Opinion: Microsoft delivered a great showcase yesterday, but one thing I missed was the announcement of a handheld
Microsoft showed off new game trailers and three new Xbox consoles yesterdayas part of the Summer Game Fest. Personally, I was happy about the new games, but I missed the announcement of an Xbox handheld. After all, there were some rumors pointing to a release in yesterday’s showcase.
I wasn’t alone in this: IGN’s US colleagues asked Phil Spencer about this in front of an audience and got a more or less indirect answer that gives me hope.
Phil Spencer: “We should also have a handheld “
You can watch the short segment for yourself, in which Ryan McCaffrey from IGN asks Phil Spencer about the Xbox handheld:
When McCaffrey asks him about the rumors of a possible Xbox handheld, Phil Spencer replies “We (Microsoft) should have a handheld too.”
A little later, McAffrey asks him whether such a “hypothetical” handheld is intended for native games or will rather stream games via the cloud.
The Xbox CEO’s answer is not as direct as I would like, but it is enough to give me a glimmer of hope:
“I think it’s very important that you can play games locally.”
This is far from a confirmation that Microsoft is really working on a handheld device, but at least a hopeful hint.
It would also be possible, for example, for Microsoft to release a pure cloud gaming handheld: in the style of Logitech G Cloud and Razer Edge. However, I don’t think such a device would be particularly successful.
Cloud gaming is still not a fully-fledged alternative to games that run on local hardware for many – not even for me. There are simply games and genres where I want to keep input lag to a minimum or where I don’t want to sacrifice image quality. Both are problems that can occur with cloud games.
What could an Xbox handheld offer?Microsoft could launch a native Xbox handheld in the style of the Steam Deck for an extremely affordable price and subsidize the cost via Xbox Game Pass and software sales.
400 euros would be my personal target. The internal hardware could be roughly on a par with the Xbox Series S. Then developers wouldn’t have to develop specifically for a third Xbox.
What would you like to see in an Xbox handheld? Write us your wishes and suggestions in the comments below
