Next-gen Xbox to feature full Windows, backward compatibility, and free online multiplayer

[Daniel Sims]

What we know so far: Microsoft recently reaffirmed its commitment to the console market after a string of setbacks cast doubt on the Xbox brand's long-term future. For years, rumors have suggested that the company's next-generation hardware would merge elements of Xbox and Windows, and new details continue to trickle in supporting that direction.

According to the rumor mill, the next Xbox console will have access to all Windows software and support all games currently available on Xbox Series consoles. The information matches earlier rumors regarding Microsoft's radical shift in strategy.

People familiar with the project recently told Windows Central and Digital Foundry that the Asus ROG Ally – sold under Xbox branding in some regions – effectively previews the next Xbox's user experience. The handheld gaming PC lets users launch titles from multiple storefronts through a controller-friendly interface without ever loading the standard Windows desktop.

Xbox president Sarah Bond described the new console as a "premium, curated experience," which may imply a storefront featuring games specially optimized for the hardware – similar to Steam's "Great on Deck" collection for the Steam Deck.

However, early feedback from ROG Ally owners suggests Microsoft still has considerable work to do before Windows feels as seamless as a traditional console interface or even SteamOS. The company is currently refining Windows for handheld and living-room use, minimizing performance overhead, and creating a startup process that resembles Xbox consoles.

Unlike the portable ROG Ally, the next-gen Xbox will natively run all Xbox Series titles, including backward-compatible Xbox One, Xbox 360, and original Xbox games, without requiring cloud streaming. Microsoft also plans to incorporate Auto Super Resolution upscaling and frame generation technology to enhance legacy titles.

Because online multiplayer on Windows is traditionally free, adopting a Windows-based platform would likely remove Xbox's subscription paywall for online play. What this means for Game Pass – particularly PC Game Pass – remains unknown.

Prior reports suggested that the next Xbox will utilize an AMD APU codenamed "Magnus." Early specifications point to a 10-core design, positioning it well ahead of Sony's PlayStation 6 in raw performance, but also potentially driving up manufacturing cost and retail price. AMD has confirmed that it is collaborating with Microsoft on multiple unannounced devices.

Both Microsoft's and Sony's next-gen consoles, along with a rumored PlayStation handheld, are expected to leverage AMD's Zen 6 CPUs and RDNA 5 GPUs. These architectures should deliver major performance gains in ray tracing, path tracing, and machine learning workloads. The new devices are reportedly targeting a 2027 launch window.

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Next-gen Xbox to feature full Windows, backward compatibility, and free online multiplayer

 

[m4a4]

It would certainly be nice to see MS focus more on gaming on Windows, but I don't know if I want to see them abandoning a console OS yet. That will actually just make it a glorified mini-PC. It would have MS's backing (where games could be certified to run well on it), but it would also have those desktop complexities and annoyances (which some people go console to avoid). Which also implies that games aren't going to always "just work" like for a console.

That said, if they can essentially make it akin to the SteamDeck, but for the livingroom (a console-like ease-of-use, instead of being portable), maaaybe they find a niche audience...

 

[Kirby1]

In theory I'd like the Xbox console to continue, but I recognize that Sony and Nintendo are so far ahead that it makes sense for Microsoft to compete more with prebuilds and gaming PCs in general vs standard tier consoles.

But Microsoft deserves a ton of blame here for making some very poor and expensive decisions.

 

[Y2JB47]

There is zero chance a new Xbox supports multiple storefronts. Support for steam instantly kills the Microsoft/xbox store.

Also mass market devices simply cannot support older pc titles. Imagine ‘little jimmy’ downloading an older pc title for his shiny new Xbox on Xmas morning only to be met with keyboard and mouse button prompts that he can’t find on his controller.

Never going to happen.

 

[OortCloud]

'Full Windows' - god help us all.

 

[Puiu]

"premium console", "full windows" ... just buy a good PC.

 

[candle86]

It would certainly be nice to see MS focus more on gaming on Windows, but I don't know if I want to see them abandoning a console OS yet. That will actually just make it a glorified mini-PC. It would have MS's backing (where games could be certified to run well on it), but it would also have those desktop complexities and annoyances (which some people go console to avoid). Which also implies that games aren't going to always "just work" like for a console.

That said, if they can essentially make it akin to the SteamDeck, but for the livingroom (a console-like ease-of-use, instead of being portable), maaaybe they find a niche audience...

What you may not be aware of as the original Xbox also ran on Windows. It's running an intake mini kernel which it kind of sounds like they're talking about here they don't want to load the full windows experience or working on that optimized boot process etc it sounds like they're going to strip out a bunch of the non-gaming features of Windows and basically leave it as a striped down version of Windows. And who knows better how to strip down windows than Microsoft so I think they can do it.

 

[candle86]

There is zero chance a new Xbox supports multiple storefronts. Support for steam instantly kills the Microsoft/xbox store.

Also mass market devices simply cannot support older pc titles. Imagine ‘little jimmy’ downloading an older pc title for his shiny new Xbox on Xmas morning only to be met with keyboard and mouse button prompts that he can’t find on his controller.

Never going to happen.

I don't see how having steam available hurts it at all as a matter of fact if they get a good performing handheld counsel up and running that also accesses the steam library fine that runs quick and efficient they basically just nuked the steam deck.

 

[Theinsanegamer]

I don't see how having steam available hurts it at all as a matter of fact if they get a good performing handheld counsel up and running that also accesses the steam library fine that runs quick and efficient they basically just nuked the steam deck.

It's a pretty simple concept, if you can buy on Steam, often at a discount, and get a title playable everywhere, WHY on earth would you ever buy from the xbox store?

Now, you may not be aware of this, but consoles rely on software sales to be profitable. If Steam is available, the xbox store is going to see a significant decrease in sales. That means that, to avoid massive losses, this xbox generation will have to be sold at a 30% margin to meet MS's new demands.

Custom hardware tends to be rather expensive. A $1200 xbox isnt going to light markets on fire when the opposition sells a $600 playstation, and $1200 builds a decent gaming PC too. All the value is gone. Since game sales will be declining, they will need to continuously sell larger numbers of consoles to offset development costs, which is going to be a very uphill battle.

This model has been tried before, and it failed. There is no functional difference between these and the Steam Boxes of yore.

 

[Lounds]

It's a pretty simple concept, if you can buy on Steam, often at a discount, and get a title playable everywhere, WHY on earth would you ever buy from the xbox store?

Now, you may not be aware of this, but consoles rely on software sales to be profitable. If Steam is available, the xbox store is going to see a significant decrease in sales. That means that, to avoid massive losses, this xbox generation will have to be sold at a 30% margin to meet MS's new demands.

Custom hardware tends to be rather expensive. A $1200 xbox isnt going to light markets on fire when the opposition sells a $600 playstation, and $1200 builds a decent gaming PC too. All the value is gone. Since game sales will be declining, they will need to continuously sell larger numbers of consoles to offset development costs, which is going to be a very uphill battle.

This model has been tried before, and it failed. There is no functional difference between these and the Steam Boxes of yore.

I dunno, it could simplify PC gaming for the masses in a way that the Steam Deck has brought quite a few console gamers over to steam. There has to be data to support this otherwise M$/Xbox wouldn't be making such a move.

 

[Theinsanegamer]

I dunno, it could simplify PC gaming for the masses in a way that the Steam Deck has brought quite a few console gamers over to steam.

OK, and how does that make money for Microsoft? How does that support the Xbox?

There has to be data to support this otherwise M$/Xbox wouldn't be making such a move.

Businesses make terrible decisions all the time. This is the same company that spent $68.7 billion on a company that is now losing $1.3 billion per year, and thought letting an EA executive be their public speaker for the xbox one launch was a great idea.

 

[Neatfeatguy]

There is zero chance a new Xbox supports multiple storefronts. Support for steam instantly kills the Microsoft/xbox store.

Also mass market devices simply cannot support older pc titles. Imagine ‘little jimmy’ downloading an older pc title for his shiny new Xbox on Xmas morning only to be met with keyboard and mouse button prompts that he can’t find on his controller.

Never going to happen.

Could be something as simple as taking a percentage from each sale done through Xbox for a Steam game.

It's just another platform for Steam to expand to, a percentage of a sale going to MS would still mean beaucoup bucks for Steam. Making more money for doing pretty much nothing other than Steam just being Steam.

Buying a game on Steam or through the MS store isn't any different. You don't own it. You just have access to play it as long as the access is there for you to use. As for sales, MS store does good sales on games they sell, just like Steam does.

Main reason I can think of for why you'd buy on Xbox/MS store vs Steam - maybe you don't really have a gaming PC and don't use Steam and have had Xbox for a long time with a library already there.

Steam isn't the be all, end all for PC gaming. People will fight for and defend Steam tooth and nail for some stupid reason that I can't comprehend and no amount of trying to convince me will make me change my mind. Renting games, to me, is stupid. I don't condone the renting of games on Steam, Epic, EA, Ubisoft or even MS. If you can't own it, you're just paying rent and that access can be taken away from you at anytime.

As to if you buy a game on Steam or MS store through the Xbox, whatever floats your boat.

 

[TheBigT42]

It would certainly be nice to see MS focus more on gaming on Windows, but I don't know if I want to see them abandoning a console OS yet. That will actually just make it a glorified mini-PC. It

It has always been a glorified mini-PC. It was just locked down so you couldn't tell. People were able to get XP running on the original xbox

https://copyleaks.com/ai-content-detector 0%
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https://www.grammarly.com/ai-detector 42%
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https://www.zerogpt.com/ 32%

Possible AI 28%

 

[ScottSoapbox]

“Free” multiplayer means they found a new way to monetize our data.

 

[AndreV]

There is zero chance a new Xbox supports multiple storefronts. Support for steam instantly kills the Microsoft/xbox store.

Also mass market devices simply cannot support older pc titles. Imagine ‘little jimmy’ downloading an older pc title for his shiny new Xbox on Xmas morning only to be met with keyboard and mouse button prompts that he can’t find on his controller.

Never going to happen.

Without dual OS and multiple storefronts on Windows the next Xbox cannot justify its "Bill of Materials May Push its Price Well Beyond $1000", the final price being between 1500 and 2000.

https://wccftech.com/next-gen-xbox-magnus-bill-of-materials-may-push-its-price-well-beyond-1000/

 

[Billybobjoey]

There is zero chance a new Xbox supports multiple storefronts. Support for steam instantly kills the Microsoft/xbox store.

That's why I can't for the life of me understand why all signs are pointing them going this route. Odds are, the existing Xbox app would be used for Game Pass and maybe any games normally exclusive to a third party launcher (like EA or Ubisoft, but even they are back on Steam now. Battle.net maybe?), and everything else would likely be through Steam. Most software sales being through steam won't keep the lights on. You can't keep a company running based on being "consumer friendly", as Xbox are currently in the "finding out" stage.

 

[Liljonny11]

That's why I can't for the life of me understand why all signs are pointing them going this route. Odds are, the existing Xbox app would be used for Game Pass and maybe any games normally exclusive to a third party launcher (like EA or Ubisoft, but even they are back on Steam now. Battle.net maybe?), and everything else would likely be through Steam. Most software sales being through steam won't keep the lights on. You can't keep a company running based on being "consumer friendly", as Xbox are currently in the "finding out" stage.

OK, and how does that make money for Microsoft? How does that support the Xbox?

Businesses make terrible decisions all the time. This is the same company that spent $68.7 billion on a company that is now losing $1.3 billion per year, and thought letting an EA executive be their public speaker for the xbox one launch was a great idea.

There is zero chance a new Xbox supports multiple storefronts. Support for steam instantly kills the Microsoft/xbox store.

Also mass market devices simply cannot support older pc titles. Imagine ‘little jimmy’ downloading an older pc title for his shiny new Xbox on Xmas morning only to be met with keyboard and mouse button prompts that he can’t find on his controller.

Never going to happen.

Did all of you forget Gamepass exists? Microsoft does not make it's primary money on Game sales anymore. It's literally why they are moving away from Exclusives. What they want now is access to your data. They just want you to use their devices. This could also be a ploy to get people to use their "GameOS version of Windows" That increases windows performance for gaming but they could also force you pay for Gamepass so you can play online. There are many ways to monetize this idea not including the price of the console itself which has already been more expensive than it's competitors.
All I know is that it means less development time for games on console optimization and more focus on making the game. I'm sick of consoles being the focus of companies when they are all half measures that are secretly draining your money.

Could be something as simple as taking a percentage from each sale done through Xbox for a Steam game.

It's just another platform for Steam to expand to, a percentage of a sale going to MS would still mean beaucoup bucks for Steam. Making more money for doing pretty much nothing other than Steam just being Steam.

Buying a game on Steam or through the MS store isn't any different. You don't own it. You just have access to play it as long as the access is there for you to use. As for sales, MS store does good sales on games they sell, just like Steam does.

Main reason I can think of for why you'd buy on Xbox/MS store vs Steam - maybe you don't really have a gaming PC and don't use Steam and have had Xbox for a long time with a library already there.

Steam isn't the be all, end all for PC gaming. People will fight for and defend Steam tooth and nail for some stupid reason that I can't comprehend and no amount of trying to convince me will make me change my mind. Renting games, to me, is stupid. I don't condone the renting of games on Steam, Epic, EA, Ubisoft or even MS. If you can't own it, you're just paying rent and that access can be taken away from you at anytime.

As to if you buy a game on Steam or MS store through the Xbox, whatever floats your boat.

Steam has always prided itself in keeping your library acting like a physical copy. I have never heard of ANYONE losing their products on their steam library without some weird steam gift they bought off some weird site. I have been using steam for over 14 years and I still have my first games that can be installed on any of my PCs and played. Not to mention sites like GOG that don't use DRM on their games, meaning you own the files. Don't group consoles that have been tricking casual gamers into paying more for their games that might not work in future generations, more for playing online which PCs never had to, and more for the console since you have to do more upgrades more often. PC gaming has never been like that and buying used PC physical discs are still cheaper than console physical discs.

 

[Eldrach]

This is to make life easier for Microsoft. Microsoft can easily remove most of the bloatware for a device that is only going to run games + a browser with a single hardware profile to set up.
Gamepass will be front and center here - With Gamepass ultimate promising users to crank up their settings with cloud gaming as well - "you can run it on your xbox - but with ultimate ...play it at 4k 120fps!" - Microsoft is a Services First company now and I think they will succeed with a "plug and play pc" in a way Steam never did.
That is, until someone cracks the OS and allows you install it on any device to make your own "xbox" at home

 

[amghwk]

What I like about Xbox, is the backward compatibility. And Microsoft's commitment to this end is commendable.

I never had an Xbox before my current Xbox S|X. I always wanted to play older games with native gamepad support, which are a bit cumbersome to circumvent in Windows. Games like Morrowind, the original Oblivion and Far Cry 2 and first Call of Juarez that didn't support gamepad. And I'm happy that I can play all them now with true controller support and with a faster processor.

What I'm not so happy is the locked 30fps in some games.

Otherwise, it's a great entertainment box. The rectangular cube shape is inconspicuous when placed behind by standby TV. And it's.....silent. I love silent machines.

Plus, I still watch DVDs using this joy.

 

[airbornex]

So the next Xbox might basically be "Windows, but it actually works like a console" which is either the smartest pivot Microsoft could make or the world’s most complicated settings menu ever created.

 

[umeng2002]

Another reason not to buy a console if it's over $1000.

 

[Neatfeatguy]

Steam has always prided itself in keeping your library acting like a physical copy. I have never heard of ANYONE losing their products on their steam library without some weird steam gift they bought off some weird site. I have been using steam for over 14 years and I still have my first games that can be installed on any of my PCs and played. Not to mention sites like GOG that don't use DRM on their games, meaning you own the files. Don't group consoles that have been tricking casual gamers into paying more for their games that might not work in future generations, more for playing online which PCs never had to, and more for the console since you have to do more upgrades more often. PC gaming has never been like that and buying used PC physical discs are still cheaper than console physical discs.

Steam works nothing like a physical copy. If you can not download the game files to your side to store on your storage devices and then use the files to install the games whenever you want without any kind of DRM (Steam itself is a DRM, requires you to link the game to it before it will run) then you don't own it; you rent it.

I'm not saying and I don't think Steam will go anywhere anytime soon, but if one day Steam shuts down all those games you "own" are gone.

There have been digital game stores that have closed down in the past and any game you "owned' on them are gone. There are digital stores that have lost distribution rights to media, such as when the Playstation Store lost rights to Lionsgate studio movies, if anyone purchased a movie on that platform and it was under Lionsgate, you lost that movie.

As far as I know GoG is the only digital gaming platform you can do as you please with the games you buy. If you choose not to download the game files to your side and utilize GoG like you would with Steam, then that is on you should GoG close down and you lose your access to games you purchased.

 

[Eldrach]

Steam works nothing like a physical copy. If you can not download the game files to your side to store on your storage devices and then use the files to install the games whenever you want without any kind of DRM (Steam itself is a DRM, requires you to link the game to it before it will run) then you don't own it; you rent it.

I'm not saying and I don't think Steam will go anywhere anytime soon, but if one day Steam shuts down all those games you "own" are gone.

There have been digital game stores that have closed down in the past and any game you "owned' on them are gone. There are digital stores that have lost distribution rights to media, such as when the Playstation Store lost rights to Lionsgate studio movies, if anyone purchased a movie on that platform and it was under Lionsgate, you lost that movie.

As far as I know GoG is the only digital gaming platform you can do as you please with the games you buy. If you choose not to download the game files to your side and utilize GoG like you would with Steam, then that is on you should GoG close down and you lose your access to games you purchased.

One day Gabe will die and steam will probably be bought by a corporate giant ...unless he does something smart and gives his shares away to someone who is not allowed to sell them

 

[Liljonny11]

Steam works nothing like a physical copy. If you can not download the game files to your side to store on your storage devices and then use the files to install the games whenever you want without any kind of DRM (Steam itself is a DRM, requires you to link the game to it before it will run) then you don't own it; you rent it.

I'm not saying and I don't think Steam will go anywhere anytime soon, but if one day Steam shuts down all those games you "own" are gone.

There have been digital game stores that have closed down in the past and any game you "owned' on them are gone. There are digital stores that have lost distribution rights to media, such as when the Playstation Store lost rights to Lionsgate studio movies, if anyone purchased a movie on that platform and it was under Lionsgate, you lost that movie.

As far as I know GoG is the only digital gaming platform you can do as you please with the games you buy. If you choose not to download the game files to your side and utilize GoG like you would with Steam, then that is on you should GoG close down and you lose your access to games you purchased.

Again, there are plenty of non DRM versions of game stores like GOG so this argument is just dead on arrival. And also you can play steam in offline mode and have multiple copies of the game running forever. As long as you don't connect it back up. it will essentially work as a physical copy. Lets not forget that physical copies also have connections to external accounts before you can even game and the servers can be killed at any time if it's a multiplayer game. This idea that your disc are thing that will last forever is hilarious because your consoles won't last forever (hardware dies eventually no matter what) and are not easily replaced. PCs on the other hand are always going to work back wards compatible unless something major changes. To be honest, physical copies have always been a pain to me. They can get scratched easily and become useless even from usage itself. You have to remember to bring it with you, and almost always have to be activated with the internet just like a steam download. One good example, my Halo 2 disc. Completely useless because windows live doesn't exist anymore. Can't be installed or anything. However my steam version can, on any device. Did you know you can pass your steam files around on a usb, like a physical copy? You can even share your library. As long as physical copy is tied to

 

[Neatfeatguy]

Again, there are plenty of non DRM versions of game stores like GOG so this argument is just dead on arrival. And also you can play steam in offline mode and have multiple copies of the game running forever. As long as you don't connect it back up. it will essentially work as a physical copy. Lets not forget that physical copies also have connections to external accounts before you can even game and the servers can be killed at any time if it's a multiplayer game. This idea that your disc are thing that will last forever is hilarious because your consoles won't last forever (hardware dies eventually no matter what) and are not easily replaced. PCs on the other hand are always going to work back wards compatible unless something major changes. To be honest, physical copies have always been a pain to me. They can get scratched easily and become useless even from usage itself. You have to remember to bring it with you, and almost always have to be activated with the internet just like a steam download. One good example, my Halo 2 disc. Completely useless because windows live doesn't exist anymore. Can't be installed or anything. However my steam version can, on any device. Did you know you can pass your steam files around on a usb, like a physical copy? You can even share your library. As long as physical copy is tied to

Steam offline still requires you to connect to the server to launch the game for verification, after that you can play offline. Hence, steam itself is the DRM.

I can, however, download the game files to my side from GoG. Take them where I want, when I want, install them without internet nor the need to connect to any kind of digital platform first before playing them offline.

I never said physical copies would last forever. I also never said all physical copies are still functional. It's not my fault you inferred that.

I personally have physical media from the mid/late 90s that still works. Such as my disc for Thief: The Dark Project, Star Wars: Episode I – The Phantom Menace, Quake, Quake 2 and so on. I've done myself a personal service and created .iso of these discs. I've even got them running on my Windows 10 system. Should I need to, I could get a VM of XP going and run them from there and I wouldn't require a bunch of work arounds. As the years moved on there were more and more online server connection requirements for game keys, but they can be circumvented. When physical copies started requiring Steam for verification, that was the downfall of physical media; sure you could buy a physical copy of a game, but if you didn't agree to linking it to Steam the game wouldn't run. So now you have a physical copy that requires digital gaming platform (just another type of DRM) to run.

I do have a few physical games that I just cannot run under Windows 10 because MS removed the ability to allow disc DRM such as SecuRom to run on any Windows version since Vista. Can't install the game files from disc sadly, you need a cracked version of the game then.