The war wages on... fan boys and girls from both camps (Xbox and PlayStation) make their stances known. Gamescom 2013 was an event in which Microsoft and Sony gave further detail into new games that will be launching soon, release dates, price cuts, game and system bundles, and of course a bunch of glitzy high profile demos!
Were you impressed with each companies conference?
You can view the Sony Conference Here
You can view the Microsoft Conference Here
Honestly, I'm happy for the direction these companies are pursuing gaming as a whole this year. Gamescom simply reaffirmed to me that hard core gamers definitely still have something worthwhile to look forward to.
The Xbox One doesn't have a release date yet, only a window: sometime in November.
Sony's PS4 on the other hand will be released November 15th.
Sony's PS4 on the other hand will be released November 15th.
The Xbox One will be releasing about 23 games as launch titles. (Here is the list)
While the PS4 will only be releasing 15 physical disc games, with additional games slated to come out very close to the launch date if not on it. (See the list here)
While the PS4 will only be releasing 15 physical disc games, with additional games slated to come out very close to the launch date if not on it. (See the list here)
Each system will have it's exclusives, in attempts to win more pre orders. I believe that only one system will ultimately come out on top this year. With both systems sporting very impressive engine's under the hood and almost identical launch titles, it's too soon to say which one will emerge dominant.
If I had to place my bets on a system though, it would be the PS4. It has not once waivered on it's commitment to caring for it's core market. That is not to say that Sony's ecosystem is perfect. They just played their cards right. The E3 conference still resonates in my mind as a major win for the Sony camp. Microsoft imposed some radical changes on it's core fan base then made the ridiculous claim that these changes could not be undone.
We see that was a lie though. Clearly all of those changes have since then been rescinded...
What does that tell me?
That says, Microsoft still has a ways to go before I comfortably invest in a company that just came fresh off of it's most bass ackwards gaming strategy ever. Seriously. I love the box. Many people know I do, but Microsoft didn't remove those restrictions because they were "listening to all our pleas and cries"... They did it because the PlayStation 4's initial pre-sells almost quadrupled the Xbox Ones.
That is not to discredit how courageously loud the gaming community responded to Microsoft's belligerence. We definitely proved that casual gamers and core gamers alike still hold valuable input on the final say.
You can debate that last point as subjective, but the fact remains: these Xbox One restrictions were suppose to be irreversible. They turned them over to save their own butts. Now Microsoft is heralded as "the company who listens to it's fans"...So once things level out again and all the fan boys and girls quiet down, whats to stop them from reimposing more unwarranted change? Mid year even? Distrust, That may sound like a farfetched reason to forgo dropping $500 on a new Box. But not to me. It is a shame because I am an xbox fan, but I think it best to wait out the first year of Xbox One's historical legacy and monitor the direction Microsoft plans to go with those restrictions they dropped. I guarantee you will see them again. Maybe the timing will be better and some of those changes will be more relevant and accepted in the gaming community?
That remains to be seen. In the mean time, be smart, game on.....
Peace,
- JA (@Joe_Andrew)
