Xbox One Ad Campaign Beginning To Look A Lot Like Sony’s

IDT writes: "Pretty neat ad all around. It captures the spirit of why so many of us love video games: the escape. Boring jobs, boring school and boring chores are just obstacles in the way of gaming bliss. But, Xbox fanboy that I am, I couldn't shake the feeling that ad seemed strangely familiar."

[JoGam]

OMG...I thought it was just me. LOL. I didn't want to say anything and come off as a fanboy. But yes I agree. Its similar to Sony's.

[-Foxtrot]

Just because you had an opinion like that doesn't mean you would come off as a fanboy. I really feel like people on here are scared to put forward their opinions because they are scared of being called for it. I mean people abusing the bubble system over this doesn't help aswell

Trust me it takes a lot more to be called a fanboy, if you said something like "XBOX ONE SUCKS....SONY 4 EVER" then fair enough.

[Muffins1223]

Honestly i don't think their similar,i feel like sony's has more of a personal touch to the gamer while Microsoft seems to be having a family type of vibe from it,"all in one entertainment box",etc.

[JoGam]

Dude I've been on this site for years now and I've learn a lot from these fanboys on the site. Its not that I'm afraid to voice my opinion its that I know when to speak and when not to speak. Sometimes saying something at the wrong time can come off as Fanboyish when its not my intent. Going into a Xbox related article showing the new ad and just saying they are copying Sony would have came off as fanboyish and I didn't feel like going through that ish at the time.

Respectfully!

[Angels3785]

Its a marketing tactic (and a very good one) Not to come off as biased but the tactic is generally used for similar association. Which is not surprising considering Microsofts marketing team has generally been doing tis when advertising their Surface tablet in a similar fashion to the old Apple commercials (Which quite honestly is ingenious because Apple already had brilliant marketing for sub par technology).

They make you feel like you are part of something grand. This is very similar in many respects to sony's type of "Gamer centric in reality" advertising, but they also seem to want to mix that with the feeling of "Apple exclusivity" (it really is quite brilliant advertising) by "inviting you" like its only for certain people.

One thing is clear though...Microsoft clearly have the bigger budget because It seems they took sonys ad and amped it up xD

[-Alpha]

@Muffins

There's nothing wrong with that. They did a good job showing off footage from games, while explaining and showing everything else that they are trying to be. The gamers see Ryse, Forza, and Titanfall, the person who likes entertainment sees movies.

[hakeem0996]

So the company that advertises the hell out of everything they have is stealing Ideas from the company who barely advertises anything.The advertisement had nothing to do with Sony ,i think it's more reminiscent of the WII commercial "we would like to play"
MS always has better advertisement than Sony's and this was one of them.

[deafdani]

Really? On this site, you only need to say something positive about Microsoft to get disagreed to hell. However, if you say something positive about Sony, you usually will get tons of agrees.

I agree with you in that nobody should be afraid to express their opinion freely (as long as it's put forward in a civilized manner), but come on, you know pretty well that this site is filled for the most part by awful fanboys and haters. No wonder some people would thread carefully here. The bubble system sucks.

[stuna1]

@foxtrot

Well said, as far as people not commenting because they're are under duress of being called or labeled a fanboy.

Some people comment because they see something that others are unable to see or just refuse to see.

OT: Microsoft is seeing the benefit of Sonys stance on things! Maybe?

[L-DOT-_REAPER_]

its just here its all the sites but i like this site the most everybody is mature and relaxed mostly

[-Foxtrot]

@stuna1

"Some people comment because they see something that others are unable to see or just refuse to see."

Exactly, either that or they refuse to see it. Doesn't mean your automatically wrong for having that kind of opinion unless it was something like "I thought Aliens CM was an good game" then it's going to be like "REALLY? COME ON" lol

@deafdani

"Really? On this site, you only need to say something positive about Microsoft to get disagreed to hell. However, if you say something positive about Sony, you usually will get tons of agrees."

It's just whatever is happening at the minute. Back in 2006/2007 the roles were reversed and if you said anything about Sony you were disagreed to death.

The reason why it's like this now is because Sony have turned it around while Microsoft has turned into a bunch of arseholes who don't care about us (a totally different story altogether).

Fact is the reason why this site SEEMS like a pro Sony site is because the people who ARE NOT Sony fanboys can see that Sony are doing something right, more then Microsoft and I don't know about you but you have to praise someone when they do things right. If we never complained back in 2006 when the PS3 first came out then Sony wouldn't of worked on improving the PS3 and their next gen console but the company it's self aswell.

To be honest I don't even know why we have a disagree button on this site, if you agree with someone you should click the agree button if you don't then you don't. The worst part is when people disagree with you and don't comment on why they disagree, like below I've disagreed with ape007 but I wrote a comment on why.

Although saying that some people on here when replying to a comment they see differently, you know when you see something other people don't tend to give off a personal attack vibe and end up being a dick about it.

[Ripsta7th]

On this site is the other way around, they are scared of talking good about the X1 in fears of being bubbled down by the Sony clan

[Hellsvacancy]

I'm not afraid, I say pretty much what I think, minus the profanity

[4Sh0w]

No if anything it reminds me of micros Halo live action trailers minus the humor and more so they look like the old COD trailers with Kobe and actors all playing charachters in a real game setting.

[Sono421]

Isn't imitation the greatest form of flattery? ;)

But seriously I think this is actually a great commercial.. way better then that idiotic NFL one that probably confused consumers more than anything else.

[Withdreday]

Jeez...Can't MS do ANYTHING original?

[ZBlacktt]

LOL, yeah I know all about this and I'll continue to speak my mind. :D

[VENOMACR1227]

How are the two similar? Because there is a car racing? I dont see the similarities at all. I dont think PS4 commercial featured soccer, movies, or a giant robot. Think they are both different. Both are good although the Xbox commercial I like better.

[BX81]

I thought it was better than sony's. I give sony more props for doing way better adds than last gen.

[Blackdeath_663]

its a nice ad regardless

[assdan]

I mean, they're definitely similar. But it's not like live action isn't ever used. That being said, it's usually sony that employs live action for advertising. And also, let's NOT look at the launch ads for the ps360 because both were weird as hell lol.

[Automatic79]

Both show off games. So many would assume they are similar but the pitches are perfect for each systems strengths. Xbox One day one.

[n4rc]

I've yet to see a Xbox ad.. But I have to admit.. I love Sony ads

From Kevin butler to that newest gow one.. And this perfect day ad for the ps4.. Really enjoy them

Xbox had that awesome gears ad with the mad world song.. That was really popular but I honestly can't think of another Xbox commercial. Lol

OK.. Just watched the x1 ad and it was pretty good.. Touched on kinect etc..

Good start for both.. Keep em coming..

[TheGrimReaper0011]

While it may be alot like sony's, I really dont mind ads like this
They look cool and are 1000000 times better than the same old ad where an oddly aranged family plays in a plain house and they all start to play. No wait, one person plays and the others laugh and pretend to enjoy it.
So yeah, more ads like this

[Shake_Zula]

As I was watching, I realized that the youtube video was higher resolution that all of the game's star titles. Because you know... X1... is all... about the...
...
...GAMES (next gen of course).

[Turkishflavor]

Wtf Are You talking about? Ugly sony fanboy.

HALO, FORZA, COD, NBA 2K14 etc all will be 1080p at Launch.

so STFU, stupid fanboy

[Shake_Zula]

Turk, I don't think you have all your facts straight. Maybe you need to do some research. I find it quite funny how little Ryse makes it into these retaliations anymore. I will likely be the best looking game at launch. Oh, and while we are talking about launches, when does HALO come out. BTW, I love playing Halo.

[ape007]

waaaaaaay better than sony's ad imo

[-Foxtrot]

Not really, least Sony didn't need Steven racist Gerard and Zachary Quinto in their trailers.

Seemed like they were trying a bit too hard

[ape007]

X1's ad felt intense, in your face, had Steven Gerrard, Robot was cool, ryse spot was awesome

sony's ad was very awkward imo, two guys fighting throwing each other and singing??? cheesy as hell

[Wizziokid]

I think they do that so people spot them and go "omg they support the xbox I want it more now".

It's tactics at the end of the day. I prefer them not to do that though.

[-Foxtrot]

"sony's ad was very awkward imo, two guys fighting throwing each other and singing??? cheesy as hell"

It represents a bro-mance between two friends who love to game with each other. The trailer shows you what you probably have with your friend or friends and it tried to recapture that to show you that gaming will always be there. The singing kind of reminded me of a JD and Turk bro-mance from Scrubs

http://www.youtube.com/watc...

[mxrider2199]

@anialator i thinks that was the point that even though they are not perfect hence the bad singing and the flipping of the car, it is still a perfect day for them to play those kick ass games together

[Hellsvacancy]

"had Steven Gerrard" lol, like that matters to anyone other than a Liverpool supporter, do you think a Man United or an Arsenal fan would want to see that? I BIG chunk of the budget for that advert would of gone to Stevie Gerrad and Zachary Quinto

I agree with the silly singing on Sonys advert, I didn't like it, but the two adverts are VERY similar

[WeAreLegion]

Their singing in the ad was better than Lou Reed, the original artist. That man can write a song, but he cannot sing to save his life. And I was JUST about to mention JD and Turk!

[Kayant]

The one in the article (Not the greatness awaits) I agree some what but not this ---> http://www.youtube.com/watc...

I would say they're pretty even & great.

[majiebeast]

It could use a lot less come on terrible music choice for the ad. Also nobody outside the UK cares about Steven Gerard and i dont think anyone ever cared for Zachary Quinto. They couldnt get Messi like Samsung now that ad is amazing not because of Messi.

[moegooner88]

Am I the only one who thinks Quinto is actually a good actor :/, very weird choice for such ad thu.

[Wizziokid]

Well it's not a bad thing to make them like Sony's, they are amazing after all.

Especially the one which goes through the generations of playstation. masterpiece

[Thatguy-310]

The thing I like about Sony's strategy is that ever since the reveal they been promoting the ps4 by bringing back the good memories of the ps1&2. They dominated that era and a lot of us grew up with them. In my opinion, Sony has been using that as an advantage and the recent playstation memories ad kicked it out of the park. The crazy part is that it wasn't because of the games/services but because of the meaning behind it. Sony's marketing team have been amazing so far and better than the early ps3 ads.

[Turkishflavor]

Where Are The games then?

PS4 has NO GAMES :(

NO DEAD RISING, NO FORZA, NO RYSE, NO NOTHING :(

[Thatguy-310]

Ahhh water balloon fights!! Damn how fun was it being a kid back then. On topic, I agree on how Microsoft is taking Sony's approach in marketing the Xbox one as a game console first. I'm not getting one any time soon but the trailer was good to watch and the titanfall piece was pretty cool.

[JoGam]

Agreed. If they copied Sony's or not Both ad's look great and did the job they intended to do. Both PS4 and Xbone should be excited.

[ThatCanadianGuy514]

Xbox has adverts? Haven't seen a single one.

[Gore-Content]

Typical M$ again. Doing EVERYTHING for success.

[MiHX2]

Everybody wants success...

[DigitalRaptor]

Correct me if I'm wrong, but I don't think Sony has ever used celebrity profile to somehow add validation to their products through ads. Nintendo and Microsoft are the only ones that seem to think they need to.

[Ashby_JC]

I own and run a small business. I do everything for the success of my business....why would MS. SONY or any other business be doing the opposite??

[True_Samurai]

Actually no MS had already done this before. Remember the banned x1 commercial with everyone shooting eachother? Standoff, Joy, Balloons, ODST commercial, the extremely weird Indian one etc.

Aw heck forget it we have to fight about almost every dang thing on here. What's next which one is more quiet?

[chasegarcia]

Love the ads from both. Much better than last gen.

[quinten488]

just give up, the ps4 will dominate

[Software_Lover]

OMG these companies can't even make ad campaigns without being accused of copying. What is gaming coming to.

[lastofgen]

yeah, it's pretty ridiculous, really.
I read the title and saw some comments about microsoft copying sony's ad campaign and....smh.

[lastofgen]

It's hilarious how no one here think that both companies probably had filmed these ads months prior to their release on the webs and had no idea of what the other company was doing for their ad campaigns.

[Ashby_JC]

Agreed. They are similar but I feel it is purely coincedence (sp)

[whoyouwit04]

the xbox one trailer kind of reminds me of the old DreamCast adds

[FITgamer]

First Xbox One commercial i've seen. I guess it's kind of a similar concept. Is that an internet add only?

[Automatic79]

No will be showcased at the NFL games on sunday, X-factor, comedy shows like modern family and action/drama shows like sons of anarchy.

[chito1016d]

Xbox commercial was just trying to show off their interactive features that they are pushing next gen. Commercials did feel similar but the messages they put out were pretty different.

[etownone]

Really??

I thought that Xbox1 ad was much better then Sony.

And I expect more and better ads from MS.
If there is one thing they excel at.... It's building hype and advertising. I

[Funantic1]

Because of the release dates of the Playstation and Xbox commercials I can tell that they've been done a few months ago at least. They wouldn't have even seen each other's commercial yet. Computer graphics, animation, and editing is my profession. I work with a team of people of with all sorts of degrees in that field. I can tell you that both Sony's and Microsoft's commercials look great and high budget. Those are the type of commercials you can't cook up just overnight. You really have to consider the cast, costuming, editing, animations, clearance of the commercial, etc.

[lastofgen]

Shh, don't talk sense here.
You'll just get downvoted.

[thejigisup]

BRING BACK THE CREEPY BABY!!!

[Ashby_JC]

THAT was a very very weird ad. It was like a horror movie ad. The baby crying ..the fake baby I might ad.

I wonder WHAT exactly they were trying to convey?

[thejigisup]

Ps3 much like creepy baby was new, strange, and misunderstood, yet very powerful, you see that baby using tk?

[Belking]

Sorry but those ads are nothing alike. Ms has always had better ads . New hardware isn't gonna change that.

[WeAreLegion]

Depends on the ad. Don't be that guy...

[FrigidDARKNESS]

LMAO this looks nothing like Sony.

[christocolus]

i actually wanted to say it too..besides the part where you see two cars goin down a high way nothing else looks even near similar....

[DialgaMarine]

Obvious coincidence. Sony still has the superior ad campaign going though. M$ is just "Hey look! We changed our ways and we got teh gamez! Please buy our cable bo-I MEAN-game console!"

[Trekster_Gamer]

Troll you are a blind fanboy..
Please go away..

[Turkishflavor]

If You Are gay and like singing, yes ps4 ad is better for you

[DialgaMarine]

Well, I guess if liking a product that actually works and does what I purchased it for makes me gay, I must be a huge flamer by that logic. Have fun with mediocrity and shit.

[Niv]

Snubbed cod lol, even though it's not exclusive.

[alb1899]

Why the hate, both ads were very, very good and made me want more to grab does next gen controls!

So my hype is really high right now!

SHUT UP AND ENJOY!

[sensor21]

How about games are starting to look real so u cant tell the difference which just good for gamers.

[kingPoS]

The sincerest form of flattery.

[Kuse]

It looks nothing like Sony's commercial..grasping at straws much?

[gamer7804]

They are similar but neither is original, there is nothing new under the sun. Everyone pulls ideas from somewhere.

Just enjoy that there are quality commercials from each company.

[Soldierone]

They even started a "win every 2 minutes" campaign to target Sony's "Win every 15 minutes" The only difference is Sony's runs all day, while MS' runs in the evening and not throughout the day.

[Gamer666]

I think the gaming media should go grab a life.

Please....

I want to see discussion about games and innovations from the consoles... Not a bunch of marketing comparisons...

I don't care about marketing, I care about games!

[Trekster_Gamer]

Marketing sells consoles and games so it does have it's place.

[Gamer666]

No way. It is a sad day when gamers are more interested in marketing and the gaming media then in actually talking about games and console capabilities.

[Welcome2Die]

All MS has been doing is imitating Sony.

[mhunterjr]

The campaigns are opposite themes. Sony's play has been to bring players into the game world. MS' play has been to bring game characters into the real world.

Sony has borrowed plenty from MS. They basically copied Xbox live services exactly, Including most recently 8person party chat. What did MS copy?

[Welcome2Die]

Uhh I dunno how about Sony's non-bullsh*t DRM restrictions?

"Sony has borrowed plenty from MS. They basically copied Xbox live services exactly"

Really oh I didnt know MS gave its subscribers free games every month, oh you mean Sony did that first? Oh yeah they did!

[mhunterjr]

I'm not saying Sony didn't make improvements to the model. But when Xbox live first came out. Sony didn't even have an Ethernet port on their device. In order to keep up with MS, they released an adapter.

Still, they didn't have a unified login in, or support voice chat accross all games. They had to further ape MS, when they came out with PSN, with a unified 'gamer tag' to work across all games.

Still, they couldn't quite match MS, service for service, so they kept copying. They aped Microsofts achievement system and called it trophies. They aped Microsofts notification system. They tried to ape cross-chat, but didn't have the system memory, because it was an after thought. The PS4 gave them the chance to copy it, and copy it, they did.

After years of offering an inferior, yet free, service and after an embarrassing month long outtage, Sony succumb to the pressure (put on my MS) to generate revenue from PSN. So what did they do? They decided to charge for online play, just like.... MICROSOFT.
Brilliantly, they came up with PS+ as a way to ease their existing customer into the idea of paying a subscription.

PS+ has been Sony's very first innovation in the online space. This is a space microsoft absolutely dominated since the early 2000's, and until recently, sony had been copying to keep up. And I'm thankful for Sony's achievement. But let's not pretend everyone in the industry isn't copying each other. It's part of remaining competitive.

PS, how is Microsoft returning to the exact same DRM-free business model we've been using since the 80's (before Sony was in the business) considered copying Sony? Get real.

[Welcome2Die]

tl;dr

[ATi_Elite]

Yes they are kinda similar like they used the same Marketing team or same Director.

anyway I like the XB1 commercial better. PS4 had way too much talking/singing and crap.

XB1 showed it's functions and games which really plays well with me.

[MajorMayhem70]

Feel the same way when I compared the two. I got a better understanding of the Xbox One features. It's the features that make me more excited for the X1 even though I'm also buying a PS4.

[static360]

i hardly believe sony is the only one that have done this kind of campaign for a product, there are only so many ways you can do a commercial to get people excited, some on people cut MS some slack...or don't doesn't matter to me both of those will be sitting in my entertainment center by year end

[Man_Son]

The cars in the X1 video aren't racing, the forza car passes by the other car. Only thing similar in these videos are real people. Is this writer expecting cartoon characters? This isn't Nintendo games here.

[larrysdirtydrawss]

too bad the sales wont be like sonys

[GirlOnFire]

The Xbox people sure don't know what they are doing now a days. That commercial was a copy and paste of Sony's Perfect Day.

[QuickdrawMcgraw]

MS is the video game version of the Elvis impersonator.THANK YOU...THANK YOU VERY MUCH.

[GoodnessGreatness]

lol, hilarious ad. it's like they're begging/forcing those people to join them.

[x-plode]

Ok this is what I. Thought sony's commercial felt gay when Microsoft's commercial feel's more like you know.

[MajorMayhem70]

It's 2 advertisements that are trying to get people to buy their console. The way they go about doing it are a little similar... Hhhmmmm. Imagine that. I'd rather read an article that says "I have no news today" than one that tries to drum up something that isn't there.