We all know that there will be a next-gen Xbox. Whether it's the Xbox 720, NeXtbox, or whatever catchy name Microsoft can think of, there will be one. The question is when. According to the titles and descriptions of several Microsoft employees, the next-gen Xbox could be closer than we think. That's not to say the launch date or console reveal is any closer, but these titles and descriptions could, at least suggest, Microsoft is working on a next-gen Xbox console.
According to Microsoft employee Jeff Faulkner's profile, he has been working as "Xbox Next Gen Creative Director" since January 2011, where he "guides the vision for Xbox's User Experience Design across Social Media, User Experience, Entertainment, Gesture and Voice Input, Information Design and Brand and Visual design." That's a hell of a lot to be working on. Judging by the description, it doesn't sound as if he's focused on designing the new console, but rather the social experience that will be implemented with it.
Similarly, Senior Creative Director for Xbox, Jonathan Harris, job description says he's been "designing the next generation of entertainment" for the past 14 months.
Microsoft even has the interns hard at work on the new console. Joe Lagevin, the Xbox Hardware Intern at Microsoft, has "designed and simulated high speed data buses to prevent electromagnetic interference in next-gen devices." That sounds like a pretty important job for an intern to handle.
Finally, the icing on the cake goes to Patrick Corrigan, who worked at Microsoft from February 2011 to June 2011 "Providing groundwork and integration for branding elements for next-gen Xbox on all forms of media. Ranging from print to UI across future releases of the Xbox platform."
So let's analyze this. What we have here is a bunch of Microsoft employees with Next-gen in their job titles. When you hear next-gen you automatically think the next-generation form of consoles for the Xbox 360. And while we're all hoping for a new Xbox console, their job descriptions completely describe something else.
Microsoft has already said the Xbox Kinect is their version of the Xbox 720. Yet people refuse to believe it. They still insist on a new console from Microsoft that will be called the Xbox 720. Even Real Steel knows the Xbox 720 is coming damnit!
Maybe our definition of next-gen and Microsoft's definition of next-gen are completely different. To us, next-gen means a new console with upgraded graphics, better gameplay, faster processing, and more features. To Microsoft, maybe next-gen means simply upgrading the current Xbox 360 by incorporating more social media elements into it. Where, in any of their job descriptions, does it suggest that a new Xbox console will need to be created to implement anything they are working on? Microsoft is already on it's way towards increasing the user experience on the Xbox 360. With the new Dashboard update bringing users Bing, video services, and all sorts of Kinect compatibility, maybe that is the "next-gen step" Microsoft is taking.
