Yes, it is an Apple day, but that is not stopping the rest of the technology world from turning. As an aside, if you miss our roundup of today’s news from Cupertino, shame on you.
Back to topic, the next generation Xbox is coming within the next 15 months (more on that shortly), and that is spurring several of Microsoft Studio’s teams to begin development on titles for the forthcoming console. More specifically, Rare, a somewhat storied development shop, is said to be working on a ‘Mature-rated’ title.
This is causing ripples throughout the gaming community. According to Eurogamer: “Recent comments from [Rare] suggested a return to classic genres or characters was not a priority.” That might have changed.
But perhaps more to the point, as news slowly picks up concerning the coming installment in the Xbox hardware franchise, when can we expect to actually get our fumbly little hands on it? Soon. This is the current lay of the rumor land, as best as we can tell: Microsoft will show off the next Xbox at E3 2012, and it will be on shelves by Christmas time. In other words, the next holiday cycle could be simply massive for Microsoft, with a number of major launches.
E3 is in early June, so we should begin to hear plenty of chatter surrounding the device over the next few months. Integrated Kinect? Few seem to know much as to what can be expected, and we have heard precious little on the matter. Currently the Xbox is the best-selling console by a wide margin. Microsoft will be loath to relinquish that title, so the stakes here are high indeed.
We are tuning our internal radar to focus on this topic, so expect more coverage shortly.
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