Microsoft Reportedly Cancelled Their Xbox Handheld

We had a busy few days this past week. With the various showcases being featured online like Summer Game Fest, there were more than a few game announcements and updates to talk about. One of the exciting new reveals was the confirmation of the ROG handheld devices for Xbox. However, a new report suggests that Microsoft’s own Xbox handheld was just killed off.

If you recall, there were rumors of both an Xbox handheld being manufactured under the ROG lineup and Microsoft’s own unique take on an Xbox handheld. It was exciting news for players who were eager to have a dedicated handheld device capable of playing Microsoft’s first-party video games. However, a new report suggests that Microsoft is no longer in the process of bringing its own device to the marketplace.

We didn’t get the official reveal of the Microsoft Xbox handheld. Instead, it was during the Xbox Games Showcase event that Microsoft unveiled the ROG Xbox Ally and Xbox Ally X. These would be handheld devices that run on Windows and are catered towards gaming. It would also seem that we would gain access to the various digital video game storefronts.

However, as noted by The Verge’s Tom Warren, his insiders noted that Microsoft essentially killed off the project to instead focus on the new Xbox software platform. There is a greater push to bring out Xbox devices through multiple PC manufacturers. That might also be a means to close the gap between PC and console gaming.

We’ve already seen Microsoft push forward their Xbox Play Anywhere campaign. With cloud gaming on the rise, Microsoft is making it easier to gain access to the latest games without having the beefy hardware to run them directly. Instead, all you need is a stable enough connection. So, while they might have tapped out of bringing their own Xbox handheld into the marketplace, we’re certainly interested in what’s next. It’s believed they are far from done with hardware, but what the next Xbox iteration will be is a mystery.

As for the ROG Xbox Ally devices, we recently did a video highlighting everything you need to know. You can check out that footage in the video embedded below.