Microsoft’s eagerly awaited new Xbox video game console is almost here, and you’ll be able to shell out an as-yet-unspecified amount of …
Microsoft’s eagerly awaited new Xbox video game console is almost here, and you’ll be able to shell out an as-yet-unspecified amount of money for the Xbox Series X this November. Even as Microsoft provided that more specific launch date for the latest Xbox console, developer 343 Industries announced that it’s pushing back Halo Infinite, one of the titles Xbox fans have been most ardently anticipating, to 2021. That news came the same day as leaks about the Series X’s potential little brother, code-named Lockhart, called it the «Xbox Series S.». On a more prosaic level, we’re in the portion of the prerelease cycle in which Microsoft and Sony — slated to release its own PlayStation 5 console this year — leapfrog each other with feature and spec reveals. The latest lilypad was the Xbox Games Showcase on July 23, headlined by Microsoft’s abovementioned Halo Infinite. During the event, Microsoft showed us gameplay footage from that game, as well as showing off and confirming a list of launch exclusives for the Series X — games that will launch exclusively on the console, but will not necessarily be available on the console at its launch. These include Stalker 2, Warhammer 40,000: Darktide (2021), Tetris Effect: Connected and The Gunk (by the creators of SteamWorld). Microsoft also confirmed that all its titles will be available to Xbox Game Pass subscribers on Day 1. Previously, it had offered up the news that its xCloud cloud gaming service, currently in beta, will officially launch in September as part of the $15-per-month Xbox Game Pass Ultimate service, and subsequently rolled out beta access early to subscribers. The Xbox Series X enters a scene that looks very different than when its predecessor, the Xbox One X, arrived three years ago. Though technically it’s competing with other living room game consoles, in practice it’s now challenged for a share of your entertainment time and money by hugely popular phone-based mobile gaming and the Nintendo Switch handheld console, as well as nascent cloud gaming options and established PC gaming. Microsoft held the first of its Xbox 20/20 livestreams in early May to highlight upcoming games, as well as what was being called its xCloud platform and other related services. The company has frequently repeated that part of backward compatibility with older games includes its OS-level HDR reconstruction technology, which uses Microsoft’s machine-learning technology to create high-dynamic range tone maps for games designed in standard dynamic range. We now have a clearer picture of what to expect from the Xbox Series X, short of the types of answers we can only get by booting one up and using it (such as how well backward compatibility works), including specifics like the configurations and storage capacity. Microsoft says it will ship in November, and we think likely the PS5 will follow suit. The company has put up a page for notifications, which will turn into the preorder page once pricing is available. Microsoft’s not the only one with a preorder placeholder page up — Amazon, Best Buy, Walmart and the other usual suspects are ready as well. As for price, that’s still unknown. The Xbox 360 cost $399 when it launched in the US in 2005 and the Xbox One cost $499 when it launched in 2013, as did the subsequent flagship Xbox One X in 2017. But supply constraints on popular components such as memory and storage were already reportedly impacting the PS5 even before Sony was forced to change its promotion plans due to COVID-19, and shortages invariably drive prices up. Microsoft continues to say that the Xbox Series X launch won’t be affected. Current best guesses peg it at about $500 — a little less than its predecessors when you factor in inflation. In a podcast with IGN on April 1, Xbox boss Phil Spencer said he’s feeling «good» about the new system’s price. He continued, «I feel good about the price and the performance capabilities that we have for Series X. I feel incredibly strong about the overall package.» Sony also increased its production target for the PS5, which may point to a more aggressive price as well, since the two will likely cost about the same. If you were hoping to pick up an Xbox One X or One S All-Digital for a pittance if the 2020 model turned out to be a budget-buster, hope again: Microsoft has discontinued production of both models, so that will cease to be an option once stock runs out unless you opt to buy a used console.
