@get2sammyb Here is one thing about the physical media aspect. PS6 is coming, they need to make the system as cheap as possible without subsidy. Subsidizing systems is a thing of the past. They had to eliminate the retail middleman to take a larger cut of sales. They are hedging against, losing very few users, against a bigger margin in order to keep their price down.
$1k usd console can work withe PS brand. Honestly the stuff we saw in customer feedbacks as to why people were buying PS5 would blow your mind at the time. Canadians were lining up to buy NHL 21 and desperate to buy a PS5 to play it. There was no NHL 21 native copy for the PS5. Things like this are what the majority of Playstation users are thinking when buying their system.
The brand is powerful, a 1k usd console with no disc drive will sell based on all information every major 3rd party has and info Sony has. There is more precise data than ever to help guide them in making these decisions. They could still be wrong, but I wouldn't bet again Sony marketing. That is Jim Ryan's true legacy, marketing and getting Playstation into markets that Nintendo and Xbox are not in.
zero reason for Playstation to do this. The brand online is taking a thrashing, but it's very powerful and more profitable than its ever been. They can just always just show up and sell 80 million consoles without a single exclusive. I've dealt with Playstation behind the scenes, and their arrogance, especially in marketing division is legendary. They know exactly how powerful their brand is and how casual their main users are. They won't change anything.
@BAMozzy It's because the actual engaged user is quite a bit less, at my company we define it as someone who turns on there system at least once per week. For PS5, we have it pegged at around 35 million, Xbox at about 15.5 million. Nintendo is harder to get a read, but it's quite a bit higher. Trophy/Achievement data is very useful in figuring this out.
In reality exclusives give your console a culture and identity. Nintendo has always gone by this. PlayStation was really built on having all games, PS1, PS2, Sony first party outside of Gran Turismo was fairly irrelevant.
Sony has the default console for any type of gamer. There is a massive issue in the industry, the older gamer that ages out and is replaced by the younger gamer, that younger gamer is not playing enough different games. Gamers 15 or younger are mostly still playing Roblox, Minecraft etc. That's where all their money goes. No one wants to say it out loud, cause money is still being spent, just not spread out through enough different companies.
Same amount of money is being spent as if they purchase many games, but it's all being dumped into DLC.
Every dev, not just publishers wants to make bank too, a lot of devs are chasing live service cause they want the money. It's not always suits pushing it. Dev's are presenting it cause they want the money.
Most gamers play less variety of gamers, than the PS3, 360 era.
Sony doesn't need to release another game, and they will sell 80 million units. Their marketing is that good.
The 2 biggest drivers of hardware in the last 6 years was Harry Potter and College Football 26. Harry Potter moved a lot of consoles with the amazing promotion Sony did for it. Money hatting exclusives is becoming more useless, unless you are actually funding development. Getting marketing rights for the right games is way more important.
So exclusives still matter, in driving home revenue and profit, but getting budgets under control and releasing less niche games has to happen. More layoffs will happen, more studios will shut down.
@MrPeanutbutterz I did say this above, it's not going to move consoles, it'll engage the users Xbox does have though. The goal is to show your competing again, it's a setup for next gen.
Very few franchises that are not aimed at children can survive over long periods of times without a full reboot. So your're right, Gears won't move units, it's perception more than anything.
Based on these move the brand will go through a full refresh and retry their hand improving their numbers.
From industry chatter, both companies want to get their systems out asap to insure they don't get killed by more part price issues. Console gamers have historically shown that they will show up for new system at launch. Cross-gen will be longer than ever though.
@MrPeanutbutterz You're right, I was playing down and I shouldn't do that. As to which game gained the bigger following, Uncharted obviously, the developer didn't change and the quality didn't dip. Gears wasn't consistent, this is their chance at a reset. I guess it's just shocking to me to this day that people have to be so polarized regardless of side you choose to be on.
@MrPeanutbutterz I guess I'm just dropping to their level....but your second paragraph is right, it would be a shoulder shrug, Gears wouldn't do well on Playstation, not liking a brand, sure whatever, it's just a plastic box just like Playstation. Not sure what point your trying to make. But it is what it is.
@GamingGod Fair enough, combing their resources was a last ditch and best idea they ever had. A lot of times good ideas come from desperation. A lot of bad ideas come from there too, excited to see how this goes.
@8th_Observer haha, never said I didn't like the site, just hate the toxic approach users have to make anything non Playstation to be negative. Obviously this is a Playstation centric site, but I wish users would be more objective and open minded.
Average commentator on this site has to be about 10 years old based on the comments on this site. Far and away the most toxic and fanboy heavy site I ever seen.
Anyone thinking that this is going to help Microsoft big units is crazy, and Microsoft isn't thinking that. They've had a massive lack of units overall, over the last few years. Way less have been produced to insure margins are increased.
If what Asha said in her Bloomberg interview is true and her mandate is to be the number 1 console maker, then great, this move is necessary. It's not about how many units you move right now, Microsoft knows they don't have the userbase, it's about giving the perception that XBOX actually cares about their brand and long term giving people confidence to invest in thee brand. Having your evangelical users happy, helps big time with perception to casuals.
Even though XBOX had a hard time moving units with exclusives previously, they likely feel their quality has improved and it's time to give the brand identity again.
I work for a large 3rd party as an exec and can say for sure, Microsoft has been cutting XBOX's marketing budget every year since the launch of the original Kinect, Microsoft had been Knee capping XBOX for over a decade, but based on the moves we are seeing, Asha might finally have free reign.
One thing people will never truly know about Phil, is how much he fought top brass at Microsoft to finally get them tor realize what being competitive in gaming entails. By the time he got theme there, he retired and Asha came on. Asha's actual background is customer service building and retention. That's why she got the nod of Sarah, she wanted to eliminate the console over time.
Every 3rd party wants Xbox to be competitive again, just like we all wanted Nintendo to be relevant again. Took Nintendo decades of investing in youth to get there, but they did.
Just cause Gears doesn't sell 20 million copies today, doesn't mean it's the wrong move long term.
Also, this makes know difference to Sony, Playstation just has to show up and will sell 80 million consoles, Sony never has to release a single first party title again to make that happen.
@SuplexingTrains I know this is not for me, but just to shed some light on trophy/achievement hunting from my perspective. I see myself as a hardcore achievement hunter, I don't care about the platinum of the Gamerscore, what I care about knowing my play history. Going back and having a history of my gaming means a lot to me. Helps me remember what I've played, what I need to still finish and it's just nice to reminisce. I wish, growing up in the 80's and 90's, the NES, SNES, 64, Genesis, etc...had something like this. I can't remember every game I've played or how long I played each.
As my kids have gotten older, they love going through my gamecard to see what games I've played and they want to play the same ones to see if they can unlock stuff I never did. Gives them bragging rights.
It means a lot to me to have the history.
The elitist aspect is just loser attitude. No one cares or is impressed by difficult trophies other than other trophy hunters. If you realize it's all meaningless and for fun, there can be great joy to be had looking back at everything you've played.
I don't judge anyone for what they've played, it's their time and money, they should do what makes them happy.
Also with the Switch, it worked for Nintendo because they merged all their resources towards it. If they release a successor to the 3DS and a successor to the Wii U, the Wii U successor would have sold horribly. Nintendo did the smart thing in the early 2000's and invested in new fans. The DS and 3DS users became the main driver of Switch sales.
Its funny, exclusives do define Nintendo, their software sells well to the base buying their systems, but for 64, gamecube and wii u it didn't move units. Wii caught lighting in a bottle for its gimmick, but the casual base wasn't very engaged.
Sony could not release a single self published game for the PS6 and it will still sell 90 millions units. Sony is the main default causal console, smart marketing and pushing to be in every market has insured that.
Only people on this site believe there is brand damaged by releasing games on Pc, in reality no one cares and PC sales proved that. The resources just weren't worth it if you weren't day and date. No one on this site is not going to not buy a PS6 if Sony just put all their exclusives everywhere.
Reality is, Sony just has to show up with a system reasonably price and marketed by their top tier marketing teams and it will sell.
Comments 13
Re: Reaction: Sony Needs to Start Speaking to Us Again
@get2sammyb Here is one thing about the physical media aspect. PS6 is coming, they need to make the system as cheap as possible without subsidy. Subsidizing systems is a thing of the past. They had to eliminate the retail middleman to take a larger cut of sales. They are hedging against, losing very few users, against a bigger margin in order to keep their price down.
$1k usd console can work withe PS brand. Honestly the stuff we saw in customer feedbacks as to why people were buying PS5 would blow your mind at the time. Canadians were lining up to buy NHL 21 and desperate to buy a PS5 to play it. There was no NHL 21 native copy for the PS5. Things like this are what the majority of Playstation users are thinking when buying their system.
The brand is powerful, a 1k usd console with no disc drive will sell based on all information every major 3rd party has and info Sony has. There is more precise data than ever to help guide them in making these decisions. They could still be wrong, but I wouldn't bet again Sony marketing. That is Jim Ryan's true legacy, marketing and getting Playstation into markets that Nintendo and Xbox are not in.
Re: Reaction: Sony Needs to Start Speaking to Us Again
zero reason for Playstation to do this. The brand online is taking a thrashing, but it's very powerful and more profitable than its ever been. They can just always just show up and sell 80 million consoles without a single exclusive. I've dealt with Playstation behind the scenes, and their arrogance, especially in marketing division is legendary. They know exactly how powerful their brand is and how casual their main users are. They won't change anything.
Re: Fascinating PS5 Sales Estimates Peg Ghost of Yotei as a Triumph
@BAMozzy It's because the actual engaged user is quite a bit less, at my company we define it as someone who turns on there system at least once per week. For PS5, we have it pegged at around 35 million, Xbox at about 15.5 million. Nintendo is harder to get a read, but it's quite a bit higher. Trophy/Achievement data is very useful in figuring this out.
In reality exclusives give your console a culture and identity. Nintendo has always gone by this. PlayStation was really built on having all games, PS1, PS2, Sony first party outside of Gran Turismo was fairly irrelevant.
Sony has the default console for any type of gamer. There is a massive issue in the industry, the older gamer that ages out and is replaced by the younger gamer, that younger gamer is not playing enough different games. Gamers 15 or younger are mostly still playing Roblox, Minecraft etc. That's where all their money goes. No one wants to say it out loud, cause money is still being spent, just not spread out through enough different companies.
Same amount of money is being spent as if they purchase many games, but it's all being dumped into DLC.
Every dev, not just publishers wants to make bank too, a lot of devs are chasing live service cause they want the money. It's not always suits pushing it. Dev's are presenting it cause they want the money.
Most gamers play less variety of gamers, than the PS3, 360 era.
Sony doesn't need to release another game, and they will sell 80 million units. Their marketing is that good.
The 2 biggest drivers of hardware in the last 6 years was Harry Potter and College Football 26. Harry Potter moved a lot of consoles with the amazing promotion Sony did for it. Money hatting exclusives is becoming more useless, unless you are actually funding development. Getting marketing rights for the right games is way more important.
So exclusives still matter, in driving home revenue and profit, but getting budgets under control and releasing less niche games has to happen. More layoffs will happen, more studios will shut down.
Re: Round Up: All the PS5 Reveals from the Xbox Showcase 2026
@MrPeanutbutterz I did say this above, it's not going to move consoles, it'll engage the users Xbox does have though. The goal is to show your competing again, it's a setup for next gen.
Very few franchises that are not aimed at children can survive over long periods of times without a full reboot. So your're right, Gears won't move units, it's perception more than anything.
Based on these move the brand will go through a full refresh and retry their hand improving their numbers.
From industry chatter, both companies want to get their systems out asap to insure they don't get killed by more part price issues. Console gamers have historically shown that they will show up for new system at launch. Cross-gen will be longer than ever though.
Re: Round Up: All the PS5 Reveals from the Xbox Showcase 2026
@MrPeanutbutterz You're right, I was playing down and I shouldn't do that. As to which game gained the bigger following, Uncharted obviously, the developer didn't change and the quality didn't dip. Gears wasn't consistent, this is their chance at a reset. I guess it's just shocking to me to this day that people have to be so polarized regardless of side you choose to be on.
Re: Round Up: All the PS5 Reveals from the Xbox Showcase 2026
@MrPeanutbutterz I guess I'm just dropping to their level....but your second paragraph is right, it would be a shoulder shrug, Gears wouldn't do well on Playstation, not liking a brand, sure whatever, it's just a plastic box just like Playstation. Not sure what point your trying to make. But it is what it is.
Re: Round Up: All the PS5 Reveals from the Xbox Showcase 2026
@GamingGod Fair enough, combing their resources was a last ditch and best idea they ever had. A lot of times good ideas come from desperation. A lot of bad ideas come from there too, excited to see how this goes.
Re: Round Up: All the PS5 Reveals from the Xbox Showcase 2026
@8th_Observer haha, never said I didn't like the site, just hate the toxic approach users have to make anything non Playstation to be negative. Obviously this is a Playstation centric site, but I wish users would be more objective and open minded.
Re: Round Up: All the PS5 Reveals from the Xbox Showcase 2026
Removed
Re: Rumour: Gears of War: E-Day Was Coming to PS5, Xbox Only Just Cancelled Port
Average commentator on this site has to be about 10 years old based on the comments on this site. Far and away the most toxic and fanboy heavy site I ever seen.
Anyone thinking that this is going to help Microsoft big units is crazy, and Microsoft isn't thinking that. They've had a massive lack of units overall, over the last few years. Way less have been produced to insure margins are increased.
If what Asha said in her Bloomberg interview is true and her mandate is to be the number 1 console maker, then great, this move is necessary. It's not about how many units you move right now, Microsoft knows they don't have the userbase, it's about giving the perception that XBOX actually cares about their brand and long term giving people confidence to invest in thee brand. Having your evangelical users happy, helps big time with perception to casuals.
Even though XBOX had a hard time moving units with exclusives previously, they likely feel their quality has improved and it's time to give the brand identity again.
I work for a large 3rd party as an exec and can say for sure, Microsoft has been cutting XBOX's marketing budget every year since the launch of the original Kinect, Microsoft had been Knee capping XBOX for over a decade, but based on the moves we are seeing, Asha might finally have free reign.
One thing people will never truly know about Phil, is how much he fought top brass at Microsoft to finally get them tor realize what being competitive in gaming entails. By the time he got theme there, he retired and Asha came on. Asha's actual background is customer service building and retention. That's why she got the nod of Sarah, she wanted to eliminate the console over time.
Every 3rd party wants Xbox to be competitive again, just like we all wanted Nintendo to be relevant again. Took Nintendo decades of investing in youth to get there, but they did.
Just cause Gears doesn't sell 20 million copies today, doesn't mean it's the wrong move long term.
Also, this makes know difference to Sony, Playstation just has to show up and will sell 80 million consoles, Sony never has to release a single first party title again to make that happen.
Re: 'We're Continuing Our Journey on Xbox, Switch, and Steam': Sony Wages War on 1,000+ Crappy PS5 Games
@SuplexingTrains I know this is not for me, but just to shed some light on trophy/achievement hunting from my perspective. I see myself as a hardcore achievement hunter, I don't care about the platinum of the Gamerscore, what I care about knowing my play history. Going back and having a history of my gaming means a lot to me. Helps me remember what I've played, what I need to still finish and it's just nice to reminisce. I wish, growing up in the 80's and 90's, the NES, SNES, 64, Genesis, etc...had something like this. I can't remember every game I've played or how long I played each.
As my kids have gotten older, they love going through my gamecard to see what games I've played and they want to play the same ones to see if they can unlock stuff I never did. Gives them bragging rights.
It means a lot to me to have the history.
The elitist aspect is just loser attitude. No one cares or is impressed by difficult trophies other than other trophy hunters. If you realize it's all meaningless and for fun, there can be great joy to be had looking back at everything you've played.
I don't judge anyone for what they've played, it's their time and money, they should do what makes them happy.
Re: Poll: Sony's Killing Its PS5 PC Ports - But Do You Agree with Its Decision?
Also with the Switch, it worked for Nintendo because they merged all their resources towards it. If they release a successor to the 3DS and a successor to the Wii U, the Wii U successor would have sold horribly. Nintendo did the smart thing in the early 2000's and invested in new fans. The DS and 3DS users became the main driver of Switch sales.
Re: Poll: Sony's Killing Its PS5 PC Ports - But Do You Agree with Its Decision?
Its funny, exclusives do define Nintendo, their software sells well to the base buying their systems, but for 64, gamecube and wii u it didn't move units. Wii caught lighting in a bottle for its gimmick, but the casual base wasn't very engaged.
Sony could not release a single self published game for the PS6 and it will still sell 90 millions units. Sony is the main default causal console, smart marketing and pushing to be in every market has insured that.
Only people on this site believe there is brand damaged by releasing games on Pc, in reality no one cares and PC sales proved that. The resources just weren't worth it if you weren't day and date. No one on this site is not going to not buy a PS6 if Sony just put all their exclusives everywhere.
Reality is, Sony just has to show up with a system reasonably price and marketed by their top tier marketing teams and it will sell.