Pre-orders for the Xbox Rog Ally will reportedly begin in August, with launch expected two months later
The new Xbox-branded handheld will support Steam, GOG, Battlenet and more
Pre-orders for the Xbox ROG Ally will reportedly open in August, with the handheld expected to launch two months later.
The handheld, which was announced during the Xbox Game Showcase at Summer Game Fest, is a collaboration between Asus and Microsoft. The Xbox ROG Ally will feature Xbox branding and a bespoke operating system, adding to ROG’s successful gaming handheld line.
Two versions of the system will be released, the Xbox Rog Ally X and the lower-spec Xbox Rog Ally.
The devices are able to run Windows games purchased via PC through Xbox, or from Battle.net, GoG, Ubisoft Connect, and Steam.
EXtra1s, a social media personality with a history of providing retail information prior to official announcements, has claimed that pre-orders for the two handhelds will begin in August, and that European retail data suggests they will be priced at €899 for the premium model, and €599 for the base model.
The handheld will reportedly launch in October, though a specific release date wasn’t provided.
At launch, the Xbox Ally will be available in Australia, Belgium, Canada, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Ireland, Italy, Japan, Korea, Mexico, the Netherlands, New Zealand, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Saudi Arabia, Singapore, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, Thailand, Turkey, the United Arab Emirates, the United Kingdom, and the United States, with availability to follow “for other markets where ROG Ally series products are sold today”.
Its announcement follows comments from Microsoft’s VP of Next Generation, Jason Ronald, who said earlier this year that any future handheld device would combine “the best of Xbox and Windows.”
“I would say it’s bringing the best of Xbox and Windows together because we have spent the last 20 years building a world-class operating system, but it’s really locked to the console,” Ronald told The Verge. “What we’re doing is we’re really focused on how do we bring those experiences for both players and developers to the broader Windows ecosystem.”
