Laura Fryer Blasts Microsoft: Greed Over Games Amid Game Pass Price Hike

Laura Fryer, one of the co-creators of Xbox, recently shared a video on her YouTube channel in which she candidly discusses the current state of the platform and the rising prices of Game Pass.

In the video, Fryer expresses her dissatisfaction and sharply criticizes the leadership at Microsoft for being in a «bubble» and overlooking the feedback from gamers. She describes a recent video announcing the price increase as «insensitive,» stating that the hike in Game Pass fees—following the announcement of $5 billion in service revenue—feels like a betrayal to fans.

Fryer emphasizes that Xbox has lost its core values, which include exclusive titles from internal studios that shape the platform’s identity, as well as genuine partnerships with developers.

Furthermore, she notes that the brand is losing its meaning, saying, «The phrase ‘This is Xbox’ undermines the entire brand that has been built over the years. Originally, it was meant to convey a message for everyone, but now the brand feels hollow; if everything is Xbox, then, in fact, nothing is really Xbox.»

Fryer believes that the current management either does not understand gamers and developers or is simply experimenting without a clear vision. In her view, the shift towards cloud services and Game Pass may make sense from a business perspective, but it also signifies a lack of understanding of what makes the platform unique.