Microsoft may not give the Nintendo Wii U much breathing room as a new rumor has a new Xbox arriving next year. The new system will reportedly be unveiled next June at E3 2012. Little has been mentioned to BGR in the scoop other than that the very earliest work had started in 2006, just a year after the Xbox 360 was on shelves.
The schedule corroborates one supposedly leaked by Crytek. Under that view, it would have much more recent DirectX 11-level graphics hardware, though what kind of processor upgrade it will get is still undetermined. Many expect Microsoft to have backwards compatibility for the first time by using the same basic Power architecture as in the Xbox 360’s three-core chip, albeit in a much faster and cooler-running design than in 2005.
One as yet unverified rumor had Microsoft waiting until 2015. That has been since cast into doubt with the unveiling of the Wii U, since Microsoft is unlikely to let Nintendo have a three-year lead.
Sony may follow suit with a PlayStation 4. Publicly, it has said the PS3 is just coming into force. The company may be using a strategy to protect its sales in the near term, though, and has a history of telling knowing falsehoods until it’s ready to unveil a new product.
