Microsoft has confirmed what many have speculated: that its next-generation gaming console will be a hybrid piece of hardware that can play Xbox games as well as Windows PC games.
There aren’t yet any details on a release window, pricing or specs, but the head of Microsoft’s gaming division, Xbox CEO Asha Shar, wrote in a post on X on Thursday that Project Helix is the code name and that “Project Helix will lead in performance and play your Xbox and PC games.”
The move could upend the traditional console gaming market where Microsoft and the Xbox are a dominant force, as are Sony with its PlayStation systems and Nintendo with its Switch and Switch 2. PC gaming has been gaining traction: A report last year noted that PC games at the time outsold console games (this was before the launch of the Switch 2).
The Project Helix news also seems to align with Sony’s recent decision to stop releasing single-player first-party games to PC. Sony cited lackluster sales for games it has released to PC such as God of War Ragnarok and Ratchet and Clank: Rift in Time. As Penny Arcade writer and frequent gaming pundit Jerry Holkins posted on X about Sony, “No reason to put their heavy hitters in some place where they run natively on your mortal enemy’s box”
Microsoft has dabbled in mixing the Xbox and PC gaming worlds before, offering an Xbox Ultimate Game Pass that gives access to both Xbox and PC games for a subscription fee. It raised the price on that game pass in 2025.
Last year Microsoft also announced a deal with AMD that would secure processors for its future products including, presumably, Project Helix.
Microsoft’s Next Xbox Console Is for Real, and It’ll Play PC Games, Too
