By Tom Loftus
Given that the Xbox 360 game console launched over seven “Call of Duty’s” ago, rumors concerning Microsoft’s next gaming console are nothing new.
Yet a recent report from game website IGN has gained some attention, most notably for details concerning the rumored console’s graphics processing unit (GPU). Citing sources close to the project IGN said that Microsoft is gunning for a late 2013 shipment date for a new Xbox game console, called “Xbox 720” in some quarters.
- Kim Kyung-Hoon/Reuters
- Visitors play with Microsoft’s Xbox 360 consoles at the Tokyo Game Show in Chiba, east of Tokyo, Sept. 15, 2011.
The new console is reported to have six times the graphics processing power of the Xbox 360 and provide 20 percent greater performance than rival Nintendo’s upcoming Wii U console. IGN shared some details on the GPU saying it would be based on AMD’s 6000 series. ”More specifically, it will be akin to the Radeon HD 6670, which offers support for DirectX11, multidisplay output, 3D and 1080p HD output.,” the story said.
Several blogs were quick to parse the specs and offer their opinion on whether the rumored Xbox will be a graphics wonder or a dud.
When contacted for a comment, a Microsoft spokesman said that the company doesn’t comment on “rumor or speculation.”
Whether or not the rumor proves to be true, Microsoft is certainly due for a console refresh. In the six years since the 2005 launch of the Xbox 360 console, much has changed in the gaming industry with the rise of so-called “casual games,” low-priced games often played on mobile devices such as the iPhone and the iPad.
But the console has displayed remarkable resilience. It has remained a go-to device for hard-core gamers who play shooter games such as the “Call of Duty” series. And the 2010 launch of the Kinect motion-sensor add-on provided the console with a second life and a reason for the more casual gamer to stand up in the living room and wave their arms like a maniac.
The console also supports Xbox Live, a service that allows for cooperative game play, video streaming and chat.
At Microsoft’s quarterly earning call last week the company reported a 15 percent jump in sales for its games business.
IGN had little else to say about the next console, but news last week that Windows NT creator Dave Cutler was moving to the Xbox group offers one indication on Microsoft’s plans. Asked for comment by All About Microsoft blogger Mary-Jo Foley, a Microsoft spokesman said at the time that Cutler was brought in to “help advance our goals in the consumer space as we continue to grow the Xbox from a game-centric console to a complete home entertainment device.”
Earlier this year game console rival Nintendo announced plans to ship its new Wii U console sometime in 2012. Nintendo’s current console has been on the market since 2006.
Speaking at a CES event earlier this month, Sony videogame head Kaz Hirai said that the company had no plans to announce a replacement to its five-year-old PlayStation 3. ”I’ve always said a 10-year life cycle for PS3, and there is no reason to go away from that.”
Mr. Anthony Caban,
I would remind you that the Playstation 2 also had a ten year life-cycle. However, Sony still released their next console in the middle of that cycle. PS2′s continued to be produced and sold, even though their successor was on the market, and the same will be true of the PS3.
I’m not quite sure who the “we” you are referring to is, but your statement that Sony has failed, or is failing to innovate is fundamentally untrue (see Blu-ray disks, mass production of 3D televisions, surprisingly resilient business models), so you are obviously not a part of the gaming community.
Mr. Hirai’s comments don’t suggest that a Playstation 4 is not coming, rather that the PS3 will continue to be produced and sold for the rest of it’s life cycle. He refused to tip his hand concerning the next Sony console, because a CES interview is absolutely not the place to do it. At the same time, he did not deny the possibility of a successor. I would not be surprised to hear some mention of a PS4 at E3 this year.
”I’ve always said a 10-year life cycle for PS3, and there is no reason to go away from that.”
We call that an “admission of failure”. Specifically to innovate and capitalize on that innovation. Too many mistakes with a crowd that has no patience for it.
This is nothing compared to even cheap and current PC gaming, it really surprises me that people are so exited about this
Looking very much forward to buying one for myself and my teenage sons (one for each, of course.) While I love Nintendo most of all, they continue to make the same mistakes with their 3rd party licensees whereby they simply do not get the AAA titles from major manufacturers. The Big N has always been cheap about its hardware, using last-gen components, while MS and Sony have been a little TOO aggressive on hardware, leading to high price points and performance issues (RROD anyone?)
It looks like, if the rumors are true, MS may have learned a little. They’re not using the latest GPUs, but rather proven components that have long been tested. I expect that we’ll see fewer problems out of the gate, outstanding support from major manufacturers, and they’ll continue to have the best online features of them all. (I find Nintendo is still largely clueless about how to provide online game play.)
While I think that IGN will be proven largely wrong in a lot of ways, it’s fun to consider a new game console after the XBOX 360 has been on the market for almost seven years.