Sony’s ‘Anti-Consumer’ PS5 Exclusives are its Best Bet Against Xbox
Sony is sticking to the tried-and-tested after honing its strategy from the original 1994 PlayStation - and it's working. | Source: Shutterstock.com
- Sony’s recent practices are being touted as “anti-consumer.”
- PlayStation is a business designed to make money. Exclusivity is how they do that.
- In a world where Xbox offers everything under the sun, Sony needs to provide something unique.
Despite the platform coming out on top with 112 million sales this generation , players are starting to turn against Sony and PlayStation as we enter the next era of hardware.
Tradition vs. Innovation
Taking a traditional path into the PlayStation 5, Sony has announced features like exclusive games, content, and even that the DualShock 4 won’t work with PlayStation 5 games.
This has left some fans enraged, especially considering Microsoft’s consumer-friendly approach to next-gen.
But Xbox is the exact reason PlayStation needs to stay traditional. It’s the only way to compete.
Let’s get real. With Game Pass, xCloud, and availability on the Xbox Series X, Xbox One X, and PC, Microsoft’s platform is the place for third-party titles.
Where does that leave Sony? Doing its best to offer exclusive content.
Xbox is the reason Spider-Man is locked to the PlayStation version of Avengers. Microsoft’s accessibility initiative is why you need a new controller to play on the PlayStation 5. Sony needs the money to keep funding its big exclusives.
Games this pretty are anything but cheap. | Source: PlayStation Microsoft is one of the biggest companies in the world. It can afford to pay Game Pass developers much like the Epic Store can buy game exclusivity. Sony can’t or won’t do the same. It needs to fund powerhouse exclusives like The Last of Us Part 2.
Xbox doesn’t care if you buy an Xbox. Sony needs to sell you its PlayStation. The former can afford to sell fewer consoles as long as you buy into its ecosystem. Sony doesn’t have that opportunity. You can be damn sure it’ll do anything to get you to buy a PlayStation 5.
Sony Isn’t ‘Anti-Consumer’
Sony is sticking to tradition while Xbox is reinventing the industry. Amazingly, the Halo creator is putting itself back in gamer’s good graces while making Sony look bad for keeping things the same.
At least on the surface.
To call Sony anti-consumer is merely wrong. PlayStation is a brand designed to make money, and providing unique content is their way to do it. While Microsoft is offering variety, Sony is doubling down on production.
There’s a reason we don’t see titles with sky-high production values like Ghost of Tsushima, Bloodborne, or The Last of Us on Xbox. Microsoft is spending that money on studios, on Game Pass, on new tech. Sony is spending it on games. Games that will sell you on its next big box.
Video: A Majority of Players Prefer the PlayStation 5
Providing a grand experience is anything but anti-consumer. It’s ensuring users get their worth out of an investment.
This approach worked for PlayStation 4. Why fix what isn’t broken, with the PlayStation 5?
