Microsoft has responded to claims that the company will soon stop selling Xbox consoles in Saudi Arabia, suggesting that no major changes are on the way.
Rumors that the gaming giant would soon pull out of the area began to swirl earlier today following information shared by TrueGaming co-founder Mohammed Albsimi. In a post on X/Twitter, he said that Microsoft had already made retailers aware that it would soon stop selling Xbox devices in Saudi Arabia. The move would have seen distributors without access to Xbox consoles, signaling a potentially huge shift for the company.
Xbox chief consumer sales officer Ami Silverman provided IGN with a statement on the matter, explaining that Xbox devices remain available in Saudi Arabia. You can see the statement in full below.
“Xbox devices are available in all current Xbox hardware supported countries, including Saudi Arabia,” Silverman’s said. “Console availability may vary by country but Xbox games can be played on consoles, PCs, and on phones, tablets or TVs where Xbox Cloud Gaming is available. Players can visit xbox.com/regions to learn more about how to play with Xbox.”
While the statement suggests no new plans are in place, Microsoft’s gaming endeavors have seen a number of major shakeups in the last year alone. This includes widespread layoffs, which affected 1,900 staff in January and another 650 staff just last month. In May, the company announced plans to shut down Redfall developer Arkane Austin and Hi-Fi Rush developer Tango Gameworks (the latter was eventually saved by PUBG publisher Krafton). While the foundation of Xbox moves underneath its feet, Microsoft has pushed for other major changes to its gaming strategy, including bringing some exclusive titles to other platforms like PlayStation 5.
Still, Microsoft seems uninterested in pulling Xbox consoles out of Saudi Arabia for now. For more on Microsoft’s future, you can check out a recent change to the Halo franchise that will see all future titles created in Unreal Engine as series developer 343 Industries morphs into Halo Studios. You can also learn more about the upcoming updated Xbox Series X | S models, which go on sale October 15, 2024.
Michael Cripe is a freelance contributor with IGN. He started writing in the industry in 2017 and is best known for his work at outlets such as The Pitch, The Escapist, OnlySP, and Gameranx.
Be sure to give him a follow on Twitter @MikeCripe.
