Hello fellow members of VGChartz. OnlyForDisplay here, bringing you my first topic in quite some time. Today, I will be focusing on the Scorpio and why having the ability to natively use 4K may not be enough for gamers to splurge on the system itself. With that out of the way, let us get started.
DISCLAIMER: My viewpoint on the Scorpio is merely a reflection of my own feelings and it is, in no way, shape, or form, a means to attack the system, company or fanbase. My views stem purely from a gamers standpoint. One that is worried about a products success that could have a larger impact on the industry than most are giving it credit for. That being said, I ask you to please be respectful when reading this. Thank you for your cooperation.
Now... onto the topic!
Drastic Times Call For Drastic Measures:
40.7 million to 21.1 million. This is the current uphill battle Microsoft has on its hands. If anything, this has been the case since that fateful day in May; the infamous E3 2013 days after. Mixed messaging, DRM and always online helped stymie Xbox One sales and helped Sony reposition itself after their own botched launch of the PS3 seven years prior to 2013. Fast forward to E3 2016 and Microsoft has attempted multiple strategies to slow the PlayStation 4's growth but not much has worked. From price cuts to crazy bundles, nothing Microsoft did seemed to put a dent into Sony's fourth iteration of its successful PlayStation line. However, news surfaced for months regarding a more powerful Xbox One dubbed "Scorpio." Seeing this as their golden oppurtunity; E3 right at their heels the same, Microsoft, now with little to lose given the vast console sales difference, decided to announce their new Xbox One variant; being able to play games in 4K; something it's rival can not do at this time. While this caused some to rejoice that 4K gaming is just one year away for the next step in home console gaming, there were some unanswered questions such as sales, pricing etc, etc. These types of questions and more were beginning to spring up across various communities and forums. While the Scorpio definitely is packing some serious tech, it may not be enough to stop the big trail that Microsoft needs to catch up with their rival. Speaking of that tech..
Is 4K Gaming Going To Be Worth Admission?
For those of you who play PC, this is more than likely a slam dunk yes. Considering that many of the PC components are available for such a task and that graphics cards are continuously in a state of evolution (Nvidia's GTX 1080 being the current king at the moment), 4K gaming is becoming more accessible and recommended each day. For those of you who have consoles.... this is a bit more complex. Yes, console gamers do want 4K... but at a price that is accessible. Paying over $600 /£600 is not something many of us who game on consoles greatly enjoy pondering. Such could be a situation when the Scorpio drops next holiday. Granted, that is a long time to think about what the price is, but something with 6 Teraflops of power is something unforseen in the console space and definitely is of note. Even if we were to not look at the specs. themselves, what type of games can we look forward too? Yes, I am aware that any Xbox One game will work with the Scorpio. However, according to Phil Spencer with an interview from Eurogamer, do not expect to see all your Xbox One games max out in 4K;
"That's why we continue to talk to developers about dynamic scaling because I think as compute capability goes up on the hardware, they kind of get it for free. Now, it's not going to make Halo 5 run with 4K pixels. The frame buffer is not a 4K frame buffer for the game. But it will run more solidly."
Now granted, some of you may have knew in advance, but the key here is that the pure power of the Xbox One Scorpio is not intended to work miracles for a specific type of software that does not support 4K natively. In addition, those 6 Teraflops are mallable according to "Major" Nelson with an interview from Eurogamer:
"If developers want to use those 6 teraflops in other ways they're free to do that."
Said statement is extremely intriguing to me. For one, if developers are allowed to use these 6 Teraflops in any way they desire, could this mean that they can simply bypass a large portion of the teraflops for other forms of development while the frame rate will not take a hit with the 4K native resolution? More importantly though, what is the limit on an area of development we can use those 6? While I am sure that these questions will be answered in time for devs., the fact of the matter is that, while such power being mallable is nice, what will it hinder considering there has to be trade-offs. Speaking of trade offs..
Deja Vu All Over Again?
Microsoft has faced controvesial decisions in the past. For that much is true. However, to face controversy again is quite unusual. For example, when asked about those who do not want to be "Always-Online", Don Mattrick, then head of the Xbox Division, stated that the solution was "Xbox 360", a response met with hefty and harsh criticism. Fast forward to today and history is repeating itself even though it is not going entirely noticed. Recall back when Both Phil and "Major" answered some questions to Eurogamer regarding the Xbox One Scorpio's power. Phil's answer states that the six teraflops is going to provide a boost only for native games outputting 4K. "Major's" answer states that the 6 teraflops are mallable for more than just the resolution itself. Again, harken back to 2013 when multiple Xbox execs. stated that the One does not have to be "Always Online" but the console must remain on at all times. That message from 2013 is eerily similar to what we are hearing now. Granted, it does not affect us as gamers... at least not directly. However, how these games perform will ultimately culminate back to these very statements. In addition to these statements, Microsoft touted that the Scorpio was a revolution in gaming. We also heard these same sediments back during E3 2013 when Microsoft touted the One as an "All In One Experience." The issue is, that, at the time, while the One would be an "All In One Experience", multiple devices were needed to bring out its potential. While the Scorpio is truly an impressive machine on paper, how will we be able to know it's full capabilities if the hardware itself is not utilized? "Only.. what... on Earth... are you talking about..?" I here you asking. Here is a quote from Aaron Greenberg on his twitter regarding the Scorpio:
"Great thing is with Project Scorpio as part of#XboxOne family all your games will work, no Scorpio exclusives, so no one gets left behind"
No exclusives to a console? Intriguing Greenberg would say this when Shannon Loftis, an Xbox Seinor, stated the exact opposite; Scorpio exclusives could be made at the discretion of the developer. Not one of these messages are succinct or cumulative. If anything, they are all over place. In other words, disorganized. However... let us take a step back and assume what Greenberg states is true about no exclusives on the Scorpio. What would have been the point of the Xbox One S if the Scorpio cannot differentiate itself from its other brethern? For that matter.. why bring up a console that has such potential that may never be tapped into? Even with all that said, the key here is again the price. Sadly.. none of us will know that answer until the following year... so it is anyone's guess. However, if the Scorpio is to be a "Native 4K experience", it's cost is going to be up there; regardless of what the other specs are. No matter how well Microsofts marketing campaign is.. if the price is too high, not many will buy the Scorpio. This leads to one final counterpoint for the Scorpio..
What Is The "True" Purpose of The Scorpio?
This question is ultimately based on what we currently know. Microsoft is forging ahead to untie the Xbox and PC crowds under the Windows 10 banner. With Windows 10 now accessible to the entire public; cross platform play now a thing for Microsoft as well, how does the Scorpio trickle down into the grand scheme of the Windows 10 initiative? "What Initiative are you talking about, OnlyForDisplay?" I hear you asking. From my understanding, Microsoft's goal is to offset any lossess based off of the Xbox One sales by using Windows 10 as a bridge to ultimately increase the software sales of their products. Considering that the software is what counts for Microsoft and it's rival Sony, Microsoft aims to have Windows 10 as a catalyst to boost software sales without entirely worrying about the performance of Xbox One sales considering the massive pool of PC gamers there are. "Again though OnlyForDisplay, what does any of this have to do with Scorpio?" Quite a bit. For one, if my understanding is correct, Scorpio seems to be less of a console and more of an extension for Microsoft; thereby effectively making the Xbox Ecosystem just a platform for Windows 10. If anything, this makes the Scorpio's existence more predicated on reaching out towards those interested or involved within Windows 10 an additional/beginning option as opposed towards being a separate entity. While this sounds nice from a business and even gamers perspective, it does bring up some caveats. For one, is there nothing else the Scorpio was built for outside of outsourcing towards new markets to increase the software sales of the Xbox? Most importantly, if this is the Scorpio's only purpose, what will become of its potential? Much like the PS4, I do not believe we, as a gaming community, have seen the best of what the One is capable of. Yet Microsoft is embarking on new paths in an attempt to cast a wide net towards a large populous of the gaming community to increase the profit margin. Will such an ambition allow us to see what Scorpio's limits are? Or will the next Xbox be out by then; effectively killing any chance of us seeing that come into fruition? Much like Chief Yoshi told Mario in the original "Super Mario Bros. Z";
"I sense dark days are ahead of us Mario."
That.. I could not agree on more. As gamers, we always want to see a consoles maximum potential. That way, we can judge or analyze if that platform truly was as great as the company stated it was going to be. In addition, considering Sony themselves are also venturing into a similar path with the Neo in addition towards their PSNow ecosystem, are iterations truly the future? Have we seen the last of the dedicated platform? Will it be possible to truly experience a console the same again without ever knowing it's ture potential. These questions and others are what we must and will face in time fellow VGChartz members. I just hope that the future we face together is not one of never realizing the true joy of gaming.
Well... that does it for the topic fellow members. Do you think Scorpio is more than just a gateway? Do you believe in Microsoft's plan of iterative console releases? How do you feel about such a console that may never realize it's full potential? Once again, thank you for reading. Remember.. this has been a topic that is...
OnlyForDisplay
" It has never been about acknowledgement when you achieve something. When you are acknowledged, then and only then can you achieve something. Always have your friends first to achieve your goals later." - OnlyForDisplay