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There Are No Bad Console Choices This Holiday

There Are No Bad Console Choices This Holiday

The time has come to make a decision. Are you Team PlayStation or Team Xbox?

The gaming landscape has been turned upside down in recent weeks, as we’ve been inundated with sales and Black Friday deals out the yin-yang. Sony decided to forgo a huge price cut, instead opting to rely on the strength of its bundles (with the bundle including GTA V and a remastered copy of The Last of Us as the stand-out). Microsoft, on the other hand, immediately went for the throat by temporarily taking its prices to astronomical lows.

Thanksgiving weekend is coming up quickly, so the time is drawing ever closer when tough calls must be made. Which path will you choose? Are you going the Sony route, with its stronger market share and innovative services, or take a chance on Xbox and put your faith in Microsoft’s ability to turn things around in the coming years? Both options certainly have their merits. On the Xbox front, we’re already seeing a huge swell of support overseas. Due to the cheaper price point, the One has now outsold the PS4 in the UK for three straight weeks. UK marketing director Harvey Eagle touted the recent upswing, stating that Microsoft is “…seeing fantastic momentum with Xbox One having sold almost 10 million units to retailers worldwide”. However, Sony remains unfazed; chalking the success up to little more than a temporary bump which it expects will subside come the New Year. In addition, a new promo video just released by the company touts the PS4 as “the best place to play”.

Sure there’s some of you out there that don’t feel the need to choose, but the average Joe doesn’t have that luxury. This is a fairly important decision that will impact somebody’s gaming experience for years to come. Luckily, we still have a few more days to formulate a battle plan. In the meantime, allow me to lay this fun little tidbit on your brain. Did you know that no matter which console you pick this holiday season, you’ll be buying into one of the most successful generations ever? According to the latest earning statistics released as part of GameStop’s third-quarter report, it would appear gamers are jumping on the next-gen band wagon in droves. Based on the sales data, the install base of the PlayStation 4 and Xbox One are over 70% larger than that of the PS3 and 360 during the same end-of-year periods. What that means is the support of our hobby has grown exponentially over the last decade. Interest in gaming is at an all-time high, with no signs of slowing.

There Are No Bad Console Choices This Holiday

In short, it’s a GREAT time to be a gamer! Our industry already outpaces the revenue garnered by that of movies and music with ease. The fact that people are now investing in newer hardware at an earlier stage signifies a much broader sense of mainstream appeal. Owning a console is becoming as commonplace as a toaster, microwave or cell phone these days. So the good news is that no matter if you go with Microsoft, Sony or even the wayward Nintendo moving forward, it’s a fairly safe bet all the way around. It’s pretty hard to make a mistake with this batch.

Of course, let’s not forget the minority vote. I can just see the comments section filling with the obligatory “…all consoles suck…PC rules!” arguments in 3…2…1…

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