Opinion: What to expect for Playstation 5 and Xbox Series X
2020 is shaping up to be the most expensive year for gamers in the past few years. Not only is the release of a lot of large-budget projects expected, but also the main console platform holders promise to release Next-Gen consoles. Of course, you can always buy Playstation 5 and Xbox Series X, but not everyone can afford such a set, and often the choice stops on one console. Therefore, today I propose to think a little about the price of the Playstation 5 and Xbox Series X. If the launch of past console generations was to teach Sony and Microsoft anything, it is the importance of the price tag of a game console for console gaming fans. At the same time, oddly enough, both console manufacturers managed to stumble painfully with their pricing policy. The Playstation 3 is still a fresh example, which in 2006 offered a number of innovations, such as a Blu-ray drive and the high-tech Cell process, but did not find a wide response among buyers at launch due to the impressive $ 599 price tag. Released a year earlier, the Xbox 360 retailed for $ 299- $ 399 depending on the model, making Microsoft's device a much more preferable purchase. In this console generation, Sony clearly took into account the mistakes and in 2013 offered the Playstation 4 for $ 399, which was clearly better than the decision of competitors to release the Xbox One for $ 499. The bottom line, you yourself probably know - PS4 instantly became a hit of sales and for 6 years has been leaving the American console in the position of catching up. 106 million Playstation 4 consoles sold versus about 50 from a competitor (note that Microsoft has not officially disclosed sales data for several years) at the beginning of 2020, which is the best evidence of the initially correct policy of Sony.  Of course, the increased price tag and the obligatory kitting of the Xbox One with kinekt is not the only mistake Microsoft made at the start of the Xbox One, but obviously the cost played an important role in the choice of the console, with other more or less equal features of the consoles. It is logical to assume that the release of the new console will be marked by the most democratic cost of the Xbox Series X, so as not to give the competitor unnecessary reasons to dominate the game console market. The same price with Playstation 5 is the most optimal solution for a device from Microsoft and, taking into account the success of Playstation 4, it is possible to stop at the cost of both consoles around $ 399, if not for one "but". Advertising campaign for Playstation 5 and Xbox Series X is promoting the new consoles as high-tech devices with performance comparable to high-end build computers. Top devices with hardware support for ray-tracing technology, resolutions up to 8K, 120 FPS and the presence of an SSD drive. You need to try very hard to fit all the stated technical features into the $ 399 price tag. At the same time, selling consoles at a loss is standard practice for platform owners.  Such a story has already happened with PS4 and PS3, which, even taking into account the high price, could not beat back the costs of production processes and components. In the first year, platform holders usually make money selling content for consoles, and only after reducing the cost of components and automating production, each game console sold begins to make a profit. In the case of the Playstation 3, the console began to make a profit only after 4 years, when the final cost of the console finally exceeded the cost price. Playstation 4 had to wait only six months to achieve such results. Therefore, after the release date of the Playstation 5 and Xbox Series 5, we will not be surprised if the consoles cost less than a self-assembled PC with similar characteristics, that is, with a Zen 2-based processor, a 12 teraflops Navi graphics core and an SSD hard drive. 1 TB. But still there should be a certain limit in the amount of losses from each sold console, and if the promises of Sony, together with Microsoft, are confirmed and we get devices with top-end hardware, the expected price of Playstation 5 and Xbox Series X could stop at $ 499. Slightly higher than the standard $ 399 for this generation, but still reasonably affordable for the mainstream consumer. The equal price is also confirmed by numerous insiders claiming that both consoles will provide comparable hardware.  On the other hand, you shouldn't dismiss the rumor about Xbox Lockhart - the youngest model of the new generation console from Microsoft. According to last year's insights, the company is preparing two consoles with different power and price tags for the start of the next-gene. Considering this situation, the Xbox Series X could be priced at $ 499, while the weaker model will ship to stores for $ 100 less, allowing Microsoft to satisfy customer requests for the console at the most affordable cost. The price of PlayStation 5 and the new console from Microsoft is built from numerous factors and at this stage it is quite difficult to predict at which price tag companies will stop. Taking into account the experience of past generations, the price of $ 399 looks the most optimal, but $ 499 is also a realistic option, if manufacturers do not save on components and provide the most real Next-Gen in every sense. Of course, it is possible that the cost of one set-top box will be higher than the competitor, but in order to convince buyers of the advisability of buying an expensive set-top box, you should try hard and it is not a fact that such a decision will pay off, especially given the unpleasant experience of Microsoft and Sony in past generations.  The only option that seems least realistic is the starting price of a Playstation 5 or Xbox Series X in the region of $ 599. It is unlikely that any company will decide on such a suicidal venture and will first of all look closely at the competitor's pricing policy. The prospect of selling the console at a loss in the early years seems bleak, but it can more than pay off by gradually reducing the cost of production and selling to gamers on the console both their own and multi-platform games. And finally, some thoughts on what to expect the cost of PS5 and Xbox Series X in USA. If the exchange rate of the ruble against the dollar and the euro remains at the current level and the situation similar to 2014 does not repeat, then the expected price of the new generation consoles may be about 30,000 rubles at an original cost of $ 399 and 40,000 rubles at an original cost of $ 499. For comparison, we can recall the starting cost of the Playstation 4 Pro (29 thousand rubles) and Xbox One X (39.9 thousand rubles) with the original cost of 399 and 499 dollars, respectively. If you decide to buy a Playstation 5, we suggest reading our material, in which we review changes to Sony's policy regarding games exclusive to Playstation consoles. The Topic of Article: Opinion: What to expect for Playstation 5 and Xbox Series X. |
