Microsoft is «moving full speed ahead» on its next-generation Xbox console, a senior company official has said. The status update, which also teased one particular aspect of the new Xbox console, was initially shared in an internal memo that promptly ended up leaking online.
The email itself was authored by Xbox President Sarah Bond, and largely reflects on her first five and a half months as the head of the division. The memo was leaked to Windows Central, who verified its authenticity with Microsoft.
«Everyone should feel incredibly proud of what we’ve achieved and excited about the opportunities ahead,» the leaked email reads, referring to Bond's first five and a half months as Xbox President. Remarking on the future, the executive revealed that Microsoft is «moving full speed ahead» on its next-gen console. Bond wrote that the upcoming device is planned to deliver «the biggest technological leap ever in a generation.» That particular remark echoes what the executive said during a February episode of The Official Xbox Podcast, which saw her tease that the next Xbox console will offer «the largest technical leap» ever in a single console generation.
That occasion also saw Bond reveal that more news about Microsoft's gaming hardware ambitions will be revealed during the 2024 holiday season. In the meantime, Microsoft is rumored to be launching another Xbox Series X model, which recent reports suggested could hit the market in or around June 2024. The system in question is rumored to be an all-white and digital-only variant of the company's 2020 console with some minor hardware improvements, including a revised heatsink. Its price point is expected to be in the ballpark of $450, matching that of the new PS5 Digital Edition.
As for what the company is planning beyond that, the wording of Bond's recent teasers suggests that the next-gen Xbox console may not necessarily go all-out on the performance side of things, especially in light of the recent rumors about Microsoft wanting to make a handheld or hybrid console in the vein of the Nintendo Switch. The biggest-ever «technological» or «technical leap» doesn't have to imply a performance one, and could just as well be teasing something like a form factor change, a shift to a new CPU architecture, or both.
Regardless, Bond's choice of talking points since taking over as Xbox President suggest that the next generation of Microsoft's gaming hardware is closer than some might have suspected. As for her recently leaked memo, another big takeaway from it is that Microsoft has recently set up a team dedicated to «future-proofing» Xbox game libraries. The effort appears to be focused on digital preservation, which dovetails with the company's recent cloud gaming
The website gametalkz.com is an aggregator of news from open sources. The source is indicated at the beginning and at the end of the announcement. You can send a complaint on the news if you find it unreliable.
Xbox Game Pass members can play Another Crab's Treasure as part of their subscription starting today, April 25. This day-one addition to the Xbox Game Pass library arrives in the form of a colorful action RPG with an important message about environmental preservation.
The console version of Cities: Skylines 2 has received yet another delay, which will prevent it from reaching Xbox and PlayStation users until at least late 2024. This is the second major postponement that the Cities: Skylines 2 console ports have suffered in the past seven months.
The current state of the PlayStation store suggests that Xbox doesn't need to worry about winning the console wars. On February 15, Microsoft Gaming CEO Phil Spencer, Xbox President Sarah Bond, and Head of Microsoft Studios Matt Booty announced some of its Xbox exclusive titles would be coming to PlayStation and Nintendo Switch during an Xbox podcast, something that was welcomed by players on the other platforms, with titles such as being hugely successful on PlayStation, but was initially controversial with Xbox players.
Xbox Game Pass members can play Orcs Must Die! 3 as part of their subscriptions starting today. This is the tenth title to reach Xbox Game Pass in April 2024, and the 51st one since the turn of the year.
AMD has announced another wave of its next-generation Ryzen 8000 Series of CPUs. The newly revealed lineup comprises 16 AMD Ryzen Pro processors in total, evenly divided between desktop and mobile CPUs.
Microsoft has announced the second wave of April 2024 Xbox Game Pass additions. The upcoming batch consists of six titles, some of which will only be available to Xbox Game Pass Ultimate subscribers.
Xbox Game Pass is soon losing Amnesia: Rebirth and five other titles. These games, which are set to leave the service on April 15, comprise an uncharacteristically big wave of Xbox Game Pass departures.
Palworld update 0.2.1.0 is now available for download on the Xbox One and Xbox Series X/S. This release addresses a number of critical issues, including one game-breaking bug introduced in the previous Palworld patch.
Xbox Game Pass users can now play Shadow of the Tomb Raider as part of their subscription. The critically acclaimed action adventure is the ninth title to reach Xbox Game Pass in April 2024, and the 50th since the turn of the year.
A new Palworld update has reached Xbox consoles, as well as the PC version of the game distributed via the Microsoft Store. Identified by version number 0.2.0.6, this release adds the first-ever raid boss to Palworld, on top of introducing dozens of other novelties.
Microsoft teased its plans for next-generation Xbox hardware back in February, saying that it was focussed on delivering the “largest technical leap” for a new console generation with the next Xbox. Now, more details about Microsoft's plans for its next console have emerged, reiterating the same claim. An internal email shared with Xbox staff has revealed that Microsoft is “moving full speed ahead” on its next-generation Xbox hardware.