English
Gamereactor
news

Former Xbox boss: we encouraged the console war

Peter Moore says the rivalry with Sony made Microsoft outdo itself with the launch of the Xbox 360.

Subscribe to our newsletter here!

* Required field
HQ

English businessman Peter Moore has had a long career, mainly in the world of games, including at Sega, Microsoft and EA. Between 2017 and 2020, however, he was CEO of Liverpool Football Club, and it was in that context that he was recently interviewed by Front Office Sports.

But it was still gaming that was the focus, writes IGN, and particularly Moore's time at Xbox between 2003 and 2007. At the time, the rhetoric between Microsoft and Sony was much harsher than it is today when it came to the so-called console war, and according to Moore, it was a rivalry that they were actively trying to encourage:

"We encouraged the console wars, not to create division, but to challenge each other. And when I say each other, I mean Microsoft and Sony. If Microsoft hadn't of stuck the course after the Xbox, after the Red Rings of Death, gaming would be a poorer place for it, you wouldn't have the competition you have today."

Moore also talks about how with the Xbox 360, Microsoft aggressively went for "first to ten million" sales to get the console race going. A mission that succeeded in part thanks to an earlier launch than PlayStation 3, aggressive marketing and more popular exclusive titles.

Former Xbox boss: we encouraged the console war


Loading next content