Xbox
Xbox reveals that its next console will offer “the largest technical leap you will have ever seen”
The company is not giving up on consoles, outlining a strategy that aims to access “as many players as possible” across multiple screens.
The anticipation was huge, the industry was waiting to hear the words of the heads of Xbox who, after the leaks and controversies, finally spoke about the future of the brand. In addition to confirming that they will launch four of their games on PS5 and Nintendo Switch (they did not mention them, but The Verge points to Hi-FI Rush, Pentiment, Sea of Thieves, and Grounded), those in Redmond are working on a next-generation console, which in the words of Sarah Bond -president of Xbox- will be the largest technical leap.
“We’ve also invested in the Next Generation roadmap and what we’re really focused on there is delivering the largest technical leap you will have ever seen in a hardware generation, which makes it better for players and better for creators and the visions that they’re building,” Bond said.
According to Bond, the engineering team is working with Xbox Game Studios to choose the console’s specs: “We invest to make sure they know and when they do that that the games are going to grow in great on our Hardware,” she said. “But they’re all going to be able to be accessed across any stream, any screen because of all the other investments we make. We’re giving them an easy way to access as many players as possible.”
Xbox consoles will be the only ones to enjoy Game Pass
Phil Spencer has defended that there has been no change in strategy regarding exclusives. The head of Microsoft’s video game division has assured that its consoles will remain the backbone, so Game Pass will not be available on competing machines. It had been rumored that the titles would stop arriving on Day 1, but the North Americans were blunt in this regard: there will be no changes in this regard. In addition, Activision Blizzard games will also arrive on the service, and Diablo IV already has a date: it will be available for download on March 28.
And what about games like Starfield or Indiana Jones and the Great Circle? Spencer has confirmed that they will not be part of this first batch of titles that will see the light of day on other consoles, but in statements to The Verge he let slip that this could change in the future.