Xbox and its dream handheld console to go after the Nintendo Switch market?

When the PS Vita failed, Sony decided to abandon the portable market. Meanwhile, Nintendo continued to release games for the 3DS, until the console was replaced by the Nintendo Switch, a hybrid that showed that people like to play games on such devices. Recent years have also seen the addition of other hardware, such as the Steam Deck, which has brought PC titles to another class of more compact machines. Rumors of PlayStation’s return to the handheld market (PS Portal aside) have been many, but those of Xbox have been even louder. In this context, Phil Spencer has reflected on what his dream handheld would look like.

In an interview with Polygon, the executive named some of the most important brands developing consoles like the Steam Deck: “I like the fact that Valve, Lenovo, and Asus went out and innovated in a new form factor. And I will say that when I’m playing on those devices, it almost feels more like a console than a PC — nine times out of 10,” he said. “The things that usually frustrate me are more Windows-based than device-based..” According to Spencer, he’d like to be able to access the controller easily. “I’ve got my list of things we should go do.”

The head of the division didn’t confirm that Xbox is working on a handheld, but he did drop a hint as to what it might look like. “Forget about the brand. More like: Are all of my games there? Do all my games show up with the save [files] that I want? I want to be able to boot into the Xbox app in a full screen, but in a compact mode. And all of my social [experience] is there. Like I want it to feel like the dash of my Xbox when I turn on the television. [Except I want it] on those devices.” Not to mention, the Game Pass service is one of the pillars of the brand, which may find another incentive to evolve in the future.

Nintendo dominates the portable market

Nintendo Switch has sold 139.36 million consoles in a portable market with little competition. Given the resounding success of the Japanese company, it is more than plausible that other companies will try their luck. The question is whether they will do so with a traditional machine, as may be the case with PlayStation, which remains focused on the PS5, although it has also bet on launching its products on PC some time after the console launch. Instead, Spencer’s words suggest that Microsoft would be more interested in a product along the lines of Steam Deck, but with an even more console feel.

Nintendo continues its strategy of developing dedicated hardware and is the only one to tie all its games exclusively to its own platform. The company is preparing the successor to Switch, which according to leaks has been delayed until 2025. As for Xbox, it will announce new hardware this year, perhaps the new Xbox Series X model, or who knows? A handheld?