Xbox one launch and first lookMicrosoft offers a glimpse Tuesday at a new-generation Xbox as videogame consoles evolve into home entertainment centres and adapt to competition from smartphones and tablets.
A tented stage has been set up at the technology giant's headquarters in the city of Redmond in Washington State for an "Xbox Reveal" event to play out just weeks before a major annual E3 videogame conference in Los Angeles.
The console debut, to be streamed worldwide to Internet-linked Xbox 360 consoles, will spotlight the hardware and platform while Microsoft will show off games at E3.
Microsoft has sold approximately 77 million Xbox 360 consoles since they hit the market in late 2005. Console rival Sony has sold about the same number of PlayStation 3 consoles.
Sony announced a new generation PlayStation 4 system in February but spoke ambiguously about the device, leaving much to the imagination.
Sony picked the eve of the Xbox Reveal event to release a YouTube video teasing its plans to show off the PS4 in Los Angeles on June 10, the night before E3 officially gets underway.
The PS4 will succeed PlayStation 3 consoles that began their lifespan in late 2006.
Microsoft's E3 press event will take place in the morning on June 10 but will be competing with an eagerly-anticipated Apple developers conference keynote presentation taking place in San Francisco at the same time.
Last year at E3, Microsoft introduced Smart Glass software to connect Xbox 360 consoles with smartphones or tablets, which could serve as second-screens for viewing or controlling action on televisions.
About $65 billion was spent worldwide last year on videogames, with 1.2 billion people playing them on devices ranging from smartphones to consoles, according to industry statistics cited by Microsoft.
AFP