themightyant

I'd call the handheld Xbox Go or similar.
Not sure about the console, but simplicity rules. Series S|X is awful

@Cakefish You already have to clarify you are talking about the original console by saying something like OG Xbox because Xbox is also the brand, same reason everyone calls it PS1 / PlayStation 1 and not just "PlayStation" even though that was it's name

Super-strong month. Blue Prince looks amazing and Expedition 33 is one of my most anticipated this year. South of midnight… fingers crossed, haven’t been fully convinced yet. And Descenders is fun.

It’s always been a silly naming scheme, but it’s also not that deep. Making mountains out of molehills

will now also include recommendations like removing duplicate copies

Finally! That’s been a pet peeve of mine for years if you have multiple drives you often have the same content installed more than once in multiple places, due to some bug in the update process.

The game didn't review all that well but quite a few people liked it more than it reviewed. I remember Colin Moriarty was a fan.

@jesse_dylan Word on the street was always that Bethesda weren’t too happy that Obsidian were given their engine and work for New Vegas. Todd Howard has also been pretty clear that he thinks waiting for games is OK (within reason) and getting games too frequently is a bad thing. It’s good to want something and not be over saturated. Though we are the opposite of that.

There’s plenty of mods and games built off these if you want to find them. The Forgotten City was my favourite.

Fallout New Vegas! Make it the way it should have been at launch if given the time it deserved. (Obsidian had just 18 months to turn it around).

Fallout 3 as well. Morrowind too, but that's a MUCH larger job, would need a lot of updating.

@jesse_dylan People will complain WHATEVER they do. Even if it gets 90+% across the board some people would complain. Can't change that, but we can choose to not engage with it and enable it.

We live in an era of polarisation where you seemingly have to be either zero or a hundred with a massive tribal wedge in between... and it's even worse on the internet. I have no doubt there will be some outcry even if it's a masterpiece.

Agree with your suggestions though

@jesse_dylan What would you want changed?

Personally having played it a few years ago the whole UI needs to change, for starters it was designed around much smaller, lower resolution screens, it was like a kids game's UI, everything's massive. Dungeons were also really disappointing, just rehashing the same thing over and over, it made exploring them boring. Combat was also pretty weak and could be tidied up. Everything else I think I could live with just having a visual refresh, jank and all. What about you?

@OldGamer999 I believe Xbox have just under 20,000 staff including ABK, Zenimax etc. post all the layoffs. Ubisoft have another almost 20,000 staff, that is humongous wage bill and number of people to manage. First thing that would happen would be another huge round of job cuts.

@jesse_dylan I agree. But Starfield was originally announced to come out on the 11th anniversary of Skyrim (11.11.11 & 11.11.22), until it got delayed again to 2023, so Bethesda have some previous!

Sad to see. Video content isn't what I primarily come to this site for but when I did watch some Craig content it was always well produced, informative with a clear passion for gaming.

Uncertainty is never nice, but I am sure if you take those same qualities into your next endeavour you will land on your feet. All the best @HelloCraigo. Onwards and upwards.

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.

@Millionski I replayed Oblivion when the Steam Deck first came out around 2022 and found it had dated in SOME areas. Specifically the combat, dungeon design, animation and UI were pretty bad, even things like NPC interactions and conversations felt very stiff. I didn't use any mods. Visually it had aged but on a handheld that was less obvious. Open world and questing was still good. I enjoyed it overall but it definitely felt aged and a bit rough around the edges. But I think a remaster could fix most of that, a remake even more so.

I tried replaying Morrowind on Series X with X-enhancements (upscaled to 4K and 60fps) just after Oblivion and dropped off it pretty quickly, it just felt very janky in 2022, and a lot of the design just felt unfriendly. Everything from the combat, animation, UI, gameplay loop etc. felt VERY old, very basic, we've come a long way since. That said there were some aspects I still liked e.g. the openness of it all, but I was getting a bit frustrated with it and thought it might ruin my happy memories so I dropped it quite quickly. It feels like a full remake would be needed imo. ymmv

As I said on the other article Oblivion launched on 20 March 2006. Next Thursday would be the anniversary.

Alternatively there is the Switch 2 event in just less than 3 weeks.

Launching into a 30 million+ Game Pass Ultimate audience I think it's more important that ever to get performance right day 1.

Can't complain too much, was always an opportunistic grab.

@Weebleman I think it’s that that they cater to two different markets.

This year’s device will be the PC player that wants a Rog Ally like handheld but this will have a better Ui and be more integrated with Game Pass etc.

2027 will more cater to the Console market but also start to bridge the gap between.

If so, that’s actually quite smart.

@Millionski you’re misunderstanding what I said.

I don’t think Xbox is going to skip being an Xbox with their next console (2027) but it will be a hybrid, play both Pc games and Old Xbox games, but they will move across to a more PC architecture going forward. Game Pass will still work.

@Millionski Yes I said both. But the first seems like it will be a purely PC device, similar to a ROG Ally. Whereas the second will be Xbox/PC hybrid, which is what Xbox seems like it merging towards.

@Fiendish-Beaver Many will be on Game Pass and paying far less for Avowed

Looks like streamer junk to me. FNAF and the like, but we all like different things.

This makes a lot of sense. Different markets.

2025 is a portable PC with an easier to use console like interface.

2027 is a handheld Xbox. Possibly also allowing PC as that is what the whole neXtBox product line will do.

@Fiendish-Beaver Another aspect you might be missing is that I don't think the two services will offer the same thing.

Yes they both offer you the game, but what else?

If you buy on Xbox all your saves are backed up to Xbox live, you can pick up a handheld (or any other 'everything' Xbox) log-in and pick up where you left off, or play on cloud... "It just works". You also get both the PC and Xbox version if buying a first-party games.

Don't underestimate convenience. How many people with an iPhone do you think use iCloud to backup all their photos and data rather than cheaper services? Sure a small percentage of savvy people might use the other services, but I'm certain it's a tiny proportion.

I'd expect Microsoft to makes their service as user friendly as possible and offer all the extras, whereas the others you would have to jump through a LOT of hoops.

As for supermarkets I use them all. Tesco for a weekly shop and top up local and anywhere else depending what I specifically want.

@Fiendish-Beaver I think the reality is most people don't shop around that much. Time is money. You can make more money tomorrow but not more time. Personally I like a good deal, but I don't think most gamers are even aware of CD Keys, and if you only have an Xbox what is Steam except a name online. Humans like the path of least resistance, of familiarity, they like convenience.

There's also a good chance that even if they do allow it Microsoft will put the same scaremongering fear notices that Google have done on Android that scares most non-techy people off and the majority still use the Android store, even if other options are cheaper. This is more about human psychology than cost, people are easily manipulated through dark patterns and other UI/UX trickery.

Additionally if cost was the most crucial aspect to all then everyone would shop at Aldi and Liddle and the other super-markets would be toast. But this doesn't happen, they may have gained market share during harder times, but there's still a large market for the likes of M&S, Waitrose etc.

Ultimately I think there's a lot of reasons Microsoft could do this and I don't think it would lead to everyone going where it's cheaper, it depends how it's implemented. EDIT: I think the next Xbox ASUS handheld, NOT the Prime, will be an portable PC that will allow it.

It's possible. But if console manufacturers aren't making their money back through games sold on their store what does that do to the price of the hardware? I'd be concerned hardware would significantly jump in cost and outweigh and financial benefit you would gain. Though convenience is useful.

But I find it strange that there are rumours of an Xbox handheld this year and another in 2027. Perhaps the one this year is a portable PC (like the ROG ALLY) which can use any PC store, and the one in 2027 is specifically a handheld Xbox, that can't. Different markets.

@Dalamar73 I should add... GOG does a lot more than old games now. I often forget that as it's mostly what I use it for. Plenty will have controller support.

This game looks bonkers. In a good way.

@FraserG @Dalamar73 Depends how the device handles controller support. Many GOG games don't usually have this, and ROG Ally doesn't work well without this. But Steam Deck has powerful features to cover this and a library of fan created control schemes to make games that might not have support work. Will depend on Xbox, and on what games you want to play, but they should boot.

Pretty much what I thought, I am interested to see what they have to offer, but I am not sure I have too much use for it.

Additionally the rumour that next gen Xbox will launch in 2027 with both a console and a handheld gives me room for pause.

Sounds pretty good and not crazily priced...

oh it's wired... nah you're good.

@LostInBlue0 yes and no. Combat was never really the focus in Oblivion. It’s a side activity compared to exploring and RPG aspects. But I agree it should be improved.

Oblivion was released on the 20th of March 2006. Anniversary is a week today… maybe.

@species8472 here’s an IGN article about it, which was a follow up to rumours the Prince of Persia: Lost Crown team were working on it. Fingers crossed.

@species8472 I agree I want a new Rayman, as I said there’s already one reportedly in development at Ubisoft

I'm not sure I want that. Microsoft already have enough IP. What are they going to do, get Bethesda to work on an Assassin's Creed RPG, what does that do to their own IP? Push them all back? No thanks.

@species8472 Rumour is most of the PoP: Lost Crown team are working on Rayman, if true that's awesome.

@Feffster Playground games have already have a post on their FAQ vaguely detailing what the enhancements for PS5 Pro are, I was just wondering if it will make any difference. More interested in Indy to see if it gets any PC RT features. The Forza Horizon 5 enhancements are:

On PS5 Pro, the Quality mode adds ray traced car reflections to Races and Free Roam, while Performance mode focuses on improving rendering performance, with higher fidelity graphics at 60FPS.

Re: buying on PS5 and getting a PC copy i'm 99.9% sure it's a no. Because the sale is with Sony not Microsoft, it would be on them to enable it, and they won't for obvious reasons.

@Fiendish-Beaver Yep. Brutal, but also just not fun. I don't know who thought it was a good idea and how it got signed off. But it wasn't the only bad boss fight like this with BS "you require some luck... or cheese" mechanics. Halo: Infinite is the only Halo I haven't played more than once for this and other reasons.

@BacklogBrad Say WHAT? You are of course entitled to your opinion, but you are also the first person i've heard say Halo Infinite was the best Halo. Bold take.

@Fiendish-Beaver Glad you enjoyed it that much. Personally I felt very mixed about Infinite. The gunplay was fantastic, and the grapple felt great. But what was the point of going open-world when the world was so dull and empty. The same biome everywhere, almost no incentive to explore.

Additionally I thought the game lost too much going open world. I've always loved Halo's set-pieces like turning a corner to see a whole battle going on as two scarab tanks drop from the skies and you have to figure out how you are going to take them down. Those are epic memorable moments I will never forget. By comparison Infinite was pretty dull more like Far Cry outposts.

And don't get me started about being locked in a narrow room with an Elite with a Hammer. Not fun, neither was the final room/boss. Also didn't love the story or many of the characters, it all basically seemed like a contrived plot just to retcon 4-5 and reboot Cortana. All in all a very mixed bag imo. Not bad, but not great either. Far from Halo's best.

@Dalamar73 You said everything I feel. I'd love to BELIEVE but I think Halo's best days are past. But I will keep my fingers firmly crossed.

I keep thinking about selling mine, I never use it. But every time I think about it I remember all the joy it gave me and can't quite let go. Besides what could I sell it for with a mismatched pad and unboxed? £30 maybe? I think I prefer the wave of joy I get every now and again when I look at it.

That's a very polite way of saying I'm verbose and post too much. lol. You are right!

I honestly don't know. It depends what strategy Microsoft decide to take. Here's two possible options e.g.

• If they wanted to try and get as many sales as possible, to try and increase market share, perhaps break a little into the Nintendo handheld space they would need to keep it lower cost. Maybe £400 - £500
• If they are trying to go high-end it will likely be £600 - £700+

My gut says it would be on a more balanced device at the lower end of the spectrum, so £400 - £500 depending on specs.

But I can also see them saying now that "everything is an Xbox", the low end of the spectrum is covered in some way so lets make a high-end device to keep some of our core enthusiast crowd happy.

It's also possible, though unlikely, that they do both. I'm not deliberately trying to hedge my bets here, I just think either is a valid strategy and it depends what route they decide to take.

@Dalamar73 I believe the IDC estimates as of 25 Feb 2025 were 6 million for the handheld PC market combined of which Steam Deck was 4 million. It's horribly worded at The Verge but other articles made this clearer.

@Dalamar73 I'm slightly more optimistic. I think it will do... fine, but be a relatively low volume device like Steam Deck or PS Portal.

Steam Deck has 'only' sold around 4 million sales according to analysts, though if you listen to the hardcore online you'd think it's sold 100 million. I love mine though.

PS Portal is at around 2 million. I'd expect Xbox handheld to maybe exceed those but be in a similar ballpark. Nintendo Switch it will not be... but then again - having been burned by the Wii U and unimpressed with the idea of playing games at rooftop parties, as shown in the first Switch trailer - I thought the Switch wouldn't do very well. So what the hell do I know. lol.

Lionhead is dead, long live Lionhead!

@Kaloudz Yes, it will improve the game on Xbox too.

But i'm also looking forward to seeing Digital Foundry and others compare PS5 Pro for example on this and Indy. Should be interesting. For Indy in particular it MIGHT make me want to double dip. Loved that game.

@Dalamar73 Of course if could be much more expensive, but that will make it a more niche device limiting it's potential market (like ROG Ally X) and won't impact Xbox's market share much. It's certainly one possible strategy, but not the one I think they will take.

@fatpunkslim Yes I mentioned games using Windows kernel Anti-cheat in my post, which is mostly online multiplayer games. As I said if those are the games you want to play then that platform may be better for you. But almost all new games that don't have anti-cheat play on Steam Deck, barring a few that play poorly due to hardware limitations.

I agree dual booting and switching OS isn't ideal, though it is possible if you want to play those games on Steam Deck, and for some a Windows based device would be FAR more convenient. I think 'convenience' is a crucial aspect to all this and as I said it will depend on what YOU want out of it, how and where you play games.

Regardless I look forward to seeing what Xbox can manufacture, I expect it to be competitive and be a better experience than other handheld Windows based PCs at least.

@fatpunkslim I sort of agree with some of your points but they don't tell the whole story.

Compatibility: Proton has 17,934 compatible or verified games and many more that play fine but aren't listed. An Xbox handheld isn't likely to come close to that as it will almost certainty be a cut down Windows to save CPU cycles and will have it's own compatibility issues just as every Windows version does with older games.

Performance is often slightly better on Windows, i've seen studies show around 5-10% at the same TDP, but there is a trade off.... battery life drops off significantly on Windows devices even at the same TDP.

I agree on your points about Dedicated interface & Xbox ecosystem.

Hardware Advantages: It will be better. But how much better? We are still hamstrung by the same battery technology and this is the largest limiting factor for handhelds. You can add better hardware (like in the ROG Ally etc.) but they have to use more power to see advantages and battery life plummets. When it's running the same power 10W or 15W it's only slightly more powerful. The alternative is putting in a larger battery, but that makes the unit heavier and bulkier.

But a newer process node should help. Steam Deck OLED is 6nm if they can use 3nm nodes that will help, but Steam Deck 2 will likely be doing the same around the same time, removing that advantage.

Ultimately I think there's pros and cons to each. If you are an Xbox player, a Game Pass subscriber, or like online games that have Windows kernel anti-cheat then the Windows Xbox system might be a better fit for you. It depends what your aims are.

I look forward to seeing what Xbox announce, price will be key.

Amazing news. Both games are wonderful, in slightly different ways. I rebought them on Steam Deck despite having access on Xbox. Will of the Wisps looks and plays fantastically on the OLED.