The Xbox Series S (or the Lockhart) might not have been officially announced by Microsoft yet, but countless leaks and rumours over a prolonged period of time have all but confirmed the existence of the cheaper and less powerful next-gen Xbox variant. In recent weeks, the evidence has continued to mount, with mentions of the Xbox Series S spotted in everything from the Windows OS to Xbox Game Pass trial code sheets to Xbox controller boxes, while insiders have even leaked the console’s supposed secs.
And though we’re still waiting on Microsoft to even officially acknowledge that the Xbox Series S is a thing, new ratings for games by the ESRB may have provided more evidence pointing to its existence. Recent ratings handed by the ESRB to games such as Assassin’s Creed Valhalla and Call of Duty: Black Ops Cold War mention, rather clearly, “Xbox Series” as one of the platforms the games are releasing on.
That’s notable, of course, because without the “X” or the “S”, the “Xbox Series” would presumably just be a catch-all term for all the console SKUs under Microsoft’s next-gen umbrella. It’s worth noting that previous ESRB ratings – such as the one for Watch Dogs: Legion, to name just one – have explicitly and specifically mentioned the Xbox Series X.
“Xbox Series” was officially trademarked by Microsoft couple of months ago. Recent reports have suggested that official news on the Xbox Series S will be coming some time in September, before TGS 2020 kicks off.