As the next generation of consoles looms over the horizon, it’s becoming clearer that Microsoft’s Project Helix is going to be a whole lineup of gaming devices, rather than one console.
In a leaked memo sent to staff and obtained by Windows Central, Xbox CEO Asha Sharma described the company’s plans for the next generation as involving a family of devices. This isn’t the first time she’s suggested this, first hinting at it at Gamescom earlier this year. But in the memo, Sharma went into more detail on the range of hardware we can expect.
“We are moving to a family of devices for Gen-10,” she reportedly said. “There is not one device that fits all. We will certainly have a great console first, but we also know that many players will be on the go. There are some things that we are the best in the world to manufacture, and there are other things that will we partner on. So, we will be sharing more about that as our plans develop. The operating system is starting to look really good. We’re very excited about this.”
Anyone who’s watched Microsoft’s hardware strategy over the last few years shouldn’t be too surprised by this. After all, the current generation of consoles launched with two seperate boxes, the Xbox Series X and cheaper and less powerful Series S, with different users in mind. Then, last year, the company partnered with Asus to launch the ROG Xbox Ally X, which is still one of the best handheld gaming PCs on the market.
It’s too early to know what exactly Microsoft’s next-generation consoles are going to look like, but Sharma’s statement suggests there will be at least one core console in the family. That will likely be the successor to the Xbox Series X, and will be the focus of Xbox’s partnership with AMD. After the success of the Xbox Ally and Xbox Ally X, though, I’d expect a whole lineup of Xbox-branded gaming PCs.
Microsoft is no stranger to partnering with hardware manufacturers; after all, it’s been doing so with Windows for decades. The company already has the connections to branch out, so I’d expect anything from more handheld gaming PCs to even Xbox-branded laptops and desktop PCs.
I’m particularly interested in seeing how the operating system plays out. Windows 11 is almost universally the worst part of every handheld gaming PC that uses it, and while the Xbox Full Screen Experience has vastly improved over the last year, there’s still a lot of room for improvement, especially if Xbox is expecting it to have the same no-brainer approach that modern console UIs have.
If Microsoft is hoping to embrace the PC gaming side of Xbox, though, it’ll need to lean on more than just the Xbox app on Windows. I don’t know about you, but that’s not the first storefront I gravitate towards, even on my Ally X. But Sharma seems aware of this too. According to Jez Corden, who broke the story on this memo, it also mentioned Xbox PC and Battle.net, and specifically how Blizzard’s launcher is “almost on-par with Steam for user retention.”
Now that Xbox owns Blizzard and can likely just put whatever it wants on that store, I’d expect the company to launch more games there. Blizzard’s fan base is notoriously fickle, however, and the launcher also has a problem where as soon as any game is added to the store, it shows up in your favorites bar. There’s real opportunity for Xbox, which is likely why The Witcher 3 Remastered just launched there, but Microsoft will have to play a careful hand.
Sharma also seemed to acknowledge that in her note, saying: “We will do it the right way for those communities,” but this is just another thing Xbox needs to iron out with its user experience before it launches a next-generation suite of hardware.
But, if Xbox is able to work out those kinks and deliver a Windows 11 (or 12) experience that’s as easy to use as the Xbox Series X, (or let’s be real, SteamOS), Project Helix could end up defining the next console generation.
Jackie Thomas is the Senior Tech Editor at IGN and the PC components queen. She’s been covering gaming hardware for more than a decade for IGN, TechRadar, Gizmodo, PC Gamer and more. You can follow her @Jackiecobra
