Microsoft Corp. is looking forward adding stereo-3D support to Xbox 360 game console in the near future, according to a report by a web-site. The company is projected to support stereoscopic 3D output at 720p resolution, which will make the device more appealing to hardcore gamers with the latest S3D televisions.

"The [Xbox 360] machine is not only very capable, it is more capable than the PlayStation 3 of doing stereo-3D, assuming you [...] have [an Xbox 360 with HDMI output]. [...] The bottleneck is more on the graphical throughput for rendering out in stereo. [...] E3 is coming up... Microsoft is going to have to go on stage to say something," an anonymous industrial source told Eurogamer web-site.

According to the report, the stereo-3D on the Xbox 360 will work the same way it does on the PlayStation 3, which means that twin 720p resolution (for right and left eyes) will be supported.

Microsoft admitted that its Xbox 360 is S3D-capable, but said that since it does not need to sell 3DTVs and there are virtually no stereoscopic-3D games because the installed base of 3DTVs is small, the technology was not that interesting for them. Nonetheless, Microsoft has demonstrated S3D capabilities of Xbox 360 both itself and together with LG Electronics.

Recently Microsoft introduced a new format for Xbox 360 optical discs, which added capacity for video games. Theoretically, S3D-capable content needs more storage space.

Microsoft did not comment on the news-story.

Tags: Microsoft, Xbox, Stereo 3D