Microsoft’s Next-Gen Xbox Console Already in the Works

gamerant.com:

Xbox's next-gen console meant to succeed the Xbox Series X/S is currently in the works and has a codename, a review of newly surfaced regulatory filings has revealed. The document confirming that a PS6 rival is already in the pipeline stems from Microsoft's ongoing trial with the Federal Trade Commission, who sued to block its proposed acquisition of Activision Blizzard on antitrust grounds in December 2022.

As arguably the biggest private opponent of the deal, Sony got heavily involved in the FTC lawsuit that is currently in a discovery phase, pending trial. However, Microsoft's back-and-forth with both the U.S. regulator and Sony resulted in some unintended effects for the Japanese gaming giant, most recently after one legal disclosure seemingly narrowed down a potential PlayStation 6 release window.

Sony Ordered to Reveal Trade Secrets to Microsoft

In yet another such episode of prematurely revealed information, the FTC seemingly confirmed that a next-gen Xbox console is already in the works. Namely, a March 14 motion signed by the complaint counsel seeks to compel Microsoft to produce documentation pertaining to its tenth-generation gaming system, even mentioning it by its codename. While the provisional moniker was redacted from the copy of the filing that made its way to the public docket, the internal name appears to contain around 15 characters. Given that the average English word is under five characters in length, the next-gen Xbox system's codename presumably contains two words.

For reference, the Xbox Series X and Series S were code-named Anaconda and Lockhart, respectively, though Microsoft also dubbed the entire ninth-generation Xbox lineup as Project Scarlett. Prior to that, the Xbox One was internally