Xbox’s Phil Spencer Promoted to Executive Vice President of Gaming at Microsoft

Phil Spencer has led a massive revolution ever since he was made head of Xbox. Charting a new course for the console, Spencer has pushed gaming as the focal point of the system, while transitioning away from exclusives and console generations of the past. Apparently Microsoft is quite happy with these changes as they’ve just promoted Phil Spencer to a new role within the major leadership of the company, making him Executive Vice President of Gaming at Microsoft.

According to a report from Business Insider, the change was prompted by Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella’s order to restructure the leadership of the company. With this new role Spencer will report directly to Nadella, marking a big shift within Microsoft and the Xbox department. The change also seems to fit with Spencer’s recent strategy behind Xbox and Windows 10 gaming, blurring the lines between the two to make sure that gamers are simply playing on a Microsoft platform.

Xbox One launched in late 2013 on the heels of a disastrous reveal. Gamers were angry about various design choices, such as the always-online requirement and the included Kinect accessory. The reveal event also left many bewildered as it focused on sports and other entertainment options, including live TV. The lack of any big games seemed to doom the device at launch.

However, shortly after the Xbox One’s release, Phil Spencer was put in charge and helped turn things around. The system still struggles to keep up with the PS4 in sales, but most gamers seem to have come around to liking the Xbox One as a platform. The upcoming launch of the Xbox One X is another big step in Spencer’s plans for the platform, but we’ll have to wait and see how that one turns out. The only big hurdle for Xbox One at the moment seems to be its lack of exclusive titles, but many wonder if that’s all a part of Spencer’s plans.