Microsoft has revealed the specs for the Xbox One X, and they are quite impressive. The system boasts 12 teraflops, Variable Rate-Shading, Hardware-Accelerated DirectX Race Tracing, Quick Resume for Multiple Games, and Smart Delivery. Here’s an explanation as to what all of this means:
- “Next Generation Custom Processor: Xbox Series X is our most powerful console ever powered by our custom designed processor leveraging AMD’s latest Zen 2 and RDNA 2 architectures. Delivering four times the processing power of an Xbox One and enabling developers to leverage 12 TFLOPS of GPU (Graphics Processing Unit) performance – twice that of an Xbox One X and more than eight times the original Xbox One. Xbox Series X delivers a true generational leap in processing and graphics power with cutting edge techniques resulting in higher framerates, larger, more sophisticated game worlds, and an immersive experience unlike anything seen in console gaming.
- Variable Rate Shading (VRS): Our patented form of VRS empowers developers to more efficiently utilize the full power of the Xbox Series X. Rather than spending GPU cycles uniformly to every single pixel on the screen, they can prioritize individual effects on specific game characters or important environmental objects. This technique results in more stable frame rates and higher resolution, with no impact on the final image quality.
- Hardware-accelerated DirectX Raytracing: You can expect more dynamic and realistic environments powered by hardware-accelerated DirectX Raytracing – a first for console gaming. This means true-to-life lighting, accurate reflections and realistic acoustics in real time as you explore the game world.”
The latest Xbox also promises SSD storage, a quick resume feature which allows you to play multiple games that are suspended, quickly switching from one to the next, a dynamic latency input, HDMI 2.1 innovation, and 120 fps support.
The system will also allow you to play Xbox games spanning all four generations of the Xbox and is completely backwards compatible.
This was a smart move. Now, all the pressure is on Sony and their reveal. And if it isn’t backward compatible, that may be worrisome for the monolith of a company. It’s what people want and they have to deliver.