Microsoft is going 4K all the way: gaming is only the beginning
Early this month we have reviewed the PC version of racing game Forza Motorsports 6 Apex Beta, featuring full 4K support. While it’s unlikely that many gamers have the availability of a NVIDIA GTX 1080 video card, and a PC with the chops to run Forza at full 4K resolution, Microsoft is still very clear on its intention to promote 4K content.
The company’s strategy is becoming clear as more games are making their way to PCs, from the Xbox platform, such as Halo 5 Forge Mode, a toolset that enables gamers to create custom maps for Halo 5. In a recent announcement, Halo’s development team 343 Industries has posted its plans to make Forge available to Windows 10 PCs, with support for multiple resolutions, up to 4K, and the ability to test and play custom maps on Windows 10 PCs, as well as the ability to publish them on Xbox One.
With that said, gaming is only the beginning. The company is likely testing the grounds, as it keeps a finger on the pulse of 4K adoption among PC users. This should come as no surprise to those who have followed the development of Windows 10 since the beginning, as the operating system has been designed from the start with support for display resolutions up to 8K.
Microsoft is unofficially, yet potentially already investing in the delivery of 4K content, including movies and TV shows. Rumors dating back to April of this year seem to suggest that Microsoft’s own Xbox visual design lead David Gardner, may be working on “Xbox neXT”, a future Xbox spin-off, capable of playing games and stream content in 4K resolution.
Considering that the Xbox platform has been officially an extension of the Windows 10 ecosystem for some time, with Windows 10 phones capable of controlling the console, and acting as multiplayer gaming and playback devices, also supportive of external 4K displays, it wouldn’t be far-fetched to expect Microsoft to focus on 4K resolution for its next devices, including Surface tablets and laptops, since the Surface Book already sports a 3000 x 2000 resolution, which is as close as it currently get to 4K on a mobile device.