4 Features the Xbox Series X Needs to Be a Must-Buy

Exceptional Power

While we already know that the Xbox Series X has quite the horsepower under the hood, just exactly how both it and Sony’s PS5 will stack up against one another remains to be seen.

At the beginning of this console generation, there was a consistent, albeit minor gap between the original Xbox One’s performance, and that of the original PS4. While Microsoft has managed to flip that deficit with the Xbox One X compared to the PS4 Pro, it’s a little too late to change the tide of battle this generation.

Moving into next generation, Microsoft needs to ensure its hardware has that slight edge over the PS5. While most players will be happy enough with the improved experience that both next-gen systems will offer over their predecessors, there will be a small segment of prospective purchasers that will want the most powerful console available.

Not only will having the more powerful console lead to sales from this market segment, it will also entice more developers and publishers to work with Microsoft and the most powerful system on the market.

This, in turn, makes the Xbox Series X ecosystem even more lucrative and exciting to be a part of. It’s a big ol’ circle that will help Microsoft rake in the Series X sales if it can just beat Sony to the punch.

A More Streamlined DVR System

Features the Xbox Series X Needs to Be a Must-Buy

I don’t know who thought the Xbox One’s current DVR system was any good, but well, it just isn’t.

It requires you to open multiple apps to get your photos off the console, you can’t just put them onto a USB device, they have to be sent to your OneDrive account or uploaded to Xbox Live for all to see, and the Upload Studio editing software often crashes when messing with larger gameplay clips (even on an Xbox One X).

The resolution and length of the clips you can record have a direct effect on one another, and sometimes changing the DVR settings doesn’t actually take effect the next time you use it, leading you to potentially lose the capture of one of your favorite moments in a game.

Yes, yes, we’re nitpicking here, but when the PS4’s Share system has been so streamlined, simple, and praiseworthy this generation, it certainly highlights the many different hoops you have to jump through on the Xbox One just to get a screenshot off your console.

While I appreciated Upload Studio’s wealth of tools already being on my console, the software needs to be optimized, streamlined, and generally enhanced to work better on the Xbox Series X. No more crashes, sluggish UI, or seeming inability to actually do some edits you ask it to do.

While rumours already suggest that the Xbox Series X controller will have a Share button of sorts to simplify the process, we hope it’s not just a shortcut button right into the current version of Upload Studio. The Series X deserves a DVR overhaul.

Rechargeable Controllers in the Box

We’ve turned a blind eye since the 360-era, Microsoft, but we cannot turn a blind eye any longer. Since the beginning of the age of wireless controllers, Sony has always built a rechargeable battery into its DualShock 3 and DualShock 4 controllers.

With the Xbox 360, you had to use your own AA batteries, or buy the Play & Charge Kit separately.

Roll around the Xbox One and PS4 launch. As noted above, Sony once again packs its controllers with a built-in, non-removable, rechargeable battery. Microsoft… did the exact same thing they did with the 360, forcing you to fuel your Xbox One controller on AA batteries or paying above the odds for the Play & Charge kit again.

Third time’s a charm, right?

It may not seem like a huge deal, but considering how quickly a controller can zap the juice out of a pair of AA batteries and the extra cost of a Play & Charge Kit on top of everything else, it’s a decision that really puts an extra cost of playing on the owner.

While it’s certainly not going to stop people from buying an Xbox Series X if it doesn’t have this in the box, it certainly would help to sweeten the deal and bring it closer to that ‘must-buy’ territory.

A Quality, Varied Launch Lineup

Features the Xbox Series X Needs to Be a Must-Buy

Is a launch lineup a feature of a console? Kinda… probably not… but oh well, we’re including it and you can’t stop us!

If Microsoft needs one things to really make the Xbox Series X a must-buy on its release date, the significance of a solid, exciting launch lineup cannot be understated. It’s for this reason, we’re including it.

The Series X could be unveiled and absolutely blow the PS5 out of the water. It could have the refined DVR system, rechargable controllers in the box, and more processing horsepower than you can shake a stick at.

But none of this matters if there’s nothing to actually play on it… or nothing of interest, anyway.

While the usual third-party suspects will release their annual titles (think CoD, FIFA, Madden) and digital titles like Rocket League and Fortnite will inevitably be ported for the launch window, prospective buyers need exclusives and exciting games that give them a reason to choose the Series X over the competition.

Having a plan for Game Pass would certainly help as, combined with the inclusion of backwards compatibility, players would suddenly have over 100 games to play at launch. Sure, they aren’t ‘new,’ but Series X optimisations would at least allow players to experience the improvements that the new generation can offer over the current.