Llamageddon

'Ybox' or 'Xbox?' given the uncertainty over many aspects of the upcoming device

My prediction (assuming there is only model being made)

Project Helix £1200
PS6 £800

Microsoft have already suggested that the helix is a premium product (£1200 is still pretty cheap for a gaming PC to be honest)
I don't see Sony pricing their next console less than the PS5 Pro so I think £800 might be the sweet spot for them.
This journalism lark is a breeze (I jest)

As we are starting to get a drip feed on next gen have they yet alluded to who is making project helix?

Will it be Microsoft like the series console or a third party like the Rog?

Just wondering because I don't recall seeing anything about it.

Endless corpo speak that is intentionally vague, what a suprise.
Nadella will do whatever he deems best for the shareholders as he has a fiduciary responsibility to do so.
These sound bites are unfortunately just that and nothing can really be gleaned from it.

@fatpunkslim marathon steam peak - 143621, concord steam peak - 697. Is marathon going to be a smash hit, probably not but the need to compare all Sony live service games to concord is just tedious, childish hyperbole. It's as if you don't want to be taken seriously sometimes.
FYI I'm not defending the game because it's Sony or I enjoy it, I'm not interested in the genre at all regardless of quality.

I don't really understand a lot of these comments to be honest. I see both companies making decisions to appease shareholders, we don't really even come into the equation.
Microsoft and Sony are not your friends and both are more than capable of their fair share of scummy business practices. This discourse on which is worse is beyond tedious and achieves absolutely nothing.

@StylesT you are right but it's just a case of Sony weaponising their bigger user base, I find it hard to believe Microsoft wouldn't have done the same thing if they were in Sony's position. Just like when Microsoft used their infinite money to buy game Devs that Sony simply couldn't.
Big business being ruthless and the consumer ultimately being the ones who suffer is hardly new or shocking. It's two companies using their strengths to try and outdo the other (until Microsoft's recent pivot).

@OldGamer999 surely this is just a matter of taste though. Out of the 4 games you mention for example I'm only interested in Fable (looks amazing, hope it lives up to the trailers).
I am more interested in Saros, phantom blade zero, the new Kena and wolverine personally. Not saying they are bigger games or will be better/more popular.
I just think most people are pretty locked in to their ecosystems now so if your examples were Xbox/pc only, I don't believe it would have moved the needle that much to be honest.

I enjoyed the demo on steam and this is one of those rare games that is skipping playstation in favour of Xbox.

@Cakefish that is more or less what I was assuming. My main concern with the next gen 'console' is whether I'm going to have to do my own optimising, for me it stops being a console experience at that point.
The next gen certainly seems intriguing if nothing else!

This might be a stupid question but hypothetically if we have 5 different xboxs by 5 different companies all at slightly different specs and price points how do you review games?
I can imagine people looking for reviews that were done on the specific console they own as the game may run differently on a different machine.
Like I said this might all be uninformed nonsense but I was just wondering.

@YeyoFairy I think that's why they did a separate announcement. They didn't want the discourse of the state of play to be dominated by yet another multiplayer attempt from Sony

@anoyonmus Tuesday 27/01/26 talking about 1348 ex voto and Nickelodeon splat pack.

https://www.purexbox.com/news/2026/01/two-games-have-quietly-been-cancelled-for-xbox-over-the-past-week

@fatpunkslim you're right that some of the biggest Devs like square have said they won't be doing exclusives, but it was literally last Tuesday that this very website had an article talking about games that been cancelled for Xbox.
So playstation might not be getting big hitters like ff anymore but they are getting exclusives now without spending a penny because of their install base. Some of the playstation exclusives are also coming from their own initiatives like china hero project (phantom blade zero) which I personally am fully behind. Would love to see Xbox do something similar.
So it's very much a case of yes and no dependant on the semantics chosen.

@Fiendish-Beaver I read enough of your comments to know that you are an exception to my commentary, it was not meant to offend. I'll admit the language I chose was somewhat vitriolic
I'm sure you're aware that there is plenty of toxicity in our shared past time and there are those who need their choice of ecosystem validated.
I agree that competition is important in gaming as it is in any industry from a consumer perspective, I'm hoping the steam box might give a shot in the arm to both PS and Xbox.
Personally I am keeping my options open on where to place my money on the next Gen. I am assuming there will be an extensive cross-gen period so I am confident I can make an informed decision without missing out much in the way of software exclusives. I think gaming is at a very intriguing juncture and I hope its for the best. Time will tell, I guess.

Doesn't really tell us that much, I think most expected it to be smaller than a horizon game. Would have been nice if they gave an RPG example it was comparable in size to.

Doesn't change the fact fable has rocketed to the top of my wishlist this year.

@HonestHick many thanks and I agree we seem to have similar gaming sensibilities. As for playstation/Xbox controllers we're the same yet opposite, I could never get on with offset analogue sticks but have always respected the 'to each their own' mentality because at the end of the day we all enjoy the same hobby.
Happy gaming to you good sir for 2026, it's looking to be another great year.

@HonestHick to be fair you get this with so many aspects of gaming. You are right that the only reason they don't want ps games on Xbox is to feel a sense of superiority in their chosen console, same was true vice versa when Xbox had more exclusives in their ecosystem.
You can extend this way of thinking to difficulty options in games, people who push back are preserving their feelings of superiority knowing full well having options doesn't really affect them.
All hobbies have fans and people often forget that is short for fanatic which are rarely a good thing.
Having said all that, I gave the showcase a B with Kiln dropping it down from an A for me.

@Timppis I think you'll find most of those commentators don't have humility in their reportoire. They will largely stay silent and pretend they didn't say anything at all.

@SigmaTheDJ really appreciate the info, gives me a clearer view of things. Might get FH5 in a sale to see how I get on with it.
Happy gaming for 2026!

@themightyant you're absolutely right, the multiplayer part practically demands it to be day and date (especially as it seems quite niche to begin with).
I started the hobby late last year with my wife and we are in the middle of an advanced course ATM as well as booking a 2 week residency in India for later this year (my wife doesn't half commit to things lucky for me!).
With South of Midnight releasing in PS5, I have some confidence keeper will do the same at some point.
On a separate note, it's been a while since I have felt as hyped for upcoming games, beast. Fable, horizon. Thoroughly enjoyed that developer direct, hats off to Xbox.

@themightyant personally I would much prefer Keeper on PS5, how can Double fine go from such an endearing, beautiful art style on keeper to whatever that was in Kiln. I know, I know these things are subjective but I'm not sure I've ever seen an art direction I've disliked more.
This is coming from someone who's other hobby is pottery so it piqued my interest and the fact I am already a big fan of Double fine.
I hope it does well enough for the Devs sake but all in all ...oof

As someone who is interested in FH6 but doesn't care for arcade racers being open world, do you have to drive between events or can you quick select in a menu?

Thanks in advance to whomever answers!

I have a handful of games I will regularly dip into for a quick session (like Hades) which I keep downloaded. Otherwise I almost never have more than 3 games 'I'm currently playing' and as such have never needed extra storage.
To each their own though and I will admit there have been a couple of occasions in my relative youth when I gamed alot more that external storage would have been useful.

Nothing that particularly appeals to me, but I just see that as good news for the backlog

@Jenkinss yes, we do enjoy our football.

Burnout 3 is my favourite racing game ever and the only other racer that gets close is revenge.

Shocked to see ssx3 get such a high score when in my opinion it wasn't a patch on tricky.

For me, both of these series got worse for going 'open world'.

@oopsiezz I am sure that detail was left out intentionally to get more clicks and comments, let's be honest it has worked a charm. I've got no problem with it though, push is more than happy to phrase their articles in the same manner for the same reasons.
GoY and Forza 5 have both been successful on PS so who really cares. If GoY hadn't made the list at all, it may have actually been 'newsworthy'.

@TheGameThrifter never said I was a fan just that it is my preferred platform. Competition is obviously good for consumers, maybe the steam box can do something in the console space, but who knows.

As for Sony first party games, I enjoy them when they do come out generally and 3rd party AAA, AA and indie are all in a pretty good place so I'm never lacking for quality games to play.

Really not looking for a confrontation bud.

@TheGameThrifter you may well be right, it's just that particular article didn't explicitly back up your statement.

Personally I would like to see all the upcoming Microsoft games to come day and date as playstation is my preferred platform.

@TheGameThrifter I just read the article and all it is says is that all future halo games will be on playstation. Nothing about day and date I'm afraid. Not console warring, just pointing it out.

@fatpunkslim Fair enough, I had only been looking at 2025 tbh. So that clarifies things, thanks

@fatpunkslim You mentioned 1800 job cuts for PS but I can't find that information anywhere. I've looked at a few different sources and I'm struggling to get over 1000 job cuts.
Which source did you use out of interest?

@Chip-Douglas keeper is part of the main 5 highlighted games

@kelomaniack I'm hopeful this game is different as the Devs said multiple difficulty options. Black myth didn't have difficulty settings and though I persevered to the end (still couldn't beat the final, final boss Erlang) it was through clenched teeth and balled fists at times.
Lies of p's easy setting was far from easy though so I do understand your concerns

@Chip-Douglas no worries bud and I agree Sony could be spending their money more wisely elsewhere given the current direction of platform holders.
Anyway, hope your Monday improves and happy gaming 😁

@Chip-Douglas saying there's no positive for the company doing it is pure conjecture as we simply don't know what Sony have provided in return. Maybe it was just financial but other Devs have mentioned how Sony will send people to help them in development as well.
Just saying timed exclusivity isn't as a big as deal as it used to be given the current cadence of big game releases.

(Edit)Think I might have misread your comment slightly. The positive for Sony doing this is the same as it's always been, getting people into their ecosystem.

@kelomaniack it's a character action game with multiple difficulty settings. The Devs themselves have pushed back against the souls like tag even if game journalists are seemingly calling all action games soulslikes now

It is what it is, I'm waiting for Hades 2 patiently like an adult (it's really not that difficult). Luckily there is an endless stream of games being released and most people on these sites talk about their massive backlogs, so this really shouldn't be a big deal.
Look at it this way guys, when it comes to Xbox it will be the most complete, bug free version of the game.

@Chip-Douglas given the massive success of the very fan servicey Stellar Blade I doubt they will change anything even if there is some boycotting/outrage.
Most Devs have cottoned on to the fact that most boycotts are a small group being very loud and they don't actually have to kowtow to them.
Don't get me wrong I understand/appreciate your point of view but I'm more interested in how engaging the story is and how well the game plays from moment to moment. The size of her bust is little more than a distraction in my opinion and certainly not a reason to boycott.

@RBRTMNZ fair enough, thank you for the polite and reasoned response

@RBRTMNZ I may be being stupid/naive but what incentive would Sony have to make native Xbox versions of their games (which I assume would cost them money) if they know Xbox players will just be able to purchase them through Steam?

@DaPrince because it also released on playstation. Why wouldn't a ps website review a game that is on their platform? Have you been living under a rock?

I'm surprised people have time to play games given how much time they spend whining about review scores on a different website. It's so very tedious, you'd think push had given it a 5.

I don't get why people say that now they won't buy this game if it ever comes to Xbox (or in more extreme versions won't buy any the devs future games).
Why deny yourself a quality game experience out of a warped sense of brand loyalty, seems petulant at best.
What if it comes to game pass, do 'ethics' suddenly go out the window will they justify playing it because it's 'free'.

@VeganH They might not have all the business details but they can almost certainly see the last and next delivery of stock. Which is more than you and I know on the particular matter, so maybe get off your high horse and stop being so condescending. Entirely unnecessary.

@cburg I get your point but it really is a false equivalence.
A mobile phone is nigh on indispensable nowadays, a games console not so much.
I got my last my last 2 generations of console (before the current gen) as a 'free' gift with my phone contract.

Given that black myth printed money when it came out, I'm sure game science couldn't care less about conspiracy theorists and console warriors. They have moved on, maybe 'fans' should as well.

Surely keeper is dropping on game pass as well given it's an Xbox published game.

So it's going €100 more despite the $ being less value. If that's true then they officially don't care about European market share.