Next Xbox 'to boast ridiculously powerful 16-core CPU'

[richardginn]

http://www.computerandvideogames.com...l-16-core-cpu/

more is better right....

[taggart6]

I honestly don't care since specs are pointless if devs can't use the development tools. IMHO, this is what hurt the PS3 for the first 2 years or so. The cell system was a pain in the *** to understand and use.

[Timman_24]

For what its worth, the slides shows a 4 core processor with each core being able to utilize 4 threads. It is not a 16 physical core CPU.

Link to the slide:
http://img191.imageshack.us/img191/6...m05s021512.jpg

The interesting part about the slide to me is the "3D Bluray Decoder." Looks like we may be getting bluray after all.

[ImaNihilist]

I honestly don't care since specs are pointless if devs can't use the development tools. IMHO, this is what hurt the PS3 for the first 2 years or so. The cell system was a pain in the *** to understand and use.

So true. I have to believe Microsoft is smarter than this.

Unless every game programmer you higher has a PhD in computer science and is skilled and writing algorithms that run in parallel, 16 cores isn't going to be much better than 4.

****, most of the heavy lifting is done by 2 or 3 threads. 16? Find me a game that isn't "H.264 Renderbox Hero" which can even run 16 threads at once.

[Timman_24]

So true. I have to believe Microsoft is smarter than this.

Unless every game programmer you higher has a PhD in computer science and is skilled and writing algorithms that run in parallel, 16 cores isn't going to be much better than 4.

****, most of the heavy lifting is done by 2 or 3 threads. 16? Find me a game that isn't "H.264 Renderbox Hero" which can even run 16 threads at once.

Depends on their SDK/Dev Kit. Most game programming is within the SDK environment, not machine level. The trouble with the PS3 was trying to convert code and SDK/DevKit updates.

If MS designs a robust environment, then the devs do not need to know much about what is going on at the base level.

[ImaNihilist]

Depends on their SDK/Dev Kit. Most game programming is within the SDK environment, not machine level. The trouble with the PS3 was trying to convert code and SDK/DevKit updates.

If MS designs a robust environment, then the devs do not need to know much about what is going on at the base level.

Even then. Even if the SDK does it's job, you are going to have to learn how to program in a distributed paradigm. The SDK only goes so far.

[Timman_24]

Even then. Even if the SDK does it's job, you are going to have to learn how to program in a distributed paradigm. The SDK only goes so far.

From what I have read, the benefit of going multi-core/thread is so that kinect, the OS, authentication stream, and what-ever-else-they-add can run on dedicated processing units. As for how they implement the 8-12 units that are left over, it is anyone's guess. I'm definitely interested to hear more.

For all we know this slide could be from some college kid's presentation in a speech course .

Also note that it says "Under NDA until Nov. 2013." at the bottom.

[James]

Find me a game that isn't "H.264 Renderbox Hero" which can even run 16 threads at once.

You should do a kickstarter and make this game. I would back it.

[kpxgq]

i think ram was the limiting factor for the 360 and ps3.. they had less than 1gb so were limited to smaller multi player maps and constant streaming

[flutie98]

Whats interesting to note on the slide is that its an Out of Order Execution architecture which can offer huge improvements in processing power under certain conditions compared to the In order units of current and past console cpus

Its also hilarious if Microsoft thinks that GlobalFoundries can yield sufficient amounts of these for a console production, they have no idea what they are doing.