No Mid-Gen Refresh From Xbox Was Actually A Good Decision

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Shaheer Zahid

Currently serving as a News Reporter at Tech4Gamers, I have the privilege of combining my love for gaming with the art of storytelling. My role involves crafting engaging narratives that keep our audience abreast of the latest developments in the gaming world.

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It’s been a while since we’ve known that Microsoft won’t be releasing a mid-gen refresh of the Xbox Series consoles. The gaming giant made it clear that the Series X is the mid-gen refresh, with the Series S being the standard model.

While that news was disappointing to hear at first, PS5 Pro’s announcement makes it sound good. That $700 price point for a little upgrade doesn’t sound appealing, and the last thing Xbox needed was more negativity.

Hence, I believe that Microsoft made a good call for not working on a mid-gen refresh of the Series console. Instead, it is working on the next-gen Xbox consoles and all the flaws that the Series consoles had and will come back stronger, once again proving to be a competition for PlayStation.

Why It Matters: Xbox has already stated that it lost the console war against PlayStation, and its decision to not work on a mid-gen refresh and work on the brand proves that it is trying to better itself.

Next-Gen Xbox Reminds Me Of The Xbox 360 Era

Microsoft’s acquisition of Activision revealed many secrets, including one that surprised us the most. Xbox will release its next-gen consoles in 2026, two years earlier than its normal console cycle.

This is precisely why they aren’t working on a mid-gen refresh of the Series consoles. It is a little disappointing that they are abandoning the Series X|S consoles, but considering how PlayStation is outselling them, it’s completely understandable.

This reminds me exactly of the Xbox 360 era when Microsoft unveiled its console a year earlier than PlayStation. Without a debate, the Xbox 360 was better compared to the PlayStation 3 hardware and price-wise. 

The Xbox 360 was incredibly famous and one of the best consoles ever made. Xbox was still trying to build its brand then, considering it was the giant’s second console release, and not trying to compete directly with PlayStation, which they failed later on.

The next-gen consoles sound the same, and given the way Xbox has made many tough decisions this generation, I believe that it is working on something quite good.

Late 2026 also marks Xbox’s 25th anniversary, which makes a new console announcement perfect. Microsoft has already teased that it has bigger plans regarding this.

PS5 Pro Isn’t Even That Big Of An Upgrade

The new generation of consoles has been facing many problems running games at a solid frame on a good resolution without upscaling, and it seems that even 4k gaming isn’t quite yet achievable on consoles with new titles.

A mid-gen refresh of the console is the basic reason to avoid hardware problems and give more of a premium experience running games on a decent resolution with good frames and nice graphics.

One would think that $700 ought to do that for PS5 Pro, but that isn’t the case, and the console is still dependent on their upscaling method, PSSR. The PS5 Pro isn’t even that big of an upgrade from the base model and is primarily reliant on GTA 6 for sale.

The Xbox Series consoles already don’t have much love from the public and do not have enough sales to be profitable for the company, so releasing overpriced hardware that doesn’t even do well would not be the right move for Xbox.

Xbox President claims that it will be the largest technological leap for the next-gen Xbox consoles. The chips won’t have much improvement since the cost is a massive factor in consoles, but Xbox is working on machine learning to make its next-gen consoles cost-efficient and powerful at the same time.

This time around, it will also announce a handheld console for the first time, going all out.

I’m excited for Xbox’s future and for PlayStation to see what they have planned to compete with Xbox. The next generation will have good competition between consoles and a better generation overall compared to the current one.

Shaheer Zahid

[News Reporter]

Shaheer is currently pursuing a Business degree while also working as a part-time Content Writer. With his deep passion for both writing and video games, he has seamlessly transitioned into a role as a Journalist. Over the past two years, Shaheer has contributed as a freelancer to various websites and landed positions on acclaimed platforms like Gamerant. Currently, his role at Tech4gamers is as a Features Writer, but he also covers News occasionally. Shaheer’s favorite gaming franchises are Assassin’s Creed and the God of War series.

Get In Touch: shaheer@tech4gamers.com