Xbox Continues FanFest Celebration Despite Departure of Its Creator

In March, Xbox CEO Asha Sharma revealed that Xbox FanFest, a concept brought to life by Chris “Xbox FanFest Guy” Munson, would be making a comeback later this year. However, in July, Sharma announced a significant restructuring that would see 3,200 Xbox employees lose their jobs, including Munson himself.

Despite this shake-up, the company is moving forward with Xbox FanFest as planned. On August 3, a new blog post titled “Celebrating 25 Years of Play” was published, detailing six new tour dates for Xbox FanFest in 2026 across various countries.

“The Xbox FanFest Tour is a global, multi-city series of fan-focused events centered around connection, local community, and the games we cherish,” the post states, listing stops in Tokyo, London, Mexico City, Sydney, and Toronto. “We kicked things off in Los Angeles at the Xbox Games Showcase, mentioned our next stop at Gamescom, and today we’re sharing the rest of the tour locations.”

The announcement of the 2026 FanFest Tour dates is exciting for fans.

Asha Sharma had previously emphasized the importance of Xbox FanFest to the community, stating that the event would return to LA to honor the players who have supported Xbox over the years. However, this sentiment feels somewhat diminished now, as many key contributors to the community, including Munson, will be absent due to the recent layoffs.

For those still eager to “celebrate the joy of play” despite the recent changes, there’s an opportunity to enter a sweepstakes for a chance to win a ticket. You might even snag one of those coveted 25th anniversary translucent green Xbox Series X consoles that were given away last time. But with the price of an Xbox Series X now exceeding $900 in the UK and Europe, perhaps this time around, they’ll be handing out controllers instead.