Phil Spencer gives details about the console, with custom processor, VRS, 12 teraflops and more.
Microsoft has revealed this Monday, February 24, the official specifications that Xbox Series X will have, the platform that is planned for this Christmas. In a publication by Phil Spencer, the head of the video game division of the Redmond company has been detailing everything that the new console brings. This is how powerful it is: 12 teraflops, Variable Rate Shading, DirectX Raytracing for the first time on a console, fast supension for multiple games, SSD hard drive and Dynamic Latency Input to improve the response. There is much more, we detail it.
New generation custom processor
The first of the novelties that have been presented is a new generation custom processor, which according to Spencer achieves four times the processing power of Xbox One and offers 12 teraflops of GPU, twice as much as an Xbox One X and eight times above Xbox One. All this to get "better framerate, bigger and more sophisticated worlds and an immersive experience like never before seen on a console". The graphics card is based on an RDNA 2 architecture and the Ryzen processor with Zen 2 architecture.
Variable Rate Shading (VRS)
Microsoft announces its own VRS patent to achieve better efficiency for developers and that they can get the most power out of the console. It is a technique that allows to offer more stable framerate and higher resolution without having an impact on the final image.
DirectX Raytracing
The presence of Raytracing is confirmed for the first time on consoles, something that Phil Spencer says should offer "more realistic and dynamic environments for the first time on the console, which means more realistic lighting, more precise reflections and all in real time."
More direct access to games: SSD, quick summary …
Another of Microsoft's proposals is to offer an experience where you play more and expect less, and that translates into several key elements for the new console. Spencer explains that the team has analyzed "step by step" everything between the player and the game and has made decisions so that everything is done faster:
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SSD hard drive for faster speed and faster loading times
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Quick summary to continue playing multiple games suspended and start instantly, without waiting for long loading screens
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Dynamic Latency Input, new properties to make controls more precise and respond to the moment
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HDMI 2.1, by agreement with television manufacturers to get the best possible experience with features such as ALLM or VRR. The idea is that the console, when connected to a TV with Auto Low Latency Mode, is displayed directly in this mode; Variable Refresh Rate will help prevent tearing by synchronizing the screen refresh with the game framerate
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Support for 120 frames per second: Xbox Series X will allow developers to exceed 60 fps in favor of faster and more realistic action
Backward compatibility and compatibility between consoles
Two more notes of the new platform. The first is backwards compatibility: Microsoft's commitment is that all Xbox One games, 360 backwards compatible and the original Xbox are seen and played better than ever. Xbox Game Pass titles will also benefit from better framerate and less loading times. All Xbox One accessories will be compatible.
And Smart Delivery, which mainly means that you buy a game once and that it will look in the best possible way as you put it on Xbox One or on Xbox Series X. Therefore, if you buy Halo Infinite on One and then jump to Series X, you will have the best possible version just by putting the game. They also remember that Xbox Game Pass will continue to offer first party outbound games, such as Halo Infinite.
