6 Reasons Why New Xbox Beats the PS6 and Steam Machine

The first and most obvious reason is the quality of games. Simply put, no matter how powerful a console might be, it won’t get very far without a quality and deep portfolio of first-party titles. Which is something that the Xbox Series X/S has lacked, in my opinion.

The Xbox 360 is considered to be one of the best consoles of all time, and for good reason; its first-party games were fantastic. We had Halo 3, Gears of War, Forza Horizon, Mass Effect (a console exclusive at the time) and many more. I’m not saying that the key to success is by focusing on those franchises, but I feel Microsoft needs to go back to the drawing board and focus on why gamers loved their consoles to begin with.

It feels like this console generation, more than most in recent memory, is more expensive than ever, whether it's the hardware or video games. We understand that software is becoming more advanced and, by proxy, more expensive to produce, and a never-ending GPU shortage doesn't help either.

That being said, if Microsoft can find a fair balance of producing a console that is not only more powerful than the PlayStation 6 but is also cheaper, then it could be a major advantage in the console wars. However, whether a balance of specs and pricing can gain an advantage over the Steam Machine remains to be seen.

In a tweet announcing the new Xbox by Asha Sharma, it was revealed that Project Helix will also be able to play PC games. We’re not sure how this will be achieved at this time, such as Steam integration, but it’s a promising prospect nonetheless. One of the appeals about the Steam Machine is that it’s basically a gaming PC hidden on a small console cube. I’d be surprised if Sony allows its PlayStation 6 to play PC games, so this could be something for Microsoft to capitalise on.

Whether we like it or not, AI technology is here to stay, and while a lot of bad comes of it, such as distasteful social media posts, AI can have major benefits to gaming. It’s rumoured that the next Xbox will have a dedicated chip that will not only boost performance but also upscale visuals with its Advanced AI and Neural Processing. I’m sure the PlayStation 6 and Steam Machine will have their own equivalent, but with Microsoft being a giant tech company, it might have a production advantage over its market rivals.

Speaking of being here to stay, Xbox Game Pass is going nowhere either. With its massive amount of games that are easily accessible wherever you are and on multiple platforms, which includes selected Smart TVs, the likes of PlayStation Plus and Nintendo Switch Online don't even come close to Microsoft’s subscription service.

Sure, having hundreds of games to download and stream doesn't do physical media any favours, because we own nothing with subscription-based games, but when it comes to value, Xbox Game Pass will once again be a major player for Microsoft for the next generation.

If Microsoft decided that its next-gen consoles would play physical discs, it could be a big win for gaming collectors. I understand that discless consoles are cheaper to produce, as are video games, which is why publishers seemingly want to eliminate physical games forever. However, the day that physical media is made obsolete would be a sad day indeed.

We know that the Steam Machine is digital-only, and if Sony decides to go that route with the PlayStation 6, at least having the choice of buying the next-gen Xbox with a disc drive could help collectors who refuse to accept that physical media is a thing of the past jump over to the green brand.