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[CyberPanda]

I find myself thinking a lot about 2013 as we head toward the release of next generation consoles here at the end of 2020. And I feel like it’s shaping up to be a much different head to head battle this time around.

The original PS4 versus Xbox One race was a comedy of errors on Microsoft’s end. Take your pick as to where things went wrong, but the moments that immediately come to mind are the “essential” bundling of Kinect, the $100 price difference because of it, the fears about always-online “check-ins,” the complicated game sharing philosophy Sony shamed them into dropping with this famous video.

It felt like Microsoft was swinging wildly at a Sony pitch that was a simple fastball, straight down the middle. The PS4 was a powerful console that played good games. That was it. And that was enough to mangle the Xbox One launch and cause Sony to dominate the entire console generation.

But things feel different now, and I wonder if Sony doing more or less the same thing here seven years later will be enough to let it retain its advantage.

With information still to come about PS5, it’s hard to paint a full picture of what’s happening this time. And yet Microsoft seems to have learned all kinds of lessons with the Xbox Series X, and it makes me wonder if Sony can play it as safe as it always has this time.


This time, the Xbox Series X feels lot stronger than the Xbox One did at launch. There are early rumblings that it should be more powerful than the PS5, the reverse of the narrative of the original XB1 versus PS4. That may again come with a $100 price difference, but this time it would be for power, not a dongle like Kinect.

Microsoft hasn’t bothered attempting to get rid of its disc drive or limiting used games sales this time around, and yet it is speeding into a purely digital future all the same as it is finally on course with that trend, rather than years ahead of it. Microsoft has a pair of pocket aces heading into the Series X launch, Xbox Game Pass, a must-own for any Xbox player which offers loads of free games and new release exclusives in the closest thing the industry has to a Netflix model. And it also has Project xCloud, its experimental streaming service that will likely end up being paired with Game Pass to offer game streaming on a wide array of devices. Google Stadia may have arrived with a thud, and yet game streaming may be a different story when it’s games you already own and don’t have to re-buy in a different ecosystem.

Sony has PlayStation Now, but it has never been the same level of value proposition as Game Pass, and that seems unlikely to change in the immediate future. And whatever its future game streaming ambitions could be, they are well behind the curve and since Sony is Sony, maker of TVs and video game consoles, it doesn’t have the massive server infrastructure in-house to pull something like that off and ironically, may need to rely on Microsoft to make that happen.

There are smaller advantages too. Microsoft is launching with Halo Infinite, a huge game in Microsoft’s biggest franchise, while we know that PS5 isn’t going to be launching with Last of Us 3, God of War 2 or anything else that equivalent (maybe Horizon 2, if we’re lucky?). Microsoft has also detailed its elaborate backward and forward compatibility plans, building an ecosystem of past and future consoles that allow for more purchase flexibility.

The way I see it, even before Sony starts talking about the finer details of PS5 in earnest, it’s likely they will retain a few significant advantages. There’s possibly price, as if Sony can launch at $100 cheaper, even if it’s sacrificing some power, that is a huge head start. There are games, as while Microsoft is trying to improve its first party offerings, it seems unlikely that they will be able to match Sony’s never-ending parade of hit titles, even if those are all “sold separately” and not included in some sort of Game Pass.

And finally there’s brand loyalty. PS4 sold so many units in the last seven years that it essentially shamed Microsoft into not even releasing Xbox numbers anymore, but estimates put Sony at more than a 2:1 sales advantage. And if you’ve been happy with your PS4 for seven years, you are a lot more likely to stay with it than to jump ship to Xbox Series X, if Sony isn’t fumbling anything readily apparent.

It’s going to be an interesting race, and I look forward to seeing it play out this fall.

A PS4 Strategy For PS5 May Not Work Against Xbox Series X

Xbox Series X versus PS5 may be a much different situation than Xbox One versus PS4 seven years ago.

www.forbes.com

 

[Psykodad]

No mention of the PS5 logo-reveal?

 

[Hobbygaming]

Good games is always the key and PS5 will have damn good games

 

[HaveButOneLife]

Power isn't important, what Microsoft needs to focus on is its first party exclusives and establishing themselves.

They'll never beat PlayStation if they keep doing the same thing over and over (Halo Gears Forza repeat for another 3 generations) so let's hope the new studios are releasing games soon.

 

[Slings and Arrows]

Tl;DR: Sony have said nothing, but they may be in trouble if they do what has brought them success, four generations in a row.

No mention of PSVR though? It could help them, it could hurt them, but its worth mentioning IMO

 

[Mikey Jr.]

Forbes REALLY hates Playstation lol.

 

[mejin]

" The PS4 was a powerful console that played good games "

Wrong. It was a good console that played awesome games.


At the end of its life cycle, every playstation has always an amazing lineup that no xbox could compete. This won't change soon.

 

[Vawn]

The most important two factors in a console are: Games and Price.

Nintendo and PlayStation have consistently proven they will bring the games. That trust is there. Xbox has had several droughts where exclusive high-quality games just never came.

Price, while not for hard-core gamers like myself, is a HUGE issue for many potential console buyers. A $100 price difference can be a much bigger deal than which console wins the Digital Foundry comparison videos.

Price is unknown. But PlayStation has built a much bigger audience that are confident that they will always bring the best AAA software. That will be a huge obstacle for Xbox to overcome, especially after all of this generation and even the last third of the 360 generation where games just seemed to be a secondary concern.

 

[SoullessApples]

A PS4 Strategy For PS5 May Not Work Against Xbox Series X

Xbox Series X versus PS5 may be a much different situation than Xbox One versus PS4 seven years ago.

www.forbes.com

Nobody knows anything about the PS5. Can we just wait for a proper reveal before we make these claims. Who knows what will happen? Who cares?

 

[GHG]

Forbes REALLY hates Playstation lol.

It's not Forbes itself, it's these dumbass Forbes contributors who are clearly nothing more than paid shills.

 

[ethomaz]

Next article after PS5 gangbuster record of sales....

"Don't look too much into the early sales of PS5".

 

[Dabaus]

Nobody knows anything about the PS5. Can we just wait for a proper reveal before we make these claims. Who knows what will happen? Who cares?

This. Its too soon to say xbox has any advantage. Alot of what the article talks about Xbox has those advantages RIGHT NOW, and its not changing anything. Sony may blow it and have another PS3 reveal on thier hands, or maybe not. Who knows, certainly not his guy writing this article.

 

[GameOfPixelsX]

" The PS4 was a powerful console that played good games "

Wrong. It was a good console that played awesome games.


At the end of its life cycle, every playstation has always an amazing lineup that no xbox could compete. This won't change soon.

The 360 era was awesome though and it had some unique games. They seem to be on that track again. Hoping for all the success to them. And Playstaton, And Nintendo. It is a big market, no need to pick a side.

 

[Captain Hero]

Sony didn't make a move or a statement about its next gen console or games .. so how did you... ?

Nvm its Forbes

 

[dottme]

Good games is always the key and PS5 will have damn good games

I’m waiting to see the good games (godfall doesn’t looks great for me), but when you compare the game output on PS4 vs XBox One, it’s clear that Sony was doing much better.

 

[Trogdor1123]

I was expecting at least some comments in the article about the ecosystem.

That seems to be pretty important this time around.

 

[DeepEnigma]

Some things never change, just how they are distributed.

 

[Fake]

neogaf should add two tags: 'Sony Doomed' and 'Forbes contributors'

 

[Hobbygaming]

I’m waiting to see the good games (godfall doesn’t looks great for me), but when you compare the game output on PS4 vs XBox One, it’s clear that Sony was doing much better.

Every PlayStation console has good games though, plus we know what sequels are coming

 

[Spukc]

Makes you think. The current state of sony.
And how hard microsoft worked at bettering their image during this gen.

Makes you think...

 

[FranXico]

neogaf should add two tags: 'Sony Doomed' and 'Forbes contributors'

They're called "Clickbait" and "Cringe", respectively.

 

[yurinka]

Seeing its results in consoles (over 100M) and games (over 1B) sold after only six years (remember PS consoles last around 10+ years), I think PS4 strategy nailed it. And for what we know from oficial annoucements, their next gen plans slide, PS5 will continue the same succesful plan but adding the logical improvements:
-Focus on games, other things like Netflix are ok but secondary
-Have a strong, big and diverse lineup of 1st/2nd party games and 3rd party exclusives (even if they're only timed or console exclusives), in addition to marketing deals with key AAA multi games like CoD, FIFA or the ones from Rockstar
-Don't overprice: substantial jump in horsepower compared to last gen but aim for a $399 price at launch, max. $499. Avoid PS3's $599 failure
-Release the console more or less at the same time than MS, don't fall more than a year before as PS3 did
-Easy to develop with a PC on steriods architecture, avoid alien hardware like in PS3
-Pioneer, experiment and invest on emerging markets to ensure being a market leader, have a larger catalog than others and more experience and tech knowledge. In PS4 was VR and streamed games, maybe now it's time to do something with I don't know, maybe helping eSports in some way with some console/PSN features or haptic feedback based gameplay
-Evolve tech that started in previous gen. In PS4 they did it with remote play or using Move in VR, in PS5 it's time for a VR, PS Now, Remote Play and checkerboard upscaling (for 8K) evolutions with improved tech, reduced input lag, more resolution and so on
-This time game subscription services will be more important, so to have a huge library will be key to compete. So now full BC with as much as consoles as possible will be important unlike in previous generations not only to have a smoother generation transition
-Regarding game pricing, stick to the successful formula of releasing the AAA at full price and add them to subscriptions like PS+ or PS Now only after they completed their commercial life cycle after some sales and discounts. Don't need to be aggresive with PS+ or PS Now because (and the games) they already generate a ton of revenue, more than ever.

If they more or less follow these things, I'm pretty sure PS5 will dominate its generation as PS4 did in this gen.

 

[ShadowWolf712]

lol Power was not why the PS4 was popular, everyone knew it was already underpowered at launch. The reason the "power" talk even became a THING was because it was more powerful than the Xbox One, yet STILL $100 cheaper.

I have no idea why people try so hard to ignore that little bit of context.

 

[DeepEnigma]

Makes you think. The current state of sony.
And how hard microsoft worked at bettering their image during this gen.

Makes you think...

Looks at two posts after yours.

Yeah, it does make one concern "think".

 

[PocoJoe]

Playstation strategy: be globally praised and hugely popular brand.

Still funny how some people think that xbox have a chance to beat the beast.

USA isnt the world and the world is a place where playstation is synonym for gaming.

They dont have to do anything else but continue what they did with ps4.

It doesnt matter if xsex would be bit more powerful, people are mostly brand loyal and only small part will switch just because of raw performance.

And xbox exclusives are so different vs sonys that it doesnt help either.

Playstation is kind of made for the world, xbox is too USA centric

 

[Monkeygourmet]

Going into the next generation, Sony look to have:

Improved controller (haptics)
Powerful console & SSD
Some kind of streaming
Some form of legacy B/W compat
New 1st party IP titles
Sequels to existing 1st party IP’s
Japanese support
Continuation of moneyhatted 3rd party
Continuation of Indie support
PSVR support and PSVR2 coming
VR exclusive titles
PS5 exclusives from day 1

Microsoft have about 60% of this list ticked off so far from what has been mentioned. So, not a complete list with the only part of the list they will likely exceed Sony, is on power.

I think Sony are already in a fine position with the reveals likely to push them over the edge.

 

[Spukc]

Looks at two posts after yours.

Yeah, it does make one concern "think".

let's see when the specs are out.
I really wonder how good sony will do next gen.

We might see something like ps3 vs 360, sony being too comfortable at the top.
And not shifting fast enough.

Makes me think All i know is that next gen gonna be amazing for pc gamers.

 

[sinnergy]

Power isn't important, what Microsoft needs to focus on is its first party exclusives and establishing themselves.

They'll never beat PlayStation if they keep doing the same thing over and over (Halo Gears Forza repeat for another 3 generations) so let's hope the new studios are releasing games soon.

They are focusing on games ... it’s not like we get a GT 8 or the 5th or 6th God of War ... they both do these practices... atleast Xbox users with gamepass can get those games ... with the sub ...

 

[Bkdk]

They are going different paths, with inexile, obsidian, flight and AOE studios, MS is putting half of their focus to the people who aren’t interested at Sony’s linear story driven games, which is exactly the lineup that I’ve been looking forward from either Sony or MS since early 2000. Now MS finally did it, thank god.

 

[DeepEnigma]

let's see when the specs are out.
I really wonder how good sony will do next gen.

We might see something like ps3 vs 360, sony being too comfortable at the top.
And not shifting fast enough.

Makes me think All i know is that next gen gonna be amazing for pc gamers.

It's not just about specs, and never has been.

This article is FUD based on zero information or plans announced.

Makes me think next gen is going to be amazing for all platforms.

 

[HaveButOneLife]

They are focusing on games ... it’s not like we get a GT 8 or the 5th or 6th God of War ... they both do these practices... atleast Xbox users with gamepass can get those games ... with the sub ...

When was the last God of War made? 5 years before it released.

Forza is/was annual and Gears had 3 simultaneous projects going on, so it's pretty clear that Microsoft is a worse offender of repetitive releases. Nothing is excused with a subscription service just because it has value, nor am I calling those games bad... it's simply inexcusable and it's happened for 3 generations in a row and... the process is them releasing 3 of the same first party games throughout a generation and depending on 3rd party developers and publishers to create second party games.

I'm simply saying that it's getting old and I hope that the acquisitions pay off, not doom and gloom for Xbox.

They are going different paths, with inexile, obsidian, flight and AOE studios, MS is putting half of their focus to the people who aren’t interested at Sony’s linear story driven games, which is exactly the lineup that I’ve been looking forward from either Sony or MS since early 2000. Now MS finally did it, thank god.

Please elaborate, because developers like Ninja Theory, Double Fine, Compulsion, etc. are notorious for their linear story driven games.

They want to act like Sony and attempt to gain the same success, and they don't have to have ND success in order to make that happen. It's not a bad thing, it's interesting to say the least.

 

[Hobbygaming]

They are going different paths, with inexile, obsidian, flight and AOE studios, MS is putting half of their focus to the people who aren’t interested at Sony’s linear story driven games, which is exactly the lineup that I’ve been looking forward from either Sony or MS since early 2000. Now MS finally did it, thank god.

It sounds like Dreams might be worth your monies on February 14th. It has everything from platformers to space shooters

There's also
Street Fighter V
Alienation
Wipeout
Ratchet and Clank
Nex Machina
Resogun
Guilty Gear
Gravity Rush 2
Concrete Genie
Fighting EX Layer
Catherine
Driveclub
Bloodborne
Everybody's Golf
Matterfall
Flower
MediEvil

And more on PS4

 

[Bkdk]

When was the last God of War made? 5 years before it released.

Forza is/was annual and Gears had 3 simultaneous projects going on, so it's pretty clear that Microsoft is a worse offender of repetitive releases. Nothing is excused with a subscription service just because it has value, nor am I calling those games bad... it's simply inexcusable and it's happened for 3 generations in a row and... the process is them releasing 3 of the same first party games throughout a generation and depending on 3rd party developers and publishers to create second party games.

I'm simply saying that it's getting old and I hope that the acquisitions pay off, not doom and gloom for Xbox.



Please elaborate, because developers like Ninja Theory, Double Fine, Compulsion, etc. are notorious for their linear story driven games.

They want to act like Sony and attempt to gain the same success, and they don't have to have ND success in order to make that happen. It's not a bad thing, it's interesting to say the least.

Unless inexile and obsidian suddenly give up what they do best, they will be doing open ended and open world rpg/ crpgs. Then aoe studios focusing on rts and flight developer on simulators, that’s like half of their recourses like I said to get the market that don’t really enjoy Sony’s linear story driven exclusive route.

 

[MiyazakiHatesKojima]

I'm getting some vibes that you might not be a fan of Forbes or Microsoft, can you confirm?

 

[DESTROYA]

I can’t take anything game related seriously coming from Forbes besides the business aspect of gaming.
Personally I think SONY will continue to have success with the PS5 as long as it’s not crazily priced and still offers great games, pretty much the same as we’ve seen in the PS4 gen.

 

[Entroyp]

Good price and actually releasing GREAT GAMES sounds like an unbeatable strategy to me.

Of course MS’ strategy this time around includes giving a damn about building a strong first party portfolio of games. If they succeed it only means they will be more successful but NOT that Sony will fail because of it.

 

[JustP_Gaming]

" The PS4 was a powerful console that played good games "

Wrong. It was a good console that played awesome games.


At the end of its life cycle, every playstation has always an amazing lineup that no xbox could compete. This won't change soon.

Keep telling yourself that. The change is happening right before your eyes but you cannot or refuse to see it. This isn't the 2013 Xbox team.

 

[Rightisright]

Why the hate? Its an article on what Microsoft can do this next gen to creep back market share, and about what they are doing differently compared to last time. They are just showing what areas MS has an advantage in and how it might work out in their favour.

 

[bucyou]

 

[Gargus]

Which system will have the most exclusives I want to play? Well so far the ps1, ps2, ps2, ps3, ps4 have been my go to console for the majority of my console gaming. So the only strategy they need is to keep having good games.

You can talk all the shit people want about this and that and hypothesize all kinds of shit but at the end of the day all anyone buys a console for is to play games and the one with the better games will win. And historically speaking playstation has always been the winner to me. And historically the xbox has been a waste of my money that just sits there and barely gets used and is why I am not getting the new xbox.

I dont give 2 shits about anything except playing games I want.

 

[sol_bad]

IMO, Playstation just has higher brand recognition and mind share.
Hell, my 18 year old niece randomly asked me about the PS5 releasing this year and she barely even cares about games. But she somehow knew it was releasing this year.

 

[Entroyp]

Keep telling yourself that. The change is happening right before your eyes but you cannot or refuse to see it. This isn't the 2013 Xbox team.

Sorry but MS is not going to build a strong first party portfolio just out of sheer will or by throwing money at developers (this helps though).

It will take time and as of right now they haven’t delivered. Unless you’re ok with sweet talk and just promises.

 

[DESTROYA]

Keep telling yourself that. The change is happening right before your eyes but you cannot or refuse to see it. This isn't the 2013 Xbox team.

Put up or shut up MS, you can talk the talk but can you walk the walk.
I want tangible proof not cheap meaningless words you can’t back up. There is no denying that MS made great strides with GamePass and hardware with the One X but really dropped the ball when it came to quality exclusives compared to the PS4.
I don’t see things changing much if SONY just keeps on doing what it’s doing.

 

[Ten_Fold]

Sony dropped the ball during the ps3 days, Microsoft dropped HARD during the end of the 360/ps3 cycle and during the first few years of the xbone. I feel next gen will still be Sony on top but Microsoft will bridge the gap.

 

[JustP_Gaming]

Sony dropped the ball during the ps3 days, Microsoft dropped HARD during the end of the 360/ps3 cycle and during the first few years of the xbone. I feel next gen will still be Sony on top but Microsoft will bridge the gap.

Anybody can drop the ball its the changing of generations, its expected, look at the past couple of generations for proof.

 

[Rightisright]

Put up or shut up MS, you can talk the talk but can you walk the walk.
I want tangible proof not cheap meaningless words you can’t back up. There is no denying that MS made great strides with GamePass and hardware with the One X but really dropped the ball when it came to quality exclusives compared to the PS4.
I don’t see things changing much if SONY just keeps on doing what it’s doing.

Have you noticed that MS has bought a heap of new games studios that will make exclusive games for Xbox? They have the same number of studios now as Sony.
And not only that they have actually showed a couple of exclusive games in Hellblade 2 and Mara.
I'm not sure how thats considered just talk, it's actually called action.

 

[Skyfox]

Listen to an elder, children:

Consoles do not need only good games and a good price.

Ye remember not the pre 16bit days.

The third pillar of POWER comes in to play when even the layman can see that games look like shit on one machine and awesome on the other.

If the PS5 is significantly lacking in spec compared to the sex then I will be in no rush to buy it.

 

[DESTROYA]

Have you noticed that MS has bought a heap of new games studios that will make exclusive games for Xbox? They have the same number of studios now as Sony.
And not only that they have actually showed a couple of exclusive games in Hellblade 2 and Mara.
I'm not sure how thats considered just talk, it's actually called action.

Absolutely I noticed but then again they could get cancelled tomorrow like Scalebound did out of the blue, I won’t believe it until I see it with my own eyes.
Just having exclusives doesn’t cut it either, they have to be good enough to sell consoles but with MS’s current strategy will release all games on PC too so that goes out the window .

 

[Kokoloko85]

Doesnt really matter. Microsoft will never get the same opportunity as they did with the 360.

PS3 released a year later, with a more expensive machine that was harder to work with and mostly worse 3rd party version.
Plus Xbox had all the 3rd party games playstation normally get for the first time, Final fantasy, Devil May Cry, Tales of, Tekken, all popular playstation franchinses.

They hit gold with xbox live, Halo and gears. Nintendo relased a Wii... and playstation messed up with the PS3 for the first few years.
Never gonna happen again

 

[Raziel]