Rumor: Xbox sequel aimed for E3 2013
updated 07:00 pm EDT, Thu October 20, 2011
Console won't ship in time for 2013 holiday season
Microsoft may be targeting mid-2013 as the launch date for its next generation Xbox. Develop claims that the replacement for the Xbox 360, code-named "Xbox Next," will be demonstrated at the E3 gaming conference in 2013. There is much speculation, however, that the console won't be shipping in time for the 2013 holiday selling season.
The prediction was purportedly based on dialog with multiple sources from within the gaming industry, including processor chip manufacturers and those that make middleware for developing game engines.
Others in the industry said that few of them expect the gaming console to start shipping until 2014, and for "this Christmas and the next" that Microsoft would market not just the existing Xbox 360 and Kinect but also gaming on Windows Phone.
Microsoft has already been hiring for work on the next Xbox. A few rumors have also raised the possibility of an E3 2012 reveal, dampening the launch of the Nintendo Wii U and possibly preempting Sony.
