The future of Xbox gaming will be "cloud centric" rather than "device centric", a top executive from Microsoft's Interactive Entertainment Business has said.
Speaking at an event in London attended by CVG, corporate vice president Phil Harrison said that Windows 8 has helped expand the Xbox experience beyond the living room.
He said there’s been an increase in the use of Xbox services on supported platforms like PCs, laptops, tablets and smartphones, and suggested that the future of the brand will be games that are accessible on multiple devices.
Harrison commented: "Increasingly, the games are going to sit on the cloud. Instead of being device centric, they will be cloud centric.
"This vision is what influenced me to join Microsoft in the first place.”
At the same event, Harrison also revealed the focus of new UK-based Microsoft studio Lift London, which was first announced last September.
Led by former Rare production director Lee Schuneman, it will create content for tablets and cloud services.
Lift London will also serve as a talent incubator that nurtures smaller studios, starting with DLaLa, a small independent outfit which has signed a commercial agreement with Microsoft.
Harrison said of Lift London: "I want to create from scratch a 21st century studio. Not a studio that would make retail products, a studio that would make games for the cloud.
"The shift is from packaged goods to connected products. We will continue to support retail with our products for sure, but we are going to keep creating features that are enhanced and improved by the network."
