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"I'm not a big fan of Xbox 1.5"-Phil Spencer

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M

mugurumakensei

Member
Havik said:
can software developers even keep up with these rapid console upgrades? We are 3 years into this gen and developers are still strugling to deliver proper AAA games.
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Rapid is better than slow for developers. It may seem counter-intuitive, but it's easier to scale on smaller gaps. Therefore, brisk developments that don't reset the market are much better. It also means quicker iterations on tool chains which helps to further productivity.
 
T

Trojan

Member
Recent MS history/announcements:

1) X1 getting handily beaten by PS4
2) MS start reporting MAU, focusing on user base vs console sales
3) MS announce their new UWP strategy where many games having simultaneous PC release
4) This Phil Spencer quote on upgrades/new consoles

The first 3 all suggest that MS are going to play their hand differently going forward. Something seems off from what he's saying....why go through all the UWP and MAU changes?
 
A

AndrewDean84xX

Banned
I hope he means that when they do decide to release a new console SKU, it's considered the successor to the Xbox One, and not just an upgraded Xbox One. I'm cool with my Xbox One lifespan of 5 years. So long as it's successor is way more powerful at a $400-$450 price tag.
 
L

lowhighkang_LHK

Member
Serick said:
So they will potentially have the weakest console on the market then.

People worried about the PS4 getting the short end of the stick vs. the PS4K wont have much to worry about then.
Click to expand...

I think what you said here is huge. Considering the Ps4 has a performance advantage on the xbox one, developers having to fit the lowest common denominator should ensure that ps4 versions should be okay at 1080p / 30 fps regardless of the ps4k version.
 
tfur

tfur

Member
BruceLeeRoy said:
Anyone noticing this?



Sounds like they are still undecided about what the next console is even going to be.
Click to expand...

I am honestly not so sure the Xbox brand (as a console) can survive into another console generation. I do not think Phil knows if Nadella will allow it yet either.
 
E

etta

my hard graphic balls
tfur said:
I am honestly not so sure the Xbox brand (as a console) can survive into another console generation. I do not think Phil knows if Nadella will allow it yet either.
Click to expand...
I told you they be selling it to Burger King.
 
E

Elandyll

Banned
For discussion's sake

Exactly 1 month ago:

http://www.polygon.com/2016/3/1/11121666/xbox-one-hardware-upgrades-phil-spencer-microsoft

During his Xbox Spring Showcase event keynote last week, Microsoft's head of Xbox Phil Spencer talked about future of "hardware innovation" for the console, similar to the ways PCs evolve.

In a speech to reporters, he said that the Xbox One could see a future in which it is upgraded, rather than replaced by new consoles. Spencer was talking about how Microsoft has sought to align its Windows 10 and Xbox One development activities under the internal "Universal Windows Platform" while offering backwards compatibility for many Xbox 360 games, now playable on Xbox One. He was addressing the concerns of some Xbox One owners that the exclusives destined for that console are appearing on PC, thus eroding the value of owning a console.

But he went much further than merely outlining internal strategies for cross-platform efficiency. He argued that consoles could and should be upgradeable, like PCs, and that the model of generation shifts may be coming to an end.

"We see on other platforms whether it be mobile or PC that you get a continuous innovation that you rarely see on console," he said. "Consoles lock the hardware and the software platforms together at the beginning of the generation. Then you ride the generation out for seven or so years, while other ecosystems are getting better, faster, stronger. And then you wait for the next big step function.

"When you look at the console space, I believe we will see more hardware innovation in the console space than we've ever seen. You'll actually see us come out with new hardware capability during a generation allowing the same games to run backward and forward compatible because we have a Universal Windows Application running on top of the Universal Windows Platform that allows us to focus more and more on hardware innovation without invalidating the games that run on that platform."

Spencer said that Xbox One owners could be offered optional hardware upgrades in the future, that allows the console to keep up with emerging and competing technologies. Such a move would also suggest an end for new console launches.

"We can effectively feel a little bit more like we see on PC, where I can still go back and run my old Doom and Quake games that I used to play years ago but I can still see the best 4K games come out and my library is always with me. Hardware innovation continues while the software innovation is able to take advantage and I don't have to jump a generation and lose everything that I played on before."
Click to expand...

And a few days after that

http://www.inquisitr.com/2857980/xb...ing-to-ship-a-screwdriver-with-every-console/

"Am I going to break open my console and start upgrading individual pieces of my console? That’s not our plan,” Spencer explained. “There is something special about what happens with a console. You buy an appliance-like device, you plug it into your TV, it works when you plug it in. It’s not like I’m going to ship a screwdriver set with every console that comes out.”
“What I’m saying is, as hardware innovations happen, we want to be able to embrace those in the console space,” he continued. “Make those available and maybe not have to wait seven or eight years for things to happen.
Click to expand...
 
X

XxRampage07xX

Member
wapplew said:
Sony "PS4.5, 3.5 TF in 2016"
MS "cancel Xbox 1.5 Xbox 2, 4.0 TF in 2017"
Sony "cancel PS4.5 raise you a PS 5, 5TF in 2018!"
MS "cancel Xbox 2, straight jump to Xbox 2.5, 6 TF in 2019"

10 years later, we still game on PS4 and Xbox one.
Click to expand...
Just imagine how much work needed for developers to optimize their games on all platforms available on the market. It would be insane.
Personally, I'm fine with the ideal of PS4K and XB1.5 (or whatever it's called) as long as they still keep the generational model.
 
C

CryptiK

Member
Im busy loling at his statement and the people believing that he is saying there wont be ab upgrade. There will be and it will be an Xbox1.5, the amount of spin in his statement is hilarious.
 
A

AndrewDean84xX

Banned
digoutyoursoul said:
He said this in March

http://www.polygon.com/2016/3/1/11121666/xbox-one-hardware-upgrades-phil-spencer-microsoft
Click to expand...

That also sounded like pie in the sky talk. We can predict and believe things could/should go in a direction. Doesn't mean they will. Look at Xbox 180 as one of the more cent examples. Had an agenda to go one way, the switched gears.

At the end of the day, devs can piss and moan about power of consoles. But the people will chose to either support devs that make games on the new hardware and dish our crappy downgraded ports to the previous SKU's, or not.

I know I won't be supporting any developer that makes a poor downgraded version, especially if it has major performance issues.
 
E

etta

my hard graphic balls
CryptiK said:
Im busy loling at his statement and the people believing that he is saying there wont be ab upgrade. There will be and it will be an Xbox1.5, the amount of spin in his statement is hilarious.
Click to expand...
And it will be called the Xbox Whopper, indicating a whopping upgrade.
 
R

RibMan

Member
meanspartan said:
I disagree, if they stick with Xbox One as it is now (slim models and all that are fine too so long as its the same capabilities) for a minimum of 5 years total while Sony starts this incremental upgrade cycle most people don't seem to be fans of....then many people might jump right back to Microsoft for the fourth Xbox's launch in 2018 or 2019.
Click to expand...

No.

The only way people jump ship back to Xbox is if Sony makes a severe miscalculation and terminates the current PS4 model. I cannot imagine a single intelligent reason to kill the current model and only have the PS4K (aka only a $399.99 model) in store. Having two SKU's available allows them to target price-conscious consumers and enthusiast consumers.

I'm not saying people will embrace the new PS4 and that it won't burn some goodwill. The jury is still out. What I'm saying is if the current PS4 continues to exist then Microsoft's next console will be in the same rocky boat that their current console is in. In fact, when you think about it even more, their next console could possibly be in an even rockier boat as a result of Sony pursuing a 3 year update cycle. By the time Microsoft launches the Xbox Two as a 4K 60FPS machine @$399.99, they might be going up against a 4K 30FPS machine @$249.99. Sony might attain a significant price-advantage as a result of embracing 4K technology early on. The price difference would lead to a bloodbath at retail.
 
J

Jeremy

Member
wapplew said:
Sony "PS4.5, 3.5 TF in 2016"
MS "cancel Xbox 1.5 Xbox 2, 4.0 TF in 2017"
Sony "cancel PS4.5 raise you a PS 5, 5TF in 2018!"
MS "cancel Xbox 2, straight jump to Xbox 2.5, 6 TF in 2019"

10 years later, we still game on PS4 and Xbox one.
Click to expand...

This made me laugh way too hard. It's really hard to even envision where gaming is going to end up anymore.
 
S

Stormy

Member
I take his comment to mean that it will not be a small upgrade, but a large one. Significant is maybe a better word for it. Don't see how people are reading that they are not going to do the upgrade at all. It will either be this year or next but it is coming and it will be a significant upgrade.
 
digoutyoursoul

digoutyoursoul

Member
AndrewDean84xX said:
That also sounded like pie in the sky talk. We can predict and believe things could/should go in a direction. Doesn't mean they will. Look at Xbox 180 as one of the more cent examples. Had an agenda to go one way, the switched gears.

At the end of the day, devs can piss and moan about power of consoles. But the people will chose to either support devs that make games on the new hardware and dish our crappy downgraded ports to the previous SKU's, or not.

I know I won't be supporting any developer that makes a poor downgraded version, especially if it has major performance issues.
Click to expand...

I'm just a bit confused as to what he is saying today compared to March in that link. Is there going to be upgrade like he originally hinted at that is substantial or are they now going to wait till a new gen arrives.
 
G

gamz

Member
CryptiK said:
Im busy loling at his statement and the people believing that he is saying there wont be ab upgrade. There will be and it will be an Xbox1.5, the amount of spin in his statement is hilarious.
Click to expand...

I just hope it happens is all. I'm not loling if it doesn't.
 
Xbudz

Xbudz

Member
JinjoUnchained said:
XBox One, Two, Three, and to the Four, Snoop Doggy Dogg and Dr Dre are at the Door
Click to expand...

Gunna up the power, gunna give us more. Sony better worry bout the PS4!

yphE39K.jpg


Ok somebody add the next verse.
 
S

Sydle

Member
Trojan said:
Recent MS history/announcements:

1) X1 getting handily beaten by PS4
2) MS start reporting MAU, focusing on user base vs console sales
3) MS announce their new UWP strategy where many games having simultaneous PC release
4) This Phil Spencer quote on upgrades/new consoles

The first 3 all suggest that MS are going to play their hand differently going forward. Something seems off from what he's saying....why go through all the UWP and MAU changes?
Click to expand...

Technically they announced their intention to bring Xbox games to any Windows 10 device in March 2015 at GDC, before they switched to MAU.

You're also forgetting some other key moves, where Phil Spencer was promoted as the Head of Xbox and reported to Terry Myerson (EVP of the OS Group) in early 2014. That same summer Satya Nadella said he wanted to use Xbox for his mobile-first ambitions. Additionally, last summer they moved the Xbox hardware into the same team that does Surface (and all other MS hardware).

Some additional context: Satya said in late 2014 that he sees only 3 products in Microsoft: Windows, Azure, and Office 365 plus he explicitly said Xbox first-party and Xbox Live are for Windows now.

But, there are three products in all of this. There is Windows, there is Office 365, and there is Azure. That’s it. Everything else to me is, of course, you can call them features, you can call them parts of that, and even there there’s complexity. - Link
Click to expand...

Finally, we will build the best instantiation of this vision through our Windows device platform and our devices, which will serve to delight our customers, increase distribution of our services, drive gross margin, enable fundamentally new product categories, and generate opportunity for the Windows ecosystem more broadly. We will pursue our gaming ambition as part of this broader vision for Windows and increase its appeal to consumers. We will bring together Xbox Live and our first-party gaming efforts across PC, console, mobile and new categories like HoloLens into one integrated play. - Link
Click to expand...

Satya also announced back in mid-2014 that MS was a productivity and platform company for the mobile-first, cloud-first world. UWP is central to their mobile-first ambition (experiences persist across any screen you're on) and MAU is a basic primary metric for any multi-device service.

What you're seeing with Xbox is Nadella's take on how gaming fits his mobile-first, cloud-first vision for Microsoft. Locking experiences down to a single device flies directly in the face of that mission.
 
B

Bane

Member
digoutyoursoul said:
I'm just a bit confused as to what he is saying today compared to March in that link. Is there going to be upgrade like he originally hinted at that is substantial or are they now going to wait till a new gen arrives.
Click to expand...

That's where I'm at. Seems like he's directly contradicting what he said a month ago. I'm just not sure what's going on with it all right now.
 
H

Hidden One

Member
I have a feeling MS is gonna try to start next gen in 2018 with a brand new xbox that's even more powerful than the ps4 and ps4k for an early sales lead.
 
Bitch Pudding

Bitch Pudding

Member
etta said:
That's just so sales don't plummet now.
They wouldn't have said jack in the first place if they were undecided.
Click to expand...

This. Maybe they're still debating about details, but I am sure they are already well aware about their next steps. And they have enough "resources" not to be surprised by Sony's latest move.
 
R

rambis

Banned
I love how he's trying to insuate that Sony is only upgrading because they need to. No, they have you thoroughly spanking you in almost every facet and are about to release even better hardware.
 
K

klaushm

Member
He just want to move in big numbers. So, Xbox 10 to match Windows 10.

Mid gen will be: PlayStation fork VS X-teen

Now I'm not a big fan either...
 
Xbudz

Xbudz

Member
They could easily drop the "One" from the name and just go with Xbox, especially if they add backwards compatibility for the original Xbox.
 
S

SteamyPunk

Member
I get the feeling that MS was caught flat-footed by the PS4.5 and is trying to figure out what they should do. They would have to really rush to get a refreshed XBOX out by 2017. That would be a big trigger to suddenly have to pull.
 
J

Jrs3000

Member
Stormy said:
I take his comment to mean that it will not be a small upgrade, but a large one. Significant is maybe a better word for it. Don't see how people are reading that they are not going to do the upgrade at all. It will either be this year or next but it is coming and it will be a significant upgrade.
Click to expand...

I read it as that. Skip .5 and go for Xbox 2 in 2017-18 with something comparable to top end graphic cards and AMD's ZEN processor. If ps4k isn't running on Zen APU when it launches then instant fail.
 
A

AndrewPL

Member
A half step just kills sales of the current gen. I was going to buy an Xbox one but will now just get a pc instead.
 
D

d9b

Banned
Dat thread title... It sounds like 'I'm not a big fan of Xbox 1.5, I much prefer PS4k' -Phil Spencer
:p
 
K

Kayant

Member
For us, our box is doing well. It performs, it’s reliable, the servers are doing well.
Click to expand...
Lmao that dig. Servers don't even have much that much relation to hardware in the box.

MS PR have been doing the work these past few days will these competitor remarks -
or to add some kind of phishing tool to the game so that now it’s capturing my passwords as I’m typing them into Chrome
Click to expand...

We shall see what how "significant" these upgrade the XB1 might get if they decide to release a mid generation verison.
 
I

ike_

Member
I'm pretty sure Phil gets it. Nowadays if you are shrewd you will follow the rule for optimally broadcasting and circulating new announcements:

Push it through Advertising, then push it through PR, then push it through Legal, then push it through GAF, then announce it.
 
E

Exploratory

Banned
Welfare said:
"Xbox 4K coming this holiday. Play all your favorite Xbox One games* and watch Netflix shows in 4K resolution.

*Upscaled"

Phil, you're a genius.

Also you don't get dig Sony for server issues. XBL has seen some shit recently.
Click to expand...

What are you talking about?
 
J

jdstorm

Banned
Bane said:
That's where I'm at. Seems like he's directly contradicting what he said a month ago. I'm just not sure what's going on with it all right now.
Click to expand...

My bet is that it's Pascal related. It seems like the new 14nm Chips are going to be a huge step forward. In general terms it seems like gaming consoles tend to upgrade when affordable PCs are starting to get considerably more powerful. That jump is happinening now with the advent of VR, and neither Microsoft or Sony want to be left in the dust. However selling your console audience an upgraded machine 2 1/2 years after the generation has started and after last gen has barely been moved on from isn't going to win you any fans. So it was a multi step process.

1. Talk about incremental upgrades and a possible Xbox one Elite to gauge the market for that and get consumers used to the idea of new hardware coming soon.
2. When the demand for incremental hardware isn't there. dismiss incremental upgrades and Start releasing XB1 games on PC to appeal to the enthusiast market and to put bull shots in all the marketing, most console users won't care about the downgrade from a high end PC to a console providing the game is fun. They just want the pretty marketing photos
3. Continue to reaffirm that new hardware is coming but now make it clear that the Gen 8 will be overly short and will Still supported for 2-3 more years Via cross gen releases. Use E3 to announce Xbox 2 is going to release holiday 2017 on the new Pascal/Polaris 14nm processes ( or whatever comparable product that Intel is launching.)
4. Early adopters will jump ship to the Xbox 2 in 2017 but a shared windows ecosystem will allow full backwards compadability with all XB1 games.
5. Most people will jump on board in 2019 when Microsoft releases the "slim" hardware revision model.
6. Riding a wave of consumer goodwill Microsoft will push for XboxLive as a platform to have to be purchased to play Exclusive games on PC
7. profit
 
B

Bsigg12

Member
^
It'll be Polaris related. Nvidia has nothing to do with these consoles.

super-heated plasma said:
Will the upgrade let us play splitscreen Halo 5?
Click to expand...

I would really hope they have 343 doing an update to really take advantage of a new console if it is indeed real. Halo 5 updated to just be better on the technical front would be amazing.
 
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