Article by: Ian Brown

So here it is, Microsoft is here with their reveal on the new Xbox to surpass the Xbox 360,  The Xbox One.  Not a bad name I guess, better than the working title they had originally which was titled "Durango". I for one was really looking forward to this reveal because of how much I love the past Xbox systems, not to say that I don't also love my Sony products, but I do tend to invest more time on the Xbox.  That being said, if they want to increase their sales across the board, they need to do a few things.  First off they need to try and increase the social hub that most gamers love to revolve around, I feel that most games now a days are dead in the water if they don't have some sort of multi-player mode.  People love playing single player games but most really enjoy showing off their prowess against other players.  Second they need to increase the RAM capability of the system itself.  This will allow for faster game play and better functionality overall.  Third they need to push for more Xbox Exclusives like Halo, Gears and Forza, this will cause many more people to run out and buy the system JUST to have the ability to play that particular title.  Fourth, they need to try once again to broaden their horizons, they tried with previous titles such as Viva Pinata and even through the various Kinect games to gain the attention of a younger audience or even more female gamers, which didn't really have much of an effect.  And Fifth they need to add more.. well just more with the Microsoft Glass feature, I think the Wii U controller/tablet is closer to what I think it could be used for, more than just a mini-map feature, or even just background information on locations in the game or developers thoughts on the game.

Some of the new features that Microsoft has added are a new tab for Trending, somewhat like what twitter has where you can see what is popular at that current time.  You will be able to browse top shows, games, media and see what is topping the charts around the world.  Also they have improved user recognition, you will be able to walk up and instantly be recognized by your Xbox and load up your preferences.  They have improved the way you switch between tabs or apps by using voice commands instead of the controller.  Simple voice commands between movies, games, music and the net along with hand gestures make this a big improvement to the current interface on the Xbox 360.  They have also added a snap mode, which lets you split screen two applications, much like a computer so that you will be able to run a movie at the same time as you browse the internet for your local sports team scores or keep up with Facebook and Twitter.  Possibly one of my favorite additions to the Xbox One will be Skype, a widely popular software that allows you to video chat with anyone instantly.  They are hoping this will make the social aspect a lot easier to a broader audience.  In addition to Skype, they have also added a T.V. guide function which will help you browse your shows, the voice commands for this are seemingly easy to use as the demonstration for it flipped quickly through different channels and shows.

Of course these don't mean much without some really decent hardware to back it up.  And it seems Microsoft has done that, they are boasting 5 Million transistors, 8 GB RAM, 8 Core CPU, 500 GB HPD, Blu Ray player, HDMI In/Out, USB 3.0, and 802.11 Wifi, and then they had the Kinect camera with 1080 p HD camera, 30 FPS color, Time of Flight (ToF) Technology, and Microphone arrays.  They also say that it will be able to download at 2 gb per second. They also made some improvements to the Kinect such as the tilting of a wrist or twist of the leg, being able to see depth of the user and even see your heart beat during a workout.  These seem like it will make the Kinect even easier to use and hopefully pick up even more gestures than before.

And a new console reveal is nothing if not for mentions and previews of new games coming to the Xbox One.  EA Sports revealed that they would be adding to the Xbox One – FIFA 14 with exclusive content, Madden 14, UFC and NBA Live.  These titles will use their new game engine which they have named 'Ignite'.  EA states that most games are won by inches and angles so they wanted to make it feel more like this in their games.  They have worked on increasing the capability of their A.I. players and hopefully this will give players a better feeling of being there when they play their favorite sports games from the comfort of their couch at home.  Other games they went on to announce were a new Forza 5, Quantum Break, and one of the most anticipated game series in the world, Call of Duty Ghosts.  And while they did not announce any new game from the makers of Halo, they did announce that Steven Spielberg would be involved in a Halo T.V. series but without an airing date.

All in all, I found that it wasn't as big a reveal as I had hoped, it seems that while they might be aiming for making a better system for the 'hardcore' gamers while still pleasing the 'casual' gamer it looks more like they are aiming to replace the need for a cable box in your house.  As one of the most used words during the presentation was 'T.V.' followed closely by 'Television', which I guess could be useful if you didn't want to switch your input to the T.V. I have never found it that much of a task though.  It could mean that they are hoping you NEVER turn your Xbox off at all though.  Anyways that's my thoughts on the Xbox One reveal, I guess we'll see what comes in three weeks when E3 begins.