The Xbox Series X is gunning for the PS5, with Microsoft posting a surprising announcement via a blog post by Xbox head Phil Spencer. The post details the console's specs, features and capabilities, which is a lot more than we know about the PS5.
In the blog post, Microsoft claims that the Xbox Series X is the "fastest, most powerful console ever," which might be true considering the specs the new console boasts.
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- Xbox Series X will offer backward compatibility for four generations of Xbox consoles
Xbox Series X specs
The Xbox Series X is outfitted with a custom processor that sports AMD's new Zen 2 and RDNA 2 architectures. It's four times stronger than the current Xbox One. Leveraging 12 teraflops of GPU power, the Xbox Series X's graphical performance will be twice that of the Xbox One X, and eight times stronger than the original Xbox One.
The Xbox Series X also boasts hardware-accelerated DirectX Raytracing, which means you'll experience realistic lighting, reflections and acoustics in real-time. Microsoft will also be employing Variable Rate Shading (VRS), which lets the Xbox Series X prioritize rendering important objects in the game, such as the environment or game characters. The goal is to provide more stable frame rates and higher resolution without impacting image quality.
You'll get an SSD this time around, which will improve "nearly every aspect of playing games." The Xbox Series X also includes a Quick Resume feature, which lets you keep multiple games in a suspended state, so you can return to the fight without waiting on any additional loading screens.
The Xbox Series X will also feature 120 fps support, which will be great for competitive play. That said, it's unclear what resolution will be for games that can run at 120 fps. Additionally, will players be able to customize the graphical settings in these games themselves? That remains unclear.
Xbox One X features
Along with boasting backward compatibility for four generations of gaming, the most exciting feature Xbox is implementing for the Xbox Series X is "Smart Delivery." This feature lets you buy an Xbox Games Studios game on Xbox One and get automatically upgraded to the Xbox Series X version for free when it comes out.
Gamers should never be forced to purchase the same game twice or pay for upgrades. Owners of #Cyberpunk2077 for Xbox One will receive the Xbox Series X upgrade for free when available. https://t.co/nfkfFLj85wFebruary 24, 2020
Third-party game developers also have the ability to take part in this program, as CD Projekt Red is committing to Smart Delivery for Cyberpunk 2077. This feature should make jumping console generations the most seamless in video game history.
Microsoft's Xbox Series X is lining up to be one of the most impressive consoles that the company has produced. Even if Xbox doesn't deliver with its games, the service it provides, from Xbox Game Pass to Smart Delivery, should keep the upcoming Xbox in the running against the PS5.
