Microsoft CEO comments on multiplatform Xbox releases and more

It has been one other turbulent yr for Microsoft. We have seen a number of bulletins of layoffs, with Microsoft shedding one other 650 workers simply final month, and that is now contrasted with the information that CEO Satya Nadella has seen a sizeable pay increase of 63%, rising Nadella’s compensation for 2024’s fiscal yr to over $79 million. Nadella has, in the meantime, shared an annual letter referring to among the Xbox strikes Microsoft has made, together with the multiplatform launch of Xbox video games and the way the crew continues “to increase our content material to new platforms.”

Nadella has shared a prolonged letter (as noticed by The Verge’s Tom Warren) referring to every little thing from AI to safety. The paragraph on gaming is comparatively small, however it covers a good bit:

“We’re bringing nice video games to extra folks on extra units. With our acquisition of Activision Blizzard King, which closed October 2023, we’ve added tons of of hundreds of thousands of gamers to our ecosystem. We now have 20 franchises which have generated over $1 billion in lifetime income — from Sweet Crush, Diablo, and Halo, to Warcraft, Elder Scrolls, and Gears of Conflict. And with Xbox cloud gaming, we proceed to innovate to supply gamers extra methods to expertise the video games they love — the place, when, and the way they need. Lastly, we introduced 4 of our fan-favorite titles to Nintendo Change and Sony PlayStation for the primary time, as we proceed to increase our content material to new platforms.”

It was massive information in early 2024 when Microsoft confirmed 4 Xbox exclusives have been transferring on to different platforms, with Grounded and Pentiment among the many titles transferring to Nintendo Change and PlayStation.

Microsoft has additionally been within the information this yr with reference to layoffs. January noticed Microsoft shedding round 1,900 workers from throughout Xbox Sport Studios, and studio closures and layoffs continued afterwards.

It isn’t simply Nadella’s letter, nonetheless, which has caught consideration. In line with CNBC and a proxy submitting from earlier this week, Microsoft’s pay increase for Nadella was over $30 million, with a considerable amount of this compensation consisting of inventory. It might, apparently, have been extra, if not for Nadella’s requested pay reduce following Microsoft’s earlier troubles with cyberattacks.

All-in-all, it is given Xbox gamers and people considering Microsoft’s plans quite a bit to consider. If, nonetheless, you’d choose some way more straightfoward information to have fun it being a Friday, do not forget that Name of Responsibility: Black Ops 6 joins Sport Cross at present!