SONY, WE HAVE A PROBLEM.

     At the launch of the PS4, Sony capitalized on numerous mistakes and Xbox arrogance to completely obliterate their competition out the starting gate. The 2013 Xbox One launch, widely regarded as one of the worst ever with its misleading statements, terrible anti-consumer practices, and a horrible pricing/power combination (most expensive, least powerful). It took leadership change (Phil Spencer) and years of pro-consumer moves (Backwards Compatibility, Gamepass, Smart Delivery, etc.), studio acquisitions, and listening to feedback to regain support for the Xbox brand. While Xbox is in a way better position as of now heading into next gen, this gen really belonged to Sony.

     At the dawn of next gen (PS5/Xbox Series X & S), Sony is the one scrambling now. Their misleading statements about “believing in generations” (publicly criticizing cross-gen practice while silently engaging in the same strategy), having an absolutely disastrous console pre-order launch (with ZERO notice of times), bare minimal support for Backwards Compatibility (only PS4, while Xbox supports 3 previous gens), and an overall arrogant stance of “We’re Sony, deal with it.”, harkens back to the 2013 Xbox launch. You never want to go full 2013 Xbox, and yet, here Sony is doing the exact same thing.

     While Xbox may have “lost” this current gen, they are positioned beautifully to counter Sony and take home the crown this time. With a pro-consumer mindset, prioritization of console production, two different market options from which to choose, (Series X or Series S), and positive momentum from recently successful games, Xbox is poised to redeem themselves in the next generation. Sony can still right the ship, but the waters are pretty rocky right now.