But that won't stop consoles from selling big

[Update: Keighley has produced another slide in which Pachter predicts that "Durango??" will be the generation leader because it has a TV tuner and Skype. Also, there will be no more publisher bankruptcies. Yeah, fat chance.]

Wedbush Securities analyst Michael Pachter most definitely has sweet side, but it's his sour side that's so much fun to talk about. The latest stop in his carnival of flavors is SXSW 2013 in Austin, Texas, where he made the oft-repeated prediction that this latest round of home consoles will be the last we ever see. Of course, he said the exact same thing about this past generation, but I'm sure his number ??is bound to come up eventually.

GT.TV's Geoff Keighley was in attendance, snapping photos of Pachter's PowerPoint presentation and uploading them to Twitter. In addition to claiming that PS4 and Xbox "Durango" games will likely retail for $70, despite what Sony Computer Entertainment America CEO Jack Tretton insists otherwise, Pachter also offers his thoughts on the quality of tech?. Clearly, Wii U is nothing more than a DS split in half and offers no significant potential for software ??innovation, while the PS4's large RAM pool means games on that machine will probably be super innovative.

At #SXSW panel @michaelpachter says PS4 and next Xbox ga??mes will likely cost 70 dollars, 10 dollars more than current gen.

— Geoff Keighley (@geoffkeighley) March 9, 2013

Even though console gaming's days are numbered, total hardware sales will remain steady. The Wii U is projected to only ??hit 30-50 million, down from Wii's roughly 100 million. Based on all its innovative RAM, PS4 will achieve 85-95 million, up from PS3's 73 million. And we know absolutely nothing about "Durango" -- it'll have a TV tuner maybe? -- so of course that ensures another 85-95 million, up from 360's 75 million.

If that's the future of this market sector, it's totally obvious why all the major console manufacturers will jump ship. Those numbers sound terri-bad! Where ?would we be without your awe-inspiring insight, Mr. Pach?

@geoffkeighley [Twitter via NeoGAF]

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Yep, this is the real deal, no lie

While the rest of the world awaits the proper Xbox 720 reveal, ScrewAttack managed to learn all the juicy details and spoil the whole mess. Behold, Microsoft's grand master plan to edge out the PlayStation 4 juuuuuuuuuust slightly!

This won't be surprising coming from a guy who hasn't even fully entered t??he current generation yet, but I don't have high hopes for the new Xbox. I've got this gut feeling that Microsoft will do everything monumentally wrong, pissing off consumers and devs in droves. I guess we'll know for sure once the compa??ny actually does unveil the machine, whenever that may be.

If you want to catch more vids like this one, check out ScrewAttack's new Real Trailers series, which cuts through the bullsh*t and sows the seeds of truth about games like New Super Mario Bros. U and Final Fantasy: All the Bravest.

Real Trailers - Xbox 720 [ScrewAttack]

The post ScrewAttack TOTALLY has the skinny on Xbox 720 appeared first on Destructoid.

Oh snap

Valve's Steam Box is going to be a real big deal, but Microsoft's Don Mattrick, president of Xbox's Interactive Entertainment Business, doesn't think so. Verge reports that when asked whether he views Valve as a competitor during Microsoft's TechForum even???t, Don simply stated "no."

Don added that he thinks Valve is "doing innovative stuff" and that he loves Gabe, but he believes that "the scale of products and things that are being brought to market are probably a little bit richer when I ?look at Sony, Nintendo, Apple, and Google."

Gabe Newell, on the other hand, believes that Apple, not consoles, are their biggest threat.

The Verge piece also details how Don seems fine with keeping the Xbox platform as the way they have to third-party developers. A bad move given the openness of the PC market, and with what the PlayStation 4 will also be providing, especially to indies.

Microsoft's hea??d of Xbox doesn't see Valve as a competitor?, happy with curated apps [The Verge][Image]

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In other news, Gamefly just soiled itself

Eidos co-founder Ian Livingston doesn't see a digital-only system this generation, but he suggests the next Xbox will require an always-on internet connection a??nd will feature marked discs that prevent sharing games across systems.

"Broadband speed globally isn’t at a level that ??justifies digital-only.” Livingstone told MCV India. “So they’ve gone halfway [...] With the next Xbox, you supposedly have to have an internet connection, and the discs are watermarked, whereby once played on one console it won’t play on another. So I think the generation after that will be digital-only.”

We already occupy this reality with Steam, but it's still unsettling to see it come to consoles. Now we can all complain about DRM in unison. Livingston is only offering speculation, not facts, so let's hope Microsoft doesn't adopt such an anti-used games position, especially after Sony said they would not be pursuing such tech in the PS4, even though patents suggest otherwise.

Ian Livingstone talks next-gen [MCV India]

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Xbox 720? We need a better name

Immediately following Sony's big shindig this week, event planners Eventcore have registered the URL XboxEvent.com. And we're talking right after, yesterday, Feb. 21. NeoGAF points out tha??t these are the same folks that are listed as putting together Microsoft's E3 media event last year. It looks like an event is coming up from all of this.

Our guess? The next Xbox will be revealed soon. I think we all expect Microsoft to do this before E3. CVG says that some industry folks, including one Sony official, believe that the event will take place in April, and? we should expect the next Xbox system to be announced? there. 

There's not a lot to go on for that last bit -- it sounds more like guessing. Besides, I ?liked the rumored March, GDC-timed reveal more. Regardless of w??hich month Microsoft chooses to reveal their plans for next-gen, this year is going to be nuts.

The post XboxE??vent.com registered, industry expects April even??t appeared first on Destructoid.

Already looking forward to the PS5 and Nexter Xbox

Ubisoft absolutely loves console launches. Quick to support every fresh system, and first to demand the death of old ones, the company has already e??xpressed its desire to see swifter deaths for the PS4 and Next Xbox, all so it can move onto the next big thing.

"No we don't want to wait seven years for the next one," CEO Yves Guillemot told MCV. "We will have cloud gaming that will improve over?? time, for sure. And we certa?inly have enough novelties for a few years.

"The consoles have taken a long time, we've been saying it for a long time. It's really once tho?se consoles come that we can let creative people more risk, and they feel they can take more risk because new consoles can be more open?.

"They have so many ??features that they can play with. It's ?easier to be a creative person with new consoles, because after four years of people using all the capacity, it's harder to be innovative. With PS4, we will see new ideas and new ways to approach gamers. And that will excite consumers and excite creators."

Personally, I have to wonder how much risk is going to be taken at all this coming generation. The current one has become so steeped in fear, ??so drenched in an atmosphere of homogenization and safe bets, I'm thinking it'll take more than a new set of consoles to get the life back into the party.

Similarly to what I said about Cliffy B's belief that a digital future will make horror games return to the mainstream, I reckon these established publishers are more content with doing the same old stuff, rather than reinvent anything about the way they do things. Over the past few years they dug deeper and deeper into the burrows of familiarity, a problem that'll likely get worse as consoles face more and more compe??tition from other forms of entertainment. ;

I could be wrong, I hope I'm wrong, but I think the culture of the game making business is what needs a rebirth, not the hardware. ?;

Ubisoft: Don't wait 7 years to launch PS5 [MCV]

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Say 'PC gaming is dead' one more time please

Last week, we covered the trend of consoles as an all in one media center. The trend is very noticeable, but it is part? of a much larger trend that happened over the generatio??n. It's a trend that I feel a lot of people overlook, and perhaps it's because the trend happens on a higher level than that of the consumer.

This trend that I'm referring to, is the morphing of consoles into a piece of hardware that resembles a living room PC. As I like to call it, it is the "PCification of consoles." It's something that the Xbox 360's lifespan in particular highlights, and that th??e PS3's launch ?foretold.

Hard Drive Required

The first major sign of the PCification is the inclusion of hard drives. A hard drive in a console by itself is not an odd thing. Th??eey can store more data than memory cards of the past. PS3s have always required one, but the 360 originally launched with hard drives optional. At the time, I didn't think many would imagine just how necessary large amounts of storage would be.

Downloadable games started small, but grew to be gigabytes in size. This, paired with the incl??usion of installs, made a large shift in how storage is viewed. The 360 would see multiple revisions, with hard drives becoming part of a SKU you'd buy off the shelf, eventually ending with the slim model which has an unchangeable internal hard drive. As for the PS3, the system outright used laptop hard drives, which allowed anyone to buy and use their own storage.

Downloadable Gaming

Downloadable gaming blew up in popularity this generation. I'm not just talking about stuff like XBLA either. It's very true that sub-retail releases were able to find a nice home on the platform, and as time went on, the size of downloadable games got bigger. Originally, on XBL, a downloadable game was limited to 50 MB. Today, the limit is 2 gigs. S??ome games are even bigger than that!

Aside from those games, there was an increase in making retail ga?mes available to download from home. Steam does this for PC, and it's still much better at it. Digital distribution of retail games on consoles hasn't slowed down at all. On both the 360 and the PS3, a large number of retail games have also been put up on the console's respective store fronts for digital purchase. Many of these games rank in with a good 5-10 gigabytes of data needed to run them, so it's no wonder that the 80 gig hard drive had become standard in a console.

Game Installs and Patches

Up until this generation only PC games were capable of receiving patches. Now, consoles share this trait. Small ones, frequent ones, release day ones, they were all suddenly there! There are updates to fix bugs, and a little note to say what changed. Even the base firmware of a console can get changed in a patch. The most notable case would be with the major revision of the 360 dashboard, replacing the blades of yor??e with the current metro tiles. Game installs were the cherry on top.

Installs is something that people once said consoles had over PC. On console, all you had to do was pop in a disk and play it. On PC, you had to pop it in, and then wait ten minutes for it to install. Not anymore though! Want to play Halo 4's multiplayer with that freshly opened box you just brought back from GameStop? Hang on a minute then, we need to install it to that fancy 80 gig hard drive that we made sure to install on that?? 360 slim you have.

Some games have taken this to a ridiculous level, such as Metal Gear Solid 4. You'r??e required to install a chapter you're about to play, but you can only have one chapter installed at a time. Not all games actually need it on console to play so far, but the 360 has a particularly interesting quirk here. Any 360 game can be installed to increase performance when playing. This leads to a situation where installing is desired, as it helps load times move faster and prevent disc stuttering.

Program Expandability! Or Apps...

Installing new programs to do new things with a console hit with this generation.
Wii had it first, PS3 wasn't far behind, and the 360 was quick to catch up. Last week, Starkey brought up a lot of good points about how the consoles were exp?anded through greater media playback capabilities. Much of this is thanks to console makers allowing programs to be made and installed on their machines. It's something that, till then, only PCs did. Hell, even now, the PC doe??s it better. Long strides have been made since the start of the generation for consoles despite that.

The first indicator fell with the idea of Channels on the Wii. Not only could games fill these slots, but so could some Nintendo made "non-games" as well. Fun little things, like a photo viewer, a news ticker or weather station. PS3 and 360 would pass the Wii in time when programs, o?r apps if you will, for things like Hulu and Netflix would become available to install on these platforms. The 360 even began to embrace the nomenclature with the release of the current dashboard layout. Video, music, and social apps are legitimate categories with a myriad of options in each one. Internet Explorer was even made available for the 360, which goes to show just how integrated some programs?? would become in the future.

The Future

The trend of PC-ification does not seem to be slowing down, as we enter the next generation. All ready, we have the Wii U which makes almost all games available at day one in both retail and digital formats. The system has firmware patches being readied too.

Rumors aren't hard set facts, but they do give strong indications -- and in the case of Microsoft, well, let's just say they've been kind of transparent leading into this. Much of the rumors surrounding the next PlayStation and the next ??Xbox, indicate ??an even further merging of PC and console.

Rumors suggest each machine will be based off of currently existing PC architecture. That means, unlike the past, much of the innards of the consoles will basically be the same as the innards of a typical PC; so, nothing extravagant and proprietary like a cell processor. In Microsoft's case, there are strong indications that the next Xbox will use a slightly modified version of Windows 8 as the base firmware. Given how much the current 360 dashboard already resembles the Windows 8 start screen, I don't find that to be too far a stre????tch.

It's a exciting time to be in gaming, no matter what side of the field you're on. I haven't even taken into account mobile or handheld gaming as a part of this article. With a mysterious conference on February 20 by Sony that may lead to the announcement of the PS4, the stakes are high. We may get to see a real look at the future of gaming. And then, of course, there's Valve tackling the problem from the other end, trying to make the PC as viable in the living room as a console. It may still be a long way off, but the intersection point between the two methods will be the most interesting. Did someone say "??one platform world?"

_{[Header image courtesy of SnQQpyDog]}

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PS4/Next Xbox just can't pack $2,000 of tech in one system

Crytek CEO Cevat Yerli doesn't sound too impressed by the prospect of a new console generation -- in fact, he claims Crysis 3 running on a high-end PC is already ahead o??f future competition. The ruling factor here, according to him, is price. 

"Without breaking NDAs that are in place, realistically, from purely a price point perspective, it is impossible," he told Eurogamer. "It's impossible ?to package $2000-3000 into a mainstream, let's say $500 console. I'm not saying they are $500 consoles. They may launch a console at $2000, but the consumer pricing is usually much lower than that.

?"So, given consumer pricing, and given the cost of production of a gamer PC and the amount of watt of power it needs, which is like a fridge, it's ?impossible."

Yerli isn't sharing some astounding ?government secret, of course. Consoles are cheaper and easier to use than high-end gaming PCs, which is of course the one major benefit to owning them. That, and first-party exclusives. Still, if you have the means, PC gaming is always going to be where it's at. 

"If you look at PC gaming, that has changed also," Yerli continued. "The whole modular way you can design a PC today, with two, three or four graphics cards in them, and you can water cool them a?nd overclock to infinity, that didn't exist even six or seven years ago. You just bought one or maybe two ??graphics cards and then you were super enthusiastic.

"It's very difficult to compete with that. People have these?? massive nuclear power plants standing in their room?s that will run your games really fast. It's hard to compete with."

I'm intrigued by what Microsoft and Sony are cooking up, but I have to say PC gaming is exciting me the most right now. It's not all about the g?raphics, either -- PC has become the new home of horror games, as well as a place where indie and niche titles can thrive while so-called "AAA" publishers remain terrified of trying new things. Right now, it seems that every major frustration I have with the videogame industry is based in the console sector -- and they're issues way more infuriating than graphical drawbacks. 

That said ... the lovely graphics help. Oh boy do they help!

Crysis 3 developer Crytek on why it's impossible for next-?gen consoles to match the power of gaming PCs [Eurogamer]

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North American retailer addresses Xbox rumors

GameStop, North America's most powerful games retailer, has addressed rumors of the "Next Xbox" shutting out the used game market. The seller of sec?ondhand games believes Microsoft's next system will hurt if it introduces codes that tie games to a sing??le system. 

"We know the desire to purchase a next-generation console would be significantly diminished if new consoles were to prohibit playing pre-owned games, limit portability or not play new physical games," said a GameStop rep, talking to Bloomberg.

With 46% of it?s profit generated from used sales, GameStop evidently has a vested interested. That interest may be crucial to Microsoft, though, as the retailer is a valuable ally and any new console would benefit from its support. Des??troying GameStop's ability to reliably profit from your machine is not a way to get that support. 

GameStop Members May Snub Next-Gen?? Console Restrictions [Bloomberg]

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Latest rumors seem too suicidal to be true

More rumors are surfacing surrounding Microsoft's next generation Xbox system, fittingly nicknamed Next Xbox. Once again, the new gossip spells gloom and doom for fans of used games??, suggesting Next Xbox will demand an always-online connection and block secondhand titles. 

Yeah ... totally not buying it. 

According to those forever-anonymous sources, Next Xbox's 50GB Blu-ray discs will require a one-time activation code, which will render the discs unplayable on any subsequent system. Edge claims it'll boast an AMD eight-core ??x64 1.6GHz?? CPU, a D3D11.x 800MHz graphics solution and 8GB of DDR3 RAM. It'll also have a new waste-of-time Kinect thing built in. 

Here's why I totally don't believe it. This current generation, there are still many Xbox 360 users whose systems aren't online. While it seems obvious to we more absorbed gamers that an Xbox's biggest strength is its online capabilities, there are still many w??ho are happy to just have the disconnected box and do whatever weird things they do with it. Would Microsoft alienate the many potential customers who don't have reliable Internet connections, or those in situations where connecting a console is impractical? 

Not to mention, America's broadband situation is pathetic right now. Many places are sorely lacking the ability to access Internet of a decent speed, and download caps will still be in place for as long as "service" providers can get away with them. Hell, there are plenty who still rock that dial-up bullshit! Despite all the rose-tin??ted talk of a digital gaming future, It's doubtful there's an infrastructure in place to support such publisher-friendly ideals at the moment, and I'm not sure we'll get there in the next few years. 

Steam may be popular, but a console just going after Steam's crowd would be nonsensical. As big as Valve's service is, it could still be considered niche compared to the mainstream console market, full as it is with kids and "casuals" ready to spend their ill-gotten gains. In an indust??ry where everything's desper?ately trying to be more accessible, such imposing restrictions could be a potential disaster. 

As far the secondhand block goes? Can't see it happening next generation. Oh, I am certain executives in Microsoft and Sony have considered it, talked about it, masturbated each other vigorously while dreaming about it, but I don't believe even the remedial fantasists who run these companies are quite so delirious as to actually do it. With the console market already in a precio??us position, it'd be downright reckless to piss off GameStop and the other used game retailers who would be relied upon to see the Nex??t Xbox. 

I'm with Michael Pachter when he says a console designed to snub the secondhand market would suffer. The only companies it would benefit would be the rival ones, especially if they exploit the heck out of it for their own marketing purposes. Sure, if all three companies decided, at the same time, to institute such a restriction, they may just get away with ?it, if they somehow convince all their potential cus?tomers to get on board with it and don't finally crash the market trying. That's a hell of a gamble, though, and if we learned anything from the past few years of this generation, there ain't nobody in the console business with the spine to gamble anymore. 

Naturally, I could be totally wrong. Microsoft could suddenly get an insane dose of blind courage and give all this a w?hirl. I won't believe it until I see it, though.

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The truth of the matter

There is a question every journalist must ask before posting a piece of news: Who does this hurt, and who does this help? We don't often ask that question, however, because we aren't game journalists -- we're game reporters, who selectively coll??ect and share gaming news that interests us and that we think will interest readers.

Last week, an anonymous news fairy on a mission to prove the illegitimacy of game blogs started up a false rumor, detailing the specs and name of Microsoft's next console. Conning a whopping seven sites (and "many more"), according to his follow-up analysis, it's become clear that his mission has ??been a staggering ??waste of time for all involved. But, it has opened discussion at our outlet, in comments, and on Twitter about the nature of rumors and why we run them.

So, let's? pretend we are Honest-to-Goo?dness journalists™: Who does this information hurt and who does it help?

HURT

During my days at a university paper, I was assigned a story about a local, long-standing pizza parlor shutting down near my campus. T?his wasn't a pizza joint; it was THE pizza joint. Thus, it was prime material for Thursday's paper.

Grabbing what may very well be my last slice from the establishment, I sat down with the owner to ask him why the hell would he do this to us (deprive us of delicious pizza??) and if he knew that he is no different than a soulless, merciless Nazi -- I didn't actually say these things, but I did try my best at guilting him into staying. That's when he unveiled to me that he had a very serious illness and he can't pay the bills after caring for his parents' own maladies. Oh, the tragedy! The warm, amiable pizza shop owner that made the students feel like family can now not care for his own family and well-being. It was too good of a story not to write ...

But, I didn't write it. He didn't want anyone to know. He didn't want to hurt his community, friends, or family with this information. So, I gave up what would be a front page article (meant a lot in those days) for some wimpy looking photo with a caption: "Pizza owner closes business, he considers opening a new one away from campus, in the future." Seeing my piece in the paper the next day only nailed into me the fact I missed out on a big story, confused whether I did the right thing or not. On the way to the newspaper office, I saw someth??ing across the street at the (defunct) pizza parlor. There was a slip of paper attached to the window, but it was too dense with text to be a regular closed-sign. It was my article. My wimpy article. But, it suddenly wasn't so wimpy. The owner proudly displayed it, knowing his customers will understand even if they don't know the full truth. It became clear in that moment t??hat the information I have as a reporter can help the public or hurt the public and I should always aim for the greatest good.

Pizza guy with terminal illness. Xbox rumor. Not the same thing, I know. But the same basic principle applies when handling rumors: Who does it really hurt? Well, it hurts our credibility as a publication and as individuals. Remember that kid in 6th grade English who told you his uncle works for Nintendo and has the scoop on the new Mario game? You sheepishly believe him the first time, but damn him when he offers any subsequent rumors, playing you for the fool. No outlet wants to be that kid, which is why most of us don't run too-good-to-be-true rumors that arrive in our inbox, unless A) the individual has a great track record (look no further than Superannuation for that) and B) the supplie??d evidence is believable, even without our clouded enthusiasm.

Rumors are fun. Didn't you grow up on GamePro and EGM? I did. I loved the rumor mill sections that proudly laid-out every single possible overheard rumor along with the author's feelings on their validity. In this context, rumors were displayed in their proper scale: small text on big pages in a large magazine. Today, rumors share the same allotted?? space as legit news due to the format of most websites. The presence of rumors is heightened, putting outlets in an uncomfortable ??position of having to stand behind rumors or cowardly associate blame elsewhere ("Uh, well Game Finger ran it first.")

When a site gets it right, press reps call the writer a jerk. W??hen they get it wrong, readers call them page-view monsters.

HELP

Do y??ou not want to be entertained? Rumors are the news equiva??lent of the loud cooling fan in my PC: Their presence is annoying but necessary to keep this entertainment going.

The game industry, like every entertainment industry before it, is a tightly bundled package of investor paranoia and artistic ambition. It's a curled over hamster, so nervous with energy that it shits all over the cage if you lay a finger on it. It shits our rumors. These rumors turn out to be true 90% of the time. Remember how outlandish the idea of a PlayStation-based Super Smash Bros. fighting game was a year ago? And how no one believed it because some small, obscure blog spilled the beans? Even when rumors don't turn out to be exactly true, there is often a string of truth to them. Unless they are fabricated from some bedroom in order to teach a very important lesson.

You are like me, a?re you not? Are you not an entertainment junkie, stealing money from little kids cowering behind the bleachers so you can shoot up more proverbial game news into the veins of your now very sad looking (proverbial, I hope) penis? NEW CALL OF DUTY? YEEESSH! NEW GOD OF WAR!? WHAT!!! WHAT THE FUUUU -- OH SHIT! OH SHIT! NEW PERSONA? NEW PERSONAAAAAAAAA UUUUUUUHHH OOOOOHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH I AM INVINCIBLE YEEEEESS!!! -- okay, hopefully your reliance on gaming news isn't that extreme, but the point is that we like rumors because we like to get excited about new things. Preferably true things, but only time can tell us that.

So, if we draw the line in the sand right now and say, "No more rumors" we'd be running a much more boring site for it. For what? Who are we helping? Ourselves (viz. our credibility)? But, new console and sequel rumors is what people c??ome to us for night and day. It's what we are drawn to as reporters but even more as game fans. It's a large part of why we exist and do what we do -- to collect and share what we are excited about.

So, if ?we didn't run this Xbox hoax (which we didn't), various message boards would post it inst??ead (which many did). Reporters in this business like to think they are a step above message boards -- after all, does xSephirothx1994 get to eat steamed brisket on Disney's dime or travel to Italy on Capcom's -- so not posting a rumor that turns out to be false is as great of an accomplishment as picking-up a Goddamned phone to ask a developer some Goddamned questions that would result in some Goddamned actual Honest-to-Goodness journalisms™.

And if you think "t??his is a hoax that other sites ran but we didn't so go us!" is a pro?per news post, there is no hope for you and your site.

Good Rumor

I wish it were only as simple as printing out a rumor, rolling up the paper, and sticking it in the bum of one of Dale's magical, soothsaying corgis; but he won't let us do that, unfortunately. So, we have to use our common sense and internal intel to decide what rumor is w?orth reporting.

Bad Rumor

Maybe we can define wh??at a bad rumor is once we, as a collective reporting profession, are past running old Konami press releases that are accidentally redistributed months later. If you are a bored, passive aggressive blogger, you won't get greater proof-cum-ammo that some outlets thoughtlessly recycle PR emails than that.

The Hoax

What did?? this Joe Anon prove to the very small world that encompasses game reporting? Let's take a loo?k back at his Tumblr post.

I, like most other gamers, am sick of seeing endless rumours and speculation citing “anonymous sources” or &ld??quo;insiders” with no evidence, no proof, no guarantee that they’ve been fa??ct-checked or can be relied on.

If you are not also laughing, then this is the time to open up your dictionary and look up "rumor". You should now realize, if you had not already, that "fact-checking" a rumor in an attempt to dredge up a "guarantee" is an oxymoron. A rumor is based on non-verifiable information that -- SURPRISE SURPRISE -- the mentioned party (Microsoft) will not verify for you -- "Oooooh, the new Xbox we are working on? Haha, yeah. I'll tell you all about that now that some anonymous emp??loyee wrote five half-assed paragraphs on it. Great. Great. Hold on a second let me get Steve Ballmer on the line and ... :loud fart:"

If not having solid, verifiable information bothers you, it should. It bothers us too, as reporters that want to find true stories and report them. That can't always be the case. Sometimes we know truths that we can't report on. Sometimes we have to ?t?ake someone's word on something and sometimes we get burned in doing so. It's up to all of us to judge what is worth buying into. We all have our own threshold and that's okay (for the sake of my conscious, I can't read a 8,000+ word feature with no named sources.)

The games industry is the only one I can think of that will quit?e happily publish guesswork as news. 

Knowing that this individual can think but only to a limited degree, it's no surprise that he can't summon up stories about football rumors, alleged deaths, or even point a finger at the music industry that makes a mockery of itself by posting "No, really Dr. Dre and Kevin Shields are going to make a new album. We just know it!" three times a year for what feels like three decades now.

By tagging a post with ‘rumour’, most writers/editor??s believe they can get away with spreading false information for their own benefits. They are the only ones to gain from such practices, whilst the gaming fans end up with speculation and, sometimes, outright lies.

Let me dispel an image you may have of me: that of me and my co-workers in a hamster wheel with electric cables, attached by our publisher Niero, that go from our bungho?les to the splendiferous pizza ads that power our site. Consider it dispelled, because we'd go crazy, eating our own intestines and such, if we posted news solely for the hits. Instead, we collect and share the news that excites us AND that we believe to be true. Occasionally, hoping to be true is good enough. Call it a racket, but at least recognize it's a racket run on a collective passion.

Our ceaseless news cycle (growing ever stronger through some exciting internal cha??nges and the drinking of Jordan Devore's blood) is one that serves to help dump as much exciting game-related news possible. Rumors permitted. An anonymous source stepping in to waste the hours away cooking up false rumors doesn't change that. It doesn't prove anything. It doesn't even hurt us. It doesn't help anyone either.

Be right back, I have some rumors to fact check.

_{[Images by Joseph Dumary, courtesy of Yanko Design]}

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I hope they come up with a better name than Kinect 2

For all of Microsoft's commercial success with Kinect, the device still seems to draw a lot of criticism for its lack of compelling supported games, and rightfully so. Perhaps things will be different with the successor to the Xbox 360, which will reportedly offer an upgraded motion-control device capable of handling four players simultaneously. According to CVG, Microsoft has sent out early hardware for Kinect 2 (or whatever it ends up being called).

The outlet's unnamed source, a game developer, says that motion-control kits are "in circulation" among select studios, though the source had not personally seen the kits yet. Even if it is reasonable to expect this tech will be impressive, functionally, it's difficult to become actively? excited as far as gaming is concerned. Frankly, it's going to take a much more concentrated effort on the part of many studios to bring me back to a state of hopefulness.

Next gen Xbox motion control kit??s 'in circulation' [CVG]

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Baird Equity Research puts it out there

While it's evident that this year's E3 is going to something special, the announcements of the new Xbox and PlayStation could just as reasonably occur before the expo this June. In the mean time, there are plenty of rumors going around. As reported by GamesIndustry International, Baird Equity Research has come out of the 2013 Consumer E?lectronics Show with the belief that these consoles will cost between $350-$400 in the US.

The firm has also offered an estimated launch window for both consoles: PlayStation in October, and Xbox in November with the caveat that there "may be early production issues with Sony's PS4." According to Baird's Colin Sebastian, "Our checks suggest that next-generation console hardware will be largely built from 'off the shelf' high-end PC components, along with hybrid physical/digital distribution models, enhanced voice controls and motion sensing (Kinect integration with every Xbox), and bro?ad multi-media capabilities."

He says that "Moreover, a PC-based architecture (Intel chips in the case of Xbox) should have a number of advantages over custom-developed silicon: for one, the learning curve for software developers will be shorter than completely new technology. Second, the cost of production and retail price points should be lower than prior console launches. Third, it will be easier to build online services around PC chip architecture, including flexible business models (free-to-play, subscriptions) and multi-media (over the top)?? content offerings."

$400 price point for next PlaySt??ation, Xbox cons?oles [GamesIndustry International]

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Microsoft? Poor quality hardware? Surely not!

According to the latest gossip, Microsoft started as it meant to go ??on when it made the Xbox 360 out of bits o?f cardboard and blu-tack. The next Xbox system is allegedly facing potential release delays due to the poor quality of its "Oban" chip. 

Microsoft's said to have outsourced production to three separate factories in hope somebody can fix the processor, which is said to be functioning at a "painfully low" rate of quality by SemiAccurate. The system was said to be gearing up for a September 13 2013 launch, but this issue may risk pushing it bac??k.&nb??sp;

The site also claims that the Next Xbox is set to be an IBM Power-EN PowerPC variant, and that "moles are openly talking" about AMD x86 CPU cores.

"... and more surprisingly," it adds, "a newer than expected GPU. How new? HD7000 series, or at least a variant of the ??GCN cores, heavily tweaked by Microsoft for their specific needs."

That's the latest rumor for your Xbox next-gen interests. The one thing I want to k??now, however, is what co??lor the rings will be this time. 

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With recent news that the leaked "Xbox 720" dev kit pictures and specs may actually be -- gasp! -- genuine, what are your thoughts? Here are the facts: The console is codenamed "Durango," the dev kit allegedly has 8 GB of memory, is 64-bit, and supports DirectX 11. When all is said and done, documented rumors point to the next-gen console being around six times more powerful than the current Xbox 360.

Six times more powerful. That is one impressive machine!

But all these rumored specs aside, what do you want from the "Xbox 720"? We hear all these crazy rumors, but now it's time to talk about what you actually want to see. Do you want a super powerful PC-like machine with graphics that will melt your face like the Ark of the Covenant? Do you want a new and improved Kinect? Do you want a hybrid that is both cloud- and disc-based? Do you want always-on DRM? Do you want a console that doesn't play used games?

And what about the name? And the price? I think we can all agree that calling it the "Xbox 720" doesn't really make any sense and would not be a ve?ry logical fina??l name. Any suggestions? How much money would you be willing to realistically spend on the console? News on this next-generation Xbox is heating up, so let's discuss! There is so much to talk about!

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An unsettling new rumor suggests that Microsoft's next generation? Xbox will require a permanent Internet connection, ostensibly becoming a box of DRM in order to curb console pi??racy. 

Further gossip contradicts previous rumors concerning an all-digital system, claiming that the new machine will support Blu-ray discs. It's also allegedly rocking two GPUs equivalent to AMD's 7000 series, though they won't be crossfire or SLI. A source describes it as, "like two PCs taped together."

Finally, it's claimed an evolved Kinect will be built in as standard and that?? we'll see the new beast by Christma?s 2013. 

As with all rumors, take everything with a bucket of salt. The always-on DRM is tempting to believe, given how far some companies go to feel like they're protecting themselves, but with so many consumers still using offline consoles, I think this suggested measure goes a bit far. As with the anti-used games measures, I like to think companies aren't this short-sighted ... although my faith could be entirely unwarranted??. 

Xbox 720: ??Bl??u-ray inside, always-on netcon required [VG247]

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It's time for your daily next-gen rumor! This latest bit of gossip speculates that Microsoft's next console will ditch discs entirely, embracing neither DVD nor Blu-ray. Well, that's one way to fight the used market. 

This comes from everybody's favorite gossiper, Mr. Anonymous Source, who divulged information to MCV "unde?r the strictest NDA." Appare??ntly it will support some form of solid-state card storage, but discs will be a thing of the past. 

Naturally, Microsoft gave its usual canned response, saying it doesn't comment on rumors while reminding everybody that ??we should buy a Kinect. Nothing new there. 

What do you reckon? Plausible? Silly? Enjoy the rudderless speculation, it's what the l?ead-up to a console reveal was made for!

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Yep, it's another "Next Xbox" rumor, and it is quite possibly the most outlandish hardware rumor we've had in a long time. A source close to Kotaku claims that not only will the "Next Xbox" adopt Blu-ray, it'll also refuse to run any games ?bought secondhand. 

The source admits that he doesn't know how the console would do that. Microsoft responded to the rumor by saying that it's always trying to "push the boundaries" of technology, but would not comment f?urther on this, or on the rumor that Kinect 2 is going to be introduced along with the new console. 

This is one rumor that should be taken with a veritable ark full of salt, as I find it difficult to believe that even Microsoft would be so bold as to go this far. Platform holders sti??ll rely heavily on GameStop to market and sell systems, and a snub of this magnitude would prove?? an immense risk without a worthy payoff. 

It's also worth noting that we had similar rumors before the PS3 launched, and nothing came of it. While I'd not say that Microsoft definitely won't implement an a??nti-used system, I find it incredibly unlikely.

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You know the drill by now -- a new console announcement seems inevitable, so a slew of exaggerated rumors start hitting the Internet with increasing frequency. As pundits expect a new Xbox to be announced this year, the latest word is that it'll be six times more powerful t??han current consoles.

According to IGN's source, the new system is preparing to launch in October/November 2013. Its GPU will be very similar to AMD's Radeon HD 6670. It is also supposedly going to outperform th??e Wii U by 20%. Dev kits are said to be heading to studios in August. 

As with all pre-announcement rumors, take it with a grain of salt. The PS ?Vita was said to be able to resurrect dinosaurs before we finally saw it, after all. Still, this is yet another rumor to fuel speculation that we'll be seeing the next Xbox real soon.

Xbox 720 Will Be Six Times as Powerful as Current G??en [IGN]

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A new M??icrosoft patent shows a device that would be both a game ??console and a digital video recorder. 

I'll pause so you can make the same f??ace I did. Tighten your lips and look off to your upper left and hold ?for a few seconds. There. That's it.

The patent says this device would let you record televisio?n while gaming. The DVR menus would be integrated within the gaming side, letting users get their game on while managing their daytime soa??ps. Of course, like your trusty grey cable box, this device would continue recording, even when off. 

This hybrid thing would record television programs, of course. Microsoft also suggests th?at it could nab gaming footage (local or online), rip music and movies, and so on. 

So, a cable box with a disc drive and controller po?rts? Now I'm making the face you would ?when you see a dog eating its poop.

Note that while just granted, this patent has some age on it??, as it was filed at the end of 2007. Microsoft may have no plans to use this. Things have changed with television since then. The latest update to the Xbox 360 to make it a streaming beast is more in line with what users want and need. Let's keep going that direction.

Patents Show th??at the Next Xbox Might Be a DVR, Too [Kotaku]

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Many gamers have already assumed that the next generation of videogames will officially kick off next year, and a number of rumors suggest that we'll be seeing the third iteration of the Xbox soon (I won't say "Xbox 720" because ugh). Analyst Michae??l "Colorful Erection" Pachter is more cynical, however, going so far as to call any talk of a 2012 Xbox release silly. 

"Those rumors are silly," he sai?d. "Microsoft is still selling a ton of Xbox 360s, and they won't replace the existing one until sales begin to slow. I think the rumors are based upon leaks about modifying the current Xbox 360 to allow it to operate Windows 8. I fully expect a new model of Xbox 360 by holiday 2012, but don't think we see a new ?console altogether from Microsoft until 2014."

201??4 is quite a way away, and with the Xbox 360 undoubtedly showing its age, I wonder if Microsoft can wait that long. The PS2 still sold a ton when the PS3 was out, and while Sony's obviously a different company, I would say that console releases are about more than just replacing the falling sales of the last machine. Keeping up with the Joneses and grabbing press attention with shiny new toys is just as, if not more, important. I don't think the Xbox 360's success can be taken as sole evidence that a new console isn't on the horizon. 

Xbox 720 in 2012 rumours are 'silly', says?? Pachter [Videogamer]

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Analysts t??hink that the next Microsoft console will be a hybrid, using both cloud-based and media-based delivery. We're not ready to take it all to the cloud yet, they say. I hope you have storage space for more discs.

DFC Intellig?ence analyst David Cole says that half the fun is actually lining up to acquire disc-based media. He feels that physical media is still important. 

Cole told IndustryGamers, ??"I think that the Xbox 720 should definitely have some sort of access for physical media. Th??e cloud stuff can open up new doors and Microsoft's strategy is all about delivering services via the box, basically it has been somewhat of a cloud strategy from the beginning."

Colin Sebastian of RW Baird says that things will continue as is, with larger games coming on discs, and smaller coming via digital distribution: "I think any smart console manufacturer will want to offer a mix of distribution points for consumers - both in the cloud a??nd at retail stores. There is such a broad spectrum of games that consumers are playing, and there is not a one-size fit all solution."

EEDAR analyst Jesse Divnich sees t?he nex?t Microsoft system as a true hybrid. He feels that the industry "will continue to support physical media until the mass market has reached the tipping point of acceptance on digital."

Let's hear some of your speculation, Destructoid. Are we ready for an all-clo??ud future? Or do we still need discs?

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Ha! No?w it sounds like people are just making sh*t up. These stand-in console names sound bad, and all the projected dates constantly flipping around makes this talk of next generation consoles sound like a ring of nerdy kids arguing on the playground.

Yesterday we heard a rumor that PS4 projects are already underway, and then, a few minutes later, more rumors on the competition, and something of a holiday 2013 launch.

RW Baird analyst Colin Sebastian poops on all of that with his version. He told IndustryGamers that Sony would move first, ?and that the Xbox-whatever isn't going to drop until after 2013.

"I?? doubt they will be ready for launch in 2013.  Between Sony and Microsoft, we expect Sony to be first to market perhaps as early as 2013, but more likely in 2014.  There is still a lot of investment for both companies to recoup in the current generation," he said.

Either way, enjoy what you have, and only look forward to what you know is coming. I just got done with Batman: Arkham City, and am now playing Uncharted 3. Gaming doesn't get any better, folks. Get excited about games --? not systems.

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