Looking towards a brighter, next-gen future, news regarding both the Xbox Series X and the PS5 continues to give gamers something to look forward to. The latest feature to be highlighted on the Xbox Series X takes places in the world of Minecraft, showing off some advanced graphical fidelity.
Microsoft has presented the Series X as a powerful machine capable of multi-tasking and running complex games at faster frame rates, while offering a subscription service to make the console the Netflix of video games. The idea being that this console does it all, and makes gamers' lives better.
Showing the console in action is where the company can actually put its money where its mouth is. With developer of the Metro series, Oles Shishkovstov of 4A Games, singing the praises of the PS5 and its ray tracing potential, Microsoft is showing off the same lighting technology running on its console in Minecraft. The video below presents an analysis of the processes involved in creating the more realistic lighting effect, but the long and short of it is that the Xbox Series X is up to the task.
Minecraft seems to be the game of choice to perform a number of tasks, from showcasing lighting tech to hosting graduation events in its virtual world. While it might seem like a bit of a simplistic game to be used for something like next-gen graphical fidelity, what is on display is the dynamic lighting. Even in a game like Minecraft, the path tracing (the more robust version of ray tracing) is still doing tons of work even when the object models are blocky.
This demo of the system's next-gen capabilities will certainly appeal to folks who like to get into specific technical elements of console hardware. For the rest, it is one more piece of information to consider as both systems try to impress ahead of their release. Microsoft revealed (and then later retracted) a release window of Thanksgiving 2020 for the Series X to be on store shelves, before correcting to the more vague "Holiday 2020" window.
The new lighting showcased in Minecraft does have a very realistic look to it, and the next-gen consoles look to be pushing console gaming as far as possible.
The Xbox Series X will be available in the Holiday 2020 window.