In a recent interview with Bloomberg, Microsoft's Phil Spencer said that Xbox's next step is to partner with more companies in the handheld market.
With the recent release of the mobile version of Age of Empires, Xbox seems to be trying to establish themselves in the mobile gaming scene as it partners with different publishers and releases its games on the Android and iOS platforms. Phil Spencer also mentioned to Bloomberg that China is the way to go global.
Going global is a massive feat in itself, but when it comes to gaming on the go, mobile gaming has a demographic different from Xbox.
The Series consoles are reportedly seeing declining sales. Microsoft's quarterly earnings reports for the 2024 fiscal year showed negative growth compared to year-over-year metrics.
These weak console sales show that Xbox is falling behind in hardware sales and needs to keep up with Nintendo and Sony if they want to satisfy their console gaming demographic.
This isn't the case with Game Pass, however. Xbox's subscription model also helped Microsoft increase its revenue by 61% for the first quarter of the 2025 fiscal year, thanks to Call of Duty: Black Ops 6.
Microsoft has the perfect formula for its Game Pass service, and now that it is looking into the handheld gaming market, is it ready to compete with the Switch 2 and a possible Steam Deck 2 should it release an Xbox handheld in the future?
Phil Spencer mentioned that an actual Xbox handheld is still years away. The company still has enough time to develop a solution to bring the device up to par with the competition.
Nintendo Switch 2
Nintendo has sold 146 million units of the Switch since its launch in 2017, next only to the Nintendo DS's 154 million units sold. This shows that Nintendo is the ultimate handheld gaming company, and Xbox will have to face the Japanese titan if it wants to enter the handheld gaming market.
click to enlarge
+ 3Rumors about Nintendo's next-gen console claim it will have a larger screen, battery, and brand-new magnetic rails for the Joy-Con attachments. Xbox shouldn't have trouble implementing these features, as handheld devices like the Lenovo Legion Go already have them.
Purchase your Nintendo Switch here: Nintendo Switch via Amazon
Now that the upcoming Switch 2 is confirmed to have a backward compatibility feature, Xbox will have no problems competing with it. The Game Pass already offers backward compatibility with the original Xbox games.
The only problem is how Microsoft will compete in hardware and performance versus the more powerful handheld devices.
Steam Deck / Steam Deck 2
During the Steam Deck OLED announcement, Valve confirmed it is already working on a Steam Deck 2. Xbox is currently looking for partners in mobile gaming, and we'll hopefully get to see an actual Xbox handheld version when Valve releases Steam Deck 2.
click to enlarge + 3This just means that the Xbox handheld isn't only competing with Steam in terms of its native operating system and storefront but also in terms of hardware. Currently, the most powerful Steam Deck has the following specs:
- Display
- Resolution: 1280 x 800 x RGB
- Type: HDR OLED
- Refresh Rate: up to 90Hz
- APU: 6 nm AMD APU
- CPU: Zen 2 4c/8t, 2.4-3.5GHz (up to 448 GFlops FP32)
- GPU: 8 RDNA 2 CUs, 1.6GHz (1.6 TFlops FP32)
- APU power: 4-15W
While some handheld devices can compete with the Steam Deck, they are all considered handheld PCs, which are not likely to compete with the Xbox handheld. While these handheld PCs can run Xbox games through the Game Pass app, they are still PCs.
An Xbox handheld needs a smooth operating system and hardware-exclusive firmware to offer the best Xbox gaming experience while being portable.
Steam Deck has the advantages of a native OS and a digital storefront, which many gamers prefer over its alternatives.
Purchase your Steam Deck here: Steam Deck via Amazon
While Steam Deck 2 has yet to be announced properly, we can expect that Steam will be at the top of its game regarding hardware, which can be challenging to implement.
Pricing and Remote Gaming
The current Switch OLED costs around $350, and the latest Steam Deck: Limited Edition White costs $679, so the Xbox handheld should launch at around the same price point.
The cheapest Xbox console is the Xbox Series S, which costs $300. Despite its pricing, Xbox still had trouble selling the consoles. This means that a competitive price isn't the end-all for handheld gaming.
PlayStation released the PS Portal, and while it seems to be a bit expensive for a remote device for your PS5, Circana, an American market research company, confirmed that it is PlayStation's best-selling accessory of 2024 despite having only 3% of the total US PlayStation market.
Yes, the PS Portal isn't popular with the majority of the US PlayStation market and Xbox wouldn't want those numbers for their handheld device. Game Pass has great potential should Xbox implement this on its handheld device.
Everything We Want to See in an Xbox Handheld
We are huge fans of gaming in general, and the majority of our social team members own an Xbox or an Xbox peripheral in some form. It is due time that Xbox brings its strengths to handheld gaming, not just in mobile.
Having an Xbox handheld would mean gaming on the go, with Xbox-exclusive titles as well as the Game Pass. No, we are not talking about cloud gaming in our non-Xbox devices, but actually holding a handheld device from the manufacturers and developers of games that we love.
Portability is king nowadays, and here’s what we’re looking forward to if Xbox decides to take the leap into handheld devices.
Exclusive Games, Design, and Controller
Our senior editor, Alister Kennedy, mentioned that Xbox-exclusive games such as Forza, Fable, and many others are what he loves about the Xbox platform.
Kris Alfonte, our social lead, also added that the Xbox controller layout is the most comfortable one that he used. The asymmetrical layout plus the ergonomic grip is perfect for any gaming genre.
Purchase your Xbox here: Xbox Series X via Amazon
Xbox controllers also have fantastic battery life compared to our experience using DualSense controllers. Alister shared that he can have days of gaming on a fully-charged Xbox Elite 2 controller, and Kris stated that DualSense is "the iPhone of controllers, battery-wise".
Admittedly, DualSense has great features that only Xbox controllers can only dream of having. We're hoping to see these features in an Xbox handheld now that we've seen leaks of what the supposed new Xbox controller should look and feel like.
click to enlarge + 3Xbox Game Pass
The Xbox Game Pass is arguably the best bang for the buck subscription in terms of gaming titles. It has become a necessity among many gamers due to its price and access to a huge library of amazing games.
Alister added that it has become as essential as Netflix, while Kris shared that it is perfect for gamers who have plenty of gaming time to fully take advantage of what Game Pass has to offer.
Seeing this as a side feature in an Xbox handheld is perfect for trying different games while on the go.
Xbox Ecosystem
Both Alister and Kris agreed that Gears of War is a great game exclusive to the Xbox platform. Unfortunately, Microsoft hasn't been utilizing many Xbox IPs for quite some time now.
An Xbox handheld is a perfect launching pad for a refresh of the Xbox ecosystem. Adding launch titles to the handheld will bring it back to the competition, as long as Microsoft won't name it the way it named the Series consoles: same names, different hardware.
Having to distinguish between the letters X and S is elementary level, but consumers will still get confused especially how they can be pronounced the same.
Overall, Xbox has all the resources to create a handheld gaming beast with all the bells and whistles while it provides the best Xbox experience on the go.
With newer handheld gaming devices that can stomp the current Switch and Steam Deck in raw performance, Xbox can learn a thing or two and deliver a brand-new Xbox experience.
Whether Microsoft can catch up to what Nintendo and Sony have been cooking for 2025 is another matter, so stay updated with the latest gaming news and stories by following Gfinity Esports.
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