What do you make of the new Xbox handhelds (which are really PCs)?

[Zed Clampet]

They come equipped with Microsoft's version of SteamOS that has the presumed advantage that it's actually just Windows that has been redesigned for a handheld.

"When the player boots into the full-screen experience, there is a whole bunch of Windows stuff that doesn’t get loaded. We’re not loading the desktop wallpaper, the taskbar, or a bunch of processes that are really designed around productivity scenarios for Windows."

This is great and all, BUT it makes me wonder, will the next gen Xbox just be a small PC that sits by your television? As far as selling consoles go, there'd be no greater marketing for many gamers than being able to have their Steam library on their console. But, of course, there's a VERY high probability that they would never do that as many Xbox owners would just then purchase their games from Steam, so even if the next Xbox is actually and fully a PC, there will likely be some "insurmountable" block on any storefront other than the Xbox one.

So what do you think about all of this?

Xbox is headed to handhelds but its gaming-first UI will also land on existing ROG Ally and ROG Ally X and 'other Windows handhelds starting next year'

You won't need to buy an Xbox-branded handheld to benefit from the new UI on Windows devices.

www.pcgamer.com

 

[Pifanjr]

They come equipped with Microsoft's version of SteamOS that has the presumed advantage that it's actually just Windows that has been redesigned for a handheld.

"When the player boots into the full-screen experience, there is a whole bunch of Windows stuff that doesn’t get loaded. We’re not loading the desktop wallpaper, the taskbar, or a bunch of processes that are really designed around productivity scenarios for Windows."

This is great and all, BUT it makes me wonder, will the next gen Xbox just be a small PC that sits by your television? As far as selling consoles go, there'd be no greater marketing for many gamers than being able to have their Steam library on their console. But, of course, there's a VERY high probability that they would never do that as many Xbox owners would just then purchase their games from Steam, so even if the next Xbox is actually and fully a PC, there will likely be some "insurmountable" block on any storefront other than the Xbox one.

So what do you think about all of this?

Xbox is headed to handhelds but its gaming-first UI will also land on existing ROG Ally and ROG Ally X and 'other Windows handhelds starting next year'

You won't need to buy an Xbox-branded handheld to benefit from the new UI on Windows devices.

www.pcgamer.com

It kind of seems like Microsoft is giving up on Xbox consoles, at least as a separate thing from Windows. I guess they're going all in on Xbox Game Pass now.

 

[Zed Clampet]

It kind of seems like Microsoft is giving up on Xbox consoles, at least as a separate thing from Windows. I guess they're going all in on Xbox Game Pass now.

They probably are. They are still planning to release a new console in 2027, but I'm guessing that based on this handheld being called an Xbox that they are just going to make a funny looking literal PC that runs the same cut-down version of Windows that the handheld is running.

 

[Zed Clampet]

I actually just now took a good look at it, and it seems like it would be much more comfortable to hold than that device the Japanese law firm puts out. It's actually shaped on the ends like a controller, so it actually has something to hold onto instead of just being a rectangular toaster people somehow manage to get fifteen-year-old $70 games to play on.

 

[DXCHASE]

I see handheld gaming like i see VR. Sure they are cool ways of playing games, have great features, run demanding games etc. but will always remain a very niche product and would never take over the other ways to play games for me. So when i see a new VR or Handheld, i dont really get too excited because i know, even if it looks cool and portable, will probably be spending nowhere near the amount of time id want to put into it to justify the 5,6,7 hundred (usd) pricetag.

I think it looks nice and saw that it handles well, has all the bells and whistles of a handheld. I mean i know a lot of people travel and cant play at an xbox, so its nice to see xbox releasing one officially.

If i were to purchase one though, it would probably still be the OLED Steamdeck 512gb and then mod it up to 1tb w/o spending the money buying the 1tb one.

 

[Colif]

this one?

ROG Xbox Ally X (2025) RC73XA | ROG Ally | Gaming rog-ally｜ROG - Republic of Gamers｜ROG Global

rog.asus.com

https://www.amd.com/en/products/processors/handhelds/ryzen-z-series/z1-series/z1-extreme.html

I won't be getting one as well, I don't buy consoles when my PC is capable of playing games now. I have never bought a handheld console you can swap games in (Game & Watch is only one otherwise)

Microsoft aren't going to create a new OS for these, the Xbox OS has always been a cut down version of the current windows. It makes more sense to do it that way.

 

[BeardyHat]

It's a big nope from me. Not because it'll be expensive, not because it's from Microsoft, not because I'm a Valve fanboy...

The killer feature to my mind of the Deck are the touchpads. They're so versatile, not just for using as a mouse in mouse driven games, but for assigning a heap of different functions to them that makes it possible to comfortably play a KB&M driven game on the deck itself.

Take for example my Deck setup for Vanilla World of Warcraft. All the buttons are assigned to various functions, but the left touchpad is the mouse for clicking things as necessary; however, I can hold my right bumper and get a mode shift where the left touchpad now becomes a scroll wheel.

The right touchpad, on the other hand (literally), is a radial wheel. As soon as I touch it, it brings up five hotkeys in a circle that I can quickly hit for various actions. Center is one, then cardinal directions are others. The mode shift on the right bumper then gives me access to another ten or so less time sensitive hotkeys, such as opening my map, bags, social window, etc.

This is not to mention having played hundreds of hours of KB&M driven management games on Deck.

It would be awesome to have something more powerful like an Xbox handheld and using Windows would give me access to not needing to use workarounds and tricks to getting some things installed like I need to do on Linux with Deck. But the versatility of the touchpads on the Deck is completely unrivaled and I cannot justify spending more and ultimately getting less.

 

[Pifanjr]

I see handheld gaming like i see VR. Sure they are cool ways of playing games, have great features, run demanding games etc. but will always remain a very niche product and would never take over the other ways to play games for me. So when i see a new VR or Handheld, i dont really get too excited because i know, even if it looks cool and portable, will probably be spending nowhere near the amount of time id want to put into it to justify the 5,6,7 hundred (usd) pricetag.

I think it looks nice and saw that it handles well, has all the bells and whistles of a handheld. I mean i know a lot of people travel and cant play at an xbox, so its nice to see xbox releasing one officially.

If i were to purchase one though, it would probably still be the OLED Steamdeck 512gb and then mod it up to 1tb w/o spending the money buying the 1tb one.

I don't think you can say handheld gaming is a niche. The Switch sold almost 150 million handhelds and the Switch 2 seems to have sold 3 million handhelds in the first 24 hours of release. I can't imagine non-Nintendo handhelds will remain a niche if the Switch is this popular.

I've considered getting one myself, but I worried that the screen would be too small to game on comfortably. I play quite a lot of games on my phone, but I get sick of it way faster than I do when playing on a PC. And it's not like I really need a portable gaming console, I don't need to be able to move around much.

Now that we have a new PC I can just play on the old PC if my wife is playing WoW, though I haven't used it much yet.

 

[Colif]

I don't think you can say handheld gaming is a niche. The Switch sold almost 150 million handhelds and the Switch 2 seems to have sold 3 million handhelds in the first 24 hours of release. I can't imagine non-Nintendo handhelds will remain a niche if the Switch is this popular.

i know its impossible to know but I wonder how many bought the switch 1 and 2, and just thought of them as consoles, not hand-held.
The Switch blurred lines, its not a traditional console or hand-held really.

You had no choice. You couldn't buy a version that isn't hand held.

Part of the reason Nintendo keep being relevant is they innovate in the controller space... they haven't done much of that in the game space for years. So the switch is just following in the steps of their last innovation.

Them making a hand held is hardly new, they are the only company who has made a profitable one in the last 40 years. Combining it with a traditional console format is just evolution, not revolution. Combine two of their products into one... probably cheaper for them too.

 

[Alm]

If it plays Steam games I’d be interested. Though it would also be out of my price range so I’d only be interested in watching YouTube videos about it.

 

[Colif]

If it plays Steam games I’d be interested. Though it would also be out of my price range so I’d only be interested in watching YouTube videos about it.

probably need to wait before we get any videos about performance

 

[neogunhero]

This is great and all, BUT it makes me wonder, will the next gen Xbox just be a small PC that sits by your television? As far as selling consoles go, there'd be no greater marketing for many gamers than being able to have their Steam library on their console. But, of course, there's a VERY high probability that they would never do that as many Xbox owners would just then purchase their games from Steam, so even if the next Xbox is actually and fully a PC, there will likely be some "insurmountable" block on any storefront other than the Xbox one.

I don't think handhelds are complete replacements for consoles or PCs. Consoles because they usually have special custom designed hardware only found in these consoles as a way to keep costs low but power high. Handhelds are more like gaming laptops in that sense. The biggest issue with most high end handhelds is that they cost more than a console. If you don't have a PC and were given the choice between console or handheld, I feel most people would choose the console.

It kind of seems like Microsoft is giving up on Xbox consoles, at least as a separate thing from Windows. I guess they're going all in on Xbox Game Pass now.

They probably are. They are still planning to release a new console in 2027, but I'm guessing that based on this handheld being called an Xbox that they are just going to make a funny looking literal PC that runs the same cut-down version of Windows that the handheld is running.

I feel like there is still space for a new full fledged Xbox console. Again, these have custom made hardware, and are typically cheaper than a brand new PC at the same performance when they first come out, so they have that advantage for just a bit. Then there are console die-hards who probably don't even have a Steam account, maybe not wanting to start one. I have a feeling even with all of this cross-platform-device-intermingling we've been seeing, console makers will still attempt to keep their flagship consoles locked down. Steam may be on the Xbox handheld, but will most likely not be on the actual consoles.

seems like it would be much more comfortable to hold than that device the Japanese law firm puts out

"Japanese law firm" made me LOL

i know its impossible to know but I wonder how many bought the switch 1 and 2, and just thought of them as consoles, not hand-held.
The Switch blurred lines, its not a traditional console or hand-held really.

I was going to make this point as well. Most people I know with Switch use handheld mode much less than docked. There was a performance increase putting it on the dock, I'm not sure if that is the same with all of these handheld PC's we're seeing. Nintendo also offered the Switch Light which was considerably cheaper, but could not be docked to a TV at all, handheld all the time. I feel like this didn't sell very well for Nintendo.

Part of the reason Nintendo keep being relevant is they innovate in the controller space... they haven't done much of that in the game space for years.

Maybe innovative for controller design, but as for functionality...

Nintendo isn’t using anti-drift Hall effect sensors on Switch 2 joysticks

But Nintendo promises “redesigned” Joy-Cons are “smoother” and “more durable.”…

arstechnica.com

Already numerous reports of stick drift.

 

[Colif]

Already numerous reports of stick drift.

copying what other people do isn't innovation... no matter how much Apple want you to believe it is.
So that is one possible reason Nintendo didn't use HE. Maybe they left that open for 3rd party controllers - that doesn't sound like Nintendo... maybe they release Pro versions of controllers, charge you more for it.

The company I knew doesn't exist any more, many of the people who made those games are retired now. What is left is unknown and stomping on goodwill. Use legal teams to protect IP and protect the golden goose(s) made by their previous generation. Where are the new games? Why make them when there are endless new kids who haven't played the classics... why change?

 

[neogunhero]

copying what other people do isn't innovation... no matter how much Apple want you to believe it is.

I think if there is a clear solution to a problem, taking it isn't copying what other people do. HE joysticks are proven to be superior and last much longer, while costing not much more than traditional joysticks. At best I think Nintendo made a mistake to not include them, at worst it's probably planned obsolescence.

 

[Colif]

At best I think Nintendo made a mistake to not include them, at worst it's probably planned obsolescence.

worst does make them more money, especially if they failing already... wonder if stick drift covered by warranty. I expect if problem becomes too wide spread they will address it... probably with a Pro version that costs more

I was being silly about the defence. I don't know why they ignored a recent trend

 

[Alm]

I have a Switch 2, and have heard that Nintendo will replace joy cons with issues for free.

 

[Zed Clampet]

If you don't have a PC and were given the choice between console or handheld, I feel most people would choose the console.

Handheld PCs are much, much cheaper than consoles, but I don't doubt that most people who are used to consoles would pick the console.

 

[Johnway]

I've mostly not kept aware of Ms and Sony's new plans but my friend at work asked me about it and his kids are hyped about it. The way i saw it, it was The steam Deck but by Microsoft to allow people to play Xbox and Steam games. interestingly, its made by Asus ROG so its got me wondering whether we can expect more of these handheld consoles/decks being made by 3rd party allowing for xbox pass etc. Who knows? maybe steam deck can do that already in which case... probably not all that exciting apart from the hardware.

personally, i'm not in the market for one, but i suspect with pc parts costing more and making PCs that more expensive, i suspect it will become even popular.

on a side note, you need xbox subscriptions and i think its just another greasy scheme to push everyone into a true rent/subscription market and erode ownership further.

 

[Zed Clampet]

So apparently Xbox really isn't going to make Xbox's anymore. They are going to license that out to other companies, per PCG rumor article. They are going to focus on just the games and Game Pass and the operating systems and the stores, which is basically what we all were predicting in this thread.