Xbox CEO Asha Sharma reportedly stood in front of staff at an internal town hall and warned that Xbox "will not survive" without new IP. Bold statement. Rougher timing, since it comes after a stretch of layoffs, cancelled projects, and studios getting cut loose.
Windows Central shared the transcript, and the key line is this one.
We're backing our strongest franchises. I want our great games to become great global billion-dollar franchises. I would also like to see us continue to create enduring new IP. We will not survive if we only revive [sic] on the past. We have to find new ways, and courage, to have invention on new IP, that reaches new sets of audiences.
Here's the part that's hard to square: as part of Xbox's ongoing "Reset", the company has cancelled multiple Obsidian projects and pointed that studio back toward Fallout, pushed Double Fine and Compulsion Games (the South of Midnight studio) out to go independent, reportedly set its sights on Arkane Lyon, and is currently in talks over Ninja Theory's future after a sale attempt fell through. South of Midnight and Double Fine's whole deal was new, inventive IP, so the math here is a little confusing.
The one thing propping up Sharma's case is Hideo Kojima's Physint, a new IP Xbox picked up, though it's led by an outside auteur rather than something Xbox grew in-house. Talking about courage and invention while trimming the studios built on exactly that is a tough look, and the herd can be forgiven for raising an eyebrow at this one.
