In what can best be described as a shocking turn of events we have learned that Robbie Bach will be leaving Microsoft. Bach and the recently departed J Allard have been two of the most public faces of the company’s Entertainment and Devices division that is responsible for Xbox as well as the Zune products.

The decision seems to be related to the fact that Bach did not want to commit the time necessary to help chart the course of the Xbox beyond the release of Project Natal. Whispers that we hear estimate that the commitment could be as long as another three or four years. It is believed that Microsoft intends to ship a new console in 2012, but apparently has already starting getting its ducks in a row, so to speak to do so.

Bach will instead be in an advisory role to CEO Steve Ballmer, but it is unclear how this arrangement will work. Bach will devote much time to the charitable works that he does for the Boys and Girls Club of America. Sources tell us that at least for right now, Bach has no plans to undertake a new position or to start a new project.

The loss of this talent could mean that the Xbox platform in general could be headed in some new directions as leadership inside Microsoft changes. We suspect things will be different, but it is hard to even speculate how it will be different yet.