Gamers whose allegiance lies with either the PlayStation or the Xbox systems have had to endure a seven-year wait before any new console releases, unprecedented in an industry so reliant on the success of the next freshest game or gadget.
Their prayers were answered last month — and, indeed, just in time for the holiday season — with the launches of Sony’s PlayStation 4 and Microsoft’s Xbox One, two consoles boasting that they usher in a new generation in gaming.
Since the 2001 release of the Xbox, Sony and Microsoft have competed for a bigger slice of the video game market.
In recent years that market has evolved. Smartphones and tablets present new ways to game and socialize beyond the tried and true plug and play mechanics of the console. Even more, the health of the industry now hinges like never before on the success of the blockbuster game titles — the Call of Duty franchise, for instance.
Yet when it comes to console gaming, Microsoft and Sony remain kings. (Nintendo's new system, Wii U, released last year, should not be ignored, though, as it has found a niche.)
PlayStation 4 and Xbox One both offer unique gaming experiences, and for the gamer debating which "next-gen" console to purchase, the decision has never been harder.
"They are both very close this time," said Jamie York, owner of Framingham’s Game Underground. "When PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360 came out, it was easier to form an opinion on which one you liked better."
So far, sales — apart from reflecting just how thirsty gamers were during the console drought — show the two developers are close, though not neck and neck, out of the gate.
When it launched in North America on Nov. 15, Sony sold 1 million PlayStation 4 systems, which retail for $399, in 24 hours.
Seven days later, Microsoft released Xbox One, retailing for $499, in 13 countries, selling 1.19 million units in the first 48 hours, according to VGChartz, a website that tracks video game and console sales.
To date, PlayStation 4 has sold 2.1 million units worldwide. Foe Microsoft has sold 2 million consoles worldwide and since launch has averaged more than 100,000 units sold per day.
York, who has worked in the industry for 14 years, said he does not expect sales to slow this winter.
"In my experience, systems like this have tended to stay sold out until the spring," he said. "Stores will get them in, and they’ll sell out.
"I don’t think any systems are sitting on shelves," he added.
One of the common problems for consoles at launch is the high price of the systems themselves and the lack of available games, York said. In this case, the PlayStation 4 and Xbox One are the most expensive systems to have ever been released, he said.
As far as games go, each console shares about 20 multiplatform titles — such as Battlefield 4 and Call of Duty: Ghosts — meaning there are versions available for both.
On the PlayStation 4, there are two console exclusive games, while Xbox One has rolled out four. York prefers the Microsoft exclusives, such as Dead Rising 3, a zombie shooter that plays like so many action scenes in the television series "The Walking Dead."
Both consoles tout new operating systems and revamped controllers. And both have online play.
But from there, they diverge slightly.
Critics have said that the PS4 is built for gamers, from the causal to the hardcore. Specifically, they have lavished praise on the controller, called the DualShock 4, calling it a major step up from the previous version and molded perfectly for gaming.
On the other hand, Xbox One, even as it is a game system at heart, also appeals to people who rarely, if ever, pick up a controller.
Fran Mirabella III, an editor at IGN.com, a website that covers the gaming industry, described Xbox One as "at odds with itself," trying to reach "beyond the traditional gamer, to the vast expanse of people that spend more time watching Netflix, Hulu Plus, or Amazon Prime on game consoles than they do playing."
Mikael Jakobsson, a research scientist at the Massachusetts Institute of technology’s Game Lab, said this speaks to Microsoft and Sony’s acknowledging the different ways people consume media today.
"Both developers have been thinking about what to do with what they call the ‘second screen,’" Jakobsson said, referring to those ubiquitous smartphones and tablets. "Media consumption is changing: We are not just watching the big TV in the living room anymore."
Tantamount to their effort, he said, is "integrating other forms of media consumption into the systems."
The Xbox One can serve as a hands-free remote control for your television, allowing a gamer to watch TV while playing or surfing the web.
"You can watch baseball while keeping track of your fantasy team," Jakobsson said. "Xbox really tried to make this system a media a hub. Microsoft has always been trying to conquer the living room — they own the office already."
PlayStation 4 also takes advantage of the "share everything" mindset of the digital age. Jakobsson said the console’s controller has a "share" button that lets you "take a picture, save a film, or live stream what’s on your screen and what your camera is filming."
Asked to assess both systems, Jakobsson said that the developers might have finally reached the limits of innovation — at least for the time being.
"Of course the consoles are getting incrementally stronger and better in everyway, but the direct impact that has on what kind of games you can make is diminishing," he said. "We are at a point where it’s hard to make the graphics look that much more spectacular. We have the processing power we need to do some pretty amazing things already."
Matt Tota can be reached at 508-634-7521 or [email protected].
Their prayers were answered last month — and, indeed, just in time for the holiday season — with the launches of Sony’s PlayStation 4 and Microsoft’s Xbox One, two consoles boasting that they usher in a new generation in gaming.
Since the 2001 release of the Xbox, Sony and Microsoft have competed for a bigger slice of the video game market.
In recent years that market has evolved. Smartphones and tablets present new ways to game and socialize beyond the tried and true plug and play mechanics of the console. Even more, the health of the industry now hinges like never before on the success of the blockbuster game titles — the Call of Duty franchise, for instance.
Yet when it comes to console gaming, Microsoft and Sony remain kings. (Nintendo's new system, Wii U, released last year, should not be ignored, though, as it has found a niche.)
PlayStation 4 and Xbox One both offer unique gaming experiences, and for the gamer debating which "next-gen" console to purchase, the decision has never been harder.
"They are both very close this time," said Jamie York, owner of Framingham’s Game Underground. "When PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360 came out, it was easier to form an opinion on which one you liked better."
So far, sales — apart from reflecting just how thirsty gamers were during the console drought — show the two developers are close, though not neck and neck, out of the gate.
When it launched in North America on Nov. 15, Sony sold 1 million PlayStation 4 systems, which retail for $399, in 24 hours.
Seven days later, Microsoft released Xbox One, retailing for $499, in 13 countries, selling 1.19 million units in the first 48 hours, according to VGChartz, a website that tracks video game and console sales.
To date, PlayStation 4 has sold 2.1 million units worldwide. Foe Microsoft has sold 2 million consoles worldwide and since launch has averaged more than 100,000 units sold per day.
York, who has worked in the industry for 14 years, said he does not expect sales to slow this winter.
"In my experience, systems like this have tended to stay sold out until the spring," he said. "Stores will get them in, and they’ll sell out.
"I don’t think any systems are sitting on shelves," he added.
One of the common problems for consoles at launch is the high price of the systems themselves and the lack of available games, York said. In this case, the PlayStation 4 and Xbox One are the most expensive systems to have ever been released, he said.
As far as games go, each console shares about 20 multiplatform titles — such as Battlefield 4 and Call of Duty: Ghosts — meaning there are versions available for both.
On the PlayStation 4, there are two console exclusive games, while Xbox One has rolled out four. York prefers the Microsoft exclusives, such as Dead Rising 3, a zombie shooter that plays like so many action scenes in the television series "The Walking Dead."
Both consoles tout new operating systems and revamped controllers. And both have online play.
But from there, they diverge slightly.
Critics have said that the PS4 is built for gamers, from the causal to the hardcore. Specifically, they have lavished praise on the controller, called the DualShock 4, calling it a major step up from the previous version and molded perfectly for gaming.
On the other hand, Xbox One, even as it is a game system at heart, also appeals to people who rarely, if ever, pick up a controller.
Fran Mirabella III, an editor at IGN.com, a website that covers the gaming industry, described Xbox One as "at odds with itself," trying to reach "beyond the traditional gamer, to the vast expanse of people that spend more time watching Netflix, Hulu Plus, or Amazon Prime on game consoles than they do playing."
Mikael Jakobsson, a research scientist at the Massachusetts Institute of technology’s Game Lab, said this speaks to Microsoft and Sony’s acknowledging the different ways people consume media today.
"Both developers have been thinking about what to do with what they call the ‘second screen,’" Jakobsson said, referring to those ubiquitous smartphones and tablets. "Media consumption is changing: We are not just watching the big TV in the living room anymore."
Tantamount to their effort, he said, is "integrating other forms of media consumption into the systems."
The Xbox One can serve as a hands-free remote control for your television, allowing a gamer to watch TV while playing or surfing the web.
"You can watch baseball while keeping track of your fantasy team," Jakobsson said. "Xbox really tried to make this system a media a hub. Microsoft has always been trying to conquer the living room — they own the office already."
PlayStation 4 also takes advantage of the "share everything" mindset of the digital age. Jakobsson said the console’s controller has a "share" button that lets you "take a picture, save a film, or live stream what’s on your screen and what your camera is filming."
Asked to assess both systems, Jakobsson said that the developers might have finally reached the limits of innovation — at least for the time being.
"Of course the consoles are getting incrementally stronger and better in everyway, but the direct impact that has on what kind of games you can make is diminishing," he said. "We are at a point where it’s hard to make the graphics look that much more spectacular. We have the processing power we need to do some pretty amazing things already."
Matt Tota can be reached at 508-634-7521 or [email protected].