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Xbox Scorpio will cost more than Xbox One S, Phil Spencer confirms

phil spencer confirms xbox scorpio costs more
Microsoft
So let’s just get real here: You know the Xbox Scorpio console heading to stores at the end of 2017 will be more expensive than the current Xbox One S model. That’s just a given. Microsoft’s Phil Spencer has already hinted to the fact that the eventual price tag will reflect a “premium” experience when compared to the Xbox One S. But rest assured that the consumer cost won’t be outrageous, falling in line with previous launch prices for a next-generation console.

But maybe, finally, the debate over the eventual Scorpio price can be put to bed. In a recent interview, Phil Spencer said that the Xbox One S will be the company’s most affordable console next year. This model will focus on the general gaming audience, providing an enjoyable, desirable experience to as many people as possible at that price level. Due to this, there’s high probability Microsoft will reduce the price of a new Xbox One S when Scorpio hits store shelves.

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“Scorpio will be a premium console,” he said. “It will cost more than [the Xbox One] S obviously. That’s how we’re building it. We haven’t announced price points for Scorpio yet, but I want to make sure that the investments we’re putting into the product of Scorpio meets the demands of the higher end customer, and that will be a higher price.”

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He went on to talk about the Xbox brand overall, and that customers are purchasing different models at different price points to meet their needs and budgets. Thus, naysayers essentially can’t pin one console to Microsoft and judge its performance in the overall console market. However, that’s also now true with Sony, which just launched the PlayStation 4 Pro last week. Sony now has two levels of PlayStation gaming at several price points, just like Microsoft will at the end of next year.

Phil Spencer responde a Pachter por precio de Scorpio

“For us, when we think about Scorpio, it’s for a higher-end customer who demands the most they can get out of a console, and we built a console to meet that demand,” he added.

Both Sony and Microsoft are kicking the old console refresh model out the door. Instead of waiting forever to release new hardware, both have set themselves up to release new generations at a faster rate. On top of that, both will offer two levels of gaming instead of just one: a “premium” model for the high-end gamer and one for the general audience.

Previously, Microsoft said that current Xbox One gamers won’t be left out in the cold when Scorpio arrives next year. Unlike what Microsoft did with the Xbox 360 and initially the Xbox One, Scorpio will be backward-compatible with all games released for the Xbox One right out of the box, and presumably the Xbox 360 titles that fall on the company’s growing backward-compatibility list. Likewise, Sony’s PlayStation 4 Pro plays all PlayStation 4 games.

While it’s nice to see Microsoft and Sony moving away from the traditional six-year gap between console refreshes, you have to wonder what will be offered once the PlayStation 4 Pro and Xbox Scorpio have had some time to compete on the market. Will we see two-year refreshes? Three years? This will definitely be interesting to see.

We expect Microsoft to officially reveal the Xbox Scorpio console and its price points during the E3 gaming convention in Los Angeles next June.

Kevin Parrish
Former Digital Trends Contributor
Kevin started taking PCs apart in the 90s when Quake was on the way and his PC lacked the required components. Since then…
Xbox’s Phil Spencer responds to blockbuster leak: ‘So much has changed’
Xbox Series X on a table.

Head of Xbox Phil Spencer has finally commented on the massive Xbox leak that happened earlier today. In his public statement, he explained that "so much has changed" since many of the documents were created and asked fans to be excited about Xbox's future.
On Tuesday morning, unredacted versions of a lot of documents pertaining to the Xbox vs. FTC trial appeared. These emails and documents, most of which were created or written sometime between 2020 and 2022, revealed a lot of unannounced information. That included things like a mid-gen refresh for the Xbox Series X and S, some unannounced Bethesda games, and even Microsoft's early goals for its next-generation console. Hours later, Spencer commented on the leak.
"We've seen the conversation around old emails and documents," Spencer explained on X (formerly known as Twitter). "It is hard to see our team's work shared in this way because so much has changed and there's so much to be excited about right now, and in the future. We will share the real plans when we are ready."
https://twitter.com/XboxP3/status/1704233222752571842
At first, people didn't know where the leak came from, with the FTC quickly denying that it leaked these things. Ultimately, United States District Judge Jacqueline Scott Corley revealed that Microsoft had done it to itself while trying to provide the court with a secure cloud link to relevant exhibits for the trial. The Verge went on to report that Phil Spencer also sent out a memo internally about the leaks today, echoing the statements in his tweet.
"Today, several documents submitted in the court proceedings related to our proposed acquisition of Activision Blizzard were unintentionally disclosed. I know this is disappointing, even if many of the documents are well over a year old and our plans have evolved," Spencer's memo reads. "I also know we all take the confidentiality of our plans and our partners’ information very seriously. This leak obviously is not us living up to that expectation. We will learn from what happened and be better going forward. We all put incredible amounts of passion and energy into our work, and this is never how we want that hard work to be shared with the community. That said, there’s so much more to be excited about, and when we’re ready, we’ll share the real plans with our players. In closing, I appreciate all of the work that you pour into Team Xbox to surprise and delight our players."
The fact that Microsoft did this to itself is an embarrassing accident, especially when some of the information contained within the documents and emails is no longer accurate. For now, all we can do is wait and see if Microsoft will actually release new versions of its Xbox Series X and S consoles next year and if games like Doom Year Zero, a sequel to Ghostwire: Tokyo, and Dishonored 3 get announced.

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Baldur’s Gate 3 drops Series S splitscreen support to release on Xbox in 2023
Jaheira in Baldur's Gate 3.

Larian Studios promises to release Baldur's Gate 3 on Xbox Series X/S later this year after pushing the game back because of performance problems on Xbox Series S.
Baldur's Gate 3 is available now on PC and will come out for PS5 on September 6, but an Xbox Series X/S version won't be available for a little bit longer. In a July 2023 community update, developer Larian Studios explained that this is because it needed "to ensure that the game is performing without compromise across the entire Xbox X/S ecosystem, in multiplayer and with split-screen. The Xbox Series X version was running fine, but the Xbox Series S version of the game was struggling a lot more. The Xbox versions of Baldur's Gate 3 didn't have a release window until now, when Larian Studios co-founder Swen Vincke took to X to confirm it'd come to Xbox platforms before the end of the year. That said, it will exclude one notable feature.
"Super happy to confirm that after meeting [Phil Spencer] yesterday, we’ve found a solution that allows us to bring Baldur’s Gate 3 to Xbox players this year still, something we’ve been working towards for quite some time," Vincke wrote. "All improvements will be there, with split-screen coop on Series X. Series S will not feature split-screen co-op, but will also include cross-save progression between Steam and Xbox Series."
Thankfully, it looks like Xbox players won't have to wait too much longer to play this excellent game, but it will be one of the first games to notably drop a major feature between the Xbox Series X and Xbox Series S versions. This follows comments by Head of Xbox Phil Spencer where he said he doesn't believe Microsoft will drop support for Xbox Series S in the foreseeable future. "I want to make sure games are available on both, that's our job as a platform holder and we're committed to that with our partners," Spencer told Eurogamer. "And I think we're gonna get there with Larian. So I'm not overly worried about that, but we've learned some stuff through it. Having an entry-level price point for console, sub-$300, is a good thing for the industry."
 
Baldur's Gate 3 is available now for PC, launches for PS5 on September 6, and will finally come out for Xbox Series X/S before the end of 2023.

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Xbox confirms Phil Spencer shared an old prototype of streaming device
Xbox Series S placed on a white table with the controller just in front of it

Xbox chief Phil Spencer seemed to reveal the design of Xbox's upcoming cloud-focused game-streaming device in a tweet celebrating Fallout's 25th anniversary, but a Microsoft spokesperson explained in a tweet to Digital Trends that this is just an old prototype.
“The device on Phil’s shelf was an old prototype of Keystone," the Xbox representative explained. "Earlier this year, we announced that we made the decision to pivot away from the current iteration of Keystone and are taking our learnings to refocus our efforts on a new approach that will allow us to deliver Xbox Cloud Gaming to more players around the world in the future. We have nothing more to share today.” 
In the tweet, Spencer congratulated Bethesda and its Fallout team for hitting this milestone and included a picture of his shelf that contains some Fallout merch. Spencer's followers quickly spotted a small, never-before-seen white Xbox device on the top shelf underneath a large sword. This small piece of technology is the old version of a game-streaming device Microsoft was developing code-named Keystone.
https://twitter.com/XboxP3/status/1579495370786496512
Microsoft affirmed that Keystone was in development to Windows Central earlier this year, but also mentioned that Xbox decided to "pivot away from the current iteration" of the device. "We've been working on a game-streaming device, code name Keystone, that could be connected to any TV or monitor without the need for a console," a spokesperson told Windows Central in May 2022. "As part of any technical journey, we are constantly evaluating our efforts, reviewing our learnings, and ensuring we are bringing value to our customers. We have made the decision to pivot away from the current iteration of the Keystone device."
According to Microsoft, the device in Phil Spencer's photo is what Xbox planned on releasing before deciding to "refocus our efforts on a new approach." It's not a surprise that people thought this was going to actually be what Microsoft released, as Spencer also teased the Xbox Series S and Kojima Productions collaboration by hiding them on his shelf. For now, we'll just have to wait until Microsoft decides to share more about its new approach. 

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