MS Scuppers Rumoured 360 With HD-DVD
How many times will Microsoft have to deny that there's an upgraded 360 coming? And when will they confirm it?
Sony and Microsoft have been trading blows over the past week over which company has the better overall package. Almost as if one cue, Sony's attack of the Xbox 360 as not being a true high-definition system because it lacks a high-definition DVD drive have been countered by rumours that a new model of the 360 is in the works. But Microsoft has keelhauled that chatter.
When the PlayStation 3 launches next year, it'll come with a Blu-ray high-definition DVD drive capable of playable HD movies. It was rumoured this week, as it has in the past, that the 360 would be upgrade with an HD-DVD drive - the other competing format but Microsoft has issued a blunt denial.
"There are currently no plans to release an Xbox 360 equipped with a next-generation DVD player," said a spokesperson for the company.
The push to include such a drive is mainly coming from movie studios (including Sony), which are splitting into two camps. Many feel that Sony, which helped create Blu-ray, will gift the format victory over HD-DVD by its inclusion in the PlayStation 3.
Until a standard is agreed upon, movie-buyers will be seen as collateral damage in the next-generation version of the BetaMax Vs VHS format war.
Alex Wollenschlaeger
Editor, Kikizo Games
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