TL;DR: Reports from Digital Foundry and Windows Central indicate Microsoft is struggling to-gen console. Supply shortages, declining demand outside PS5/Xbox Series X, and initiatives like disc-to-digital suggest physical Blu‑ray game discs may be phased out.
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The likelihood that the next-gen Xbox console will have a disc drive is slim, according to new reports from Digital Foundry.
New reports give potential insight into why Blu-ray game discs are being phased out.ysical games is breaking down due to the scarcity of optical disc drives. Microsoft is having a tough time getting them, the report goes on to say, which could be why Xbox CEO Asha Sharma wouldn’t confirm or deny Project Helix would have a disc drive
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“I was told it’s less about the discs themselves and more about the supply chain around optical disc drives collapsing. Demand for optical disc drives revolves entirely around Xbox Series X and PlayStation 5 right now, with laptops, Blu-ray devices, and other formats essentially phasing out the tech,” Windows Central’s Jez Corden said in the report.
- Read more: Xbox is testing a disc-to-digital feature that solves the problem with the next Xbox
Now Digital Foundry has corroborated parts of the report, saying that it matches up with what they’ve heard. Xbox’s recent disc-to-digital program seems to be a way to prime gamers for an all-digital tenth console generation.
It was previously believed that Microsoft could keep making Xbox game discs in a limited run type of situation, making physical game discs more of a boutique product. But this seems unlikely given the supply situation with the optical discs.
The economics of Project Helix are unknown, but traditionally Microsoft will sell every Xbox system at a loss. The profit is in the games, subscriptions, and content, especially digital content, which is inexhaustible and, in the case of the microtransactions that make up the bulk of gaming spend, repeatable ad infinitum.
How would a disc-less Project Helix affect Xbox owners with existing physical game libraries?
Is Microsoft’s disc-to-digital program meant to prepare players for a fully digital next-gen Xbox?
What exactly is causing the optical disc drive supply chain to break down for Xbox?
Why are Xbox Series X and PlayStation 5 still the main demand drivers for optical disc drives?
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No one knows what Microsoft will do, and Xbox has become more confident and agile in its movements lately, showing that it’s willing and able to make big changes to its business for the good of the future.
