Xbox has no plans to abandon the console business, according to Chief Strategy Officer Matthew Ball.

While the wider gaming market continues to shift toward mobile, PC, subscriptions, and new hardware conversations, Ball argues that consoles remain a growing and important part of Xbox’s future.

TL;DR – Quick Facts
  • Xbox Chief Strategy Officer Matthew Ball commented on the state of the console market.
  • Ball said Xbox has “no desire to move away from the console business.”
  • He argued that the console market is not dying or declining.
  • Xbox still wants to improve on PC and mobile, but not at the cost of its console platform.
  • Ball also said young players are still adopting consoles.

Xbox Comments on the Console Market

In 2026, the console conversation feels more uncertain than usual. Talk of next-generation hardware has already started, even though many players still feel that the Xbox Series X and PlayStation 5 have not reached their full potential.

On top of that, rising memory prices have created fresh concerns around the future cost of gaming hardware. Even with those challenges, Matthew Ball does not believe the console market is finished.

Worth Knowing: Ball’s comments come at a time when Xbox is often discussed through the lens of PC, cloud, mobile, and multiplatform strategy, but he says console remains central to the business.

Console Business Isn’t Dying, Ball Says

Speaking with Christopher Dring of The Game Business, Ball acknowledged that mobile now holds a huge share of both gaming revenue and player attention. Still, he pushed back against the idea that consoles are disappearing or losing relevance.

“We have no desire to move away from the console business. And dying? No. It’s not declining. It is growing. It’s going to have a great year this year. What is important is that we restore that business for us. Do we need to get better at PC? Yes. Do we need to get better at mobile? Yes. But we can’t ask publishers and players to bet on us on other platforms where we are behind, where our technology is inadequate, before we shore up the platform we have, the platform that many believe we’ve mistreated.”

Ball’s point is that Xbox cannot ignore PC or mobile, but it also cannot build trust elsewhere if its existing console audience feels neglected. In his view, restoring strength on Xbox hardware is still a key part of the wider strategy.

Are Younger Players Still Moving to Consoles?

The interview also touched on whether younger players, especially those who grew up with games like Minecraft and Roblox, will adopt consoles at the same level as previous generations.

Ball said it is too early to know exactly how that shift will play out, but he does not believe young people have stopped moving toward console gaming.

“There are lots of young people adopting consoles. Do we see the same rate of young people adopting consoles that they did historically? I haven’t seen in mature markets evidence that has dramatically changed.”

That suggests Xbox still sees value in traditional hardware, even as player habits continue to spread across phones, PCs, handhelds, cloud services, and subscription ecosystems.

Final Thoughts

For now, Xbox’s message is clear: the company is not done with consoles. The market may be changing, and Xbox may need to improve across PC and mobile, but Ball’s comments suggest the console business remains a major priority.

Whether the next generation of Xbox hardware can rebuild player confidence is another question. Still, based on these comments, Xbox does not see consoles as a dead end.

Xbox may be expanding beyond consoles, but it is not planning to leave them behind.

Source: https://www.thegamebusiness.com/p/the-big-matthew-ball-interview-the