The Xbox has been upside down in recent weeks and communication has been slow to arrive, but it’s there. While some fans of the brand feared the disappearance of the Xbox console, Microsoft reminded that this was not planned. Yes, Xbox hardware will continue to evolve.
Xbox will continue to make new consoles
It has been confirmed, Xbox will continue to manufacture and sell consoles. For how long, we don’t know, but the new hardware is well planned.
This is no surprise as leaked documents on Xbox strategy have already mentioned a new Xbox Series X without a drive and a new Xbox on a “hybrid” model in 2028. Of course, plans have undoubtedly been altered since the documents were leaked.
It was Sarah Bond who took the floor to confirm that the brand ultimately wanted to be accessible on as many screens as possible.
Other new features are coming. There are some exciting things coming up in the hardware space that we’ll share over the holidays. We are also investing in the next generation roadmap. What we’re focused on is the biggest technical advancements seen in a generation of hardware, making gaming better for players and creators and the visions they create.
Sarah Bond confirmed that information on the new hardware will be shared later in the year and that her teams are also “investing in the next generation roadmap”. In other words, a new mid-generation console will definitely be at the center of conversation later in the year, and a powerful next-generation console is also in the pipeline.
Xbox consoles and physical games: What’s next?
The big question that remains unanswered and Microsoft has been careful not to comment despite players’ fears is whether or not future Xbox consoles will forgo physical gaming.
At this point, according to leaked documents from Microsoft and recent rumors, nothing is confirmed yet for the next generation of consoles, which is not expected before 2026. We just know that the brand will continue to offer new hardware for its customers and release its games on it.
It was certain that a new Xbox console would be offered in the future, although some fans feared a split from Microsoft following the release of some of its games on competing consoles. It remains to be seen whether future machines will be equipped with disc readers, but the fact is that owning your own machine has some advantages.
The most convincing advantage for Microsoft is that having its own console allows the group to control the entire value chain from the game to the end machine. Also, it can collect a significant amount of data on its console usage. We consider, for example, gaming and entertainment habits, links between players through groups of friends, etc. This data can be used by various strategic divisions of the brand for its future directions. When we look at Microsoft’s appetite for data, and even more so with the big investments in AI in recent years, doing without a console would be unthinkable today.