An upcoming Xbox crossover with Fanta was recently revealed, featuring the Halo, Call of Duty, World of Warcraft, and Diablo franchises. This year is Xbox’s 25th anniversary, and this Fanta collaboration is one of the ways the brand is reportedly planning to celebrate the occasion.
The original Xbox console was released on November 15, 2001, ushering Microsoft into the video game market. A lot has happened since then, with the brand responsible for some of the most iconic characters in gaming, including the Master Chief. While there has been some controversy along the way, Xbox has released four generations of home consoles. Now, it is looking to celebrate a quarter-century of existence through a new crossover.
Microsoft Reveals More Details on Next-Generation Xbox Console “Project Helix”
At the Game Developers Conference, the Xbox VP of Next-Gen reveals a few technical details regarding the upcoming PC-Xbox hybrid.
Xbox is Reportedly Crossing Over With Fanta to Celebrate Its 25th Anniversary
This new Xbox collaboration is with the fruit-flavored soft drink brand Fanta. As reported by Rebs Gaming on social media, 25th anniversary banners were spotted at a grocery store in Canada by employees. These seemingly suggest that the promotion could happen sooner rather than later. However, no official date for the release of the crossover has been announced, so fans will have to wait for more details.
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That being said, the images shared by Rebs Gaming revealed a look at the franchises associated with the crossover. Specifically, there are products featuring Halo, Call of Duty, World of Warcraft, and Diablo, with each one featuring a character from their respective franchise. Notably, some fans picked up on the labeling for the Call of Duty cans, as they featured Ghost, an iconic character from the Modern Warfare series. Some fans took this to mean that Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 4 could be coming in 2026. This led to the official Call of Duty account responding on Twitter, noting that the packaging featured “Ghost in his Modern Warfare 2 look.” While this suggests the inclusion of Ghost in the Fanta crossover was not a tease for a new Call of Duty: Modern Warfare game, the developer left the door open for hopeful fans. “Clearly there’s a lot of excitement around this one… and there’s plenty more coming,” the statement read.
While it remains to be seen what the rest of the year holds for the Call of Duty franchise, Xbox already has some big games on the horizon. As featured in the upcoming Fanta promotion, the Master Chief is set to return in Halo: Campaign Evolved, which is a remake of the single-player component of the classic first-person shooter that launched in 2001. Some other games launching this year from Xbox studios include Forza Horizon 6 and a new Fable game.
Big Changes Have Happened at Xbox
It is worth noting that the Xbox brand’s 25th anniversary comes as major changes have happened regarding its leadership. Specifically, Phil Spencer announced his retirement from his role as Microsoft Gaming CEO. Asha Sharma has now stepped into the position, having previously been the President of Core AI Product at Microsoft. In addition to Sharma becoming CEO, Matt Booty was promoted to Chief Content Officer. While there has been notable trepidation from the Xbox community following the leadership changes, Sharma and Booty have claimed they are committed to listening to the “core Xbox fans and players.”
It will be interesting to see how these leadership changes could impact the company as it celebrates its 25th anniversary. Hopefully, there will be more surprises related to the brand’s anniversary in the coming weeks. At the very least, fans should have some Xbox-themed Fanta drinks to look forward to.
