Xbox is "much more central" to Microsoft than ever before, CEO says

Xbox's place inside Microsoft has changed over the years, according to a new interview with the corporation's big boss.

Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella recently took part in a live interview on stage at the Code Conference in Beverly Hills, where he spoke about his tenure as leader of the company - from taking over leadership as a longtime employee in 2014 all the way up through almost buying TikTok through the intervention of the US government, according to live tweets from The Verge editor-in-chief Nilay Patel.

At one point in the interview, Nadella explained that "Xbox was part of Microsoft but it was out on the side - and now it’s much more central." He then specified that Xbox is built on Microsoft's core cloud technologies, which speaks to how important the CEO sees services such as Xbox Live and Xbox Cloud Gaming to Microsoft's gaming brand - and, in turn, how important it is to Microsoft to use these services as part of its overall push into the cloud.

Xbox boss Phil Spencer has previously made it clear that he wants an Xbox app on as many devices as possible, and that's only going to be possible through the power of Microsoft's cloud services (unless smart TVs start packing in Xbox Velocity Architecture some time soon). Spencer also plays a ton of Destiny 2, so he clearly has a vested interest in making sure he can keep up with the grind wherever his corporate travels take him.

If you'd be fully on board with Microsoft's vision of gaming if you could just manage to buy their newest console, make sure you bookmark our guide to Xbox Series X restocks.