With Microsoft’s spotlight fixed on the Xbox Series X|S, it’s been a while since we’ve gotten any major news about the Xbox One, the company’s previous-generation gaming system. The Series X|S consoles have been on the market for a few years now, and it’s only understandable that Microsoft will put all its effort into marketing and providing support for the newer systems.
With that in mind, it looks like the Xbox One is making headlines again, although not exactly quite in the way that fans might expect – Xbox Games Studio head Matt Booty recently confirmed that Microsoft is now officially done with developing new games for the Xbox One, a move that while surprising is not entirely unexpected.
This news comes from an interview between Booty and Axios, with the studio head adding that all 23 of Microsoft’s internal studios are now sticking with the production of titles for the current (and upcoming generations) of Xbox consoles moving forward. There are a few exceptions however, which includes teams still working on Minecraft and Sea of Thieves.
Booty did clarify that Microsoft will continue offering support for the Xbox One, at least for the time being. Microsoft is also toying with the idea of allowing owners of older systems to access newer Series X|S games via cloud gaming technology.
The Xbox One was originally released in the US and Europe back in 2013, and was sold in more regions during 2014, succeeding the Xbox 360. Marketed by Microsoft as an “all-in-one” entertainment platform, the Xbox One competed with other major video game consoles at the time which included the PlayStation 4 and the Nintendo Wii U (to be followed by the Switch). It was later succeeded by the Xbox Series X|S in 2020.
In other Xbox-related news, Microsoft announced that it will be selling a new colour variant of the Xbox Series S. Announced during the Xbox Showcase, the new Xbox Series S model will come in a new black colour variant with a bump in storage capacity to 1TB, and will include a matching black controller with the bundle. Of course, this also means that the console will be a bit more expensive, with a price of $350 once it launches in September (there’s still no word on UK pricing).
Going back to the Xbox One, it’s nice to hear that Microsoft will still provide support for the older system by way of cloud gaming, although it is a bittersweet moment of sorts to see the end of the system itself.
