Sony Unphased by Aggressive Xbox Series X Marketing, CFO Says Proof Will Be in PS5 Sales

Can you play Horizon Zero Dawn 2 on xbox?

No.

Errr well that settles it then.

let be realistic here, regardless of which is "the most powerful" or whichever one outsells the other, both the Series X and PS5 are going to sell and sell well and probably be successful to both Sony and MS

arguing over which one has bigger numbers is folly, just enjoy your games

getting defensive and attacking others because they brought a different lump of wires and plastic to you is stupid

Yea i mean Xbox has to be in your face. They failed miserably this gen. Switch ling surpassed sales and sony is sitting at best guess 2.2-2.4:1 in terms of sales. Not to mention just trouncing them in 1st party output and critical/commerical success. All the while Sony STILL has 2 (3 if you own VR) of its most anticipated titles on the way. All Sony has to do is show HZD2 with a launch date release and nothing Xbox has done will matter.

5 years from now I bet the ps5 had sold double the xbox.

Any takers?

So here's the answer as reported by Twinfinite:
'Right now we have to think strategically, therefore, I cannot really make a comment. Is it a passing grade or not? On that point, I think results will be everything, so after the launch, it will become clear. So, we’re going to make our utmost effort.”'
Compare to T.Mochizuki:
'We consider things strategically but doing our best. As for pass or fail, I would wait for PS5 sales to make that judgement."

The majority of people (i.e. the annual FIFA/COD/Madden gamer) are going to go where the messaging is the loudest.

If Microsoft can scream louder that it's the best value to play the most recent FIFA/Madden/COD/Fortnite out of the gate, then Microsoft "wins" - if there is such a thing.

From an investor standpoint, "waiting for sales" doesn't boast financial confidence. Yes, PlayStation has been strong for a long time, but things change with every generation.

I really like Sony's first-party output. I am excited to see what the company has in store for PS5 launch. I just feel like Sony is resting on it's laurels.

At this stage there's no way of telling which company's marketing strategy will be best. It'll be clearer once both Sony and Microsoft fully reveal their next gen plans.

As always, consoles sell on the strength of its games.
Therefore PS5 will sell more.

It would be interesting to note the sales figures between the Xbox One X and the PS4 Pro. That could give us an insight as to whether Microsoft is clawing back a market share, or whether it's all just smoke and mirrors. Everyone knows the PS4 has sold amazingly well. But if the Xbox One X has impressive enough figures (I don't know the answer to this) then it stands to reason so will the Series X against the PS5.
(I really do hate the names of Xbox stuff at the moment though, PS5 is just so much easier to speak and write)

I hope for Playstation Studios to invest more genres such as RPGs, Platformer, Fighting, Shooter, etc. Not just with Cinematic/Narrative/Adventure games which adds more variety that has quality invested of these first-party studios.

"Comeback" is a very strong word for a console that has finished last every generation it's existed.

@darksoul77 5 years from now ps5 will outsell xboxsx by max 10M, if ever outsell.

@FullbringIchigo I really don’t think the Series X is going to sell well at all honestly.

Who’s their target demographic with this machine? — The target market is the same as the Xbox One X. Now the ask is for those same people to upgrade to a new machine which will play all the same games as their One X does with a slight upgrade to graphics/resolution/FPS, they’ve only just upgraded like 2-3 years ago.

Now for the rest of the population, the ask is for them to buy a third tier machine for lots of money when there are two lower tiers that can play all the same games.

You can bet Sony’s marketing strategy is going to include that the PS5 is the only place to play true next gen games not held back by older hardware, and the only place to play console VR.

Going to be another blowout.

@djlard not even close to being likely, see my other reply right before this one for the reasons why.

You just never know in this industry. Sony was king of the world during the PS2 era, then an aggressive Microsoft came out strong & really gave them a run for their money with the 360...
Nintendo are up & down like a toilet seat with their consoles successes.
That being said, you can always count on Playstation consoles having fantastic life cycles, full of awesome games.
@lacerz The original Xbox outsold the Gamecube, & to be fair there were really no losers during the 360/PS3/Wii era. They all sold amazingly well.

@darksoul77 it will start with a 2 to 1 sales lead and continue

@Neolit I doubt it

@Ichiban MS didn't give them a run for their money with 360. It was a screw up on Sony. They released a year later much more expensive. When ps3 became affordable or similar price, they clawed their way back and surpassed them and continued their success into the PS4 with the momentum they had. It doesn't look like any one is screwing up this time as and with the momentum they have now, I still see them selling 2 to 1 which is a little less gap then this gen. They can both be good but the PlayStation brand is just that much more popular and trusted.

@MarcG420 One thing can change everything. Almost all parents that visit our local store on christmas ask for Kinect. And are very very very shocked, that it's no more available. And also all ask for x360 games. 50% just skipped xone generation with "I won't buy new console every 5 years. " Yes it is just a drop in a sea of customer opinions, but a little rock can execute avalanche....

@djlard those same parents would be the one to say I’m not paying 500$+ when this 149$ machine plays the same games.

Hence my main point for why this will not sell well at all.

@Ichiban
Microsoft abandoned the original Xbox after a mere 5 years in order to get a 1 year advantage over Sony. If you bought an original Xbox, you got screwed. Sony didn't help by launching the PS3 at the price point they did, but Microsoft has a pattern of not supporting its console after 4+ years. A pattern that existed with the 360 and continues with the One.

@lacerz exactly. One fact many people who say it was so close between 360 and ps3 seem to forget is that Sony sold more consoles in less time at a higher price.

Speaks for itself really.

Inb4 ARROGANT SONY IS BACK!!!!! comments lol.

@MarcG420 the point is, that console doesn't matter. Games are same, but if somebody comes with gadget that parents want for kids, than he wins.

And remember this ALL is only speculation, because no one can predict how next gen gonna stand. Wii (moving control), Kinect (body controller), PSVR (virtual gaming), Switch (portable/tv full power console) this all moved scales of sales. Against stands Guitar Hero (instruments), Ring-fit (moving), Singstar (singing) that had to boost sales, but failed or didn't match expectations.

No one can predict market reaction.

I'm sure there is alot of us on this site that would stick with ps5 just because they loved the brand playstation since ps1 days so I'm sure sales will be good anyhow.

The question I really want to here an answer on is how long to the next mid gen upgrade from both ms and Sony.

I'm thinking 2023-24 autumn. Before I get shouted down i am just being a realist.

@djlard when discussing how well the Series X will do it absolutely matters.

This reply from you really makes no sense in the conversation at all...

@Ichiban A run for their money? The Xbox360 had a 52% failure rate, no wonder it kept pace with PS3 sales. Microsoft had to keep churning out consoles to replace the faulty ones.

if Sony advertises it like the PSVita then they can't do any wrong 🙄

Not surprised they're confident, they've outsold Xbox every generation. Just hope they don't get arrogant.

“ forcing Microsoft to look ahead while the Xbox One continues to lose steam”

Interestingly, though, despite Microsoft having less to lose with early announcements, it is precisely their strategy that reassure current buyers their investment won’t be a waste right now because they will be able to play 2 years worth of MS exclusives on any XBox they buy today, and any first party made for the XBox this year will be also magic-upgraded to Series X.

Sony being silent has frozen my PlayStation purchases. I’m not preordering TLoU2 nor Ghost until I hear from Sony’s own mouth they won’t be trying to sell me a Definitive PS5 versión down the line.

@eumenes first 360 model had a huge failure rate, but it was popular enough that people would walk into stores and just buy a new one (if you are to believe anecdotes from YouTubers that used to work in game stores.)

Outside of Japan, Xbox dominated the 360/ps3 gen. The only reason this gen saw mass exodus of their fan base was stupidity of their own making (worse than Sony stupidity during the PS3 gen, anyone remember their president bragging people would pay a thousand dollars with no games just for Blu-ray?)

MS messed their chances by:
•Forcing Kinect (bloating price)
•Mandatory online requirements
•Making the console always listen to all you say
•All this at the same time the NSA was doubting mass spying on citizens
•Threatening physical games would be bound to your profile (becoming just cd keys you can’t resell)

Honestly, would had been hard for MS to do worse even if they tried.

BTW:
Today, my original XBox 360 still works after Microsoft fixed it for free. My launch PS3 suffered the infamous Yellow Light of Death, forcing me to buy a new one (new model, no BC) and re-hook my PS2 to play my old games.

Also: love my PS4 but still waiting to hear more about this “always listening” microphone on PS5 controllers. I’m not fond of it, one bit.

That’s arrogance talk right there and can kill a company and a product when they become complacent.. I suggest Sony start to respond to Microsoft as they are gaining a lot more interest..

@djlard How do you know? We have seen nothing yet. @djlard Weird if so why didnt it sell and was it discontineud

@Tharsman My PS3 was replaced for free after 2,5 years. 😆

PS3 caught up and sold more units with a year later released and way more expensive. I still remember Bill Xbox will never have Bluray. 😉

To me, this sums it all up:

https://www.statista.com/chart/18903/video-game-console-sales/

@JJ2 It almost sounds like making big stories out of nothing.

@3MonthBeef

Namely the fact that they revealed teardown videos of their console, their recent "Gameplay" footage, and that Phil Spencer has been hosting interviews and is very active in responding to community inquiries.

These are all advertising efforts to help promote hype for the next Xbox.

@themcnoisy no but they will be able to experience it on PC.

@JJ2 so they editing comments now? Is it really come to this level of defensiveness? Just because Microsoft has really stepped up their game and are actually coming to fight this time?

I don't think anyone on MS side has said anything but that Microsoft is really going to deliver a next gen powerful console with real performance.

And in comparison to what Sony has done they are not wrong they have the power upper hand.

4k/30 on Xbox series x OK not best but better than 1440(or less) /30.

I personally never thought in a million years that Xbox will outsell Sony full stop. It won't happen its never happened.

But what I do think will be true is them delivering the real performance people are looking for in a next gen system (at least in regards to being the most powerful of the 2).

I won't be buying an Xbox (as I don't have to I have a pc that outperforms both today and still I'm set to install a 10900k this week and a next gen ampere gpu (3080 ti) by the time these systems launch.

The ps5 MAY get a buy but I still think between the two ecosystems Microsoft is doing way more that's positive for the consumer. And again because they give me the freedom I'll support them (and have been) using my pc that they let me use to play games within their platforms.

All while having much higher performance than either of these fixed boxes can.

Sony fanboys are upset and lashing out not because Microsoft is going to "beat them" it's because Microsoft is making their blind faith in Sony make them look foolish.

It's a hard pill to swallow. Sony should do better for their clients and offer much more of what Microsoft is doing for them.

Microsofts moves make everything better for the industry as a whole and hopefully they can put enough pressure on Sony to keep pushing them to tear down their walls and outdated models.

@MarcG420 one word blu-ray many many many systems were sold as a cheap alternative for a Blu ray player 1st and a game console second.

Microsoft biggest mistake was not having a next gen disc format ready to go with their launch if they did we all might be using HD-DVD instead of Bluray

@Cybrshrk
Hi man
I dont mind you promoting the xbox. It's cool.
I dont understand why you replied to me though. I have zero interest in xbox haha

@LocalPenguin
Mochizuki has a long history of mis quoting and misleading information. Check out Twinfinite for the probably closer to reality version.

Can you play sequels to the likes of HZD, God of War, Spider-Man and Days Gone on the new Xbox?

No.

I had a 360 so I'm not an unabashed Sony fanboy BUT if you care about single player games and want to the play the very best that's available then you need a PS.

I bought a PS4 on the strength of HZD trailers and reviews. Don't regret my choice.

New Xbox will obviously sell well but I'd be shocked if it matches let alone betters the PS5.

@Cybrshrk they did have it ready, it was an optional add on.

@Tharsman ''first 360 model had a huge failure rate, but it was popular enough that people would walk into stores and just buy a new one (if you are to believe anecdotes from YouTubers that used to work in game stores.)''

Even after getting their 360s back from repair, people were
still experiencing the red ring of death. It was not uncommon for an owner to send his/her back for repair two, three or even four times. (I've read stories that people had to sent their's back for repair six times) After all that I'd imagine that it would be less troublesome to just buy a new one.

@Ichiban Not really. The 360 launched a year before PS3 and still ended up selling less. It also had a 33% failure rate. And that's their most successful console ever. Their first attempt was outsold something like 4 or 5 to 1 by PS2, a far less powerful console. Their current attempt has been at least doubled PS4, and even outsold by the far less powerful Switch that came out years later. To really put it into perspective, in Japan in the week after FFVIIR came out, the PS4 outsold the XB1's entire lifetime sales over there. With that kind of lack of support outside America, it's working at a massive disadvantage.

@darksoul77 I'd take that bet. This gen is going to be so much closer. Think where Msoft was at this point last gen how much their strategy was in disarray and the sales are just over double. Series X looks a beast and if they do try to undercut Sony in price terms (by taking a loss) then don't be surprised if Msoft come out on top this gen. It certainly won't be the dominance that Sony has with PS4.

Good luck with that, nobody should spend any money on Sony games after that atrocity Last of Us 2 releases

@themcnoisy .......

@Matroska the 360 had far better success than the ps3, the only reason the ps3 sold more was because it was at the end of the cycle where microsoft didnt care anymore. But if you want more proof then let's look at the real numbers.
Before the ps4 came out, sony, as a whole, was worth less than Nintendo, and at that time Nintendos lead console was the wii u, so yes sony was not making any money from any of its division at that point in time. Ps4 came out and their networth skyrocketed but only thanks to ps4 and gamers tired of playing of weak a$$ piece of $hit consoles.
Now you bring up a fact on japanese games sales on ps4, since the very beginning xbox never did well on japanese games, so to say that final fantasy game on ps4 out sold the xbox version is the dumber argument ever because everyone knows that gamers that dont care for that type of games are on xbox and vice versa. The sales numbers of ps4 consoles to first party games show that the majority of ps4 gamers arent buying ps4 exclusives, and is because of those numbers that I know the next gen will be a lot tighter, specially if people are looking for the best 3rd party experience.

I'm going to call it how it is.
The real winner of this current gen isnt ps4, is the Nintendo switch, because the Nintendo switch put up better numbers over all vs a 7 year old console, I know that the competition between ps5 vs series X will be a lot closer. You can spend all day spouting out your favorite sony first party games all you want, the truth is that those games sales numbers were utterly ***** and most likely sony took a loss on those games. People shouting out God of war, the last of us and so on but on a console that sold over 110 million units the sales numbers of those games are worthless. Meaning that the majority of the gamers on ps4 are there because is the best place to play 3rd party games and believe me, with how loose Microsoft is with doing cross play between pc and xbox, I promise you that next gen those gamers might find themselves over at series X, which specs wise isnt a slouch either.

@hypnotoad not true at all, the ps4 first party sales figures are a joke, no matter how good those first party games are, their sales figures are utter crap showing proof that the majority of ps4 gamers dont really care for the first party games, so yeah, expect next gen to be much tighter, microsoft isnt making the same mistakes this time around.

@Dafonse I didn't say a FF game on PS4 outsold the XB1 version - FFVIIR isn't even on the XB1. I said that the number of PS4 consoles sold in Japan in the week following VIIR's release was more than the entire lifetime sales of the XB1 in Japan. One week of PS4 sales was higher than about 6-7 years of XB1 sales.

And as for the 360, being outsold even when you had a year head start is indefensible - as is having a console where one-third of them break. MS's biggest success is losing to Sony's worst selling home console.

@Dafonse if a game sells 10 million, how is that not a success?

I get it you love your switch, well done. I have one too. The PS4 and Switch have both been a success.

No need for the pseudoscience lesson, far too much on the Internet at the moment. You have no shares in Nintendo so why be so serious? You own a flipping handheld gaming device not the hammer for the London stock exchange.

As for Microsoft I habitually pay them licence fees for the same programs I have been using for twenty years in work. That's Microsofts problem - they presume we want the same stuff year on year. Halo, Gears, Forza with a bit of Fable. They have grown stale. I don't mind Microsoft my kids both play on xbox but the games for gamers like most people on Pushsquare (rather than casuals or people who play the same games ongoing) just aren't good or varied enough.

When I hear an announcement for the next Halo or Gears there's no excitement, those series topped out at Halo Reach and Gears 2. Then a gradual decline into mediocrity.

Hopefully the X has a wide ranging opening salvo. But the reports so far paint an entirely different picture.

@themcnoisy is not a success considering that sony has over 110 playstation 4 out there, I'm not in love with my switch, but when you see that the switch has 55 million consoles out there and have 1 game selling @ 22+ million units, and 6 other games breaking the 13 to 17+ million unit sold you can see that the ratios look balance. But @ 110+ million units sold, having 2 games that broke 13-16 million units sold and then having 3 games that barely broke 10 million units, you can see that the ratio not only is off but that majority of ps4 players, which would be 100 millions or more, dont care about the first party games that sony has to offer. And that says a lot and is why I believe that sony shouldn't sleep on xbox if majority of the gamers are looking for the best gaming experience to play 3rd party games.

Addictions are hard to shake.
Cults are hard to leave.

I'm sure they'll sell pretty well but it will be their worst selling console of all time... And their last.

@Dafonse wow man, if you think a game has to sell 25 million to be classed as a success everyone may as well pack up and go home. 10 million full price games is £500,000,000 in revenue. I have absolutely no idea why something like Mario Kart which has a cartoonist Saturday morning vibe playable by everyone and God of War which is 18 plus, single player and based on mythology are even comparable.

I'm glad Sony has released Astrobot, Dreams, Spiderman and Horizon Zero Dawn, all single player games. We can all argue the toss about which games are better but for me all 4 of them suit me better than the stuff Nintendo is churning out (which is still playable, solid and fun) I have a switch, for my young kids it's boss. To play the latest and best graphics and adult orientated, VR and high brow games it's not.

As for winning generations, what does it even mean? I have bought multiple consoles every gen. They are a very cheap hobby compared to buying cars so why even make a choice. Buy them all. The most obscure consoles usually fetch the most for collectors. The Wii U for instance was a flop - right now it costs more than the switch lite!

@Real_Obsi and here's another bundle of laughs. You are big into streaming right? Good for you.

Centralising services is actually not everything its cracked up to be. I've tried a few streaming services now and the minor lag is still infuriating, rhythm, 1v1 fighting and the bullet hell genre may as well not bother as you can't play them properly.

There's a place for streaming and thats with strategy and puzzle games and the slower action adventure games. No way can we go back to the lag since wide-screen mass adoptage, its taken years to get the latency down to the almost the same as CRT tellies. Now we are going for more lag with streaming? Balls to that. Not worth the trade off. It is convenient when sitting on the couch but that is literally the only benefit.

Games consoles will be around for a while yet. They are a good present at Christmas / Birthdays and selling peripherals on top is a money spinner.

@Nyne11Tyme I have never noticed such love for Horizon Zero Dawn before until recently. I love HZD since robot animals are awesome and the world is super interesting but it's gameplay kinda annoys me and its characters is the weakest aspect to the game that I hope is improved in the sequel cause so far its DLC improves that a bit.

@themcnoisy however you will get to on PC down the road just like the other first party Sony titles on the Epic store for PC

All in all both consoles will sell well for both companies and will push gaming in a better direction hopefully.

I'll be getting both however Xbox first since atm the launch first party titles for Ps5 that are said to be releasing I'm not interested in

I had the Xbox x and while it looked good with most third party games, I always missed the exclusives. Halo and Gears are franchises way past their prime. It’s like the XBox has no identity and even in third party they missed a lot.

I could care less which console is more powerful. I have a PC for that. I'm here for the exclusives, sorry Microsoft, your offering just isn't appealing to me...

@Indianajuls @NomNom Agreed, on the xbox original and 360 they had a good run, Kotor, Halo 1-Reach, Gears 1-2, Lost Odyssey, Jet set radio future, crackdown (l loved the first 2), left 4 dead, trials HD, geometry wars. Then in the final years of the 360 it started going downhill - what must own exclusives have MS published in the last 7 years? Forza, sunset overdrive and Ori. Jeez.

@PupTwilight I own a PC and use the epic store. We have 5 PCs and laptops in my house. It's 2020 not 1984. (not bragging BTW I have 3 kids that live with me and one grown up who's in uni). But on the epic store they don't have the games I really need to play, what's even comparable to the GoT preview last night? Sucker Punch knocked it out of the park!

@Nepp67 the characters in HZD are great, the story, world are general society are its strongest points. Then you have the monsters / robots.

The gameplay loop was by the book in many ways and the climbing is weak. However once in a big fight or stood on top of a mountain nothing is better.

@Flaming_Kaiser “PS3 caught up and sold more units with a year later released and way more expensive. I still remember Bill Xbox will never have Bluray.”

They virtually tied at the end of the generation for global sales. Region-to-region was much different. In Japan, the PS3 outdoor the 360 almost 10 to 1. In North America (US+CA), the 360 outsold by 68%. There is no simple “This guy won”, it was a honestly competitive generation.

As for Blu-ray, I didn’t even own a Blu-ray movie until I already owned a PS4.

My launch PS3 was never replaced, it was too late on its life, and sadly Sony decided to remove features through its lifetime, so it became, for most purposes, impossible to replace. Of course I got the last slim model as a “replacement.” I’m not a blind fanboy that sticks to a single platform as if it was some cult threatening to steal my firstborn or something. I own all platforms.

@themcnoisy XBOne exclusives were indeed few this time around. Gears, Halo, Ryse of Rome and Dead Rising 3 are all the ones I can think of that hyped and siding disappointed me personally.

Didn’t care for sea of thieves or Ori (although been told I really should give it a shot.)

They going hard on console exclusives next gen, though. Might not mean much if you are a PC gamer, since most those exclusives will also be on PC, but I’ll always prefer console over PC.