Microsoft Issues Empty Statement on Employee’s Next-Gen Xbox Twitter Tirade

It’s still a bit premature to start complaining about the next-gen Xbox being “always-on” for one reason or another, seeing as there’s nothing official out just yet, but it hasn’t stopped folks from expressing their opinion as to what they’d think of a console that constantly required a connection to the Internet. In short: They don’t like it. On April 4th, Adam Orth, Microsoft Studios creative director, went off about these complaints on his Twitter. Microsoft has since officially apologized for his tirade, though their statement doesn’t even come close to addressing anything about the “always-on” rumors that instigated it.

For those that missed Orth’s little incident, NeoGAF has a fine summary. He basically downplayed the effects of “always-on” while also dismissing any potential downsides and inaccurately equating Internet service with the power grid. It was, to be frank, a mess, but he never specifically indicated that the next-gen Xbox, codenamed “Durango,” would require an Internet connection.

Even so, Microsoft felt the need to apologize for his outburst. Here’s their official statement on the matter:

“We apologize for the inappropriate comments made by an employee on Twitter yesterday. This person is not a spokesperson for Microsoft, and his personal views do not reflect the customer centric approach we take to our products or how we would communicate directly with our loyal consumers. We are very sorry if this offended anyone, however we have not made any announcements about our product roadmap, and have no further comment on this matter.”

Wait. What? You’re apologizing for his remarks, but not going to comment on whether this “always-on” thing is just a rumor? That seems like a poor decision. Then again, it could blow up in their faces if they were to announce that yes, the next-gen Xbox requires a constant connection hot on the heels of something like this.

(Major Nelson via The Verge, image via Antony Bennison)

Relevant to your interests

• Next-gen Kinect specs
• There’s been talk about the next Xbox killing used games too
• Microsoft E3 countdown clock could signal new console announcement