Overview
- Xbox chief Asha Sharma said on Wednesday at Gamescom that efficiency and affordability are top priorities for the company’s next-generation effort, Project Helix.
- Sharma declined to confirm whether Project Helix will include an internal disc drive when asked by the BBC, offering no definitive answer on future optical support.
- As part of its Gamescom activity Xbox announced a Disc-to-Digital feature that lets players convert thousands of physical game discs into matched digital licenses.
- Reporters note that rising component and memory costs and the extra manufacturing expense of disc mechanisms make all-digital console designs a plausible way to keep retail prices lower.
- Sony’s reported plan to end production of new game discs in 2028 has increased expectations that future consoles may go digital-only and sharpened debate over how companies will protect backwards compatibility and players’ libraries.