Microsoft Project Green Leaf to arm Xbox handhelds against PS6 Portable

Microsoft has already confirmed that the Xbox Series X ($648 on Amazon) will receive a successor, which is currently only known under the codename "Project Helix". This console will also be able to play PC games and should therefore be marketed as a hybrid between a desktop PC and a home console, similar to the Steam Machine.

Moore's Law is Dead has now been able to uncover the first details about "Project Green Leaf". The project, which is being developed together with the next-generation Xbox, is intended to drastically reduce power consumption during gaming - according to internal tests, power savings of up to 36 percent should be possible. Microsoft is reportedly taking a different approach to Sony with the energy-saving mode of the PlayStation 5. While Sony deactivates four of the eight processor cores, reduces the CPU and GPU clock frequencies and also switches off 24 of the 60 compute units of the graphics chip in the PS5 Pro, the next-generation Xbox will not cut back on the available hardware resources.

Instead, game developers can implement two profiles - Power Optimized (PO) and Power Optimized Plus (PO+). In these modes, the render resolution is to be reduced by up to 50 percent, while the frame rate can be reduced from 60 to 30 fps. This feature can only be selectively activated in certain areas of a game, such as menus, lobbies or cutscenes, so that the graphics and frame rate of the gameplay itself are not affected. Moore's Law is Dead speculates that Project Green Leaf could be primarily intended to achieve longer battery life on Windows handhelds so that they can better compete with the Steam Deck and PlayStation 6 Portable.