With dwindling console sales and tentpole exclusives now making their way to PlayStation, many assume that Xbox is going the way of Sega. But I’m not sure that’s true.
In a new blog post titled Opening A Billion Doors With Xbox, global partnerships vice president Leo Olebe attached a photo of the Series X/S and ASUS Rog Ally along with a tablet, mobile phone, and laptop. All of them shared a unified Xbox UI, displaying the user’s library. And right at the top, nestled between the Game Pass and Owned tabs, was Steam.
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It’s also worth noting that the Owned tab appears twice, so this seems to be an early mockup.
Sources “familiar with Microsoft’s plans” told The Verge that it wants to make every game installed on your PC visible via the Xbox app, including those in your Steam and Epic Games Store libraries. That doesn’t mean these storefronts are coming to Xbox anytime soon, but in the now-removed image, consoles were represented, and the same UI was featured on the TV screen.
This short-lived graphic appears to be more proof that Microsoft is embracing a hybrid of PC gaming and consoles, bringing Steam and your entire library to Xbox while leaving the competition behind altogether.
Xbox Might Leave Console Behind For PC Gaming
Windows Central executive editor Jez Corden recently claimed on The Xbox Two Podcast that the next-gen Xbox is “going to be a PC in essence, but with a TV-friendly shell”. This lines up with reports that Microsoft’s handheld will be closer to the Steam Deck than the PlayStation Portal, essentially serving as a gaming laptop with a built-in controller.
The next-gen Xbox is “going to be a PC in essence, but with a TV-friendly shell”.
In so many words, Xbox is admitting defeat. For the last two generations, it has tried and failed to compete with PlayStation, even with unique selling points like Game Pass, Quick Resume, and the “Play Anywhere” mantra. But these unique attempts to stand out have only proven one thing: the next generation cannot just be another gaming console, or Xbox really will go the way of Sega. It has to be a total reinvention.
Admitting defeat is the first step towards that, and if the leaks and rumours are to be believed, then Microsoft is planning such a reinvention behind the scenes right now. The strategy seems to be less ‘compete with PlayStation’ and more ‘make PC gaming accessible to console players’, something that Valve tried to do with its misguided Steam Machines.
But there are some huge benefits to this idea, and a couple of key advantages that Xbox has over Valve already. PC is inherently backwards compatible, so Xbox will inherit an enormous library out of the gate; compatibility between Xbox consoles, handhelds, and Windows computers will be seamless, realising ‘Play Anywhere’ fully for the first time; Xbox and Microsoft can leverage the combined decades of expertise in PC and console in a way that Valve never could; and Xbox is understood to mean ‘console play’ among casual audiences, removing the fear factor around the complexities of PC play.
Console Generations Are An Outdated Idea
It’s a bold move that could revitalise Xbox and put it back on the map, but perhaps more crucially, it puts Microsoft ahead of the inevitable endpoint of console gaming. As we saw with the PS4 and PS5, and the Xbox One and Xbox Series, next-gen leaps are so incremental now that it’s hard to justify splashing out $500 on a new console every few years, especially when old hardware continues to be supported.
The PS4 and PS5 feel nearly identical; the only difference being how long we wait between games. So, it’s hard to imagine the PS6 or even PS7 feeling notably different. Gaming has hit a ceiling, and the biggest players need to look beyond graphics at what can make their consoles stand out, otherwise, generations will become meaningless, outdated denoters.
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The mid-gen refresh PS5 Pro proved as much, with its underwhelming yet exuberant price tag.
Nintendo already did eight years ago with the Switch, a handheld-console hybrid unlike anything else on the market. Xbox finally appears to be doing the same, taking its defeats on the chin by pivoting away from the traditional console race towards a unique coupling with PC gaming, leaving PlayStation to continue holding the torch alone.
It’s an exciting and fresh idea, opening up the prospect of Steam, native modding, and built-in mouse and keyboard support for Xbox, all without the headache of spending $1,000 and coming to terms with confusing, unending jargon. Whether it pans out, we’ll just have to wait and see. But it’s becoming apparent that Xbox isn’t dead yet, and as it turns out, Steam might be what saves it.
Choose Your Xbox
