March 25, 2025 – A bombshell claim made yesterday by a well-known insider, Jez, on platform X has sparked heated debates among gamers. Jez alleged that Sony could potentially prevent players from accessing PlayStation games on the Steam platform via the upcoming Xbox handheld device. This assertion raised eyebrows, as theoretically, any Windows-based system should support the Steam platform.
To illustrate his point, Jez cited the example of NVIDIA GeForce Now cloud gaming service. Initially, players could enjoy the PC version of “God of War” on GeForce Now, but it was later delisted.
However, Jon Clarke from XboxEra and others argue that there are fundamental differences here. GeForce Now not only lacks PlayStation games but also titles like “Elden Ring.” This is because NVIDIA charges a subscription fee, and game developers believe they should receive a cut of the revenue. Some developers haven’t reached an agreement with NVIDIA on revenue sharing, leading to the absence of these games on GeForce Now.
Moreover, some gamers pointed out that there is no precedent for blocking Steam games on Windows devices. If the new Xbox handheld runs on Microsoft’s operating system, Sony would have to take extraordinary measures to prevent Steam’s PC games from running on it or cease distributing games on the Steam store.
Previous reports from Windows Central suggest that the upcoming Xbox handheld will be manufactured by ASUS, priced between the Steam Deck and Lenovo Legion Go. It is rumored to be equipped with AMD Z2 series chipsets. However, since the handheld is essentially a Windows PC, it won’t be able to run Xbox games natively.
