Following a solid Xbox Games Showcase when it came to the brand’s software lineup, players continue to have questions about the brand’s larger strategy – especially pertaining exclusives – and whether Project Helix can realistically release in the near future amid component shortages.
During a recent chat at Summer Game Fest, Matthew Ball, Xbox’s chief strategy officer, noted it’s true the company is struggling to meet console demand: “We are producing them as quickly as possible. This is a severe limitation to how quickly we can do that, but it’s not a question of appetite… That is a privilege as a company. It is a challenge for us to figure out.”
Of course, everything that’s happening now to hardware prices and production bottlenecks is directly impacting Sony and Microsoft’s next-gen plans, whatever they may be, but the powers that be have remained quiet about specifics so far.
Ball wasn’t afraid of commenting on Xbox’s approach though: “We are working very hard to rethink everything that we can about Helix… We are very cognizant of the ways in which we need the change as a company to make sure it is affordable, to make sure that it’s flexible. We are working hard to rethink what that console model can look like, not in an exclusionary way, but in an additive way, so that as we take a look at this crisis, which may have acute effects for 2-2.5 years.”
This suggests Microsoft and the Xbox division are now actively crunching numbers and looking at ways to offset rising production costs, as the recent price surges to current-gen hardware are being met with heavy criticism. Moreover, Xbox is facing all sorts of pressure on different fronts, including the ongoing BDS boycott of Xbox games and services and Game Pass’ dwindling sub numbers after fall 2025’s price hikes.
“We are working very hard to figure out the best way to navigate it or a way that works for everyone, that does not ask too much from players,” concluded Ball, who also seemed to suggest Xbox Series X/S still have plenty of juice left in them.
