Xbox new-gen hardware leak raises backwards compatibility concerns

The current generation of Xbox consoles is heading into its fifth year and with technology advancing at a rapid rate, it is no wonder that Microsoft has already turned its attention to next-gen.

Over recent months, rumours have suggested that Microsoft is working on a number of unnamed projects including the successor to the Xbox Series X/S, a handheld console, and another handheld gaming system known as Project Kennan.

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The latter is rumoured to be similar to that of the Steam Deck and will operate on Windows. Additionally, it is expected to launch later this year in collaboration with ASUS.

As for the unnamed handheld console and successor console, not much has been confirmed by Microsoft itself.

However, according to a report on ResetERA forums, a Qualcomm job listing reveals that the next-generation of Xbox products will be based on the ARM/Snapdragon platform which could cause some concerns for backwards compatibility as it differs from what Microsoft has historically used for its software.

More specifically, the job listing will require a director of sales that could support "sell-in activities for the next generation of Surface and Xbox products built on Snapdragon solutions”.

With the use of the word “products”, we can assume that any upcoming Xbox product will use ARM and Snapdragon and although this will greatly increase the power of the units, it will mean that current games built using x86 architecture will no longer be compatible.

Of course, this has not yet been confirmed by Microsoft but it would be a big sacrifice to exchange power for access to current games.

It has not yet been confirmed what Xbox product will be released next but thanks to recent comments by Xbox head Phil Spencer and the looming release of the Nintendo Switch 2, we can expect it to be either Project Kennan or another unnamed handheld.

This would make even more sense if the rumours of Sony working on a handheld unit also come to fruition.