A massive leak from the FTC v. Microsoft lawsuit revealed Microsoft’s plan for a mid-generation Xbox Series X console, but that wasn’t the only news. The the same document also revealed Microsoft’s tentative plans for the next-gen Xbox — what it calls a “hybrid gaming platform.” The system would combine local hardware and cloud computing to create an “immersive gaming and application platform” arriving around 2028, according to a leaked May 2022 presentation hidden in another PDF.
“Our vision: To develop a next-generation hybrid gaming platform capable of leveraging the combined power of client and cloud to deliver deeper immersion and entirely new classes of gaming experiences,” reads one of the slides. “Optimized for real-time gaming and creators, we’ll enable new levels of performance beyond the capabilities of client hardware alone.” Microsoft says in the slide that the next generation will arrive in 2028 with “cloud hybrid gaming” and an “immersive gaming and application platform.”
On the hardware side, Microsoft envisions things like next-generation DirectX raytracing, dynamic global lighting, ML-based super resolution, micropolygon rendering optimization, and more. The system could enable a variety of device types, from relatively powerful consoles to “Thin OS … $99 consumer or handheld devices” that rely on xCloud computing.
“Hybrid computing” would likely differ from regular cloud gaming by using hardware and cloud computing to display game elements simultaneously. For example, primary characters would run on your local GPU, while NPCs, background elements, and more would be generated remotely.
Microsoft also sees heavy use of AI and machine learning (ML) in next-gen games. In terms of performance, neural networks would power things like super resolution, frame rate interpretation, and latency compensation. They would improve game experiences (AI agents, codex, matchmaking, player ratings) and player services (safety and toxicity, personalization and discovery, support services). It would also help on the developer side by testing AI games, procedural content, physics, NLP dialogs, and live operations (engagement and retention management, monetization, cloud resource optimization).
One slide suggested that Microsoft was trying to make deals with AMD for Navi 5 graphics and Zen 6 CPU cores, but another said the company had to make an “Arm64 decision.” In any case, it may have already begun its plans. Another slide titled “The journey has already begun” shows the full plan: hardware design and hybrid game design starting in 2024, with development kits available by 2027 and expeditions by 2028.
The slide seems to be part of the conversation and by no means a firm plan. The presentation is preceded by documentaries showing a conversation between CEO Satya Nadella, Xbox’s Phil Spencer and others. Nadella says that the company is working on four types of computers (all in the cloud, hybrid Xbox, hybrid Windows and hybrid HoloLens) that “we need to bring together the systems talent of the company to align with a unified vision,” he adds. “We can’t go from big idea to big idea. We need to bring together the systemic talents of the company to align with a unified vision.”
Other ideas revolve around the “mobile controller” where “the controller becomes the hero”. That said, it looks like Microsoft was still working out its vision for the next-gen Xbox at the time of the presentation – so it may have changed completely since then.
