Xbox Series X Design Details – Noise Levels, Smaller Controller, and Share Button

Microsoft took many of us by surprise when it not only unveiled the final name for Project Scarlett, namely Xbox Series X, but also the design. The monolithic structure is impressive while still echoing the design aesthetic established by the Xbox One. In a new interview with GameSpot, Xbox boss Phil Spencer provided some more details about the general design.

He noted that the idea was to make it “disappear” into one’s entertainment set-up. As such, the overall noise level is comparable to the Xbox One X (which is a very good thing). Spencer said, “There’s always this tension between design and the kind of acoustics and cooling and function of the console and we were not going to compromise on function. I’m just incredibly impressed with the design that they came back with.”

Regarding the controller, it’s fairly similar to that seen on the Xbox One though slightly smaller. Older accessories will still work on Xbox Series X while the new controller can work on Xbox One and PC in turn. The biggest difference is the new share button, ideally to get those clips and highlights to friends faster.

Spencer also talked about learning from the Elite controller and fan feedback. One change is the D-Pad. “We have a new hybrid D-pad that we’ve been working on that we think is important, so you’ll get a sense of that in the new Xbox wireless controller. We do have a share button.

“We’ve heard the feedback. We’re not the first ones to do a share button, so we’re not going to say that we invented that, but we’ve heard feedback that sharing is such a part of a gaming experience now for many of our players that I wanted a dedicated hardware button to share, so you’ll see that. We’ll still have all the rumble triggers and haptic feedback that you’ve had in the console before.”

It was also confirmed that players could pause and resume multiple games at a single time (though why you’d do this is another question entirely). The name “Series X” also seems to imply another kind of series down the line. Perhaps the Lockhart rumors are true then? While Spencer didn’t specifically address the existence of another console, he did state that “Obviously, in the name ‘Series X’, it gives us freedom to do other things with that name so that we can create descriptors when we need to.”

Xbox Series X is out in Holiday 2020 and will launch with Halo Infinite. Hellblade 2: Senua’s Saga was also announced for the platform but it doesn’t currently have a release date.