This just in: Phil Spencer may be storing weapons of mass destruction—in Fallout 76

 Phil Spencer giving a talk on stage, wearing a t-shirt with an 'X' on it.
Phil Spencer giving a talk on stage, wearing a t-shirt with an 'X' on it.

Last week, Microsoft closed four studios, including Arkane Austin and Tango Gameworks, the developers behind Dishonored and Hi-Fi Rush, respectively. Amid a general backlash from players, one fan seemingly took matters into their own hands and decided to nuke Microsoft Gaming CEO Phil Spencer's Fallout 76 settlement, but oh, how the tables have turned.

Eagled-eyed players have now spotted that a few days after Spencer's settlement was destroyed, he secured the achievement 'Officer on Deck' in Fallout 76, which allows players to finally start acquiring and using nukes: "It looks like Phil is preparing to launch a retaliatory nuke against players for nuking his camp," the player who spotted the achievement says in a Twitter post.

To gain the achievement Officer on Deck, players must complete 10 activities outlined by MODUS and acquire 10 promotional commendations. The quickest way to do this is to defeat Scorchbeasts, which you can find in the Cranberry Bog southeast of Survey Camp Alpha. Completing this quest isn't easy, as it needs some solid preparation, high-level weapons, and at least a few hours of commitment, but at this stage in Fallout 76, it's pretty common for high-level players to have this capability.

If someone does decide to use a nuke in your server, you'll hear an alarm go off and listen as the game announces who launched the nuke. At this point, it's best to check the map quickly to make sure it's not heading for your camp or location. If it is, you can always avoid the blast by activating your other camp (if you have one). But Spencer was probably busy with something else, considering his camp got wrecked.

We may be hearing a lot more sirens now Spencer has got ahold of nukes, but instead of enacting revenge, he may need to just private his account as it's way too easy for people to track his gaming movements.

One player even pointed out in a Reddit thread that Spencer has "a Logitech G Cloud and ROG Ally, and he used to play on his Surface X via xCloud a lot waiting at airports. He also played Destiny 2 with the head of Bungie every month during Covid-19." Most players can see what Spencer does as his Xbox account P3 is public, and it's widely known that it's his gamertag. A lot of people have stories of playing Destiny with Spencer or running into him while exploring Fallout 76.

While this openness had garnered Spencer a lot of good will, with many lauding him as a gamer who has stayed true to his roots. The lack of privacy probably means that more nukes will be on the way. Theoretically you could even track his account activity to ensure you attack while he's not around so he wouldn't know who to retaliate against. But let me be clear: That's not advice, I'm just pointing it out.