Pedro Motta
Gold Member
Damn it, and I thought they were buying Sega next Wednesday.
Microsoft Stores across most of Europe no longer stocking Xbox Series consoles
- Thread starter RetroGamingUK
- Start date
alabtrosMyster
Member
They have been planning this for a long time given the moves they have made over the last couple of years. Given how things are going this includes the acquisitions, anything from the day they picked Phil P. as the CEO has been a calamity, except maybe the reversal on the DRM situation.
DeltaPolarBear
Member
That implied that they already got factories ready and manufacturing started NOW. Of course, if they only expect a small run of the product then it might actually be possible to hide the preparation to launch from prying eyes. But that assumes it would be a tiny production run. Either way a major console launch in 2026 is now no longer possible with the timeline we are dealing with.
viveks86
Member
I see! Seems to me like the first insider confirmation that there won't even be a console game SKU for the "console".
What about the user experience then? Are they going to see PC-like configuration screens? Or will devs have to decide what they should expose based on the hardware it's running on? How would this even work for GTA VI or any console exclusive game?
Guess none of this matters if the console never sees the light of day, but just curious what they had in mind…
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bitbydeath
Member
Even if they dropped the console, do you think the PC is different enough to be launched as a whole new line of product?
Or are they tied together, and it's a no-console = no-PC situation?
bitbydeath
Member
Magnus wouldn't be available, it's my understanding that this is a RDNA5 product and that won't become available until 2027.
SneakersSO
Member
None of the planning i've heard indicates this is meant to be a bespoke thing like the XSS/XSX, with one being a PC and the other one being a console. From what i've heard, this is going to be a very niche, very expensive machine that puts the WindowsOS for Gaming push, similar to what you're seeing with the ASUS Ally and Ally X, front and center, just with built-in support for Xbox SKU BC.
Native Xbox SKU does not have a future. Its all WindowsOS SKU going forward.
Early next year is impossible, small chance of holiday 2026 if A0 silicon is flawless, but most likely Q3/Q4 2027
demigod
Member
This is what I said before but got laughed at.
DarkShadowXI
Gold Member
Xbox Series Pro releases Black Friday: $799.99 1 TB, $999.99 2 TB.
75% more powerful than the PS5 Pro.
Exclusive bundle with GTA VI next year plus exclusive content. Free GTA Online with Game Pass.
All Xbox games are now exclusive to Xbox, including Call of Duty.
Game Pass is no longer day one on PC.
What other fever dream items am I missing??
Heisenberg007
Gold Journalism
Inb4 Jez writes an article that this isn't true.
demigod
Member
bitbydeath
Member
The other red flag is that we've only been hearing about a single spec in development.But we were told there would be an xbox sku rightbitbydeath ?
We heard about series X/S specs in advance, we heard about PS6 and a handheld spec, we even heard about the Xbox ROG Ally and MS handheld that got canned.
Yet, the NextBox is quiet outside of just one spec.
Heisenberg007
Gold Journalism
If true, it is a "reach" to call this thing a gaming console.
MacReady13
Member
If this supposed new Xbox console is out by around 2027, how is it possible they're happy to have no current Xbox consoles available for at least the next 2 years? They've given up the consoles clearly. Not too sure why it's so hard for many to see.
viveks86
Member
May be because there is only one at launch. Perhaps they were planning 1 console and 1 handheld and the handheld got shelved. Why would that be a red flag?
bitbydeath
Member
There's rumoured to be a console and multiple PC's in development. Magnus is meant to be across both but we've only heard of spec for one device so far, and unless I'm mistaken I don't think it was ever confirmed if the specs we know are for the console or PC counterpart.
ChorizoPicozo
Member
it's not like they are happy, happy or that they are just given up.... it's just that they are trying to survive by any means necessary.
these 18 to 24 months are going to be critical for Xbox. they either find a way to make their business work or the implode into oblivion
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Crayon
Member
That's pretty much the only thing I see making sense. I expect disagreements about whether it's really a console.
viveks86
Member
Yes. We are on the same page there.
It's the "console". FWIW, Kepler and Heisenberg have both maintained that it's a console. The Xbox "PC" is an unknown quantity in terms of final spec, even if based on Magnus.
As to why there aren't specific details on the OEM built PC, perhaps K KeplerL2 can shed some light? If it's just an Xbox sticker on a prebuilt based on reference design, may be he has no visibility to them?
bitbydeath
Member
Which is the same situation as the Xbox Handheld, yet we got spec leaks for that.
However, we only have one set of specs leaked for the NextBox, meaning the red flag is something doesn't exist, you can guess in if it's the PC or console.
Astray
Member
Walmart and Target are NOT removing Xbox products from shelves
One thing after another, Microsoft is forced to respond time and time again to ongoing rumors that it's leaving the hardware space.
www.windowscentral.com
Mownoc
Member
EU Countries with Stock: France, Germany, Ireland, United Kingdom
EU Countries without Stock: Austria, Belgium, Czech Republic, Denmark, Finland, Italy, Netherlands, Poland, Portugal, Spain, Sweden
EU Countries without Xbox Hardware page: Bulgaria, Croatia, Cyprus, Estonia, Greece, Hungary, Latvia, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Malta, Romania, Slovakia, Slovenia
Looks to me like they might be pulling out of Mainland Europe and France and Germany are the only two countries their worth still supporting.
EU Countries without Stock: Austria, Belgium, Czech Republic, Denmark, Finland, Italy, Netherlands, Poland, Portugal, Spain, Sweden
EU Countries without Xbox Hardware page: Bulgaria, Croatia, Cyprus, Estonia, Greece, Hungary, Latvia, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Malta, Romania, Slovakia, Slovenia
Looks to me like they might be pulling out of Mainland Europe and France and Germany are the only two countries their worth still supporting.
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Ellis
Member
UK is still their strongest European territory and it's rather dire here for Xbox. Doesn't help that they're charging such crazy prices for hardware people already don't want to buy.
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Radical_3d
Member
The news are from yesterday, the National Day of Spain. Sorry not sorry. First Xbox, England you're next!!
What a prophetic ad. Well, they created Xbox so Sony wouldn't take over the personal computer business space and they succeeded so mission accomplished I guess. Too bad Sony never pretended to take over the computer business and the PCs are in the verge of a massive installation of Steam OS on the users share of the market:
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RetroGamingUK
Member
Aye
Retail presence is small compared to PlayStation and Switch
Consoles are rarely on display
YeulEmeralda
Linux User
Usually you get a leak from some factory in China if there is a new console coming out and I have seen nothing.
Crispy Gamer
Member
The whole this is an Xbox campaign probably started the same day they made the decision to leave traditional consoles space.
DeltaPolarBear
Member
A reach, yes, but a necessary one. BC only stays viable if they keep it on specific hardware that isn't considered a PC. The distinction is needed legally, as the alternative is all the lawsuits from studios who want players to double dip on buying the PC version of the same games.
Microsoft would PREFER to run Xbox software as a pure emulation on Windows, but that would not be legal for 3rd party licenses. And with 3rd party studios walking away from Play Anywhere contracts, now it just is unavoidable.
Bernkastel
Ask me about my fanboy energy!
Would be funny if the next GTA VI trailer does not show Xbox. Just PS5 and PC.
justiceiro
Marlboro: Other M
But guys, just imagine how many costs they are cutting by not having to make the product they sell!
Bernkastel
Ask me about my fanboy energy!
Don't you dare kill Sega and Atlus.
CuteFaceJay
Member
Xbox OFF!
UltimaKilo
Gold Member
Because the cost of production far, far exceeds the price the market is willing to pay and there is no demand. Therefore, there's no point in continuing to pour money behind the Series consoles this late in the cycle for Microsoft given its not a major revenue source and the rest of the company is printing money.
Meanwhile, just milk the consumers you do have until you reset in 2027 and add to Microsoft's quarterly reports. All they care about is XBOX being in the black in the meantime.
chromatic9
Member
Makes sense to have a hybrid console/PC, make one PC version of the game and unify the whole thing so you either stream it or run the Xbox app on local PC hardware.
One big problem is those hoping to play GTA 6 on this, well there's no pc version launching day 1. I assume Rockstar will launch a Series X version, I wonder even if Series S version is canned. Can this Xbox branded barebones windows PC also run a Series X GTA 6 version? MS have stopped the Series S/X so will miss out on any hardware push when GTA 6 lands in I guess 2027 so will these probable hybrid machines miss out on GTA 6 launch and it's just old Xbox Series consoles and Playstation.
kruis
Exposing the sinister cartel of retailers who allow companies to pay for advertising space.
The sales gap between PS5 and Xbox Series S/X is only going to widen. GTA is supposed to release on May 26, 2026. This is gonna be an enormous boost for console sales, but without Xbox consoles on store shelves and the pessimism and negativity around Xbox in general, almost all of these sales will go to Sony. Who would want to buy a console that's constantly described in "dead man walking" terms?
Even if Microsoft manages to release a next gen console in 2027, they will have lost so much goodwill and mind share that there really is no point in releasing new hardware. Even if the thing is a monster, it will so expensive that only the hardest of hardcore Xbox fans with a blind faith in Microsoft will get it. Going PC, Sony or Nintendo is a 100% safe bet, buying a next gen Xbox console is gambling with your money because everything could change in a couple of years or even a few months.
That next gen console will sell a fraction of what Series S/X managed to do. MS will obviously know this full well and I bet that's why plans for a next gen console release are now "up in the air". When MS released Xbox One they were still on the Xbox 360 high, when they released Xbox Series S/X they were confident that they'd claw back all the lost marketshare with the most powerful console on the market, a host of new game announcements and Gamepass. But what will their strategy be with a next gen Xbox? When Nintendo sold 24 million Wii U consoles, it was deemed an absolute sales failure. I think a $1000 next gen Xbox console won't get anywhere close to that. 10 million lifetime sales seems incredibly optimistic. So why even release a piece of hardware when you know beforehand its going to sell horribly in its strongest markets (US, UK, maybe Mexico) and will be completely absent in every other country on the planet?
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RetroGamingUK
Member
Microsoft saw the Series S/X as a reset, a chance to draw a line under the Xbox One generation.
The market, however, did not.
chromatic9
Member
Yeah I can see why MS would be considering to cancel it or already have. It can cater to Xbox diehards of 10-20m but if this is an Xbox hybrid just running PC version of their games, a lot of core gamers will ask why buy this locked PC and have no upgradability. Ease of use for all Xbox related stuff sure but where does third party console game support come in like GTA 6 that is lacking a PC version day 1, they may be able to run the Series X version as it's already mostly made but it seems a limited machine that's a tricky sell and loses console optimization and gets dated quickly.
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RCX
Member
They're clearly signalling to their customers to start saving for the "next xbox" which is totally, for sure, definitely coming.
They're also keeping it interesting for themselves. Why launch hardware into a market that you have an established foothold in when, instead, you can torch your trustworthiness and reputation by simply disappearing from consumer visibility for 12-18 months beforehand?!
They're also keeping it interesting for themselves. Why launch hardware into a market that you have an established foothold in when, instead, you can torch your trustworthiness and reputation by simply disappearing from consumer visibility for 12-18 months beforehand?!
demigod
Member
There is no reset button, this isn't a game. Pure copium. Two years without retail presence would kill mindshare more than it already has. Outside of the diehard fanboys, who would trust an xbox product staying alive? Not many will be willing to fork over $1,000 for a dead platform.
Doctor Hades
Member
The big problem with the Xbox Series X|S was not the hardware, which was mostly great (the proprietary SSDs not so much), it was the complete lack of first-party games for the first 2-2.5 years. Xbox Series consoles basically launched with only third-party titles, which were also on PS5 and sometimes running better despite it having the weaker (on paper anyway) hardware, and a heavy reliance on backward compatibility to sustain it.
I have have always bought an Xbox at launch, since the awesome original, but I opted to not bother with the Xbox Series X. I did not buy one until over a year after it launched and then it was a temporary substitute for my ageing PC until I upgraded it in December 2022. Since then I haven't used my Xbox Series X at all and ended up cancelling my GamePass Ultimate subscription in May 2024 as I just wasn't getting any value from it and preferred instead to just buy the Xbox games I wanted on Steam instead.
Xbox as a console platform is completely lacking in excitement and identity in my opinion. At this point, Xbox is little more than a (now overpriced) subscription service and one that I have no interest in any more. It's a shame that Xbox weren't able to become independent from Microsoft because I feel that Microsoft have no idea what to do with the brand and are just ruining it with constant interference. That is how it looks to me anyway.
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GoldenEye98
posts news as their odd job
It's hard not to see a hybrid console as anything a gentle way for Microsoft to exit the console business. I mean this is going to basically be pre-built PC but with Xbox BC. I guess if for those who have a large Xbox digital library it would be an easier off ramp of sorts....but for the vast majority of people it would probably make more sense to buy an upgradeable PC?
I guess Microsoft could have some QoL stuff in there that would make it slightly less daunting for those who have never had a PC for gaming I dunno.
Also raises an interesting question of would they still require paid multiplayer for Xbox BC?
I guess Microsoft could have some QoL stuff in there that would make it slightly less daunting for those who have never had a PC for gaming I dunno.
Also raises an interesting question of would they still require paid multiplayer for Xbox BC?