Windows Central recently reported that Microsoft is working with PC gaming OEMs to develop its Xbox-branded handheld, with a mockup that looks a lot like the ASUS ROG Ally. This may not have been a coincidence after all, as The Verge has followed up the report with its own, nothing that ASUS will indeed be the one making the Xbox-branded handheld.
The report also comes with a correction regarding the name of the project, which is claimed to be Kennan, rather than Keenan. But with the aside out of the way, the report says that while ASUS is one of many other “launch partners”, the company’s Xbox-branded handheld may be released as soon as “later this year”.
Reiterating the previous report, this new one mentions that this Xbox handheld by ASUS will be running Windows, but notes that its interface will be made to look more like the Xbox UI. This aspect, or some of it at least, is in turn is called Project Bayside, the idea of which is to ensure there’s a common UI “across multiple devices to help combine Xbox and Windows”.
Part of Bayside is also reportedly to combine the two in a way that leads to a single Xbox storefront for both PC and the Microsoft console. This will hopefully to “an easier path for gamne developers to build titles that span across handhelds, console-like hardware, and PC gaming rigs. But the question that remains is if this will eventually mean being able to play Xbox games on PC in a more general sense.
With Projects Kennan and Bayside in mind, the report includes speculation that the Xbox console of the next console generation will be more PC-like. While it cites the aforementioned Windows Central report of a tentative 2027 release for the next console generation, Microsoft inadvertently revealed as part of its acquisition of Activision that it is planning for autumn of 2028 to be when the new consoles will be rolling around. The previous head of PlayStation has also recently said something similar.
(Source: The Verge)
