XBOX Project Helix LIVE: Console could be 'absurdly expensive' says renowned Microsoft insider

XBOX Project Helix could be 'absurdly expensive' says renowned insider

A renowned Microsoft insider thinks the XBOX Project Helix could end up being "absurdly expensive" based on recent speculation about the console.

XBOX Project Helix is understood to be a high-end console and gaming PC hybrid. Parallels have been made between this and the Steam Machine, with Valve's new console starting from $1,049 (£879 / €1,039) for the 512GB model with no controller, with the most expensive option, the 2TB model with a Steam Controller, priced at $1,428 (£1,208 / €1,428).

And Windows Central's Jez Corden says if XBOX continues down this route, then the Project Helix could end up being "absurdly expensive".

He said: "As an open device, XBOX Helix would likely be far too expensive to justify purchase for the vast majority of traditional console gamers and parents raising the next generation of potential console gamers as well.

"By making XBOX Helix an 'open' device, that traditional software sales subsidy goes out of the window. Microsoft would have to price Helix as a high-end PC, profiting on the hardware, rather than the software, if it couldn't guarantee users would remain in its ecosystem. This is one reason why the Steam Machine ended up being so expensive."

XBOX giving free PC versions of select Ubisoft games

XBOX has announced an expansion of its partnership with Ubisoft and as part of it, is offering free PC versions of some Ubisoft games you may own.

If you own the XBOX console version of the following games, you can now play them on PC at no extra cost:

• Assassin's Creed Mirage
• Assassin's Creed Valhalla
• Avatar: Frontiers of Pandora
• Far Cry 6
• Immortals Fenyx Rising
• Prince of Persia: The Lost Crown
• Riders Republic
• Skull and Bones
• The Crew 2
• The Crew Motorfest
• Tom Clancy's Rainbow Six Extraction
• Tom Clancy's Rainbow Six Siege
• Watch Dogs Legion

Alternatively, if you buy the XBOX console version of the above from now on, you'll also be able to play them on PC at no extra cost too.

Ubisoft Connect needs to be updated to the latest version to redeem these. It does not work the other way around if you own the PC version but do not own the XBOX console version.

A number of digital games with premium editions and / or add-on content have been added for XBOX on PC too.

'Unacceptable' lengthy XBOX server outage explained

XBOX chief technical officer Scott Van Vliet has revealed what caused the lengthy server outage, admitting it was "unacceptable" and sharing how it will be investigated in a post on X / Twitter.

For hours, people were unable to see their libraries, launch games or even sign in at all. The issue has since been resolved.

On the social media platform, Van Vliet said: "This is an unacceptable situation and we must do better to support you.

"A licensing service that sits outside of XBOX but which XBOX depends upon began failing. This caused some sign-in scenarios to fail and it caused many scenarios that require an entitlement check to also fail, such as listing out your Full Library and launching games that you own.

"It also affected several of our publishing and store partners who depend on those same systems which is why some of you saw issues in specific games and not others.

"I care less about the one-line root cause and more about the real questions: why a failure in one service was able to take down this much, why recovery took as long as it did and what we change so a single point of failure can't ruin your night again.

"Thank you for your patience and for the reports that genuinely helped us narrow this down. We'll do better."