Xbox Avatar Editor App Will Shut Down in January 2025

Microsoft has quietly announced that it’s discontinuing its Xbox Avatar Editor app that’s currently available on Xbox consoles and Windows PCs. The app will stop working on January 9, 2025, and Microsoft will be refunding all Xbox Avatar purchases from November 1, 2023 through January 9, 2025 after the app becomes unavailable.

“Due to low engagement and our shift in focus towards delivering other player experiences, the Xbox Avatar Editor app will no longer be available starting on January 9, 2025,” the company explained in an FAQ. “Players can still personalize their gaming experience with dynamic backgrounds and profile colors on Xbox consoles, and with Xbox Original Avatars, profile themes, and gamerpics on Xbox consoles and PCs.”

Following a teaser trailer shown at E3 2017, Microsoft launched its redesigned Xbox Avatars in 2018. Compared to the Xbox Avatars from the Xbox 360 era, the new system offered a broader choice of body types, skin tone, hair, wearables, and props, with support for over 16 million color options.

These new Xbox Avatars never got the same level of momentum as Xbox 360 Avatars, which were integrated in some Xbox 360 games such as Doritos Crash Course, Joy Ride Turbo, or 1 vs. 100. These Xbox 360 avatars, which Microsoft calls the “Xbox Original Avatars,” won’t be going away. “These will continue to work in supported Xbox 360 games, and you will still be able to edit your Xbox Original Avatars inside the Xbox Original Avatars app on Xbox consoles and Windows devices,” the company explained.

Xbox Avatars used to be a core feature of the Xbox social experience during the Xbox 360 era, but it looks like Microsoft lost the plot during the following console generation. The Xbox One replaced the existing Friends system on the Xbox 360 with an asymetric Following/Followers system, but Microsoft recently felt the need to bring back Friends requests to the social experience on Xbox One and Xbox Series X|S.

It wouldn’t be surprising if Xbox Live Clubs and Looking for Group, two other social features introduced during the Xbox One era not getting a lot of use these days. These features never came to the Xbox app for Windows and the Xbox mobile apps, and they could well be next on the chopping block. Most gamers now use Discord to connect, and Microsoft seems to understand that as it’s continuing to integrate Discord social features into the Xbox OS.