Published Feb 24, 2026, 6:13 AM EST
James is a gaming writer from London who has spent thousands of hours exploring titles from every genre. Though he has a particular affinity for multiplayer titles like World of Warcraft, Destiny 2 and League of Legends, he has also put thousands of hours into single-player experiences, from deep RPGs to epic PC strategies. When he's not playing or writing, he can usually be found supporting his beloved Brentford FC.
News over at Xbox is pretty worrying right now, as changes at the top have fans fearing for the future of what has become a beloved console franchise. Phil Spencer's departure after 35 years is a concern on its own, but his replacement with Asha Sharma, whose previous focus included AI initiatives, has deepened that feeling further.
At the same time, Sarah Bond, who many saw as the would-be successor to Spencer, also left the company at the same time under a bit of a mysterious cloud. All of that really has thrust Microsoft's future plans for the flagship console into a pretty doubtful place, and with it, many of the franchises that they acquired relatively recently.
As most of you will already know, Xbox (and by definition Microsoft) purchased Bethesda Entertainment's parent company, Zenimax Media, for $7.5 billion back in 2021. It was a monumental deal, and one that was supposed to allow the developer to bring players more, better games over the following years.
Obviously, a big part of that potential value was the continued production of major franchises like The Elder Scrolls and Fallout, particularly given that The Elder Scrolls VI had already been announced several years previously.
Over on Reddit, concerned fans have started to ask what all of this means for their favorite games, and it's totally understandable why there might be some apprehension. What we do know, is that Todd Howard has stressed to fans on many occasions, including just this week, that AI will never be used at the studio for design and production tasks.
Phil Spencer's intimate knowledge of video games suddenly going out the door doesn't feel like a good thing instinctually, but there are a lot of chips already on the table, and all the cards still need to be played if Xbox is to avoid disaster.
There's No Need To Panic Yet
With so much money already invested in Bethesda and other major companies, the fact is that Xbox will want to ensure these releases go through for an immediate return on investment, as well as the additional value provided to their assets.
Though it may be a while before we see them, these games feel like safe bets, particularly given that The Elder Scrolls VI has been in development for some time now. The real worry for Xbox fans is the future of the brand itself, and the console hardware they produce, as seeing the company lean considerably more towards AI could jeopardize everything that has been built thus far.
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