Xbox 2 'Confirmed' Dates for Europe and US

[Walter Cronkite]

Some of you may remember that Nvidia and Microsoft had reconciled their difference, and in mid 2003 announced that their partnership may not continue for the next generation. Shortly after that, speculation arose over when the next Xbox, code named 'Xenon', would be designed, much less launched. Put away any magic eight-balls you have, as reliable news is now leaking that the Xbox will indeed hit American stores in October.

While this may not be the most obscure date noted, publications and people in the industry have hinted at the late 2005 release date for quite some time; what was not known is the date for the European launch of the system - November. It looks like Microsoft is looking for an almost simultaneous multi-national release, but they are still remaining mum on the topic of next gen hardware;

"Microsoft has not made any announcements regarding the next generation. We are currently very focused on further building the success of the Xbox console today and are not speculating on timing for a future version," said a keynote Microsoft spokesman.

While this is to be expected, as the Xbox still has some life left, companies such as Nintendo have taken to the recent popularity of commenting on the quick launch of next gen hardware from Microsoft, David Gosen saying that "in every cycle, some manufacturer who is not profiting from the current cycle is eager to kick-start the next one."

How solid is this news? Considering that Microsoft has always been about losing money in the short term, it makes sense that they are more than prepared for such a 'quick' launch. Granted, most hardware cycles are 3-5 years of anything popular, so perhaps the industry is a little spoiled by the quality titles we have enjoyed this generation. These leaks from software developers, especially from industry giant EA, prove that Microsoft is using a good 'have their cake and eat it too' philosophy; appeasing current owners of a long life span while still keeping the hype alive for the impending 05 Christmas season.

Source: Gameindustry.biz

[AndySMC]

It's not always a good idea to bring out your new system so soon...**cough** dreamcast **cough**

[Tech]

The Dreamcast was launched by a company whose last console was the Saturn. The XBox, especially in terms of mind share, is much more successful than the Saturn. The Gamecube is arguably as powerful as the XBox (see Rebel Strike and RE4) but most people think the XBox is more powerful anyway, so the lack of power will likely not be an issue.

There's no way the Xbox Next will suffer the same fate as the Dreamcast. First of all this isn't that early. A year before if nothing. The PS2 launched a year before the other two consoles and it didn't really affect anything. The Dreamcast launched so early it was hard to tell if it was the first of a new generation or the last of an old one. It was right in the middle which is far too soon.

Plus MS has amazing marketing. The Xbox does not deserve to be where it is right now and Halo doesn't deserve to be considered on of the best ever. But thanks to brilliant marketing the Xbox is a big player. I asume that great marketing will continue.

The only problem I see for the Xbox Next is that this time MS needs to make a profit so they can't afford to throw millions of dollars at everything. That limitation may hurt the Xbox Next. MS can't just buy any developer they want anymore or spend as much on marketing. They can't have the best hardware anymore which again takes away an advantage the Xbox had. A console maker that's always looking at the bottom line isn't as fun (see Nintendo as an obvious example) as one that just does whatever it wants. I think some Xbox fans are Xbox fans because of that freedom. MS is going to be more careful this time and that might turn people off.