14 DAY TRIAL // Microsoft is working on a virtual reality device of its own, but for the time being, the company is still reluctant to make any announcements related to it.
The information comes from a recent interview with the head of Microsoft’s Xbox division, Phil Spencer, who talked about the corporation’s plans regarding gaming and a prospective response to Sony’s Project Morpheus and Oculus VR’s Oculus Rift.
Microsoft is already late to the VR party
“The industry as a whole continues to invest in research and in new elements. New technologies invite us to explore new gaming worlds,” Spencer told Japanese magazine AV Watch.
“I believe that Kinect, voice and virtual reality are those key new elements. That’s why I’m glad that Sony and Oculus are investing in VR. We’re also working on an investment of our own, but it’s not at a stage in which we can talk about it yet,” he continued.
Taking into account the major investment that the company has already made with Kinect, the company is bound to prepare a pretty big surprise, and not merely content to play catch up.
The decision to remove the Kinect sensor from the Xbox One home entertainment system is questionable when seen in this light though, as the peripheral was initially touted as an integral part of the Xbox experience.
Furthermore, one would think that Microsoft would have been quicker to jump on the VR wagon, as it seems to fit like a glove with its previous motion control endeavors.
For the time being, there is no information regarding what the corporation might be up to, but hopefully we won’t have to wait too long until it’s ready to make a reveal.
Still committed to the Xbox brand
The interview also reveals that Microsoft is still fully behind its console branch, in spite of analysts predicting that the Xbox arm will be sold in the near future due to low performance.
“With Xbox 360, our efforts were crowned by considerable success. And I’m committed to the success of Xbox One.”
“In the past six months Xbox One has changed. We introduced to gamers the version without Kinect and broadened the choice. We will continue to update the system, and starting with Japan we’re launching in new markets. The launch in Shanghai in China will happen next week, and I believe that by such changes we’ll gather an even bigger audience,” Phil Spencer explained.
For the time being, Microsoft’s latest console isn’t doing too hot, lagging considerably behind the PlayStation 4, its main competitor from Sony.
The last official sales data regarding the home entertainment system dates from April, and Microsoft it most likely waiting for the upcoming launch in a number of secondary markets before publishing any new data.