LONDON — Xbox chief executive Asha Sharma says the company must be “thinking about” affordability as it plans its next-generation console, with hardware costs climbing across the gaming industry. She said the pressure is being driven in part by heavy spending on artificial intelligence, which is pushing up the price of key components.

Sharma said the industry is facing a “crisis” in computing prices and that firms need to find ways to keep gaming within reach of players. She also said Xbox wants to give people more choice over how they buy and play games, including a new system that could let owners of physical discs obtain digital versions of supported titles.

The comments come as console makers grapple with higher costs years after launch, alongside ongoing debate over whether physical games still have a long-term future.

Xbox plans digital entitlements for 1,000 disc games

Sharma said Xbox is preparing to offer digital entitlements for 1,000 games that players already own on disc. The feature would allow customers to insert a supported physical game into an Xbox console and gain access to a digital version of that title.

According to Sharma, if the disc were later sold second-hand, the digital rights would transfer to the new owner. That would preserve one of the key advantages of physical media, which is the ability to buy and resell games on the second-hand market.

She said players like having a choice between discs and downloads. Digital games are already available for purchase online and can be played on Xbox consoles or PCs, but many gamers still prefer discs for their flexibility and resale value.

Sharma also hinted that the system could help players carry older titles forward on future Xbox hardware without needing to keep a disc in the drive.

Future Xbox hardware may focus on efficiency and value

Sharma would not say whether Xbox’s next console, currently known internally as Project Helix, will include a disc drive. She said the next generation would need to balance performance with efficiency and affordability.

That means looking closely at storage, memory, component choices and the price per unit, she said. Xbox is part of Microsoft, one of the technology groups investing heavily in AI infrastructure, and that spending is helping to push up component prices across the market.

Sharma described the situation as “Rampocalypse”, reflecting how sharply some hardware costs have risen. For the first time in gaming history, consoles across the board have seen price rises years after launch.

Xbox previously raised the price of its Series X console by £170, citing rising memory chip costs. Sharma said the wider industry now has to innovate on affordability and efficiency rather than treating lower prices as a given.

New boss faces long reset after Xbox underperformance

Sharma has led Xbox for six months after moving from Microsoft’s AI division. She has previously said the business needed “the most significant restructure in Xbox history” after years of underperformance.

She said the reset is intended to help ensure Xbox remains viable for the next 25 years and continues to serve players as gaming habits change. But she acknowledged the process has been difficult, and that some workers were stunned by the job cuts that followed.

Sharma said Xbox has not been healthy and that the next few years will be challenging. Even so, she argued the long-term outlook remains strong, saying gaming could become the most important form of entertainment for the next century.

Her comments suggest Xbox is trying to rebuild around a younger audience, new technology and a hardware market that is becoming more expensive to serve.

Physical games remain in the debate as Sony and GTA VI move further towards digital

The future of discs has become a wider industry argument. Sharma said she understands why players value physical media, but also sees clear benefits in digital ownership and wants both options to remain available.

That debate has sharpened after Sony announced new PlayStation games will no longer be released on discs from January 2028. Rockstar’s much-anticipated Grand Theft Auto VI is also due to launch without a physical disc.

For many players, discs still matter because they can be traded, sold or kept in a collection. Digital-only plans remove those options, even if they can make game libraries easier to manage.

Xbox’s new entitlement system appears designed to bridge that divide by linking physical ownership with digital access, while still leaving open questions about how future consoles will handle discs at all.

The latest UK news and stories from MCFC Report.