Microsoft reveals first details of next-generation Xbox

Company's chief XNA architect shares vision for HD era of gaming

SAN FRANCISCO - March 9, 2005 - Today at the annual Game Developers Conference (GDC), Microsoft Corp. announced the first details of its next-generation Xbox® video game system platform, highlighting how hardware, software and services are being fused to power enhanced game and entertainment experiences.

Microsoft Corporate Vice President and Chief XNA ^TM Architect J Allard further outlined the company's vision for the future of entertainment, citing the emergence of an "HD Era" in video games that is fueled by consumer demand for experiences that are always connected, always personalized and always in high-definition.

"In the HD Era the platform is bigger than the processor," Allard said. "New technology and emerging consumer forces will come together to enable the rock stars of game development to shake up the old establishment and redefine entertainment as we know it."

Building on 10 years of innovation with the DirectX® API, the Microsoft® Windows® and Xbox platforms will enable ground-breaking game experiences in the HD Era. Illustrating what that means for gamers, Allard shared the first details about the next-generation Xbox guide. Persistent across all games and media experiences, the guide is an entertainment gateway that instantly connects players to their games, their friends and their digital media.

Features of the guide include these:

• Gamer Cards. Gamer Cards provide gamers with a quick look at key Xbox Live ^TM information. They let players instantly connect with people who have similar skills, interests and lifestyles.


• Marketplace. Browseable by game, by genre, and in a number of other ways, the Marketplace will provide a one-stop shop for consumers to acquire episodic content, new game levels, maps, weapons, vehicles, skins and new community-created content.


• Micro-transactions. Breaking down barriers of small-ticket online commerce, micro-transactions will allow developers and the gaming community to charge as little as they like for content they create and publish on Marketplace. Imagine players slapping down $.99 to buy a one-of-a-kind, fully tricked-out racing car to be the envy of their buddies.


• Custom playlists. This feature eliminates the need for developers to support custom music in games. The guide instantly connects players to their music so they can listen to their own tracks while playing all their favorite next-generation Xbox games.

• A well-balanced system that will deliver more than a teraflop of targeted computing performance


• A multicore processor architecture co-developed with IBM Corp. that provides developer "headroom" and flexibility for the HD Era


• A custom-designed graphics processor co-developed with ATI Technologies Inc. designed for HD Era games and entertainment applications

• More information regarding Microsoft, including games developed and published.
• View the listing of Microsoft Xbox 360 press releases.