The fact is that the apparent recent financial success of the Xbox brand has come from Xbox Live's music, TV, video, microtransactional and social elements more than gaming.
Equally true, however, is that the more widely accepted cultural success of the Xbox came from gaming and gamers. This new Xbox can go either way. We need games and gaming to be core to it.
So, rather than over-analyse vapour, we decided to ask two simple questions of the people at the sharp end; the writers and gamers we know who pay for their consoles and games and then write about them.
We asked two simple, easy, elegantly brutal questions:
1) What are you most hoping for from the new Xbox?
2) What are you most fearing from the new Xbox?
What are you most hoping for from the new Xbox?
Well, thanks for asking. I've been gaming since the late 1970s (Galaxian table, under-age in the Red Cow in Reading if you're asking) and it takes quite a lot for any of the corporations to make me hope for anything actually impressive to be buried within the BollocksTalk of 'connected experiences' and 'entrainment hubs' and 'Familtainment'.
What I am hoping for is quiet efficiency that doesn't have to be replaced when it breaks down. I am hoping for a small form-factor that won't eat up space beneath my TV. I'm a recent convert to my Xbox 360 - in the last three years - and while office 360s have red-ringed and been replaced, my home console has sat next to my PS3 and been fine. I do live in fear of its death for no good reason though.
So, Microsoft, simple ask from me: Make the new console reliable.
What are you most fearing from the new Xbox?
I fear that it will attempt to be all things to all possible consumers, thereby satisfying no one at all.
Microsoft needs to monetise its Trojan Horse now. The way is clear. Nintendo has apparently laid down and died with the hugely unsatisfactory Wii U and its corporate failure to address networked games in the house (the 3DS is another thing entirely).
Sony has got a vast library of content, a decent delivery platform in PSN and a new console but apparently lacks any form of joined-up management or strategy (“Reveal” PS4's new services but don't reveal the actual device?).
But, if the Redmond company - under the weight of Steve Ballmer's sales-over-creativity agenda - simply produces another “multi-function infotainment and gamification hub with Windows Phone compatibility” and yet more Facebook, Twitter, Outlook and Netflixation box aimed at “Connected Experiences”, but using a not-glorified PC architecture that can't be opened to indie/bedroom developers, I fear I won't buy it.
What are you most hoping for from the new Xbox?
Honestly, I don't know. There are so few games out there that are grabbing my interest at the moment that I suppose I'm hoping that something interesting and different is announced. It's always exciting when a new machine is announced but after the initial hype dies down, the system will live or die by the games you can play on it.
Petaflops and processing power doesn't really matter to me - I just want something that I'll queue up for at midnight, something I've not done for years. I suppose I'm hoping to be excited by some interesting ideas.
What are you most fearing from the new Xbox?
This is a lot easier. I'm worried about the Always On rumours as there's no such thing as a stable internet connection around where I live. I'm worried that they'll sack off backwards compatibility - I don't have the space under the telly for a PS3, 360, an original Xbox and whatever the new one will be called. I'm worried that they'll ignore stuff like the Indie Games that have thrown out some truly fun and entertaining things to play over the past couple of years.
I'm worried they'll demand Total Social Network Integration At All Times, because that shit just annoys me - I don't care what achievements other people are getting, I barely care about my own ones. I just want something to play great games on, and I'm worried that Microsoft are going to unveil something that tries to do everything else while pushing the games into the background.
What are you most hoping for from the new Xbox?
An entertainment hub for the living room that enables new convergence technologies across digital media including games, films, TV and music. I hope it opens things up for indies and innovators enabling new business models, genres and multi-screen activities.
What are you most fearing from the new Xbox?
That it has lost focus on it's key elements and (been) rushed so consumers get turned off by what could be possible due to poor implementation and lack of compatibility.
What are you most hoping for from the new Xbox?
I would love to see Microsoft re-engage with its gaming user base and bring about a return to the inclusive Xbox glory days of 2007-2010.
Thanks to initiatives like “Inside Xbox”, the console's friendly, games-centric UI and intelligent social integration there was a genuine sense of community around the console that was beyond anything that Microsoft's rivals could manage.
As we all recognise however, Microsoft has abandoned much of this over the past few years with ugly, unwanted dashboard revisions and the dismantling of IX.
What are you most fearing from the new Xbox?
I fear (expect) that the machine will not be backwards compatible with my several hundred strong library of Xbox 360 discs, Live Arcade, On Demand and Indie titles, meaning that my 360 shall have to remain forever hooked up and in the way.
What are you most hoping for from the new Xbox?
More open opportunities for apps, like Google and to a lesser extent Apple. I'd love Spotify and Flipboard to be able to get apps up there as at present it seems too locked down. For that matter, where the hell is Skype? Come on Microsoft, you own Skype and have Kinect!
Sure, this isn't games but I think there's only so far games can go from a console position, and that's up to the publishers to show. I want Xbox to really be centre of what I do and at present that's not working for me. I'd love to use Xbox Music as my music streaming application but since it's limited to Microsoft devices that isn't happening, plus I get Deezer for free.
What are you most fearing from the new Xbox?
Lifestyle shots featuring people with vast living rooms! When Kinect is good, it's great but all too often I'm limited by my living space. If Microsoft wants to show people using their bodies as controllers then enable Kinect to require less space, your average user doesn't live in a loft apartment in Manhattan.
What are you most hoping for from the new Xbox?
A controller that I can stand to hold for long periods of time. I've never got on with the Xbox controllers. I find the curve on top of the controller to be a hinderance in getting to the main face buttons.
A better D-pad is required, a much, much better D-pad.
Games-wise, more of a mix. Xbox seems to be happy being just an FPS/racing console and Microsoft is doing much less to promote different game styles than Sony is.
I suppose what I'm saying is that I'd like a console that I could see myself buying. The controller and lack of inspiring (to me) exclusives on 360 has meant I've not taken the plunge and have instead stayed with my PS3.
What are you most fearing from the new Xbox?
More of the same and a continuing move away from a focus on games. It'll be sad if Sony are "on their own" with (and I use the phrase carefully) "core" games since they respond better with competition.
Microsoft really seems to be pulling the covers off the "trojan horse" strategy recently and I can see the Next Xbox becoming a set-top box, living room controlling item instead of a games machine.
What are you most hoping for from the new Xbox?
Microsoft set the bar in many respects this past generation, but I think it's lost its creative momentum. There were colourful, imaginative first-party games at the Xbox 360’s launch lineup that really lured me towards the console. I want more of these, above all else. I’m also looking for a reason not to spend £40 a year to connect to the internet, so an Xbox Live service refresh would also be nice. Also, surprise Blast Corps announcement. You know you want it.
What are you most fearing from the new Xbox?
Well, if Microsoft stays on its ‘entertainment plus games’ course, without looking back towards its first-party studios, I probably wouldn’t be interested. I use consoles as media devices all the time, but it’s obvious that the entertainment apps on Xbox 360 have been a primary focus for Microsoft. I hope the company finds that balance and wows us tonight.
Another thing that I fear with the next Xbox involves any potential shrugging off of the Japanese market. This isn’t a fear in and of itself, because Microsoft has traditionally struggled in Japan. But any shunning of that market could have a knock-on effect and lead to another generation of games development dominated by Western tastes and interests. I love playing varied, interesting, internationally-flavoured games, so I’m really hoping that Microsoft, as a leading platform in the US and UK, takes this on board.
What are you most hoping for from the new Xbox?
Mainly I just want the specs to match up well with the PS4. Sony's online service is now on par with XBL and it looks like both will have interesting exclusive features. It would be nice to see MS and Sony fight it out with exclusive first-party titles instead of things like, "this is too hard to deveop for".
What are you most fearing from the new Xbox?
Banking too hard on Kinect 2.0. I worry MS may take a cue from the Nintendo play book and spend too much budget on making a packed in Kinect. They would have to lower the system specs to keep their price point close to what Sony is doing. I'm sure it will be much more powerful than the Wii U but the PS4 is a beast and early adopters love specs.
What are you most hoping for from the new Xbox?
Discounting the sort of things that don't require any hope on my part, like added grunt... Honestly, I'm kind of hoping for a version of Kinect that works, with some sort of technology that enables in-game navigation in a workable way. It needs to be accurate. It needs to work in a way that accomodates core games.
It most likely needs to be compatible with some sort of peripheral, frankly. A standalone nunchuck would probably do the job. With that, you could actually get around inside Kinect-compatible game worlds and do all the funky hand-waving Microsoft wants you to do to make things happen within that world.
Really, is there any reason Kinect 2.0 shouldn't be able to track peripherals? Lightsabre fights in all the new Star Wars games we're getting will be loads more fun with Kinect if we have actual lightsabres to wave around instead of having to mime it.
I'm not talking about anything with fancy sensors here - Kinect should be able to track an inert piece of plastic in the same way as it can track your hands. It could probably do it better.
Microsoft needs to get over its need to differentiate itself from the competition by having nothing to hold at all and start facilitating better motion-controlled games. Improved accuracy and navigation could finally give us core games that work well with Kinect, and big core games are going to be ever-more crucial as the casual audience continues to bleed away to mobile.
What are you most fearing from the new Xbox?
My big concern is that Microsoft will try to pass off a raft of new service-based features as a leap forward in hardware. One of the problems facing Microsoft is that it's effectively been delivering us a new Xbox every couple of years with massive dashboard updates.
No-one's going to get a big, new hardware feeling from 10 new apps and services on the new Xbox's dashboard. It will be understandable if that's what we get - the delivery of extra grunt isn't, when you get down to it, all that sexy until you see games making use of it. And more grunt is really what new hardware is about, when you take into account the aforementioned dashboard updates and the fact something like Kinect can be introduced mid-cycle.
My other concern is that new hardware - from everyone - is going to drive up the cost of development so far that everyone but all the biggest fish are going to disappear off to work on PC and mobile games.
Yes, services like Xbox Live and PSN deliver some great games developed on smaller budgets, but there's no need to buy a new Xbox to play that sort of game when you've got Steam, tablets and cheaper boxes like Ouya in the pipeline. There's a danger that development costs will go up to the point where there are too few games to make the next generation of consoles a good value proposition.
What are you most hoping for from the new Xbox?
I want it to build off of the community spirit it engendered when XBL was first released and not the quagmire of screaming 14 year-olds playing CoD/FIFA/Madden it is now.
I want them to re-embrace the independent game developer with respect and not side-line them into some kind of ghetto. I want the new Xbox to re-embrace the roots of the first iteration of the console; for example, amazing games that left us awe inspired. It should retain people’s ownership of games they have bought on XBLA and be backwards compatible with a majority of Xbox 360 games.
I want them to make XBL a worthwhile service that deserves a subscription fee by improving on social networking interaction and removing ads from the dashboard. In essence I want the next Xbox to be a video game console that is worthy of the name.
What are you most fearing from the new Xbox?
The new Xbox will be a multi-media hub that is riddled with Windows 8 nonsense, which replaces the touch interface with a Kinect-based one that doesn’t work unless you have a living room the size of Africa. That it will be a broken piece of hardware that will fail within a year of its life.
That it will have no optical drive making it incompatible with current Xbox 360 games and all games will be download-only. That it will be a system made for people who only buy and play two games a year: CoD and FIFA/Madden.
That the controller will not be packed in with the console as the interface will be entirely Kinect based. This will make it perfect for people who live in well-lit palaces, but useless for everybody else; making it a console designed and built by and for the 1%. That it will be called Xbox Infinite.
What are you most hoping for from the new Xbox?
A console that doesn't have a propensity to burn itself to death if you happen to be an early adopter. A console that has the grunt to deliver split screen, multiplayer experiences that aren't significant visual compromises compared to playing on your own.
A console that incorporates a more seamless and less visible game patches so you're not left waiting to play a game. Oh, and faster loading times too.
A console that allows developers Rare to get back to making great games rather than just churning out avatars and bits of clothing.
It would be nice if Microsoft also treated offline gaming as seriously as it does online, giving gamers the option to play with friends as more of an in-person, social experience.
What are you most fearing from the new Xbox?
Microsoft continues with its marginalisation of games as a primary function of the Xbox. With every new dashboard update the focus of the console has continually shifted towards films, music and TV.
Instead of delivering new gaming console what we actually get is a multimedia portal that merges Kinect and the design ethos behind Windows 8 into a single device capable of taking over your entire living room.
Offline gaming becomes an obsolete term in the Microsoft development vocabulary, with the Xbox "Experience" focusing on online content delivery. With a notable expansion of the microtransaction business model, you own less and less of a game when you first buy it with extra levels and characters available for a small fee.
Finally, an explosion of ads. Ads in the dashboard. Ads before, during and after playing games, ads while watching films and listening to music. Ads telling you what you should be playing, buying and watching. Ads, ads, ads.
What are you most hoping for from the new Xbox?
Being a fan of multiplayer gaming I'd like to see a complete redesign of Xbox Live. I'd like new ways of interacting with my friends, and although some people fear that every service is slowly turning into a social network, that's exactly what I want from the new system.
For all the Wii U's faults, Miiverse is always well spoken of and I think Xbox need to create its own version to bring more customers into its gold service.
I'd also really like to see a console capable of bringing images to different devices. If I can have a full home console experience in bed with the new machine beaming the images to my iPad, then this will be the console I get for the next generation of games.
What are you most fearing from the new Xbox?
The focus on motion gaming. Kinect 2.0 could have potential, there's not doubt about that but I'm hoping for less games that solely use the device. Kinect alongside more common methods of gaming makes a lot more sense than another wave of dance games.
What are you most hoping for from the new Xbox?
I'm hoping for a full partnership with Twitch that's not limited to the US or the already-popular channels. I've been dabbling with streaming games and joining the ready-made community on Twitch has made all the difference.
Yes, the PlayStation 4 has that UStream partnership but we don't know yet what their community service will look like.
Twitch makes it easy for viewers to discover new streams and, as the player, having viewers chatting alongside the game makes it more fun. You can ask them for advice, try out their silly suggestions and laugh along when you make a mistake. Oh yeah, and show off your expert gaming skills for those that have them.
I'd want to be able to make highlight clips of my game, respond directly to input from viewers and get notifications when my favourite streamers are online. I'd want to be able to embed those clips on my own website, download them for later editing and export them onto other services. Basically, I want Twitch from my living room.
What are you most fearing from the new Xbox?
I don't want another product that pushes non-games so heavily. The Xbox 360 video player has always been awful to use with a controller and I don't like being advertised to when I've already paid a subscription.
Our old TV was broken recently so we've just bought a new one. It has Netflix, YouTube, BBC iPlayer and more already built into it. It came with a touchscreen remote and apps that I can use to control it with my phone. I have hundreds of channels. I don't need Xbox to be pushing "interactive" TV where I press a button to vote on the presenter playing Dance Central 3 or wandering around backstage, as they've just announced with The Music Room. I'd rather have the real interactivity of a streamer responding directly to my questions.
So, there we have it. Until 1800hrs today at least. What are your hopes and dreams? Tell us on the Forum.