We’ve speculated its name and called it everything from Xbox 720 to Infinite, but the name of Microsoft’s next-generation console is XBOX ONE.
Microsoft’s reveal event gravitated around one central idea – how this next-generation console will be the one thing you’ll need for all of your entertainment desires.
BOX ONE will hit store shelves later this year, there is no word yet on pricing or an official launch date for the new console.
“Xbox One is designed to deliver a whole new generation of blockbuster games, television and entertainment in a powerful, all-in-one device,” said Don Mattrick, president, Interactive Entertainment Business at Microsoft. “Our unique, modern architecture brings simplicity to the living room and, for the first time ever, the ability to instantly switch across your games and entertainment.”
An idea that was reiterated a multitude of times throughout the reveal event was the fact the XBOX ONE would create a seamless experience that allows players to jump from viewing a T.V. program right into the cyber realm of games as easily as changing the channel. This seamless functionality is created by the three operating systems that the Xbox One will house, those operating systems will allow players to jump from internet to games, game to game and T.V. to games seamlessly.
The three operating systems that will govern the XBOX ONE’s functionality will be the Xbox operating system, a Windows operating system and a third operating system to allow seamless functionality between the two operating systems. The Xbox operating system is a system that will be utilized by game developers while the Windows operating system is to generate the internet experience.
Microsoft wants to dominate your living room and it aims to do that through partnerships it has made with entertainment and media outlets. One partnership that it was proud to announce was one with the NFL (National Football League) in which Microsoft and the NFL will provide viewers with a more interactive in-game experience and evolve the football experience for viewers and the NFL alike.
Another television program that was announced was a HALO T.V. project that is being handled by Steven Spielberg (A.I., MINORITY REPORT) which is based on the HALO franchise and will be the first project of the new Xbox T.V. programming.
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Microsoft took 33 minutes of its hour long reveal event to discuss what the XBOX ONE can do and the entertainment possibilities that will be at your disposal – then came the games. Most notably its long presentation for Infinity Ward’s new CALL OF DUTY: GHOSTS.
It was announced that the XBOX ONE would be receiving 15 exclusive games during the first year of its release. Eight of those games are going to be all new franchises and included one game relieved today: Remedy Entertainment’s QUANTUM BREAK. Remedy Entertainment is the studio known for bringing players the ALLAN WAKE and some of the MAX PAYNE games.
Other titles that were confirmed are BATTLEFIELD 4, DESTINY, FORZA MOTORSPORTS 5, WATCH DOGS, and ASSASSIN’S CREED IV: BLACK FLAG.
It’s good to hear some things have been cleared up such as the XBOX ONE not being an online only console, and that the XBOX ONE requires the Kinect, has a Blu-ray drive and that it will NOT be backwards compatible with your Xbox 360 games.
Supposedly, the XBOX ONE will be able to evolve as it ages because of the cloud functionality that it will incorporate. Along with being able to take your games and your account to any Xbox you travel to, through the use of the cloud, players will be able to increase the computing potential XBOX ONE has because of its ability to communicate with servers in the cloud.
“We have an ever-evolving, powerful world [in the cloud] that we can tap into,” Boyd Multere, Director of Xbox One development, said. “This is not going to be as static a console as we’ve seen in the past.”
With next-generation specifications packed into the XBOX ONE, the new console will have 8GB DDR3 of RAM capabilities, a 500 GB hard drive, come bundled with a new Kinect that has a 1080 p camera , cloud storage, and Skyping capabilities.
Now that all three next-generation consoles are (somewhat) out in the open, it seems like each one is aiming in a very different direction.
The Wii U aspires to give players an experience that neither Microsoft nor Sony can provide by innovating the way you play games. It has isolated itself in a way and targets your Nintendo die hard fans and casual gamer.
Sony and the PLAYSTATION 4 aim to give players the best gaming experience you can find in the next-generation of consoles and to be the console that delivers the gaming experience first.
So where does that leave the XBOX ONE and Microsoft?
This reveal event held today has positioned the XBOX ONE to be a console that is for everyone, it aims to please the mainstream with entertainment possibilities and still adhere to the hardcore gamer by providing the best games and best online experience possible. But the XBOX ONE seems to lean heavily on the entertainment side of this equation and that may alienate its hardcore players and cause them to jump ship to the PLAYSTATION 4 or the Wii U.
At the end of the day it seems like the XBOX ONE is your entertainment hub that provides you with more than just a gaming experience, it provides an entertainment experience that also includes games.
Who knows what will happen come fall when the PLAYSTATION 4 and XBOX ONE are pit against each other and fight for dominance in the markets, but it will be interesting to see who comes out on top.
