It is clear that Microsoft intends for the next-gen Xbox platform to work with third-party game retailers.
The collaboration between Microsoft and AMD on the next Xbox system has been officially announced. In a one-minute YouTube video, Xbox president Sarah Bond made the announcement. She assured them that they would provide “an Xbox experience not locked to a single store or tied to one device.”
According to Bond, the next-gen Xbox consoles you see in your living room and on your hands will be built using silicon from both Microsoft and AMD, since the two companies are collaborating on a “strategic multi-year partnership” to develop such hardware. For Xbox Cloud Gaming’s upcoming version, the two will also collaborate.
The next-gen Xbox platform will be compatible with third-party game stores, according to Microsoft, which is making it very apparent. Ultimately, the goal is to develop a portable gaming platform that enables you to play your favorite games on any device, anywhere. According to Bond, it will provide an Xbox experience that is not limited to a specific retailer or device. “We’re working closely with the Windows team to make sure that Windows is the best place to play games.
“In addition to a new full-screen Xbox experience on Windows and two Xbox All portable devices set to be released later this year, Microsoft and Asus have recently announced their partnership. Xbox Ally devices can access third-party marketplaces like Steam thanks to the new Xbox experience, which runs on Windows. For their next-gen Xbox system, Microsoft appears to be following suit.
There was a lack of support for playing Xbox games on previous systems, but Bond’s remarks suggest that Windows is key to Microsoft’s plans for the next generation of Xbox devices.
According to Bond, the newest Xbox console will “maintain compatibility with your existing library of Xbox games.” Therefore, next-gen Xbox consoles will be able to play games that don’t have a PC version on Xbox All devices, even though that won’t be the case later this year.
