Xbox Series X: everything we know about Microsoft’s next console – The Verge

Xbox Series X and S preorders have kicked off around the world

2020-09-21T14:41:38-04:00

Microsoft's Xbox Series X and Series S consoles will be available for preorder around the world on September 22nd - and depending on where you live, that's happening very soon. If you're reading this in New Zealand, you'll be able to place an order in just under two hours, with the wait being just a bit longer for those in Australia. By the time those on the US East Coast wake up, gamers in the UK and Europe will have already put money down on a new console. Those preorders start at 8AM BST (3AM ET) and 9AM, respectively.

Since we originally wrote this post, Microsoft expanded the list to include those details for many other countries as we …

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Xbox Game Pass briefly explained: console, PC, xCloud streaming and more

2020-09-15T13:01:29-04:00

Microsoft is officially launching its xCloud gaming service today on Android phones and tablets, allowing you to play more than 150 genuine Xbox games on devices that could never run those games themselves - because they'll be streaming from remote servers much like a YouTube video.

But to do that, you'll need to pay for an Xbox Game Pass subscription. And not just any Game Pass will do - you'll need the highest-tier, Xbox Game Pass Ultimate subscription, which costs $14.99, £10.99 or €12.99 a month (though you can pay $1 for a one-month trial).

You might be thinking that's a lot of money! You might also be wondering, 'What do the other tw …

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When I don’t buy the new Xbox, Microsoft will laugh all the way to the bank

2020-08-12T08:54:56-04:00

Microsoft has thoroughly convinced me: I don't need to buy an Xbox Series X. The games don't look "next-gen" enough. There aren't enough titles I actually want to play. Yesterday, the company announced its flagship game, Halo Infinite, won't even arrive until 2021. Besides, almost all of Microsoft's key games are also coming to Windows PCs, and some may even come to the PS5 as well. And while I have a sneaking suspicion that Microsoft is breaking a big promise by not bringing some Xbox Series X games to the Xbox One, another possibility is many of the biggest reasons to buy a new Xbox won't be available until long after its November launch.

…

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One week later, it looks like Microsoft is already breaking a big promise with Xbox Series X

2020-07-23T19:00:00-04:00

Did Microsoft convince you that you wouldn't need next-gen hardware to play Xbox Series X games? Think again: fully half of the next-gen games that Microsoft showcased at its Xbox Series X showcase today, including Forza, probably aren't coming to Xbox One.

Which suggests either some of those games aren't actually coming out for a long time - or Microsoft has already broken a big promise it made just last week.

For years now, Microsoft has been working toward a future where you don't need to buy the latest console to play the newest games - many now run on a spectrum of hardware including Xbox One, Xbox One S, Xbox One X, and Windows PCs - …

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Watch the 18 biggest trailers from the Xbox Series X Games Showcase

2020-07-23T13:50:44-04:00

Microsoft showed off a lot of games coming to the Xbox Series X, including exclusives and brand-new titles, at its July showcase event. We now have a much better idea of what's in store for Microsoft's upcoming console.

If you weren't able to watch the event live, we've collected some of the biggest trailers from the show right here, and you can catch a replay of the whole event on YouTube.

Halo Infinite

Microsoft shared the first look at Halo Infinite's campaign today, including an extended gameplay sequence where Master Chief took on waves of aliens. 343 Industries said the game will run at a "flawless" 60 frames per second. Halo Infinite …

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Tetris Effect: Connected is an Xbox-exclusive multiplayer expansion

2020-07-23T12:45:29-04:00

The excellent Tetris Effect, a mesmerizing audio-visual spin on the classic puzzle game, is getting a full multiplayer expansion this fall called Tetris Effect: Connected, which is releasing as a timed exclusive on PC (on the Microsoft Store) and Xbox platforms. The original game was a PlayStation 4 exclusive released in fall 2018 before it came to PC the following year via the Epic Game Store and Oculus' VR platform back in May.

The expansion, developed by the same Japanese development duo of Monstars and Resonair with additional help from Stage Games, was announced today as part of Microsoft's Xbox Series X next-gen game showcase. Publish …

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Microsoft unveils full Xbox Series X specs with 1TB expansion cards

2020-03-16T08:12:54-04:00

Microsoft is revealing the full specs for its Xbox Series X console today, and it includes support for removable storage and much faster load times for games. The software giant will be using a custom AMD Zen 2 CPU with eight cores clocked at 3.8GHz each, a custom AMD RDNA 2 GPU with 12 teraflops and 52 compute units clocked at 1.825GHz each. This is all based on a 7nm process and includes 16GB of GDDR6 RAM with a 1TB custom NVME SSD storage drive.

Microsoft is using two mainboards on this Xbox Series X compact design, and the entire unit is cooled through air being pulled in from the bottom and pushed out at the top via a 130mm fan.

Devel …

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Microsoft planning second next-gen Xbox that’s cheaper and less powerful

2019-12-04T12:41:43-05:00

Microsoft is currently planning to launch two next-generation Xbox consoles for holiday 2020. Sources familiar with Microsoft's plans tell The Verge that Microsoft is planning a second, cheaper and less powerful Xbox console, codenamed "Lockhart." While Microsoft has revealed its Xbox Project Scarlett high-end plans, the company did not mention its two-console strategy at E3 earlier this year. Windows Central originally reported Lockhart's existence nearly a year ago, and Kotaku now reports it's part of Microsoft's next-gen plans.

Microsoft is essentially launching two next-gen consoles that will serve as successors to the Xbox One S and Xb …

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Microsoft is only launching one next-generation Xbox, not two

2019-06-21T06:02:40-04:00

Microsoft revealed its next-generation Xbox Project Scarlett console on stage at E3 earlier this month, but many had been expecting two consoles to be unveiled. Rumors previously suggested that Microsoft was working on a pair of new devices: one codenamed Anaconda that would be high-end, and another codenamed Lockhart that would be the more affordable option. Thurrott.com reports that Microsoft is now focused solely on a high-end Xbox console, under the broader Project Scarlett effort.

While Xbox chief Phil Spencer did reveal the company was "deep into architecting the next Xbox consoles," at E3 last year, plans have clearly changed as only …

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Microsoft’s xCloud can’t and shouldn’t be compared with Google Stadia right now

2019-06-13T17:31:41-04:00

Cloud gaming is the undeniably industry-altering shadow looming over this year's E3 video game conference. Paired with the rise of subscription services, the idea of running games from remote servers could not only change how they're are played, distributed and sold, but even how games are developed, thanks to the promise of running software off the equivalent of multiple consoles strung together.

The two frontrunners in the race are Google and Microsoft, two of the tech industry's most powerful companies and two of the largest players in the existing cloud computing market. Both have the infrastructure, the expertise, and the resources to …

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