EA Lists Games for Xbox 720 and PlayStation 4 Under 'Next Generation' Codename
Game developer Electronic Arts listed some of its upcoming games under the title “NXG," also known as "Next Generation."
Several of EA's video games are also listed for release under the PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360. The Wii U was not listed as one of the consoles for the company's games.
Video games such as "FIFA 12," "Battlefield 3," "FIFA Manager 12" plus a few more games on the EA Press website feature the NXG icon. The years listed for release on EA's titles are 2012/2013.
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"FIFA Street" currently has the "Next Gen" icon appear underneath it on a recent press release from Nov. 24, 2011.
Speculation has arisen from several video game websites. Some said the dates listed point to the debit of next generation consoles coming sooner rather than later. Another point mentioned by gaming websites is the next iterations in popular EA's series will be released on the Xbox 720 and PlayStation 4.
Several video game industry analysts believe that the Xbox 720 will offer both physical and cloud-based software.
Gaming website IndustryGamers spoke to several industry analysts. All of them had the same sentiment: the Xbox 720 will retain the physical disc drive from the Xbox 360.
M2 Research analyst Billy Pidgeon said: "I don't expect vendors to leave physical media formats out of next generation consoles. Gaikai and OnLive are viable game delivery systems but in the near term, cloud gaming services can't yet allow access on a scale to realize their inherent disruptive potential. Again, back to boring basics, next generation game consoles and dedicated gaming handhelds must link to user accounts stored on servers rather than locking down identity and content ownership at a device level."
EEDAR's Jesse Divnich noted that the Xbox 720 would arrive as a "true hybrid console."
"The digital transition will be just that, a transition, and neither Microsoft nor Sony will force consumers to go 100 percent digital," said Divnich. “The digital transition will ultimately be at the choice of the consumer and Microsoft and Sony will continue to support physical media until the mass market has reached the tipping point of acceptance on digital."
French gaming website Xboxygen broke a rumor that claimed the "CES 2012" event will focus on the actual hardware. The date of the next CES show will be Jan. 12, 2012.
Past rumors stated gamers should expect to get their first glimpse of the console at E3 2013, months before its official release.
Video game website Develop also reported that Microsoft and its industry associates are working towards a 2013 launch of the next generation Xbox.
Some developers said gamers should expect Sony's PlayStation 4 to be the last next-generation console from the company.
Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer Masaru Kato offered a past statement to investors alluding to the PlayStation 4: "For the home equipment the PS3 still has a product life. But this is a platform business, so for the future platform -- when we'll be introducing what product I cannot discuss that -- but our development work is already under way, so the costs are incurred there."
Sony has not offered any official comments on its future console yet.
These rumors, along with the NXG listing on EA's press releases for its titles, point to the next generation of gaming coming soon.
