Portable Xbox handheld speculation continues as Phil Spencer discusses hardware

Xbox boss Phil Spencer has talked about handhelds, revealing that the Xbox hardware team has been exploring "different hardware form factors."

Tom West

Published 26 Mar 2024

With handheld systems like the Asus ROG Ally, Lenovo Legion Go, and Steam Deck becoming popular ways for players to enjoy some of the best Game Pass games on the go, many have wondered, if not, hoped, that Xbox would make their own. Xbox boss Phil Spencer has talked about handhelds in a recent interview but hasn't confirmed that an Xbox handheld is on the way.

Xbox boss Phil Spencer talks Xbox handhelds

Xbox is looking at different hardware form factors like handhelds

During a recent interview with Polygon, Phil Spencer discussed his experience using the Lenovo Legion Go during his trip to GDC, saying, "I’m on the airplane and I have this list of everything that makes it not feel like an Xbox. 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’ll tell you one [game] that doesn’t right now — it’s driving me crazy — is Fallout 76. It doesn’t have cross-save.

“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.”

Spencer says that he likes the fact that multiple hardware companies are innovating in the handheld space, commenting that they feel "more like a console than a PC — nine times out of 10." Interestingly, Spencer says it's the Windows experience that usually lets down the system: "things that usually frustrate me are more Windows-based than device-based. Which is an area I feel some ownership of."

Xbox has been on a mission to expand the platform beyond just its consoles in recent years, rolling out the Play Anywhere experience for console and PC for cross-saving, pushing for cross-platform compatibility, fleshing out Game Pass, increasing the reach of Xbox Cloud Gaming, and more. We've already seen two Xbox-exclusive games launch on PlayStation and Nintendo Switch in recent months, and two more games are set to follow suit. According to Phil Spencer, handheld systems are another way of giving Xbox players more choice.

“From a game creator standpoint, I can then go build a single version of my game that spans more hardware and reaches more customers. And I would say for players, it reduces the friction," Spencer said. "Like, if I want to go play my console games on the go with a handheld, I don’t want to only be able to buy one brand of handheld. Right? […] I want everything that we’re doing in the hardware space to be great. But if somebody chooses to go play today [somewhere else], I don’t want them to feel like a lesser Xbox [player].”

While on the subject of handhelds, Phil Spencer has said that the Xbox hardware team has been exploring "different hardware form factors," and considering “what should we build that will find new players, that will allow people to play at times when they couldn’t go play [in the past]?”

While Phil Spencer's comments are far from any form of announcement, president of Xbox Sarah Bond has already said that we can expect to hear about new Xbox hardware "this holiday." This isn't the first time Spencer has spoken about his interest in handheld systems, so we'll have our fingers crossed that there'll be an announcement later this year.

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Written by Tom West

Tom has been playing video games since he was old enough to hold a controller, experimenting with a number of systems until he eventually fell in love with Xbox. With a passion for the platform, he decided to make a career out of it, and now happily spends his days writing about that which he loves. If he’s not hunting for Xbox achievements, you’ll likely find him somewhere in The Elder Scrolls Online or fighting for survival in Battlefield.