Last generation was the first time we ever got a true upgrade within a console life cycle. Sure, we always received slim consoles here and small revisions there, but the Xbox One X marked a significant change in direction for console gaming.
The mid-gen Xbox One X was a massive upgrade on the base console, bringing incredibly high resolution targets and often the ability to switch between multiple graphics modes. Arguably, both it and the PS4 Pro have had a huge impact on the new generation, as multiple rendering modes are now the norm.
On the Xbox side of things, the One X has seemingly had a big impact internally. This time around, Microsoft has built the idea of multiple consoles within the generation right into its naming convention. 'Xbox Series' has always implied that we may see multiple console iterations this generation, and the Xbox Series S already proved that point at launch.
However, the pandemic has had a huge impact on chip manufacturing, so much so that new-gen consoles are still pretty hard to find, barring the Xbox Series S, which is seemingly cheaper and easier to make. With that in mind, has the chip shortage harmed our chances of a new Xbox anytime soon, or will Microsoft merely change direction?
Back in March, a new console codename was spotted in a Microsoft datamine. If 'Keystone' does indeed allude to a new console, then chip shortages clearly haven't stopped Xbox console development. However, with how readily available Xbox Series S is — while Series X isn't — Microsoft may opt for another budget, low-power option, rather than a Series X 'upgrade'.
Or maybe we'll go back to the more traditional console path, where internal revisions and slim consoles are the most we can expect from this generation. After all, there's already talk of Xbox Series X revisions going on, and these new consoles are still pretty powerful in the grand scheme of things. Either way, we know work on new Xbox hardware is underway in some capacity; Microsoft's Liz Hamren said as much last summer.
For us, we'd be happy for the Series X to stretch a little further this time around. Last generation, the Xbox One lagged behind from the off, but the Series X still feels super powerful — with plenty of untapped potential — 18 months into the generation. As much as we'd love to see more powerful hardware, we don't think the market really needs it anytime soon.
But what do you think? Will we see another Xbox Series console sometime soon? Vote in the poll and let us know.
Comments 35
I don't see why it would make any difference, they'd just make the new chips instead of the ones they already are, these are just AMD CPU and GPU's after all. The complication is the Series S, as if you have a Series X and then a higher spec on top of that then surely at some point the S is going to have to be left behind
The chip shortage is not great on these new consoles let alone an upgrade.
The kids are off school for 2 weeks it Easter holidays UK. There are 3 big shopping days this Easter bank holiday. And you can scream all you like but you can’t walk into any of my local shops or shopping malls and buy a Series X or a PS5. Just seems an extra bad drought of these consoles at the minute.
Going by the car industry and waiting around 9 months for a new car this is not getting any better this year 2022 for sure.
That’s is not great at all and such a shame for the industry as a whole and those wanting a new generation console.
I hope not. Very against the whole mid gen upgrade garbage. Just stop. Put the tech and research and effort towards next gen and be done with it.
@Medic_Alert
I agree there for a change for me.
Also we have hardly made a dent in the series x power with games, like programmed from the ground up for new generation only.
Think Starfield will be the real first one and that’s two years into this new generation.
Also seeing unreal 5 and if we ever get to that pure quality of visuals in game are we then getting into diminishing returns with a mid generation upgrade.
I really don’t think so, there’s no need for a mid-cycle upgrade this generation, the XONE and PS4 were vastly underpowered since launch (compared to PCs of that time) and with 4K going mainstream it was almost necessary to have that upgrade (which I don’t think 8K is gonna be mainstream anytime soon).
It’s important to note that neither the One X nor PS4 Pro were a success since most people kept buying the base model being the One S and PS4 Slim respectively.
Also developers have only just begun to grasp the capabilities of both XSX and PS5 since 95% of the games have also released on XONE and PS4, there’s very few titles only made for the new generation being a year and half later after launch and it seems we won’t entirely move on from last gen until late 2023 or later.
Given how much technology has advanced in the past few years and is likely to advance in the next few to come, eg: path-tracing, I would prefer the next iteration of the Xbox be a whole new console sporting newer technologies — with backwards-compatability of course.
Edit: Excluding chip revisions that lower manufacturing and energy costs, of course.
In many ways I hope there will not be a mid-generation upgrade, partly because it is difficult to see, at present, how much more beefy they can make the machines whilst keeping the price affordable, but also because I really don't want to battle the scalpers once again. I bought 2 x XSX (one for me and one for my teenage son) and a PS5 the moment they became available to pre-order, but those 10-15 minutes it took to complete the orders were pretty tense/stressful (particularly with the Series X as firstly, that was my preferred console, but also because I needed to complete two orders from two sites because I was worried that if I bought two from the same site they might cancel the order completely). I really don't fancy confronting that stress once again right now, though hopefully there won't be the same chip shortage come the next iteration. Having said all that, were there to be a mid-term upgrade, I would likely plump for buying it once again...
I think all future Xbox consoles will be under the Series branding in the sense that if Microsoft wanted to start it with the Xbox One branding instead, the Series X and S would've been called the Xbox One X2 and S2.
@Rural-Bandit
I think 8k tv for the home is just the tv manufacturers and market trying to sell the public more that really really is not required.
We have hardly any 4K tv broadcasts in the UK and just a little on Sky Q which you pay extra for.
I think 4K tv for the home and gaming is definitely enough.
They’ll give us one…but I hope they don’t. Will be very annoying if by the time we finally start seeing these new consoles getting taken advantage of they’re trying to sell us yet another console.
And tbh, my PS4 pro barely saw any real enhancements over PS4 versions to make it worth the purchase. I only pulled the trigger because psvr fanboys ‘withoutparol’ kept going on about how playing vr saw night and day improvements on the pro (it really didn’t for the vast majority of games).
But of course they’ll try and milk us some more…and one day this will be another benefit of a streaming future.
@Medic_Alert I think ray tracing is the only tangible upgrade for the X or PS5, obviously they have that now but their capabilities are incredibly limited. As you said though what would you call it and what would it mean for the Series S?
@Rural-Bandit I don't see 8K being mainstream for a very long time, it'd certainly be a huge waste of resources for gaming. Here in the UK and I suspect elsewhere, we still have sub 1080p TV signals as standard, with 1080p being an optional upgrade
@Rural-Bandit
This is true, also viewing distance is a big factor
I’m 65” tv about 8.5ft away which is great for 4K
When I had a 55” tv at 8.5ft away some 4K details were not that visible.
So I have the sweet spot now 65” tv at 8.5ft for 4K detail and a good central viewing angle as that counts as well.
@Rural-Bandit I've got a 3060ti and it's a different world to what the consoles can do RT wise and the rumoured performance of the 40 series could move those goalposts, so I don't see them ever getting near PC performance. Still if either of them or AMD can introduce dedicated hardware for RT acceleration then they could still get a notable jump in performance over what they have now.
As for TV's I got the Samsung KS7000 back when it launched some 5 or 6 years ago and even today its rarely used to its full potential most of the time. Gaming wise it's been good with the PS4 Pro, One X and beyond but even many 4K blu rays I've found to be disappointing visually
I don’t want upgraded consoles.
I want new IP
I wouldn't mind getting a slimmer all digital series x
@Rural-Bandit
The price is close 55 to 65 especially if you want to buy the model being replaced like the C1 with the C2
Some great C1 deals at the moment.
In a few year’s time these consoles will only be able to deliver a miserly 30fps experience according to Digital Foundry’s expert predictions. Imagine every game playing as badly as the Matrix demo does, a bleak future indeed. We’ll need new hardware just to play at 60fps with the Unreal Engine 5 bells and whistles. In comes Xbox Series Z to the rescue, providing a much needed 60fps experience on the latest games. Microsoft have shown they’re willing to use improved framerates for marketing purposes (FPS Boost) so this is how I see a mid-gen upgrade fitting in. I just hope by that point the manufacturing capacity issue is fully resolved.
I genuinely can’t see the point of a mid gen upgrade this time. These machines aren’t underpowered at launch like XB1 and PS4 were, and they won’t have the hook of 4K Gaming as a ‘selling point.’
We should see an Xbox Series S launch with a disc drive and an XSX launch with no disc drive but maybe more memory lol. Plus more powerful versions of the two..just hope their naming conventions don't suck for the follow ups.
@Rural-Bandit @Rural-Bandit 32K VR should hit in the 2030s and that will be indistinguishable from reality but don't ever see that making it's way to a TV. It would have to be massive to get any benefit. 8K is already pushing the limit and really only for the ultra wealthy who probably don't even really use the TV aside from stunting on their friends. I've got a 55 in LG CX and that will be perfect for the next 6+ years (assuming burn in doesn't become a problem). Hoping they move on to other sensory details like wind or smell in the home theater setup, would be great to feel a breeze coming in from the sea in Elden Ring or the smell of sulfur & feel the temperature from a warm wind increase slightly as you approach a sleeping dragon. Lots of potential and my wallet isn't ready.
To your points on the LGs, I think you can get away with the C9 upwards, those are on sale for pretty fair prices now. I managed to get a CX 55in for under a thousand brand new. Don't mind going back a model year or two to save a grand! I will now have to reconsider a surround sound dolby set up
I think the series s and series x is all we will get. Maybe not even a slim version based on what MS said at the launch of the console
What are they gonna upgrade to???? Last gens upgrades were due to 4K becoming popular an the standard for most new TV’s. If ya think i’m paying another £450 just for locked 120 fps ya’ve no chance!! Slightly upgrading a console every 2-3 years is pointless. I may as well buy a gaming PC.
@Kilamanjaro scratch and sniff video games!!??? 😂😂😂
I dont think they will upgrade as theres no really meaningful upgrades to make. the dye size cant really get much smaller either so a slim xbox series X isnt probably going to happen either
I think if there had been no chip shortages and we were well into a “normal” next generation then there could have been a Series XX, especially if Sony released a PS5 Pro.
But this is no normal console generation, I think the shortages mean we’re still going to be seeing games made to run on One/PS4 for another year at the very least. In fact I believe Sony are still making PS4s as they don’t have a Series S to cater for the budget end of the market, which is I think is going to be very important this generation with the cost of living crisis.
So, I’d be very surprised to see anything beyond slimmer/revised models from both companies this gen.
Mid gen was unlikely regardless of chip shortages. There will be slim or updates or a new sidegrade, but not a mid gen bump like last time.
I think we're gonna get slim revision and storage upgrade / options (like iphones), but I don't think we'll get another power upgrade like ps4 pro, not when most games still released on 9 years old console.
Besides, what are the marketing point of the new upgrade? Many people still haven't got 8K tv, and didn't care for 120hz gaming. I'm more interested in portable, steam deck like machine from microsoft.
If there's a refresh/bump I feel like it will just be to m one tmfrom Rdna 2 based gpu to whatever amd release next. Probably likely to be a subtle update that will likely just drop less frames or resolution it make the experience smoother.
Series S however might get an upgrade if they find themselves with the hardware able to increase its power but retain it's pricing. PC gpus see improvements whenever new a new series of cards arrives, so an rtx 3060 is better than a 2060, so swapping out for the next revisions equivalent card could see gains for them. Not entirely sure how the custom silicon works and if it's cheaper or easier for them to keep their custom chips on the same base as amds consumer PC chips.
I’m split 50/50 on this.
One of the main reasons for the mid-generation upgrade last time was the introduction of 4K TVs. The base XBO and PS4 were just not powerful enough to put out a crisp image on 4K screens, even with clever upscaling like checkerboard rendering. This time round I don’t think we will see that same hardware need.
However we may see a software need. Things like Ray/path Tracing or Unreal’s Nanite might push the boundaries of what the XBSX and PS5 can do, not to mention the Series S. If we want to keep 60fps AND have these features then perhaps a mid-gen refresh might be needed.
Plus if one company jumps the other will follow. So if Sony plan a PS5 Pro, Xbox will follow with a new series console and vice versa.
Time will tell.
@Medic_Alert “The problem I have with an upgrade this generation is what do you sell it as? The X1X was the 4k machine etc.”
I mostly agree, said similar in my post above. But playing devils advocate a bit I think we are at the point where people are willing to pay more for the newer tech. Just look at phones, headphones, etc. there’s a lot of buying the newest/best thing not for a large selling point but just because it’s the new iterative version. Equally I think that selling point could be something like 60fps games using UE5 Nanite etc. If XSX/PS5 can only manage the most intensive games at 30fps I know I’d likely jump and I’d expect many other enthusiasts, who these mid-gen refreshes are aimed at, would too.
“My other issue with this is that while Xbox makes a loss on all their hardware, why build an upgrade that will push that loss further if you can't create any real gain for the machine?”
The benefit would be not falling behind in the console race. If Sony make a PS5 Pro, Xbox will want to follow suit.
@Medic_Alert fwiw I think you’re right, I just think there is a chance that in the next couple of years we may end up back at 30fps for the top end games and there will be a demand for 60fps with higher fidelity.
If I had to lay money on it, I’d guess there won’t be one, equally it wouldn’t surprise me if there is. 6-8 years is a LONG time in tech nowadays.
We still aren't seeing the full potential of this generation. Almost all games that have come out still support the Xbox One S|X generation. I don't believe there is a title out there that uses Direct Storage including the new Halo Infinite game. I don't know if it is the last generation holding this back but it will be interesting what improvements we will get when they shift their focus on the newer hardware capabilities.
@Rural-Bandit haha fair enough. If it comes to fruition, the first iterations will for sure have some stank to them
@sjbsixpack lol they could make you pick an icon on screen to match the smell. Throw away colognes and perfumes, oh man, I can see this all going downhill right away. Modding in the worst and best things that have ever graced your nose.
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