Phil Spencer talks up Xbox handheld plans

Earlier this week, new rumours surfaced suggesting that Xbox is working on a new gaming handheld to rival systems like the Steam Deck and Windows-based alternatives. Having been down this road before, I didn't put much stock in those rumours. However, a newly published interview with Phil Spencer is making the Xbox handheld seem inevitable. 

Phil Spencer has been fairly open about his desire to better support the emerging handheld gaming market. Recently, reports claimed that Microsoft actually has several prototypes of an Xbox handheld being tested behind closed doors. Now, in a new interview with Polygon, Spencer talks up the idea of an Xbox handheld further.

“I brought [the Legion Go] with me to GDC. I’m on the airplane and I have this list of everything that makes it not feel like an Xbox. Forget about the brand. More like: Are all of my games there? Do all my games show up with the save that I want?”, Spencer told Polygon. “I want to be able to boot into the Xbox app in a full screen, but in a compact mode. And all of my social is there. Like I want it to feel like the dash of my Xbox”.

Crucially, Spencer also confirms that the Xbox hardware team is experimenting with “different hardware form factors”. We know one of these is an Xbox handheld, but whether or not it will run a full version of Windows, or a new, scaled back version similar to the Xbox console.

In the near-term, Microsoft is already working with companies like Asus and Lenovo to help create new features to enable better usage on handheld PCs already on the market. As we've seen from Microsoft many times in the past, the company may opt to not go through with its own hardware, instead choosing to support third-party hardware through access to software and services.

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KitGuru Says: I've been eyeing a Steam Deck OLED for a while but Windows certainly has its advantages when it comes to game compatibility, especially for certain multiplayer titles. It would be interesting to see an Xbox handheld but it would need serious work on the software side as right now, Windows on a handheld PC does not feel great to use. A ‘gaming focused' UI that boots up, with quick access to Xbox, Steam, Epic Games and other launchers, is key. Like the Steam Deck, the option to switch into ‘desktop' mode could also be included.

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