Talking Point: Would You Mind If The Next Xbox Was A Portable Console?

As we move through the fourth year of Xbox Series X|S, we're surely approaching the back-half of this generation of gaming - which has us often pondering where Microsoft might go next. Lately, 'Xbox handheld' rumours have been swirling — fuelled by the likes of Phil Spencer talking about such a prospect — and that's got us asking ourselves that very question. Would we be okay with the next Xbox being a portable console?

At the start of the current gen we could have never imagined such a future. A handheld Xbox in this day and age? When we've wanted one for years to no avail? How could that happen?! Well, the ongoing success of Nintendo Switch and the revelation of the Steam Deck and other such portable PCs seems to have changed the landscape.

Let's not forget either that Microsoft has its own portable gaming ambitions. At one stage it seemed like we were getting a 'Firestick-like' Xbox device to play cloud games without a console - although 'Project Keystone' was eventually scrapped. Could wee see another two-pronged console approach with a low-power, cloud-focused handheld alongside a proper Series X successor for Microsoft's next generation? Honestly, the possibilities seem endless at this stage.

We'd quite like that scenario; a mirror of Xbox Series X and S but swapping out the cheaper console for something that's handheld and entirely cloud-based. It'd mean less complicated development and maybe more of a focus on the high-end console and what it can really do. Xbox Series S is a great little console, but it often misses out on proper next-gen features in modern games.

How do you see this all going, then? If Microsoft wanted to go portable, would you be okay with a Steam Deck-like next-gen system? Would you want a supplementary handheld console in some form instead? Or, do you want Xbox to stick entirely with a traditional home console for the next generation?

Go ahead and talk all about what you'd like to see down below.