I honestly think they should have just stuck with it, but at the end of the day if the consumer doesn't want something, they don't want it. Simple as. You (the company in question) telling them how great 'x' is and how we "just don't know any better. This is good for you" isn't going to change that.
And "enviable" lol. I don't think any of their competing companies are envious of what position MS is in. Definitely not the word I'd be using there.
That's the thing though. Eventually, people will get over it. Just like it took years for people to give Sony another try you say, just get over it now. Because people will get over it Years later anyways.
Maybe it's because I'm old these days. They've changed stuff for the better. They changed stuff that fans wanted changed. Move on now to the future and prepare for some great games. Both consoles are going to be awesome.
Hell, PSN was hacked to hell and it didn't take me long to trust them at all. I stayed on PSN with my credit cards and couldn't of cared less. Fuck it. Things happen and HOPEFULLY the company changes stuff. If they don't... They deserve it. If they do change... then start living in the present and future and get out of the past.
I feel it's like a lover scorned or something. That love will return to your heart again if you're a true gamer. I feel true gamers game on all the consoles they can afford to have.
I don't think "people just got over it" is an accurate description of what happened over the years. The tides slowly changed because of a number of things.
One, Sony went out of their way to repair their image and attract people back to the Sony ecosystem. The whole company underwent a huge internal business change, they invested heavily into first/second-party output, and offered services like PS+.
Two, Microsoft went in a direction most gamers didn't want; the focus on Kinect and media. Not necessarily a bad thing in and of itself, but combined with the fact that it seemingly took away from other, more "hardcore" focused titles was what caused problems. They got lazy and just hinged on Halo/Gears/Forza/Fable for the last four years. It also didn't help that the last games of three of those franchises were mediocre at best. Also, smaller things like raising the price of Live and making even the most basic of functions put behind the paywall as well. Not to mention the better (perceived) value of other services like Steam and PS+.
Really though, the negative sentiment behind Sony didn't change until late 2011/early 2012. I mean saying "people got over it" isn't really telling the whole picture.
And the "true gamer" thing? What does that even mean? Is one who only plays Nintendo games or only on Nintendo systems not a "true gamer?" Even if they spend just as much, or even more time and money as someone who owns multiple systems? Not everyone has the time or interest in every system, even if they can afford it.