Microsoft's J Allard has said that the Xbox 360 will be released in differing versions over the next five years.

xbox360 console - Allard confirms multiple Xbox 360...With a hard drive as standard or not? That is the question

Speaking in the September issue of the US gaming magazine Game Informer, Allard has said that they are not ready to announce the variations of the Xbox 360 console, but it will not be a one size fits all situation.

"It's something we're not ready to announce yet," he said. "I don't think it's a one-size-fits-all [approach] over the next five-year horizon."

The hard drive has been an area of much discussion, with analysts predicting that the console will launch in two varieties, one with and one without a hard drive.

"We've said [to developers], 'Hey look, don't bank on the hard drive always being there,'" he revealed. "'There may be a scenario in the future where we don't want to have a hard drive, and in that case, we have to make sure that the games that you've created are accessible to the broadest possible audience.'"

With developers being told not to rely on the hard drive, we can assume that the primary use of the storage will be for added multimedia functionality that Microsoft has up its sleeve. It has also been rumoured that later versions of the Xbox 360 will be shipped with the added benefit of an HD-DVD drive.

Expect to hear more information on the Xbox 360 in the coming weeks.