The Xbox One buyer’s guide

We’ve said it countless times before, but 2013 is a big year for gamers and it doesn’t get much bigger than the launch of two major consoles. The more controversial of the two is Microsoft’s new baby, the Xbox One. Should you buy one? Well, let’s take go through this conundrum step-by-step and help you reach a decision.

Console design

I personally think the Xbox One is not beautifully designed. It looks like a big, black, shiny brick. It comes with a redesigned Kinect 2.0, which is also bigger, but does at least look better than its predecessor. I think Sony has always had the edge when it comes to design here, and honestly the Xbox One is no exception. Microsoft have made an attempt to make it look sleek and stylish, but really it doesn’t achieve this at all. It looks like a VCR, a machine from the heyday of the eighties. At least the Xbox 360 had style, with that whole concave look. It has been designed to fit in with the rest of our black, boring gadgets under the TV, but where’s its personality? The PS4 has that cute little slant to it, the Xbox One is just a block of gaming.

Controller

I have always preferred the feel of the Xbox controller over the PS4’s, and this controller is lighter than its predecessor and as comfortable to hold as ever. It’s slightly wider than the 360 controller, and the Back and Start buttons have been replaced by Menu and View respectively. Each back trigger can rumble separately which is pretty awesome. It charges up in the same way as the 360’s – via AA or rechargeable battery pack.

Next there’s the Kinect, which in the past has always been a somewhat awkward motion controller that almost no-one I know actually used other than for an occasional dance party game. The Kinect 2.0 however, is much improved and able to detect the slightest movement and limb rotation for added responsiveness. I’ve seen it in action too, and it’s pretty impressive. The Kinect can also register who is holding the controller, and login to the appropriate profile automatically. The Kinect can also isolate background sound quite effectively, so you’ll be able to issue commands even in a noisy environment.

On a slightly creepy note, it’s also sensitive enough to read your heart rate and facial expression.

Hardware

You want actual specs do you? 8GB DDR3 memory (only 5GB available for gaming, the rest is operating system), an 8-core, x86 processor, a 500GB hard drive, a Blu-ray drive (yes, Microsoft finally made that switch!), three USB 3.0 ports, HDMI in and out ports and a custom AMD GPU. It all sounds rather impressive on a basic level, but what will this hardware actually be able to do?

Well you won’t be able to expand your 500GB hard drive on launch, but there are plans to be able to plug in any USB drive for additional space.

Performance wise, every time I’ve been able to get a hands-on with this machine it’s performed admirably, but let’s face it, you’re never really able to put it through its paces in a controlled environment. You need to be able to throw everything you have at it, and we won’t be able to do this for a few weeks yet.

Built-in support for Twitch TV means you can stream games live to other viewers and vice versa. The new Game DVR system also keeps a five minute record of whatever you were playing, so you can share it online if you want to.

Sadly the Xbox One is not backwards compatible, so don’t throw out your 360 just yet if you still have games you’d like to play on it. This is all new hardware and former Xbox boss Don Mattrick was noted as saying, “If you’re backwards compatible, you’re really backwards”.

Software/UI/launch games

Your Gamertag, Achievements and Friends will all roll over to the Xbox One if you have an Xbox Live account, so you’ll be able to continue to use your existing profile on this new machine.

An attempt has been made to clamp down on trolls on Xbox Live as well, with the new Reputation system. If you’re consistently banned and reported for abuse, you’ll be paired with like-minded people whose reputations are also in the gutter.

There’s a new Achievements system, which adds the Challenges feature to the existing Achievements structure. Every person that completes a unique, timed challenge will reap special rewards.

There are some impressive launch titles for this console, including:

• Assassins Creed IV: Black Flag
• Battlefield 4
• Call of Duty: Ghosts
• Dead Rising 3
• Ryse: Son of Rome
• Need for Speed: Rivals
• Crimson Dragon
• FIFA 14
• LEGO Marvel Superheroes
• Fighter Within
• FORZA Motorsport 5
• Just Dance 2014
• Lococycle
• Madden NFL 25
• NBA 2K14
• NBA LIVE 14
• Peggle 2
• Powerstar Golf
• Skylanders: Swap Force
• Zoo Tycoon
• Zumba Fitness: World Party

Sadly Watch Dogs is no longer on this list due to its delayed release date.

To play many of these games however, you need servers for online multiplayer. Microsoft is offering dedicated servers, for all games, totally free. Basically this places everyone an equal footing which is a big bonus to online gamers.

DRM

This has been the biggest stumbling block for Xbox One since its announcement. Initially it was announced that the console would be always connected, with no option to disconnect it from the internet. After immense pressure from the public, it’s changed its tune and allowed an initial online connection to set up the console, and after that you can play offline to your heart’s content. You might miss out on some of the more innovative features of the console, however if your internet connection is dodgy, rest assured you’ll still be able to enjoy your favourite games.

You’ll also be able to buy and sell used games as you have before with the Xbox 360. Considering this was an issue for most gamers, Microsoft have to be commended for listening to its critics and making an effort to change its policy, although it may or may not work to regain the trust that many feel has been broken.

Similarly, now that there is no lockdown on DRM, the Xbox One is now also region free, so you’ll be able to play games from any region on your new console.

Price and release date

Internationally the Xbox One was priced at US$499, which is US$100 more expensive than the PS4. With import and shipping to South Africa we currently have no idea what this is going to retail at, but expect it to be expensive. The PS4 was priced at US$399 and is set to retail locally at R6299. a hefty increase even with import and exchange rate.

Xbox One will hit the shelves on the first roll out (countries such as the US and UK for example) November 22. We’re only set for the fourth wave release however, and with no local release date announced, don’t expect to see it in SA early in 2014. I’m optimistically thinking mid-2014 is more likely.

The “X” factor

So you know the facts, but does the Xbox One have “it”? This is difficult to answer, because while the PlayStation has had many home entertainment features for years, Microsoft was always heralded for making a machine designed specifically for gaming. This appears to have changed, with a massive emphasis on TV interactivity, something that has turned many gamers away from the console.

Controversial as it has been however, you can’t deny that the Xbox One in theory has a number of pretty awesome features. Are they strong enough to lure gamers away from their beloved Playstation or will the Xbox One be headed for poor sales?

Performance wise it’s mostly on a par with the PlayStation 4 (on paper anyway), and while there seems to be an inordinately strong emphasis on TV, this isn’t something that is likely to be accommodated in our territory for a while, so we’re forced to focus more on other features in the meantime.

While I think Microsoft will lose many gamers because of the delayed release of the Xbox One in our territory in comparison to the PS4, it’s possible that the real issue will come down to those of us who play online. If you already have an established Xbox Live account, which you’ve had for years, you’ve spent a while clocking up your achievements. You’ve built up your list of friends that you play with regularly online, so are you really going to want to start from scratch and build it up again on an entirely new system? Or will you just wait it out, and hope for an update to give you all the features you want?

I wait in great anticipation of the outcome of the next-gen console wars.