Xbox Series X. That is the final name of the next Microsoft home console. Formerly known as Project Scarlett, it has materialized in what the giant Redmond company anticipates will be "the fastest and most powerful of all time." On the occasion of the celebration of The Game Awards - the equivalent of the Oscars of the video game - the head of Microsoft's videogames department, Phil Spencer, took the stage to communicate something to millions of viewers.
Because Microsoft still had one last surprise saved before the end of the year; the response to Sony and its also ambitious and innovative PlayStation 5. Both will be launched at Christmas 2020, but it has been Xbox who has shown in the first place how truly your bet will be for the coming years.
Up to 120 images per second and 8K resolution
“For 18 years and three generations of video games, we have designed the Xbox consoles to empower your dreams. The Xbox community has shown us the power that both games and fun can have in all of us. As we enter a new generation of games, we see a future in which you are instantly absorbed in your titles, in which the worlds are even more real, enveloping, receptive and surprising, and in which you are at the center of Your gaming experience With the new Xbox X Series, we will realize that vision, ”Spencer said this morning in Spain.
Microsoft also intends to ratify its ecosystem concept by guaranteeing not only a new technical roof in terms of speed and graphic power, but also in the so-called backward compatibility: the possibility of bringing your old games back to the new console and that run with visual and performance improvements. We speak, therefore, of an offer where there will be thousands of games compatible with the machine's disc reader from day one; regardless of what is offered digitally.
Xbox Series X can be placed vertically and horizontally. Likewise, the promise is that it will become "the quietest and most efficient console" ever designed by systems architects at Microsoft. Pure technological vanguard. The name chosen is "an expression of our long history in gaming , the relentless passion of our team and our commitment to both our fans and the future of video games at Microsoft." A comment that, in turn, dissipates any doubt about the possible resignation of the technological multinational in the emerging interactive entertainment sector.
Inside that chassis, whose design resembles that of a current computer CPU, is a powerful AMD Zen 2 processor with RDNA architecture four times more powerful than Xbox One X - the most advanced model in its current range - whose main Novelty is that it will offer support for the ray tracing technique (Ray Tracing) hardware accelerated, not software. Being able to enjoy video games in 4K resolution with 60 images per second will be a standard, not a goal; in fact, it can reach 8K resolution in exchange for a variable refresh rate. The RAM will be GDDR 6, although they have not specified how many gigabytes yet. What has been confirmed is that it will have VRS technology, a variable-speed shading technique patented by Microsoft itself, which will guarantee developers to harness the full power of Xbox Series X along with an ultra-fast NVMe SSD storage memory. The result is tangible: "charging times will be virtually eliminated." Waiting screens and black fades will, in many cases, be something of the past.
The new controller, the Xbox Wireless Controller
New console is also synonymous with new command. Xbox Series X will feature an improved and more technologically advanced version of what we now know as the Xbox Wirelles Controller. All packs will include one of these controllers, whose design and size have been refined "to accommodate a greater range of people." Its main novelty at the physical level is the incorporation of a new button located on the front of the chassis, the Share button , with which simply by pressing we can take a screenshot or record a video clip of our games. Sharing it on social networks will be a matter of seconds.
The directional pad also leaves behind the classic eight-way crosshead to inherit the advanced d-pad of the Xbox Elite Series 2 Wirelles Controller, the premium solution currently available in stores at a price of around 129 euros, more oriented to professionals. Now everyone can experience the comfort of that directional pad. The concept of game compatibility will be repeated with the controller: it will be compatible with the current Microsoft home console, Xbox One, but also with Windows 10 computers. Similarly, the current Xbox One controls can be used without problem on Xbox Series X. A family, an ecosystem, without restrictions.
Frame of 'Senua's Saga: Hellblade II, Ninja Theory'. MICROSOFT
More realistic video games
Senua's Saga: Hellblade II is the name of the first exclusive video game that has been seen in action for Xbox Series X. Along with the expected Halo: Infinite - which belongs to a videogame saga that has been accompanying the Xbox brand since 2001 -, this title is a sequel to the acclaimed Hellblade: Senua's Sacrifice, developed by the British studio Ninja Theory and winner of five BAFTA awards; one of them for the interpretation of its protagonist, Melina Juergens. The original work narrates an adventure of redemption carried out with the capture of the movement of real actors, with the intention of expressing the psychosis of a young woman in which trauma, sacrifices and exploration were her hallmarks. The game, a commercial success, will now have this sequel even more technically ambitious, almost touching the photorealism. The sequences shown in the presentation video have been taken from the game's own graphic engine.
In addition to this study, Ninja Theory, Microsoft has a total of fifteen internal teams already working on the new platform, Xbox Series X, whose launch is expected worldwide at Christmas 2020 with the Xbox Game Pass video game on demand service - which offers more than 150 games with a model similar to Netflix - as another of its main bastions in the digital market.
The price of this powerful machine is still unknown. These details, as well as the launch videogame catalog, will be revealed throughout the year 2020. Microsoft has moved token and is, de facto, determined to dominate the market.
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