Microsoft is definitely banking on some big things going down with its forthcoming Xbox 720, particularly with all of the speculation that the indie gaming companies, along with mobile developers, are starting to rule the day over traditional gaming consoles and the titans of gaming. Perhaps that's why the company decided to roll out with a smaller controller for the Xbox 720.
Oh, and the smaller controller for the Xbox 720 may also be covered in zebra stripes.
Stuff Middle East caught the story from website Kotaku, where "four developers have admitted the controller remains largely unchanged save for a small drop in overall size, which is bad news if you disliked the current D-pad but good news if you loved its palm-caressing curves and have small hands."
Stuff Middle East that also suggests the smaller Xbox 720 controller might be painted in zebra stripes "for reasons unknown."
Kotaku suggests the image the site ran of its smaller, zebra-painted controller is "not a leaked photo of a next-gen Xbox controller" (which begs the question: Does the site mean it's not a "leak," but is actually authentic? Or does Kotaku mean it's not a leak, but rather something that the site developed on its own? When it comes to Xbox 720, the rumors just never stop swirling).
In the event that a new smaller, zebra-striped controller isn't enough to sway you toward an Xbox 720, TechRadar has laid out a number of reasons the next gaming console from Microsoft may beat out the competition:
ONE: Sorry, Apple
By "beating Apple to the punch," as TechRadar suggests, with a super-level next-gen gaming console (which hopefully the Xbox 720 will be), Microsoft could very well end up pre-empting the former company's hopes to win over the living room with the possibly forthcoming Apple iTV (which itself is still ensconced in rumors). The Xbox 720 could very well end up being but a prelude to what Microsoft has for its XTV series, which could indeed beat Apple to the punch ... or at least the couch.
TWO: Super-streaming
Being that the Xbox 720 will likely not be backwards-compatible and being that the PS4 will also not be backward compatible but will allow for streaming of PlayStation 1, 2, and 3 games, TechRadar (and plenty of other game fanatics) are hoping this may mean the Xbox 720 will also stream old games.
"An online marketplace with every Xbox and Xbox 360 game ever released, available for insteand [sic] download?" TechRadar asks. "Yeah, we could learn to like that."
THREE: Privacy is golden
We're all a little anxious to see what will happen to our precious privacy once Google Glass gets its hands on that all-too-human value.
"I don't really care if you have to always have an Internet connection for it to work properly," games journalist Adam Hartley says, as relayed by TechRadar. "So long as no one else knows what I'm playing or looking at in the privacy of my own lounge, I'm buying it."
With this in mind, we're all hoping that the Xbox 720 being able to share data won't mean we'll not have the ability to control it.
FOUR: Steamin'!
Despite the fact that Valve is already releasing its own gaming console (the Steam Box), it still wouldn't be impossible for the Xbox 720 to be combined with a broadened Steam-like platform.
"A more comprehensive app/game marketplace would be a big pull for indie developers, and increasingly as the indie market continues to boom," TechRadar says.
FIVE: "Always online" may actually be good
The "always online" aspect of the Xbox 720 has caused some controversy (especially in light of the mess that went on when EA did the same thing with SimCity), but that doesn't mean it won't be a killer feature once the Xbox 720 actually comes out.
It's because of these past problems and the controversy already swelling that many believe Microsoft already knows it has to do something pretty darn special with its "bold" move to feature the Xbox 720 with the "always-online" requisite. If the gamble doesn't work and everyone's games keep getting interrupted by problems with being online, Microsoft will be screwed, and the company must know it. Hence, we need to believe the company will do all it can to make this feature work not only well but in awesome fashion.
"Sometimes you have to be bold to be brilliant," Andy Robinson, editor of CVG, says, as relayed by TechRadar. "And this could well result in some fascinating connected games with persistent, MMO-like features."
What do you think? Are you excited about the Xbox 720 or are you getting in on the PS4? Let us know in the comments below!
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