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‘Ori and the Blind Forest’ director: Xbox’s Project Scorpio is a ‘next-gen’ console

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Ori and the Blind Forest director Thomas Mahler has some choice words for Sony regarding the recent PlayStation 4 Pro console, as well as a ringing endorsement of Microsoft’s next machine that should have Xbox fans very excited.

Speaking in a thread on popular gaming forum NeoGAF, Mahler called Scorpio a “full-blown next-gen machine that’s just backward-compatible to your current library.”

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Mahler added that because consoles now largely rely on the same system architecture, it’s remarkably easy for console manufacture to iterate on their machines, adding more power and features without completely cutting off those who own an older model. He said that the PlayStation 4 Pro is more of a “half-assed upgrade” than a substantial next step, and this can be supported in large part by looking at the current “better with PS4 Pro” lineup — only a handful of games are capable of running at a native 4K resolution, and several AAA releases don’t even upscale to that resolution, or support high-dynamic range.

In contrast, Microsoft has said that all first-party games launching alongside Project Scorpio will run at a native 4K resolution. The console will also reportedly feature 12GB of RAM, a substantial upgrade from the Xbox One’s 8GB, and will feature some sort of VR support to rival Sony’s PlayStation VR.

Ori and the Blind Forest was released back in 2015 to critical acclaim, first arriving to Xbox One and PC before making its way to the Xbox 360. It wasn’t the most technically demanding title, hence its inclusion on the aging Xbox 360, but before it was released, developer Moon Studios had been working on another project. Code named “Warsoup,” the game was described by Moon Studios as a mix of Starcraft II and Halo, and should it be revived, looks like it would make much better use of Project Scorpio.

Project Scorpio arrives this holiday season.

Gabe Gurwin
Gabe Gurwin has been playing games since 1997, beginning with the N64 and the Super Nintendo. He began his journalism career…
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