The recent drama over the next Xbox potentially including an always-on mode that would require its users to be connected to the Internet escalated recently when Microsoft’s creative director Adam Orth commented on the debate through Twitter, which resulted in the company apologizing for his comments and possibly sparking his early dismissal. But all of that drama may have been for nothing according to a new rumor which puts the always-on rumor to rest.
According to an anonymous source, it seems an always-on Xbox was never being planned. “You are not required to be connected to the internet in order to play Durango games and [Microsoft] were NEVER considering doing such a thing,” the source claims. “Now please, just read that last sentence over and over again until it sinks in. Done? Good.”
The anonymous source also claims the next Xbox, codenamed Durango, will include an Xbox 360 system-on-a-chip, making it completely backwards compatible with Xbox 360 games as well as adding some additional power for certain tasks. Durango will also run on Windows 8 as a way to help court indie developers and make the game creating process much easier for all developers.
One of the last bits of information the source reveals is Durango’s controller, which is said to come with an improved directional pad, but will largely remain unchanged from the Xbox 360’s controller. The source also claims Microsoft will create its own Apple TV set-top-box competitor that will not include a disc drive and will only be able to play Xbox Live Arcade and Games on Demand titles.
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