Microsoft Shifts Emphasis on Xbox One to Games
Microsoft wants to clear up any confusion that may exist about the Xbox One: It is all about the games.
A year ago, the company was promoting the Xbox One as an all-in-one entertainment system for the living room, one that could play games and then seamlessly shift to let users watch television and change channels with voice commands. On Monday, though, Microsoft sought to decisively shift the conversation about the Xbox One back to games, announcing a lineup of almost two dozen games, many of them hard-core shooting games, that are planned for release on the Xbox this year.
Part of the Microsoft’s disadvantage is that the company was more ambitious about the technology in the Xbox One. Microsoft included Kinect, a camera and microphone device that lets users play games and operate other functions with body movements and voice commands. The extra technology translated into a $499 price tag for the Xbox One, $100 more than the price of the PlayStation 4.
Sony deftly exploited that and other earlier missteps by Microsoft to portray itself as the more gamer-friendly console maker. In response, Microsoft recently announced it planned to introduce a $399 console without Kinect, which went on sale Monday.
See the full story here: http://www.nytimes.com/2014/06/10/technology/microsoft-shifts-emphasis-on-xbox-one-to-games.html