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170°

Report: MS Could Make its Own CPU for Next Xbox

Although long known as a software company, Microsoft is seriously looking at designing its own chips, according to a report in The New York Times. In fact, according to a key engineer at the company one of the reasons MS may go ahead with this is the design of the next Xbox.

Microsoft in particular has publicly revealed that it's already thinking about its next console. While the company has long been known as a software powerhouse, Microsoft may start making more and more of its own hardware, especially chips, according to a new report in The New York Times.

Microsoft has a long history of teaming up with leading chip maker Intel. In fact, the two have been so closely tied that their pairing (Windows + Intel processors) has been dubbed "Wintel." And when Microsoft decided to enter the video game console business in 2001, it came as no surprise that the company used an Intel processor in its original Xbox. For the current Xbox 360, Microsoft decided to use an IBM PowerPC-based design for the CPU.

Going forward, however, Microsoft is apparently considering making its own chips. The company has started a new project tentatively called the Computer Architecture Group. According to the NYT report, Microsoft's design effort will initially be split between research labs at the headquarters in Redmond, Washington, and its Silicon Valley campus. Charles P. Thacker, a veteran engineer who helped out on the Xbox 360 project when a key engineer became ill, will head the Silicon Valley group.

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CG6397d ago

With microsoft being the software giants they are i can see them developing the perfect combination of hardware and software which would spell disaster for the competition.

peksi6397d ago (Edited 6397d ago )

Sounds like somebody's stealing ideas :)

edit: the CPU will probably include DMA support for a 3-key keyboard: ctrl-alt-del :D ..ok that was a bad one...

CAPS LOCK6397d ago

are they giving up hope already on the 360? it has been out only for a year now and they plan on releasing another one? we now know who lost the console war.

pbo2m36397d ago

How have they lost the console war? The 360 has been out for almost a year now and they are thinking about the next system. That is normal. Do you think they start looking at developing new systems 3 or 4 years after a system has been out. It takes a while to get a new system developed. Also Sony has made a few comments about the PS4 about not even using disks and the PS3 is not even out yet. So I guess they lost the war by what you're saying

TheMART6397d ago

So after a developing team has released the final product (already a year ago) what should they do Capsunderlock in your view

TAKE A 5 YEAR LONG HOLIDAY AND THEN START AGAIN?

I knew you weren't the smartest around, but this statement has put you in a whole other category. Constant research is nescessary to get and stay on top.

*sarcasm mode on*
I hope Sony starts thinking of consoles at the day they cut support for their current one. Like it seems with the badly taken together PS3 Cell scientific but not for games optimal, no spec's RSX standard card because Cell failed to do the GPU tasks also and a non standard own product raising money BR player (in mind all their formats Betamax, Minidisc, UMD failed).

Sounds to me like real next gen *sarcasm mode off*

ronscrote6397d ago (Edited 6397d ago )

How long do you think it takes to design a CPU?
Companies like Intel and AMD wouldn't sell R&D to a fearsome competitor like Microsoft for a trillion dollars; they have to start from scratch as all the CPU manufacturers did. My guess is, we won't see the next Xbox until christmas 2010 at the earliest. It's just sensible business practice to start planning now. I'm sure Sony are already thinking about Playstation 4, and the hardware that the next Nintendo console will use probably already exists!

Microsoft already have a year on Sony with this generation. If they can release their next console 2-years ahead of Sony, that will be a long time for Playstation fans to go on playing current gen games when the next generation is already available.

kewlkat0076397d ago

Your smarter than that right? Have you ever heard of Research and development, and how they play a big role in an organizations future products and services.

Anyhow MS is getting it's nose it many markets righ tnow. I guess you can afford to do that with the deep pockets they have.

Deceased6397d ago

Sony has been talking about the next Playstation and they haven't even released this one. When designing hardware it is a long process and I am sure they probably started design the next xbox before the 360 was even out. That is the nature of the business.

Mikey_Gee6397d ago

As many other folks said .... the NEXT MS console was probably in Dev before the 360 launch.

"ALL COMPANIES DO THIS"

- Cars
- TV
- PC
etc, etc, etc

As way said ..... do you think they sit around with a finger in their azz till two weeks before and say , "Hmm, maybe we should get moving on this"

THINK FIRST ......... POST SECOND

nambo6397d ago

And I bet you're buying Sony's claim that the PS3 will have a life span of 10 years. From the reports available, the PS3's GPU is already a generation behind. I'm sure you know the average life span of a console is 4-6 years and this gen will be no different. If Sony doesn't want to another year to MS then you can bet they're already working on the PS4.

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kingboy6397d ago

yea yea yea..do what u do best.Go work on your own cell chips too

ronscrote6397d ago

Surely your not suggesting that Sony invented the concept of parallel processing. Besides, Sony didn't invent the Cell.. IBM did.

Watapata6397d ago

the Cell was "invented" through a collaboration between Toshiba, Sony, and IBM...

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60°

Why Monopolies In Gaming Must Not Be Allowed

As of right now, there are no monopolies in the games industry, and for the sake of the medium as a whole, they never should either.

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thorstein2h ago

Shouldn't be allowed in any field.

130°

Looking Back At 2008, An Unbelievably Incredible Year Of Video Game Releases

Huzaifa from eXputer: "2008 was home to the likes of Call of Duty: World at War, Dead Space, GTA 4, Far Cry 2, Left 4 Dead, and many other hits, which is outright remarkable."

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ChasterMies4h ago

Some of these low paid video game “news” writers weren’t born before 2007.

just_looken13m ago

Here here

Those that were around before 2000's i am sure are like me that think we entered a world of non readers or those that follow without question.

I can not wait to see fallout 3 a goty game even though it was about water with non content until you add the dlc/updates then you got the performance/crashing

CrimsonWing6915h ago

I don’t think anything can compare to 2023

lucasnooker15h ago

1998 - the best year in gaming! Metal gear solid, crash bandicoot 3, medievil, half life, ocarina of time, thief, tenchu, resident evil 2, Spyro, tomb raider 3, oddworld abes exodus, banjo kazooie.

It was a different breed of a gaming era. You’ll never understand what it was like back then. The aura of gaming, it was different!

KyRo15h ago(Edited 15h ago)

I second this. Gaming was a lot more varied and fun than it is today. I'm 35 so getting on compared to some here but I got to see all the changes from NES up to now but I've never felt so disappointed in any generation than I have this current gen. I was expecting more from this generation rather than prettier versions of games that came before it. Game mechanics have become so refined that alot of games feel the same and has done for a while now.

Maybe it's time to have a break for a while. I love gaming but I don't feel I get much fun in the traditional sense out of it anymore.

CrimsonWing6915h ago(Edited 15h ago)

Metal Gear Solid, Resident Evil 2, Abe’s Exodus, and Ocarina of Time are the only things from that list that I liked.

Here’s the 2023 game releases that I personally liked… and big releases that I didn’t care for:

- Dead Space Remake
- Wo Long Dynatsy
- Resident Evil 4 Remake
- Diablo 4
- Fire Emblem Engage
- Hogwarts Legcay
- Street Fighter 6
- Hi-Fi Rush
- Like a Dragon: Ishin
- Octopath Traveler 2
- Final Fantasy Pixel Remasters
- Final Fanatsy XVI (actually ended up not liking this, but it was still a big deal release)
- Baldur’s Gate 3
- Armored Core VI: Fires of Rubicon
- Lies of P
- Mortal Kombat 1
- Marvel’s Spider-Man 2
- Starfield (Ended up hating this one, but big release)
- Super Mario Bros. Wonder
- Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom (I’m an old-school Zelda fan, but didn’t really enjoy this game)
- Alan Wake 2

I mean, honestly I’ve never seen a year of major IP releases like that, ever.

Profchaos12h ago(Edited 12h ago)

Isn't it just a generational thing realistically.

I've been gaming since way back and I some of my favourite games go as far back as the late 80s for me each generation has a year or two of game changing releases one after another before an inevitable dry spell.

I kind of agree gaming had a different feel games hit different because we didn't have the internet nothing got spoiled and you really had to put in the effort to beat a puzzle which could set entire groups of people looking for a solution. But most importantly games were experimental and not as cookie cutter as today even basics like controls were not universal today r2 is shoot l2 is ads garunteed you can't deviate from that in a shooter back then it could of been square, R1 or R1 and circle nothing was standard.

But as time moves on a new generation picks up their controller they are going to be interested in different things that PS1 demo disc with the t Rex blew our primitive 16 bit brains back on launch but to kids today it's laughable.
The new gen of kids coming into to hobby seem to value different things to us there seems to be a huge focus on online play, streamers, gaming personalities, and social experiences, convience of digital downloads. To me I value none of that but that's ok like my parents not liking the band's I would listen to its just the natural cycle.

Gameseeker_Frampt3h ago

Just about every year in the 7th generation was great and something we most likely won't experience again.

2009 for example had Assassin's Creed 2, Batman: Arkham Asylum, Dragon Age: Origins, Uncharted 2, Halo 3: ODST, Killzone 2, Borderlands, Bayonetta, and Demon's Souls to name a few.

just_looken11m ago

It still amazes me we got over 7 rockstar games ps2/ps3 but 3 for the ps3/ps4/ps5

Dragon age 1-3 and mass effect 1-3 in 7ish years what a generation.

120°

6 Fun Games Where You Actually Play As The Bad Guy

While the mainstream media always sees things turning in favor of the hero, here are 6 games that own being a bad guy.

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Profchaos21h ago

Pretty much all of these games listed are based around a morality system you don't have to be bad and you don't have to be good.

It seems to have left out some real amazing games like red dead redemption 1/2,ass effect and true crime la/ny

Tacoboto20h ago

Armored Core VI?

Ok, I'm really missing something here. Just beat chapter 3 earlier this evening, unlocked A-rank Arena fights. I'm not seeing or sensing any branching paths or morality system and I've done every side mission and arena fight available to me up to that fight.

Is something big coming soon to branch the story?

banger8820h ago

No mention of Grand Theft Auto? Saints Row (original trilogy), Manhunt? Also The Suffering (depending on the ending you get).

ChasterMies10h ago

Trevor in GTA 6 is a sadist and psychopath who dabbles in cannibalism. Should be top of the list. These game “news” sites should hire people that know games.