14 DAY TRIAL // Phil Spencer, the overseer of the Xbox brand at Microsoft, believes the industry and its fans can benefit from discouraging the conflicts between platforms, games, or communities. The main goal, according to the executive, is to ensure that as many people as possible love what Microsoft is doing with Xbox as a whole.
The Xbox One console arrived back in November of 2013 in the midst of turmoil both at Microsoft overall but also inside the actual Xbox division, which was left without a leader after Don Mattrick left that summer.
In spring of 2014, after it became clear that the Xbox One was lagging behind the PS4, Microsoft named a new boss, in the form of Phil Spencer, who previously oversaw the activity of the Microsoft Game Studios.
Spencer doesn't want to encourage fanboys and the console war
Spencer made a solid impression from the get-go and has pushed hard for great games and experiences, both on Xbox One as well as on PC. He now explains that the main goal for him is to ensure that more and more people appreciate what his team is doing, without detracting from what competitors and other companies are doing as well.
He tells Gamespot that the console war between Xbox One and PS4 shouldn't be taken to extremes and fans of one faction or the other shouldn't throw mud at each other based on their preferences.
"The one thing that I probably find a little distasteful in the discourse around games is the divisiveness that people try to build between platforms. It becomes more about what piece of plastic I own than what games I'm playing. It becomes more about somebody else failing than the things I love succeeding. I don't think that's a good place for our industry," he explains.
Spencer has made a habit of congratulation performances from Sony or Nintendo and he believes that this trend needs to continue, as it's not his job to detract from the accomplishments of others.