There's been a lot of talk this week about an apparent 2025 Xbox handheld that's going to be revealed around June and released later in the year (if timelines remain as reported), and I personally think that's a very exciting prospect!
I get it - people seem disappointed that it apparently won't support native console games ("so it's just an ASUS ROG Ally with an Xbox sticker then"), but based on what we've heard so far, I think there's still a lot to be intrigued by. It's supposedly going to feature a more console-like interface than other Windows-based PC handhelds, for example, and there are still so many ways to potentially play games on it - the Xbox PC app, PC Game Pass, Xbox Play Anywhere, Xbox Cloud Gaming, Steam, the Epic Games Store, Battle.net... the list goes on and on.
The Xbox Play Anywhere side of things has got my attention the most, as it seems apparent to me that Microsoft is finally pushing the program after remaining quiet on it for years. Just yesterday, the company revealed that over 1,000 games officially support Xbox Play Anywhere now, and even updated the official list after neglecting it for so long.
Perhaps it's just a coincidence that this happened during the same week a 2025 Xbox handheld was reported on, but I really doubt it. Microsoft is seemingly very keen to provide as many cross-compatible games as possible on this ASUS-branded handheld when it arrives, and that ultimately benefits all PC users even if they're not planning on buying this specific device.
Apparently there's a big focus in general on trying to unify Xbox & PC this year over at Microsoft HQ, and while that may not have been initiated by this handheld, it should certainly lead to some swift progress throughout the year. Hopefully this means more Xbox console games coming to PC, more games getting Xbox Play Anywhere compatibility, more UI elements crossing over from the Xbox Series X and S, and various other improvements.
"Windows Central: I've heard that Microsoft is committed to some pretty heavy work on Windows to really make this partner device feel as close to an "Xbox" as possible. The device will essentially exist as a proof of concept of sorts, and be developed with feedback from users in the coming months."
Looking ahead a bit further, it's also been reported that Microsoft is interested in making a first-party Xbox handheld that could arrive around 2027, but the 2025 version will almost certainly inform a lot of decisions that are made over the next couple of years. How will consumers react to it? Will it sell as many units as expected? Would a lack of native console game support be a total deal-breaker? I highly doubt 2027 is set in stone for whatever kind of handheld Microsoft has in mind for the future - there's surely room to maneuver based on feedback for the 2025 version.
There's also this whole thing about game preservation that Xbox is actively working on right now. Around this time last year, a new team was reportedly formed to focus on "game preservation and forward compatibility" at Xbox, which has led some to speculate whether it was intended (or at least partly intended) to bring console games to an Xbox handheld in the future. It might not happen for the 2025 one, but perhaps an experiment or two might be trickled in throughout its lifespan? We'll have to wait and see.
At the end of the day, this does primarily seem to be an ASUS ROG Ally with Xbox-specific features based on what we're hearing at the moment, but considering it's set to be the first Xbox handheld to ever hit the market in any fashion, I expect Microsoft will be giving it the star treatment with lots of cool upgrades over the next couple of years. It could also end up having a major impact on where the brand goes next - a new generation is looming, and if Xbox is to come out swinging in 2027 (or whenever it is), the lessons from this device could end up proving invaluable.
What are your thoughts on this? Let us know down in the comments section below.
Comments 13
As an Xbox console owner I find it very, very hard to be excited about some skin for Windows tbh…
The single only thing I find interesting is the rumored intention of bringing over legacy Xbox games to PC, but I don’t like that no one is elaborating on the how since it actually seems to be quite complicated, not only on the technical side, but with licensing as well, and if they don’t pull that off I wouldn’t see the value on this Xbox-branded Rog Ally nor in the next generation Xbox.
Any step closer to an xbox OS has my vote. It’s based on windows anyway. But I would love to be able to pay MS for an OS license that allows me to turn my PC into an xbox with disc support.
Obviously it will depend on specs, price, features etc. But I don't think this is going to shift the needle much for Xbox. If reports are to be believed this is just going to be a Rog Ally like portable PC with Xbox branding that will play PC games including Game Pass easily. That's cool, but not revolutionary.
I think it will take a small part of the Portable PC market share and maybe even increase it a little. But analysts IDC say that's currently ONLY a 6 million unit niche right now, of which Steam Deck is around 4 million units. Even if they matched Steam Deck (unlikely), that still worthwhile, but it isn't going to drastically change Xbox's future.
I'm FAR more intrigued to see what they do with Xbox 2027 + 2027 handheld Xbox and the rumoured PC/Xbox hybrid.
If I get this right the PS Vita sold about 10-15 million according to google and was seen as a massive flop. On the assumption this does twice as good as Steam Deck then would it be seen as a massive flop too? And I'm referring to MS seeing this as a flop, not the fans. Unless this is crazy cheap I just can't see this being worth while for them?
I don't think it will make a big impact to be honest. PC handhelds don't sell in very large numbers relative to outputs from Nintendo or Sony. Let's be honest, Xbox is entering another console war here and entering into a very crowded space with Ayaneo, Lenovo, Asus, Steam, LG, Nvidia, and a lot of other competitors.
@Ryu_Niiyama I wish we could do this with the Xbox series x! It already smokes my personal laptop in terms of overall power, memory and capabilities. It would make a nice PC
It’s an interesting move for Xbox, but nowadays it’s anyone’s guess what they will or will not do.
On the whole, they don’t make sense to me with some recent movers, a sort of two steps forward one step back.
They treat their home console like some treat their employees. Sort of ok, then the employee leaves and they then realise how good they where and missed they are and hard to replace.
Hopefully people will realize the goal is the expansion of the brand and to have options for players everywhere. It will be a small part of the big picture. But I'm sure people will be locked into the unit sales and try to frame it as failure from day 1 with comparisons to other units sales.
I'm personally very excited to learn more but I think the meat of the matter sits with the 2027 version. That will be the showstopper for me.
I think that this year's handheld will be kind of an experiment to see what works and does not work. I expect the full effort to be when they release their own handheld XB device.
Personally I would love to see all the Microsoft Surface devices have a button on them to switch to console mode and then back to PC mode. I really like the simplicity of consoles, but I want to be able to flip them to a PC for other activities + work. I have no clue why MS has not come up with such a solution.
It's already on my Christmas list 👍
The point of xbox is to work properly out the box with little fiddling. I don't want to have to fiddle each game and it's install files just to get each to work well. If xbox game pass comes to PS5/6 I'm switching, none of the PC-hybrid-mashup-and-won't-work-right-crap.
Supposedly this device will use the Z2 Go, which is inferior to the Z1 Extreme used in the ROG Ally from two years ago. The market already has a number of superior options, including the ROG Ally X (same Z1E but more RAM and other improvements), the Legion Go (2 later this year), and the MSI Claw 8 (actually very good). Not sure who this is for, assuming the rumors are correct.
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