Since the revolutionary release of the Steam Deck, manufacturers have all been imagining PC consoles, this hybrid format that is difficult to name, but a little less to describe. The devices that fall into this category – we can name the Steam Deck from Valve, but also the ROG Ally from Asus or the Legion Go from Lenovo – benefit from the components of a PC in a machine that looks like a portable console like the Nintendo Switch.
Powerful and mobile, that is the promise of this type of device. For the moment, only PC designers have really taken the lead while console manufacturers are lagging behind… but maybe not for long. There have been rumors that Xbox is working on its own version of a PC console. Phil Spencer is now providing more details on his vision.
More interconnectivity
Microsoft's gaming boss says in an interview with Polygon that he feels frustrated with the way manufacturers are integrating Xbox services into their machines:
“I want my Lenovo Legion Go to look like an Xbox […] I have this list of everything that makes me feel not like I have an Xbox: Are all my games there? Are all my games showing up with the save files I want? I'll tell you, there's one game that's not [optimized] right now, and that's Fallout 76. There's no cross-save, it's driving me crazy.”
On the software side, Phil Spencer has some software improvements in mind that could make the user experience smoother. He's a spokesperson for simplified cross-platform progression and connection. You only have to look at the optimization of the Windows/Xbox interfaces to understand that this is an important topic for the company.
A new PC console on the market soon?
On the hardware side too, he confirms exploring “the different forms of devices and the things they could consider doing” in the future. Nothing is ready yet and any description of a prototype is only at the level of rumor. But this gives us an idea of what Xbox could release in the coming months/years if the company persists in this area. It is clear that this is a growing market, particularly because it innovates and there are too few proposals today.
PlayStation has tried to get a foot in the world of portable machines with its PlayStation Portal, but limiting itself to cloud streaming has not ensured it a huge success, in the shadow of its legendary PSP and PS Vita too quickly forgotten. Xbox will perhaps be the first console manufacturer to use its expertise in the world of PCs in the way that fans expect.
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