Xbox Exec Appearing At 'Future Of Gaming Handhelds' Panel Next Month

Microsoft's next ad campaign

Lenovo Legion Go! - "This is an Xbox"

As Phil said handheld is being looked into and probably a few years away if it happens.

I would like to start hearing whispers of a new Xbox home console. That’s the area that concerns me more than anything about Xbox future.

Xbox doesn’t know what Xbox wants … seems shareholders are more important than what made Xbox ‘ Xbox ‘ and its long term supporters . Wait until they see that no matter what , you’ll need exclusives to keep subscriber numbers strong .

Many people underestimate the point microsoft window is placed at risk from linux bases os and steam os: on desktop computer if they start to play games better than windows many gamers would move; while about the Handhelds if microsoft doesn't create a version of windows/xbox worth, all other handled will use steam os

what if M$ made a Xbox PC computer instead? That would be pretty cool if $ony or M$ made their own dedicated gaming computer branded after their consoles .

maybe it’s a weird idea , but we’re in weird times with gaming anyway. i never thought id see a xbox handheld, but it was a long time coming i guess

@TheSimulator
I think Xbox wants everything.
Home console, all devices and other consoles and GPU.
But it treads a fine line with costs and return on investment.
Yes release a game already made for Xbox on PS5 or Switch should be cost effective.
But the risk is if you shrink your Xbox console base to small and lose to many GPU subscribers on Xbox consoles then there could be a point when making a home Xbox console does not justify the cost of investment. Or even keeping GPU.
The lucky thing for Xbox consoles currently is over 50% of game pass subscriptions are on Xbox consoles and I think that will keep Xbox consoles alive for know and next generation.
I truly believe if Xbox consoles had about 10 to 15 percentage or less game pass subscriptions, then Xbox consoles could disappear.

People might hate on me for this, but I really hope SteamOS and Linux raise their share significantly. It is already incredibly easy to set proton on a regular linux distro, and performance in many cases is not that bad.
Due to configurability and lightweight nature, performance should be higher compared to Windows, but sadly all translation layer shenanigans need to happen.
All this is to say, I believe Windows is a terrible basis for a gaming system, due to many dependencies and intricacies developed exclusively for all-purpose desktop systems that are hard to extract.
Hopefully MS creates a super-optimized version of the OS, but historically they are only adding to the stack, never properly removing bloat.

@nomither6 Buying a Xbox branded PC would basically defeat the whole purpose of moving to PC where you have a greater choice of components and suppliers to choose from.

You would just be paying double the price for parts that any local company could stick together, which likely better support and service.

@antonioacm never going to happen.

Windows is just so present in every day life that most people will just stick with that they won't want the hassle of another OS - particularly one that might not support all their other apps and devices.

This is a discussion that only happens in the hard-core pc crowd despite how many people will say they hate windows - me included.

@Cikajovazmaj I don't think windows as an OS will shrink any because it's the defacto for businesses. But as a gaming OS, if Valve can release a compelling gaming PC or TV box for a good price, it's a no brainer right now.

There's no reason windows shouldn't be able to layer stuff well, it already does on Xbox consoles. Hopefully that's why they've got a mole in the building haha

@Coletrain "There's no reason windows shouldn't be able to layer stuff well, it already does on Xbox consoles."
It in no way represents how the current Xbox Series works (which I think does it well), but I have always loved the Seamus Blackley story about randomly removing DLLs and checking if it'll boot when optimizing Windows for the first Xbox

@Ilyn right , but i was thinking more of it being as a middle ground for people that were new to PC or still wanted a more console oriented experience . think of like a PC-lite i guess, & maybe with the ability to add new custom graphic cards that M$ could make or have made by other companies, like how the ps3 had a custom nvidia graphics card

Windows can be excellent for gaming as proven by Series X compared to similarly specifications PCs. It's true that PC Windows is bloated, but that's something that Microsoft could fix, and they should, at least for gaming. That said, I don't think that Windows is at risk at all just because hardcore PC gamers are running other operating systems.

@Cikajovazmaj well it uses the same delivery method for games, and the UI is already in place. There's definitely a template there, no?

Having said that, I've no real issue with the current Xbox app on PC, it's just not as good as steam big picture mode

An Xbox handheld has to be able to play console games (without streaming). If it's "just" a handheld PC then it'll be lost against the rival handheld PCs that are cheaper or more powerful.

Give me a handheld that gives me my full library and I am there, regardless of how well Xbox is doing

@nomither6 I get the idea, but I just don't see a place for it. For a PC lite console, I think Steam will probably beat them to the punch and produce something better, cheaper and more open source.

In general if the industry does keep heading towards PC then I would say Steam is the one to watch for as its the ultimate digital library.

@Ilyn well the steam deck is already out there so MS handheld will already be at a disadvantage

@nomither6 if they try to make one that's like a pic then yeah I agree. I would suggest they go the same route as sonny and just stick to one locked to their own platform. I think a Xbox device simply called Xbox Go that uses the same dash, allows the same games from your library can be used as a controller etc has enough benefits without it trying to compete with a Windows pad and being over complicated

@GADG3Tx87 not with steam os it isn't...

@Cikajovazmaj proton is mid at best and Linux aren't good for multiplayer games. With time it could work but if it wasn't for steam no one would even bother... MS should really be worry and make a proper gaming windows OS

@Ilyn i think it’ll flop if that happens . microsoft should be the last ones ever attempting to enter a portable market imo . they should’ve done that when the xbox reputation was at its peak with the hype of the xbox one instead of forcing kinect . but again , just my opinion

@GeorgeKal I'm gonna assume you are just trolling and wish you Happy holidays! 😄

@Cikajovazmaj no? Play any game with Proton and you get worst performance. As for the multiplayer games you can't even play CS Valve's fps multiplayer game on their own hardware. It's so easy for cheaters to cheat on linux os. Windows are the best because everything works on windows already and if it wasn't for Valve's support no one would bother with linux. That's why MS need to make windows better for gaming if they hope to keep the market.

@OldGamer999 its even more after gold became gp core. Probably 80% or so. Hence i dont understand why not push consoles. GP sinks if console sinks.

Pretty sure GP will be rebranded fully to MS GP, maybe cut 3rd party content or even day 1 games.

@Millionski if Xbox can acquire Warner bros , Ubisoft and take two then I wouldn’t care the route they are going but they definitely need to add more in house games and not spend billions for other ip to have on gamepass

MS could knock it out of the park if done right. It would need to play your game library locally, support streaming, and have a decent battery life. The devil is in the details for sure.

People forget the previous rumor about Surface staff being reassigned to the Xbox division. I remember thinking how carefully worded MS's was to that rumor. The surface is a solid portable PC and could definitely be leveraged towards a portable console! Again, if done well it could give Steam a run for it's money, especially from folks with large libraries of purchased xbox games.

Couple quick thoughts here.

1. Really hoping for an xbox handheld.
2. Steam OS is overrated. Its not terrible, but i much prefer the os on both xbox and ps. Even the switches os is better.

Caveat to 1 is that I want a streaming only device, or atleast a lightweight handheld. Ive got a steamdeck, portal, and a couple switches and i never touch my steamdeck. Its setup as an xbox streaming device, but the hardware and software are just too bulky. If they can make it lighter and thinner, im all game. I think the streaming games you own is really a precurser to this. If our entire libraries can be streamed via xcloud, then there really isnt a need for a bulky device.

@abe_hikura Id prefer it just stream, be light, have a great screen, and atleast 3 hours of battery life. The portal is an amazing device. MS should follow suit but with an oled.

@Millionski
That’s one thing I have never got about Xbox with the very good Xbox console GP attach rate just over 50% compared to billions of other devices.
I have always said sell a console sell a GP sub and probably GPU. At £14.99 a month in the UK and now Xbox have all those studios and new games including COD it is great value.
I’m playing COD, Indy and Stalker all on GPU and probably won’t spend a penny next year apart from my subscription costs, unless a very good third party game turns up.

I have noticed though the last couple of weeks in my local store series x has been selling very well so maybe an uptick in the UK in December console wise.

But yeah it baffles me at the moment with their sort of lacklustre approach to the Xbox console.
I think they are working about ten years ahead in their minds but forgetting the here and now and the next day 8 years console wise.

Also I tried Xbox streaming on my series x 200mb/sec internet it was poor quality.
Then tried spider man 2 on PS5 and it was a lot lot better.
What is going on there, I thought Xbox was the king of cloud streaming gaming?

@OldGamer999 objectively Sony's streaming tech is better compared to Xbox currently. That is against all odds and expectations, but it's what it is. They are just not advertising it as hard 🤷‍♂️
I believe Sony streams PS5 version of the game at 1080p60, whereas MS streams XSS version at 720p60 (edit: there are ways to get 1080p60, but there is artifacting compared to PS). That is not crucial difference on a small screen if you are streaming to a steamdeck like device. Also, Sony's service is more stable with less drops/freezes on average (far better then it used to be just a couple of years ago). Additionally, MS has a minor advantage in input lag (56 ms vs 52 ms), but that is really negligible for most casual users.

@Cikajovazmaj
I was on big screen 65” QD OLED and it did look ok with Sonys but Xbox looked poor in comparison.
Just find it amusing that Microsoft are pushing all this and ahead of time in my opinion and focusing on it much instead of their consoles and the performance is not as good as Sonys streaming.
Sort of laughable really.

I never stream, I want full 4K the best experience when I play games, so no big deal to me.

@OldGamer999 I have recently started to stream trials.. they tend to last about 2 hours and require a 100GB download. Easier to stream those two hours and sample the game.

@Cikajovazmaj
I think streaming has its place and that is a good idea for a quick trial.
But for main gaming for me full download top graphics and sound experience.
There is now other way for me to play.

Well the stream deck is available, but it very expensive coming close to the price of the Series X. I think having a hand held Xbox is expanding on what they already are doing with the play any were. I think MS is thinking that there might be some demand for a handheld Xbox, and this also takes from having the series S and series X. I think MS would of never bothered with a handheld console if they could simply stream games on the Android and iPhone but it proving to be difficult so MS is simply trying something else.