At Summer Game Fest today, Xbox's new chief strategy officer Matthew Ball spoke about some of the company's big moves recently, including its strategy on exclusives and what's next for the company in the hardware space with Project Helix. He made these comments at The Game Business Live.

"Reliable pipeline" of exclusives

On the subject of exclusives, Ball said, "Everyone in the industry understands that exclusives are important," and Microsoft is no different. The first two console exclusives that Microsoft announced at the Xbox Games Showcase were Gears of War: E-Day this October and Clockwork Revolution in 2027.

Ball said Xbox players can expect a "reliable pipeline" of Xbox-exclusives that "validates their historical investment" in the Xbox platform and keeps them there.

Microsoft's major live-service multiplayer games, like Call of Duty, will continue to be multiplatform releases going forward, he said. Additionally, titles that were previously announced for non-Xbox platforms will still come to those platforms because of previously agreed-upon plans, Ball said.

The 25th anniversary Xbox console

The messaging from Microsoft around exclusives under the leadership of Xbox CEO Asha Sharma has been muddy, and Ball said Microsoft has more work to do to communicate its strategy around exclusives to fans and partners.

Also in the interview, Ball talked about the Xbox hardware business, pushing back against the idea that it's a dying market for Microsoft. "We have no desire to move away from the console business," he said.

"We are making an investment in our platform, the console platform that is going to be strengthened by these exclusives," he added.

Ball went on to acknowledge that certain Xbox exclusives will sell fewer units than they might otherwise if they were multiplatform, but that is a short-term issue, and making these changes will help Xbox's console business grow in the future, he claimed.

A Project Helix rethink

Microsoft is making these statements about Xbox and hardware during a time when the AI craze is driving up component prices so much that people are very worried about what the new console, Project Helix, might cost when it releases. "The crisis is not yet getting better," Ball said, admitting that he previously underestimated how bad things might get.

"The window in which we and others are gonna have to work through is getting longer, and that is going to constrain the category," he said.

Today, demand for Xbox consoles is outstripping supply, Ball said. "We are producing them as quickly as possible. These is a severe limitation to how quickly we can do that, but it's not a question of appetite," he said. "That is a prilvege as a company. It is a challenge for us to figure out."

How will this all impact Project Helix? Ball said, "We are working very hard to rethink everything that we can about Helix, which is a console we are committed to shipping."

"We are very cognizant of the ways in which we need the change as a company to make sure it is affordable, to make sure that it's flexible," he added. "We are working hard to rethinking what that console model can look like, not in an exclusionary way, but in an additive way, so that as we take a look at this crisis, which may have acute effects for 2-2.5 years."

"We are working very hard to figure out the best way to navigate it or a way that works for everyone, that does not ask too much from players, but also does detract from the other investments that we need to make as a country," he added. "We also have tens of millions of people who we ask to spend $500 which is still an incredible sum of money. Those people that we asked to buy a console years ago, we still have an obligation to them to meet their expectations and to have them feel rewarded for which platform they chose."

"Is it fixable?"

Also during the interview, Ball recalled his first conversations after joining Xbox and how Sharma asked him straight up about Xbox, "Is it fixable?"

Ball said he's a "strategic optimist" and believes it's "incredibly defeatist to think there is any scenario that you can't do better; that you can't improve."

"I joined because I believed I could contribute to that," he said. "I joined because of what she told me she wanted to achieve, I believed was right and achievable. And then I had conversations with [Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella] and others at the company to validate, where do you want to go? When do you wanna go? How are we gonna do this? Do you think we can do this? Do you want us to do that?"

"All of that bolstered my confidence from the original disposition of strategic optimism. If we can turn this company around and grow it, do better by our players, and we need to do that, and we are; we languished for several years."

Game Pass lost "millions" of subscribers after price hike

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Also during the talk, Ball discussed how Xbox Game Pass lost "millions" of subscribers in the period of a few months after the dramatic 50% price hike was announced in October 2025. Microsoft slashed the price of Game Pass Ultimate down to $23/month (from $30/month) after Sharma became Xbox CEO, but Ball said the price is still higher than where it was this time last year ($20/month). The value of the offering has now changed, he said, referring to how new Call of Duty titles are no longer included on day one, and the changes to Game Pass this year are so far "resonating" with users, he said.

So many game publishers are trying to get their titles out of the shadow of Grand Theft Auto 6, leading to a comically crowded September this year. But Atari isn't blinking, releasing--of all things--a collection of classic Barbie games exactly a week before Rockstar's behemoth.

Developed by Digital Eclipse, Barbie Rewind is a compilation of 16 Barbie games released between 1991 and 2007. It's out on November 12 on PC, PlayStation 4 and 5, Xbox One and Series X|S, and both Nintendo Switch platforms. Take-Two CEO Strauss Zelnick is presumably shaking in his boots.

The full list of included titles hasn't been revealed yet, but one of the announced games is the previously unreleased Barbie: Vacation Adventure, giving the collection a sort of Star Fox 2 moment.

https://youtu.be/Z1DFzLE90tA?si=L95XvX6cOBs2r_GL

Barbie Rewind isn't the only Atari release on GTA 6's month--the company is also putting out a remastered version of Godzilla: Destroy All Monsters Melee on all modern platforms on November 3, 16 days before GTA launches.

Remasters and retro compilations are relatively low-key releases compared to modern blockbuster games, so it's doubtful that Atari wants the attention that other big game companies fear losing to GTA 6. On the other hand, Barbie Rewind's close proximity to Rockstar's blockbuster makes for some hilarious counterprogramming, and it would be amusing to see fans and Atari itself try to capitalize on this, similar to the Barbenheimer phenomenon in 2023.

We know for certain that Devolver Digital plans to deliberately release a game on the same day as GTA 6, though such plans are unclear, other than the publisher still seems committed to this stunt. We'll see what it has to add to Grand Theft Barbie: Destroy All Monsters, or whatever people decide to call November.

The Not-E3 Guide To Summer Game Fest Showcases View Images

Hellblade and Senua developer, Ninja Theory, has revealed that it has cancelled Project Mara, its experimental photorealistic horror title that was revealed in 2020.

In an interview on Xbox Wire, Ninja Theory Studio Head Dom Matthews explained that Senua, the studio's third title in the series, requires all of the studio's effort, with Project Mara suffering as a result.

"I suspect some people might ask what’s happened to Project Mara [a previously announced horror title] – I took the decision to not work on that any further," Matthews explained. "These decisions are never easy, but I did so to take the opportunity to have all of the talent and expertise in the studio, all 85 creatives, working together to realize the potential of what Senua can be."

https://youtu.be/91LAY9B6lUc?si=jmjz_0Cu3823X3dt

When it was announced Project Mara was pitched as a revolutionary "real-world and grounded exploration of mental terror", that would be "a showcase of what could become a new storytelling medium.”

Senua, which was announced at the Xbox Showcase at Summer Game Fest, is a departure from the slow-paced Hellblade titles. Described as an "out-and-out action-adventure game" by Matthews, the title will still star Senua as she continues to battle her psychosis.

Sega's newly announced Crazy Taxi: World Tour game is among those made in part with generative AI, and now the franchise's original creator, Kenji Kanno, has defended his studio's use of the controversial technology.

He told Kotaku, via a translator, that the game's artists would use generative AI to generate ideas, and then they would "draw the actual thing."

"So actual creators, everything from programming to assets, everything is made by an actual human. It’s only used as a reference for them to look at and then they would actually create the actual thing that would go into the game," he said.

Kanno went on to say he anticipates that generative AI will become more of a "hot topic" in the future than it already is today in the gaming landscape.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fAWx3-pcZso

World Tour's use of generative AI was first discovered by way of the game's AI disclosure on Steam. It states that generative AI "support tools" were used during the game's development, and that, "No AI was used in reference to the performers in the game." The game's publisher, Sega, said it uses generative AI technologies as a "support tool" for developers with the aim of allowing them to "focus on more creative tasks."

A spokesperson for Sega told Game Informer that the developers used generative AI to create "background assets" in World Tour, and that AI assets were still reviewed by the development team.

Industry analyst Daniel Ahmad, who is the director of research and insights at Niko Partners for the Asia and MENA markets, said the use of genAI technologies is "more accepted" in Asian markets.

"They're going to see massive backlash in Western markets," Ahmad said of developers based in Asia.

He added: "The real question of course is whether there will be a material impact on sales." So far, Ahmad said he has not observed much evidence about a negative impact on sales for games where genAI use is disclosed. He cited examples like Clair Obscur: Expedition 33, Arc Raiders, and Call of Duty.

"But it does come down to how it's used," Ahmad said. He has also talked about how AI usage is very commonplace across the entire games industry.

World Tour is the first entry in the main, non-mobile game series since 2002's Crazy Taxi 3: High Roller. The Unreal Engine-made game has players racing around the world to hunt down the villains who stole the iconic yellow taxi. The game is set for release in 2027 on PC, PS5, Xbox Series X|S, and Switch 2.

For more, check out GameSpot's further coverage:

• Crazy Taxi Is Back And It's Coming With... Lore?

In 2024, developer Wrong Organ's first-person horror title Mouthwashing was an indie smash. Now, Wrong Organ's follow-up game, Carcass Clad, has been revealed, and aside from fitting into the horror genre, it appears to be a completely different experience. Instead of the struggle to survive of Mouthwashing, Carcass Clad will place players in control of a small crew controlling a tank in a war-torn city.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=K7g8F8_pkSI

This is a three-player co-op game that gives players the option of picking between the commander, Kanerva, the gunner, Erkki, and the driver, Taisto. Collectively, they control a small tank called the Yksiö, and each player is called upon to handle their station in order for the team to survive its trek through the hostile territory in the city called Vhorgorod.

The name of Carcass Clad comes from the bizarre way that enemy forces use the half-dead bodies of "divine livestock" as armor for their war machines. For now, it's not entirely clear how or why that makes them formidable foes.

While speaking to Game Informer, technical and tank designer Dave van Egdom indicated that most of the game will take place in the Yksiö. However, the team is considering options that may open up the city for further exploration.

"As of right now, players will spend most of their time inside the Yksiö," said van Egdom. "We are still exploring if there are moments in the game where the crew can leave the vehicle, though this is very subject to change."

Carcass Clad will be released on PC and it's currently available for wishlisting on Steam.

After years in the shadows, concerns cropped up over the weekend when Marvel's Blade wasn't featured in the Xbox Games Showcase. The superhero game from Arkane Lyon was originally announced in 2023, but barely anything has been revealed since then. That led to speculation the title was canceled. However, Giant Bomb's Jeff Grubb clarified that that's not the case on X. 

Grubb explained that he was speculating about the Blade game on a recent livestream, which led to online publications running stories about the Marvel title possibly getting canned. "Sounds like there are reasons we haven't seen it, but those reasons are not because there are problems with the game. Not dead," said Grubb.

https://twitter.com/JeffGrubb/status/2063975206289621373

Blade is a third-person action game set in Paris. When Arkane revealed the title at The Game Awards in 2023, studio director Dinga Bakaba let people know on social media that they wouldn't discuss Blade for a while. That said, it's understandable people might have expected just a few nuggets of news over a two-and-a-half-year timeframe. 

There was concept art shared shortly after Blade was first introduced to the world. The images teased vampires taking over the French capital, with only the Daywalker standing in their way. 

While Blade didn't show up at the Xbox Games Showcase, Halo: Campaign Evolved, Gears of War: E-Day, and Fable all did--with each getting release dates within the next nine months. In fact, Gears of War: E-Day will be an Xbox console exclusive. 

Announced, Delayed, Disappeared: The Games Still In Limbo View Images

Amazon Games has been trying to make a The Lord of the Rings game for years, but nothing has materialized. The company isn't giving up, but it's still early days for what it might do with a Middle-earth game.

Amazon was working on two different versions of a The Lord of the Rings MMO, but neither panned out. Amazon Games boss Jeff Gattis told IGN, that, "The true answer is we're still looking at a number of different things."

He admitted this is "not the most satisfying answer," but it's where the company is at currently.

"I looked at a project a couple of weeks ago that I thought was quite compelling that perhaps we can go forward with. But evaluating different concepts is trying to figure out what game we want to make, what's the right one for our audience, what's the right one for the broader audience. And my hope is that we'll get there," he said.

A scene from The Two Towers

One of Amazon's planned The Lord of the Rings MMOs was being made in partnership with the Chinese company Leyou. When that company got acquired by Tencent, the deal for the game fell apart. Amazon later made a deal with The Lord of the Rings rights-owner Embracer for another MMO, but this game didn't get off the ground either.

In May this year, Gattis said Amazon remained intent on finding a "compelling new game experience that does justice to Tolkien's world."

It remains to be seen what that could be. While Amazon's plans for a The Lord of the Rings MMO are still up in the air, another company, Warhorse Studios, recently announced plans to make a "deeply immersive" Middle-earth open-world game. Tomb Raider studio Crystal Dynamics is said to be working on a new The Lord of the Rings game as well.

Amazon has not had a ton of ongoing success in the gaming world, but Gattis said the company is not giving up.

"We've got a ton in development right now. We almost just wish this stuff could come faster so that I could have proof points to tell you instead of just saying, ‘Trust me, we've got stuff coming.' But all in due time," he explained, adding that Amazon in general remains "committed" to the AAA space.

Amazon might not have a The Lord of the Rings game yet, but the company is behind the TV series The Rings of Power, which comes back for its third season this November. Amazon is also behind the upcoming Tomb Raider: Legacy of Atlantis and Tomb Raider: Catalyst games coming in 2027, as the publisher.

What's more, Amazon will take over from IO as the publisher of the next James Bond game, should one be made.

The Super Mario Galaxy Movie continues to soar at the box office, despite already being available to watch at home, and now it's crossed a major milestone. The animated movie from Illumination, Universal, and Nintendo has exceeded $1 billion worldwide.

It's made $429 million from North America and $571.5 million from international markets for a global total of just over $1 billion. The movie was released on April 1 and is now the first movie in 2026 to pass $1 billion.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GuCejewteF8

The next closest to The Super Mario Galaxy Movie is the Michael Jackson film Michael, which has earned $888 million globally. Rounding out the top five highest-grossing movies worldwide this year are Project Hail Mary ($680 million), The Devil Wears Prada 2 ($664 million), and Pegasus 3 ($656 million).

2023's The Super Mario Bros. Movie made over $1 billion as well, ending its run with $1.36 billion globally and ranking as the No. 2 movie worldwide that year, only trailing Barbie ($1.44 billion). The Super Mario Bros. Movie is the highest-grossing video game movie of all time, followed by The Super Mario Galaxy Movie at No. 2 and A Minecraft Movie at No. 3.

The Super Mario Galaxy Movie is expected to be among the highest-grossing movies of 2026, but some are expecting Toy Story 5 (June 19) to surpass it. Toy Story 3 and Toy Story 4 passed $1 billion, and expectations are sky high for Toy Story 5, especially after it was confirmed that Taylor Swift wrote a new song for it, no doubt inspiring her legions of fans to go see it.

Other movies for 2026 that are expected to put up gigantic numbers at the box office include Minions & Monsters, the live-action Moana, The Odyssey, Spider-Man: Brand New Day, Avengers: Doomsday, and Dune 3.

Given the huge success of The Super Mario Bros. Movie and The Super Mario Galaxy Movie, it's expected Nintendo and Universal will make another animated movie--and it could arrive in 2029. Beyond animated movies, Nintendo partnered with Sony on a live-action The Legend of Zelda movie that's coming in April 2027. Nintendo is pushing so heavily into filmmaking in part because there are only so many people the company can reach through games.

While you can still go see The Super Mario Galaxy Movie in theaters, you can also now buy and rent it at home digitally, or preorder the physical version on Blu-ray.

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Rent The Super Mario Galaxy Movie at Amazon

The Super Mario Galaxy Movie will eventually be available on a subscription streaming platform, and it should be Peacock given that Universal owns it. A streaming date hasn't been announced yet, but it could come in August if the precedent set with 2023's The Super Mario Bros. Movie holds. That movie was released theatrically in April, came to PVOD in May, and then arrived on Peacock in August.

The NES, SNES, and Game Boy Nintendo Switch Online apps all received mysterious updates (to versions 9.0.0, 6.0.0, and 4.0.0, respectively), and a prolific dataminer has claimed that these patches are meant to add challenges.

These challenges aren't accessible yet, but according to LuigiBlood on Bluesky (as spotted by Nintendo Everything), they will be similar to what players saw in the 2013 Wii U game NES Remix.

https://bsky.app/profile/luigiblood.bsky.social/post/3mnr4xhpypc2w

For the many who skipped out on the Wii U, NES Remix contained quick excerpts of classic NES games, challenging players to complete parts of titles like Super Mario Bros. or The Legend of Zelda with specific objectives or constraints.

NES Remix also contained more outlandish "remixes" of classic games (e.g., completing a level of Donkey Kong as Link), but LuigiBlood doesn't believe that the Nintendo Switch Online challenges will have anything of the sort.

As of now, there are 84 NES games, 77 SNES games, and 43 Game Boy games on the NSO service in the North American and PAL regions. According to LuigiBlood, these challenges will only be for specific games and will be accessible through the NSO app on the Switch home menu. Any possible rewards that would come with these challenges are unknown at this point.

An announcement of such a feature for Nintendo Classics would be perfectly suited for a Nintendo Direct, and it just so happens that the company confirmed that a presentation will stream on Tuesday, June 9.

Every NES And SNES Game On Nintendo Switch Online View Images