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What the hell is going on with the Console War?

Sarcastic Gamer writes:

"The question I ask: What's the deal with Microsoft losing the entire first quarter of 2008's hardware sales to the PS3 and Wii while not really seeming to give a crap? Is it all show (the not giving a crap part) or what?

Maybe I should start taking bets for what Microsoft's "official" reason will be this time. They've already used up "underestimated demand" and "production capacity issues". My money's going on "Who cares about March anyway?! March is a stupid doo-doo month!"

Now, we're approaching official confirmation of the third time (in a row no less,) suggesting this is edging toward an actual "trend" with the monthly order of hardware sales repeatedly coming in Wii>PS3>360. Maybe someone should call Microsoft and point out that they've now seemingly lost the entire first quarter of the year to the competition in terms of hardware sales..."

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thereapersson - 79 days 9 hours ago

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1 - Good article, though I think that MS has a lot of life left in them this year

It's not surprising to see Sony doing as well as they are now, however, seeing as how many people predicted (even back in the middle of 2007) that 2008 would be Sony's comeback year. So far most of the predictions have come true, with only really extreme naysayers and nitpicky fanboys complaining about issues that are or have become moot points.

On the other hand, while MS' lineup this year is a little vague in terms of a full list of heavy hitters throughout the entire year, even the stupidest PS3 fanboy can realize that there are many systems sellers that not only loyal 360 fans will purchase on day one, but will also bring in new users, further expanding the 360's already sizeable install base. I do think that MS will have a harder time when it comes to hardware sales, due to the victory of Blu Ray in the public arena.

It will be interesting to see by the end of this summer just how well the PS3 will continue to evolve.

EDIT: Another point we have to consider is how long does Microsoft plan on supporting the 360? When the PS3 finally hits its stride and catches up to where the 360 is now (hard to tell at this point if that will take a year, or if it will happen quicker than that), will Microsoft already be planning to roll out their next console? I highly doubt that they will abandon the 360 as quickly as they did the original XBOX, but while we know of Sony's proposed "10 year console lifespan", nobody has really heard of any longevity plans from MS. Ultimately in all arguements, time will tell.

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jkhan - 79 days 7 hours ago

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1.1 -

Well actually you are quite right about the new xbox console. I remember when Sony announced the 10 year life cycle and some reporter asked this question to Peter Moore and he simply dodged the question. If Sony continues its momentum and catches up with 360 by next year. Microsoft will definitely release a new console. Just to stay in the market.

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Jenzo - 79 days 7 hours ago

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1.2 -

I don't think MS will drop their support for the 360 anytime soon. People seem to forget that the 360 is still pretty far ahead of the PS3 in terms of install base. I don't know the exact numbers but I think the gap is something close to 7 million consoles.

What I find weird is that MS seems to have gone under the radar since Peter Moore left the company. I rarely see any PR releases from MS anymore. If they want to stay in the race they need to promote the 360 and it's titles better.

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Expy - 79 days 6 hours ago

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1.3 -

I probably only see Fable 2 as a potential system seller for the 360 coming this year (only because it has not been officially stated for release on PC). Since it does have the existing Fable fanbase out there that were playing on PC, I think it's the only crowd it can attract. Gears is not really a system seller, the crowd that will purchase it is mostly current Gears of War owners.

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mindedone - 79 days 5 hours ago

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1.4 - I agree w/ GeoW not being a system seller

By all means, I am not commenting on the quality of the game. It's just that you tend to see system movers be titles from last generation. These are titles that gamers who have yet to plunge into the current gen have some sort of familiarity with. GTA is a system mover because it was played last gen. Halo is a system mover because it was played last gen. Mario, MGS, GooW, GT, are all last gen titles. I expect GeoW3 to be a system mover, if the next one does well.

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rawg - 79 days 4 hours ago

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1.5 - a new xbox would be the nail in the coffin for MS

I doubt that MS would come out with a new console this soon. There would be no advantage for them to do anything until Sony/Nintendo also announce new consoles. Anything sooner and all they would be doing is cannibalizing their current fanbase while they pissed off third-party game developers. Let's take a look at this from a customer and developer perspective.

Customers: Anybody who hasn't made a jump to an HD console yet would probably write off the 360 as "last gen" but at the same time they wouldn't be interested in a new console with "no games" on it yet. Logic would drive them to get a PS3 instead.

Developers: Game developers wouldn't be interested in investing in upgrading their engines for the next Xbox knowing that the install base is lower than the PS3. The X3 would then suffer from the same multi-plat porting issues that plagued the PS3 in 2007.

The only marginally acceptable strategy that wouldn't alienate developers or customers would be a 360 with the same architecture and GPU with upgraded memory, BR drive, mandatory HDD and motion controls that was fully backward compatible. Basically, it would be a slightly improved X360 that highlights the shortcomings of the original X360 while splitting the customer base for publishers.

It's a lose-lose proposition for MS. As bad as things are looking for them in 2008+, they're going to have to play out this gen with the console they brought to the dance.

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juuken - 78 days 22 hours ago

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1.6 -

I think M$ will come out with a new system but not yet. They're mainly depending on GTAIV, Gears of War II, and maybe Ninja Gaiden 2 to help them along. It depends on those game really, IMO.

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thePatriot - 78 days 18 hours ago

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1.7 - I must disagree with you mindedone

nobody played Gears 1 on xbox and it was a system mover for 360. but you are right about gears 2 not being a system mover. how much better can the sequel be to make you by 360 if the first did'nt do it?
It will sell great and sell a few consoles as well, but if you dont like the first you wont like the second. plus it will come to pc later on I bet.
edit: what the hell is going on? ps3 comming back, thats whats going on.

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fusionboxer - 78 days 15 hours ago

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1.8 - I don't know what happened...

But I really don't give a crap about the so called "war" anymore. It just seems so trivial at this point when you look at it all from the perspective of someone that isn't as hardcore gamer as he once was, but still enjoys reading the latest news.

Anyone with me on this? I mean I'm excited about certain games coming out, but not really on one specific console. Well actually nevermind, most of them are on the ps3 and that's now the only console I own (360 is gone guys...sorry), but that doesn't matter. I can without a doubt still say i'm looking forward to Gears of War 2 and Resistance 2 in almost equal forms. I see both as radically different, but who cares. The 360 may lose it's lead by the end of the year, but i'm just happy to know that the majority of people in the world now except gaming as a pretty solid part of their culture.

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resistance100 - 79 days 9 hours ago

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2 -

Simple, I would say Blu-ray winning, doubled the perceived value of the PS3

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thereapersson - 79 days 8 hours ago

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2.1 - Agreed, Resistance

For better or worse (most optimists would see it for better), Blu Ray is driving PS3 console sales. The good thing about this, is the increased potential for those who buy it originally for movies, to now have the ability to play next-generation games as well.

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sonarus - 79 days 8 hours ago

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2.2 -

That is exactly what it is. PS3 is simply more value for your money in the eyes of the common consumer where things like wi fi don't matter that much. Main things now are blu ray and upcoming games. Despite the 360's robusr library, it becomes harder to use as a selling point the older the titles get.

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Boink - 79 days 8 hours ago

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2.3 - hate to say it

but that's likely a big part of it.

MS NEEDS a US price cut big time. the pro bundle should be about 250$ right now.

people are slowly recognizing that the 360 does have the games advantage, but sony has the playstation brand that will help them sell well, tacked on with a blu ray victory, they are catching up quickly. MS better get it's butt in gear if they don't want to be left behind.

oh and enough with the "stock availability" excuse. if you're so low on consoles, grab some 360's from japan, they have tons leftover...

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Gorgon - 79 days 7 hours ago

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2.4 -

"people are slowly recognizing that the 360 does have the games advantage"

Well, thats a matter of personal preference, not a fact. For someone that prefers MGS 4, Eight Days, Heavy Rain, Ico 3, God of War 3, Killzone 2, Resistance 2, L. A. Noir, Forbidden Siren 3, Getaway 3, LittleBig Planet, etc, all of them exclusives, I think its a bit of a strech to point out the 360 as having the games "advantage". I woudn't trade the games of the PS3 for those of the 360 in any circumstance, for example.

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sonarus - 79 days 7 hours ago

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2.5 -

The average consumer doesn't see that far into the future on most games. At most they will see god of war 3 and final fantasy as exclusives. Everything else is simply too far away to use as an effective selling point. However as the titles begin to unfold such as MGS4, GT5P, Little Big Planet, Socom, Killzone, Resistance 2, Getaway 3(assuming it comes out this yr) Motorstorm. As those titles beging to come out, the ps3 value just goes higher.

What microsoft needs to do is cut the price of the 360 so it is representative of the value for the money. No one is willing to pay 350 for a premium when they can add 50 bucks onto that and get a ps3 which has a blu ray drive and an extra 20gigs of storage. The comparisosn for average consumer don't really go beyond that

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meepmoopmeep - 79 days 7 hours ago

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2.6 -

Blu-ray winning has a big impact on PS3 sales and it has greater value now that people know it can also play HD movies. The other driving force is that the big franchises are coming from here on out and a lot of the people on the fence until their favorite franchise is released will now have more incentive to pick up a PS3.

now that the format war is over we will be seeing Sony focus a lot more on gaming than anything else. They were taking it one step at a time and the format war was their first priority because they knew the games were coming.

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pegger24 - 79 days 4 hours ago

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2.7 - 2.4

how was 8 days? was it good, was the game play good? did you just love Ico 3?
Please talk about games that are out

Lists are for old women at the grocery store

Back on Topic
You are right resistance, Blu Ray winning has had a huge effect on PS3 sales, so did getting more games out. The ps3 has a lot of games worth playing right now and that is helping. I think we will see even more of these bad boys selling once us US'ers get our Bush checks.

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rawg - 79 days 4 hours ago

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2.8 - it's blu-ray and the upcoming mega-franchises - i think

Blu-ray win definitely adds a check to the PS3 side of the PS3/360 T chart but I think the buzz around big playstation franchises coming to the PS3 is contributing to that perceived value as well.

Let's take a hypothetical gamer who hasn't bought an HD console yet and imagine what his decision making process looks like for buying a console to go with GTAIV... (stream of consciousness mode)

...hmmm... I hear the Xbox will have exclusive DLC for GTAIV and damn I love that game so much I would light my crotch on fire and let a gang of high-heel wearing, man-hating lesbians stomp it out... but will I really get to the DLC? When is it coming out anyway? and what's in it?... I hear good things about Live too but I've never really played online before so I don't know what I'm missing plus I have to pay $50 to play online?... and what's this RROD thing everyone talks about?...

...I guess I could buy it for the PS3 too... I've been meaning to get a blu-ray player for my new HDTV and so it's like I would be getting one for free... plus I want to play the new MGS4 when that comes out... maybe FFXIII too but I won't tell my friends about that because they'll give me crap about being a homo... oh and God of War 3 - holy crap, I gotta play that when it comes out...

tough decisions, tough decisions...

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zethos56 - 79 days 1 hour ago

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2.9 - @2.8

It depends what games the potential ps3/360 buyer wants. Nice way to be biased.

But I agree the ps3 is better if you want HD movies

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-EvoAnubis- - 78 days 21 hours ago

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2.10 -

Don't know pegger. How was GeOW2? How about Fable 2; I heard that was a good one. How about Halo Wars?

What's your point?

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dan-boy - 78 days 13 hours ago

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2.11 - @ sonarus

so if the library is not a selling point, can you please explain why the ps2 outsells nearly everything month after month?? is it because of all the expected blockbusters that are about to get released? or is it because of the amazing game library that the ps2 enjoys??

yeah, the console is cheap as chips nowadays, but who would honestly buy it if it did'nt have that stupendous back catalogue?? seriously, to say that a library is'nt a selling point is stupid to say the least!

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Gorgon - 78 days ago

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2.12 -

Pegger:

"2.7 - 2.4
how was 8 days? was it good, was the game play good? did you just love Ico 3?
Please talk about games that are out

Lists are for old women at the grocery store"

1) if I talk about games that are out now I'll still be talking about lists. So I guess that both you and me are old women.

2) many people buy a console based on exclusive games and cherished franchises. So I don't need to have played God of War 3, Ico 3, GT5 or FFXIII or whatever when I make a decision about buying a console. Most people buy a console and make their decision based on games and franchises they know will be out for that system. I bet you did the same when you bought a 360 and I bet that when you advise someone on a console you say and think "but the 360 WILL HAVE Alan Wake and GoW2!".

I stand by what I said, liking the games of the 360 or PS3 is a matter of personal taste and, YES, saying that "people are slowly recognizing that the 360 does have the games advantage" is a dumb argument in 2008. Quite the opposite really, people are slowly recognizing that the 360 does not have the game's advantage anymore and it's all a matter of personal taste.

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