Xbox Project Helix Reportedly Will Only ‘Emulate’ A Console Experience

[UPDATE – March 8, 9:48 AM] As some pointed out, UWP was deprecated in 2019, and Xbox Series X|S use containerisation technology to manage backward compatibility and system resources and enable features like Quick Resume. As such, SneakersSO may have provided inaccurate information, unless the Xbox Project Helix handles software differently than its predecessors.

Original story follows.

[Original Story] The next-gen Xbox Project Helix will reportedly abandon a native console SKU in favor of a specialized PC architecture designed to run games released on the Windows Store. New insights from well-known insider SneakersSO (who correctly revealed Xbox going multiplatform before the official announcement, among other things) suggest that the upcoming system will only “emulate” a console experience with an improved Windows Full Screen Experience. This shift also means that exclusives are almost certainly never coming back.

“This is basically a PC that uses the Windows Full Screen Experience (FSE) that we just saw in the Rog Ally X to emulate a console experience,” the insider wrote on the NeoGAF forums. “The ‘native’ Xbox SKU, that had an updated build target that developers were building games for, that’s going away… there’s no Xbox Helix build target, it’s just a UWP build. You’re just shipping a game for the Windows Store. You still have access to your Xbox library thanks to BC emulation, but as far as having a ‘native’ Xbox console SKU you built your game towards, thats done.”

A Premium, Niche Product

Given that the system will reportedly be, for all intents and purposes, a set-top box version of the Xbox ROG Ally, Microsoft is apparently well aware that Project Helix will be an expensive, niche product. “They’re just gonna use this thing not exploding in sales as the final nail in the coffin to roll up the HW portion of the business. They know what the forecast for it is, they are under no illusion that this is gonna be some Xbox 360 moment,” the insider added.

Although aware of the system’s limited reach, SneakersSO clarified that Microsoft and Xbox’s new leadership is still proceeding with such a niche product due to the volume of committed funds. “And this has nothing to do with new leadership – she is literally walking into a direction that was set up for her long before she ever entered consideration. She’s seeing it through because they’ve already committed funds to it.”

With Xbox Project Helix exclusives “absolutely not happening” under this setup, it increasingly sounds like a machine that will never directly compete with the PlayStation 6, whose primary competitor may instead be the Steam Machine. However, as it is reportedly a very powerful system, it will be interesting to see how Microsoft will balance high-end performance with a premium price point, and if it can carve out a loyal audience among the enthusiast crowd.

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