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[YeulEmeralda]

Well there's speculation that Microsoft doesn't have a mid gen console because they are starting next gen early.

To be fair I have no idea how that will end for them. It could either give them a sizeable sales advantage or tank the brand even further.

Aren't most console's gen sales from the 3rd year?

Hell look at the Dreamcast- lots of people decided to wait what Sony was going to do.

 

[Horseganador]

To be fair that's MoM decrease not YoY. However decreasing by a third is not good which ever way you cut it.

UK oct 2023

PS5 ~97K (~+58% yoy)

X|S ~40K (~ -40% yoy)

NSW ~36K

Do we have a source for those numbers? Horseganador

With this information you can now obtain estimated percentages.

 

[IDKFA]

They will make the next Diablo exclusive. They couldn't make Diablo 4 exclusive as it launched before the acquisition closed and was already announced for PlayStation.

They can't make COD exclusive for 10 years, even if they want to. They tried doing it -- Xbox offered Sony only a 3-year guarantee for COD's multiplatform existence -- but they had to concede 10 years when regulatory authorities got involved.

So far as we know, they are only contractually obliged to release COD on PlayStation. Their strategy appears to be to starve PlayStation of content. I suspect there'll be a lot of ABK games going exclusive. Horrible decision.

According to Nadella, no Activision games are going to be exclusive.

"I grew up in a company that always believed that software should run on as many platforms as possible," he said.

Asked if Microsoft would have any incentive to refuse to allow the games on Sony's PlayStation in order to sell more of its Xbox consoles, Nadella responded, "It makes no economic sense and no strategic sense."

Microsoft CEO says exclusive Activision games make 'no strategic sense'

The leaders of Microsoft and Activision Blizzard on Wednesday sought to allay antitrust concerns that a proposed $69 billion merger of the two companies would unlawfully concentrate power, with Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella saying that making Activision games exclusive would make "no strategic sense."

www.reuters.com

 

[Heisenberg007]

According to Nadella, no Activision games are going to be exclusive.

"I grew up in a company that always believed that software should run on as many platforms as possible," he said.

Asked if Microsoft would have any incentive to refuse to allow the games on Sony's PlayStation in order to sell more of its Xbox consoles, Nadella responded, "It makes no economic sense and no strategic sense."

Microsoft CEO says exclusive Activision games make 'no strategic sense'

The leaders of Microsoft and Activision Blizzard on Wednesday sought to allay antitrust concerns that a proposed $69 billion merger of the two companies would unlawfully concentrate power, with Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella saying that making Activision games exclusive would make "no strategic sense."

www.reuters.com

Let's wait until the next non-COD Activision game is announced in 2024/2025.

I don't believe Satya's statement just yet because (1) The contract that Microsoft signed with Sony only mentions Call of Duty, not all Activision games, and (2) Microsoft literally said the same thing when they were acquiring Zenimax and even submitted it in documents to EU antitrust regulators, i.e., it won't make financial sense to make Zenimax games exclusive.

Then 2 days after the acquisition closed, they announced that Zenimax games will be exclusive and canceled Redfall's and Starfield's PS5 versions in development.

 

[MasterCornholio]

Aren't most console's gen sales from the 3rd year?

Hell look at the Dreamcast- lots of people decided to wait what Sony was going to do.

What would be interesting is to see how a PS5 Pro compares with an early Next Box.

Will people stick to what they have or will they jump on Microsofts next system?

Then there's the possibility of a PS6 launching soon after the Next Box.

I honestly don't know whats going to happen but it will be interesting.

 

[SlimySnake]

This was always Phil's biggest problem: he's like a jilted lover who's spent the last ten years wondering how he can 'win her back'. Obsessing over the new guy she's fucking and trying to prove how much better he is. Now he's entered that reckless phase of making ridiculous purchases and being like 'Babe, come chill at mine, I've got a Bethesda and Activision'.

NGL. These are the kind of hilarious and whacky takes I come to gaf for. Absolutely hilarious and a treat to read.

 

[laynelane]

We really went from these headlines to Phill saying they could release numerous games like Starfield and it wouldn't do much huh...

That statement from him was very telling for me. Releasing great games won't do much (paraphrasing). Yet releasing mediocre games has had a pronounced effect, but somehow this eludes him. People want great games, that's one of the primary reasons their competitors have seen such great success. When people talk about the glory days of the 360, the wide array of amazing games are always brought up. It amazes me that Phil, the head of a gaming division, absolutely refuses to see this correlation.

 

[Alan Wake]

Microsoft just seems to not get it. Take the controller for example. It has remained largely unchanged for a decade. They likely could have released the new "sebile" controller this year and boosted sales somewhat because some people choose PS5 Multiplatform games JUST for the DualSense. However, they did not. Instead, they try to sell us new iterations of the same garbage controller just in new colors.

They're offering us to win an edible chocolate controller, though.

 

[SlimySnake]

I just don't think Microsoft as a whole has ever been very good at marketing. I get the sense that they are used to their consumer products selling themselves. Word of mouth and all that. When they actually need to go out and convince people to buy, they seem utterly clueless on how to do it effectively. Of course, this is compounded by the very real problem they've had for over a decade now. They just haven't actually delivered big, impactful games. On the rare occasion they land a win, it ends up being followed by either a content drought or a series of duds.

Not sure if I can agree. MS had incredible marketing with their Halo and Gears games. IIRC, Halo 3 had a bigger marketing budget than its production budget. Halo 1 was a success in dorms and frat houses due to its word of mouth and of course the LAN play.

Hell, even the Kinect success came mostly because they marketed it very well to my coworkers who wanted the next Wii for their kids. Everyone of the moms at my work bought one. To my disapproval.

In the 3 years since this gen started, they've not had anything like a Spider-Man, Horizon, or God of War. Nor have they dropped their own Mario, Zelda, or Animal Crossing. Their most critically acclaimed games are the types that just don't move the needle. They don't get the community in general talking about your box in a good way.

But they did. They had two massive games in halo infinite and starfield. Its just that neither of them were good enough for GOTY. I wanted to like Starfield, but aside from visuals, its a game that was never going to win GOTYs with that game design. Same goes for Halo Infinite. That was Phil's baby and he blew it. Starfield i can at least pin the blame on Pete Hines and Todd Howard, but Halo Infinite should not have been that mediocre.

I think their critically acclaimed games like Halo Infinite, Gears, Starfield and even Forza dont move the needle or get nominated for GOTYs let alone win them, is because they are overrated. Gears 5 has a metacritic of 84 and lost over a 100 GOTYs to Death Stranding with an 82 metacritic. Their games are not reviewed harshly. Probably because they are competently made, but they are no longer ambitious. They are no longer goty winners. Starfield was supposed to be that game and honestly, they blew it. I have not been that disappointed by a game in a very long time.

Maybe the critics and the fans alike ought to review these games harshly at launch instead of simply snubbing them come goty time. Because Phil just looks at the metacritic and thinks hes doing fine, when these games are simply not moving the needle in terms of sales. People want more.

 

[Cyberpunkd]

Guys, let’s be serious.

Spoiler

 

[Alan Wake]

That statement from him was very telling for me. Releasing great games won't do much (paraphrasing). Yet releasing mediocre games has had a pronounced effect, but somehow this eludes him. People want great games, that's one of the primary reasons their competitors have seen such great success. When people talk about the glory days of the 360, the wide array of amazing games are always brought up. It amazes me that Phil, the head of a gaming division, absolutely refuses to see this correlation.

He's both right and wrong. He said there's no single game that would dramatically change the market share situation, meaning no single game would have PS5 owners to drop their console and run to the shop to get an Xbox. I think he's right, most will just say "shame I'll miss that game but I'm too invested in the PS ecosystem."

However, having a steady flow of good and great first party releases will eventually make more people buy your console. That's a fact. And if you repeatedly have THAT game that you just have to buy, it will make an impact. Problem is, today you could just be a PC Game Pass subscriber for a month or two, you don't have to buy an Xbox at all.

 

[laynelane]

He's both right and wrong. He said there's no single game that would dramatically change the market share situation, meaning no single game would have PS5 owners to drop their console and run to the shop to get an Xbox. I think he's right, most will just say "shame I'll miss that game but I'm too invested in the PS ecosystem."

However, having a steady flow of good and great first party releases will eventually make more people buy your console. That's a fact. And if you repeatedly have THAT game that you just have to buy, it will make an impact. Problem is, today you could just be a PC Game Pass subscriber for a month or two, you don't have to buy an Xbox at all.

That's where I'm at. A steady flow of great games would make a difference. Certainly games like Redfall have shown the consequence of not having this mindset. And while it's true that people can pick games up on PC Game Pass, there are many who don't play on PC and don't wish to. With respect to Game Pass and its stagnating numbers, quality could also make a difference. All this would take time, though, and since MS has resorted to buying publishers - it doesn't seem like they're interested in this route.

 

[StealthGoblin]

According to Nadella, no Activision games are going to be exclusive.

"I grew up in a company that always believed that software should run on as many platforms as possible," he said.

Asked if Microsoft would have any incentive to refuse to allow the games on Sony's PlayStation in order to sell more of its Xbox consoles, Nadella responded, "It makes no economic sense and no strategic sense."

Microsoft CEO says exclusive Activision games make 'no strategic sense'

The leaders of Microsoft and Activision Blizzard on Wednesday sought to allay antitrust concerns that a proposed $69 billion merger of the two companies would unlawfully concentrate power, with Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella saying that making Activision games exclusive would make "no strategic sense."

www.reuters.com

It doesn't make sense to do it for Bethesda either, yet Phil was able to make that call unilaterally.

He made a call that knowingly, according to their own projections, wiped $700,000,000 off of their future revenue.

 

[DeepEnigma]

It doesn't make sense to do it for Bethesda either, yet Phil was able to make that call unilaterally.

He made a call that knowingly, according to their own projections, wiped $700,000,000 off of their future revenue.

Race to the bottom.

 

[Mownoc]

UK oct 2023
PS5 ~97K (~+58% yoy)
X|S ~40K (~ -40% yoy)
NSW ~36K

And to think near the end of 2022 I was still somewhat optimistic the Series could perform better than the XBO. What an absolute train wreck this year has been.

Even with the game lineup and supposed hardware refreshes coming next year I still think making it to 50m lifetime would be an absolute miracle. If sales decline even further in 2024 Xbox hardware is done.

 

[Varteras]

Not sure if I can agree. MS had incredible marketing with their Halo and Gears games. IIRC, Halo 3 had a bigger marketing budget than its production budget. Halo 1 was a success in dorms and frat houses due to its word of mouth and of course the LAN play.

Hell, even the Kinect success came mostly because they marketed it very well to my coworkers who wanted the next Wii for their kids. Everyone of the moms at my work bought one. To my disapproval.

You can occasionally do well while typically not. They're not mutually exclusive. Also, you kinda just agreed with me when you pointed out the word of mouth for Halo.

But they did. They had two massive games in halo infinite and starfield. Its just that neither of them were good enough for GOTY. I wanted to like Starfield, but aside from visuals, its a game that was never going to win GOTYs with that game design. Same goes for Halo Infinite. That was Phil's baby and he blew it. Starfield i can at least pin the blame on Pete Hines and Todd Howard, but Halo Infinite should not have been that mediocre.

I think their critically acclaimed games like Halo Infinite, Gears, Starfield and even Forza dont move the needle or get nominated for GOTYs let alone win them, is because they are overrated. Gears 5 has a metacritic of 84 and lost over a 100 GOTYs to Death Stranding with an 82 metacritic. Their games are not reviewed harshly. Probably because they are competently made, but they are no longer ambitious. They are no longer goty winners. Starfield was supposed to be that game and honestly, they blew it. I have not been that disappointed by a game in a very long time.

Maybe the critics and the fans alike ought to review these games harshly at launch instead of simply snubbing them come goty time. Because Phil just looks at the metacritic and thinks hes doing fine, when these games are simply not moving the needle in terms of sales. People want more.

I have to be honest, bud. I think you just get off on being contrarian while not actually proving a contrary point. Pretty much everything you said is no different than me saying that Xbox hasn't had their God of War or Zelda moment this gen yet. Because they clearly haven't. Neither Halo Infinite nor Starfield were on the level of any of those games I mentioned for how they generated positive buzz for their respective consoles. They both obviously fell short of moving that needle. The numbers have shown that.

I'm not trying to be a dick, but come on.

 

[SlimySnake]

You can occasionally do well while typically not. They're not mutually exclusive. Also, you kinda just agreed with me when you pointed out the word of mouth for Halo.



I have to be honest, bud. I think you just get off on being contrarian while not actually proving a contrary point. Pretty much everything you said is no different than me saying that Xbox hasn't had their God of War or Zelda moment this gen yet. Because they clearly haven't. Neither Halo Infinite nor Starfield were on the level of any of those games I mentioned for how they generated positive buzz for their respective consoles. They both obviously fell short of moving that needle. The numbers have shown that.

I'm not trying to be a dick, but come on.

you said they havent dropped their zelda or god of war. I am trying to point out that they did when they dropped halo and starfield. They just failed to deliver with those games. That is what i am taking an issue with. When Nintendo and Sony drop their big games, they make sure they stick the landing, but when Xbox does, they fumble.

I am not trying to be a dick either, but when i hear stuff like MS isnt good at marketing when I lived through the insane hype generated by their marketing for halo and gears, I simply have to disagree. You and I agree that they havent had great games lately, but I dont think marketing wouldve saved Starfield or Halo Infinite.

 

[yazenov]

UK oct 2023
PS5 ~97K (~+58% yoy)
X|S ~40K (~ -40% yoy)
NSW ~36K

X|S -33% MoM
X|S -40% YoY

Buy more publishers

 

[lucbr]

In my opinion If they really want to prioritise hardware sales they would make their games exclusive to console, not releasing on PC or even cloud. So, I don't think that is a fair comparison when before Xbox had exclusives.

It seems they are more interested to grow subscriptions and to create a affordable ecosystem where you can easily play their games anywhere. Maybe in the near future an app like the one they have in Samsung TVs will be for the masses, while consoles will be the premium, for those like us more invested, hardcore fans. We won't be their main consumer and source of revenue.

 

[Tiago Rodrigues]

That statement from him was very telling for me. Releasing great games won't do much (paraphrasing). Yet releasing mediocre games has had a pronounced effect, but somehow this eludes him. People want great games, that's one of the primary reasons their competitors have seen such great success. When people talk about the glory days of the 360, the wide array of amazing games are always brought up. It amazes me that Phil, the head of a gaming division, absolutely refuses to see this correlation.

The problem is releasing mediocre games like they have been releasing on Gamepass gives the idea that the only reason why these services exist is to have games that wouldn’t sell good, have a place there. When a gamepass day one game is announced and people are like “that’s the perfect day one gamepass title”…that’s honestly what they mean: games they would never buy are now “free”. That sets a weird precedent to me and we’re now witnessing the midterm problems of relying too much on streaming services: what they want is content to feed those services. Is it good? Bad? Who knows…who cares…ask disney and netflix, etc. In a few years we’ll see that happening in games.

I also can’t wait until MS starts releasing games in “chapters” instead of full games so they have a bigger stream of content in there every month. You know that’s going to happen one day.

 

[laynelane]

Race to the bottom.

Given these sales numbers, it's starting to seem like competitors and customers alike are not convinced by this or, rather, it's not making much of a difference. I may be looking at that a little too optimistically, though. I suppose we'll see for certain how successful this strategy is in the coming years.

 

[MrA]

And to think near the end of 2022 I was still somewhat optimistic the Series could perform better than the XBO. What an absolute train wreck this year has been.

Even with the game lineup and supposed hardware refreshes coming next year I still think making it to 50m lifetime would be an absolute miracle. If sales decline even further in 2024 Xbox hardware is done.

sony and pcs do seem to have gobbled up alot of ms xbox business.

 

[DeepEnigma]

Given these sales numbers, it's starting to seem like competitors and customers alike are not convinced by this or, rather, it's not making much of a difference. I may be looking at that a little too optimistically, though. I suppose we'll see for certain how successful this strategy is in the coming years.

Easier to buy up more publishers/IPs if you're not number one. Especially now that it's known that cloud is the main obstacle when you're not number one in conventional.

 

[laynelane]

The problem is releasing mediocre games like they have been releasing on Gamepass gives the idea that the only reason why these services exist is to have games that wouldn’t sell good, have a place there. When a gamepass day one game is announced and people are like “that’s the perfect day one gamepass title”…that’s honestly what they mean: games they would never buy are now “free”. That sets a weird precedent to me and we’re now witnessing the midterm problems of relying too much on streaming services: what they want is content to feed those services. Is it good? Bad? Who knows…who cares…ask disney and netflix, etc. In a few years we’ll see that happening in games.

I also can’t wait until MS starts releasing games in “chapters” instead of full games so they have a bigger stream of content in there every month. You know that’s going to happen one day.

The fact that the phrase 'Game Pass fodder' exists pretty much sums it up for me. I get that there are people who are happy with the service, but I also don't see a bright future for gaming in a heavily subscription based future (were that to pass).

 

[Varteras]

you said they havent dropped their zelda or god of war. I am trying to point out that they did when they dropped halo and starfield. They just failed to deliver with those games. That is what i am taking an issue with. When Nintendo and Sony drop their big games, they make sure they stick the landing, but when Xbox does, they fumble.

I am not trying to be a dick either, but when i hear stuff like MS isnt good at marketing when I lived through the insane hype generated by their marketing for halo and gears, I simply have to disagree. You and I agree that they havent had great games lately, but I dont think marketing wouldve saved Starfield or Halo Infinite.

I'm bewildered how you don't see that you are saying the same thing I am about their games. Halo Infinite and Starfield aren't their God of War or Zelda moment just because they exist or were hyped. You have to actually deliver on them. Which they clearly didn't. What you're basically saying is, "They did have their moment. But they didn't". Like, it's legit bizarre. I am quite literally saying they need those big impactful games like God of War and Zelda to move needles and you agree with me. Right after you disagree with me about that very thing.

As far as their marketing, yeah. You're not going to convince me that just because they might have had great marketing for a couple franchises 20 years ago that it proves a point contrary to mine. You're gonna have to come with something a lot more substantial than that.

 

[Thaimasker]

What would be interesting is to see how a PS5 Pro compares with an early Next Box.

Will people stick to what they have or will they jump on Microsofts next system?

Then there's the possibility of a PS6 launching soon after the Next Box.

I honestly don't know whats going to happen but it will be interesting.

Didn't the 360 do.. not great the first 2 years? I don't think simply launching early will give the advantage people think. It's going to take Sony fucking up big time and Microsoft having a halo 3.
Also...Gen jumps just don't seem to matter as much. Especially with pro versions like you said.

 

[demigod]

Microsoft should probably advertise their console at some point..
I cant even remember the last time I saw an Xbox commercial.

Was there even Starfield commercials? I don't remember seeing any.

I think the last commercial I saw that featured Xbox was like... Back4Blood. No shit.

Yeah, this is really surprising to me. I weas expecting a HUGE commercial push for Starfield, bundles and limited edition consoles and I saw nothing. Nothing.

You sure you guys watch TV? Pretty sure i saw infinite, I definitely saw Starfield and their misleading metro 5/5.

 

[graywolf323]

PS5 is only behind the PS2 right now after 36 months

the XBS is still ahead of 360

 

[demigod]

Didn't the 360 do.. not great the first 2 years? I don't think simply launching early will give the advantage people think. It's going to take Sony fucking up big time and Microsoft having a halo 3.
Also...Gen jumps just don't seem to matter as much. Especially with pro versions like you said.

That’s some bad memory you got there. 360 were flying off shelves.

You are right about gen jumps. It won’t be massive like going from ps2 to 360. If anything, releasing a new console so soon would probably piss people off.

 

[MrTired]

That’s some bad memory you got there. 360 were flying off shelves.

You are right about gen jumps. It won’t be massive like going from ps2 to 360. If anything, releasing a new console so soon would probably piss people off.

No he was correct the 360 took of in a major way with the release of Kinect. Prior to that it wasn't flying off the shelves.

 

[Katatonic]

How is this possible when PS5 supplies started off so scarce?

Sony = supply problem
MS = demand problem

 

[demigod]

According to Nadella, no Activision games are going to be exclusive.

"I grew up in a company that always believed that software should run on as many platforms as possible," he said.

Asked if Microsoft would have any incentive to refuse to allow the games on Sony's PlayStation in order to sell more of its Xbox consoles, Nadella responded, "It makes no economic sense and no strategic sense."

Microsoft CEO says exclusive Activision games make 'no strategic sense'

The leaders of Microsoft and Activision Blizzard on Wednesday sought to allay antitrust concerns that a proposed $69 billion merger of the two companies would unlawfully concentrate power, with Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella saying that making Activision games exclusive would make "no strategic sense."

www.reuters.com

I have a very good bridge to sell to you. Only $10,000. You can set up a toll and easily get your money back within a month. Please DM me if interested, thanks!

 

[nick776]

And to think near the end of 2022 I was still somewhat optimistic the Series could perform better than the XBO. What an absolute train wreck this year has been.

Even with the game lineup and supposed hardware refreshes coming next year I still think making it to 50m lifetime would be an absolute miracle. If sales decline even further in 2024 Xbox hardware is done.

Don't forget the fabled "Switch 2." If the Switch 2 hardware is reasonably competent, I really don't see anything Xbox offers that is competitive. Presently, the "world's most powerful console" distinction belongs to Xbox but PS5 pro is about to change that. Really, it all boils down to simple decisions that Microsoft is absolutely blundering. Even if they made better decisions, some of the losses could be made up if they would ONLY RELEASE GREAT GAMES (even releasing "good" games in decent quantities would help). I worry they have wasted a tremendous amount of corporate resources chasing the Activision deal when they should have instead focused on bolstering their own studios and getting them to make good games for a change. I would bet with certainty someone at MSFT reads forums like these, so it is even more amazing how out of touch their decisions are in the end. I LOVE Xbox, and have since the 360 era, but the more the nonsense continues the more baffled I become. I really do think Phil needs to go. Fresh blood at the helm would go a long way toward improving things.

 

[demigod]

No he was correct the 360 took of in a major way with the release of Kinect. Prior to that it wasn't flying off the shelves.

No you’re wrong. Launch consoles were sold out for months. The 360 had bangers. Kinect only helped when sales were slowing down YEARS after launch.

 

[Thaimasker]

No you’re wrong. Launch consoles were sold out for months. The 360 had bangers. Kinect only helped when sales were slowing down YEARS after launch.

It sold 8 million it's first year which isn't bad. The Wii sold 13 million( and quickly surpassed the 360). The PS4 sold 20 million. So while 8 million isn't horrible...sony would surpass that. I really don't think they'd suddenly do 20 million in 1 year just from launching a year early.

 

[OCL]

What a fucking clown lmao

 

[Freelance Yakuza]

I see Xbox fans questioning whether the additional sales that Sony achieves compared to Xbox are due to brand loyalty or something similar. I wonder: can't these people imagine that maybe others simply aren't interested in what Microsoft offers? That people look at the Xbox and think 'nah, it's not for me'? Video games are luxury items; you don't need them to live. You're never going to find yourself having to choose one compulsorily. You can easily live without them, and maybe one day, if you feel like it, you'll go and buy one.

Then, they're perplexed that Game Pass isn't increasing sales. Well, now both PlayStation and Xbox offer subscription services. 'Oh, but it's not the same, Xbox releases its exclusives immediately on Game Pass,' yes, and people don't care. They don't want it. That's it.

 

[SimTourist]

I see Xbox fans questioning whether the additional sales that Sony achieves compared to Xbox are due to brand loyalty or something similar. I wonder: can't these people imagine that maybe others simply aren't interested in what Microsoft offers? That people look at the Xbox and think 'nah, it's not for me'? Video games are luxury items; you don't need them to live. You're never going to find yourself having to choose one compulsorily. You can easily live without them, and maybe one day, if you feel like it, you'll go and buy one.

Then, they're perplexed that Game Pass isn't increasing sales. Well, now both PlayStation and Xbox offer subscription services. 'Oh, but it's not the same, Xbox releases its exclusives immediately on Game Pass,' yes, and people don't care. They don't want it. That's it.

I mean there is a lot of brand loyalty for Sony that they built up since PS1 by supporting their consoles with games throughout entire lifecycles while Xbox has a habit of dropping support halfway through a generation. Also Sony has strong marketing and presence in all regions while Xbox doesn't bother to market their consoles even in US/UK these days. Xbox doesn't have a distinct brand image today either, they're still trying to cling to that dudebro early-mid 2000s image but the world has moved on. Also they let Bungie and Epic to slip through their fingers after Halo Reach and Gears 3 instead of supporting their new projects, Destiny and Fortnite could've been the hits they needed in the modern era but they didn't trust their best devs and failed to see the potential. Shutting down Lionhead only to greenlight a new Fable with new devs a few years later was a stupid move.

 

[TheGodfather07]

They said they had sold 21 million xbox series consoles worldwide in july. Does this mean they are selling almost 50% of their consoles out of the US now?

That's not even possible. Xbox has barely sold anything across Europe. That 21m is shipped units, not sold.

 

[Alan Wake]

You sure you guys watch TV? Pretty sure i saw infinite, I definitely saw Starfield and their misleading metro 5/5.

I don't live in the US but in a small European country. But I expected to see commercial on bus stops, subway stations etc. There was nothing.

 

[Heisenberg007]

That's not even possible. Xbox has barely sold anything across Europe. That 21m is shipped units, not sold.

Exactly!

According to the most recent data, XBS has sold:

• 11.8 million in the US
• 2+ million in the UK.

That's like 14 million in total.

UK and US historically constitute roughly 75% to 80% of Xbox's total sales. Even 21-22 million total sales brings down that percentage down to just 67%.

If we go by Welfare's numbers of 25-26 million WW sales, we're essentially saying that Xbox's market share, outside of UK and US, has increased significantly this generation, as that would put US and UK's shares at roughly 55%.

That's just pure fantasy.

 

[demigod]

I don't live in the US but in a small European country. But I expected to see commercial on bus stops, subway stations etc. There was nothing.

That’s because ms doesn’t give a shit about EU.

 

[Bitmap Frogs]

I think at this point its beyond an uphill battle for MS.

I remember getting into a mini debate with someone about me saying MS had an uphill battle and Sony didnt.

Data seems to back me up.

I guess its almost time to roll out the "they will turn things around next gen".

If you’re trying to imply that poor Xbox cannot thrive because Nintendo and Sony are bullies, I’d like to remind you of the string of self sabotaging decisions that has led to this point.

 

[TheGodfather07]

Exactly!

According to the most recent data, XBS has sold:

• 11.8 million in the US
• 2+ million in the UK.

That's like 14 million in total.

UK and US historically constitute roughly 75% to 80% of Xbox's total sales. Even 21-22 million total sales brings down that percentage down to just 67%.

If we go by Welfare's numbers of 25-26 million WW sales, we're essentially saying that Xbox's market share, outside of UK and US, has increased significantly this generation, as that would put US and UK's shares at roughly 55%.

That's just pure fantasy.

We shouldn't go by welfare's estimation because he clearly pulled that number out of his ass. Let's just say that July number was sold, which it wasn't. It's clearly shipped, but let's say it was to make the point. He's telling me that xbox series has sold 4m-5m since then? Lmao! They haven't even sold that much for the entire year up to now. They struggle to sell 7m in a entire year and this guy thinks they sold 5m in 4 months. He clearly doesn't know what the hell he's talking about.

 

[Alan Wake]

That’s because ms doesn’t give a shit about EU.

That's true. But I tend to remember that it was very different during the 360 era at least.

 

[Thirty7ven]

Well there's speculation that Microsoft doesn't have a mid gen console because they are starting next gen early.

To be fair I have no idea how that will end for them. It could either give them a sizeable sales advantage or tank the brand even further.

Let’s say Xbox starts a “new gen” for them next year, or in 2025. What changes?

Just how different can they make the console? How different from a PS5 pro? Do they stop supporting Series(obv not)?

Like this whole they will start the gen early leads to absolutely nowhere fast. It’s nothing more than “maybe they should rename the thing??”

 

[Mibu no ookami]

Well there's speculation that Microsoft doesn't have a mid gen console because they are starting next gen early.

To be fair I have no idea how that will end for them. It could either give them a sizeable sales advantage or tank the brand even further.

Conventional wisdom would suggest that starting next-gen early would be a death blow to them.

I guess we first have to define what early means.

PS4/X1 both launched in 2013. PS5 and XBS both launched in 2020.

Based on this we could expect next-gen consoles in 2027, but I think we have to take into consideration the pandemic might push that out further.

If Microsoft launches in 2026, that would certainly be early and I don't think it would be well received. If PS5 Pro launches in 2024 and the Next Xbox launches 2 years later but isn't significantly more powerful and priced appropriately, Microsoft will have positioned itself poorly. All the games are going to be multiplatform games anyway, and Sony would have all the information they need for the PS6.

This is the Dreamcast playbook to a tee. Launching quickly after the Saturn and ahead of the PS2 and Gamecube. Only to end up not outselling the PS1 for the same time period and being quickly outpowered by the PS2 and there was no mid-gen refresh for the PS1.

 

[Unknown Soldier]

Head scratching decisions. Microsoft spends a unbelievable amount on acquisitions, but squeeze the marketing budget.

It's a sign they are really thinking of going third party next gen

 

[Forth]

It's a sign they are really thinking of going third party next gen

I just don't see that happening, I honestly think Call of Duty will end up as a Xbox exclusively when next generation launches.

 

[Mownoc]

I just don't see that happening, I honestly think Call of Duty will end up as a Xbox exclusively when next generation launches.

CoD is legally obligated to be on PlayStation and Nintendo until 2034 so no that's impossible. They signed 10-year agreements with both Sony and Nintendo.

The worse their hardware sells the less sense it makes to cripple their software revenue by locking it to Xbox hardware. Hardware that will sell 40-50m and ignore the 250m consoles PS+Nintendo are likely to sell.