Fans won’t have to wait much longer for the release of the new Xbox Scorpio, a supercharged Xbox One console which is said to play games at a 4K resolution and higher frame rates. In the meantime, Microsoft have teased us with pictures of the console’s hardware.
We’ve known about Scorpio since last years E3 when the company confirmed it was working on a new console but offered very little detail about what it would be like. Since then, we’ve been given a lot more information which has come in the form of detailed technical work-through on the Digital Foundry, one of the internet’s most preeminent gaming hardware websites.
There have been a series of cryptic yet mesmerizing closeups of the hardware which provide us with just as much information as the photos of the exterior and the latest teaser continues in the same vein. Microsoft Xbox Engineering head Mike Ybarra posted a photo on Twitter (seen below) which is what we can only assume to be a closeup of the chip that is going to be inside the box. Look, it even SAYS 4K!
This is 🦂. 💪🏼🎮😱💯 #Xbox pic.twitter.com/szrngMTKwi
— Mike Ybarra (@Qwik) May 31, 2017
Microsoft came under a lot of scrutiny during the Xbox One reveal because of their lack of focus on games in favor of entertainment features. The fact that the console was more expensive and not as powerful as the Playstation 4 didn’t help either and it wasn’t long until the Playstation 4 outpaced the Xbox One, forcing Microsoft to have a rethink.
Project Scorpio demonstrates this refocus and is clearly a project with hardware at the forefront. One of the project’s main selling points is the fact that it will accommodate a full VR experience but how this will translate remains to be seen. Xbox does have ties to Facebook’s Oculus Rift, though, so it’s likely that a partnership will be seen there. What’s more, the company will be gearing up for the appearance of some third-parties turning up to show off the project and there are rumors of a new Tomb Raider and even Red Dead Redemption 2 on the Scorpio.
However, some questions remain unanswered regarding the console such as cost, form factor and final name which many are hoping to hear at Microsoft’s E3 press conference which will take place on June 11, 2pm PDT, 5pm EST and 3am BST.
