The reveal of new Xbox branded mobile hardware will happen as part of this Sunday’s Xbox games showcase. That’s the prediction from Brazilain YouTuber and notorious leaker eXtas1s.
Previous they have leaked the release of games coming to GamePass, the release date of Hellblade 2 and the partnership between Hundred Star Games with Microsoft for its first project – a AAA single-player action-adventure game.
While such releases and reveals are red hot news for the active Xbox community, its the fact that eXtas1s is confident that new portable/mobile Xbox hardware will be part of Sunday’s reveals that has got us sitting up and paying attention.
New hardware… not featured
While their latest video – here – doesn’t feature the new hardware itself (instead focusing on a lingering unboxing of Asus’ currently available Windows 11 handheld, the Rog Ally) translations of the accompanying audio promise that a genuine Xbox-branded equivalent is on the way.
The hardware will be a large, handheld unit similar in size to Valve’s Steam Deck, though with more specific Xbox focused abilities. It’s highly likely that such a thing would be on the way, being the perfect vehicle for delivering Xbox’s own Xbox Cloud Gaming service and Game Pass subscription, both of which are largely yet to break through into the mainstream in the manner in which Xbox (and parent Microsoft) would like.
Certainly Microsoft’s gaming boss Phil Spencer has spoken about his love for hardware and confidence in both mobile and their cloud gaming efforts.
Making their mobile moves
Previously, course, PlayStation entered the large, dedicated cloud-based handheld space with their own PlayStation Portal device. However, while Portal is simply a ‘player’ – relying on a link to a remote PS5 to take care of the heavy lifting – it’s hoped that – like Valve’s Steam Deck – Microsoft’s take will be more capable and able to run (or at least stream from the cloud) full Xbox games via subscription without the need for hardware powered up and online elsewhere.
Don’t expect to see a full reveal on Sunday however. eXtas1s at this point is only hinting that the existence of such a device and Microsoft’s intentions to enter the handheld arena will be ‘teased’ at their upcoming event.
Further speculation hints that the device might not actually surface until 2026… Being part of Xbox extended future roadmap previously leaked as part of the Activision Blizzard deal.
With all the back end already in place, it’s certainly a no-brainer for Xbox to enter the mobile space and, provided they can get the spec and form factor right, only the small matter of pricing can hold back what might be just the kick that their Xbox Cloud Gaming and Game Pass service is looking for.
