Xbox CEO Asha Sharma reportedly told Microsoft gaming staff on October 6, 2026, that the business had begun returning to growth after an “all time low.” Windows Central later clarified that she was referring specifically to growth in first-party games Xbox owns and publishes—not clearly to Xbox or Microsoft Gaming as a whole. The report offers no public chart, metric, or financial data to verify the claim.
What did Xbox’s CEO mean by returning to growth?
Sharma’s reported remarks came at an internal town hall for Microsoft gaming staff. Windows Central says it received the transcript and verified it with trusted sources; the transcript itself is not linked in its article. It attributes this statement to Sharma:
“We’re making the right decisions to reinvest in the business, after an all time low, we’ve started to return to growth, more than 2 to 3 times what we were, and we expect that continue.”
Windows Central subsequently clarified that the growth referred to first-party games Xbox owns and publishes. The phrase “more than 2 to 3 times what we were” is not defined: the report does not identify a metric, comparison period, calculation, or supporting chart. It should not be read as a specific growth rate or revenue figure.
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Sharma reportedly said hours spent had stabilized after earlier declines in hours, players, and revenue. That is a description of the trend she presented, not a publicly documented set of results. Windows Central also reported her view that the previous Game Pass strategy contributed to “free fall” balance-sheet declines, but provided no financial documentation or causal analysis establishing that link.
Is Xbox actually growing again?
The reporting supports a narrower conclusion: Sharma told staff that first-party growth had started to return. It does not establish that the entire Xbox business, Microsoft Gaming, or hardware sales are growing again. No audited or independently documented Xbox growth figure appears in the cited coverage.
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Windows Central also reported Sharma’s claim of a 30% increase in positive brand sentiment over the prior year and described strong starts for Gears of War: E-Day, Minecraft Dungeons 2, and World of Warcraft Forever. The article supplies no methodology, baseline, sample, or launch figures for those claims, so they are reported indicators rather than independently assessable performance data.
Kotaku’s October 6 report summarizes Windows Central’s account and adds that Xbox chief content officer Matt Booty had described the reset as 75% complete the previous month. Kotaku provides no precise date or measurement context for that estimate. It also reports that hundreds more staff could be laid off in the coming months. Together, those details make clear that “working” does not mean the reset is finished or that its organizational costs have ended.
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What does Xbox’s reset change for Game Pass and consoles?
Windows Central describes the strategy through four themes: core, content, creation, and connection. Sharma reportedly framed consoles as a priority while also describing a wider platform approach. These are stated plans and priorities, not evidence that every change has shipped or produced a business result.
- Consoles and platforms: Renewed investment in Xbox consoles, including Series X|S, alongside Xbox PC and future hardware.
- Game Pass: Plans for more flexible options and content access, without announced final tiers, prices, or launch dates in the report.
- Ways to play: Continued focus on cloud gaming, Xbox Play Anywhere, and a disc-to-digital program.
- Publishing: A simpler publishing target and streamlined APIs, intended to make it easier for developers to ship games across platforms.
The shift is not described as a simple move away from consoles. The reporting presents console investment and broader platform reach as parts of the same strategy, while leaving the eventual product and service details open.
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What is Project Helix?
Sharma reportedly described Helix, Xbox’s next-generation effort, as a “family of devices” rather than a single device for every player. She said a console would come first, while other devices would serve players on the go, with Xbox making some products itself and partnering on others. She also said the operating system was starting to look good.
The coverage does not specify what the other devices will be, which partners may participate, or when products will launch. The “family” description is a direction, not a confirmed lineup or a detailed product announcement. Windows Central’s report is the source for the town-hall account; Kotaku’s summary relies on that reporting rather than publishing an independent transcript.
What the reported turnaround does—and does not—show
The town-hall account offers a view of management’s rationale for the reset: invest again in consoles and first-party games, make Game Pass more adaptable, extend play across devices, and lower barriers for developers. Its growth statement is specifically about first-party games, and the published coverage does not provide the data needed to measure the scale or durability of that growth.
- Reported: Sharma said first-party growth had begun to return after a low point.
- Not established: A quantified growth rate, the precise comparison period, or a recovery across Xbox as a whole.
- Still unresolved: Final Game Pass options, Helix devices and partners, and the human impact of further reported layoffs.
Windows Central’s account of the October 6, 2026 town hall is the primary report cited here. Kotaku’s same-day summary supplies secondary context, not independent access to the transcript.
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