The Xbox One generation has been one of ups and downs for Microsoft. The console started out on the wrong foot, suffering because of a high price point, underpowered hardware, and one PR nightmare after the other. In recent years though, Microsoft has been resurgent, with things such as Game Pass and xCloud signifying a shift in the company’s strategy, while an increased focus on first party software and greater support from Japanese develops has also been a focus.
It’s clear to see that Microsoft is learning from its mistakes as it looks to transition into the Xbox Scarlett generation in a smooth manner, and according to head of Xbox, Phil Spencer, that’s what they will do in all respects, including the console’s price and the power of its hardware.
“I would say a learning from the Xbox One generation is we will not be out of position on power or price,” said Spencer while speaking with The Verge. “If you remember the beginning of this generation we were a hundred dollars more expensive and yes, we were less powerful. And we started Project Scarlett with this leadership team in place with a goal of having market success.”
Microsoft, in fact, intends to build on the success of Xbox Scarlett to continue onward with many more generations of Xbox, which is why they are, in Spencer’s words, “going all-in” with the Xbox Scarlett.
“We had the discussion years ago ‘do we want to go do another generation?’” he said. “Yes, and do we think there will be multiple generations ahead of us? I actually think there probably is. So we’re going all in. We’re all-in on Project Scarlett and I want to compete, and I want to compete in the right ways which is why we’re focused on cross-play and backward compatibility.”
Xbox Scarlett was partially unveiled at E3 earlier in the year, and confirmed to be launching in Holiday 2020 with Halo Infinite as a launch title. We can expect a lot more details on the console, its price, and its launch going into 2020.
