The Next Xbox Is a PC, So What Does That Mean for PS6?

Image: Push SquareIn a strange, out of nowhere announcement today, Xbox has effectively announced its next-gen console.

The confirmation comes courtesy of a video hosted by boss Sarah Bond, in which she announced a “strategic, multi-year agreement” with computer chip manufacturer AMD. Amusingly, Sony is also collaborating with the American company on its next console as well.

The news follows comments from PlayStation bigwig Hideki Nishino, where he said PS6 is “top of mind” for the firm. These words went viral on social media, with many complaining it’s too early to be talking about the next generation. We don’t expect Microsoft’s announcement to attract the same amount of ire.

But the real headline here is that Xbox is effectively confirming its next console will be a PC in various form factors.

Bond said Microsoft is “investing in [its] next-generation hardware line-up across console, handheld, PC, cloud, and accessories” and that it will work with AMD to “co-engineer silicon across a portfolio of devices including our next-generation Xbox consoles in your living room and in your hands”.

She said that the next Microsoft console will not be locked to a single storefront, suggesting you’ll be able to run the likes of Steam, Epic Games Store, GOG, and others on it without compromise.

Bond also mentioned that Xbox is “working closely with the Windows team”, further suggesting these new devices will effectively be PCs.

Of course, all of this presents more questions than it answers: the console paradigm has forever been built around the business model that hardware is subsidised so that manufacturers can lock you into their ecosystems, and then make money on software and subscription sales.

If Microsoft intends to allow players to bypass their ecosystem entirely, then is it going to be able to match Sony’s subsidised hardware costs? And what does this mean for its subscription services, like Game Pass Core, which is currently required to play online?

It also raises existential questions for Sony: if it continues to ship PS Studios titles on Steam, then won’t they technically be playable on the next-gen Xbox? This quandary has already been posed by the ROG Xbox Ally X, and the answer is yes.

On the flipside, if developers are already committed to releasing PC versions of their titles, will they have the incentive to optimise specifically for Xbox as well? After all, the lines seem destined to be blurred between the two.

With next-gen hardware still several years away, there’s plenty of time for these questions to be answered, of course.

Sony, however, does look like it’s going to stick to its tried and trusted trajectory: expect the PS6 to be a subsidised piece of hardware, designed and optimised specifically to play games purchased both physically and from the PS Store.

[source youtube.com, via purexbox.com]