Microsoft’s Next-Gen “Family” of Devices – What Does it Mean for the Future of Console Gaming?

At E3 2018 Phil Spencer confirmed that Microsoft is already working on the next-gen Xbox. What we know now is that they are, in fact, working on TWO new Xbox devices for the next generation. One will be obviously be the regular traditional console. The other: an affordable game streaming device that promises to succeed where all the other Cloud Gaming services have failed. This is a bold claim, yes, but if anyone can pull it off, it’s Microsoft. They have been heavily invested in Cloud technology for quite some time now for their business dealings outside of the gaming industry. They also have deep enough pockets to really hit this type of service in a way other companies just can’t compete with.

Not a whole lot of information is out about the traditional console. However, it should be an obvious assumption that it will be more powerful and impressive than the Xbox One X. What we do know… is quite a bit about the streaming device code named: Project Scarlett. Scarlett Cloud is boasted to be powerful enough to handle all controller input, collision detection, and image processing. These things are believed to be some of the key elements that cause latency issues with other streaming services that handle those things server-side. It will also be using their Azure network of servers that should also help with latency in multiplayer titles. Azure being their very robust and powerful Cloud Computing Service being used by a wide number of developers and projects world-wide.

Other companies have been trying to enter this market and have not provided anything extraordinary or worthwhile. Sony tried breaking into this market a while ago with PSNow and it left a lot to be desired. Even with my Google Fiber connection I was unable to properly stream with it, the latency issues were terrible and frequent. My attempt left me frustrated and extremely unsatisfied. I canceled my free trial after a week worth of attempts. With every other company struggling to deliver a stab;e and enjoyable game streaming service, Microsoft could really capitalize on this market if they succeed.

Scarlett will include a service fee similar to their other online offerings and is part of their bigger plan to make playing Xbox titles on any devices a reality, including phones, TV’s, and other smart devices in the future. Will they be the first company to fix the glaring issues with game streaming services? If so, what will this mean for the future of gaming and the Xbox directly? Only more time will tell but it will be exciting to see where this goes. What do you think? Would you purchase a streaming device? Let us know in the comments!