There is a certain level of heart-pounding excitement that begins to build within the chests of every gamer every year, as Father Time pushes the pages of the calendar: from May to June.

That palpable excitement, that insane level of giddy hype and impossible expectations can only mean one thing:

E3 is almost here!!

E3 2016 is just under two weeks away and the anticipation and rumors surrounding what will be shown by the big three console makers is at a fever pitch.

Sony, Microsoft, and Nintendo will be entering this year’s event with very different objectives in mind.

Will new hardware be announced?

Will there be a focus on VR, or is it a fad that has faded before its left the ground?

Will Nintendo’s Legend of Zelda live up to expectations?

Last week, NerdBacon started our series on the hopes and expectations of the three major console manufacturers with a look at Nintendo, and what they hope to achieve as they enter E3 2016.

Today, we continue our examination with a look at Microsoft, and how they might position the Xbox One in the coming months.

Please keep in mind that this article is based solely on my opinion and speculation. I don’t have any inside info on what may or may not be presented at their respective conferences and I may be entirely off-base on my predictions, however if I somehow manage score at least a 90% on those predictions, I respectfully request that you honor my mental acumen by sending me a box of cookies.

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Last year I wrote that Microsoft was the company that was entering E3 2015 with the greatest aura of energy surrounding it. The company had learned from past mistakes, had been aggressive in their pricing and marketing of the Xbox One, and had a very solid lineup of exclusives in what they touted as, “the best lineup in Xbox history”.

It was hard to argue with Microsoft’s argument. They had Rare Replay, Rise of the Tomb Raider, Halo 5, Forza 6, and a re-mastered Gears of War, all congregated to lead the Christmas charge.

They also unveiled a couple of intriguing future projects in Rare’s, Sea of Thieves and Keiji Inafune’s ReCore. Finally, they anchored everything with announcements of backwards-compatibility for Xbox 360 titles, as well as a slick revelation for Gears of War 4.

While it was unrealistic to expect Microsoft to topple Sony’s impressive market lead with their PlayStation 4, the quality of the lineup, coupled with the continuation of their aggressive discounts, should have put them in a better position coming out of the show.

And then a funny thing happened: Sony dropped three bombshell announcements during the course of their press conference that were so huge, they forever cemented E3 2015 as “the E3 of dreams”.

While Microsoft didn’t end up in a terrible position at the end of 2015, they don’t seem any closer to closing the gap with Sony.

While the above assessment might paint a picture of doom and gloom for Microsoft at a glance, the picture is not actually as bleak as it seems.

Despite game makers sticking very close to traditional conventions during the course of this generation, (really, how many genre-pioneering games have there been this generation?) the console makers themselves are preparing to throw convention out the window with the introductions of iterative improvements on current generation hardware.

An 8th gen 2.0.

Both Sony and Microsoft are rumored to be planning more powerful versions of their machines, which would mark a drastic shift in the life-cycle of the video game console as we have known it.

Sure, there have been add-on’s that promised an additional boost in the gaming experience, but not to the degree of what is being proposed now.

If both companies succeed in the introduction of incremental upgrades to their technology, then this could change the landscape of the console business model to reflect the current model of the cell phone industry.

This means that the previous idea of the generational console cycle is over, and it’s a whole new ballgame for everyone involved.

Microsoft also has another ace up its sleeve, which is the shift in mindset to Xbox being a service, rather than just a games machine.

The company made waves earlier this year by announcing that they planned integrate future Xbox One titles onto PC’s with Windows 10 and allow cross-play functionality between the two. The first games to take advantage of this were Killer Instinct and a version of Forza Motorsport.

By continuing on this service-minded path, Microsoft is ensuring that their games get into the hands of as many people as possible. It’s a brilliant move when you really think about it. Suddenly the amount of possible buyers for Gears of Wars 4 goes from approximately 25 million (number of Xbox One’s believed to be sold) to the combined 225 million people who own either an Xbox One, or a Windows 10 compatible device. (Actually less than that when you consider the horsepower requirements of running a game like Gears of War 4, but you get the point.)

Then there is VR, about which Microsoft has been pretty quiet.

They have shown off an augmented reality device, Hololense, however no indication has been made regarding mass-production of the device, let alone any impending game applications.

With the crux of rumors that are surrounding the impending release of iterations on current consoles citing the need for extra horsepower for VR, one has to beg the question: what is Microsoft planning?

Bottom Line

It’s this vast potential and intriguing possibilities that again make Microsoft a very exciting company to watch at E3 2016.

Their willingness to adapt means that they are not immune to the incredible buzz that Sony was able to generate last year. This ability to rethink the current conventions of what their console is leaves open the possibility that Microsoft’s E3 2016 will be filled with bombshells of their own.

What Microsoft needs to do at E3 2016 is continue to come out swinging.

• First, Microsoft needs to cut the price of the current Xbox One model to $299. The price has been at that level through various promotions so often, that there’s no point in continuing to try and sell it at the higher price.
• Second, they need to secure another big-name exclusive title in an existing franchise. Rise of the Tomb Raider, while fantastic, didn’t have the impact Microsoft had hoped for when they made the timed exclusivity deal with Square Enix.

As for what studio they could go to for that franchise? That remains to be seen. Probably the most devastating and shocking move they could make is an alliance with Rockstar Games for an exclusive deal for their next game, likely a sequel to Red Dead Redemption. This would be a highly unlikely scenario though.

A company like Capcom would however, benefit greatly from such an arrangement, and they have proven to be open to the idea, as evidenced through their exclusivity deal with Sony for Street Fighter V.

• Third, if Microsoft is truly ready to go all-in on the PC/Console convergence plan, then they need to make the benefits of that marriage readily apparent to gamers. They will also have to clearly explain whether there is even a benefit any longer to owning a console, versus just building a PC.

If they can succeed at those three key points, then Sony could face an uphill battle hours later when they host their own E3 2016 press event.

Predictions

Special sales and incentives on Xbox One hardware have been abundant in the weeks leading up to E3 2016. Retailers are often the first to be clued in on future plans by the console manufacturer’s, so the plethora of sales means one thing; retailers are trying to clear out inventory of current Xbox One’s in anticipation of a new model being shipped.

Microsoft will likely announce a “slim’ version of the Xbox One, which will replace the gargantuan 2013 model and will retail for a reduced price of $299. Microsoft will announce that this new model is “out today”.

Microsoft is serious about the idea of the Xbox name representing a gaming platform, and not necessarily a device. In addition to the announcement that all future Microsoft Studios projects will appear on PC, they will also confirm that Halo 5: Guardians will arrive on PC shortly.

Earlier in the year, I predicted the return of everyone’s favorite foul-mouthed rodent, Conker. I also speculated that the studio behind it would be Volition. I’ve already gotten half of that prediction wrong, as Volition has already announced that their newest title will be an original IP, Agents of Mayhem, however, I’m still standing behind my assertion that Conker is coming back.

It’s tough to say whether or not Microsoft will announce the rumored upgraded iteration of the Xbox One.

On the one-hand, with an impending revision of the current hardware hitting store shelves, it would be odd for Microsoft to put itself in the position of saying “oh by the way, forget about that new version of the current hardware that we literally just announced, because we have NEW new hardware coming too.”

On the other-hand, Microsoft is not likely to wait much longer before they jump on the VR bandwagon. Especially with Sony set to launch PlayStation VR later this year.

So here is the prediction – Microsoft will announce a partnership with Oculus. The upcoming Xbox One 2.0 will be compatible with the Oculus Rift.

This would be a natural partnership for Microsoft, and one that would be a serious threat to Sony.

Microsoft gets an already tried and tested VR solution that already has name recognition, all without having to go through the time and expense of developing the technology on their own.

Oculus gets to have their product not only in the PC arena, but also in the console arena as well, thus creating a defacto VR standard in one sweeping instant.

A partnership of this nature, assuming VR is the actual wave of the future and not some passing fad, would absolutely rock Sony.

A Battletoads revival will be announced. We will be happy.

That’s it for my Microsoft E3 2016 predictions.

What are you hoping to see out of Microsoft this year? Let us know in the comments section below.