Adam Orth leaves Microsoft as "always on" conversation takes toll
Ex-Game Director thought to have resigned after Twitter exchange
Adam Orth has left Microsoft, say reports - a move which is being interpreted as a direct result of his comments about an "always on" requirement for the next Xbox.
Speaking to an anonymous source, but confirming it with Microsoft subsequently, GameInformer is reporting that it is unsure as to whether Orth offered his resignation voluntarily.
The Ex-Microsoft Game Director became the subject of a number of news stories, as well as a lot of public attention, last week after having an apparently facetious, but very public, conversation about the necessity of a constant internet connection for the new Microsoft Console.
In a Twitter exchange with Bioware designer Manveer Heir, Orth had posted about not understanding why people would have a problem with "always on" before proceeding to joke about people who did and the remote locations they may live in. He has since locked his Twitter account and closed his Linked In page, apparently due to threats he was receiving from the public.
Despite claiming that the whole exchange was a passage of jokes designed to troll Heir, who is a close friend of Orth, the conversation lead Microsoft to issue a formal apology.
Whilst that apology distanced Microsoft from the jibes which Orth directed towards rural customers, it didn't openly deny the concept of a necessity for "always on", leading to a further swirl of rumour and speculation.
Microsoft was contacted for further comment on both sides of the issue but has stated that it will not be commenting further on the issue.