XBOX is "actively rethinking everything related to Project Helix" due to memory issues
At XBOX, executives no longer pretend supply is just a temporary hiccup. During Summer Game Fest 2026, Strategy Director Matthew Ball acknowledged the company can't make consoles any faster than factories and suppliers allow. The bottleneck isn’t demand — players are still buying — but key parts (e.g., memory modules and other semiconductors) and stretched logistics are slowing output. He also hinted that Project Helix, the next Xbox, is under broad reassessment as a result.
We are actively rethinking everything related to Helix. We fully understand what changes need to be made within the company to keep the device affordable while maintaining sufficient flexibility.
Right now, we are reimagining the very concept of the console. This is not about limiting anything but about offering additional capabilities. We are doing this with the current crisis in mind, the effects of which, by our estimates, could be strongly felt for another two or even two and a half years.
Matthew Ball
The last year hasn’t been pretty for Microsoft’s gaming arm. Gamers pushed back after hardware prices climbed, and the Game Pass price increase at the end of 2025 coincided with a visible drop in subscribers. There’s pressure elsewhere across the company too. Ball said XBOX is trying to find fixes that don’t simply shove costs onto players — looking at multiple paths forward and weighing trade-offs, i.e., preserve value where possible while keeping the business viable. He was careful not to write off the Xbox Series line: the current consoles still matter to Microsoft and, according to him, have untapped potential going forward.