Frankly speaking, most of the glitter associated with the release of the Xbox One was marred by Microsoft's own decisions regarding the use of an always online connection for the console and the additional charges for the sale of used games. Whatever glory was indeed left with the console, Sony made sure that its own PlayStation 4 will take that away by being comparatively better than the Xbox One.
For the sake of details, the Xbox One is currently set for a November release for as many as 21 countries. The successor to the Xbox 360 is scheduled to be available for $499 in the United States, £429 in Britain and €499 in Europe.
“Xbox One is a state-of-the art gaming console, a new generation TV and movie system and a whole lot more. Gone are the days of switching inputs on your TV to play a game or watch a movie. With Xbox One, you can quickly jump from TV to movies to music to a game. Just with the sound of your voice,” the official page states.
“With Xbox One, games are so lifelike, you’ll swear they’re real. Immerse yourself in cinematic worlds with characters that are more human than ever. And reach into television, sports, music, and even the web in ways you never imagined possible.”
Getting back to the console, Microsoft, as it seems, is aware of the fact that it didn’t enjoy a smooth sailing in its Xbox One adventures and with Sony’s PlayStation 4 already stamping its superiority over the Microsoft-based console with better design and cheaper price tag, the only option left with the company was the presentation it had in mind for the E3.
Microsoft, in this edition of E3, was focused more on the Xbox One's streaming media functions and its tech specifications, and showed how the console could replace the user’s smart TV and his set-top box rather than showing what it had planned for upcoming titles that will be releasing later this year.
Of course, Microsoft's VP of Interactive Entertainment, Chris Lewis, had a justification for this.
"It's always tempting to try and say everything all at once, but we felt their was certain logic to us unveiling at the Redmond HQ first – since it's our home," Lewis said, according to The Guardian. "But [E3] is a more logical place to devote the content to our all-important games line-up. Games define us and have since the first Xbox."
However, not all was bad. Microsoft, as promised, did showcase the 13 exclusive titles for the Xbox One and all of them seemed like targeted toward core gamers. The company showed off the new versions of Forza and Halo, alongside the gameplay for Respawn's new IP Titanfall and DICE's eagerly anticipated Battlefield 4.
Other titles such as Below, a new dungeon crawler, Quantum Break and a RPG-based world building game called Project Spark. Hack and slash title Ryse also made a return, along with the Metal Gear Solid series, a series that was a PlayStation-exclusive not too long ago.
While this year’s E3 may not be such a fruitful outing for Microsoft, it did manage to get a bite out of all the festivities surrounding the event by revealing its scheduled set of exclusive titles, something Sony didn’t take care of properly when it revealed the PlayStation 4.