-
Hey Guest. Check out your NeoGAF Wrapped 2025 results here!
What does Sony PlayStation look like without Xbox around?
- Thread starter DarkShadowXI
- Start date
- Opinion
ecosse_011172
Banned
It won't make any difference , Sony are making fucktons of money and of course, that's all they care about.
They will continue with their strategy, with more films/tie-ins, they'll keep plugging away for that GaaS hit and milking that 30% plus all the trash horse armour they make millions from.
They will continue with their strategy, with more films/tie-ins, they'll keep plugging away for that GaaS hit and milking that 30% plus all the trash horse armour they make millions from.
SplunkyMunkey
Member
Probably be wise to buy more studios. If EA or Microsoft decide to sell studios then sony should put on an offer for the studios and the associated ips.. to booster there current studios they have until the next jabroni comes along
veterangamerUK
Member
They've spent the last five years like the South Park cable guys episode rubbing their exposed nipples, what's going to change?
Fluffytheterrible
Member
More flops like Concord, more arrogant Sony
Mephisto40
Member
Klayzer
Member
Bingo. The only people preaching gloom and doom, is primarily Xbox focused.
midnightAI
Member
Well MS isn't really competition any more and they canned a load of GAAS games, so they are self correcting (slowly)
I never really understood this whole 'arrogant' rhetoric around Sony, you want arrogant, that's certainly more MS than Sony (not sure if it's an American leadership thing, but Apple and MS are quite similar in that regard)
Killer8
Member
I do not get this idea that Sony will become awful without Xbox on the scene. Xbox hasn't been a serious competitor since the 360 days. Aside from Sony needing to fight to keep COD on PlayStation (which was always going to happen if MS wanted to make any money post-acquisition), Xbox have been completely irrelevant this gen.
Sony have the final boss of competition in the form of Nintendo, plus a constant threat of players moving out of their ecosystem and fully embracing PC. I'd view Valve as a much bigger competitor if their rumored Steam Machines 2.0 turn out as well as the Steam Deck has. I would not be surprised if Sony turns more protectionist and the releases on PC dry up once they see how they can be ran on other devices competing directly in the same spaces as PlayStation. Yeah it's great I can run God of War on a Steam Deck, but how will that dynamic change when Sony are trying to sell you a PlayStation 6 Portable?
Some people might moan that this gen has been the worst ever, where are the games blah blah. Xbox had little bearing on this and the majority of those issues have been internally driven ie. the folly of pursuing live service and needing to push reset on half a dozen teams' output this gen.
Sony have the final boss of competition in the form of Nintendo, plus a constant threat of players moving out of their ecosystem and fully embracing PC. I'd view Valve as a much bigger competitor if their rumored Steam Machines 2.0 turn out as well as the Steam Deck has. I would not be surprised if Sony turns more protectionist and the releases on PC dry up once they see how they can be ran on other devices competing directly in the same spaces as PlayStation. Yeah it's great I can run God of War on a Steam Deck, but how will that dynamic change when Sony are trying to sell you a PlayStation 6 Portable?
Some people might moan that this gen has been the worst ever, where are the games blah blah. Xbox had little bearing on this and the majority of those issues have been internally driven ie. the folly of pursuing live service and needing to push reset on half a dozen teams' output this gen.
Last edited:
PeteBull
Gold Member
Think of sony in console space w/o any other competition like u think of avg western modern woman- rude and ratchet as hell, requires her man to be literal james bond with a soul of an artist, her bodycount is higher from john wick's at the end of the 4th movie- she stopped counting many years ago anyways, argumentative, overweight/obese, 0 relationship/longterm value and 0 wifey qualities.
Lets just say it wont be a pretty sight nor good experience for the user and any sane guy at most will do is pump and dump only
There is a reason best aka 6th generation of consoles was durning ps2/og xbox/dreamcast/gcn- tons of competition so every platform holder had to put in max effort to compete for our time and money.
Imagine durning that time sony came up with most(to not say all) their games going woke, GAAS initiative instead of focusing on their singleplayer games, started porting their games to pc and raised console prices instead of dropping them hard over the lifespan of the console, none of that shit would even be born in Sony's CEO's minds not to mention proudly announced/implemented.
Lets just say it wont be a pretty sight nor good experience for the user and any sane guy at most will do is pump and dump only
There is a reason best aka 6th generation of consoles was durning ps2/og xbox/dreamcast/gcn- tons of competition so every platform holder had to put in max effort to compete for our time and money.
Imagine durning that time sony came up with most(to not say all) their games going woke, GAAS initiative instead of focusing on their singleplayer games, started porting their games to pc and raised console prices instead of dropping them hard over the lifespan of the console, none of that shit would even be born in Sony's CEO's minds not to mention proudly announced/implemented.
The_Mike
I cry about SonyGaf from my chair in Redmond, WA
I am curious.
When and why was Sony arrogant in the first place?
When did they stop being arrogant? What is your reason behind this?
And why is Arrogant Sony Back? What makes them arrogant this time around compared to before?
Shubh_C63
Member
Like how well Xbox Series S sold comparatively and how game prices, development and free to use income is getting harder, I really really think Sony will make a super cheap 'gimped' version of the PS6 and do the same tactic MS did with Series S and X.
RetroGamingUK
Banned
They must be really rubbing their hands at the prospect of GTA VI boosting console and game sales with zero competition.
No way they drop console prices until that starts to fizzle out.
No way they drop console prices until that starts to fizzle out.
Last edited:
BlackTron
Member
Major Publisher Abandons Steam Deck
EA drops support for Steam Deck, leaving fans frustrated. Learn why this decision matters for portable gaming and cross-platform innovation.www.geeky-gadgets.com
Those kinda boxes that can't play the most popular games?
He jokingly said "ASUS ROG BlastBOX Z1" implying a future solution running Steam, not just Linux steam boxes available today that are weak and can't run anti-cheat. Those EA games still run on Steam you know, they just aren't Deck-verified by EA.
Last edited:
Hector Hall
Member
They aren't firing anyone, they will come back with a consolized PC and rebranding Games for Windows as Xbox PC.
DarkShadowXI
Gold Member
And if "steamboxes" gain mainstream attraction, 3rd party publishers would certainly start supporting it more.
yurinka
Member
Pretty much like the current generation where Xbox hasn't been relevant.
Nah, they'll continue the one they already have:
- To continue expanding 1st party teams, making some new acquisitions to better approach new audiences (expanding to relevant new regions, game subgenres, age ranges, platforms not properly appealed right now by 1st party)
- To continue expanding off-PS games, making a push to grow on mobile after they completed the initial PC push
- To continue improving and growing their game sub, pretty likely expanding it to PC and mobile once they have enough presence there
- To continue improving their accesories side, pretty likely this time pretty likely making a PS Player next gen successor that runs games natively to start fighting Nintendo directly again
- To continue iterating hardware every generation, next gen making a special effort in RT and AI related improvements
I think that as top teller teams like Rockstar, Bungie, Naughty Dog start releasing their first current gen only games we'll see a bigger than usual influx of PS5 late adopters who migrate from PS4 to PS5 later than usual.
If the upcoming Sony handheld ends running PS5 games we'll see another important bump. Their partnerships with Chinese, Koreans, Indian teams are also going to help them to slowly continue growing in these countries.
One of the main reasons of why some people migrate from PS4 to PS5 so late is because they're still engaged there with GaaS and the gamesub. This gen GaaS and gamesub are even more successful, so I think players on average will migrate from PS5 to PS6 even later.
I assume games will stop being PS4/PS5 crossgen around the same time they'll start being crossgen PS5/PS6, and this time we literally we may see all PS6 gen being mandated to be PS5/PS6 crossgen.
AAA games take longer to be made every generation, so games that started to be developed as PS5 games will release very late in the generation.
Everything combined, I think PS5 will have the longest life of any PS console, lasting pretty likely until even beyond the PS7 release.
MS has been pretty irrelevant this and the previous generation, Sony kept doing their own strategy not caring a lot about what the competition was doing. Sony basically kept improving and growing all its areas, something they'll continue doing.
Won't affect them, they will continue growing both as usual, and like the rest of their areas.
I think it's a very complicated market, and at the same time very small for the giants who could afford the money to properly compete wouldn't want to spend the time and effort that would take to build a proper 1st party team good enough to compete (not just a money thing, MS spent almost $100B on acquisitions and didn't achieve it having 2 decades of experiene) and also to appeal all the 3rd parties to support them.
Whoever that new player is would already need to have an insanely big AAA/AA userbase and library. There's only two players with that: Steam (who tried and failed to become relevant with their 'consoles') and Tencent (who has their gaming business diversified across all platforms and wouldn't make sense to them to limit it to a single one, they would stop making most of their money).
I think there won't be a new high end console competitor. We'll see instead Sony, having conquered that market, later will go and start to compete more directly in the PC space against Steam and in the portable consoles against Nintendo, plus start a push to expand in mobile.
PS and Nintendo are breaking record, of course they will releasing new generations of consoles. The industry will continue evolving as it evolved generation after generation and trends will continue:
- Full game sales will continue moving from physical to digital until eventually real physical sales eventually die (outside collector editions, digital codes in a box or card etc)
- Game revenue will continue migrating from full game sales to gamesubs and specially addons until it reaches a certain point where it will stop decreasing its percentage and keeps as a steady and solid small niche
- As gamedev costs continue to increase every generation, they'll need to be more multiplatform
- As consequence of this, we'll see digital storefronts evolving more multiplatform agnostic gaming ecosystems
- As consequence of these two things and also the convergence in hardware and game engines, PC, home consoles, portable consoles, mobile and cloud will continue converging
- VR and specially cloud will continue to slowly evolve and grow but will continue being a small niche portion of the market
- TVs never will have the horsepower needed to run high end games, and cloud gaming never (due to high speed internet coverage, not because of the cloud gaming tech) will cover a big enough portion of the world to be really mainstream. Many people will want to continue wanting to play with a gamepad on a big tv, not in the desktop with a PC or in a handheld or startphone. So there will be the need for home consoles. And will want to play non-touchscreen games with proper controls, so the need for portable consoles will continue too. Even if home and portable consoles evolve and end running PC and mobile games, or end having PC or mobile OS, they'll continue getting new generations and will continue having a PSN and Nintendo shop and games. Even if in the long term Nintendo may stop making their own devices and focus instead on becoming a multiplatform publisher and run their own hardware agnostic digital ecosystem like the ones Sony, MS, Valve and pretty likely Google, Amazon, Tencent and Apple will have before them.
Steam machines (home console versions of the 'steamboxes') didn't work. Their portable version (Steamdeck and similar) are having a pretty weak start. I assume that with the help of the Xbox brand and library will have a small push, but nothing relevant.
AAA / AA devs will continue focusing on Steam and PSN as usual considering these consolized PCs just a small niche subsection within the PC market that won't be worth much specific attention or efforts.
I think this market of consolized PCs in both home console and portable console shape will slowly grow over time specially if they manage to bring down the pricing to make it more comparable to normal consoles (something difficult because these OEM manufacturers don't sell games, so they can't sell the hardware at a loss to subsidize it selling games and subs), but will continue being irrelevant minimum during a generation or two more compared to normal PS and Nintendo consoles or compared to desktop+laptop PCs.
The portable ones will also need to notably reduce their size and weight plus increase the battery duration time to become mainstream.
Still, I think they'll slowly grow. But I think Sony will continue dominant and growing their market share. Not only as the only real player of home consoles, but also will start growing in PC and portable consoles market, and years later in mobile.
Last edited:
Shifty1897
Member
You've seen what PlayStation looks like without Xbox around. Just look at PlayStation since 2020.
Tiago Rodrigues
Member
And even that 2nd half of the generation is a stretch.
Honestly Xbox was doing all the right things from 2002 until Kinect was a thing. Yes, i truly believe the first Xbox was amazing and they had the right people behind it. But the PS2 was just too big. Still the foundation was there.
Sooner
Member
Because Microsoft is currently keeping Sony in check with the low priced $650 and $800 Xbox Series X consoles?
Last edited:
Fbh
Gold Member
Xbox has been such a weak competitor for so long that I doubt much will change.
Moving forward you'll see the same approach as this gen: More expensive hardware, less price drops, 1-2 first party exclusives a year, occasional Ps+ price hikes and a lack of consumer friendliness in regards to things like refunds or region changes.
Moving forward you'll see the same approach as this gen: More expensive hardware, less price drops, 1-2 first party exclusives a year, occasional Ps+ price hikes and a lack of consumer friendliness in regards to things like refunds or region changes.
schaft0620
Member
The difference is going to be 2 yearly exclusives plus or minus 1 smaller or multiplayer game.
I believe their intention at one point was to have 4 games per year (2021-pre-layoffs).
If you look at the studio closures and the layoffs, they gutted their output by about 50%.
I agreed with you up until they canceled all of the MP games. I think they are trying to get back to who they were at the end of last gen.
I believe their intention at one point was to have 4 games per year (2021-pre-layoffs).
If you look at the studio closures and the layoffs, they gutted their output by about 50%.
I agreed with you up until they canceled all of the MP games. I think they are trying to get back to who they were at the end of last gen.
Last edited:
DeepEnigma
Gold Member
Sony knows the PC is a viable alternative, especially as consoles start to tickle the entry level of PC gaming builds in pricing.
DarkShadowXI
Gold Member
For sure, my friends kids aged 10-14 all have or want gaming PCs.
Hector Hall
Member
Mmm, PS6 Orion if the latest rumours are to be believed, seems to be a big upgrade. With Cerny at the drive seat don't have any doubts it will be powerful and balanced.
TheChumpNation
Member
mostly the same, but slightly less consumer friendly than they already are
deriks
4-Time GIF/Meme God
Not really
Even thou it sold well, I guess that Japan bought more because of Monster Hunter while US was more into GTA. Still, people never really attached to it. There was no comparison with Pokémon or other tittle to have this level of love for the console
Vita came after having the same problems that PS3 had when it was first launched. A shit ton of new gimmicky stuff, when everyone just asked for better hardware and a second analog. Also, charging a lot for a memory stick when SD cards were a rule for a while?! Not a great plan
DeepEnigma
Gold Member
Reizo Ryuu
Member
DarkShadowXI
Gold Member
You know, speaking of that, it genuinely surprised me when Sony designed the PS5 in such a way that we could easily upgrade the SSD ourselves.
deriks
4-Time GIF/Meme God
Me too. I really thought that they would put soldered, or maybe hard to do the change, or even a proprietary-but-not-really SSD. It would be the dumbest idea ever...
...I'm looking at you, Xbox
Roman Empire
Member
I hope it ends up with more games. This gen has been all bark and no bite.
digdug2
Member
I don't think the current landscape really changes all that much, unfortunately. Sony does all their shit in a vacuum these days because they haven't seen MS as a legitimate threat since the day before the 2013 E3 announcement. MS had ALL the fucking goodwill until they announced the XB1- "No X360 backward compatibility and it's going to need to always be online! Fuck you if you wanted to ever buy/sell a used game at GameStop again. But hey, it doubles as a cable box!" It's literally been an uphill battle for them since (partly because they've made every stupid fucking decision a company could make, see: Xbox Series S).
methane47
Member
without Xbox? I think we would all be worse off. PS3's failure with the Cell processor was probably the best thing for the indie game scene. PS4 moving towards a more normal architecture most likely made making games easier for everyone all around.
PS would have also been in full ego mode and the PS5 would have likely been 1200 USD and PSN would be garbage with no consolidated user /friend management
PS would have also been in full ego mode and the PS5 would have likely been 1200 USD and PSN would be garbage with no consolidated user /friend management
PeteBull
Gold Member
Fuck therapy tbh, at least for men talking about their problems never does anything, gym/training in any kind of sport or even just a hike/trip with ur buddies gonna not only help lots more but will be cheaper from woke miss therapist who has her own therapist too
You need therapy bruv, like really, whoever hurt you this badly isn't worth it.
And yeh, im a guy, ofc i got hurt a lot, we dont live life on ez mode like women, on a positive side overcoming difficulties makes ppl more masculine, which is attractive if u are a man, and very unatractive if u are a woman
Reizo Ryuu
Member
you just can't help yourself, big sign you truly do need therapy bruv.
genuinely hope you get to improve your mental health.
saintjules
Gold Member
Did an AI chat, but I too wondered about it:
Exclusive Titles and Ecosystem Control: Sony is known for securing highly popular exclusive games and content for PlayStation, which can be seen as a way to dominate the market and limit consumer choice. Critics may interpret this as arrogance or a desire to maintain a monopoly.
Marketing and Communication: At times, Sony's marketing campaigns or public statements about PlayStation's superiority or technological innovations have come across as confident or boastful, leading some to see them as arrogant.
Business Strategies: Sony's approach to pricing, platform policies, or handling of competition (like rivals Xbox or Nintendo) can sometimes be perceived as dismissive or overly assertive, fueling perceptions of arrogance
Early 2000s – PlayStation 2 Dominance: During the PlayStation 2 era, Sony's strong market position and marketing strategies led to some perceptions of arrogance, especially as they emphasized their market dominance over competitors like Xbox and GameCube.
2006 – PlayStation 3 Launch: The high price and initial marketing approach of the PS3 were viewed by some as out of touch or overly confident, which hurt early sales and led to criticism.
2013 – PlayStation 4 Reveal: When Sony announced the PS4 with a focus on gamer-friendly policies, some critics interpreted their confident tone and messaging as arrogance, especially in comparison to Xbox's policies at the time.
Post-2018 – Exclusive Content and Corporate Messaging: As Sony secured major exclusive titles and made strategic business decisions (like the controversial focus on digital sales or platform exclusivity), some fans and media outlets again described Sony as "arrogant" or overly confident.
DryvBy
Member
I just priced out a PC I wanted and $799 is a steal if it's better. That's less than the majority of the video cards I looked at!
digdug2
Member
In this current economy, prices on everything are sky-rocketing... Look at what MS tried to raise Xbox Series X prices to in the US! These clowns actually thought people would pay $649+ tax for a 5 year old system (that started at $500 in 2020). What a joke.
PeteBull
Gold Member
U srsly genuinely think woman is able to help a man with anything about their life experience? Using gaming analogy its like person who beat game on easiest difficulty using S-tier class/build tried to give advice to some1 playing on hardest difficulty with D-tier class/build, it never works. Spoilers- most women cant even emphasise/imagine how hard men's life actually is- not to mention giving useful advice to a man in needyou just can't help yourself, big sign you truly do need therapy bruv.
genuinely hope you get to improve your mental health.
LavitzSlambert
Member
It'll be more expensive, probably with less/worse content, but they won't get rid of it anytime soon. Not while there are as many subscribers as there are.
Reizo Ryuu
Member
StereoVsn
Gold Member
PeteBull
Gold Member
U started quoting me and getting triggered, so who has problem here?whatever you say bruv.
Again, I hope you get better.
Truth about avg modern western woman had to hurt u tons to get so defensive and going personal on me, i dont even know why coz if u are a guy living in western country u definitely know i was right since u experience those women on a daily basis