The Xbox One Kinect has been officially dropped in order to make way for the $400 Kinect, but why is Microsoft taking this action now?
In a related report by The Inquisitr , the Watch Dogs native resolution was announced the other day, and neither the PS4 or Xbox One are capable of doing 1080p 60FPS . Interestingly enough, when Halo 5: Guardians was announced , 343 was talking about how much of a challenge it would be to meet the goal of having a Xbox One 1080p 60FPS experience for the next Halo game. But most gamers just wanted to know the identity of that female character in the Halo 5 photo .
Microsoft’s Yusuf Mehdi, Chief Marketing and Strategy Office for Xbox, claims that the choice came to Xbox One sales numbers. While he believes they are doing well enough considering they launched in 13 countries, and the PS4 launched in over 40, he also admits that the $100 price difference left a mark on their balance sheets:
“That said, we’ve heard from a lot of our Xbox fans who say, ‘Hey look, I want an Xbox One, but at $499, I probably have to wait a little while before I can afford to get one.’ I do think we’re going to get people now who move over, and then buy the Kinect later. So I do think the [price point] broadens the appeal and hopefully brings more people to Xbox One sooner.”
But would gamers really buy the Kinect later? According to Microsoft, about 80 percent of Xbox One owners use the Kinect 2.0 on a regular basis. Considering the relative popularity of the device, why would they remove it? After all, making the Kinect standard was one way to ensure that video game developers would support it thoroughly, but now the new version casts that certainty into doubt.
All in all, while they still have to play catch up to Sony, Microsoft believes the exclusive games will help in the long haul:
“If we take the SKU where the pricing is similar, what it really comes down to then is overall value. First, I believe we have the better games lineup. Most game fans would acknowledge that, and I believe that during the second holiday — after you see our E3 show — I think we stand a very good chance of being in the same position. In terms of games, we’ll continue to have the best lineup.”
Funnily enough, Sony has responded to the Microsoft’s change of heart regarding the Xbox One Kinect by being snarky. Via Twitter this is what PlayStation France had to say (after being translated): “On June 9th, the PS4 stays the same.” Of course, when you consider the fact that Sony is already talking about the PlayStation 5 going full digital with no discs you’ll see that they’re just talking smack.
Do you think the Kinect-less Xbox One will change the dynamics of the PS4 vs Xbox One? Or did Microsoft just Xbone themselves?