Microsoft's Next Xbox Reportedly Won't Let You Play Games Unless You're Connected To The Internet

According to a few reports from Microsoft insiders, Microsoft will announce its next Xbox video game console at a press event on May 21.

Along with that report comes a rumor that the next Xbox won't let you play games unless you're connected to the Internet, which has upset a bunch of people in the gaming community.

That rumor was further fueled this weekend by tweets from Microsoft Studios creative director Adam Orth. Orth didn't quite confirm the rumors directly, but he did appear to defend them by saying he didn't see why there was so much drama about the always-on requirement. (Orth's Twitter account is private.)

Microsoft quickly issued a statement apologizing for Orth's tweets and reiterated that Microsoft employees aren't supposed to talk about future product plans.

Here's that statement:

We apologize for the inappropriate comments made by an employee on Twitter yesterday. This person is not a spokesperson for Microsoft, and his personal views do not reflect the customer centric approach we take to our products or how we would communicate directly with our loyal consumers. We are very sorry if this offended anyone, however we have not made any announcements about our product roadmap, and have no further comment on this matter.

But even though Orth isn't an official spokesperson for Microsoft, his tweets still appear to confirm that the next Xbox won't work unless you're connected to the Internet.