Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ:MSFT) has opened pre-orders for the Xbox One X Project Scorpio Edition. Microsoft has made it clear that the limited edition version will be available until the supply runs out and will cost $499.
“Get Xbox One X Project Scorpio Edition before it’s gone forever,” reads the teaser from the company.
What’s special about the Xbox One X Project Scorpio Edition?
The Xbox One X (code-named Project Scorpio) was first announced by the company at the Electronic Entertainment Expo in June, and now pre-orders have gone live at both online and offline vendors, such as Walmart, Amazon, Best Buy and Target, in addition to Microsoft’s own website. The console is marketed as the world’s first true 4K console, and it will be available starting November 7.
The packaging for the Xbox One X Scorpio Edition resembles that of the original Xbox. Except for the graphic pattern and the Project Scorpio branding, the other changes are cosmetic. It lacks the LCD display the Project Scorpio developer unit has, and the hardware is also the same as that of the regular Xbox One X. All the features suggest that the Scorpio Edition is essentially for those who want to be the proud owners of hardware bearing the Project Scorpio code-name, notes The Verge.
Microsoft also announced that Shadow of War Xbox One S bundle will be released on October 10. There will also be a limited edition Minecraft version painted in green and brown pixels as a tribute to the game’s crafting system and dirt. The tech firm also made it clear that those looking to upgrade to the newer Xbox One can simply use an external hard drive to move the games from the older console onto the new one. Games downloaded to the internal storage drive can also be copied through in-home network Settings.
Can optimization make a difference?
The Microsoft Xbox One X comes with 6 teraflops of graphics power compared to 4.2 teraflops in the PS4 Pro. The console is powered by an 8-core AMD CPU clocked at 2.3 GHz, 12GB of GDDR5 RAM and a 1 TB HDD. Buyers also get a Blu-Ray drive in the packaging.
Further, to increase the number of games for the console against the Sony Playstation 4 Pro, Microsoft is working with third-party game studios to make sure that the Xbox One titles run smoothly on the Xbox One X. Over 100 titles have been confirmed for optimization by Microsoft. Current titles can be optimized, as existing game makers can offer more assets, higher resolution and better frame rates on the console.
All the optimizations come under the “Xbox One X Enhanced” program. Under this, Microsoft will categorize new Xbox games with three logos, indicating the titles that have been updated for the Xbox One X, the HDR logo and 4K to offer specific support. Those with the 4K logo mean will have a better output of 2160p, but 4K support will have checker boarding and native and dynamic resolution. On the other hand, consoles having HDR support are those with the regular HDR10 standard, which is also used in the Xbox One S, but there will be no Dolby Vision support in them.
