For centuries, codenames have been used to hide certain details, with only those already in the know the true meaning behind the word. Though they’ve primarily been used in war to keep tactical information encrypted from enemy forces, codenames are used in a variety of industries, including the video game industry. For years, companies like XboxPlayStation, and Nintendo have used codenames to keep their projects hidden away from the eyes of the public, but one of Xbox’s most recent codenames has led to quite a bit of speculation amongst fans.
Just a few days ago on March 9, a dataminer named Tero Alhonen posted an image to Twitter that may hint towards a future Xbox product. The image is a screenshot of a text document, with a highlighted line of text reading “PRODUCT_XBOX_KEYSTONE.” Though no additional information is provided alongside the image, this hasn’t stopped Xbox fans debating what this new product could be.
What Is Xbox Codename Keystone?
When the image was first posted, a good portion of fans believed that this new Xbox Keystone product could potentially be a new console. For some, this theory seemed pretty likely, as the text list in the image also showed an Xbox product called “Durango,” with a product named “Scarlett” underneath it, and Keystone appearing underneath that.
As long-time Xbox fans might remember, Project Durango was the name given to the Xbox One during its production, and Project Scarlett was the codename given to the Xbox Series X. With codename Keystone appearing underneath these two previous console projects, it’s easy to See how some fans have become convinced that Keystone is actually Xbox’s next console.
Another theory that’s been suggested is that codename Keystone may be a revision on the current generation of Xbox consoles, in a similar vein to the Xbox One X or S. Although the current generation already has a much cheaper option in the form of the Xbox Series S, and the Xbox Series X is obviously still powerful having only come out just over a year ago, another Xbox Series console could be on the cards. After all, the title “Series” does seem to inherently suggest that there’s room for more console iterations in a similar style that would work alongside the current Xbox offerings.
An alternative theory, and possibly the most likely, is that codename Keystone may be the rumored Xbox Cloud dongle that Microsoft has hinted at quite a bit in the past year or so. The general concept for the dongle would be that it plugs straight into a TV, and gives the user immediate access to all the games on the Xbox Game Pass service, available to stream directly to the TV without the need for a physical console. The lack of any really intensive hardware, besides perhaps a controller, would likely give Xbox fans an even cheaper, and perhaps easier way to play the latest Xbox games, something that Phil Spencer has directly expressed interest in quite recently.
With Xbox putting a great deal of focus on its mobile Cloud gaming platform over the last few years, with coverage on the service increasing each year, it seems likely that codename Keystone is some form of Cloud streaming product. Whether that’s a way to get Game Pass games on mobile devices, or a way to stream Game Pass games to a TV, it makes sense. As the Xbox Series X and S are still very much in high-demand in most regions, a brand-new console seems extremely unlikely, but a cloud-based platform could potentially sit right alongside the new consoles, occupying its own niche.
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