Photo illustration by Joel McCarthy
Revolutionary Xbox TV will feature ability to dispense water
By Angela Espinoza, Xbox Expert
On May 21, the Xbox One was revealed by a live broadcast online and through Xbox 360 consoles. The hour-long presentation featured a number of guest speakers, including legendary filmmaker turned game developer Steven Spielberg, who spoke about Xbox TV’s first original series, based on the Halo franchise. Amongst other things, this news on the Halo series will now officially make Xbox TV a competitor against Netflix original series’ such as Wallander and season four of Arrested Development.
To stifle confusion, Xbox TV was briefly known as the ‘Xbox One,’ as stated during the May 21 announcement. Much focus was placed on the console’s TV capabilities, Xbox’s massive sports-based community (reportedly 95 per cent of the Xbox fan base), and a new attachment that would allow the system to dispense water—a brilliant move to keep hardcore, unmoving intellectuals using the system from suffering dehydration. But despite these magnificent additions, the Xbox One was met with instant backlash, largely aimed towards the then-console’s lack of game selection and footage.
In the weeks since then, Microsoft has heard the pleas of its fans, and responded with a major campaign revamp, including a name change to ‘Xbox TV.’ Although no major changes will be made to the console turned digital TV box, this will make Xbox TV the first to let viewers at home watch television by way of motion capture movements with the now mandatory Kinect, eliminating the household remote; Microsoft’s subtle way at promoting an environmentally friendly way of viewing television.
Xbox TV can also be used to play games, and Microsoft is now putting together a system that allows Xbox TV users to gain achievements by watching television, simultaneously upping the user’s public, TV-viewing persona and serving as a reminder that this amazing set is a dream come true for casual gamers and normal people.
These recent changes have proven that Microsoft is turning its back on its previously cold and uncaring image that much of the gaming community felt the company presented. Many who were previously skeptical of the Xbox One are now praising its reformation into the Xbox TV, and are now even looking forward to its likely release later this year.
Although no official release date or price has been announced yet, it’s likely the new campaign will make the Xbox TV an enormous success, especially with the added bonus of a Blu-ray player. If nothing else, the Xbox TV proves Microsoft truly does care about its fans.
