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[xexex]

Never mind the hardware. To really turn heads, here's what Microsoft needs to do.
March 16, 2005: 2:48 PM EST


NEW YORK (CNN/Money) – Dear Bill,

Just a few months to go, Big Guy. You may have come to the party a year late this go 'round, but you'll be kicking off the next generation of game machines before the fall is over.

Lots of folks can't wait to see what you have to offer. I'll admit, I'm one of them.

The Xbox has put out some good games, blazed new paths in online connectivity and will be going out with a bang. But to catch up with the lead Sony has in this industry, you're going to need to pull a few rabbits out of your hat . . . er, excuse me . . . your sweater.

I know you've got a few planned, but if you've got a couple of moments, I'd like to add my own suggestions.

Be backward compatible: Look, I know replicating technological capabilities and performance is tricky when you've switched hardware vendors. Gamers don't care, though. They just want it done.

If the next Xbox launches and people aren't able to play "Halo 2" along with their new titles, you're going to have a riot on your hands. Given how heavily you marketed that title, you'll deserve that riot.


Is it necessary to be able to play every Xbox game on the new system? It'd be nice, but the honest answer is no. It's not like I'm going to pick up an outdated "NFL Fever" or "Fight Club" anytime soon.

Yes, yes, I know you're working on this already. Word is it's not going super smooth, but you're making progress. That's fine. Don't give up.

read the entire piece here

 

[The Faceless Master]

Rare's "Perfect Dark Zero" will, in all likelihood, be your flagship launch title.

Do not let this title suck. I beg you.

:lol :lol :lol

I'd ask you to change your mind on naming this thing "Xbox 360," too. But I hear it's a bit late to do that.

Folder +1 ?

 

[GhaleonEB]

If the next Xbox launches and people aren't able to play "Halo 2" along with their new titles, you're going to have a riot on your hands. Given how heavily you marketed that title, you'll deserve that riot.

Yup, so true. I actually thought this was a pretty good list, especially for a mainstream site.

 

[xexex]

I want BC in Xbox2 but it wont be a deal breaker if not.


the Xbox Next PC sure as hell better have BC though, otherwise i wouldnt pay 600 dolloars that its reportedly going to cost

 

[Fatghost]

I really want BC. It's not a deal breaker but it would mean the difference between buying at launch or waiting until PS3 before making a decison.

 

[Rhindle]

the Xbox Next PC sure as hell better have BC though, otherwise i wouldnt pay 600 dolloars that its reportedly going to cost

Wait, WHAT?

 

[capslock]

I want BC in Xbox2 but it wont be a deal breaker if not.


the Xbox Next PC sure as hell better have BC though, otherwise i wouldnt pay 600 dolloars that its reportedly going to cost

What the hell is that?

 

[xexex]

huh? you guys don't know what Xbox Next PC is? you got to be joking right?
it was only reported on almost a year go, then many more times with the news that there would be / might be 3 versions of Xbox2.


articles:
http://money.cnn.com/2004/05/26/commentary/game_over/column_gaming/index.htm
http://xbox.gamespy.com/articles/519/519579p1.html?fromint=1
http://www.xbox365.com/news.cgi?id=EplyEElkVAlFaWTpCi8259
http://news.teamxbox.com/xbox/7189/Microsoft-to-Release-Three-Versions-of-Xbox-2/
http://www.xboxgaming.com/index.php?module=news&go=rf&nid=1642
http://www.theinquirer.net/?article=19615
http://www.totalvideogames.com/pages/articles/index.php?article_id=5808
http://www.totalvideogames.com/pages/articles/index.php?article_id=5814



forum threads:
http://www.ga-forum.com/showthread.php?t=23661


Xbox Next PC is the 3rd version of Xbox2, the one that is due out in 2006, and Microsoft's equivalent of Sony's 'PS3 Home Server'

Xbox Next PC - widely reported, but not confirmed by MS.

reported features: PC games, PC apps, Xbox1 games, Xbox Next games. smaller than original Xbox. mouse, keyboard, instant messenger (PC stuff) $600 price

PS3 Home Server - officially mentioned by Sony (SCEE iirc)



edit: MS admitted to its development but not introduction or release

(from the 2nd tvg link)

Xbox Next PC – Microsoft Comments

28/05/2004
By: Chris Leyton


We chat to Microsoft and learn their opinion on today’s rumours regarding the Xbox 2…

Following on from today’s report in which CNN suggested that the Xbox2 *could* be closer to a PC then many of us believed, allowing the use of both Xbox and PC games in addition to offering a version of Windows and many other components similar to a PC; we today received an official statement on the subject from Microsoft.

Speaking to TVG, Nick Grange UK Xbox PR Manager confirmed “This is the kind of research that Microsoft does on an ongoing basis and we would be remiss if we did not conduct research. We research and test hundreds of ideas every year and not all of them come to market or come to market in the way the research suggests. Research only confirms the presence of forward thinking - in no way does it confirm a new product.”

Xbox Next PC is either

Xenon + lowend 'media' PC + Xbox1
or
Xenon + lowend media PC

 

[xexex]

Xbox Next PC as first reported by CNN

Xbox 2 + PC = ?

Microsoft thinking about a machine that would play both console and PC
games.
May 27, 2004: 10:58 AM EDT
By CNN/Money staff writer Chris Morris



NEW YORK (CNN/Money) - Two months ago, Microsoft spoke glowingly of
bridging the gap between the PC and Xbox. Now the company is
considering erasing that gap completely.

While Microsoft has publicly avoided discussing its next generation
machine, it has been quietly conducting studies on the consumer appeal
of a hybrid device that would play both PC and Xbox games.

"We would be remiss if we didn't look at consumer scenarios that take
advantage of our strengths," said Peter Moore, corporate vice
president of worldwide marketing and publishing for Microsoft's home
and entertainment division. "[But] this is one amongst many, many
other consumer scenarios that we're looking at."


The B/R/S Group, a California-based market research company that lists
Microsoft and the Xbox division specifically as clients, has been
gathering consumer feedback on a device it refers to as Xbox Next PC –
"a videogame console system with a hard drive and a built-in fully
functional PC." Mention of the device came on one of several slides
shown to focus groups.

One slide describes the unit, which would require a PC monitor or high
definition television, as being backward compatible with current and
next-generation Xbox titles. It would also play PC games and include a
fully functional version of Windows, CD burner, DVD player (with
remote control), built-in access to Xbox Live and a hard drive.
Control-wise, the system would come with both a keyboard and mouse and
a standard Xbox controller. The price point this particular study
tested was $599.

B/R/S officials declined to comment for this column, citing a strict
confidentiality agreement with Microsoft.



The point of the study that included the Xbox Next PC was to determine
what consumers want to see in next generation machines – and what
they're willing to pay for those features. Gathering pricing
sensitivity data for products is one of the most challenging market
research projects for hardware developers.

It's important to note that any product looked at in these sorts of
studies is conceptual and may undergo dramatic feature changes before
hitting the market – if, in fact, it manages to emerge from the doors
of the R&D labs.

"If you put two and two together, there's no doubt there's a great
opportunity to put the two platforms together," said Moore. "Obviously
with a company like Microsoft this is something we have to look into
and ask about. Is it actionable today? Probably not, but it's
something we need to look at."


There is, of course, a greater question of whether consumers would
have any interest in a console/PC hybrid. Game machines, historically,
have evolved rather slowly. Large leaps haven't been rewarded. Sony
learned this lesson with the introduction of the PSX, a combination
PlayStation 2/Digital Video Recorder, which sold poorly in Japan and
has yet to receive a U.S. launch date.

Microsoft first showed interest in bringing the PC and Xbox closer
together in March at the Game Developer's Conference, when it unveiled
XNA, a software development platform meant to allow developers to skip
writing boilerplate code that often bogs down the time it takes to
create a game.

The same platform would open up cross-platform integration
opportunities, letting PC and Xbox owners play in the same world,
though each would have different experience. (PC gamers, for example,
could act as virtual generals in a strategy game, coordinating troop
movements, while Xbox players playing an action version of the same
title would fight the battles.)

"There will come a day – in the not too distant future – that [PC]
games will be interchangeable between Windows and the Xbox," Moore
told me at the recently completed E3 trade show.

Should Microsoft (MSFT: Research, Estimates) move forward with a
hybrid machine, it will likely come after a standalone Xbox 2 unit is
released. As for when we'll see next generation Xboxes on store
shelves - officially, Microsoft isn't commenting, but it has been
giving publishers guidance to plan for a 2005 launch.

That's a short time frame, which might raise some questions about why
the subject of Xbox 2 is being so studiously avoided. The answer's
simple. Xbox has momentum right now – and its holiday line-up of games
(led by titles such as "Halo 2") is strong. Talking about Xbox 2 would
distract consumers, which could significantly cut into sales across
the board.

"Xbox has got so much going for it as we go into the holidays that
anything that disturbs the ecosystem for us is bad for business," said
Moore.