The current buzz around gaming consoles has turned away from the Wii 2 back towards the next Xbox, previously analysts felt that Microsoft would launch the new Xbox is 2012 and new sources from Develop-Online seems to support this timeline. They say that the new system is already in the hands of EA developers and initially predicted a release at E3 2011, since then they have retracted this after a report on EG, but the news is interesting all the same.
In the hands of EA
Apparently the new system, for arguments sake let’s call it the Xbox 720, is on the desks of EA developers but it doesn’t look like a console at this stage. When in testing consoles are often placed inside PC towers for a number of reasons including ease of access for component switches, the lack of finished form factor and of course most importantly to camouflage the system from prying eyes.
Specs
The article also suggests that the next Xbox will feature increased support for Kinect, whether this means an integrated system or just improved hardware for running Kinect is unclear although we’d expect the latter. Other than that specifications are still unknown although we’d expect plenty more leaks over the coming weeks with many asking for basic additions such as a blu-ray player.
No comments have been made from EA or Microsoft but if they do we’ll be sure to let you know.
Update: EA have now denied any involvement in software development of the next Xbox.
Do you think Microsoft would unveil their new console at E3 at the same time as the Wii 2?
