Update: Something we initially missed from the video was a clarifying comment from Digital Foundry's Richard Leadbetter, who had the following to say on the topic of the Xbox Series X and Series S:
"To clarify the S and X thing, obviously last generation we had an [Xbox One S] and an [Xbox One X] console, and I think they just transplanted that across to the current generation, so the Series S is the equivalent of the One S and Series X is the equivalent of the One X - it's just that you're getting both of them at the same time at launch."
Original story: Microsoft's apparent decision to avoid making a new "mid-gen refresh" console to sit alongside the Xbox Series X and Series S appears to have been decided a long time ago, at least according to a new Digital Foundry video.
In the new DF Direct Weekly #116, it's revealed that Microsoft told the outlet back in 2020 that it considered the Xbox Series X a mid-gen refresh machine already, while the Series S was basically the standard console.
"Microsoft told us this back when we saw the Series X for the first time, that the Series X is their mid-gen refresh. They just decided to do it ahead of time, I guess you could say. The Series S is what they consider, like, their standard machine, and then Series X is like, that's getting ahead of the cart there, and that's what you might get from a mid-gen console."
Last week, Xbox boss Phil Spencer mentioned he felt Microsoft was "pretty set on the hardware we have" when asked whether an Xbox Series X upgrade had been considered, admitting that he didn't "feel an imperative" to make one.
Clearly, there's still a lot of life left in the Xbox Series X (and Xbox Series S), so it sounds like we might be waiting quite a few years until Microsoft decides to make another brand-new console - and that's absolutely fine by us!