If you haven't yet, follow us on X (Twitter), Mastodon, or Bluesky to know when we post new articles, and join our Reddit or Subscribe to us on YouTube to check out our content and interact with our awesome community. Thank you for supporting us!

Despite increasing prices, handheld PCs are still alive and kicking. It has been great to see, and competition is never a bad thing. Xbox is probably the second biggest handheld name right now, thanks to their partnership with ASUS in creating the ROG Xbox Ally. Now, it seems that they are ramping up their branding, which could be an indicator of their commitment to PC handhelds, and possibly creating their own.

It appears that Xbox is ramping up their messaging that their games are going to be playable on their own “Xbox Handheld” devices, as the brand is now appearing on specific game pages on the Xbox website. Under the “Ways to play” section, we can see specific wording for the Xbox Handheld, and underneath that, there’s a dedicated spot saying that the game will be available to play on supported gaming handhelds.

Xbox Handheld logo on Gears of War: E-Day Page

This branding appears on multiple different landing pages for games, including Gears of War: E-Day, Halo Campaign Evolved, State of Decay 3, and the upcoming Fable. It also seems to be selectively placed for certain games, since I could not find the wording on Avowed, The Outer Worlds 2, or Keeper’s landing pages.

The obvious meaning could just be saying that it’s great to play on handheld, with their baseline being the Xbox Ally and Xbox Ally X, but this could also be an indicator of a future first-party handheld from Xbox. There have been rumors and back-and-forth about whether Xbox is going to make their own handheld apart from the collaboration with ASUS, and by establishing the branding for Xbox Handheld, it could easily be seen as a way to maneuver into it.

I will be watching and waiting to find out, but the idea of playing Gears of War: E-Day on my Steam Deck and Xbox Ally X is definitely something I’m very excited for.

Source: NotebookCheck

If you enjoyed this article, check out the rest of the content on SteamDeckHQ! We have a wide variety of game reviews and news that are sure to help your gaming experience. Whether you're looking for news, tips and tutorials, game settings and reviews, or just want to stay up-to-date on the latest trends, we've got your back.

Noah Kupetsky
A lover of gaming since 4, Noah has grown up with a love and passion for the industry. From there, he started to travel a lot and develop a joy for handheld and PC gaming. When the Steam Deck released, it just all clicked.
Steam Profile