It’s starting to look like Microsoft’s disc-less Xbox One S will reportedly launch on May 7th, after leaked documents have shown off the “Xbox One S All-Digital edition”, coming in the very near future.
This comes from documents obtained by Windows Central, but rumours of an Xbox One S without a Blu-ray drive have been floating around for several weeks. Previous rumours have pointed towards an announcement in mid-April, with a launch sometime in May, so it all checks out on that front.
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This latest leak adds the suggestion that the all-digital console will be packing a 1TB harddrive, and ship with digital codes for Forza Horizon 3, Sea of Thieves and Minecraft.
In addition, ordering this online will reportedly come with the option of selecting some games you want to be preinstalled on the machine before it ships, meaning it could show up at your house with the Xbox game you want already installed. For me, this inevitably means that I’d get to play through Castlevania: Symphony of the Night for the 100th time, available via Xbox 360 back compatibility after the game’s Xbox Live Arcade release. For everyone else, I guess you could dig into titles like Gears of War, Crackdown 3 or whatever else Xbox you might be into.
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While it might seem confusing to push a digital only console, Microsoft have made a big deal out of the Xbox Game Pass, which has seen games digitally available on release day for those subscribed to the service. Factor in Microsoft’s forthcoming xCloud game streaming service, and their enthusiasm for a disc-less future becomes easier to see.
We’ve reached out to Microsoft for comment, but nothing has been offered at the time of publishing. If they do say anything, we’ll include it here.
Would you buy a disc-less console? Let us know on Twitter at @TrustedReviews
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Editorial independence
Editorial independence means being able to give an unbiased verdict about a product or company, with the avoidance of conflicts of interest. To ensure this is possible, every member of the editorial staff follows a clear code of conduct.
Professional conduct
We also expect our journalists to follow clear ethical standards in their work. Our staff members must strive for honesty and accuracy in everything they do. We follow the IPSO Editors’ code of practice to underpin these standards.
