Behind the decision is the massive pressure to finally make Xbox profitable.
It’s been eight years since The Elder Scrolls 6 was announced with a short teaser – Since then there has been radio silence. Fallout fans have been waiting for a new single-player adventure since 2015. According to a new report from The Information magazine, the new Xbox boss Asha Sharma now wants to end these long development cycles and noticeably accelerate work on Bethesda’s large, popular brands.
Fallout and The Elder Scrolls: Xbox wants to work faster
The instruction is a direct response to the tense economic situation of Microsoft’s entire gaming division. After billion-dollar acquisitions, disappointing sales figures and massive layoffs, the Xbox division needs to become more profitable.
Faster releases of the most popular game series such as Fallout and The Elder Scrolls should help to stimulate business again and increase revenue. The success of the Fallout series on Amazon Prime has further shown how great interest still is in these worlds.
According to the report, in order to accelerate development, internal workflows should be optimized and possibly even technical principles shared across multiple projects.
Even though development is now a priority, you should keep your expectations in check. Even with an accelerated process, a modern AAA RPG still takes time to complete, according to the report four to five years (Source: TheInformation).
Xbox crisis: Microsoft is considering drastic steps
The initiative is part of a comprehensive restructuring plan for the ailing division. Microsoft boss Satya Nadella recently unequivocally called for Xbox to finally become a “sustainable business” after 25 years.
Internal reports recently revealed an extremely low profit margin of just three percent – a value that explains the enormous pressure from top management. The accelerated development of blockbusters is therefore a central attempt to stop the financial decline.
If this plan fails, more far-reaching measures are on the table, according to the report by “The Information”. Internally, options such as: complete restructuring or even a spin-off the Xbox brand into an independent subsidiary was discussed. Such a move could make it easier to sell the entire division later. The future of Xbox depends largely on whether the new leadership can get the major game studios back on the road to success.