Oh, Phil, you’re such a tease! Microsoft has long dreamt of a word without hardware consoles and all the latest games streaming straight from the cloud. And it has been working towards this future.
The cloud gaming component of Xbox is already a certified hit, with million having tried out the continually improving game streaming service.
And now, for its next act, Redmond is preparing a dedicated game streaming device that is said to be in development under the Keystone codename.
Keystone is designed to be a more affordable alternative to systems that can play games natively like Xbox Series X and S, and those good old gaming PCs. And the machine will directly hook into both the Xbox Game Pass and Xbox Cloud Gaming services to beam the titles down for players.
Although the release date of this new device is still unknown, we may have gotten a tangy little tease, straight from Phil Spencer himself.
In a post congratulating developer Bethesda Game Studios on the 25th anniversary of Fallout, the post-apocalyptic RPG franchise, the Microsoft Gaming CEO and Xbox chief Phil Spencer shared an image of a Vault Boy status on his office shelf.
Vault Boy left the shelter and stopped by my office to celebrate the #Fallout25 Anniversary. Congratulations to the @Fallout @Bethesda teams on this major milestone for an iconic franchise. pic.twitter.com/hGoN1sAQRK
— Phil Spencer (@XboxP3) October 10, 2022
So far, so good.
The statue delights, but what makes this picture much more special is a small Xbox device that is visible on the top shelf, right next to the Xbox Series Controller.
On first look, it may appear to be an Xbox Series S, the smaller of the company’s two current consoles. But a closer inspection reveals that this unit it is much smaller than the entry-level Xbox. In fact, it is barely wider than the controller next to it.
This has led many to believe that this is indeed the upcoming Xbox Keystone console, strategically placed in the shoot.
It remains unclear when this streaming machine will make its debut, if it does at all. But the fact that rumors regarding it only solidified earlier this year and it possibly got shown off by the main man himself, we may not be too far off.
A holiday release, you say?
