It’s going to make a bad time for the gaming industry even worse if Xbox can’t pull off a win.
Xbox is in freefall, but Microsoft’s gaming platform could redeem itself as soon as next year. During AMD’s Q4 2025 earnings call on Tuesday, the chipmaker’s CEO, Lisa Su, said that “development of Microsoft’s next-gen Xbox featuring an AMD semi-custom SoC is progressing well to support a launch in 2027.”
Up until now, Xbox President Sarah Bond had only been ready to tell us the next Xbox console was indeed in development and would deliver a “premium experience.” The console likely won’t conform to any one game launcher. Instead, it could allow players to access platforms like Steam, Epic Games Store, and GOG as well as Xbox. Essentially, it will be a PC with a less-upgradable “semi-custom” AMD SoC (system on a chip).
Why is AMD talking about this console even before Xbox can start its next-gen media blitz? Likely because gaming hardware will be in the doldrums all throughout 2026. Su said the company expects a “decline by a significant double-digit percentage as we enter the seventh year of what has been a very strong console cycle.” 2026 may be an odd year for gaming hardware
The year will start off with the launch of Valve’s long-awaited Steam Machine.
