Xbox One may not be a hit like the Xbox 360, despite impressive features

Grant Brunner: As the launch of the next-gen consoles nears, Microsoft is starting to speak more specifically about some of the impressive features that the Xbox One will support. Kinect-based player tracking and other novel additions like cloud gaming are quite compelling, but that won’t be enough to make the Xbox One a success. In fact, a recent report estimates that the total sales of next-gen consoles will fail to match the sales numbers of the previous generation. Even with more horsepower and countless bullet points, the new consoles might be doomed to lackluster sales.

[ethomaz]

360 was a hit? I mean only Wii was a hit.

BTW I agree Xbone won't sell like 360.

[ShugaCane]

The Xbox 360 sold about 80 Million units, it's definitely a succesful system. Numbers don't lie.

[ethomaz]

That didn't make it a hit... PS3 sold more than it and even it was not a hit too.

Wii was a hit... sold like crazy in a few period of time... died soon.

Succesful <> hit.

PS. 360 shipped close to 78m right now... not 80m.

[Manic2014]

@ethomaz The PS3 sold 400,000 units more and btw the numbers of sales Sony takes into account is not; how many sold to the public but how many was sold to retailers.

[Caffo01]

Ps3 sold more than X360 with 1 year disadvantage, that's what i call a hit!

[Funantic1]

Yeah plus the Playstation brand came out way before the Xbox brand. I'm talking about the PS1 starting years before we heard of any Xbox. The first Playstation was introduced in 1994 and the Xbox came in 2001. Sony had a 7 year headstart. For the Xbox brand to come catch up and be major competition is amazing...

[abzdine]

one thing to say: let's wait and see before we compare X1 and 360 but i think 360 will be the most successful MS console ever when you look at how the situation is right now and how it was in 2006.

360 was a successful console for sure, the extremely slow PS3 start did a lot to it.

Now seen how PS4 is starting, (cheaper, good games, better looking, coming out before X1) i dont think X1 will compete for too long, especially because they are maybe planning on bringing DRM back and the lack of relevant exclusives day one.

[SpideySpeakz]

PS3 sold more than X360, with 1 year behind, and nearly 2x the price.

Ouch!

[Tony-A]

Honestly, it's impossible to tell whether or not it'll be a success this early. Although pre-order sales are indicative of what their launch will be like in terms of sales, you really can't make an assumption for the long-term.

If the sixth and seventh generation is to be a good indicator, though, it can end up being even more difficult to tell.

The PS2 launched a year before the Xbox. By the end of the generation, it managed to sell over 24 million units compared to the 150+ million that the PS2 sold. Together, they sold over 175 million consoles.

The 360 launched a year before the PS3 and was significantly cheaper, with the high-end PS3 costing $600. Still, despite the price, the PS3 did some catching up and eventually overcame the 360 according to estimates. With both of them selling about 80 million consoles, that totals to over 160 million units; and they aren't even out of the market yet.

This time, they're both launching within the same month (most likely) and the PS4 is the one with great publicity and a lower price point, while the Xbox One is suffering. If I had to bet, I believe the success will go to PlayStation, but mainly because - as history has shown - Sony can somehow survive with a $600 console with horrible publicity against a $400 console that launched a year earlier. It's not hard to imagine the PS4 doing much better than the PS3. The XBO is kind of a different story.

[DEATHxTHExKIDx]

compared to last gen when Xbox and GC only sold around 20+mil and, had the PS2 dominate with 150+mil. 360 is a hit.

The wii now is at 99mil with support gone no games coming out for it sales almost at a complete stand still. MS and Sony have both stated that 360/PS3 will be supported for years to come. they both stand at around 77/78mil given enough time im sure they both will come close or surpass Wii numbers.

So far tho next gen looks like it might be a repeat of the PS2 era but not nearly as bad.

[Picnic]

They were all a hit - Wii, 360 PS3 and all broadly at the same kind of level. There's never been a more successful generation in console sales.

PS4 will probably sell very well and so may the XboxOne but the WiiU means that it probably won't be a 3 hit generation this time unless a new entrant happens to come along.

The original Wii's sales were inflated by the puff and bluster of gimmick buys.

[YNWA96]

The current Gen was split more or less 3 ways, and the title is misleading again, when the article says PS4 and X1 will not duplicate sales like current gen. Another fanboy article..

[Chaostar]

If the xb one doesn't do as well as 360 it will primarily be because of their higher price relative to the competition. The competition has also upped their game considerably compared to their previous console launch.

[stage88]

Can't tell yet but with all the screw ups that MS have made I'm predicting that it will be a lot harder for them to garner a "hit".

[fOrlOnhOpe57]

I think Sony's avalanche of developers producing an avalanche of quality games in differing genres will be Sony's major strength this gen.

Microsoft will make up the ground by its strength of advertising. After a half billion dollars on kinect 1, who knows the budget for xbone.. Astronomical, for sure.

[JeffGUNZ]

MS gave a billion dollars to their studios to make exclusives. Their launch lineup was very impressive. Lets just hope they continue to pour out some quality exclusives this coming generation.

[jessupj]

You mean paid money to 3rd parties for timed exclusives, blocking games for the PS4 instead of funding their own games.

Also, I wonder how much of that 1 billion is going toward advertising.

[JeffGUNZ]

Correct me if I am wrong, but didn't Sony also pour money to get some exclusive DLC for Destiny? Titanfall is releasing solely on MS related platforms, as of now, speculation it will come to the PS4 is just that, speculation. DR3 is only coming to Xbox one. Halo 5 and Forza are only Xbox one. Quantum Break, also Xbox one. So is Killer Instinct. Wait, do you mean only Titanfall which is rumored to come to the PS4 as their "timed exclusive"? Give it a rest man, Sony doesn't owe you anything. Give credit where credit is due. MS has some solid games for the Xbox One. Is it so hard to say they delivered on the games front as of right now?

[FlunkinMonkey]

MS did really well in some respects with the 360, hats off really.. I loved it when it first came out, games like GeOW were the first games to blow my mind. They did partially well to come into the console race late (generations), but people seem to forget that MS is a powerhouse company (one of the biggest in the world), and this would instantly effect popularity.

Unfortunately there has been a severe lack of exclusives with the 360 for quite some time, and it's really quite disappointing. I personally was unable to forgive this lack of appreciation for their consumer fan base, and have never looked back since. They need to step up and invest in first party studios.. I simply do not trust the consoles respective lifespan, and their attitude within recent months..

Loyalists will buy their preferred console regardless of pro's and cons (MS, Sony and Nintendo). As long as people enjoy what they buy, it's all good.

[Picture_Dancer]

"... impressive features"
:D

[Iltapalanyymi]

>impressive features

lel

[No_Limit]

It will be a hit. All stores are practically sold out of Day One Unit and is tracking better than the Xbox 360 launch. People tend to forget the prices will come down in a few years (early adapters like myself will buy all the iniital allotments of units at a higher price) and it will sell more gradually in the coming years when prices are lowered and more games are out.

[Summons75]

Yeah sold out because Microsoft already said they are limiting the first shipment to a a few thousand. Makes sense It would sell out when ever store is given 2-5 models. It's a cheap way to make them look like they're selling well.

[SpideySpeakz]

No_Limit can't counter this true statement.
It's too grounded in reality for him.

[KillrateOmega]

Even I have no doubt that the Xbox One will be a hit.

However, will it fare as well against the PS4 as the 360 did against the PS3 (initially, at least)? No, I don't think that it will. A lot of the advantages that MS had in terms of releasing the 360 against the PS3 are nonexistent this time around.

[Whitey2k]

I think it will sell better then the 360 but will not sell better then the ps4

[Funantic1]

I agree that the Xbox One won't sell like the 360. But the PS4 won't sell like the PS3 either. There are too many gaming alternatives.

[SynestheticRoar]

Why do people feel the need to bring up Sony. This article talking X-box one vs X-box 360. Deal with the subject at hand. Will the X1 sell as good as the X-box 360 No it Won't I'm sorry to say.

[dcj0524]

Nintendo and sony compete with microsoft. Thats why people bring up sony.

[JeffGUNZ]

Yeah dcj0524, but this article has nothing to do with Sony or NIntendo, it is solely comparing the 360 to the Xbox one. That's all. The problem here is people can't have a discussion on a topic because they only read the titles and not the articles. I think the Xbox One will be a "hit", but it will only dominate in US and some parts of Europe, like the 360. If you actually sit down and look at what you're really getting with the Xbox One, and extra $100 is childs play.

[Electric-flamingo]

Is this Just someone's opinion, or are there facts?

[dcj0524]

The 360 sold because it was cheaper and had better online. Now both of those advantages are gone.

[Supermax]

Stop talking about price it's a mute point,the original 360 I bought 8 years ago was 499.the demand for both consoles is high.

[Gaming_Guru]

Well of course any product can make a company lose money; but the funny thing is with the seventh console generation sony came a year later with more expensive hardware selling more at launch than microsoft.

The eighth generation will be the first time microsoft will be competing with sony without a head start from either side, and given history i think microsoft might fall second to sony launch sales. I find microsoft too closed and rely too much on patriotism from americans. Sony actually learned from the seventh generation that having complicated proprietary architecture allowed only senior or in-house developers to flourish while the novice suffered a steep learning curve.

[jlm9]

The other thing that I didn't see accounted for was how many people purchased multiple Xbox's because of RROD after the warranty ran out. I certainly have purchased 2 360's because of this. I would hope that Xbox One would not have the same level of problems so the sales figure should be lower just on that alone.

That and like most of my friends i'm jumping ship to PS

[badboy776]

RROD "cough,Cough"