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Microsoft and Sony are looking to release new versions of the XBox and PlayStation in 2012, according to a new report.

Edge, one of the leading games publications, claims that sources at Ubisoft and Electronic Arts have confirmed that the two studios have received "target boxes" - custom PCs that indicate the rough specifications of the new system - from Microsoft to aid with development.

The first iteration of genuine development kits will be sent to studios before Christmas.

Another source has claimed that an unnamed Sony-owned studio has stopped all game development for the PlayStation 3, and has shifted its focus towards the PS4.

Edge claims that these developments, alongside the 2012 launch of Nintendo's Wii U, indicate that new consoles from the two giants will be released in the next twelve months, although there are concerns that Sony and Microsoft are both "rushing through" the products, which could impact on their overall quality.

Microsoft executives have firmly stated that the XBox 360, thanks in part to the recent launch of Kinect, is only halfway through its lifespan, with Sony suggesting that their new console wouldn't be shipped until 2014 at the earliest.

Forty years of games consoles...