After some confusion caused by reports about the Xbox Project Helix hardware, Windows Central journalist Jez Corden has cleared things up. Microsoft is not planning to leave Steam. Instead, Xbox will keep releasing its games on Valve’s platform while also building new ways to grow its PC gaming business and have more control over its own ecosystem.
The misunderstanding started after comments Corden made on the Xbox Two podcast, which some people took as a sign that Microsoft wanted to stop using Steam and focus only on the Microsoft Store. Corden later explained that this was never the case.
He said, “Something I said on our Xbox Two Podcast this weekend was taken a little bit out of context by some news aggregates, and it led to rumors that Microsoft was exploring quitting Steam. They are absolutely not exploring that (right now), but there is good reason to think Microsoft is evaluating how it engages with Windows gaming all up.”
Instead of giving up Steam, Microsoft wants to expand its PC strategy in several ways while continuing to benefit from Steam’s large audience. According to Corden, one of the biggest plans is to open Battle.net to third-party developers and publishers, turning Blizzard’s launcher into a much broader PC store instead of keeping it focused only on Blizzard and Xbox games.
Another project reportedly in development is Project Positron, which would let players convert their physical Xbox game discs into permanent digital PC licenses linked to their Microsoft account. Project Positron is expected to be released in August, although nothing has been officially confirmed yet. If introduced, this would make it easier for players to access their games across different devices. Together, these plans show that Microsoft is not moving away from Steam. Instead, it wants to stay on the platform while building a much bigger PC gaming ecosystem around its own services.
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