Excitement is mounting for the next generations of consoles and the Xbox Series X is set to have a substantial impact in the gaming market when it is released. However, the coronavirus is causing delays across the game industry and updates, as well as releases, may face delays because of the pandemic. The Head of Xbox, Phil Spencer, has now revealed the impact the global pandemic is having on the launch of the new Xbox and it seems that the main concern is developing games for the console.
The Xbox Series X is set to improve upon the impressive technology that was seen in the Xbox One and the new console has already teased outstanding specifications for its hardware. Despite this technological leap, Xbox is likely concerned about having exclusive games and delivering them to consumers, as this was a huge factor for the last generation of consoles that Sony led. Phil Spencer has now provided some insight into the current situation.
The Head of Xbox explained to CNBC, "Teams are doing a really good job on keeping our hardware on track, I’d say the bigger unknown is probably the game production." He unpacked this statement further explaining the process of releasing games, "Game production is a large scale entertainment activity now. You have hundreds of people coming together building assets working for creative." With this in mind, it may be dangerous to push forward with the production of certain games and towards the end of his statement he added the importance of protecting the health of the teams, "I also need to make sure that the security and safety of the teams is the most important thing and not unduly push when things just aren’t ready.” However, Phil Spencer was positive about the hardware of the Xbox Series X.
There was confidence in the hardware as Spencer stated, "On the hardware side we feel good about our plans, there’s obviously some impact to schedules, but overall we’re in line with where we thought we would be.” With the specifications that have been revealed, it is no wonder that some feel that the Xbox Series X may outperform the PlayStation 5, yet games are a vital part of the success of a console. It will be interesting to see how the console deals with delays, as well as its competition which is likely facing similar issues.
There are plenty of rumors about games that may come to the Xbox Series X exclusively but with delays in production, it may be some time before fans have confirmation of what titles will arrive. What is clear is that the console has the hardware to succeed as well as some franchises that have a huge fan base, and it will be intriguing to see if this can produce a leading console when it arrives at the end of the year.
The Xbox Series X is scheduled to be released in the holidays, 2020.