158 days – the Xbox 720 countdown begins

The fist shot in the next-gen console battle has seemingly been fired.

Microsoft’s community voice Major Nelson has, without any hint of explanation, gone live with a countdown on his blog that leads up to E3. The only text included is thus: And it’s on…”

Having at one stage planned an E3 2012 reveal for its new console, strong sales of Xbox 360 (particularly in North America) saw Microsoft decide to give its machine another year.

However, a terrible year for the core games industry has highlighted the folly of this move and both Microsoft and Sony are expected to reveal their next-gen machines this year.

Microsoft has now laid its first card on the table by effectively announcing an E3 reveal. The question now is whether Sony will take the bait and lift the lid on its machine pre-June.

And it’s on” indeed.