Microsoft has confirmed that gaming CEO Asha Sharma retired the controversial 2024 'This is an Xbox' campaign, stating it 'didn’t feel like Xbox,' as part of a brand reset emphasizing console roots. The move follows fan and internal backlash, amid leadership changes and next-gen Project Helix hardware plans.
Confirming mid-March reports after the campaign page vanished online, a Microsoft spokesperson told Windows Central that Asha Sharma retired 'This is an Xbox' because 'it didn’t feel like Xbox,' with Sharma personally leading a reset of the Xbox brand.
Launched in 2024 under former Xbox president Sarah Bond, the campaign positioned Xbox as a platform beyond consoles—spanning mobiles, laptops, cloud gaming, and Azure integration—drawing criticism from fans for downplaying hardware purchases and upsetting staff internally, per The Verge. Bond departed earlier this year alongside former gaming boss Phil Spencer, enabling Sharma's February appointment as CEO of Microsoft Gaming. Previously heading the CoreAI team, Sharma pledged to 'celebrate our roots with a renewed commitment to Xbox starting with console' and avoid 'soulless AI slop.'
Microsoft has shelved concepts like a Game Pass streaming set-top box and gaming handheld. Meanwhile, it revealed Project Helix, the codename for the next Xbox console after Series X/S, targeting high performance for console and PC games, with developer kits slated for next year.
All campaign mentions were scrubbed from Microsoft's site, including an Xbox Wire post, though the promotional video lingers on YouTube.
