Microsoft has shared more details about how it’s building its next generation Xbox console in a special Xbox 25th Anniversary Magazine, confirming key details and reiterating core ideologies behind the next Xbox from platform to capabilities.
Xbox VP of Next Generation, Jason Ronald, has outlined the goal of Helix, stating “it’s really designed to be the ultimate gaming machine – one that removes all the barriers of play that have historically existed. My entire library is accessible to me. I’m able to bring four generations of my XBOX library and progression with me and have it available instantly. And we remove the arbitrary constraints between console and PC games.”
Microsoft has already confirmed that Project Helix will be able to play PC games, but this has left us with more questions than answers. Many assumed this meant the next Xbox would be a PC that can also play Xbox console games, but Microsoft now says otherwise.
“We’re very clear on the design goal: Helix is designed to be a console that is also capable of playing games from your PC. It is not a PC that can also play console games,” Ronald says. “The goal is making it easy, intuitive, and instant to access my games. But if you’re a hardcore gamer or a power user who wants to have that deeper level of customizability across settings and performance options, you can absolutely go do it.”
So Xbox Helix is not a PC, but it will be able to play games “from your PC.” This wording is interesting, but doesn’t confirm anything about how exactly this is going to work on the console. It’s good to know however that games who want PC-level game customization will be able to have that on Helix.
The interview also touches on the Xbox Helix OS experience, with Ronald confirming that the work ongoing with Xbox PC and devices like the ASUS ROG Ally X have influenced the future platform.
“Want to get a feel for where we’re going? The creation of ROG XBOX Ally and XBOX mode – the integration of multiple game libraries and inputs – was a way of putting our vision for the future of play in the hands of players and listening to the community’s feedback. Helix’s interface will be its own, but will take lessons from what’s been tested already:”
This confirms that Helix will run its own OS interface, and not one borrowed from the existing Xbox Mode that is shipping on PCs today.
Ronald also states that the feedback is has received from players about how Xbox Mode on the ROG Ally “has fundamentally informed and altered our plans of how it actually shows up in a future console … So absolutely, we view the Ally as a precursor to what we’re doing with Helix – but it’s informed by a lot of the design concepts we have for Helix.”
The full interview with Jason Ronald is available online via the Xbox 25th Anniversary magazine, which can be found here. It’s a great read if you’re interested in the design philosophy of the next generation of gaming hardware and platforms at Microsoft.
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