| Nsanity said: Edge Microsoft’s next console will require an Internet connection in order to function, ruling out a second-hand game market for the platform. A new iteration of Xbox Live will be an integral part of Microsoft’s next console, while improved Kinect hardware will also ship alongside the unit. Sources with first-hand experience of Microsoft’s next generation console have told us that although the next Xbox will be absolutely committed to online functionality, games will still be made available to purchase in physical form. Next Xbox games will be manufactured on 50GB-capacity Blu-ray discs, Microsoft having conceded defeat to Sony following its ill-fated backing of the HD-DVD format. It is believed that games purchased on disc will ship with activation codes, and will have no value beyond the initial user. Our source has also confirmed that the next Xbox’s recently rumoured specs are entirely accurate. That means an AMD eight-core x64 1.6GHz CPU, a D3D11.x 800MHz graphics solution and 8GB of DDR3 RAM. As of now, the console’s hard drive capacity is said to be undecided, but Microsoft’s extended commitment to online delivery suggests that it will be the largest unit it has put inside a console to date. Though the architectures of the next-gen Xbox and PlayStation both resemble that of PCs, several development sources have told us that Sony’s solution is preferable when it comes to leveraging power. Studios working with the next-gen Xbox are currently being forced to work with only approved development libraries, while Sony is encouraging coders to get closer to the metal of its box. Furthermore, the operating system overhead of Microsoft’s next console is more oppressive than Sony’s equivalent, giving the PlayStation-badged unit another advantage. Unlike Nintendo, Microsoft is continuing to invest heavily in motion-control interfaces, and a new, more reliably responsive Kinect will also ship alongside the next Xbox. Sony’s next-generation console camera system is said to have a similar set of features, and is expected to be discussed at the company’s PlayStation event on February 20. |
Did Sony submit this article? It is clearly biased. 3 things stood out BIG TIME.
1) "Microsoft having conceded defeat to Sony following its ill-fated backing of the HD-DVD format" - HD-DVD didn't work out, but that's ancient history, and Sony isn't the sole owner of Blu-Ray. That statement makes it sound like Sony stands triumphant over it's battered foe, whereas Microsoft's 'Ill fate" is remainingone of the most profitable companies in the world, meanwhile Sony's financials have swirled the bowl over the last few years.
2) "Studios working with the next-gen Xbox are currently being forced to work with only approved development libraries, while Sony is encouraging coders to get closer to the metal of its box." - This is the most biased wording possible. Last generation, Microsoft gave FAR more, and superior developer tools, whereas Sony let developers to struggle with the new architecture on their own for quite some time. This sounds the same, except wording it to make it sound like a plus. Guess what? Standardizing development libraries is why Xbox 360 was alone in having cross-game chat and other features in available in every game.
3) "Furthermore, the operating system overhead of Microsoft’s next console is more oppressive than Sony’s equivalent, giving the PlayStation-badged unit another advantage." Really? The 360's operating system was one of it's biggest advantages over the PS3. Microsoft having more experience in the OS department than... anyone... has a more feature rich OS that requires less ram to function. If Microsoft is clearly better at making more efficient OSes, what does this suggest? You could just as easily say "the operating system overhead of Windows 7 is more oppressive than Windows 3.11 was, giving 3.11 the advantage". If MS is making their next console's operating system require more memory, it suggests it is adding yet more capability - a good thing, not a bad thing. Also if MS plans to add more ram to their next system than the PS4 has, this heavier OS is entirely mitigated.
