At GDC 2026 earlier today, during a talk about the future of the Xbox brand, Microsoft’s Jason Ronald said that the company’s next console, codenamed Project Helix, will support path tracing and machine learning to offer improved frame rates via frame generation. But don’t expect to be preordering one anytime soon, as Xbox isn’t sending out dev kits to developers until 2027.
As reported by The Verge, Xbox’s next-gen machine, Project Helix, will have a custom AMD SOC with a massive “increase in raytracing performance” and will even support more advanced and impressive-looking path tracing in some games. Helix will also feature a “next-gen version” of AMD’s FSR upscaling technology. This will let Project Helix, which could cost $1,000 or more, pull off better-looking and smoother frame generation. This upcoming console is being designed alongside the “next generation of DirectX.” It will also support Neural Texture Compression and “next generation” neural rendering. (You can read a summary of Ronald’s presentation on the Xbox Wire blog.)
Boy, I really hope nobody watching the talk or reading this is playing a drinking game where you take a shot every time someone says “next generation.”
Windows 11 is becoming more like an Xbox
During the GDC talk, Ronald confirmed that Xbox and Windows are merging more and more. As previously confirmed, Project Helix will play your PC and Xbox games. But it sounds like more Xbox features are migrating to Windows PC, too. “What we’ve really learned is as we look at it, PC is becoming an increasingly important part of the Xbox experience,” Ronald told the audience, as reported by IGN. “We’re bringing the best of Xbox to Windows itself to make Windows a great OS for games.”
Microsoft also announced that “Xbox Mode” is rolling out to Windows 11 PCs next month. This was previously known as “Xbox Full Screen Experience” and first shipped on the Xbox ROG Ally handheld. Ronald told the GDC audience that behind the scenes, the Xbox team has been working hard to make Xbox Mode “feel distinctly Xbox” and it should hopefully feel the same as you bounce between different Xbox devices and the cloud.
Xbox wants game devs to just build one version of their games that will work on Xbox and PC instead of having to port stuff to one platform or the other. The hope is that most games, but not all, will work like this and that this will integrate with Xbox’s existing Play Anywhere program, so gamers don’t have to buy two versions of a game to play on both PC and Xbox.
Xbox promises classic games will return soon
Interestingly, as part of Xbox’s 25th anniversary, Ronald told the GDC crowd that the company has plans to re-release an unspecified number of older, classic Xbox games as part of its Game Preservation program.
“Not only is this something that’s deeply personal to us, but we feel a deep responsibility to preserve games of the past,” Ronald told the audience, as reported by IGN. But Microsoft wants to use the “latest technology” available to let players enjoy older games in “new ways.”
“As one of the largest publishers in the industry, we feel a deep responsibility to preserve games from the past,” Ronald said. “Some of our most iconic first-party franchises are returning this year.” This is likely referencing the upcoming Halo remaster, the new Forza Horizon, and the Gears of War prequel, which are all set to arrive in 2026.
Xbox’s future has seemed far from certain in recent months as its longtime leader, Phil Spencer, announced he was leaving the company and his replacement, Asha Sharma, didn’t immediately instill confidence in gamers. And while the next-gen Xbox talked about during today’s GDC event sounds powerful, it also sounds a lot like a PC that Xbox is slapping its brand on. That’s not a terrible thing, but it does seem like, as we said before, the classic idea of an Xbox console with exclusives is dead. What replaces it will be a multiplatform beast made up of streaming, handheld PCs, and Windows.
