Microsoft has established a new unit within Xbox, named XP, with the goal of taking its most popular franchises beyond the video game format. This new area will manage projects covering films, television series, licensed merchandise, events, attractions, and collaborations with other brands.
The announcement was made on Thursday, October 8th, by CEO Asha Sharma. According to the executive, XP consolidates activities that were previously scattered across various teams, becoming directly responsible for the expansion strategy of the brand's intellectual properties. The name XP refers to 'Experience Points,' a term familiar to gamers.
The management of this new division will be handled by Kayleen Walters, who was previously head of Mojang Studios. Microsoft segmented XP into four distinct areas. Planned projects include the continuation of Minecraft Movie, the third season of Fallout, a cinematic adaptation of Call of Duty, and an animated Diablo series intended for Netflix.
This initiative formalizes a direction that Microsoft had already been indicating. In July, the Xbox CEO had expressed the intention to reinforce the company's main franchises, expanding them through audiovisual productions, licensed products, and commercial partnerships.
Kayleen Walters will leave her position at Mojang, the creator of Minecraft. Before joining Xbox, she spent 13 years at Lucasfilm, during which she contributed to the expansion of Star Wars beyond films. At Mojang, Walters helped grow the Minecraft licensed products business and served as executive producer for Minecraft Movie, also being involved in the sequel's production.
Maria Angelidou-Smith will take over leadership of Mojang and the Minecraft franchise starting October 19th. This executive has nearly ten years of experience at Meta and more recently held the position of product director at Reddit.
In another piece of news, Hideo Kojima surprised the market last month by announcing the end of a 30-year partnership with PlayStation, a decision made by the company itself. Consequently, the game Physint, which was set to be the first title announced for the future PlayStation 6, was canceled. Shortly after, the director signed an agreement with Xbox, in which Microsoft stated that the collaboration would also include films and series. Kojima is recognized for bringing a cinematic aesthetic to his games, often involving the participation of Hollywood actors. The main character of Physint will be played by Bill Skarsgård, known for playing Pennywise in the reboot of It: The Thing.
Additionally, the director already collaborates with Xbox on the OD project, a horror game developed in conjunction with filmmaker Jordan Peele. The creation of XP occurs in the context of major restructuring at Xbox, which has implemented layoffs and modifications in several studios in recent months. With this new division, Microsoft aims to expand brands like The Elder Scrolls, Halo, and Gears of War beyond simple game sales and subscriptions, aiming to make Xbox the largest global entertainment company.