14 DAY TRIAL // Microsoft revealed the all-new Xbox One S at E3 in Los Angeles, but the company also wanted to announce something out of this world that’s going to change the way we play games on consoles.
The so-called Project Scorpio, which is just an internal name for the moment and is very likely to change before the actual product goes live, is the next-generation Xbox console that will come with 4K support and will be VR-ready. This is actually a capability that Microsoft is working on with a partner that the company doesn’t wish to announce right now.
Due in the fall of 2017
Phil Spencer, head of the Xbox division, explained that Project Scorpio would be “the most powerful console ever built” so far, offering 4k resolution support 100 percent of the time. Spencer points to Halo 5 as one example where Project Scorpio will provide the best possible performance, explaining that the Xbox One can already offer 4K, but the resolution is automatically dropped to avoid sluggish gaming.
“We're not ready to announce something right now, but you can imagine at the price point of Scorpio - which we haven't actually said, but think about consoles and where they live in terms of price point - having something at six teraflops that will get millions of people buying it is very attractive to some of the VR companies that are out there already, and we've architected it such that something will be able to plug right in and work,” Spencer is quoted as saying.
Project Scorpio is due in the fall of 2017, as Microsoft is still working on the console, with Spencer revealing that the company’s decision to disclose such early information comes as part of the aim for bigger transparency in the relationship with customers.
“It's crazy to announce something this early. But when I put myself in the shoes of our customer, I want to be able to make a choice on what console I want to buy with as much information as possible. We want to give you the information to make that decision,” Spencer points out.
Without a doubt, Project Scorpio will also be more expensive than the current models, but specifics in this regard are not yet available. The 2 TB version of the Xbox One S can be purchased for $399 in NA.