After last night's excellent Xbox Games Showcase , the head of Microsoft Games and Xbox Phil Spencer spoke in an interview with IGN's Ryan McCaffrey , during which he unbuttoned both the games shown and some focal points of Xbox's future.

In general, Spencer further hinted that Xbox is no longer seen by Microsoft as a competitor to PlayStation, but rather as an alternative, on a par with Nintendo Switch, reiterating the importance of having dedicated hardware but also the value of opening up to new players on other platforms. Here are some of the statements made during the debate.

• Gears of War E-Day: "This was an opportunity to go back to the origin story. For those who remember the 360 commercial, how iconic was "Mad World"? We've stayed true to the story of Gears."
• Doom Dark Ages on PS5: "Doom is definitely one of those franchises that has a history on so many platforms. It's a franchise that I think everyone deserves to play."
• Studio closure: "Closing any team is difficult... Now it's time to focus on the teams and individuals, because it's obviously very difficult for them. I've said many times that I have to make tough decisions to run a sustainable business."
• Activision Blizzard and Xbox: "The thing I'm starting to see that I really like is the organic collaboration between our teams."
• Microsoft Management Influence/Interference: "We are given a lot of leeway to manage and grow our business. But the challenge we set ourselves is to try new things... When I announced Game Pass, people said we were teaching people that games are free."
• Xbox strategy today: "From the beginning, we've said that when everyone plays, everyone wins. If you try to frame this industry through the lens of those who have sold consoles to date, Xbox is doing something different. It's about creators and players and amazing games coming to them."
• Xbox portable: "I don't want to say anything, but the future of hardware for us is really great. Today we talked about games, but there will be a time when we will also talk about platforms. AndI think the ability to play locally is very important."