as setting your privacy preferences, logging in or filling in forms. You can set your browser to block or alert you about these cookies, but some parts of the site will not then work. These cookies do not store any personally identifiable information.
-
Functional Cookies
Essential
These cookies enable the website to provide enhanced functionality and personalisation. They may be set by us or by third party providers whose services we have added to our pages. If you do not allow these cookies then some or all of these services may not function properly.
-
Performance Cookies
Essential
These cookies allow us to count visits and traffic sources so we can measure and improve the performance of our site. They help us to know which pages are the most and least popular and see how visitors move around the site. All information these cookies collect is aggregated and therefore anonymous. If you do not allow these cookies we will not know when you have visited our site, and will not be able to monitor its performance.
View Vendor Details
Allow the Sale or Sharing/Targeted Advertising
- Allow the Sale or Sharing/Targeted Advertising
As a valued user, we are providing you the ability to opt-out from the sharing of your personal information to advertisers and social media companies at any time across business platform, services, businesses and devices. You can opt-out of the sharing of your personal information by using this toggle switch. For more information on your rights and options see our privacy notice.
-
Social Media & Embedded Content
- Switch Label
Content embedded on our sites (e.g. social media posts, video clips, polls and games) originates from third party sources such as social media platforms, video sharing sites, or other third party websites. When this content loads on pages you visit, any cookies or similar tracking technologies set by the third party source in connection with that content may also load. Vox Media doesn't set these cookies and doesn't control them. These cookies may be capable of tracking your browser across sites and/or building a profile of your interests. Not allowing these cookies will impact what content you can see and engage with on our sites.
-
Targeting Cookies
- Switch Label
These cookies may be set through our site by our advertising partners. They may be used by those companies to build a profile of your interests and show you relevant adverts on other sites. They do not store directly personal information, but are based on uniquely identifying your browser and internet device. If you do not allow these cookies, you will experience less targeted advertising.
View Vendor Details
Vendors List
Clear
-
- checkbox label label
Apply Cancel
Consent Leg.Interest
-
checkbox label label
-
checkbox label label
-
checkbox label label
Confirm My Choices