To Succeed, the Next-Gen Xbox Needs to Steal These PC Features

“Everything is an Xbox” sounds like a great tagline until you ask gamers what they truly want from Microsoft’s longtime console brand. Here’s a hint: it’s not more cloud gaming. The catchphrase “everything in an Xbox” may be better suited to the next-gen console that could arrive as soon as 2027. That’s because every new leak suggests the next-gen Xbox is a PC in console’s clothing.

Judging by the latest rumors, the next Xbox is Microsoft’s best chance to finally upset the status quo of console gaming, like it keeps saying it will. Xbox President Sarah Bond confirmed last year that the next-gen console is in development and would offer a “premium experience.” The only thing we knew for certain was that it would feature an AMD chip and play Xbox One and Series X titles out of the box.

Windows Central’s Jez Cordon, citing anonymous sources, wrote that we won’t just have one Xbox choice. Like the tech giant already does with PCs, it could farm out its software and hardware designs to other computer makers, often referred to as OEMs (original equipment manufacturers). Sure, we’ll likely see yet another boxy console meant to occupy precious space beside your TV. However, we could see the “Xbox” experience across a range of consoles, handhelds, and other form factors.

Choice of console and game launcher

The next-gen Xbox’s AMD APU (accelerated processing unit), called “Magnus” in early testing, is expected to be more powerful than anything found in a current console. It will feature the incoming Zen 6 CPU and RDNA 4 GPU microarchitecture, along with whatever upscaling technology the chipmaker is cooking up. What we know about the console’s performance suggests it could be an expensive device, priced as high as $1,000. The best-case scenario for our wallets is if AMD offers several versions of its chip at different price points. It’s more likely that Magnus will be a singular high-end APU. If we want cheaper Xboxes, they’ll likely sport weaker specs.

In such a scenario, Microsoft can’t forget about console convenience. Gamers expect games built for a specific console to run well and look great without any need to futz with graphics. It took Xbox months after the launch of its partner handhelds, the Asus ROG Xbox Ally and Ally X, to create game-specific performance profiles for these devices.

While it should be backward compatible with Xbox One and Series titles, the next-gen Xbox may not be beholden to the Xbox games library. The head of Epic Games Store, Steve Allison, told Stephen Totilo in his Game File newsletter last week that he’s planning to get the PC launcher onto the new Xbox hardware. Windows Central further confirmed that other launchers, such as Steam and GOG, will be compatible with the new device.

Can Xbox actually change the game?

Just like Valve’s Linux-based SteamOS, the new Xbox could allow players to perform non-gaming tasks or—more importantly—apply mods, retro emulators, or other specialty gaming software to their console. Hell, since it’s a Windows machine, any PC peripheral could work on a next-gen Xbox. The Verge’s Tom Warren claimed, based on more internal sources, that the upcoming console will steal from the recent Xbox Cloud Gaming visual update. That means bigger windows, a more colorful interface, and controller-centric navigation. It sounds like the bare minimum, but Microsoft has shown it’s having to relearn the same lessons all over again with its Xbox Ally UI.

Valve has already promised many of these same capabilities with its upcoming Steam Machine. That 6-by-6-inch hybrid console/PC is set to arrive in the first half of 2026, though we still don’t know its price. Valve is a smaller, more nimble company than the lumbering titan that is Microsoft. The multibillion-dollar tech giant imagines it can beat Valve with its influence over third-party OEMs. And you know what? That could just work.

What’s more important for Xbox is whether it can shift console gaming toward a model of consumer choice. Xbox has indicated over the past several years that players no longer need to worry about console exclusivity. The issue with that pledge is that longtime Xbox fans were abandoned in its quest to reach a wider base. Consumers saw the writing on the wall and left Xbox’s hardware business in the dust. If it wants to succeed, Xbox has to remind everyone that it can still do hardware and offer features players can’t get anywhere else.