I'm glad you asked because this thread was in need of a serious dose of reality of what's really going on behind the scenes. Microsoft is obviously taking a page out of Sony's PS3 playbook with the XB1. This is a clear case of under-promising followed by a massive amount of over-delivering (of value).
Microsoft shows the market a $500 console chained to expensive--yet elegant--hardware (Kinect 2.0), a revolutionary form of misunderstood DRM, and graphical components capable of hitting the holy grail of 1080p x 60 fps in games--basically giving the people what they want. And then they go "bam!", we're going to do you one better, folks. No Kinect necessary, but better with it... $400 bundles and $500 ones too if that's what you prefer... We'll save DRM for later when you're more ready for it... You want Madden, Fifa, Halo, and Tomb Raider, you say? Yeah we got to too! So the market goes, "well f*** me, this thing may have been awesome before, but now how could I possibly resist?" The fruits of this strategy will ripen in the coming months and Mattrick's true genius will finally be appreciated.
Many of you can't see the forest beyond the trees. Microsoft knows the majority of a consoles sales occur *after* the first year, so what happens now isn't really important. You can call this the "beta" period, if you'd like. The real party starts in year two. "Let the kids have their fun, but the real games don't begin until we say so." -Microsoft.
They want gamers to experience what the competition offers so that when they inevitably jump (back) in to the Xbox All in One Entertainment Eco-System, they will truly realize what they have been missing and then they will have won a customer for life. In a final stroke of genius, they want you, the gamer, to make the final 180 by turning your back on Sony's trap-box known as the PS4 and embracing true gaming-salvation that is the XB1. Sony's trying to "lock" consumers in by offering loads of "free" games, massive discounts, and a ton of other benefits that only work if you stay in their ecosystem by paying a monthly tax for the rest of your life. Who's forcing DRM down your throat now? You can't just stop paying and bring those games over to the XB1, for example. What kind of idiots do they take us for?
So Microsoft is gearing up for year two which starts this holiday season. Did you know that 80% of console sales occur in the holiday season? Droppin' nuggets of knowledge all day, holla. Microsoft has had the shelves fully stocked for a couple months now, so you could say they already have the jump on sony. Then they just announced about a dozen different variations. It's not one size fits all anymore, folks. That was the old way, the Sony way. You want a 1 TB version with manly COD graphics that you could show off to the b*tches in your neighborhood? We got that. How about a ice cool white one with a free Sunset game included? Yup. Are you a vanilla man? We got the standard SkU for you. Buddies coming over for a kegger this weekend? Grab the madden buddle yo.
Do you want to control your entire home entertainment system with just your voice and hands? The Kinect version is still available! 'Sup now, son. Those lucky gamers get the added benefit of all the motion-games that are in the pipeline from award winning studios like Rare and they can change weapons... with their voice. XB1 amazon rankings aren't so high right now since all the sales are spread out with all these amazing bundles instead of just one or two sku's like the PS4 or WiiU. NPD might miss some of these sku's as well since there are so many coming out all the time. Remember, those numbers are just estimates anyway and Walmart, the largest retailer in teh world practically, isn't a fan of npd so we're not getting the entire picture. Sony's in their pockets, no doubt.
2015, year of the Xbox!
