Microsoft wants to blend the Xbox and the PC, hinting that there could be PC-style hardware upgrades coming for the Xbox One.
Microsoft is keen to bring Windows and the Xbox together under one brolly - arguing that such a move will make its content available to the widest possible audience. And, potentially, give Sony a drubbed nose into the bargain of course.
Microsoft's Phil Spencer has this to bark: "In other (gaming) ecosystems you get more continuous innovation in hardware that you rarely see in consoles because consoles lock the hardware and software platforms together at the beginning and they ride the generation out for seven years or so.
“We’re allowing ourselves to decouple our software platform from the hardware platform on which it runs. We’ll see us come out with new hardware capability during a generation and allow the same games to run backwards and forward compatible because we have UWAs running on top of UWP. It allows us to focus on hardware innovation without invalidating the games that run on that platform.”
What does any of that even mean? And is it going to be a problem that I don't really know?
Microsoft is keen to bring Windows and the Xbox together under one brolly - arguing that such a move will make its content available to the widest possible audience. And, potentially, give Sony a drubbed nose into the bargain of course.
Microsoft's Phil Spencer has this to bark: "In other (gaming) ecosystems you get more continuous innovation in hardware that you rarely see in consoles because consoles lock the hardware and software platforms together at the beginning and they ride the generation out for seven years or so.
“We’re allowing ourselves to decouple our software platform from the hardware platform on which it runs. We’ll see us come out with new hardware capability during a generation and allow the same games to run backwards and forward compatible because we have UWAs running on top of UWP. It allows us to focus on hardware innovation without invalidating the games that run on that platform.”
What does any of that even mean? And is it going to be a problem that I don't really know?
PHIL SPENCER IN LIMBO PHIL 'ER UP
Here's what I think Phil Spencer is banging on about: Microsoft is trying to reach a point where all games are universally compatible with both the Xbox One and PC - and in order to do that, the Xbox One will need to be able to keep pace with the constantly evolving state of PC hardware.
In that world, there wouldn't be - say - an Xbox Two. Your Xbox One would just get stuffed with new guts, as needed.
Now...
That's all well and good. But here's a thing: the closest we've had to a model like that in the games industry was when Sega started bolting add-ons to the Mega Drive/Genesis, so that it could compete with the Super NES, 3DO and whatever. We all know how well that turned out.
This is slightly different of course, but I do wonder if Sega's plan failed because console gamers are fundamentally different to PC owners.
I've been a PC owner, and I currently own a Macbook Pro - just powerful enough to play much of what Steam has to offer - but at my core I'm a console gamer. PCs terrify me. I've had horrible experiences with them in the past, and while PC gaming may not be the faff it once was... I remain wary.
The terror I used to feel when upgrading PCs in the past - just shoving some new RAM in its guts - that I was about to invalidate a £1,000 worth of hardware... I never really want that again.
Consoles might not have the frame rates or shaders of high-end PCs, but the trade-off in the lack of stress is more than worth it for me. And I don't think I'm alone in feeling like that.
Here's what I think Phil Spencer is banging on about: Microsoft is trying to reach a point where all games are universally compatible with both the Xbox One and PC - and in order to do that, the Xbox One will need to be able to keep pace with the constantly evolving state of PC hardware.
In that world, there wouldn't be - say - an Xbox Two. Your Xbox One would just get stuffed with new guts, as needed.
Now...
That's all well and good. But here's a thing: the closest we've had to a model like that in the games industry was when Sega started bolting add-ons to the Mega Drive/Genesis, so that it could compete with the Super NES, 3DO and whatever. We all know how well that turned out.
This is slightly different of course, but I do wonder if Sega's plan failed because console gamers are fundamentally different to PC owners.
I've been a PC owner, and I currently own a Macbook Pro - just powerful enough to play much of what Steam has to offer - but at my core I'm a console gamer. PCs terrify me. I've had horrible experiences with them in the past, and while PC gaming may not be the faff it once was... I remain wary.
The terror I used to feel when upgrading PCs in the past - just shoving some new RAM in its guts - that I was about to invalidate a £1,000 worth of hardware... I never really want that again.
Consoles might not have the frame rates or shaders of high-end PCs, but the trade-off in the lack of stress is more than worth it for me. And I don't think I'm alone in feeling like that.
GET USED TO THIS VIEW, XBOX KIDS... NO QUESTION
There's no question that PC gaming is undergoing a renaissance.
As scared as I might be of re-entering the PC gaming world, I nevertheless look upon it with envious eyes. Albeit in the same way I look at people who seemingly know how to put up wallpaper, or fill out tax returns. Those kinds of people. You know: proper adults.
While I might be able to paper my living room in the end, it wouldn't be without a lot of swearing and crying. Consequently, Id rather hire somebody else to do it. The last thing I want is to do it myself.
Is that the message Microsoft is sending, that console gaming - that gaming full stop - is no longer for kids? This is my fear - Microsoft risks sending gaming back to being elitist, in the way that PC gaming is, in some respects, for those who are more technically minded.
What's more appealing to me, speaking as an idiot who doesn't understand technical stuff, are - at least in theory - the Steam Machines. PCs making the move towards becoming more console-like than the other way around. Doubtless that statement will horrify PC Master Racers. And it doesn't help that the Steam Machines I've already looked at don't really offer the sort of oomph that I want if I'm going to take the plunge into the PC pool.
However, it's undeniable that PCs will never appeal to the same sorts of people who want to play console games. They are niche - albeit niche in a sort of mass-market way - and the barrier that's keeping the rest of us out is the fear that they're too technical. The last thing I want is consoles becoming more like that; gaming only truly came into its own when it got easier for regular people to play games.
As a console gamer, my priority with games is the gameplay, not the graphics. I don't want or need to a machine that I'm going to have to keep upgrading in order to play the latest games. I want something which I know will last me the 7 years that Spencer seems to think is an issue.
There's no question that PC gaming is undergoing a renaissance.
As scared as I might be of re-entering the PC gaming world, I nevertheless look upon it with envious eyes. Albeit in the same way I look at people who seemingly know how to put up wallpaper, or fill out tax returns. Those kinds of people. You know: proper adults.
While I might be able to paper my living room in the end, it wouldn't be without a lot of swearing and crying. Consequently, Id rather hire somebody else to do it. The last thing I want is to do it myself.
Is that the message Microsoft is sending, that console gaming - that gaming full stop - is no longer for kids? This is my fear - Microsoft risks sending gaming back to being elitist, in the way that PC gaming is, in some respects, for those who are more technically minded.
What's more appealing to me, speaking as an idiot who doesn't understand technical stuff, are - at least in theory - the Steam Machines. PCs making the move towards becoming more console-like than the other way around. Doubtless that statement will horrify PC Master Racers. And it doesn't help that the Steam Machines I've already looked at don't really offer the sort of oomph that I want if I'm going to take the plunge into the PC pool.
However, it's undeniable that PCs will never appeal to the same sorts of people who want to play console games. They are niche - albeit niche in a sort of mass-market way - and the barrier that's keeping the rest of us out is the fear that they're too technical. The last thing I want is consoles becoming more like that; gaming only truly came into its own when it got easier for regular people to play games.
As a console gamer, my priority with games is the gameplay, not the graphics. I don't want or need to a machine that I'm going to have to keep upgrading in order to play the latest games. I want something which I know will last me the 7 years that Spencer seems to think is an issue.
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