New Microsoft court documents from the FTC v. Microsoft case show plans to release the next Xbox console in 2028.
The newly leaked documents show a presentation laying out plans for the next Xbox console, which the company expects to be released in five years' time and is calling "the next generation of gaming at Microsoft." (via The Verge).
"Our vision: develop a next-generation hybrid game platform capable of leveraging the combined power of the client and cloud to deliver deeper immersion and entirely new classes of game experiences," a slide from the presentation reads.
"Optimized for real time game play and creators, we will enable new levels of performance beyond the capabilities of the client hardware alone."
The slides also provide details on the console, with "Forward compatibility" being mentioned as part of the "Key strategic decisions and investments" along with an ARM64 CPU and an AMD GPU, as well as a point about "next-gen DirectX ray tracing."
The presentation appears to have been from May 2022, with further slides showing that Microsoft believes it supports "Cloud hybrid games" and is described as an "immersive game and app platform." It's also notable that there's mention of a "thin OS" for sub-$99 "consumer or handheld devices," suggesting a potential use of a handheld device, allowing games to be played through its Cloud platform at the same time.
Another graphic showing a roadmap for the design process reads "The journey has already started..." with details about the hardware design revealing plans to begin in 2024, the first dev kits to arrive in 2027, and the first of the planned hybrid cloud games to be produced from 2024 through to 2026.
That's not all. The leaked court documents have also revealed plans for a brand new Xbox Series X console refresh is coming next year, in addition to plans to remaster The Elder Scrolls 4: Oblivion and Fallout 3, not to mention other unannounced games like a new Doom game, Dishonored 3, and more.
For more here's our list of the best Xbox Series X games, as well as our best Xbox Game Pass titles on offer.
