According to a recent leak, Microsoft’s upcoming Xbox One S All-Digital version will be launched on May 7. The console, which was first hinted at during Microsoft’s E3 panel last year, will reportedly be the company’s cheapest entry in their Xbox family. With the Xbox One X currently being the most powerful console on the market, the One S all-digital will be the least-powerful.
According to a leak by Windows Central, the Xbox One S All-Digital will release on May 7th, along with a bunch of pre-loaded games. This makes sense considering the console will not house a traditional Blu-ray drive, with the Xbox Marketplace being the only place to purchase games from. And being the cheapest console on the market when it releases, many consumers would prefer to buy the console with their favorite games on it without going through the hassle of digital purchases. In contrast to PC players, console players traditionally have had less disk-to-digital conversion rates, as the medium is one held in high priority by gamers. By bundling a bunch of games, Microsoft aims to sell their new console, and their promise of the future, to a larger player base.
Along with the release date, the box art of the console has also leaked, with the words “Disk-Free Gaming” appearing multiple times on it. If it wasn’t clear before, Microsoft wants you to be fully aware of their vision for gaming. And if you don’t want a disc-free console, Microsoft has got you covered with their other plans for Xbox. However, we want readers to take this news with a grain of salt.
Examining the box art closely, you can see that this leak is of a bundled version of the console. This particular bundle will include Minecraft, Sea of Thieves and Forza Horizon 3. Two of these are Xbox exclusive games, which makes sense considering Microsoft would want to market the Xbox brand’s exclusivity, something which has been lacking this generation. We wouldn’t be surprised if a Gear of War or Halo edition is announced at launch. The box art also points out that this specific SKU will come with 1 TB of storage, which should be ample storage for a casual gamer.
The Xbox One S All-Digital version currently does not have any price attached to it, but considering the console will drop the (expensive) 4K Blu-ray player, we expect the console to come in around $200, which will make it the cheapest console to get your hands on currently in the market. It will also make it one of the cheapest 4K media players out there.
The Xbox One S All-Digital will reportedly release on May 7th.