Report: next Xbox not due until 2028 – internally priced at up to $1,800
According to a Fortune report, Microsoft is planning Project Helix for holiday 2028 and a new handheld for 2027. Microsoft has not confirmed this.
Symbolic image · Photo: Kyu3a / Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 4.0 (cropped and resized)
Microsoft's next Xbox console, codenamed Project Helix, will reportedly not arrive until the 2028 holiday season. According to VGC, the claim comes from a Fortune profile of Xbox CEO Asha Sharma published on Tuesday. The console is said to be internally projected at between $1,200 and $1,800 unless Microsoft decides to subsidise the hardware. Microsoft has not confirmed the details.
The Xbox division is also reportedly planning a next-generation handheld for holiday 2027. The report says there was a dispute over its software: Windows leaders wanted a trimmed-down version of Windows Home, while Sharma's team wanted its own gaming-optimised solution. Game Pass is also said to be getting an overhaul that would let customers pick features such as cloud gaming and multiplayer à la carte.
Microsoft confirmed Project Helix at GDC in March; the console is set to run both Xbox and PC games. The company recently raised Xbox Series S and X prices by up to $150. Analyst Joost van Dreunen told GamesIndustry.biz that if the next generation arrives in 2028, "north of a grand is the floor".