Xbox Project Scorpio release date, news: Premium device to cost more than other consoles

A promotional image for the Xbox One S.Xbox.com

In the fast-paced world of gaming, hardware is as important as content. And with consoles not having the leeway of being tweaked every so often should they get caught up in a snag, manufacturers are taking their time to build a device that will last for quite some time without feeling obsolete. For Microsoft, the company is aiming high with their newest product in development — the Xbox Project Scorpio.

Announced at this year's Electronic Entertainment Expo (E3), the device became the biggest announcement during the event with Microsoft dubbing it as the "most powerful console ever" once it finally rolls out. Given that, it is safe to assume that while it packs power, it will also be more costly than its peers. That was confirmed by Microsoft Xbox head Phil Spencer in a recent interview with Levelup.

"Scorpio will be a premium console; It will cost more than [the Xbox One] S obviously. That's how we're building it. We haven't announced price points for Scorpio yet, but I want to make sure that the investments we're putting into the product of Scorpio meets the demands of the higher end customer, and that will be a higher price," he said.

Although a specific price range has not been disclosed, Project Scorpio sounds like a good deal for avid gamers as it boasts a series of specs that will offer a flawless playing experience. It is said to be sporting six teraflops of power, eight central processing unit cores, as well as true 4K gaming, virtual reality capabilities, and 320 GB/s memory bandwidth.

With the base model of the Xbox One priced at $399, Value Walk predicts that Project Scorpio will only be about $100 more expensive than its competitors. This makes logical sense because if it becomes a ridiculously expensive console, it will lose sight of its demographics and will enter the same range as high-end PC units specifically made for gaming. Despite its premium tag, Microsoft still needs to find the right price point that will convince video gamers to shell out additional dollars which will be worth it based on what they will be getting in terms of hardware power.

Xbox Project Scorpio is not due until Christmas 2017 giving tech buffs enough time to save extra pennies to make up for its additional cost due to its additional value.