How decisive will price be for the next gen console race?

[Cosmo Kramer]

We're close to knowing the pricing for next gen consoles, considering their history, previous gens and their hold on the market, how important do you think price will be in the race, in general, not just for you.

Do you think pricing is a big factor when people buy their consoles? How big a factor is it?

 

[Weebos]

It will probably be one of the biggest factors because of the global recession.

 

[FelipeMGM]

very decisive, as always

 

[disco_potato]

It's important if the difference between the consoles is substantial.

 

[Boy]

Giving the pandemic situation, i think the pricing will be very important this time around.

 

[zombiejames]

In the era of "ecosystems", I don't think it matters as much as people think. You could show someone who's knee-deep into Apple's ecosystem an Android phone that does 90% of what they need for a couple hundred dollars cheaper than an iPhone and they'll still pick the iPhone.

 

[Kouriozan]

Post pandemic and tons of people lost their jobs, yeah it's going to be tricky.
Stock will he low for this year anyway so it's going to sell out no matter what.

 

[Lord Fanny]

I mean, it's always the most decisive thing, I would say. If there's a big difference between Xbox Series X and PS5, like a $100 difference like last time, it will have an impact.

 

[BDS]

It will be important for casual audiences and families. But "what console my friends have" and exclusives will continue to be the most important factors for more hardcore players.

 

[Mercador]

Biggest factor. Multi platform games will be developped for the lowest specs so all it matters is the price.

 

[ThisIsBlitz21]

Very important, of course.

Its one of the huge reasons why the Wii and PS4 ran away with the lead in their generations.

 

[adj_noun]

Everybody's broke and out of work.

It's important.

 

[HanzSnubSnub]

In the world of era, it doesn't matter because gamers here tend to not care

In the real world, it's big deal especially with the current situation

 

[Expy]

IMO, not as important as last time around.

Probably less obvious because of COVID though.

 

[Cosmo Kramer]

I think it will be mildly important myself, but the world will be very different than the last time new consoles launched, i think both SONY and Microsoft don't expect to sell as many consoles at launch as they have in the past, i think more people will wait longer to make the jump to next gen. There are markets outside the US where XBOX as a brand is nonexistant so i'm not sure if people will just buy whatever Sony delivers even if it's more expensive.

It's a tricky situation for sure.

 

[Midgarian]

I honestly think irrelevant, because people have become accustomed to paying crazy prices for phones.

 

[qatak]

I think PS5 could get away with being $100 more than XSX and still win. The exclusives and marketing deals with Rockstar and Call of Duty are a big deal. I also can't wrap my head around XSX not launching with anything exclusive. I'll just play halo infinite on my One X and it'll be fine. Anybody else who wants into the ecosystem can grab a one X for around $200 these days.

 

[Deleted member 46804]

Brand loyal people will continue to buy their box of choice. People who buy both will continue to do so. The people who went from a 360 to PS5 and the people new to console ownership will be very sensitive to price.

 

[Governergrimm]

If someone tries to go for $600 they will be in for a rough time.

 

[Nolbertos]

The way Sony and MS are keeping so hush on this, it seems it means the world to them and could decide who stumbles quickly outta the gate. Xbox doesn't want a repeat of this gen again, so they're being more cautious and Sony well, seems they don't want another PS3 price fiasco either.

 

[Governergrimm]

Brand loyal people will continue to buy their box of choice. People who buy both will continue to do so. The people who went from a 360 to PS5 and the people new to console ownership will be very sensitive to price.

Click to shrink...

Yup.

 

[CharlesAznable]

COVID doesn't help but generally the people who buy consoles year one, are usually the most well off and financially insensitive people.

 

[Xiofire]

I think they will be either $499 or $549.

It won't be as drastic as the $399 vs $499 we saw last gen from a purely comparative standpoint so I voted not very important. Once again it comes down to software and power for a console to be successful.

But yeah, the world in disarray and many out of work might see this gen off to a slow start, regardless of the price difference between each machine.

 

[Fredrik]

Not very important. Where you have your digital games library and friends is what matters the most now. A long time Playstation fan won't swap to Xbox if it's $100 less.

 

[Damn Silly]

If there's a big gap, then it could be hugely important, particularly at launch.

 

[Wrexis]

I honestly think irrelevant, because people have become accustomed to paying crazy prices for phones.

Click to shrink...

True, but also: https://www.bbc.com/news/business-48110709

Note the date on the article, this is before Covid-19.

Releasing a $600 console in the middle of a recession might not be the best idea.

 

[disco_potato]

I think it will be mildly important myself, but the world will be very different than the last time new consoles launched, i think both SONY and Microsoft don't expect to sell as many consoles at launch as they have in the past, i think more people will wait longer to make the jump to next gen. There are markets outside the US where XBOX as a brand is nonexistant so i'm not sure if people will just buy whatever Sony delivers even if it's more expensive.

It's a tricky situation for sure.

Click to shrink...

In the OP you asked about price importance in terms of the console race itself. That tells me price disparity between consoles, if any, and the impact it would have on one side vs other.
Your own reply doesn't answer that question but instead answers how will consoles sales in general be affected by COVID.

 

[Deleted member 46804]

I think PS5 could get away with being $100 more than XSX and still win. The exclusives and marketing deals with Rockstar and Call of Duty are a big deal. I also can't wrap my head around XSX not launching with anything exclusive. I'll just play halo infinite on my One X and it'll be fine. Anybody else who wants into the ecosystem can grab a one X for around $200 these days.

Click to shrink...

If you want to play Xbox exclusives and don't own an Xbox, I think you will buy a XSX or Lockhart. People who own an Xbox right now are less likely to switch to a Sony console because all of the advantages the PS5 has wouldn't be different from the PS4. MS are happy to have you on the old platform because you will upgrade eventually to their new one and are still spending money on games and services. Sony are in a rush to get you over to their new platform because they gained the non brand loyal folks and don't want them switching, hence the PS5 exclusives to entice you to stay in their ecosystem.

 

[Windu]

Most consumers will probably just stick to what brand they use now, especially if they have a large digital catalog. A significantly lower price like a Xbox Series S at $350 might get some to buy into next gen earlier than they would have though.

 

[JeRzYzFyNeSt]

If the Ps5 price is higher then xbox im still going with the Ps5. Thats just me tho

 

[Manmademan]

Won't be a factor at all. Brand strength is more important and that's wildly lopsided in Sony's direction. Barring a completely absurd price point by Sony, price doesn't matter.

The ps3 launched at $599- $750 US in current dollars (that $499 model was rare as unicorns and could not be found by most gamers) and Sony still sold about 90 million units of the thing. Tied with the vastly cheaper 360 (despite one less year on sale) and only barely behind the drastically cheaper Wii. The ps5 is not going to be $750.

The Ps4 launched at $399, $100 less than the XBO, but by June Microsoft had price dropped the XBO and the two were at price parity.

The vast majority of both systems sold were moved when there was no price difference between the two platforms and launch pricing was a distant memory.

One COULD argue that bungling the launch might have poisoned the well for MS, but the truth is that the audience that actually buys these units does not pay attention at all to things like launch gaffes.

That might account for a few million units here or there, but we're looking at somewhere near a 60 million unit gap that will only get larger.

Much of the current audience is locked in to their platform of choice. Nobody wants to lose their purchased titles next gen. Nobody wants to start a friend's list from scratch. A $50 or $100 price difference will not move these people.

 

[qatak]

If you want to play Xbox exclusives and don't own an Xbox, I think you will buy a XSX or Lockhart. People who own an Xbox right now are less likely to switch to a Sony console because all of the advantages the PS5 has wouldn't be different from the PS4. MS are happy to have you on the old platform because you will upgrade eventually to their new one and are still spending money on games and services. Sony are in a rush to get you over to their new platform because they gained the non brand loyal folks and don't want them switching, hence the PS5 exclusives to entice you to stay in their ecosystem.

Click to shrink...

How sure are we that Lockhart even exists?

 

[Prine]

I think PS5 could get away with being $100 more than XSX and still win. The exclusives and marketing deals with Rockstar and Call of Duty are a big deal. I also can't wrap my head around XSX not launching with anything exclusive. I'll just play halo infinite on my One X and it'll be fine. Anybody else who wants into the ecosystem can grab a one X for around $200 these days.

Click to shrink...

Doubtful. At least in the Anglosphere. Also think if this was the case Sony would've announced the price by now (perhaps tomorrow).

 

[Deleted member 46804]

How sure are we that Lockhart even exists?

Click to shrink...

At this point the surprise would be that it doesn't.

 

[Suedemaker]

Like everyone else has said, pretty decisive. Even if [insert console] performs WAY better than [other console], being more expensive is a killer for the mass market.

For me personally? Not at all. Definitely getting a PS5 unless something goes horrifically wrong like $699 with exact PS4 Pro performance (inconsistencies and all) for PS4 games. Even that would just mean delaying my purchase. The Series X has a lot to prove to me. I plan on building a new PC when the new Ryzen CPU's and both sets of GPU's are out, and the one advantage the SX has is backwards compatibility. If they are able to get 30fps games to 60fps for the entire BC catalog they've already built up, it'll be hard to resist.

 

[thecaseace]

Irrelevant is the correct answer.

I think PS5 could get away with being $100 more than XSX and still win. The exclusives and marketing deals with Rockstar and Call of Duty are a big deal. I also can't wrap my head around XSX not launching with anything exclusive. I'll just play halo infinite on my One X and it'll be fine. Anybody else who wants into the ecosystem can grab a one X for around $200 these days.

Click to shrink...

This guy gets it. Sony's hardware lead and brand reach are far ahead of Microsoft's. Even if the PS5 is more expensive than the Series X it'll still outsell it.

As a previous poster touched on think about it this way: ecosystem lock-in is much like the smartphone market in a way, despite the fact the different smartphones are nearly identical, past iPhone users tend to stay using iPhones. Sony's brand in gaming is like Apple's brand in smartphones.

 

[Cosmo Kramer]

In the OP you asked about price importance in terms of the console race itself. That tells me price disparity between consoles, if any, and the impact it would have on one side vs other.
Your own reply doesn't answer that question but instead answers how will consoles sales in general be affected by COVID.

Click to shrink...

I said i think it'll be only mildly important, in the rest of my answer i was trying to say it harder than ever to judge before hand, maybe i didn't explain myself properly.

 

[c0Zm1c]

Maximum importance!

 

[Mik317]

important but only if someone loses their minds and pulls a PS3.

Both devices should sell out due to whores like me, enthusiasts, and of course scalpers. Recession is a big deal for sure but this gen lasted a nice ammount of time and I think a lot of the above is thirsty for new hardware....logic be damned.

The price stuff starts to become a bigger factor as demand levels out.

The real difference maker will be the new "experiences" each console has...thats going to keep the momentum early on. Killer Apps aren't a thing anymore but if someone has one, they will be ahead in the "race" so to speak. I think BOTW's yolo look at all the dumb shit I can do memes helped the Switch early on for example. IMO that type of "experience" is what Microsoft and Sony should be chasing

 

[Jiraiya]

I think it matters only if the two are far enough apart. If we weren't in a pandemic...i think 600 bucks would be ok if they both justified the tag.

 

[disco_potato]

I said i think it'll be only mildly important, in the rest of my answer i was trying to say it harder than ever to judge before hand, maybe i didn't explain myself properly.

Click to shrink...

No worries. I thought maybe I missed something cause the coffee hasn't kicked in yet.

 

[THEVOID]

For us, doesn't matter. For the mainstream it's everything.

 

[FTF]

If they're within $50 of each other, then only mildly important.

 

[Deleted member 63122]

important but only if someone loses their minds and pulls a PS3.

Both devices should sell out due to whores like me, enthusiasts, and of course scalpers. Recession is a big deal for sure but this gen lasted a nice ammount of time and I think a lot of the above is thirsty for new hardware....logic be damned.

The price stuff starts to become a bigger factor as demand levels out.

The real difference maker will be the new "experiences" each console has...thats going to keep the momentum early on. Killer Apps aren't a thing anymore but if someone has one, they will be ahead in the "race" so to speak. I think BOTW's yolo look at all the dumb shit I can do memes helped the Switch early on for example. IMO that type of "experience" is what Microsoft and Sony should be chasing

Click to shrink...

Switch also offered a whole new way to play, that and BOTW made the console desirable.

 

[Lobster Roll]

I know many people outside of the Era bubble that would leave Sony behind without a second thought if the XSX was $50 cheaper and came with a handful of months of Gamepass. I'd say that price is VERY important.

 

[Thatguy]

People will stay in their ecosystems mostly. We all want to signal that price is super important ($50 difference is my limit!!) but if all our friends get a certain platform then we have no choice. We also know what franchises we like. I also expect super cheap up front costs for new subscription services.

 

[The_R3medy]

Somewhat decisive, though messaging and games will be important as well. If every Xbox Series X, for example, also ships with 3 free months of Games Pass that is a savings for customers right up front on not having to immediately buy Halo Infinite.

The most important factor, as always, will be games. Software sells hardware.

 

[SuperFakerBros]

In-between each other, I don't think it'll matter too much, unless they're very significant, considering how much larger Sony's brand is compared to Microsoft's, but, in general, yeah, it'll no doubt have an impact. The corona-virus's impact on our economy will be felt for years. I can see sales earlier on being less than they otherwise would be because of it

 

[Wrexis]

I know many people outside of the Era bubble that would leave Sony behind without a second thought if the XSX was $50 cheaper and came with a handful of months of Gamepass. I'd say that price is VERY important.

Click to shrink...

This.

The PS3 took 6 years to beat the Xbox 360's sales. Anyone who thinks $599 had no part in that is crazy.

 

[bing]

Look at the past. Sony came out with the ps3 at $600, the 360 won. Xbox came out with the Xb1 at $500, the ps4 won. If Sony comes out with the ps5 at $500-600 and Xbox can beat that with the Series X and Lockhart, I'd say they have more than a fighting chance at winning this gen.