• 22May 13

  Bring on the Xbox One

  What's with all the negativity surrounding the Xbox One reveal? To be honest, I'm happy just to know now what to call it.

  To be honest I'm not entirely sure where people expected Microsoft to go with the new console other than updated specs and integration with the rest of the living room. Games have gone pretty much as far as they can. With lifelike graphics, you as the controller and movie-style stories already a staple of the gaming world I for one don't know what was gamers and critics thought Microsoft was going to come up with. The criticism levelled at the reveal centres around the lack of surprises and 'real innovation' but that's the core of the problem with the next generation in a nutshell. There's nothing left to do.

  Don't get me wrong, it'll be nice to see some new IPs at E3 but I didn't really expect to see any yesterday. I - as a professional tech - am impressed with the internals and the technologies in use, particularly the three interlinked OSs. It's a novel idea and should work nicely for instant switching between channels and applications.

  The one thing that wasn't addressed that I'm interested in is how Xbox One will deal with my media library. I have a huge collection of music, movies and photos on my media centre, as most people do these days, and while Xbox 360 had media center that allow me, however buggily (is that a word?) to use my console as a media center connected to my network I would have expected the new one to have this as a fully realised feature and Microsoft to trumpet it at launch.

  So here's my wish list for E3 -

  1. Tell us who Microsoft are partnering with in each country for TV and how it will work.
  2. Tell us how Xbox One will connect to our saved digital media.
  3. Tell us exactly how DRM and pre-owned game support will work
  4. Show us the new IPs they have promised.

  I didn't really expect any of these answers at an hour-long reveal but I will expect them at E3. Until then I'm happy to wait and salivate some more.

  One final note. The Xbox One is already better than the PS4. The reason? Kinect. I'm sorry Sony and Nintendo but for proper motion control you can't just wave a controller around. I want to kick and head a football, slalom on skis and throw a baseball. I don't want to be able to sit and do it from the sofa when I get tired. Kinect won and will continue to win until you come up with somthing better. How about 3D motion control with cameras around the room? Come up with something new, until then I'll stick with Microsoft.

  • Posted May 22, 2013 8:55 am GMT
  • Category: Editorial
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