Like the X that adorns its logo, Xbox always seems to be at a crossroads. Speculation about the future of this platform has always been around throughout 2024, and possibly for years before that, but the talk has ramped up recently after Microsoft decided not to give the Xbox Series X|S a mid-gen refresh. Sony’s PS5 Pro will occupy that corner, and it doesn’t seem like Microsoft is interested in losing more console market share to Sony.
According to a report published by Windows Central, Microsoft is instead focusing on its next-generation hardware plans. There are tentative release dates associated with these plans. November 15, 2026 marks the 25th anniversary of Xbox and its flagship IP Halo. But this is purely speculation. 2026 is a few years ahead of when the next generation is expected to launch. That said, it would be an interesting time for Microsoft to launch a new console, considering we’re only two years into the PS5 Pro’s lifecycle. Perhaps the title of the world’s most powerful console will return to Microsoft when the Xbox 6 launches. Sony is hoping to attract Xbox players to PlayStation amid a lack of an Xbox Series X Pro equivalent.
Would two short years be worth it to step away from the Xbox gaming ecosystem and play on the most technologically advanced console? If you don’t have enough money to own both, you’ll probably want to stick with the Xbox. Of course, these speculations are expecting Microsoft to reveal something concrete on its next console, possibly by the end of the year. But we’re getting a little ahead of ourselves. What the Windows Central report tentatively reveals is that Microsoft will continue its two-pronged approach for the next generation of Xbox hardware.
The console is expected to follow the Xbox Series If true, it would make a lot more sense than the two-tier console systems we currently have in operation. That’s because some developers decided to release their games with poor performance in order to make them work on both the powerful Series X and the less technically sound Series S.
The handheld gaming market is growing and is expected to be worth more than $25 billion by 2031. Nintendo’s Switch 2 will drive this growth from a console perspective. Sony’s PS5 Portal may contribute, but this is not a handheld that serves as a replacement for owning a console. It’s basically self-evident that Microsoft would capitalize on this growing market with the next-generation Xbox, but looking at the financial results for the quarter ending June 30, 2024, these rumors about the handheld add weight. Xbox content and services revenue increased 61% and gaming revenue increased 44%. This impressive rise is largely due to Microsoft’s acquisition of Activision Blizzard and licensing its IP to cross-media properties such as Fallout and the Halo TV show. According to Phil Spencer, the result is that Xbox has more players than ever before, and these numbers back up his claim.
What’s notable about these numbers is that Xbox hardware sales are down 42% year over year. This makes sense, considering Microsoft has undermined the importance of owning one of its own consoles. Sales expansion consists of PC, mobile, and PlayStation, with Xbox lagging behind. This raises the question of why they would buy another console. Why not go all in on a handheld? Perhaps their strategy will shift towards forcing Xbox players to own a console, handheld, or both in the next generation.
Xbox president Sarah Bond promised “the biggest technological leap we’ve seen in a generation” in the next generation of Xbox hardware. When broken down simply, this probably means the most technologically powerful console ever released, far surpassing the performance differences seen in previous generations. However, this could also indicate plans to bridge the gap between Xbox and Windows more closely. It’s well known that Microsoft Gaming CEO Phil Spencer wants to bring digital storefronts like Steam, the Epic Games Store, and even niche platforms like itch.io to Xbox. If this wish comes true, the next-gen Xbox and rumored handhelds will have to work like PCs. We need to introduce widely used APIs and drivers on Windows to make our games available on opposite storefronts. They need to eradicate porting and manufacture hardware with the ability to deliver games on two different systems.
It’s tricky to know what exactly Microsoft is going for here. Of course, being able to access your Steam or GOG library from your Xbox is a nice selling point. And given that Microsoft has begun handing over games that were previously exclusive to the platform to Sony, will the Japanese giant do the same by allowing Xbox players to play PlayStation games ported to PC on Xbox? But the question is, don’t PC players who already use that platform to purchase games already have a PC or another device? Would it be too much of a risk to develop for Xbox for gamers who don’t currently have a device with access to Steam or something like that? Is there anything else the next-gen Xbox can offer to convince players to shell out money?
Well, maybe that’s the case for the next point. To future-proof the next generation, Xbox President Sarah Bond has formed a new team dedicated to game preservation and future compatibility. Xbox’s backward compatibility is unrivaled, but with an eye on the future and forward compatibility, Bond’s team wants to protect gamers’ digital libraries from future hardware changes. It’s a noble cause, of course. This means that if the next-gen Xbox’s hardware is more closely aligned to the PC, and therefore developing future games for the platform with a greater focus on PC than console, gamers’ existing libraries will work perfectly on hardware that has been converted to a PC-like architecture. . This is undoubtedly a great selling point and could be an essential driver of Sarah’s “biggest technological leap forward” claim.
AI innovations are also promised, but there is little concrete information at the moment. According to an email shared as authentic by Windows Central, all we know is that gaming AI innovations will prioritize players and developers, bringing value to discovery, engagement, and creation. Perhaps more information will be shared publicly now that these AI innovations sound like they encompass the user experience. We don’t strictly deal with development or play, for example providing relevant games to interested players.
It’s hard not to see Microsoft as a wealthy video game publisher rather than a hardware seller. Their current ethos seems to be releasing games on as many platforms as possible. Whether it’s our own platform or another platform. Their board famously killed the Xbox brand, but given the speculation about next-gen hardware, that couldn’t be further from the truth. Microsoft has always done well with its diversification strategy, and it looks like it will be a key part of its next strategy. Given plans to release more games on other platforms, there are too many questions about whether another console is even needed. The future of these platforms coming to Xbox is uncertain, but there’s no denying that it would be a great feature if successful.
