Highlights
- Leaked FTC documents reveal potential plans for Microsoft's next Xbox console, which could launch in 2028 and utilize cloud technology for immersive game experiences beyond conventional hardware.
- The console is rumored to be a hybrid platform similar to Nintendo's Switch, with an ARM64 or x64 AMD Zen6 processor and an AMD Navi 5/RDNA 5 GPU. It will feature next-generation DirectX raytracing, micropolygon rendering optimizations, and ML-based super resolution.
- Microsoft is also aiming to include a thin operating system that costs less than $99. While plans may have changed since the leaked information, the next Xbox system appears to blend traditional hardware with cloud technology for an interesting gaming platform.
Plans and technical specifications for the next Xbox console have just been leaked by the Federal Trade Commission during its recent legal battle with Microsoft. This court investigation is the latest in a series of legal disputes brought about by Microsoft’s potentially landscape-changing buyout of Activision Blizzard, which was announced in January 2022 and has since been the source of much scrutiny and discussion among industry insiders and outside observers. Several regulatory channels from around the world have weighed in on the deal, and now America’s FTC is looking into whether Microsoft’s planned purchase will create a monopoly in the gaming industry.
The resulting courtroom debate has led to several emails and chat messages among Microsoft executives being leaked to the public, dating as far back as May 2022. These virtual meetings cover a wide range of topics and unannounced plans, such as Nintendo discussing its next console with Activision head Bobby Kotick and a native Xbox Series X version of Red Dead Redemption 2 being included in a list of planned releases that may or may not see the light of day. However, one of the biggest reveals to come from the FTC’s findings involves potential plans for Microsoft’s next console, which might launch in 2028.
Further documentation sheds light on the technical specifications for this next Xbox gaming system, which could be a console/handheld platform similar to Nintendo’s massively successful Switch. According to an unredacted court attachment from the FTC’s case against Microsoft, this alleged console aims to utilize cloud technology to “deliver deeper immersion and entirely new classes of game experiences” that will supposedly go beyond the limits of conventional hardware.
Powering this new, untitled Xbox console will be either an ARM64 or x64 AMD Zen6 processor, which according to the leaked documents will be coupled with an AMD Navi 5/RDNA 5 GPU. Graphics-wise, Microsoft’s new system will look to next generation DirectX raytracing, micropolygon rendering optimizations, ML-based super resolution, and an extensibility model for faster iteration and innovation. Lastly, Microsoft is looking to include a lacking thin operating system that will cost less than $99.
There is still much about Microsoft’s supposed next Xbox system that players don’t know, and most of the information shared during the recent FTC investigation stems from discussions among corporate executives dating little over a year ago. Plans for this next Xbox console might have changed since then, but it looks like Microsoft is planning an interesting blend of traditional hardware and cloud technology for its next gaming platform.