It’s time for Microsoft The Xbox brand will stop playing fans and chicken and reveal its plans regarding steam deck rivals. Whether it’s a major software update to present an updated version of Windows in the gaming handheld or whether it presents the Asus Rog Ally 2 with dedicated Xbox guide controls, the upcoming Xbox Game Showcase is largely because no one expects it.
Ongoing: “They’re getting the rhetoric between Microsoft and the handheld has become quite comedic, so it’s time to show whether an Xbox is actually coming to replace a steam deck or not approaching a potential release date. The latest leak suggests that Asus Rog Ally 2 actually has Xbox-specific design features, but nothing has been officially revealed since then.
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This ongoing game of cats and mice reached a boiling point when ASUS, which has already created some of the best gaming handhelds, posted a video teaser for the new device. The following 33-second video, titled “Run Omni_upgrades.exe,” showed a cute animation of Rog Ally and Rog Kairi, along with Asus Rog’s mascot, that ended up on some sort of upgrade machine. As a result, we have a handheld silhouette. This was intentionally positioned and successful in making us all think creatively.
Fast forward a few weeks and two new Rog Ally Handhelds images are leaking.
Back in March 2024, Xbox accidentally leaked integration of Steam games into the Xbox app. Mix this with recent updates in the Xbox app and support showing clock and battery life, with all the signs pointing to the major updates coming soon.
Meanwhile, this Sunday, the annual Xbox Games Showcase takes place at the summer game fest, with many looking forward to some of the biggest first-party games coming in the next 12 months, but instead aims to the hardware.
Microsoft is working overtime to regain the beliefs of its hardcore audiences following the strange rage over the fact that games like Forza Horizon 5 and Sea of Thieves are now available on PlayStation consoles.
A great way to do this is to surprise everyone by revealing this much-anticipated gaming handheld project. While everyone might expect such an announcement to come via ASUS or as part of a major tech show, it makes even more sense to reveal it during the showcase when the gaming world focuses on Xbox.
Revealing the handheld also helps to take a break from years of speculation about Xbox handheld plans. More reports have recently speculated that the idea of Microsoft releasing first-party handhelds has cooled down, development has paused and focused on third-party hardware.
If Asus/Xbox Handheld (Project Kennan) is due to be released in 2025, there doesn’t seem to be a good time to reveal it during the game showcase, giving Microsoft and Asus enough time to sell the device to various audiences ahead of the holiday season. However, only time can tell if this is the case.
To see what kind of projects Kennan opposes, check out the Ayaneo 3 review or the Asus Rog Ally X review to see where current Windows Handhelds sits in relation to Steam Deck.
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