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Xbox 720 for Xmas 2012?


MonsXI

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Ubisoft Montreal is hard at work on 'target boxes' based on the intended specifications of Microsoft’s Xbox 360 successor, according to an Edge source. Delivery of the first iteration of genuine devkits, running custom hardware, is expected to reach studios before Christmas, and all signs point to the finalised console arriving at retail in late 2012.

Ubisoft’s teams are said to be working on PCs containing off-the-shelf components provided by Microsoft, and it’s our understanding that several other major developers, including certain EA studios, are also in possession of these target boxes. While our source was unable to share precise specifications, it is believed that AMD is providing the bespoke GPU solution for Microsoft’s console. A Ubisoft spokesperson said: "We do not comment on rumour and speculation."

We can also reveal that one major Sony-owned studio has now ceased PlayStation 3 development, its entire focus having shifted to the console’s successor. The studio is also said to have been involved in the development process of the graphics technology adopted by Sony’s new hardware.

It is clear that both Sony and Microsoft have learned from their respective experiences this generation and recognise the importance of being first to market. Despite rushing Xbox 360's release - games shown at E3 2005 were running on overheating Power Mac G5s, just six months prior to the console's launch - Microsoft would no doubt view the billion-dollar loss caused by the RROD fiasco as more than justified by the console's eventual market share.

Sony, too, will have learned a painful lesson from coming to market a year after its competitor, with more expensive hardware. That the runaway leader of the previous generation is only now closing in on Microsoft's sales - 55.5 million PS3s had been sold by September 30, with Xbox 360 sales at 57.6 million - speaks volumes of the importance of not giving its competitor another head start.

A 2012 release would also do much to stop Wii U gathering momentum. While Nintendo's new console is significantly more powerful than its predecessor, it boasts little improvement over the current generation of HD consoles in terms of raw processing power.

Wii U has been positioned to developers as a suitable home for Xbox 360 and PS3 ports, and putting new consoles on shelves next year could leave Nintendo scrambling for thirdparty support. Reports this week claim that Microsoft could announce its console at CES in Las Vegas in January; Nintendo is not to reveal the finalised Wii U hardware until E3 in June.

Evidence of an approaching new generation of consoles has been building for some time. Square Enix announced its next-generation Luminous Engine in August, and showed it off last month, while Epic Games demonstrated an enhanced version of Unreal Engine 3, which VP Mark Rein said brought "unprecedented levels of realism and demonstrates what the next generation of gaming will be", at GDC in March.

Internet sleuth Superannuation last month found four Microsoft employees whose LinkedIn pages referenced the next-gen Xbox, and just last night discovered a casual forum reference to Kinect creative director Kudo Tsunoda's "NextGen team at MS".

Square Enix's worldwide technology director Julien Merceron told us in June that companies prepare for new hardware by moving their best talent off current projects. "In the next year and a half or so we'll see a drop in innovation," he said, "because the talent is moving on to something else."

Ubisoft Montreal is currently recruiting for a senior animation programmer, with one of the job's responsibilities the creation of a "next-generation animation system." Yves Jacquier, executive director of production services at the studio, said in July that AI, rather than better graphics, would be the "real battleground" of the next generation.

"Our challenge with the PlayStation 3 and Xbox [360] is that we're extremely limited in what we can do," he said. "It's a challenge for the engineers to provide nice graphics and nice AI and nice sound with a very small amount of memory and computation time.

"We think that the next generation of consoles won't have these limits any more." It appears Jacquier knew more than he was letting on; there is now a very real possibility that all three platform holders will have new consoles on sale this time next year.

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we need a console with more than **** 256mb of ram.

Give us at least 2 gig of ram, a better processor (they're not AWFUL currently, just outdated) and a cooler/disc reader that will last for more than 18 months.

Then I'll be happy.

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Maybe Sony and Microsoft will combine to make a beast console, rather than two separate ones?

I cant see why Microsoft would want to do that. Sony might not be able to afford the R&D on a new console at the moment, the entire company is a mess because of a lot of bad decisions they made over the last five or six years, but Microsoft are profitable, they have a brand they can sell and they probably consider themselves market leaders if you combine hardware and software sales.

The next Microsoft machine will follow in the 360s footsteps and just be a PC in a fancy box. I think Microsoft are clever enough to realise that putting out a console that developers actually know how to develop for from day one is an important thing. Sony got burned badly on that one by releasing a PS3 with crazy architecture. I would imagine the next Xbox will be of a similar power to the type of PC which can run Battlefield 3 on "**** me, thats pretty" settings now. DX11 card, multi core processor, plenty of RAM, dunno whether it needs as much as a PC running Windows but I assume the next Xbox interface will be a bigger deal than the current one is. Video streaming, music streaming, Facebook/Twitter/YouTube integration being a bigger deal. A better version of Kinnect being bundled. A large (500gb+) hard drive with every console, Xbox Live to become more like Steam with groups and a better digital store. I cant see there being too many huge surprises with the next generation because it is fairly obvious what everybody wants. I'm still not sure it will be announced at E3 if it is a 2013 release either, surely that would just send Xmas 2012 sales of the 360 through the floor? GDC 2013 tease and an E3 2013 announcement for me. On sale by September/October 2013.

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It may be a DVR aswell

Microsoft's assault on the living room continues, with a new patent suggesting that the next generation Xbox will be a digital video recorder as well as just a games console.

Especially after the recent dashboard upgrade the Xbox 360 already offers a variety of multimedia extras, including movies, music and a deal with Sky. But it looks like their next console may be going even further.

As discovered by website Kotaku, Microsoft has registered a patent for 'a digital video recorder (DVR) application running alongside a television client component [that] allows users to record media content on the gaming console'.

'The DVR application also integrates itself with the console menu,' continues the description. 'Once integrated, users can record media content while playing games. Alternatively, users can record content when the gaming console is turned off.'

'The recorded content can include television programming, gaming experience (whether local or online), music, DVDs, and so on. When in the recording state, users can also switch between various other media modes, whether gaming, television, and so on.'

The patent was first applied for in 2007 but was only granted on December 27 last year. Quite why it's been granted we can't imagine because it's hardly a unique idea and the PlayTV add-on for the PlayStation 3 does almost exactly the same things.

The Xbox 720, or whatever it ends up being called, will have all these features built-in though and rather than Sony it's likely that Microsoft's real thoughts were directed towards a rivalry with Apple and their plans for a branded HDTV.

Some rumours peg the launch of an Apple iTV for this year, not a set-top box like the Apple TV but a full television set that works alongside other iOS devices and the iCloud. The implications for gaming are considerable, although as ever games are likely to be a fairly low priority for Apple at the start.

It's suggested that one of Apple's primary goals at the moment is trying to secure exclusive sports rights, including English football.

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The latest dash tells you everything you need to know about where Microsoft wants to take it's games consoles.

Anywho, Rev is imo bang on the money for a release date. The 360 continues to sell like mad, and Microsoft would be foolish to curtail those sales by making an announcement soon.I expect it out by the end of 2013 and announced earlier that year.

It's been no secret that Microsoft has been working on the 360's replacement for a while - there was talk of the chipset design being finalised last year and they'd hired what amounts to a 'project manager' for the whole endeavour last year too.

I don't think they care about Nintendo either. In this console cycle they've rarely considered them a competitor, something that Nintendo's strategy of essentially not playing the hardware one-upmanship game has helped, so the Wii U holds few worries for them. Both companies hold different markets these days.

So Microsoft will hold off an announcement for as long as they can. They've a console which, while showing it's age, continues to sell silly numbers and continues to hold a massive market share as well as considerable critical clout with each release. Their main competitor is in no hurry to get out a new console (and arguably is little position to just yet either), and the only other entity in the games world is one that Microsoft doesn't care about. The new Xbox is still a way away, despite the more hardcore games market wanting it now and despite this generation already having outlasted the regular lifespan.

I think Rev is bang on the money with what Microsoft will aim for as well - a gaming PC in a console box again, pinching ideas from Steam on how to do a serious store/community fusion with Xbox Live (which in it's iterations particularly recently has increasignly done this), and some form of motion control in the box (Though we can hope it goes away ;)).

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id love microsoft and nintendo to form a partnership

Won't happen. If (some may argue when) Nintendo gets out of the console game, they'll do a Sega. There's little benefit for a company going into partnerships these days, unless the company is a smaller one showing promise that a big manufacturer effectively cuts a bargain with - we give you the leg up, you work for us.

In the case of Nintendo, they could go it alone easily. Thats what they've done since the beginning (barring the SNES CD thing that brought Sony into the game), and they've done it pretty well.

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Both the next xbox and the PS4 are to be revealed at this years E3 according to an article on IGN.

They'll probably just say they're in development, with little or nothing to show.

They should release them on the same day aswell, battle of the consoles, see which comes out on top!

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Id rather not have one company come out on top.

They are in competition - they want to be better than each other, this means lower prices and better tech for the comsumer aka - You.

Look whats happened to all the great independant games developers over the years, when EA and Activision consume them - they turn shit, because Franchises are created, meaning yearly releases are expected, meaning the developers get stretched for ideas and time - meaning watered down, shit games, year in, year out.

(see, Fifa games, Wrestling games, any COD game after COD4, BF3,)

The best games are never rushed (exception to GT4, but that IS still a good game, in some ways) - see, MGS4, Halos, Gears of War, GTA IV.

Shame Nintendo dont seem very interested in joining the 'Next Gen' companies by releasing something 'next gen'

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I loved the fact that when Xbox first said it was going to enter the market a couple of years after ps2 everyone or MOST people laughed at it.

I knew they would be awesome and got an Xbox early doors. They've never disappointed me. The best thing is the controller absolutely destroys the ps3 one for long game play. Could out COD any ps3 player before cramp set in. Not that should be overly commended in the realms of social acceptance though.

I bet Sony are shitting themselves because Microsoft lets be honest are kings of software for the masses. apple rule phones now but I have an iPhone a MacBook pro a laptop with windows on it and windows dominates especially for gaming.

The Xbox 360 has lasted longer than I thought. Mine has lasted since I got it 6 months after launch and got refurbed after a rrod I got a year later. It's been hammered an I didn't expect it to last as long as it has, including a couple of times I left it on solid for a week when I broke my collar bone.

I was a hardcore PC gamer but to keep up you spend now on average easily the cost of an Xbox each year to keep up. I just don't have the money anymore.

If you want to run Bf3 full tilt now a new rig is about 700 plus. Then another £100 each year on trade and upgrading graphics, then ram, then maye your CPU. It's great when I had 300 a month spare to burn on booze weed and games.

The next Xbox is going to dominate, even the sony gamers "yeah but we don't pay tO play online" argument stopped once Sony got hacked for a month and even without that COD players couldn't even play online for the day of launch but Xbox players could.

Now with Xbox getting iplayer and also love film they don't have much left apart from their unique games.

And even then you're missing out on gears of war, halo etc.

The market will succumb soon enough anyway and most titles will be cross platform

Whenever it comes out one things for sure, Playstation will take a bit more notice this time.

Will never forget some idiot back when Microsoft told the world the Xbox was coming. Basically saying how they weren't too concerned and how established they were in the market.

BOOM

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I don't think PS3 players are too bothered about missing out on Halo, which is shit, or Gears of War, which is really overrated, PS3 has a better shooter in Killzone. I'd say PS3 has the better exclusives.

Although i agree with you on the controller, its the main reason i buy multiplatform games for the 360 over the PS3. 360 is the better console as far as gaming is concerned, but the PS3 the better entertainment package as a whole, mainly because of the Blu-ray player.

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that is the only thing PS3 has over the xbox is the blu-ray.

not played killzone but agree perhaps that halo isnt' the best exclusive although it pisses me off how people rave on about GT being epic when Forza makes it look shit. Forza is way better, certainly a lot more fun.

GT2 was the last one worth playing because since Forza came out that is the simulator of choice for car games.

Gears isn't over rated, online yes but co-op there isn't a shooter which is better, certainly on the 360.

Played Unchartered 2 and that was alright. visually looked great but groundbreaking? naaah. Bioshock was more of a groundbreaking game for me.

Microsoft also will be on top for software and that is what counts for me and most likely for the developers too. Again when the PS3 came out developers complained about it, not doubt it has mega power but I think it took them a while to get used to it.

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Hmmm, i'd say GT5 is better looking than Forza, the premium cars at least, the standard ones are ugly. Some parts of Forza are nice too though, especially that Swiss Alps track. Although both get boring quickly, end up spend most of my time in photo mode taking pretty pictures.

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