We have a new rumor of wild new plans for Xbox’s future.
As shared by IdleSloth on Twitter, a new source is claiming that the next Xbox is getting released far earlier than we expect, in 2026.
Before we go through the rumor, we should note that this one picked up some extra credibility when Jeff Grubb featured the rumor in his podcast. He pointed out that the source is the same person who recently released the specs for the PlayStation 5 Pro.
Subsequently, Jeff says he can confirm most of this rumor, but he just isn’t sure about the details.
That source is Kepler_L2 on Twitter, and their specialty is rumors and speculation on CPUs and GPUs, in and out of gaming. Kepler also tweets and replies a lot to comments and rumors about the PlayStation 5 Pro, but for now, we’ll focus on these new rumors about Xbox.
We reported a few months ago about leaked plans for Xbox to release a mid-generation refresh for the Xbox Series X|S. These consoles came under the codenames Ellewood, Brooklin, and Uther. They were to have updated versions of the Xbox Series’ current CPUs, and will update to a new Xbox Wireless 2 standard.
There is also to be a new controller, with haptic feedback and an accelerometer to finally add the much vaunted motion control support that’s already seen in PlayStation and Nintendo platforms.
Kepler claims that all these plans have already been cancelled. Kepler specifically points out there are no 6nm updated versions of the Xbox Series X|S CPUs. Kepler speculated that this could have been a cancelled project, but essentially, most or even all of what we saw got leaked, has already been cancelled.
Kepler also points out that Microsoft won’t wait as long as 2028 to release their next generation console, particularly in response to speculation that The Elder Scrolls VI will also release in 2028. Notably, Kepler makes no speculation on The Elder Scrolls VI’s release date.
Does this rumor make sense? We would have to speculate on a bunch of other things, but maybe there is something to it. For example, Microsoft could be looking to rush through this console generation, not because of any deficiency in the Xbox Series X|S technology wise, but to restart the console hype cycle. If true, Microsoft would have waited for less time than Nintendo did from the Wii U to the Switch.
Another factor could be the Activision acquisition. Microsoft could already be solidifying plans to make a console designed specifically so that even games designed for PC first, such as Blizzard’s World of Warcraft, will have built in control solutions for the next Xbox.
The most interesting part of this rumor is, of course, it cuts up the popular fan theory that Microsoft is giving up on consoles. Maybe they’re just giving up on the current product after all.
