Timing Xbox 720 unveil close to Wii U

Many of us are under the impression that the Nintendo’s new Wii U console will be coming out way before the next gen additions from Microsoft and Sony, although the release of the so called Xbox 720 looks set to be nearer than we envisage.

[xtheownerzx]

I know this might be a stretch but i'm assuming Microsoft might be announcing the console at Tokyo Game Show if they are attending. I know its a stretch but for next generation they need more of a focus on the Japanese market. Once again this is just some pure speculation on my part. Anyone else agree?

[Hufandpuf]

Tokyo Game Show? I don't see that happening. I mean, the 360 dominated the charts even without the need of major Japanese support. If MS plays their cards right, they could have everyone going out buying one regardless of where they are from.

[nukeitall]

MS essentially moved the center of the game industry from Japan to the west. Other than the Japanese, the vast majority don't play JRPGs anymore and Japanese gamers are less relevant than ever.

The entire game industry on console is now shooters with a sprinkle of sports, racing and adventure.

Now handhelds, that is a different story and of course you got Wii who is Japanese! but Nintendo is their own industry.

[2v1]

i dont think all the moms who bough ther son an xbox360 will rush and buy another 300+ cosole so ez

[blackbeld]

This could be true.

Microsoft like always hurry things and remember the so beautiful RROD at launch. It might be happening again.

[CGI-Quality]

Outside of America, the 360 hasn't dominated anything. If nothing else, it has trailed the Wii and PS3 all over the world.

However, I agree that a TGS reveal is unlikely.

[solid_si]

@CGI-Quality the XBOX 360 is dominant console inthe UK which is outside of North America and its the biggest Console Market in europe

[sikbeta]

MS master trolling if this is true, lol but I think they're in no hurry, X360 still the best selling console in America, that's where they put all their eggs and if nothing changes, no need for actions :D

[DA_SHREDDER]

If MS played their cards right? How bout doing the sony approach? Make new and better games?!

[Balcrist]

eh, most of the people who had their mom buy them an xbox 360 are now old enough to buy their own console, so i don't think that'll have much of an impact on 720 sales... what will have the most impact is their history with the Red Ring of Death, buyers will be hesitant with that in their minds, so we'll all have to weigh the options, does Microsoft think that a similar problem could impact their sales enough that they'd make sure is didn't happen again?

[Kryis]

There is so much fail in your comment, I don't even know what else to say.

Anyway, I really don't see Microsoft announcing the x720(?) anytime soon.
I don't think they will announce until they are close to release; say E3'13.

[iamnsuperman]

Nah. Microsoft knows that to get that market it is going to require a lot of investment and that investment probably isn't worth it considering the Xbox brand is doing so well regardless. They are going to announce the Xbox in America. That depends if it is at E3 or a separate Microsoft only conference

[morkendo23]

HALO and Forza is not enough for me to buy a 360 back then and surely not now. 360 need a library worth of games which MS dont have.

the 720 coming with ONLY 2 games??? I cant see myself buying a console for 2 games and kinect POWER kiddy games.

[JamieL]

@ morkendo23 you must just be trollin. The 360 has an awesome library now, a lot more than Halo an Forza. You couldn't make yourself look any more ignorant, or an less a troll. Nice job, at least you dont do it half assed.

[Disccordia]

The 360 had loads of exclusives though in its first few years

[OC_MurphysLaw]

MS already said they were not attending TGS just like Gamescon. So if they are going to announce the Xbox 720 early it would have to happen at one of the major remaining "industry" events left prior to E3 2013.

1) Spike VGA's... Now I know what you are saying, its not an industry event. I agree, but its VERY public and has a similar vibe to what they did with MTV on the 360 launch stuff.

2) CES - I honestly feel this out of all the events left might make the most sense. Its an ideal announcment stage as they get it out in front of the public and potential ad and content partners. BUT the one thing holding me back from that is their pulling out of the keynote for CES. Had they still been center stage at CES this might have made the most sense.

3) GDC - less likely but still a possible announcement platform given its popularity is on the rise with the public sector.

4) a private announcement like they did with Surface. The more I think about it the more I think this could be the case. MS is taking a page right out of Apple these days and doing their own press event / announcements. It keeps the focus on MS and not on the competition. I wouldn't be shocked if in April or May of 2013 they announce the next xbox in a small industry only event just like the Surface Tablet. It keeps the focus 100% on them, and they don't have to worry about anyone else's press conference stealing their thunder the next day like they have often seen with E3.

[dubt72]

Don't forget they had a big televised unveil of the 360. They prefer to make these announcements on their own terms and in their own arena. We might hear about media people receiving invitations to a secret event once again.

[Bigpappy]

Very well thought out Dlacy13g.

I believe it will be before E3 at a M$ event. E3 will be left open to show the launch games and apps. But the release will not be before September 2013.

[dcbronco]

I think it will be a separate event also. If we do see a price cut this year, and I think we will, it will say volumes about the possible launch window for the 720. If the 360 drops to $200 for a Premium, we might see the 720 in the first half of the year.

The next generation shouldn't be as expensive as the last launch prices. We might see a Premium with a secondary screen for $400. But the basic, with a harddrive should only be $300. The reason being the small die sizes and APUs or SoCs used instead of a separate CPU and GPU will make consoles cheaper to make.

I do expect them to announce it around the Wii U launch. To let people see a far more powerful machine at a similar price to the Wii U. Which I expect will be $299 also. Thereby hurting the Wii U and pressuring Sony at the same time.

And while a lot of people don't believe they will announce so close to a launch, if you consider a $299 price point, the current 360 Premium is selling for that now. A far more powerful machine will seem like a bargain. And doing it during tax time in their biggest market and with many having gift cards from Christmas will give them a very large pool of potential customers.

[ALLWRONG]

MS announced the 360 on MTV

[Balcrist]

As far as the price of the 720, I think you're all forgetting that microsoft has begun talking a leaf out of cell phone companies books, right now you can buy an xbox 360 bundle with connect for $99 and a two year subscription to xbox live for $15 a month. You can bet your bacon that their will be a similar option for the 720.

[dcbronco]

Balcrist there will most likely be a $99 deal. But there will surely still be consoles sold straight out. The majority will. For the ten million that will pay during the first year. Another two or three million will do the $99 deal because they didn't have the money but couldn't wait to save it either.

So many complain about paying for Live. Mostly they are fanboys just doing what fanboys do. But MS will make Live worth it in the future I believe. Not that it already isn't. I think they are going to launch a Premium service. It may include things like Netflix and Hulu Plus as part of the plan. It will also include original programming. There are a lot of books out there that would appeal to the gaming demographic that they could make into series.

[greenlantern2814]

i am pretty sure microsoft is not going to TGS. but i imo they will announce next gen system at a microsoft event.

[ABizzel1]

@xtheownerzx

I get how you're thinking, but I seriously doubt that'll happen. MS only weak territory is Japan, but Japan isn't going to jump on board with the 360 when they have Nintendo, and Sony as their main consoles. MS is better off keeping things where their money is, in the US.

A PS4 announce is more likely for a TGS reveal than 360, but I'm not saying it couldn't happen.

[MostJadedGamer]

Theres a good chance the PS4 wont releases til 2014.

[DeadlyFire]

I call BS speculation. E3 is ONLY place a new console is ever revealed. This is tradition and it has not changed in how many years?

June 2013....

[Sheikh Yerbouti]

I'm hoping they're riding out the recession before releasing a console - say around 2014.

That said, I can certainly see them unveiling in Tokyo or Europe for that matter. They'll never really be #1 unless they dominate more than North America. That could be good toward marketing the XBox720 overseas.

[Jake1111]

I was a DIE HARD PS3 guy for a few years until MS started to learn how to compress graphics better and the games started to actualy be more fun (I still loved Uncharted and it is one of my favorites) in general.
The online is much better and the system feels more sturdy overall. I cant WAIT for 720. Add the new 3D VR glasses from Cameron and I am in!!!

[MostJadedGamer]

Its a waste of resourcesme, and money to focus on the Japaneese market. They already done everything they could to break through with the Xbox, and 360 there its time to just flatout giveup on the Japanese market.

MS wont pay much attention to the Japaneese market anymore.

[Christopher]

Microsoft won't announce any new hardware until 2013. Otherwise it would adversely affect their current gen console and game sales during the biggest time of the year.

[Fateful_Knight]

MS shot themselves in the foot at 360 launch by releasing in Japan before NA. It didn't pay off, and succeeded in pissing off fans in NA. If they were wise they would put NA first this time. They don't need Japan support.

[Belking]

Dude, what are you talking about? MS revealed and released the xbox 360 in North America first.

[Brosy]

Actually they had a worldwide release with the 360. It launched all over the world within a week of the NA launch, if I'm not mistaken.

I would expect MS to announce the nextbox at a MS event. It just makes more sense.

edit I found this. It seems the release worldwide actually finished in 2008 wow. We were all way off.It looks like MS did launch the 360 in japan first. By one day.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wik...

[Intentions]

They always release stuff first in the NA, then worldwide at another date (usually a couple of months afterwards)

[Summons75]

The next xbox will be announced at E3 and not any time before plain and simple.

[Belking]

Who knows......... Xbox360 wasn't announced at E-3.

[ChunkyLover53]

That isn't exactly accurate, they didn't wait for E3 to announce the Xbox 360, they held their own show to announce it. I suspect they will do the same for the Xbox 720. E3 is only 90 minutes, it can be hard to get all the information out beforehand.

Also, I think Microsoft will announce it earlier in 2013, probably in an attempt to get people to wait for the next Xbox, as opposed to buying a Wii U. Sort of the same strategy that Sony tried in the past.

[secretcode]

I highly doubt it. Microsoft is more than likely using this fall as a final 360 rush with Halo 4 and Forza (as well as the accompanying Black Ops II launch) while using the Pre-E3 timeframe to push Gears of War. This just seems like pointless speculation that will just lead to disappointment.

[Ryo-Hazuki]

They will announce it at next years CES 2013. Won't happen this year because they to push Halo this holiday season.

[dcbronco]

I think this year was Microsoft's last CES. They announced that before this years show.

http://www.washingtonpost.c...

[demetreHG]

Let the crappy BS start again nothing being confirmed about a 2013 release so give it a rest with these BS articles !

Are people that naive they fall for any little bit of news and spreads like wildfire seriously what a joke

[AngelicIceDiamond]

More like either early next year with a full E3 revealing. Or a surprise pre-E3 showing/Spike TV reveal? like they did with the 360 with MTV.

What people need to understand is, MS will want to create as much buzz for the new Xbox as possible. Get as many people talking, writing, speculating interviewing, doom articles about the new Xbox as they can. If its indeed getting released next year. it will get officially announced, in Jan or in late April to early May. GOW comes out in March so more likely a few months after Gears (predictions)

[OC_MurphysLaw]

I think this is spot on. I could easily see them do a GameTrailers / Spike TV Special "unveiling the next box" a month out from E3 then use E3 so go over details, features, price and launch games

[demetreHG]

Dream on !!!

[OC_MurphysLaw]

I noticed your comment above too... My aren't you the angry one? Why so angry over an article speculating about the future? Nobody is making false claims about a hard release date...so why the "give it a rest with the BS articles" comment? There was no BS to be had, just a number of gaming enthusiasts speculating over the timing of the announcement of a future console that if nothing else we know is an actual thing given MS's own comments.

I guess you just needed something to troll.

[OOG]

someone with logical thinking... hard to find here....

I don't know why people would think they would even think of announcing it during the WiiU launch it would be pointless to say the least...

All signs point to it being announced after Gears comes out to not slow down the sales of the game ... as long as the game still hits its launch window... Most likely we will hear about it and not see it till E3... but who knows

[WeskerChildReborned]

It would be a surprise if they announced the next gen Xbox at the end of the year.

[DivineAssault]

$200 deposit with subscription maybe.. They cant release a system thats 8x more powerful for that cheap.. unless its alot weaker than rumors suggested

[rickybadman]

Mircosoft will probably have a one hour special on Spike to unveil the console, then out in depth at E3. Microsoft will be blowing money fast next year for this launch.

[Shok]

Well there's a difference between unveiling and releasing. Even if they do show the 720 around the Wii U's launch, people are still gonna buy a Wii U since there will be a 1-year gap in-between the two.

[Rock_On_PS4]

Halo 4, Forza 5 and Black Ops 2 would make a great launch line up for the XBox 720.
XBox 720 launch in late 2012 would be epic and get a jump start over Sony and its PS4.
The Wii U is seen as a greater threat to Microsoft than Sony's PS4.
Wii U's year head start would be way too much for both PS4 and X720 to claw back. Launching early alongside the Wii U would negate the advantage and gain critical support of third party developers.

[BelieveinGhosts]

I have no idea how you got 3 thumbs up for a ridiculous comment. It shows that some of n4g users don't have any common sense.

Keep dreaming, there is more chance of the world ending in 2012 than Microsoft releasing an Xbox 720 in christmas of 2012.

And no the Wii U is not a bigger threat than the PS4 unless microsoft change their strategy and decide to focus only on casual gaming, which won't happen

[MultiConsoleGamer]

If they announce the NextBox now, or any time before the end of the year, it will undermine their holiday sales.

Also, MS will give Nintendo room to breathe because of that whole "gentleman's agreement" thing...

[Belking]

@Brosy

Dude that is off. XBox 360 launched on 16 November in the US...It was made available to consumers on 22 November... It wasn't available til 10 December in Japan. Your source is inaccurate.

[theshape31]

The original Xbox was unveiled in May. The Xbox 360 was unveiled in May. The Xbox Infinite will be unveiled in May.

[Xof]

Honestly, a new Xbox could have been announced at the same time as the WiiU and no one would have been surprised.

I just hope Nintendo and Microsoft don't end up forcing Sony's hand with the PS4. The Playstation 3 still has a lot of life left in it.

[TheKayle]

its called agony not life

[Xof]

Really? Last I checked 2012 was an awesome year for PS3 exclusives and 2013 is looking to be just as good.

[beerkeg]

An awesome year? There's hardly anything coming out, I wouldn't call it awesome.

[BelieveinGhosts]

2013 is looking even better. Dont worry, it is as if the majority of users on n4g are bored of playing on their console games because all they care for is PC like graphics and instead prefer to spend time typing their predictions of next gen consoles.

This is why you get thumbs down anytime you suggest that next gen wont start in 2013 because there is still some juice left in both Xbox 360 and PS3 that can be squeezed out for the next 2 years!

[blueduck]

the nextbox will prob have info "leaked" around the wiiU release in NA but have an hour long tv spot in may. Then E3 is right around the corner for a blow out of information. You have to remember the team that does gears is not doing the new one so they are prob working on a launch title for the fall when the nextbox will launch. MS always has a gears or halo for the fall so epic will lauch with a new IP.

[chukamachine]

Fences are failing all over the park.

[PixL]

MS ignore markets other than US, hence no presence at TGS and GC. That's why other markets mostly ignore MS consoles. MS will announce next spring and do a big show E3 with more US-centered features for US consumers only. Nextbox will be even less popular outside US/UK than current 360.

[Apex13]

After reading the article and if the price point is correct I think MS really wanting to be Nintendo are also taking their strategy with the Wii and are merely clocking the current system to its full potential. Innovation is it's key i.e. crappy kinnect but improved and integrated. otherwise people will be surprised that it may not be the "graphical leap" they are hoping for and not that that has ever sold machines "sony ps3" interesting none the less. I thinks this is a lie though

[sak500]

All this talk about next gen has already whet my appetite.. Anyone else not excited to see what's gonna happen in next quarter or 2 ?

Can't wait :)

[cygnuszero2]

Im not very excited about the next quarter or 2 since a new PS or XBOX wont be out by then, and I cant muster up any interest in another Wii, but in a year from now Ill start getting excited. Little early right now though. My guess is new xbox is holiday 2013. so next summer ill start caring.

[airforcex]

MS' best hope in Japan is the Wii U. Prevent Sony from building a huge lead in Japan.

[wiiulee]

lol..microsoft is already in panic mode trying to stop the momentum of the wiiu by announcing that they've copied nintendo and have a gamepad controller on their xbox720 too... its me too moment for xbox follow by sony...

[violents]

sony already has thier tablet out, its called a vita.

[Jockamo]

I can see MS going after Nintendo by announcing just prior to the WiiU launch. At least get the stand-ups in stores and make them bigger than the WiiU ones...or even a demo console to showcase the tech.

[violents]

why does this article come up on the ps3 tab. Does n4g just like to start flame wars?