With Nintendo having played all their “next generation” cards on the Wii U and Sony Computer Entertainment slowly beginning to unveil their inner workings of the Playstation 4, it was only a matter of time until Microsoft joined the party…. and less subtlety of the three. Having been teasing their big announcement for the last month or so, last night saw the company take to the stage and formally announce the Xbox One – which despite the name hinting at a re-release of the original Xbox console (Something I would not actually object to… there were some awesome games for the console), is actually the successor to the XBox360.
At the Microsoft headquarters in Redmond, the company showcased how they hope the Xbox One will compete in today’s market, in particular their goal of making it an all-in-one gaming and entertainment system that puts you at the center of all your TV, movies, music, sports and of course…. Skype which the company have recently acquired and even replaced the Windows Live Messenger service with.
Don Mattrick | President, Interactive Entertainment Business at Microsoft
Xbox One is designed to deliver a whole new generation of blockbuster games, television and entertainment in a powerful, all-in-one device. 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.
The XBox One attempts to deliver an experience that when you are not playing a game should not leave you running around the house looking for the damn controller (Lost TV remotes are a whole other issue). Saying “XBox One” should launch you straight into your personalized Xbox One home screen. The more you interact with the console, the more it gets to know you and what you like. Some of the promoted features of the XBox One interface and services include:
- TV on Xbox One: Navigate and watch live TV from your cable, telco or satellite set-top box through your Xbox One. Microsoft is committed to bringing live TV through various solutions to all the markets where Xbox One will be available.
- Home: Turn on your entertainment system with two powerful words, “Xbox On,” and a custom-tailored Home dashboard welcomes you with your favorite games, TV and entertainment.
- Snap: Do two things at once on the biggest screen in your home. Use Snap to jump into a multiplayer battle while watching your favorite movie, talk with friends on Skype while watching live TV, or track your fantasy team on TV as you watch the big game and more.
- Skype for Xbox One: Specially designed for Xbox One, talk with friends on your TV in stunning HD, or for the first time ever, hold group Skype calls on your TV.
- Trending: Stay on top of what is hot on TV by discovering the entertainment that is popular among your friends, and see what is trending within the Xbox community.
- OneGuide: Find your favorite entertainment easily, searching by network, name or time, all with the sound of your voice and presented in a tailored program guide.
For those of you whom are technically inclined, the console is set to boast an eight-core x84 processor with more than 5 billion transistors to help make lag and load times a thing of the past.
While we can be expecting much more to emerge during their E3 press conference, Microsoft confirmed the following titles as being either XBox One exclusive titles OR to feature some degree of exclusive content:
- Forza Motorsport 5: from Turn 10 Studios is the latest edition of the highest-rated racing franchise of the past 10 years. Built from the ground up to take advantage of Xbox One and the infinite power of the cloud, no game better delivers the sensation of being behind the wheel. “Forza Motorsport 5” sets a new bar for racing games and will be available exclusively for Xbox One at launch.
- Call of Duty: Ghosts: is the next generation of “Call of Duty” and a stunning leap forward for the franchise. It delivers an all-new world, an all-new cast of characters and an all-new story, built on a new, next-generation engine. The next-generation technical innovations built to support the incredible gameplay advancements make this the most beautiful and immersive “Call of Duty” experience yet. Activision and Microsoft also announced the renewal of their close partnership that will see both the return of the “Call of Duty Championship,” presented by Xbox, as well as all-new downloadable content debuting first and exclusively on the Xbox platform.
- “FIFA 14,” “Madden NFL 25,” “NBA LIVE 14,” and “EA SPORTS UFC”: from EA SPORTS will change the way consumers experience and play sports games. Driven by the new EA SPORTS Ignite engine, these new EA SPORTS games will deliver massive innovations in human intelligence, true player motion and living worlds. Adding to its commitment to Xbox One, EA SPORTS also announced the promise of exclusive content to be revealed in the coming months.
- Quantum Break: from Remedy Entertainment is a revolutionary entertainment experience from the creators of “Max Payne” and “Alan Wake” that blurs the line between gaming and TV by integrating drama and gameplay into one seamless, uniquely immersive experience. How you play the game impacts the show, and the show informs how you play the game.
In addition to this range of titles, they have also confirmed a range of content partnerships for content such as the following two goodies:
- Halo television series: Award-winning filmmaker, director and producer, Steven Spielberg will executive-produce an original “Halo” live-action television series with exclusive interactive Xbox One content, created in partnership with 343 Industries and Xbox Entertainment Studios.
- National Football League (NFL): A multiyear, landmark partnership will deliver the ultimate interactive NFL television experiences for the next-generation Xbox One and leverage Microsoft devices and services to evolve both in-game and on the sideline. The NFL on Xbox will redefine broadcast experiences through innovations around Skype, Xbox SmartGlass and player-worn technology; add an all-new fantasy football solution for the biggest screen in the house; and create a personalized NFL destination only available on Xbox One.
Love it or hate it, the Gold Membership subscription service for XBox Live is returning in full force, but the console also comes with a number of new features and additions including:
- Smart Match: A new Smart Match matchmaking system virtually eliminates waiting in lobbies by estimating wait times and finding people you want to play with while you are enjoying other activities — reputation fundamentally matters and helps find best matches.
- Game DVR: A dedicated Game DVR captures and accesses your magic moments, all saved to the cloud.
- Living Games: Dynamic, living worlds evolve and improve the more you play, and advanced artificial intelligence can learn to play like you, so friends can play against your shadow.
- Expanded achievements: A new and expanded achievements system captures video of your epic moments, continues to grow a game’s achievements over time and rewards you in new ways, and your Gamerscore carries over from Xbox 360.
- Xbox SmartGlass: Xbox SmartGlass is natively part of the Xbox One platform, built in from the beginning with the ability to quickly render content directly onto your device, and now more devices can connect at one time for multiplayer and shared entertainment.
When designing the new console, Microsoft aimed at delivering a sleek and modern design that complements any decor, although does to an extent from the first image in this post look to be a fancy looking DVD/Blu-ray player – that being said it doesn’t look too bad. It is molded in a deep and rich liquid black color and includes a distinctive beveled edge.
Particularly over the last couple of years, I have enjoyed at least a couple of true Kinect game charms, and Microsoft are bringing with the XBox One a brand new 1080p model that is set to be more precise, responsive and intuitive – both in reaction to visual stimuli but also auditory stimuli. It will hopefully work in nearly any lighting condition, recognizes precise motion control from a slight wrist rotation, and distinguishes your voice even in a noisy room using advanced noise isolation. In addition, the standard Xbox controller design has been refreshed (and hopefully a tad less bulky) with more than 40 technical and design innovations. Updated directional pad, thumb stick and ergonomic fit are some of the improvement areas they are promoting. The new wireless controller is designed to work in harmony with the new Kinect, and allows the two to be paired.
In the end, I will save my opinion on the console for when it comes out, but I would say expect it around the holiday season as currently all we have is “later this year” for a release date.
