Collectors rejoice: Xbox Project Scarlett will have an optical disc drive

Xbox Project Scarlett has certainly managed to grab the attention at E3 even though it was just a soft reveal. With the launch of the Xbox One S All-Digital Edition and Microsoft's push towards cloud gaming with Project xCloud, there has been some speculation that Scarlett will ditch the optical drive for a fully online experience. Turns out that won't be the case.

Xbox Chief Phil Spencer clarified to Gamesindustry.biz that the next generation Xbox will indeed have an optical drive as it was all about giving players the choice. While digital has its benefits, a vast majority of people have amassed discs as collectibles over the years and Microsoft does not want to alienate them. Spencer also said that Microsoft was making sure of clarity when it comes to marketing their consoles such as using the name 'All-Digital Edition' for the said version of Xbox One S. He said,

So even when we put out things like the Xbox One S All-Digital edition, we are very clear with the name because I am not trying to confuse anybody, that if you are somebody that has a library of discs, or that's the way you want to acquire the content, then you should buy the Xbox One S, not the Xbox One S All-Digital... which is why we put it in the name, and yes I know it says SAD.

I want to be very descriptive, because I am not trying to confuse anybody about what the options are. I want to give people choice, and right now physical is a choice that millions of people love."

So there you have it straight from the horse's mouth. If you are an avid collector of video game discs, neither Microsoft nor Sony are going to desert your collection for the foreseeable future. It is verily possible that somewhere down the the line the Scarlett generation could see an All-Digital Edition as well.