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[jbug617]

Just how late can Microsoft wait before having to send out devkits?
Could they just demand that this holiday's titles only increase resolution on the newer tech, so as to minimize the time needed to work on the devkits? Maybe they want no leaks until E3?

Those NDAs brah

You are right, MS is playing it close to their chest.

My guess is MS is still in the planning stage.

 

[charsace]

My guess is MS is still in the planning stage.

I doubt this. Every console company starts working on the next hardware the moment the new hardware launches.

 

[GrantDaNasty]

For people confused about the "gen 4" talk, EA for years has counted generations starting with the Playstation/N64. It's most likely not a typo or error on the part of the article writer.

It's just how EA counts this shit.

 

[slavesnyder]

I doubt this. Every console company starts working on the next hardware the moment the new hardware launches.

We just don't know.
Possibly they had no plan for an incremental upgrade and were cought by surprise while working on the next full gen for 2018 or so.
Maybe they have no next xbox planned at all.
E3 can't come soon enough.

 

[AmyS]

It's also up on Gamespot.

During an earnings call today, Electronic Arts CFO Blake Jorgensen was asked to respond to the swirling rumors that Sony and Microsoft may be planning to launch new PlayStation and Xbox consoles.

Jorgensen said he doesn't have any inside knowledge to share, but explained that if it were to happen you might see the new devices offer backwards compatibility support.

He specifically mentioned the Xbox One's backwards compatibility support, which was introduced in November 2015. The PlayStation 4 lets you stream back-catalog titles through PlayStation Now for a price, but this is not exactly similar to the Xbox One's version of backwards compatibility.

Sony's rumored Neo console, the apparent codename for the new, more powerful PS4, is rumored to support both standard PS4 games and the new ones. For its part, Microsoft has talked about how it hopes your library of games can move with you across devices.

The EA executive went on to say that EA isn't losing sleep over the possibility of new consoles coming before the current generation is over. This is in part because of the fact that EA now uses one single game engine--Frostbite--for all of its projects. This is an adaptable engine that EA can use to make games in a variety of genres and for different platforms--including potential new ones.

Jorgensen further explained that EA is not sweating the possibility of new consoles because the company has such a diverse lineup of other income sources.

http://www.gamespot.com/articles/here-is-what-ea-thinks-about-ps4xbox-one-upgrades/1100-6439684/

 

[c0de]

If they don't do it with Windows why would they do it with XBox? They might, but unlike on PC we are at their mercy.

Because Windows as a whole is completely different, the demands on an OS are completely different and yes, sometimes you have to change the very nature of the architecture do really evolve (e.g. driver framework, cutting 16 bit apps and so on).
For games, this is not true.
And of course, we are always at the companie's mercy whatever we will buy, this is not unique to MS. But again, at least they are able to do so.

 

[oldergamer]

Why would they do it via hardware when they'l have a software solution. Beefier CPU will allow more 360 games to be patched.

Software solution isn't perfect. Software emulation mean games can only be compatible with permission from the publishers ( many won't grant it ). If it's hardware, MS doesn't have to ask and it keeps the 360 library of games relevant.

look at it this way, if you could get one box that played 360 games, xbox one games faster or in higher res with better hardware and is equivalent in performance to the PS4 neo. The only difference maker would be the backwards compat support

 

[Crankshaft]

I think EA doesn't count generations from the actual start, but from the Playstation and beyond only. Typical EA stuff actually.

It's the PS4 right? That means 4 gens!

 

[Lady Gaia]

I think EA doesn't count generations from the actual start, but from the Playstation and beyond only. Typical EA stuff actually.

It's not like we haven't historically ignored consoles in counting generations. The Atari 2600/5200/7800 get lumped together somehow, unlike the clean NES/SMS and SNES/Genesis generations — and then somehow the 32X/Sega CD/Saturn get jumbled in with the Jaguar/3DO despite little or no direct competition. NeoGeo and TurboGrafx get largely ignored for being too far outside the mainstream. It's messy history until the PS1.

 

[c0de]

Software solution isn't perfect. Software emulation mean games can only be compatible with permission from the publishers ( many won't grant it ). If it's hardware, MS doesn't have to ask and it keeps the 360 library of games relevant.

look at it this way, if you could get one box that played 360 games, xbox one games faster or in higher res with better hardware and is equivalent in performance to the PS4 neo. The only difference maker would be the backwards compat support

The whole OS ecosystem is not meant for hardware bc. The whole idea is to have sandbox apps and games, that's why everything is installed. Also in the end, 360 hardware bc would also need a lot of software engineering in the existing ecosystem and I doubt MS is willing to do that for only a small portion of people who prefer hardware bc over software bc.