It’s looking increasingly likely that the Xbox Series X (opens in new tab) won’t be Microsoft’s only next-generation games console, as a pair of new Xbox code names have popped up in the Xbox One (opens in new tab) operating system.
Software developer @bllyhlbrt (opens in new tab) tweeted a picture of the ‘Edinburgh’ and ‘Count’ codenames in the code of the latest Game Development Kit from Microsoft. The code also contains references to Xbox Lockhart, thought to be the codename for the Xbox Series S (opens in new tab), slated to be a cheaper take on the Xbox Series X (opens in new tab).
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Does this mean that two extra new Xbox consoles are on there way? Well, not exactly. Twitter user Kirby0Louise, who appears to be a developer working on Void3D game engines for the Xbox Series X, suggested that Lockhart could be the codename given to the development kit for the Xbox Series S, while Edinburgh is the codename for the retail version of the predicted console.
https://t.co/urTfnZEDyJhttps://t.co/ElpuCeXL19LH devkit"// Anything greater than Scorpio other than Dante has no Console modes"You don't need console modes on a base model devkitJuly 3, 2020
Kirby0Louise said this would track with Xbox using capital cities as names for S variants of its Xbox consoles, such as the Xbox One S (opens in new tab). While “deadly animals” are used as codenames for the powerful X variants of the Xboxes; the Xbox One X (opens in new tab) was codenamed Scorpio, for example.
However, that leaves the Count codename with no console linked to it. It could be, and this is just speculation, a codename for a future slimmed-down Xbox Series X, as both Microsoft and Sony have previously released more compact versions of their consoles after the initial release of the main next-generation consoles.
Or it could be an all-digital version of the Xbox Series X, which unlike the Xbox Series S, could offer all the power of the flagship console but drop the disk drive. Again, we stress we have no evidence of this; we’re just going by what Microsoft has done with its previous Xbox consoles.
If nothing else, these codenames give further fuel to the rumor that an Xbox Series S is in the works. Microsoft has an Xbox 20/20 event supposedly scheduled for July 23 (opens in new tab), but we’re expecting to hear about first-party games at that showcase, whereas the Xbox Series S revealed is looking like it could happen in August.
We expect that an all-digital Xbox Series S will be positioned as a potential rival for the PS5 Digital Edition (opens in new tab), which Sony will be releasing alongside the disk drive-equipped PS5 (opens in new tab).
As we get closer to the Holiday 2020 release of both the Xbox Series X and PS5, it’s not surprising that more leaks and information tidbits are popping up for both consoles. And all this is painting an interesting picture for next-generation consoles and what they could mean for the future of gaming.
