Xbox has a PS6 and Steam Machine Problem, There's no Escape

There's a lot of discussion right now about what's next for the big gaming console manufacturers, with plenty of speculation about significant changes of direction all over the place.

The first major rumour saw Xbox supposedly plan for their next hardware release to be considerably more expensive than anything we've ever had to spend on a home console.

At the same time, Valve confirmed the Steam Machine is coming at some point in the first quarter of 2026; a small form factor console-like piece of kit that should bridge the gap between traditional console hardware and gaming PCs. Technically a PC, it is being marketed as a potential rival to the traditional living room console set up.

Sony haven't confirmed much about their plans just yet, though it does look like the PS5 is going to be their primary console until at least 2028, or even 2029 if some forecasts are to be believed.

That leaves Xbox in a really tough spot, and one that they're going to need to find a way out of if they want to carry on competing on multiple fronts.

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Xbox Needs To Define Its Identity With Next Generation of Hardware

For a long time, picking a console was so often based on which slate of games you liked best, as well as relative power and performance.

The original Xbox was expensive, but very powerful. And the Xbox 360 ushered in the era of modern gaming thanks to it's immense multiplayer and social tools.

Unfortunately for Microsoft, the Xbox One lost the momentum built up during the 360 era, before the Series consoles pulled some of it back vs Sony's monstrous PS4 and PS5 eras.

The question of what comes next is a really big one, particularly with Xbox integrating itself with PC so much over the last few years.

The truth is that (forgetting Nintendo for a minute), Sony is the undisputed console king, while Valve and Steam are the giants of the PC gaming world. That leaves Xbox treading the line between the two, without really threatening to topple either in the current state of play.

Don't get me wrong, I'm historically a huge Xbox gamer (though I did also have all the PlayStation consoles). But right now it is difficult to see how they even price the next effort appropriately.

If it's a straight up ~$600 console, then they will be up against Sony directly once again.

And on the flip side if they go to the rumoured price of the Steam Machine of $1,000, the latter is going to hoover up a bunch of their potential customers.

The big thing that Xbox does have going for it is Game Pass, which is a really compelling reason to use their platforms, but even that has been harmed by recent price rises to the monthly subscription model.

There are still plenty of cards to play, but Phil Spencer and team have to get it right if they're still intending to jump into another generation of hardware manufacturing with both feet. Fingers crossed they can, because all of those companies being at the top of their game can only be a good thing for players.