Speaking at QuakeCon, boss Todd Hollenshead has said that he sees being the first console maker to launch a next-generation console, despite talk of a new iteration of systems being some way off.

Chatting to blog VG247, the id CEO stated that he believes Microsoft are best positioned to push ahead - should they wish to.

"Somebody's going to do it, and - to me - probably the player who's in the best position to do so is Microsoft, because I do think they've recouped a lot of the costs of their console," Hollenshead offered at QuakeCon.

"Maybe they'll push the [Xbox 360] to year six - maybe seven - but I've got to believe that they're already planning the transition now, and they have their eye on the ball as to what it is, because I think they see that there are some weaknesses that they can exploit with what's going on at Sony."

The executive was quick to add that he still doesn't see new systems emerging anytime soon - not least because the current generation could sell a lot more at lower price points.

By Luke Guttridge