Xbox boss was convinced Series X would beat the PlayStation 5, oops

What’s more, private emails were also leaked revealing conversations with Xbox chief Phil Spencer. In the emails, we even learned about Spencer’s desire to purchase Nintendo as Microsoft has with Bethesda's parent company ZeniMax Media and Activision Blizzard. Obviously, at least at the time of writing, Microsoft has not acquired Nintendo and I think most of us would be surprised if that ever happened, but never say never.

The leaks are via Microsoft’s recent court battle with the US market regulator, the FTC, a court battle which Microsoft won in its pursuit to successfully acquire Activision Blizzard. The aforementioned emails from Phil Spencer also revealed his opinions on the PlayStation 5 and how Xbox would beat Sony’s latest gaming machine. Unfortunately, it’s fair to say that the email hasn't aged all that well.

A section of the email which was dated 18 March 2020, roughly eight months prior to the release of both the PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X|S, read: “We have a better product than Sony does, not just on hardware but equally important on the software platform and service on top of the hardware. We have the ingredients of a winning plan.” However, Spencer continued in the email to say that Microsoft has not “won anything” yet.

It’s no secret that during this console generation, PlayStation 5 has led the way when it comes to overall quality and quantity of exclusives. Even by Microsoft’s own admission, it admits that too.

That being said, in recent years Microsoft has acquired some fantastic studios, not only those associated with Bethesda and Activision but also the likes of Ninja Theory, Obsidian Entertainment, Double Fine and much more. As they say, it’s a marathon, not a race and if there’s something we can all perhaps agree on, it’s a great generation to be a gamer, no matter what your platform preference may be.

In other news related to the FTC documents leak, Xbox plans to release a new console in 2024 with a wild new design, a Fallout 3 remaster is apparently on the way, and Microsoft has plans to release a new controller inspired by the DualSense.