What a potential post-Xbox future could mean for Sony and Nintendo

"All signs point to the hardware becoming less and less important to Microsoft."

[Neonridr]

Less innovation and competition. People act like if MS went away life would be better but it would just mean you have one less choice as to where to spend your money. If Sony became the defacto home console provider and Nintendo the handheld, then these companies could limit what you get and you would ultimately have very little choice but to support them if you want to play games.

[Outside_ofthe_Box]

Can make the same argument for buying up publishers which many supported ironically, but wouldn't support this.

[Neonridr]

moot point if MS keeps releasing games on other platforms though. There's a difference between Sony or MS buying a studio and a company not releasing hardware period.

[Outside_ofthe_Box]

***"moot point if MS keeps releasing games on other platforms though."***

Consolidation is never good. The first words of your post "less innovation and competition" applies regardless of whether the games release on other platforms.

***"There's a difference between Sony or MS buying a studio and a company not releasing hardware period."***

I'm not going to pretend that removing a publisher off the market is the same as removing a hardware manufacturer like people do with studios and publishers. My only point is the same argument applies and people were rooting for it, but are using the same arguments for against hardware. Difference is one is buying it out while the other is the result of competition.

[S2Killinit]

@Neonridr
Not a moot point, MS’s exit is actually very related to their merger/consolidations. It is what is paving their path out of the console space. How can it be moot?

[Cacabunga]

Xbox has been irrelevant and unable to compete since Xbox one released.. Sony and Nintendo, especially Sony will have to prove they still are on top of the game by releasing some home made games

[MrDead]

Microsoft game studios, Activision Blizzard and Bethesda have merged and are no longer competing thanks to MS what do you think that does to innovation in the industry? MS going would be a good very good thing as the risk of more competing publishers being merged will be less likely.

[crazyCoconuts]

This is the textbook business answer and almost certainly the right one.
I do think Sony will look to woo more PC and portable gamers over after Xbox is gone, because they have to get growth from somewhere and that's all that's left

[-Foxtrot]

Not defending this as the situation could go either way but before Microsoft during the 5th Generation Sony was pretty much head to head with Nintendo. The PS1 vs the N64 because the Sega Saturn wasn't even a thought in most peoples minds.

With the games each system had and the audiences they were going for, they did alright before Microsoft.

Like I said this could go either way so you can't 100% say what will happen but hypothetically what if Sony becomes the market leader if Xbox went away, couldn't you say in this scenario that Sony would feel like they were in a position to take more risks because they don't have to worry about someone high tailing them waiting for them to slip up.

All we could do is monitor Sony / Nintendo and call them out if things start to slip.

[Rude-ro]

Your point has validity in life…
But in this case, Microsoft brought more marketing, good and viral attack marketing, than anything else related to gaming.
They went over a decade not making a single new AAA ip.
What “competition” are they bringing to push competitors?
I mean, you say “less innovation” yet Sony had to dumb down their console engineering to play ball with Microsoft and their strangle hold on computing,
Sony, for worse, had to compete against the perception of Microsoft through their marketing dominance.
They forced Sony into third party deals because Microsoft was monopolizing the market through third party games.

What, exactly, is Microsoft bringing to the table?
Basic x86 architecture?
Catch phrases?
Generic games?
Subscriptions?
False marketing?
Corrupt marketing tactics?
Faulty hardware?

I can see Sony not having to spend millions to combat Microsoft’s false image of being a gaming company and put more money into developing games.

[Barlos]

Tbh Xbox has never really been a choice for me. In its 20+ years of being a thing, I've never once seen the appeal in the Xbox brand, and therefore have never owned a single Xbox console.

In any event, Xbox as a brand isn't really going anywhere. They may stop making hardware but the games will be available on more formats than ever.

[Profchaos]

I think most people have liked the three console model honestly it was Microsoft's more recent actions on raining to improve their game output and instead buy the industry that has caused many people to dislike them

[Cockney]

@neonrider Your whole take relies on the fact that you think the space left by Microsoft when they pull xbox out won't be filled by a new company? There's a lot of money to be made in videogames, its never been a one horse race ( yes I realise I'm ignoring Nintendo but its not out of spite, I think they have their handheld/less powerful market to contend with and thats heating up nicely with the introduction of these premium pc handhelds ) I know valve have semi-tried before with the steamdeck but I'm not sure how much weight they put behind that, with a hole the size xbox will be leaving i don't think there's ever been a better time to try again

[Crows90]

No. PC exists.

No limitations if Xbox left. Since Xbox came on we've got a lot of crappy things and they haven't innovated anywhere that matters much.

[Lightning77]

Would be a very boring and even more expensive hobby.

No thanks.

[S2Killinit]

Diehard to the end I see.

I would argue that hopefully someone better would enter the market in their place. Someone with roots in entertainment. Not Amazon, Apple, or another company similar to Microsoft.

[darthv72]

...and yet MS has roots that go pretty deep when it comes to gaming. Ever hear of the MSX line of computers?

[S2Killinit]

Is it really that deep if you have to ask me if I heard about it?

[Lightning77]

Diehard what till the end? Die hard pro gamer then yes.

I see you still have your fanboy goggles on. Lay offs have been rampant and none stop and it's early in the year. Who can step in? Nobody can step in.

As far as I'm concerned MS actually let Toys For Bob go and be independent. Something I never saw comin for any company. Letting a company be independent is a pro industry move in my book.

[Barlos]

@Darth tentacles, not roots.

[Crows90]

Steam could probably do that as long as MS keeps games off competitors.

[porkChop]

"Someone with roots in entertainment. Not Amazon, Apple, or another company similar to Microsoft."

LOL. Such as? Do you understand how expensive it is to R&D and actually produce consoles? The profit margins are razor thin. You need to make money by publishing software. None of the 3rd party publishers can afford to become a console manufacturer.

And before you say Valve you need to realize that the Steam Deck has only sold 3 or 4 million units over the last 2 years. The market for a PC-like console is far smaller than people think. So if Valve, with all of Steam behind it, can't fill that space then who will? Who is this mythical company you're talking about?

[Abnor_Mal]

I was a video that suggested that Steam could potentially get into the console market if Xbox ceases to exist. They already had the Steam Machine(?), and they have the Steam Deck for the portable market. I’m not in the pc space at all so I wouldn’t know if that would be a realistic statement.

[NotoriousWhiz]

Honestly, an affordable powerhouse steam machine with SteamOS could be the perfect replacement for Xbox.

[porkChop]

It's not realistic. The Steam Deck has been on sale for 2 years and has only pushed an estimated 3 or 4 million units. The number is so low that Valve only says they've sold "multiple millions". A console would likely do worse because it doesn't have the freedom and customizability that people love about PC gaming rigs. Whereas a handheld offers freedom and playability that PC gamers wouldn't have otherwise, a console offers a worse version of the experience they already have. It's not feasible. This is why the Steam Machines failed.

[Knightofelemia]

No Xbox future I am going to guess Microsoft will go down the path Sega choose and be a publisher/game developer with their in house studios. Or sell off their in house studios and just go back to making os for PC's. I highly doubt the second part. Microsoft like any company wants to make money. So if Microsoft did say pull the plug on Xbox I see them going down the path Sega went. And utilize Xbox as a brand and not just as a console. I can see the name of XBox being mainly a brand after that. And maybe with the game you see published by or developed by Xbox studios.

[343_Guilty_Spark]

Hopefully price increases!

[P_Bomb]

XB has to stick around in some fashion. Some ppl have massive game collections and gamer scores. Game pass subs. Wouldn’t go over well, cutting them off cold turkey.

[franwex]

I imagine all that would still be around their service.

[helicoptergirl]

I think it's funny people acting like MS are the linchpin holding everything down and if they let go, then gaming will be ruined and prices will soar astronomically and creativity will be stifled and thwarted at every turn. It's a fallacy. Creative people in the studios want to create art they are proud of. I'm not saying it's preferrable to have MS out of the console space, but I am saying that all this fearmongering over what will happen if MS were to bow out is overexaggerated and overblown.

[Crows90]

It's also self grandeur and delusion.

MS is already absent in most gaming markets. Not much would change.

[Hofstaderman]

We have already seen this scenario with the PS1 and the N64. Arguably the best generation in gaming.

[__y2jb]

There were still 3 players then with Sega still going strong.

[Hofstaderman]

Sega dropped out early with the Saturn

[__y2jb]

No they didn’t. The Dreamcast released just over one year before PS2. Saturn had 4 good years, almost as much as Ps1.

[Hofstaderman]

With that particular gen Sega Saturn did not run the total length of time when conmpared to PS1 and N64. I had one, the model that could play VCDs.

[Destiny1080]

maybe if phil had more resources, thinks could have worked out a little better

[Gamingsince1981]

Lmao "hardware becoming less and less Important to Microsoft" ........it hasn't become less important, they just can't sell hardware anymore because no one wants it. If it was winning every gen I'm pretty sure hardware sales would be one of the most important things they did. MS Losing the game doesn't mean the game ended, MS just isn't a part of it any more because they suck.

[Jingsing]

People act like Microsoft leaving is bad for competition, Microsoft staying is bad for competition. That monster is not going to be satisfied until they are the head of the table and everyone is paying them the privilege to exist on their "cloud servers" Sony and Nintendo are not big enough for that level of domination and never will be.

[anast]

I called it. I am the Oracle.

[hard joe]

good riddance
xbox has been plunging since 360
i can see xbox as gaming division of microsoft

[Hereandthere]

Good riddance, nothing of worth was lost, xbox exclusives have never been close to the class of Nintendo PlayStation exclusives.

[ironmonkey]

No junk male.

[Demetrius]

Means fable for Playstation, a future gears of War title hopefully it means more games idk knowing how mfs are nowadays releasing less and less titles

[MIDGETonSTILTS17]

Xbox isn’t good to its consumers, because it has broken every promise they made for the past decade. They simply do not make AAA games that push the medium forward, expanding what’s possible.

But, the absence of Xbox is worse for everyone.

Xbox makes Sony and Nintendo try harder, as long as Xbox tries too.

[attilayavuzer]

I'd argue Sony has been the least innovative of the 3 recently. They've basically consolidated their entire brand to one genre of games. The opportunities they've had to innovate have resulted in them abandoning interesting hardware.

[MIDGETonSTILTS17]

I am assuming you are claiming Sony only makes TPS narrative single player games, because I hear that a lot.

I feel their output has been more nuanced than that. I would say that although all of their games are third person, few are actually shooters. Amongst third person games, I’d argue their output is quite varied. (Returnal, Spdierman 2, Tsushima, Last of Us, Ratchet and Clank, Death Strabding, Horizons- all very different mechanics).

They have focused too much on single player games, but Helldivers 2 earns them optimism from me for their GaaS pipeline

I don’t play enough Nintendo to say Sony is MORE innovative than them, but I 100% see Sony’s AAA output as more innovative than Xbox’s for the past 10-12 years.

[Father__Merrin]

Shame when you look back. Early 360 years was absolutely tremendous Remeber 2009 halo3 bioshock #CallofDuty mass effect lost oddessey