Comments 368

Re: Hands On: Black Ops 7 Is Amazing On The ROG Xbox Ally X, As Long As You're Not Offline

Gabrie

I imagine that in the future all these devices will have 6G and their own Internet connection, but today it is absurd to make a campaign that can be played solo and will always require an Internet connection.

I guess it's like Diablo or other similar games, even if you play alone, part of the code runs on the server, to prevent piracy or simply because of laziness/lack of time on the part of the developers.

Re: Valve 'Excited' By ROG Xbox Ally And Insists It's A 'Sign Of Success' For Steam Deck

Gabrie

The competition no longer seems to be in hardware: the success of Xbox Ally could benefit Valve, and the success of Steam Machine could benefit Xbox. In fact, I believe that if SteamOS achieves a significant market presence in the future, Xbox will launch its store and Gamepass there without hesitation.

I said it the other day, I think PlayStation and Nintendo are the big losers if open consoles like these are successful, their traditional models are going to look really obsolete.

Re: Talking Point: What Does The 'Steam Machine' Mean For Xbox's Next-Gen Console Plans?

Gabrie

I think that PlayStation and Nintendo are the two big losers here; their current business model seems obsolete.

To a certain extent, I think Xbox's vision is reinforced by the concept of an open hardware ecosystem, validating its commitment. However, I believe that Microsoft should be concerned about Windows, as one of the pillars of its OS is gaming, and it may be under pressure for the first time in a long time.

Re: Xbox Boss Phil Spencer Shares His Thoughts On Valve's New 'Steam Machine'

Gabrie

Honestly, I think these “consoles” will kill traditional consoles.

I think PlayStation will be the most affected in the long term. I wouldn't be surprised if they were forced to release their games on these types of consoles, sacrificing 30% and altering their entire current business model, or even launching their own launcher on PC.

I have no idea what Nintendo can do, maybe ignore it all and stay locked into their own hardware, offering some additional value in terms of playability.

I think this future will greatly benefit Xbox, but I also think it will put a lot of pressure on Windows, which has many weaknesses to address in the face of SteamOS, an increasingly complete console OS.

Who knows what the industry will look like in 5-10 years, but what is clear is that these are very interesting times.

Re: Valve Announces New Hardware, Including A Steam Machine That'll Compete With Xbox

Gabrie

I am increasingly convinced that traditional consoles are going to disappear. I don't think there will ever be a PS7, and I doubt we will see the equivalent of a Switch 4.

I think Xbox, despite all its erratic moves, is right to bet on an open console, with Windows or whatever OS the end user wants to install.

This is probably the way forward for those of us who like local hardware alongside our TVs. Until cloud gaming is capable of replacing it, these open consoles seem to be the future.

Re: A Month Later, The ROG Xbox Ally X Has Totally Changed My Gaming Habits

Gabrie

After a month of use, I am also very happy, although there are some areas that I think could be improved.

The main one is the significant lack of games on Xbox PC. Many games don't make it to Xbox PC, or they do so very late, which is very discouraging, especially if what you expect from this device is for it to be an Xbox.

Another point is the screen. It has great image quality, but an extra inch would have been much better for long gaming sessions.

Otherwise, it's great. I think the ROG Xbox Ally X is by far the best console of its kind that you can buy for under $1,000.

The ergonomics are incredibly good. In this respect, I don't think there's anything better.

The power is surprising for a device of this size. It allows you to play most current games at 1080p 60fps without using any fps generation tricks or resolution rescaling, although with low settings in many cases.

And Windows, with its well-known problems, I think ends up being a good option. I think there's some fanaticism on this point, and although SteamOS is fantastic in some ways, I think Windows is the better option. Even though it needs improvement, I think its complete compatibility with the entire PC catalog is a point that cannot be ignored.

Anyway, I'm very happy with Xbox Ally, although I hope that Xbox PC improves a lot over time, as its catalog currently leaves a lot to be desired. And if they release a new Xbox Ally in the future, the 8-inch screen is mandatory.

Re: Sony Exec Suggests PS5 Is Far From Finished, And It's Likely The Same For Xbox Series X|S

Gabrie

When I was little, it was very common to ask for a Gameboy, a Nintendo, or a Sega for Christmas.

When I was a teenager, I saw children asking for a Wii, a Xbox, a PlayStation...

Now, I see that what they ask for are smartphones, tablets...

My thinking is more pessimistic; I don't think that this generation is halfway through its life, nor do I think that traditional consoles have more than 5-10 years of existence left.

Re: It's Official, Rockstar Games Has Delayed GTA 6 To November 2026

Gabrie

@TheGameThrifter I think GTA may have sold more on consoles because it has been on sale since 2013, but if we look only at recent years, especially because of GTA Online, I think most players are on PC. I don't have any data, but I see a large GTA Online community mainly involved in the PC version.

Perhaps the reason GTAVI isn't coming to PC at launch is that the online multiplayer mode is nowhere near finished, and since GTAOnline has been the lifeblood of this version for years, it doesn't make sense to work on it until the multiplayer is ready.

But these are just my impressions.

Re: The Timing Of Xbox's 25th Anniversary Just Got A Lot More Awkward

Gabrie

If it were just about releasing a game around that time, it could be a problem, as I think all games released around that time would inevitably be overshadowed.

However, if they do something for the anniversary, I don't think it will focus exclusively on releasing a game, so I don't think it will be that much of a problem.

In fact, it occurs to me that it could be a candidate date for the launch of Xbox Magnus, and it could even be very beneficial to launch GTAVI on that date, as it would be the best hardware on which to play it.

Re: It's Official, Rockstar Games Has Delayed GTA 6 To November 2026

Gabrie

@GamingGod No, I didn't know that, but I think GTAV has gradually shifted from being a campaign-based game to a multiplayer game over the years (or rather, over the decades xD), a bit like COD. I think GTA is currently more about GTA Online than the GTAV campaign, and I would say that the core of the game is now mainly on PC. I think the same thing will happen with GTAVI, but without having to wait so many years.

Re: Microsoft Shares Initial List Of ROG Xbox Ally Games That Support Advanced Shader Delivery

Gabrie

I honestly think that, although this is an improvement, it's not really that important. Shaders are compiled in many games the first time you run them, and it usually takes no more than a few minutes, and it's no longer necessary to do so again in future runs. It's fine if we save ourselves this step, but I don't see it as being as important as some people would have us believe.

Another thing is games that compile shaders while you play, where it will make a big difference, but I can't help thinking that using a cache is a workaround because the programmer didn't do their job properly.

Re: Xbox Content & Services Revenue Sees Slight Increase In Q1 2026, Hardware Drops Almost 30%

Gabrie

@Fiendish-Beaver Exactly, that's what I meant. English is not my native language, so sometimes I find it a little difficult to express myself xD

I wanted to mention too, that considering how badly they're doing with the console's management, I'm surprised the decline hasn't been greater. They're still selling about 2-3 million Xbox a year, which seems like a leap of faith on the part of a lot of people.

Re: Xbox Content & Services Revenue Sees Slight Increase In Q1 2026, Hardware Drops Almost 30%

Gabrie

@Balaam_ It is always compared with the same period of the previous year; it is not a constant decrease.

In other words, if all the reports for the same year mention a 30% decrease, this means that the total decrease for the whole year was only 30% in total.

So far, there have only been two years of decline, and the drop is quite small considering how neglected the Xbox Series is :')

Re: Microsoft's 'This Is An Xbox' Ad Evolves As Holiday Marketing Ramps Up

Gabrie

When you have access to your Xbox profile and achievements to play games, I understand that this device is indeed an “Xbox.” Whether it's a good Xbox is another matter, and well, at present, any device that uses Xbox PC to become an Xbox is a rather poor Xbox, with a very limited game catalog.

I suppose this will improve over time, but in my opinion, this direction makes sense: platforms no longer have to be hardware, but rather an ecosystem. Playstation and Nintendo also have to start moving in this direction, or I think they will disappear over time.

Re: Digital Foundry Analyses ROG Xbox Ally X In New Review-In-Progress

Gabrie

It's a handheld PC console, which isn't necessarily a bad thing; in fact, it may be one of the most logical alternatives for the evolution of consoles in the coming years.

But there's still a lot of work to be done, in terms of the operating system, of course, but also in terms of the ecosystem. It can't be that if the device is called Xbox, you need to use Steam to play the wide range of games available.

Otherwise, it's an amazing machine. I'm playing Geras of War with high graphics, and it runs incredibly well (60fps). It seems like magic that such a small device can be so powerful.

Re: Talking Point: Xbox Should Use And Improve This New PlayStation Store Feature

Gabrie

What Sony needs to allow once and for all is the ability to purchase codes and digital games from external stores, so you're not forced to buy at the only price they impose on you. Right now, for me, the PlayStation and Nintendo digital stores are the worst in the entire industry. If digital stores already have a concept that is difficult to trust, I don't trust these two at all.

Re: Xbox President Explains Why Microsoft Ditched Its First-Party Handheld

Gabrie

I think it's the right decision. Asus has done an impressive job with Xbox Ally. As hardware, it's better than anything Microsoft could have done, and I think it's also better than anything Sony or Nintendo could do.

But that's the hardware. Now they need the software, and they have a lot of work to do here and are behind their competitors' offerings. Fortunately, this part can be worked on over time, delivering improvements with updates and convincing developers to publish their games on Xbox PC. But they have to work hard, and they'd better do so, because Xbox users aren't up for any more half-baked experiments.

Re: Microsoft Passes The Buck To Asus For ROG Xbox Ally's Price Tag

Gabrie

@Exerion76 Yes, you can turn your PC into an Xbox if you use the Xbox ecosystem, and I think it's a great idea. With Xbox PC, you can take your Xbox profile with you, including your achievements, saves, library... It's basically an Xbox, and if you have great hardware, it's a super Xbox.

The problem? Right now, Xbox PC is like a beta. The console library still needs to be migrated somehow, and above all, there is a lack of support from developers. The number of games available on Xbox PC is ridiculous.

I think it's the way forward, and if they do it right, it will be incredible. But today it's more of a promise than anything else. Anyone who buys an Xbox Ally or wants to turn their PC into an Xbox should know that Microsoft has a lot of work to do to fulfill that promise. We're beta testers once again.

Re: Microsoft Passes The Buck To Asus For ROG Xbox Ally's Price Tag

Gabrie

Having used my ROG Xbox Ally X over the last few days, I have to say that I think the price is actually quite reasonable. I think they've done a spectacular job with the hardware; it's an amazing machine.

Its biggest problems lie precisely in the software, and this is precisely the part that Microsoft is responsible for. The full-screen experience is very immature, and the Xbox PC catalog is puny.

I think Asus has done an excellent job; it's Microsoft that has some work to do here.