Ever since the hardware was first teased at E3 2016, Microsoft has consistently promised that its next video game machine, Project Scorpio, will far surpass any console on the market in terms of sheer processing power, and thanks to Digital Foundry, we now have a better sense of what to expect from the mid-generational upgrade.
In fact, judging by these beefy specs, Scorpio is not so much an iterative upgrade as it is a new generation of video game hardware, what with its 12GB of GDDR5 RAM and an internal processor comprised of eight custom x86 cores. All of this will combine to render a smoother and more consistent gaming experience, with Microsoft’s press release citing faster load times and better textures as part of Project Scorpio’s USP. Not only that, but it’ll be able to capture 4K, 60FPS video, while there’s also mention of improved screenshot capabilities.
Per Digital Foundry: “Retroactive screen captures are a new featuring coming to the Scorpio GameDVR. Users will have the ability to scan through their captures with ‘to-the-frame’ precision, allowing them to extract the precise screenshot they want.”
You’ll be able to take a deep dive into Project Scorpio’s technical specifications, and how they compare with those of Sony’s PS4 Pro, below:
Now comes the million-dollar question: what will Project Scorpio cost? Microsoft is remaining mum for the moment – ditto for the system’s actual name – but Digital Foundry estimates that the high-end machine will land in the ballpark of $499 – the same price point of the Xbox One at launch. As for the raw power lurking beneath the hood, DF goes on to state that “the bottom line is that Scorpio’s six teraflops will almost certainly go a lot further than an equivalent PC part.” That, and it’ll also be around 50 percent more powerful than PS4 Pro.
Targeted at “that premium customer, the gamer that expects the absolute best versions of the games,” it’s clear that Microsoft’s cutting-edge product will appeal to only a small portion of the wider gaming audience, but with more information expected at E3 2017, Scorpio is surely on course to release this holiday season.
Project Scorpio is out in the wild – or at least its specs are. Below you’ll find a featurette from Digitial Foundry that recounts the ways in which your Xbox One and 360 games will flourish on Microsoft’s newest addition to the hardware family.