Project Scorpio unveiled at E3

Will we eventually get to a point where we'll have to check if a game will run on my version of such console, just like it happens today with PCs?

The RX 480 pushes about 5tflop and targets 1440p. XB1 must be around 3tflop and struggles with 1080p @ 60Hz. 6Tflop and real 4K seems optimistic.

Nice long launch delay if they need to upgrade the spec, though my co-worker thinks that's about waiting to see the PS4+ spec ;)

No one is making 4K games with 4K assets. They just set the rendering target at 4K and the fanboys see that at 4K. The same thing used to happen in the HT buis when people saw the red DTS light up. It's more Pavlovian than anything else.

@Jeff: Oh, I know, I know. But this shiny PR stuff lights up those message boards like a flaming Christmas tree in burning home and the fans on all sides start the stone-throwing and bragging over what they THINK is 4K gaming headed their way.

(Some) people are suckers, aren't they? But that's always been the consumer lifestyle, right?

There is no Sony product cycle for PS4, or MS product cycle for Xbox. There is only the AMD product cycle now. AMD is the tick and the tock. You know you are in PR dreamland, when you hear Teraflops being mentioned.

I dont think that's the intention, basically MS certainly considered originally making Xbox One the "last" classic console, and pushing further advances with their cloud/streaming tech on it, however 4K has thrown that concept out the window a little so they re-planned it, the idea is to superseed the original xbox one concept they had by incremental updates, not as rapid as cellphone updates but probably every 2-3 years, however they will all likely maintain backwards compatibility with the original Xbox One, ie dev's will be required to make a "low" end compatible version, though given MS does seem to change its mind whenever it spots a new opportunity, its not impossible they'll break backwards compatibility in future, though probably not on this first version.

However frankly people are complaining far to much about having to check which console theyre running and comparing it to comparing pc specs, all you have to do is compare the name... oh yes i have an xbox one or an xbox one+ is hardly in the same league of difficulty as comparing the specs in a PC(which frankly isnt that difficult but due to the individual requirements is more complicated for less knowledgeable types), even children will have no problems working out weather a clearly labelled game will work for their console from the box and or digital shop, frankly if there anyone out there are find the concept of checking oh yes I require an xbox one++ for this game, so i cant use it on my xbox one+ to difficult for them to do, then they probably shouldn't be playing electronic games, or talking for that matter, its most likely they'r currently on all 4's and bark allot, and prefer games of catch ball, using actual ball's.

On a side note there is one designed for 4K right from the bat with appropriate high-res textures.... alas it's unlikely to make it to consoles any time soon if ever, though this new 4k capable console may prove tempting, at least for the single player campaign(SC42)... once the PC release is complete - Star Citizen., im sure there are more in the pipeline however, as SC does tend to be on the bow-wave as opposed to on the ship so to speak, it may be a while of seeing them.

However frankly people are complaining far to much about having to check which console theyre running and comparing it to comparing pc specs, all you have to do is compare the name...

True but you know how people like to complain on the internet.

I was wondering what they meant about moving beyond console generations and earlier thought they were saying that the Xbox One system would continue to be upgraded similar to PC's but it appears you are closer to what they are targeting with the mobile model where there are newer versions that play newer and older games. But it remains to be seen if the Xbox One will indeed be the last console moniker they use going forward because obviously Project Scorpio is still a code name.

having something at six teraflops that will get millions of people buying it is very attractive to some of the VR companies that are out there already, and we've architected it such that something will be able to plug right in and work," Spencer said

It sounds like it will be Occulus compatible with potentially others to follow suit.

This can lead to a little consumer exhaustion and buyer's remorse in a way that could be detrimental to the industry.

Just the other day I heard these young children proclaiming their unwillingness to watch Captain America: Civil War - a very well written and produced movie - after their negative experience of watching Batman v Superman.

There will be a price to pay.

This can lead to a little consumer exhaustion and buyer's remorse in a way detrimental to the industry.

This'll be why incremental console updates were killed in the 90s - people bought the Sega MegaCD and 32x and thought they were all-set, then realised not only were Sony about to release a console, but Sega themselves were developing the Saturn.

I don't think people are going to like the mobile-cycle-as-applied-to-consoles for any length of time. I've already killed the idea of getting a PS4 until the Neo is out, because, well, why would I get worse hardware when new kit is around the corner? I may as well save longer and buy the Neo when it's released. And there's more than just one type of consumer here - you have people in-the-know (like me); you have the clueless mum-and-dad buying a console for little Johnny (and potentially buying the wrong version); and you also have the bargain-hunter, who's waiting for the new iteration to release so they can buy the older model at a bargain price (probably second-hand).

Not too surprised by the direction. Technically this has been a 'rumour' for many years with regards to consoles beating the traditional generation cycle. Especially as demands for technology change.

XB1 must be around 3tflop and struggles with 1080p @ 60Hz

More like 1.3Tflop. Scorpio will be nearly 5x as powerful and close to the recently launched GTX 1070, I'm guessing it will be using a new architecture too.

No one is making 4K games with 4K assets.

There's no such thing as a 4K game or 4K assets (unless you are talking of texture maps of a specific resolution, which aren't new). What you have to ask yourself instead is, do all the details in the assets show up in at the current resolution? For new, higher fidelity games that answer is generally 'no.

Uncharted 4 is a great example of a game where there are so many details packed in that you actually can't resolve a great deal of them at 1080p, giving the game a soft appearance as your eyes gloss over (rather than feebly attempt to resolve) the details. The resolution the game is outputted at is genuinely stifling, leading to a soupy image rather than a clear one.

This is why the games in The Nathan Drake Collection have much higher image clarity/quality than Uncharted 4 as well despite being lower fidelity all around: the resolution those games are outputted at is relatively high compared to the detail/resolution of the assets used.

More like 1.3Tflop. Scorpio will be nearly 5x as powerful

I guesstimated it based on it's near equivalence to an R9 270 - 270X - which would put it roughly between 2 & 2.8Tf. 5x better seems unlikely unless MS get desperate.

@Alexander Thisbisnt about 4K, it's about VR. Sony figured out that the Ps4 wasnt actually capable of it, and no one wants to spend a billion dollars on new hardware. It's actually really fascinating that MS is going software and Soy hardware, to each their strengths.

Microsoft sees this as a chance to bring back all the people that bought PS4s and discovered how baD PSN was and hate the controller (2 common non-deal breaker complaints). By placing themselves in the spec drivers seat they give people, especially ones who haven't bought a One the reason they need to come home. 4K media playback is far more attractive than 4K gaming as the devices that do it are expensive and somewhat limited at this time.

I define a 4K game and assets as of sufficient quality and detail density that 4K output viewed at prescribed distances (1.5 screen height for 1080p, I don't know the 4K measuring stick) is resolvable by normal people. Since the vast majority sit about half again farther from the TV (6ft approx for 60" 1080p), HDR and contrast will be far more important to end users because at that distance they're seeing more like 720.

A 4K set under 85" or so at 9ft (the average living Room distance) is essentially wasted money if your going for resolution. And the number of people sitting a foot from 4K computer monitors is very loud, but a very small audience. One however that will buy things just to see their GPU smoke. But I'm discussing mass audiences. Go watch The Martian in an enthusiast stir in 4K and have them A/B the HDR for you. You'll be a believer ;) and the best part is that HDR is resolution independent!

@Morville I think this will be mitigated quite a bit by the "all games work" as long as the tail is sufficiently long on it. Apple just subset the IPad 3 and 4S on iOS 10. People have gotten used to it. Maintain a robust trade in program and it'll work I think

I guesstimated it based on it's near equivalence to an R9 270 - 270X - which would put it roughly between 2 & 2.8Tf. 5x better seems unlikely unless MS get desperate.

I'm pretty sure its widely known that the XB1 is circa 1.3 TFLOPS whilst PS4 is 1.8 TFLOPS.

6 TFLOPS makes it nearly on par with the latest mid-range GPU from Nvidia in the 1070 and more powerful than the newly announced Radeon 480, specifically targeting VR.

The current Xbox isn't all that powerful if you compare it to several chips out there. Even an Intel Iris can match about 2/3 of its performance.

Despite all the spin and guff the real reason we are seeing Xbox 1.5 and Ps4.5 is that the original machines are woefully underpowered for an entire generation. Also using off the shelf hardware in the guts of the machines rather than proprietary hardware means there isn't a great deal of extra grunt that can be wrung out of them as was the case with previous generations. Therefore we will see these peak far quicker than their predecessors.

Do we think the industry might be moving towards a mobile phone upgrade model? Maybe even a subscription based service that does away with initial hardware costs in favour of a monthly contract? Just a thought!

@Drew I absolutely think there's s subscription model coming. There were several expected announcements that didn't materialize that could have lead directly into such a thing.

Will people pay $20-$30 a month to always have the latest hardware? A segment would I'm sure

@Jeff How would this model impact on developers, if a AAA game has a development cycle of 2-3 years will the devs need to constantly be updating code for the new hardware?

How many people really complain about the controller though? Personally I prefer it, apart from the awful lifespan of the rubbers.

Traditionally peripherals have an extremely short shelf life. All Console add-ons have been unmitigated failures. Whether it was the Mega CD, 3D gaming or the Kinect eventually most if not all peripherals get binned. MS hasn't even mentioned the Kinect 2 for 2 E3's now. Defunkt. I do suspect that VR will go much the same way, especially at the price-point and the need for a new console to run it. I may be wrong but I am yet to be convinced of its viability.

@Drew it's no different than they already do for PC, and in fact drastically simpler since there are a few locked targets.

2- the stick placement, the lack of concave, and the "claw grip" is just awful to people used to Xbox

3D gaming was never really a thing. Same issues with the consoles not having enough horsepower to run it. Kinect was killed by ignorant paranoid and entitled people on a witch hunt. It never had a chance. In the meantime it's in heavy use in medical and robotics and its technology has been licensed by Samsung and Comcast among others. Plus it's deeply integrated into Hololens.

VR gaming isn't yet a thing till the goggles hit $199 coupled with real, no pretenders, no rails (basically nothing PlayStation was showing) AAA games. I suggest you watch John Carmack's GDC 2015 keynote for insight on the development and glide path of VR.

the stick placement, the lack of concave, and the "claw grip" is just awful to people used to Xbox

That's just what people used to PS2/3 say about the XBox d-pad!

The consoles most certainly have enough horsepower it's just that with stereoscopic gaming your GPU is always producing lower quality graphics than it could have if it were utilizing all of the graphical capabilities for a single screen. That will always be the case for stereoscopic and VR, and it cannot be escaped, ever!

That is not to say it will never catch on, it's just a tough call. Do you sacrifice framerate or detail? You can't have it all!

So.... Nintendo still didn't say much about NX, due to launch early next year, yet and Microsoft is instead already hyping its new system due in one and half year from now. I really can't imagine more different approaches to marketing and business!
In the meantime, Sony shows some great exclusives, is ready for VR and keeps selling PS4s better than ever...