We’re currently at that helpless stage with regards to the next Xbox release, whereby rumors and speculation are continually being recycled, and with little official word offered by Microsoft, we’re forced to try and dredge some truth from the many conflicting rumors.
Some thought the next-gen Xbox would be showcased at E3 this year, but the company has quashed those rumors, stating, “we can confirm that there will be no talk of new Xbox hardware at E3 or anytime soon.”
Unlike a lot of tech releases – which follow at least a rough pattern – the next Xbox is a little harder to call. The Redmond-based company is currently in a transition phase, with a major overhaul of its Windows platform, and, as opposed to being a like-for-like upgrade and improvement, it has been suggested on a frequent basis that there will be two different units.
The consensus, up until now, has been that there will be a streaming media-focused unit taking on the role as ‘living room entertainment portal’ for casual gamers, while the other will be an outright console, with advanced hardware to appease the hardcore gamer. According to MS Nerd, credited as one of the more trustworthy sources of leaked information, the two-console assault still looks to be on the cards. Blogging via Reddit, he stated:
“My understanding is that we’ll see a Xbox device in late 2013 which does Arcade-style games & all the current & future media apps with Kinect (with near-mode) . . . It will be an ARM-based platform price-competitive with the Apple TV (if you own a Kinect already).”
The Kinect has really injected some zest into the Xbox platform, and as we know, the casual gamer is a lucrative target in the market these days. It is thought the arcade unit would keep consumers occupied whilst the premium device is prepared.
MS Nerd also reiterated what we already know – details on the Xbox 360’s successor are hazy, while adding that the Kinect controller will probably get a camera upgrade after the launch of the main console. A successor to the Kinect, however, isn’t expected to arrive until 2015.
(via BGR)
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