Xbox One Launch Raises a Wave of Usability Confusion

Microsoft has announced their next generation Xbox, dubbed the Xbox One. While the official press releases and sponsored articles appear very excitable, reaction from critics and members of the public who were given a preview have been less enthusiastic.

The base unit will come with a new Kinect sensor and voice recognition, with Microsoft no doubt keen to do for gesture and vocal control what the iPhone did for the touch screen user experience.  Nevertheless, their decision to include a Windows 8 user interface will be less than delightful news to many.

A lot of the concern (and disappointment) about the new unit thus far is focussed around the fact that the new device seems to position itself as a central entertainment hub, rather than a smashing gaming console.

The launch itself seemed very keen to feature the unit’s abilities to watch television shows and sports, leading to cries of “But I can already watch television shows and sports without an Xbox?” from a confused public.

The inclusion of advanced social networking features has also met with howls of derision from users, who “just want a console that plays games”.

Most damningly of all perhaps, Sony’s stock rose by a good 10% swiftly after the Xbox One launch, and with their PS4 console hitting the market at the same time (for Xmas 2013), it looks like we are in for a good old fashioned console war.

• Tagged in:
• Gaming
• Strategy
• UI (User Interface)
• UX (User Experience)