Phil Spencer confirms Xbox is working on a portable console
Following the success of the Nintendo Switch not as a console (that too) but as a format, it’s no surprise that the Steam Deck has taken off with a bang. Valve hit the table with the release of its handheld console/PC, which, although not the first, was the one that managed to make it onto the table. The Steam Deck was followed by many others, such as the ASUS ROG Ally or the Lenovo Legion Go, and since the company is betting on digital technology, it is not surprising that Xbox wants to have its own too.
And now it’s official: it’s in the oven.
Phil Spencer confirms this. We’ve been hearing about the Xbox portable console for a long time. There have been a lot of rumors, but now Phil Spencer himself, the head of Microsoft’s gaming division, has confirmed that they are working on this type of device. There aren’t a lot of details about this, but it’s always nice to know something is official (no matter how long you have to wait for release).
What did he say. In an interview with Bloomberg, Spencer confirmed that “we expect to do something.” The company is working on prototypes, analyzing the market and studying where the development of this console should go. “Long term, I love that we’re building devices,” Spencer says, adding that “our team could do some really innovative work, but we want to be informed by studying and learning what’s happening now.”
In short, everything is at a very early stage.
Details? None, except for progress, which we will have to wait for several years. The company is currently working to make the Xbox app work better on devices that already run it. After all, Microsoft has a very powerful service in its hands (Game Pass), which can already be used on mobile phones via the cloud, so it’s quite normal that they are betting on improving it.
Steam deck | Image: Hataka
And speaking of the cloud. It makes sense that Xbox is developing a portable console. Current options allow you to run games locally with low-to-medium graphics quality and for a short time (batteries only last as long as they last), but if the Xbox has shown anything over the years, it’s that physicality doesn’t matter much meanings. The cloud and digital are the future, and there’s nothing like a portable console to get the most out of Game Pass and Xbox Cloud Gaming.
Microsoft is already working to ensure that all games, whether they’re on Game Pass or not, can run in the cloud. It’s called Project Lapland. The idea is simple: buy a game from the Xbox store and be able to play it anywhere, be it a PC, home console, mobile phone or, apparently, a handheld console. A device in this category will provide players with more options and will fit very well into the Xbox strategy.
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