Honestly, not a single thing mentioned interests me and some of it even makes me not want the neXtBox at all. I can't stand the Kinect focused UI and having more of the same/Windows 8 configuration just doesn't sound good to me. If I had Kinect I might feel differently, but I don't and I never plan on having it, so requiring it to function REALLY hurts my interest.
As others have said, Skype for that reason is silly....and is not that great altogether. Pachter calling it a "killer-app" is ridiculous when just about every other device out there has it. Some of those can already stream to the TV....and Smart TV's already have it, so it's not like it'll be the first time it's available on the big screen. Skyping across platforms would be fairly interesting but it's not something I would ever use personally.
The silence from MS and their history with indies has really hurt them I feel. The creator of Retro City Rampage said that if he knew what he knows now with the 360 back when he was pitching the game, he would have avoided the 360 completely. No one can talk about the neXtBox officially so they have been completely absent from big indie events like Full Indie just yesterday. If they don't have a HUGE indie push when they announce the console and are very vocal about it thereafter, I don't see people rushing out to get their games on the system. I could also see MS trying to compete with iOS and having a virtually completely open console....which would lead to lots of games, but lots more crap. If anybody can develop for the platform, anybody WILL develop for the platform.
I am highly skeptical on the Microsoft originals. Here we have a computing company, making a game console, turning it into a media hub, and trying to compete with cable networks and things like HBO and Netflix who are far more ingrained in that industry. If Microsoft is spending their time securing exclusives like this: http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=0G6XLHRemNA Count me out....because that is one of the worst things I've seen. It just isn't good, and I like British comedy. I also don't have HBO, Comcast, an internet provider that supports ESPN3, Verison FiOS, the need for another cable box, hulu plus and I don't care much for UFC...occasional watching on TV....very occasional. Not a single one of those things are things I want to pay for in addition to LIVE (likely with a price hike on that) in order to get a full Xbox experience.
Unless MS somehow manages to figure out how to get every tablet to accept wireless signals to stream games a la Wii U or PS4-Vita, I don't see the whole "let me play multiplayer on any device" thing happening. The one caveat would be support roles as mentioned, but that isn't fun for other players. It's like being the spotter for a sniper, sure you are helping and you are doing your duty....but you would much rather be the one shooting or doing anything other than staring through some binoculars all day.
I could see them making a small tablet type thing, but even the Tegra 4 isn't capable of producing graphics high enough to get it done....and they also are pushing the Surface HARD. Long before that thing was announced, patents leaked and nothing in the leaked roadmap for MS suggested this is where they were heading. Interestingly enough, Illumiroom turned out to essentially be featured in that leaked document long before it was announced. I expect them to just have (most, but not all) XBLA titles available to play on the Surface and Windows phone with a unified account/cross platform, but that's as far as it's getting.
Some of this seems like it is exactly what MS is going to do, but if they don't have the games they will be alienating the fan base that got them where they are. I believe that whatever is featured at the reveal, E3 will bring the opposite. Focus on games/kinect first......then Media hub blowout at E3 with a few demos, trailers and maybe a "bombshell" or two. If they focus on media hub stuff first, expect E3 to bring games and more games, but also lots of media hub. Kinect is almost certain to get a demo that is far too long.
