Today Microsoft released an announcement video for their “strategic multi-year” partnership deal with AMD, the current supplier of internal chips for the Xbox Series X and previous generation’s Xbox One. In this partnership, the two companies plan to “co-engineer… across a portfolio of devices, including our next generation Xbox consoles, in your living room, and in your hands,” according to Sarah Bond, the current President of Xbox. “The next generation Xbox is coming to life, and this is just the beginning,” Bond added, though as to be expected in these early stages, no official release dates were announced.
With the popularity of the recently released Nintendo Switch 2 and the continued commercial success of Valve’s Steam Deck, it’s possible that Xbox could be working on a first-party handheld/home console which could be hinted at by the “in your living room, and in your hands,” comment. Then again with Xbox Play Anywhere, that comment could just be in reference to an improvement in cloud and streaming functionality for the already growing service/features.
The likelihood of a first-party hybrid handheld Xbox console seems to decrease a bit when you recognize the fact that Microsoft has only recently partnered with Asus to create the ROG Xbox Ally and Ally X handheld gaming devices, which also both utilize the power of AMD chips and are slated to release later this year, though pricing has not yet been officially revealed.
Bond also indicated that the company is determined to deliver an Xbox experience that is “not locked to a single store or tied to one device.” This could perhaps mean that the recent rumors about the next Xbox running STEAM could be true, or it could simply mean that Microsoft will be putting much more focus into the Xbox Play Anywhere service, but one can be optimistic. Regardless of the potential for STEAM compatibility and multi-platform gaming, the major announcement here is that there is a new Xbox console coming in some capacity and promises to feature improved graphics and immersion enhancing capabilities for even better gaming experiences.
Jack Huynh, AMD’s SVP for Computing and Graphics posted on his X account: “This isn’t just a hardware evolution—it’s a bold, shared vision to push the boundaries of what’s possible in gaming.” This includes creating “an open, player-first ecosystem—not locked to a single device or store.” The post seems to somewhat reiterate but also provide further insight into the idea that this next generation will focus on an open and player-first ecosystem, which if that means what many of gamers hope it means, this could be the most important revelation of all.
This opens speculation up for the possibility that Huynh may be referring to the next generation of Xbox having the potential to allow for further console modding support, a chance that STEAM and perhaps other online game marketplaces may be usable through Xbox, and the ability to play Xbox titles on more devices than ever before. These improvements would give Xbox players the freedom to choose how they interact with games, opening up a larger library of available titles to play, and permitting them to tailor the experience to their preferences. This could be good for the Xbox brand and the gaming industry as a whole, as a handful of Xbox titles are already seeing multi-platform releases and allowing for cross play with PS5 and PC.
If Xbox begins to steer further away from other hardware releases in the years to come and instead focuses their energy on developing partnerships that make gaming more accessible to a broader audience as well as a larger pool of developers, then Xbox consoles could eventually operate at a similar scale as a gaming PC, and for a much more affordable price but perhaps with fewer technical advancements. With the obvious trending potential for further utilization of computers and smart devices for Xbox gaming, this may be the direction we see the company go after they’ve followed through on their partnership with AMD. Only time will tell, but I’m optimistic that better gaming will come of this more than anything.
What do you hope for from the next generation of Xbox consoles? Do you think Microsoft is leaning more into Cloud and handheld gaming? Are you excited for what comes next for the brand? Let us know your thoughts over on the Discord.
