Don't Expect Xbox One's Successor For At Least Ten Years

[Steven Bogos]

Don't Expect Xbox One's Successor For At Least Ten Years

Microsoft's Phil Harrison says the Xbox One will be "more than a ten-year journey".

The original Xbox was released in 2001, and the Xbox 360 followed in 2005, a mere four years later. The Xbox One is scheduled to be released in November of this year, putting its release exactly eight years since the 360's launch. The gap between console generations grows wider with each new console, and Microsoft's Phil Harrison says that we can probably expect this trend to continue. Speaking at the Eurogamer Expo 2013 [http://www.eurogamer.net/articles/2013-09-26-xbox-one-will-be-more-than-a-ten-year-journey-for-microsoft], Harrison said that the Xbox One will be "more than a ten-year journey".

Harrison added that just like the Xbox 360, the Xbox One will be improved and updated over time, throughout the next decade and beyond. Harrison says that the much touted "cloud" features of the new console will be tantamount to this evolution, predicting that it will become a key component in AI and other processes in the near future.

Harrison also talked about the evolution of digital game distribution, saying it is an "unstoppable force" for the industry. He explained that "[Microsoft] remains committed to a digital future," but adding that the company is grateful for the feedback offered from fans since the console's initial unveiling.

For reference, the time between the PS1 and PS2 was five years, there were six years separating the PS2 and PS3, and it will have been seven years since the PS3 came out when the PS4 launches this year.

Source: Eurogamer [http://www.eurogamer.net/articles/2013-09-26-xbox-one-will-be-more-than-a-ten-year-journey-for-microsoft]

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[JoJo]

I'm pretty sure they said this about the PS3 when it first came out and look how that worked out. It'll be pretty cool if it does last that long though.

 

[james.sponge]

Didn't sony say something similar about ps3? It was supposed to have lifespan of 10 years thanks to its mega processing power that could bend space and time. I know it's PR but they should really stop this bullshit immediately and start being realistic about their claims.

 

[RandV80]

It's certainly possible but this is something that the competition decides on more than an individual competitor. Anyone think Sony could push the PS4 launch to 10 years after the PS3 launch* with the Xbox One coming out? That would be a huge blow to your brand, so you'd basically have to collude to make it happen.

*In Sony's case I believe they were more talking about supporting the PS3 for 10 years, much like how the PS2 was still going strong a few years into the PS3's launch.

 

[iniudan]

Didn't sony say something similar about ps3? It was supposed to have lifespan of 10 years thanks to its mega processing power that could bend space and time. I know it's PR but they should really stop this bullshit immediately and start being realistic about their claims.

If you consider they were coming from the PS2, that not that bold of a claim, after all the PS2 was only discontinued a year ago, after 12 years of service.

And if you look at many previous console. NES discontinued after 12 years, SNES 12 years also, PS1... 12 years... for some reason I see a pattern... Mega Drive 9 years, ok never mind on pattern. Has far has I can see 10 years is not far fetch, it's just that many of those years are usually past their prime, after been replaced has the flagship product.

 

[james.sponge]

Didn't sony say something similar about ps3? It was supposed to have lifespan of 10 years thanks to its mega processing power that could bend space and time. I know it's PR but they should really stop this bullshit immediately and start being realistic about their claims.

If you consider they were coming from the PS2, that not that bold of a claim, after all the PS2 was only discontinued a year ago.

yeah but PS2 was a phenomenon no one is likely to repeat. Not because they are not capable of it but because the market changed so much. Everything is about services, online play, multiplatform releases and huge budgets not to mention the abundance of other entertainment products on the market. Consumers tend to have a low attention span and will quickly turn to new products if they seem more attractive. Since gaming went full mainstream with this generation it will suffer from these sorts of issues. To keep people interested MS and Sony will have to throw new gimmicks at consumers and if that won't suffice they will promise new generation of consoles after six or seven years.

I may be rambling but there are way too many variables at work here. It silly to claim your hardware will have a 10 year lifespan when we can't really predict what will happen with the gaming market next year or in two years time.

 

[immortalfrieza]

Not a huge issues honestly. We are really hitting the wall where graphical fidelity and processing power really improves a game much. Ten years for the next scam from Microsoft isn't going to really matter.

Honestly, unless someone invents full SAO level virtual reality, or physics and power gets to the point where we can run an entire game, from the dirt to every brick of a building with realistic and destroy-able physics, power isn't really going to help much. The only thing that would be concerning is resolution in 10 years, which 1080p will be vastly outdated in.

^This. I don't expect it'll be more than 2 more console generations before truly photorealistic graphics become a reality, and maybe another 2 at most after that before it becomes industry standard. You can't really do better than making a game actually look real, and once the point is reached and becomes common they'll have to go back to focusing on gameplay, story, and how the A.I. works.

Personally, I'd much rather each console company just make a console designed to be modular so we could just spend 50 bucks or so every 2 or 3 years to upgrade it instead of having to spend anywhere from 300-500 bucks buying a new one every 5 years or so, it would be more convenient for everybody.

 

[Vivi22]

I'm pretty sure they said this about the PS3 when it first came out and look how that worked out. It'll be pretty cool if it does last that long though.

No, Sony said they'd support the PS3 for ten years. They did the same for the PS2 as well. That doesn't mean you won't see a successor for ten years.

 

[Vie]

Don't Expect Xbox One's Successor For At Least Ten Years

I think given how badly the XBone is likely to do that we can safely remove "For at least ten years" from the above statement.

 

[antigodoflife]

ITT: Microsoft is getting optimistic. A new console?

How adorable!

Being condescending aside, I hope there's a new console generation around 2018 - 2020, I will have gotten bored of the increasingly stale AI, graphics and physics by then and will want a new toy -- God, I'll be nearly 30 by then.

 

[Legion]

I'm pretty sure they said this about the PS3 when it first came out and look how that worked out. It'll be pretty cool if it does last that long though.

Didn't sony say something similar about ps3? It was supposed to have lifespan of 10 years thanks to its mega processing power that could bend space and time. I know it's PR but they should really stop this bullshit immediately and start being realistic about their claims.

Not entirely. They said the life span would be ten years, not that it'd be ten years before the next one. So if they keep making games for it for the next three years, they'd still be correct. Considering they kept making games for the PS2 for quite a while afterwards, I imagine they will keep making PS3 games for a while yet. It's normally a couple of years before the current generations kick off in terms of sales and decent games.

Bearing in mind that games such as the next Dragon Age will be on the PS3/Xbox 360, and that's not out for just over a year.

 

[Mr.Mattress]

Yeah, don't expect the next XBox for 10 years... Or, if the XBone fails, ever!

Seriously, why are console Generations getting so long? That's not healthy in the slightest for a Completely Capitalist Business. Stagnation has always caused problems.

 

[JoJo]

I'm pretty sure they said this about the PS3 when it first came out and look how that worked out. It'll be pretty cool if it does last that long though.

No, Sony said they'd support the PS3 for ten years. They did the same for the PS2 as well. That doesn't mean you won't see a successor for ten years.

You're probably right, it's difficult to remember exact details that long ago... though interestingly, the original article that Steven Bogos linked doesn't say anything about a successor not coming out for 10 years, only that the Xbox One will have a 'more than 10 year journey', i.e. it will be supported for more than 10 years. Correct me if I'm wrong but Steven may have assumed too much in this article title, since a successor could be released while they still support the Xbox One.

 

[spartandude]

I do need to ask something, have Sony and Microsoft just swapped their staff for this generation. Ok excluding the DRM stuff Microsoft is acting almost exactly like Sony was acting when it came to the PS3