It is said that the only thing constant in the world is change, and Microsoft is living by this principle when it comes to the Xbox console lineup. The Redmond-based tech firm has not yet revealed any plans to develop the next-generation Xbox, informally called the Xbox Two, although rumors are rife that the Xbox One successor is coming up soon.
According to The Sun UK, it is likely that Microsoft will launch a brand new Xbox home console in the near future. In fact, the gamers may not even have to wait for a couple of years to lay their hands on the Xbox Two console. This is because of the company's noticeable aggressiveness in launching new Xbox upgrades over the past few years.
To note, the very first Xbox was unveiled in 2001, and it took around four years to showcase the Xbox 360 in 2005. There was a longer period of waiting for the next console version, which is the Xbox One that was launched in 2013. However, Microsoft made plans to release improved Xbox hardware, one year after another. The Xbox One S was released in 2016, which was then followed by the Xbox One X last year.
Microsoft might have realized that the consoles can follow the same path as the smartphones, having regular hardware updates every year. As for the Xbox Two, the next-gen console could include a few performance enhancements, just enough to convince the players to switch to the latest hardware. For now, it is expected that the Xbow Two will be out as early as 2019, the same period when Microsoft Xbox's rival, Sony, could launch the PlayStation 5.
The current Xbox One X version already has almost everything that a modern gamer wants, particulaly the native 4K resolution support. The console can also run games using 4K Blu-ray discs, a feature that the PS4 Pro has yet to include. Nevertheless, there are still many ways to improve the gaming experience via Xbox Two. For one, as the Xbox One X already achieved 4K gaming, it is time for the next-gen console to focus on graphical fidelity and frame rate improvements.
It is also possible that Microsoft will find a way to bring a more affordable HoloLens augmented reality (AR) technology into the Xbox Two, the same way that Sony introduced mixed reality experience to PlayStation 4 owners via PlayStation VR headset.
Still, other reports suggest that the public should not get their hopes up for an imminent Xbox Two release. It can be argued that launching a next-gen Xbox console will not be a good marketing strategy, especially since the latest Xbox One hardware upgrades are still raking more profit for Microsoft. It is possible that the company will enjoy the high Xbox One X sales for more years before moving on to a brand new project, which is the Xbox Two.
