Do you remember Microsoft’s Xbox cloud gaming device, codenamed Keystone? The device was announced in 2021, cancelled in its original form a year later, then showed up on Phil Spencer’s shelf much to everyone’s surprise? Well, if you’ve ever wondered what it could have looked like in more detail, a newly surfaced patent may hold some answers.
Question on patent It was originally filed with the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office in June 2022 — several months after Microsoft announced it would no longer move forward with Keystone in its current form — and includes designs for a proposed machine referred to only as an “electronic console device.” There’s nothing in the document explicitly connecting to Keystone, but Windows Central The claim is that it is exactly like that.
Side-by-side comparison with the “old prototype” version of Keystone Appeared on Phil Spencer’s desk in October 2022 This also supports this claim, as both the patent and prototype versions have the same front panel.
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However, the patent does reveal a lot about the design Microsoft was at one point considering for its cloud streaming game console. It looks very similar to the current Xbox Series S, although that machine’s horizontal footprint has been compressed into a square shape. It also shows an Xbox Series X-style “Hello from Seattle” plate on its bottom.
As for the ports on this proposed form – which is credited to chief Microsoft designer Chris Kujawski – there’s an Xbox button and USB port on the front, a controller pairing button on the side, as well as HDMI, Ethernet and power connectors on the back. And other than a whole bunch of heat dissipation holes, that’s pretty much all you get – the patent doesn’t reveal any details about the machine’s internals.
When Microsoft Discussed the progress of Keystone In May 2022, it said it had “decided to move away from the current version” of the device, and would focus its efforts on a “new approach”. Xbox boss Phil Spencer Later confirmed The project was cancelled because it was “more expensive than the hardware we thought it would take to build it” – and Microsoft’s “new approach” was its Xbox TV app, which enabled users to stream Xbox Cloud Gaming titles at up to 1080p and 60fps.
So, while Xbox’s dreams of a dedicated cloud gaming console are probably long gone, its ambitions in the game streaming space are far from over.
