Xbox Emphasises That Its Next-Gen Devices 'Aren't Locked To A Single Store'

So, it'll be a PC then. I actually think it's the best direction for them considering they are no longer making anything exclusive anymore.

And is the next Xbox going to be manufactured by Microsoft or farmed out to 3rd parties? She certainly doesn't differentiate their console and handheld in that video, and it's widely believed their own handheld has been dumped. Many outlets wrote articles this week saying the Asus ROG Xbox is the future of Xbox consoles and this video IMO just added fuel to that fire.

More storefronts, more games, more possibilities, more third party access and support across added storefronts. I'm all for it! Excited to see what awaits.

Honestly this is the most excited for Xbox’s future than I have been the last two console gens

I’m down for it if they just make a bespoke gaming pc box that “will just work” without registry tinkering and all the extra windows bloat and necessity (like virus software and such)…..

I’m ultra down for it if they can make a handheld that plays all my current Xbox library native, plus has the above with multiple storefront access. A truly all in one portable device. Would be insane, and amazing.

@Jenkinss that is an interesting point, hadn't thought of that.

If they are claiming the Rog as an Xbox then they could be simply providing software for other manufacturers to build the hardware at certain specs.

It feels off just saying it but I guess it can't be ruled out at this point.

@Medic_alert this is more or less Valves approach with SteamOS now, they’ve licensed it out to Lenovo for the Legion. Would make sense on MS part to basically do the same and just create a console environment out of windows totally so it can be licensed out. Further expanding the Xbox brand.

@FraserG and it's an exhausting way to address your fanbase.

The " air of mystery" nonsense needs to stop.
I'd still argue that Xbox brass simply has no idea what they're doing- and stumble into winning streaks like they have recently

So the next Xbox is gonna be a PC.

That means no Xbox BC games unless the rumored emulation layer is also true.

@InterceptorAlpha They said it would be BC today, did they not?

So, I think this announcement has shifted by 90% certainty that there will be another Xbox generation to probably 95%...!

That said, I'm still baffled by why Microsoft would want to include another store (Steam) on their next Xbox that will, more often than not, offer the same games, available on the Xbox, but at a cheaper price, and that includes day one of release, not just a few months later in a sale. And when it comes to sales, Steam games are ridiculously cheap by comparison to the Xbox (and indeed the PlayStation). So, if you are not interested in Play Anywhere because you only have this PC/Console, and you are not worried about having two (or more libraries), then why on Earth would you choose to buy your games via the Xbox Store?

And then there's Epic Store, they give away at least one game for free every single week. Yes, they are often tat, but they also give away some brilliant games too. At least once a month you can expect Epic to give you a game for free that were you to buy it you would have to pay £50. As an example, they recently gave away Dead Island 2 for free. I currently have 432 games in my Epic Store library, and yet I only paid for two of them! My point being if you have access to the Epic Store and Steam, why would you buy from Microsoft? To me, it seems to be a massive act of self-harm...

@Dm9982 true. The idea of everything Xbox being on a full fat version of windows is awful to me if i'm honest.

They virtually pioneered the idea of making your users the beta testers. It is cumbersome and resource intensive - i hate Windows with all my heart.

@FatalBubbles No. They said there would be a form. Which just as easily could be PC versions of the Xbox game with cross saves.

Whereas there are Xbox only games that have nice PC versions that cannot be played on PC.

This is an appealing strategy. My biggest complaint about Nintendo and Playstation is that you are at their mercy for where your library is. They (and xbox) have in the past cut me off from my libraries, they probably will again (psvr2 did this just a few years ago). I have so many digital games that can only be accessed on one single device like the wii or ps3 and no where else. This idea of my Steam, epic, gog, and xbox libraries being side by side on a plethora of devices is very appealing. Especially with how well xbox has implemented the cross saves. Playing the same save on the xbox in the living room, the pc in my office, or a handheld on the go is the type of move that will actually say I want this platform and their devices over the other ones.

@Fiendish-Beaver It’s because they’re basically going full third party with this move. They don’t mind if Steam eats up their 30% cut anymore.

They can’t go full Xbox PC without Steam on it, because they know it won’t sell. So they’re choosing the third party route. Which i think is probably the smartest play they have left.

It’ll at least be a Game Pass machine for some people. For the rest it’ll be a Steam machine, and Xbox won’t see any revenue (except for Xbox titles of course) or have any control over Steam, that belongs to Valve.

I guess there aren’t many viable options left for Xbox, so this is a solid way to stay in the game. Even if Steam will eat up much of their revenue

@FatalBubbles @InterceptorAlpha yep, she 100% confirmed backwards compatibility in the announcement. Whether it's via hardware support or software emulation we don't know, but it is happening (which is great news!)

And there it is. Xbox is dead. Microsoft Gaming is the new focus. That’s why they cancelled the handheld.

@Fiendish-Beaver it's a good question but I'm guessing they finally realised that Steam OS poses an existential threat to Windows dominance in PC gaming, so they figured that having Steam on a Windows-based Xbox was preferable to a future where gaming moves over to Linux instead. They can still promote Game Pass on this Xbox PC, just as they do with XSX today. Finally, I think the hardware will not be subsidised and will be sold at profit from day one. It's going to cost a lot more upfront than XSX did (but not needing Game Pass Core and having Steam will make up for that from the customer's perspective).

@InterceptorAlpha I must be out of the loop because I’m not sure what you’re saying.

@VoidPunk Can you send me what you watched because it must be different.

If this is referring to a home console and not a handheld, then Xbox next "console" is gonna be an Xbox PC and it's not gonna be subsidized, which means it's gonna cost much higher than an equivalent console and much higher than an equivalent normal PC, in times where the prices tend to go higher than they are today. I don't want to be pessimistic but if that's the case, it's dead on arrival and would be much better to just throw in the towel and launch an Xbox app for PC that can run old Xbox library (killing "play anywhere" in the process, since there will be only one plataform).

@FatalBubbles

Essentially going to be like the, Xbox ROG Ally X.

It can only play Xbox games that have a PC version.

So example: You cannot play the Xbox version of Doom 2016 on the Xbox ROG Ally X. Because the Xbox version of it is not on PC. You have to play the steam version.

Lost Odyssey? You cannot even play that on the Xbox ROG Ally X because there is no PC version.

So unless they have a true emulation layer thay can play Xbox games, which I want to point out they said multiple times is not possible, even though anyone with a brain knows it is BS, the backwards compatibility will be limited to ownership of PC games that are also on Xbox.

@InterceptorAlpha Thanks for the extra info. So would you say she was lying since she said with your current library?

@FatalBubbles Half truths aren't lies when it comes to businesses.

If they were, then they were lying when they saying BC was impossible on PC.

so you can play the games you want across devices anywhere you want - delivering you an Xbox experience not locked to a single store, or tied to one device

I can and will fully get behind this approach. A console like experience combined with the freedom of PC. No more walled garden store fronts or being at the mercy of were my gaming library is. Sign me up 😁.

Be interesting to see what appears.

I just hope they go for one console spec. I think going for two would be confusing.

@InterceptorAlpha I don't think they meant that emulating Xbox 360/One/Series is impossible. I think that they mean that making a Pc function entirely like an Xbox running games (like Xbox one and series does with 360), with online and everything else is impractical.
In my last comment I also forgot to say that with the launch of an Xbox pc, there won't be subscribers of the first game pass tier required to play online games. Also as it'll inevitable sell much less than Xbox Series, it'll also lose millions of ultimate subscribers, not mentioning that lots of the games will skip Xbox store. It's indeed a curious move if they go that way.

Xbox is essentially becoming a new gaming version of Windows and that is very exciting. Get the traditional tv oriented xbox if you want, get a prebuilt pc, build your own, go with a gaming laptop, handheld, etc. Your xbox library and store will be there wherever. While playstation and Nintendo are locked to a single device and you are limited to what they decide the device can do and will cost.

Xbox is letting Sony and Nintendo fight their little console sales figures war while they are fighting microsofts oldest fight, the operating system war. XboxOS/windows against SteamOS and linux/mac/etc.

Sadly, people will still drool over sales figures of the dedicated devices and wait for sony and Nintendo to grant the ability to purchase a whole new variant like the "pro" version halfway between the next time they let you buy a whole new "next generation" of the device. Xbox will always have a pro version available, upgrade whenever and however you want.

@Medic_alert I don’t blame you there. I grew up with Dos (Back when MS made it but was distributed as IBM Dos), watched the birth of windows - which was magical at the time. Saw through Windows 3, to 95, 98, ME, Vista, etc…. I crapped out Win 7.

Just far too much bloat and maintenance on the OS, and the fact that I’d have to do a factory fresh install every 6-12 months to keep things running nicely…. Smh. I built my last gaming rig around 2006…. Right around the 360 days…. A thunderstorm blew it out. Was honestly the best thing to happen to me. I detached from pc gaming and focused on Consoles after that. Been a much happier gamer ever since…..

but I had been missing the occasional pc release or modding games, so last year I nabbed a steam deck. So nice. Lot less fuss and muss than windows. I do have to tweak games every now and then, but that’s just mainly graphical settings. Only rarely have I had to mess with an ini file or something due to a game not defaulting to 800p, and instead defaulting to 1440p….. 🤦🏼‍♂️

If Xbox can manage that type of pc console hybrid then I’m totally sold on it.

La

So it's going to be a gaming PC? Well many of us already have one so I guess we have the next Xbox already 🤷🏻‍♀️ I don't understand where Microsoft is going. We don't need an unnecessary middle man, we can build our gaming PC right now.

Are they planning to stop charging for online play cause that's a big selling point for PC gaming, if they are that means they are throwing away a giant chunk of Game Pass Core revenue in the garage.

if gamers are willing to spend a thousand bucks more power to them..

Locking a console to a specific store has typically been the trade-off for a machine that is less expensive than a comparable PC. It will be interesting to see if the next Xbox console will continue to be less expensive than comparable PCs, or if it will only be a standard for PC developers to aim for.

Whatever the approach, I for one do hope they provide two console specs — the market is on the verge of fracturing into distinct lower and higher ends and Microsoft's attempt to maintain a bridge between them has some benefits.

Looks like Steam has been confirmed.

@InterceptorAlpha Not sure where you're getting all this "form" stuff from.

In the description for the Xbox + AMD video, it explicitly says that the next Xbox is "fully compatible with your existing Xbox game library."

There is no room for interpretation or half-truths there. All the games that you can play on your Xbox Series X/S right now, like Lost Odyssey, will be playable on the next Xbox. If that wasn't true, then the next Xbox wouldn't be "fully backwards compatible," as Microsoft themselves have confirmed.

So, no, it seems like it won't be like the ROG Xbox Ally, and it won't run PC versions of your existing Xbox consoles games.

Also, I don't recall Microsoft ever saying that Xbox Series X/S emulation on PC was not possible. I don't mean to be rude, but do you have a source for that information, if possible?

@DarthVerde To be fair, there is a zero percent chance that the PS6 will be at the same price or less than the PS5 Pro. Chances are the PS6 will be a minimum $800 device, without a disc drive.

So the Xbox won't be too far ahead in price.

@Questionable_Duck Microsoft has always been very careful with their wording. Xbox means Xbox One and Series.

360 means Xbox 360.

Original Xbox means original Xbox.

The saying Xbox library only guarantees the last two generations.

Unless of course you're implying this means they're bringing back the backwards compatibility program so the tons of omitted 360 and original Xbox games in peoples' libraries can now be played.

I'm which case I'd image they to be making a huge deal over it. Whereas this is a footnote.

@InterceptorAlpha It says, "entire Xbox library," though. That includes OG Xbox and Xbox 360 games.

Either way, even if we're looking at Xbox Series games only, there are many Xbox Series X/S games that are not available on PC, nor are they Play Anywhere. Unicorn Overlord, GTA 6, Arcade Archives 2 Ridge Racer, MLB The Show, College Football, etc, are all on Xbox, but not on PC.

Like I said, "fully backwards compatible with your existing Xbox library" would entail all of these games, as well. There is no room for half-truths there. If it can't play these games, then this statement would be objectively wrong.

Either way, what you suggest wouldn't really make a lot of sense. The next Xbox will only be able to run PC versions of the games in our existing Xbox library? The only way that would be possible is if Microsoft makes all current Xbox games Xbox Play Anywhere compatible, which is never gonna happen.

Imagine if we got Nintendo store 😎🤣

Just a reminder to keep expectations tempered. The next quote specifically talks about windows PC gaming. Xbox is bigger than just the console now and there's a LOT of ways for them to technically fulfill this promise. For example on PC the Xbox App already connects to other launchers and you can even buy games from other launchers on the store. They've also added Battle Net to the Xbox Play Anywhere fold for new releases (that's really not tying you to one store). There's also Nvidia GFN which already collaborates with Xbox. Or they could say it's been done technically with Ubisoft+ being available (you aren't tied to just game pass on consoles). The Xbox full screen mode also already confirmed integration with third party storefronts on windows.

The financial make me scratch my head with the idea of a fully open Xbox console. Like if Steam on the console then that's where most people will buy their games and all of a sudden Microsoft can't subsidize consoles anymore. They also won't be making the 30% from every purchase anymore. I don't see any other outcome than Xbox consoles costing as much as PCs and/or Microsoft just axing them entirely as monetarily they'll have lost their biggest profit area. And I also just don't think this is necessary because Microsoft has windows gaming. They can just leave the Xbox console experience as traditional and work to bring a better first party gaming experience to windows through stuff like the Xbox Full screen mode. Then use Xbox Play Anywhere to tie it all together.

And honestly? Personally, I don't want the situation on windows on Xbox. Alan Wake 2 STILL isn't on Steam. Companies like EA and Ubisoft try to force everyone to use their launcher even if it's terrible. I don't want the possibility of storefront/launcher exclusives on my Xbox console. In a perfect world everything would release everywhere and we'd have a choice, but in reality it wouldn't be long until we're all having to download 3 or 4 launchers to play every new release. There's benefits to this on PC (like better deals due to competition), but there's also benefits to the existing console experience. I think we can live in a world where Xbox has both and gamers have a choice of where they want to play with what features and drawbacks.

@Decimateh Would it mean much? Nintendo doesn't consistently (it seems like every other Gen for them) support digital purchases across their own devices. Like any games you bought digitally for your Wii U didn't exactly get transfered over to your Nintendo Switch.

@WildConcept6 but that’s precisely the big deal. The final sentence where she says ‘making Windows the number one platform in gaming’. Not Windows and Xbox. Just Windows. That shows us that console will no longer be considered a separate platform, it’s all being brought under the Windows umbrella. XSX successor will look like the Xbox Ally where it runs a modified version of Windows optimised for gaming. That’s why this is such a bombshell announcement. Xbox is transitioning into a fully Windows-based platform.

@WildConcept6 with the switch n switch2 they do I think though imagine getting metroids that would be sick

I understand where you are coming from, @Cakefish, but Microsoft will lose so much money by allowing multiple stores on their PC/console. Instead of 100% of first-party revenue, they will receive 70%, and instead of 30% of third-party revenue, they will receive nothing. How on Earth are they supposed to make that work...?

I agree, @LogicStrikesAgain. However, with Microsoft receiving 70% of revenue from their first-party titles, and nothing at all from third-party sales (by virtue of them be bought elsewhere than the Xbox Store), I cannot see how Microsoft will be making enough money to continue to prop us Game Pass. This device is going to be very expensive, and will undoubtedly be a device that pushes people to invest in a PS6 instead. That will directly impact the number of people that subscribe to Game Pass, which will be hugely detrimental to the service. Plus, of course, Microsoft will likely have to withdraw Core altogether, which is a further hit to their revenue. Indeed, arguably, the cost of Ultimate should fall to match PC Game Pass too, which will further hit the revenue the service brings in.

Anyone that believes that Game Pass will 100% survive this (in its current guise) is likely to be sorely disappointed. It will either have to undergo a massive price increase, or go fully first-party. I simply cannot see the service surviving as it is...

@Fiendish-Beaver I can only speculate, but it’s possible they crunched the numbers on the past few years of console sales and realised that a closed-platform traditional Xbox console was no longer viable in the market. After all, if that hypothetical next Xbox sold Wii U numbers - which let’s face it isn’t a crazy prediction looking at the past few years of XSX sales - it would mean certain death for the platform. And with it the ~30 million or so console Game Pass subscribers, Microsoft’s flock of golden geese. So by consolidating with Windows, they can provide a sustainable hardware platform for these customers to seamlessly transition over to. Suddenly it doesn’t matter if the device sells Wii U numbers, because it relies on the considerably larger Windows development environment.

This is a long and very convoluted way of saying that maybe it wasn’t a choice that they made entirely voluntarily, but rather something they’ve been forced to concede on just to ensure that Xbox as a brand stays sustainable into the long term.

I think that depends on two things, @Cakefish, firstly, how many people buy into this new PC/Console, which will push the boundaries of £1000. And then how many stick with the original Series X/S generation rather than move over to the PS6. That 30 million Game Pass subscribers could take a massive hit. If it drops to 20 million subscribers, that is around £100 million less a year in revenue, which is massive. Then, as I said before, are people who transition to the PC/Console going to expect to pay the same as those that currently game on a PC for Game Pass, because if Microsoft don't there will be uproar, and if they do, and they sell 10 million of these new units, then that is another huge hit to their finances, something in the region of £50 million less a year. This is why I do not see Game Pass, in its current guise, as surviving a PC like console, and why I think Microsoft will be forced into taking Game Pass first-party only, though by taking such a move, they will likely have to drop the price of the service everywhere, but will likely be able to put it on the PlayStation console too, which may offset some of that financial pain.

Ultimately, this is all very interesting, and I am fascinated to see how it all plays out, though I am honestly surprised by how many do not see the potential for disaster on the horizon. Microsoft will always have a very bright future as a publisher, but I struggle to see how either their consoles, or Game Pass can survive this upheaval...

@Fiendish-Beaver yeah I agree, there will definitely be a reshuffling of Game Pass tiers to accommodate the merging of platforms. I really don’t know whether Game Pass can survive this transition, Microsoft will definitely invest significant resources into giving it the best chance of success possible though we can be sure of that. And yeah XSX|S will continue to exist for a long while as we know the cross gen period lasts many years, the window of overlap will be very lengthy. In terms of how many units the XSX successor needs to sell to be considered a success in Microsoft’s eyes, well I guess it needs to comfortably recoup the cost of R&D of the hardware at least. It’s gonna cost more than Steam Deck to produce and distribute so will need to sell more than that to be sustainable long term I think.

Lots of unknowns still, so many unanswered questions! It’s going to be very interesting to see how all this pans out over the next few years!

I get that this will give greater choice but I can't see how this won't impact Microsoft's sales even further when it comes to software considering those PC centric store fronts often offer games at far cheaper prices. When I buy games on my PC the Microsoft store or Xbox app are probably the last place I go to buy the game and it is often only something I use for Gamepass games.

If they have multiple store fronts on their next first party console. They will lose out on millions of dollars. It also devalues the need for Xbox play anywhere. You could just buy everything on steam and bypass the Xbox store.

@Kaloudz I’ve been saying Steam was coming to next gen Xbox’s. Much like you said FF16 and other FF titles were coming. Xbox is merging console and PC and to me thats a good thing. The one thing MS has that Nintendo and Sony don’t other than 3 trillion dollars is Windows. They should be using that. Striping all the not needed functions of windows leaves a good blueprint to have all games and a good foundation to make this console slash PC device really work the way they intend it too. I’ve been asking for a Windows light version for a long time. Seems now is the time. Play anywhere will take a while to become more popular but i do think it will catch on. Funny thing is my birthday is late October and that is the ROG Alley Xbox launch window. Maybe i will be testing this out for myself to see how it’s looking.

@HonestHick I'm with you 1000% of the way mate. I think integrating Windows / Xbox is a fabulous idea. I don't understand why people wouldn't want that? Same as Steam, who doesn't want that compatibility? If Series S / X had the ability to do all of that in an update tomorrow, people left, right, and centre, would be playing all sorts of games in and out of the Xbox ecosystem. It's win win if you ask me.