The ‘Return of Xbox’: Why Microsoft is Dropping its Corporate Gaming Name

According to a report from The Verge, Xbox CEO Asha Sharma has officially begun dismantling the Microsoft Gaming corporate brand, announcing during an internal town hall that the division will return to its original Xbox identity.

Sources familiar with the meeting shared that Sharma is prioritizing a “return of Xbox” to correct previous strategic missteps. “Xbox needs to be our identity,” Sharma reportedly told employees, noting that the broader Microsoft Gaming title (which was originally adopted in 2022 during the Activision Blizzard acquisition) represented a departure from that core focus.

The shift is visible on the walls of Microsoft’s campus this week, where new slogans like “Return of Xbox” and “Great Games” have replaced corporate messaging. This move coincides with Sharma’s recent high-profile decisions, including an Xbox Game Pass price cut and the reversal of a plan to add future Call of Duty titles to the service, a move The Verge notes had been fiercely debated internally.

Adding to the rebranding effort, a new Xbox logo has started appearing at Microsoft’s headquarters ahead of the June showcase. Moving away from the current flat design, the updated logo features glass effects and is reportedly being used in internal materials for the ongoing Project Helix.