Could the Next Xbox Get a Head Start on PS6? 1
Image: Push Square

A rumour doing the rounds on social media today claims the next Call of Duty is currently in development at Infinity Ward, and will release in 2026 on various platforms – including a supposed next-gen Xbox.

The rumourmonger, TheGhostofNoHope, is said to be well-connected when it comes to the first-person shooter series. He claims Modern Warfare 4 will ditch last-gen platforms like PS4, and may even jettison Warzone if the mode doesn’t get a serious uptick in players soon.

He also says he’s willing to “die on the hill” that a new Xbox is coming in late 2026. He adds that Infinity Ward already has development kits.

It’s a rumour he’s been pushing for quite some time, even as far back as May of last year.

A hypothetical PS6 is not expected until at least 2028, as this generation has always been expected to run longer due to the disruption caused by the pandemic. For years the PS5 was not readily available, and Sony only solved its substantial stock issues a couple of years ago.

We know that the Japanese giant is already working on a new console with AMD, but with the PS5 Pro only launching late last year, there doesn’t appear to be the appetite for a next-gen device just yet.

So, if what TheGhostofNoHope is saying is true, it’d mean the next-gen Xbox would launch a couple of years earlier than the PS6.

Obviously, beating the PS3 to market contributed dramatically to the Xbox 360’s success, but the industry is different these days. Players are locked to their digital libraries, for example, and games take longer to make.

The long cross-gen period spanning PS5 and PS4 is still ongoing, with millions of players not really seeing a meaningful incentive to upgrade. Furthermore, the PS5 Pro has been criticised by some for not offering many meaningful graphical improvements compared to the base model.

With games taking many years to develop now and Microsoft itself slowly transitioning into a third-party publisher, it’s unclear what actual advantages a next-gen Xbox would have as its market share continues to erode.

CEO Satya Nadella said earlier this year that it’s focused on “improving the profitability” of its business, so don’t expect heavily subsidised hardware sold at a loss. With the current state of hardware prices, next-gen consoles are going to cost a lot.

Xbox boss Phil Spencer has said he wants to beat PS6 on “hardware capabilities”, but launching early would open his company up to a counterpunch from PlayStation when its own next-gen system eventually arrives a couple of years down the line. There has been talk of a handheld, although this is apparently a long way away.

So, does any of this make sense, then? We’re going to say no, although Microsoft’s entire strategy is unpredictable these days.

The firm insists it’s still planning to sell consoles, but without exclusives, meaningful retail presence, and subsidised hardware, it’s unclear exactly who it’ll be aiming those presumably pricey systems at.

Still, it’s not impossible Microsoft may try to beat the PS6 to market, but we’d wait for more credible rumours to emerge before giving it too much thought.

Do you think the next Xbox will beat PS6 to market? (688 votes)

  1. Yes, Microsoft will try to get a head start44%
  2. Maybe, but I'm not really sure16%
  3. No, the next Xbox and PS6 will launch at the same time9%
  4. I don't care31%

[source x.com, via insider-gaming.com]