A leak from the gaming industry stated that the upcoming Project Helix console from Xbox After factoring in the cost of some key components, consumers could set back at least $1,000. However, the next-gen Xbox system could be much faster in rasterization and ray-tracing performance than the current Xbox Series X console, and could even compete with some high-end gaming PCs.
The news comes a day after Microsoft Gaming CEO Asha Sharma revealed the next-gen Xbox system to be codenamed Project Helix. Sharma said Project Helix would “lead the way in performance” and allow gamers to play both PC and Xbox games on the same device. Sharma said she will be discussing Project Helix with partners and Xbox Studios at GDC's Festival of Gaming next week in San Francisco, starting March 9. Sharma's statement about giving users the ability to play PC and Xbox games on the system essentially confirmed some long-standing rumors about the game library of the next-gen Xbox console. However, further official details remain elusive.
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Buyers of the next-gen Xbox may have to shell out a large sum
Although Microsoft hasn't officially released the cost of Xbox's Helix project, that hasn't stopped the gaming and tech industry from making predictions based on the cost of its components. Moore's Law is Dead said during a March 5 YouTube stream that the price of the Xbox Project Helix could easily reach $1,000, but would not cost more than $1,500. This projected MSRP would put the Xbox Project Helix in the same price range as the Asus ROG Xbox Ally X handheld console, which currently costs $999 before taxes and fees. However, that cost could be offset by Project Helix's ability to act as an affordable gaming PC that can run Windows alongside apps like Steam and Battle.net right out of the box. Moore's Law is Dead also stated that Project Helix would have five times the rasterization performance and up to 20 times better ray tracing compared to the Xbox Series X.
Moore's Law is Dead broke down how much the next-gen Xbox specs could cost compared to other components on the market. As both Xbox Project Helix and Sony's PlayStation 6 are expected to use AMD Magnus APUs, it will use the same RDNA5 graphics architecture as the as-yet-unnamed AMD Radeon RX 9070 XT successor. In comparison, the Xbox Series X/S and PS5 use AMD's own version of RDNA2 graphics with the Zen 2 processor. AMD said the expected price of its next-gen GPU is around $550, a slight drop from the RX 9070 XT's original $600 MSRP.
Project Helix's specs and features could justify the potential cost
While the proposed price of an AMD GPU would already make it into the $100 Xbox Series X console, Moore's Law is Dead added how much the system's CPU and RAM could increase the price. The price of Project Helix could be further exacerbated by the ongoing DRAM shortage crisis, as the cost of core components for PCs and consoles has risen exponentially from the fall of 2025. Since Microsoft is also not considering selling the console at a loss, the overall cost of the Xbox Project Helix could also be justified by the technical leap in performance as well as its compatibility with PC and Xbox games. However, Moore's Law is Dead stated that no matter how prices move, users would “revolt” if Project Helix was $1,500 or higher.
At the time of writing, other rumors indicated that the next-gen Xbox might not launch in 2027 due to market uncertainty amid the RAM crisis. Since Microsoft has not officially announced the price of the Xbox Project Helix, all rumors about it should still be taken with a grain of salt. Time will tell when Microsoft will share more details about Project Helix and how much users will have to pay for the new system.
