Xbox Durango Enters Production!

[Deleted]

If an IGN source is to believed, then production has officially begun on Microsoft’s next-generation video-game console. The insider reports that Flextronics International, manufacturer of the both the original Xbox and the Xbox 360, just recently fired up the production line for the console believed to be codenamed Durango at its Austin, TX plant. Flextronics declined IGN’s requests for comment on the story.

Before reaching this stage in the process, Singapore-based Flextronics is said to have formed an internal division solely concerned with testing the Xbox 360′s successor. IGN claims that said division, operating autonomously from the rest of the company, focused its efforts on “comprehensive marketing, software, and hardware tests” of the device it is said to be producing. With those efforts behind them, the time to build is now.

Powerful gaming hardware is of little interest to consumers without compelling software, and quality software takes time to produce. Following that line of thinking, IGN posits that it’s studio development kits that are being slapped together down in Austin. Developers typically need even more time to create games for a new console, since its architecture is foreign to them. If Microsoft does indeed plan to launch during holiday 2013, then spring of 2012 might not be the worst time to start sending kits out to preferred development partners.

According to some developers, Microsoft has already started shipping versions of the new Xbox hardware, due at the end of 2013, to programmers to start coding games for the system. What they’ve apparently seen is a console with a 16-core IBM PowerPC CPU, a massive jump from the three-core CPU in the current Xbox, as well as an AMD Radeon HD 7000-series GPU. It also comes with a built-in Blu-ray player. The next version of Kinect supposedly requires four of those 16 CPU cores.

The PlayStation Orbis is rumored to have both an AMD CPU and Radeon graphics, and may ship before the Xbox Durango.

Sources:
http://au.ign.com/articles/2012/05/0...-the-next-xbox
http://www.xblafans.com/xbox-durango...ion-47584.html
http://www.zdnet.com/blog/home-theat...-core-cpu/5792

[obdigore]

Judging by the specs - looks like it will cost an arm and a leg.

Probably not. By the time they mass market them (next summer at the earliest, imo), this tech will be older and less expensive. I'm going to guess at a 499-599 price tag, tops, on Xbox3s.

I've heard nothing about PS4's going into Dev Kit production, is anyone aware of that at all?

[La]

Probably not. By the time they mass market them (next summer at the earliest, imo), this tech will be older and less expensive. I'm going to guess at a 499-599 price tag, tops, on Xbox3s.

I've heard nothing about PS4's going into Dev Kit production, is anyone aware of that at all?

"Kotaku also reports that “select developers” have been courted to work on the console, receiving development kits at the start of the year. Finalised beta versions of the console will be sent out towards the end of this year. That will give developers time to work on any games planned to launch with the console during the holiday season in 2013." for Playstation Orbis

http://www.slashgear.com/next-gen-pl...2013-29220516/

Halo 4 comes out at the end of this year, and since the sequels are planned for the next gen Xbox, the end of 2013 sounds about right for them both.

[Deleted]

Beastly hardware in both this and the new PS, it will outgun my computer for sure.

Which raises the question, what will Nintendo do? They don't seem to have finalised the specs yet as far as I know, but they must not be too far behind else it will be Wii all over again, even if they change the name.

[obdigore]

Thanks La.

@Vanin -> The next Nintendo offering is suggested to be about twice as good as the current 360, which makes it a bit better than the ps3, but not anywhere close to the two new systems.

Also, Sony is losing a ton of money, I'd be pretty shocked if MS didn't take advantage of that and partially subsidises(sp?) their new console to make sure it is quite a bit cheaper than the Orbis.

[Deleted]

Thanks La.

@Vanin -> The next Nintendo offering is suggested to be about twice as good as the current 360, which makes it a bit better than the ps3, but not anywhere close to the two new systems.

Also, Sony is losing a ton of money, I'd be pretty shocked if MS didn't take advantage of that and partially subsidises(sp?) their new console to make sure it is quite a bit cheaper than the Orbis.

Hmm, twice as powerful as the Xbox seems reasonable though, just like games look decent on the 360 today the new Nintendo will still look reasonable in a few years time I suppose - if they manage to keep the third parties interested that is.

Yeah Sony isn't doing too well are they? PS Vita has been a flop and afaik the rest of Sony's stuff isn't doing amazing either. I also think that (alleged) lack of backwards-compatability will hurt both monster-consoles when they launch, Orbis more so than Durango, so Nintendo might still have a chance at least early on.

These console wars are always interesting, I'd hate to see any of the three we have now go out of bussiness.

[obdigore]

Yea, Sony is not doing well

Sony Corp. racked up a record annual loss of 457 billion yen ($5.7 billion) in its fourth straight year of red ink as the once-glorious maker of the Walkman and PlayStation struggles toward a turnaround under a new president.

from http://abcnews.go.com/Business/wireS...8#.T7YhpFL6lpg

Anyway, from what I understand, the 360 games sell more copies and they have quite a few more games-per-system sold than the PS3. And then the Wii comes in and has a majority of them sitting in a closet, from what I understand because I don't think game sales per console are anywhere near where they are for MS or Sony's consoles.

I know I buy multiplayer games on the 360 because the network is a lot better, my PS3 is a glorified blue-ray player now since I upgraded my PC and play the single player games on it. I'm really not interested in any of the PS3-only games I'm aware of from now till 2013 except Starhawk, but again I don't play multiplayer games on the PS3 anymore.

[Digglett]

Beastly hardware in both this and the new PS, it will outgun my computer for sure.

Which raises the question, what will Nintendo do? They don't seem to have finalised the specs yet as far as I know, but they must not be too far behind else it will be Wii all over again, even if they change the name.

Because graphics don't mean shit. Sure, it adds some fine coating, but at the end of the day, the Wii U Zelda demo would totally be okay with me, I don't need anything better than that.

[Deleted]

Because graphics don't mean shit. Sure, it adds some fine coating, but at the end of the day, the Wii U Zelda demo would totally be okay with me, I don't need anything better than that.

If graphics are so unimportant then why aren't we still playing on our Ataris?

Your argument doesn't really make sense. The whole point of these new consoles is to improve, not to stagnate. The company that makes the most progress deserves any recognition/success it receives.

Championing an inferior product is unnecessary.

[Loaf]

If graphics are so unimportant then why aren't we still playing on our Ataris?

Your argument doesn't really make sense. The whole point of these new consoles is to improve, not to stagnate. The company that makes the most progress deserves any recognition/success it receives.

Championing an inferior product is unnecessary.

So what you're saying is...that if they don't increase their graphic output, they're stagnating? That makes no sense :\ Games shouldn't need to have cutting edge graphics to be considered good. I would gladly play on a console like the wii assuming the gameplay was good rather than play something with super graphics that plays like crap :3

As for why we're not playing our ataris still, are you still listening to music on a cassette player? Are cassettes even being produced anymore? Technology surpassed what an atari could do was all and it became the norm for what was made after to be made. There are still people who play atari games or any non-current system and you don't hear them complain about graphics in today's games.

Maybe you should take a second to realize that just b/c a game isn't on the xbox or ps3 and doesn't have the graphics that those can produce doesn't mean that the game is instantly bad. Look at any of Nintendo's first party games on the wii and see how much they're ripped by xbox/ps3 fanboys b/c they don't have the best graphics or blood and gore. And before anyone calls me a Nintendo fanboy, I have a 360 and I play it more than my wii. I've played plenty of stuff on my 360 but not b/c of graphics but b/c the games aren't made on the wii. Thing is though, all those games I played(bar maybe one or two) don't hold a candle to Nintendo's first party games and that's b/c Nintendo knows how to make good games that don't need graphics to be good.

[Deleted]

<snip>

While your points are valid, they have absolutely nothing to do with what I was talking about.

A console is not a game.

[Tarien]

Because graphics don't mean shit.

Speak for yourself, I love pretty pixels and the improving graphics over the year are a big motivator for me. Sure good gameplay can trump graphics, but I never completely rule them out.

[Digglett]

If graphics are so unimportant then why aren't we still playing on our Ataris?

I'd totally still play SNES over any current gen console if games were made for it still.

[Deleted]

Because graphics don't mean shit. Sure, it adds some fine coating, but at the end of the day, the Wii U Zelda demo would totally be okay with me, I don't need anything better than that.

Yeah same, I was more referring to those who were put off by the Wii citing worse graphical capabilities and wii-mote as reasons why, and if the Wii U isn't potent enough to "reconquer" the "real gamers" they might pass on it too and then Nintendo might be in trouble. That Zelda snip we got was afterall just a tech demo, meaning that we can expect much more in the future. It's like their pre-alpha.

[Tarien]

The next Nintendo offering is suggested to be about twice as good as the current 360, which makes it a bit better than the ps3, but not anywhere close to the two new systems.

Also, Sony is losing a ton of money, I'd be pretty shocked if MS didn't take advantage of that and partially subsidises(sp?) their new console to make sure it is quite a bit cheaper than the Orbis.

Got a source for the next Nintendo console being twice as powerful as the Xbox 360? Last I heard it was barely ahead of the current gen of consoles. Also I wouldn't consider the PS3 twice as powerful as the 360, it is more powerful but sadly few games have taken advantage of that. I own both btw, not fanboying one or the other.

And I agree with Sony losing boatloads of money. MS have subsidised both Xbox consoles to date, but they make all their money back by owning the patents and designs to the console so that they can revise them and drive down costs later on, and because they are the cheaper console they sell more of them, and then more games which means more money from licensing fee's, Xbox Live, arcade game cuts, and so on.

Sony really need to get their act together for the PS4, or there won't be a PS5 I think.

[Larynx]

I'd totally still play SNES over any current gen console if games were made for it still.

So stop stating your opinion as fact.

Graphics are important for the majority of consumers. I refuse to play games that are painful to look at. If that doesn't bother you, fine.

[Digglett]

So stop stating your opinion as fact.

Graphics are important for the majority of consumers. I refuse to play games that are painful to look at. If that doesn't bother you, fine.

I never stated it as fact, I stated my opinion as my opinion. Stop getting so up in arms over it. Especially the one you decided to quote.

[Deleted]

I'd totally still play SNES over any current gen console if games were made for it still.

Here you go contradicting yourself.

If consoles and graphics are unimportant then why would you prefer a SNES over a 360?

The exact same game could easily be made for both consoles.

[Digglett]

Here you go contradicting yourself.

If consoles and graphics are unimportant then why would you prefer a SNES over a 360?

The exact same game could easily be made for both consoles.

Because my personal favorite console is SNES, that's really the only implication I made in that sense. You're reading far too much into my posts good sir.

[Altrec]

I don't know I still play games on my Atari. Graphics can be important but in my opinion game play always trumps graphics.

As for the new Xbox I will wait and see what services and compatibility options it has before I get worked up over it.