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Forums - Gaming Discussion - Forbes : Microsoft's Xbox Scorpio Should Be Worried About The Nintendo Switch

 

The Nintendo Switch has passed its first trial. Nintendo's new machine is selling like lightning based on the strength of The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild, and it feels strong as looks to gird itself for the summer. Things are simple right now: the video game industry doesn't have a lot of other major headlines, and the only potential mindshare competitor of Mass Effect: Andromeda fell somewhat flat. And yet as rumors once again begin to swirl about Microsoft's powerful new "Project Scorpio --" a version of the Xbox One built for 4K gaming -- we once again remember that this console does not exist in a vacuum. But these early successes might need to make Microsoft cautious, and not the other way around.

I wrote earlier in the year about the philosophical conflict between the Nintendo Switch and the Xbox Scorpio. Here we have a "console war" that looks different from the one we've become accustomed to in recent years, where functionally equivalent machines from Microsoft and Sony compete over minor differences in their libraries and capabilities. The Switch and Scorpio are genuinely different, and their manufacturers are going to try to convince consumers to buy the machines for very different reasons. The markets will be different, but not entirely so: a constellation of Venn diagrams with a meaty center. And now the early success of the Nintendo Switch puts the pressure on the Xbox Scorpio to convince us why it matters.

The Xbox Scorpio and PS4 Pro are notable machines for a lot of reasons, but they also represent an interesting bet on the modern console gamer. Because both machines share game libraries with their less advanced progenitors, they can't use any of their souped-up graphics for actual gameplay enhancements. The Xbox One and PS4 both campaigned, as new consoles tend to, on being more powerful than the 360 and PS3. But there's always the tacit assumption that more power can mean all sorts of things: more enemies on screen, bigger worlds, seamless load times, etc. That's not true of either the Xbox Scorpio or PS4 pro. They offer increased resolution and higher framerate, maybe some more effects as well. Deeper improvements are off limits. They are focused exclusively on visuals and will be purchased by people who want to spend money exclusively on visuals.

And then we've got the Nintendo Switch. Or even more appropriate to the moment, we've got The Legend of Zelda: Breath of The Wild. There's little negative to be said about this game, and little negative that has been said: it's an artfully crafted, expansive, drop-dead gorgeous piece of interactive art, up there with the greats of Nintendo's storied past. It's generated about as much ink and buzz as it's possible for a game to generate, and it's helped give the Nintendo Switch momentum to move through the summer and into the fall. It's done it on a brand-new system that's thoroughly underpowered compared to the beefier machines Sony and Microsoft are putting out but with a few tricks of its own in tow. The industry should take note, for many reasons -- there are more ways to sell hardware than with powerful chips. Even from a marketing perspective, it's easier to get people excited with a trailer for an interesting game than it is to try and communicate the concept of 4K.

 

In many ways, this is a phenomenon we've seen developing for years now in the indie space. Games can succeed despite a conspicuous lack of cutting-edge graphics technology, sometimes even because of a conspicuous lack of graphics technology. Until now, however, that mindset has yet to trickle up to the AAA world, which has continued barreling along roughly the same path it has been since the NES. The PS4 Pro and Xbox Scorpio are bets that this trend will continue: people want fancier graphics are will pay for them. The Nintendo Switch rejects that by saying people would rather have increased capability and that a limited library of curated games can go up against the expansive selections on offer from the competition. Visuals are still important -- Breath of the Wild's watercolor fantasy is gorgeous -- but it's betting that graphics technology has advanced to the point that the hardware in the Switch is good enough to make games as pretty as any on a fancier system.

 

I get the feeling that both Xbox Scorpio and Nintendo Switch are gunning for second console buyers in the fall. There will be a lot of people who already own a current gen console -- most likely a PS4 -- with some money to spend and curious about new hardware. At that point, they'll decide if they want a strange, new experience with at least one excellent exclusive, or a more powerful version of what they already have. In case it wasn't clear, I'd recommend the new. It doesn't mean I think the Switch is a surefire hit, mind you, just that it feels like a better bet than the Scorpio come fall. It's still hard to recommend either machine to someone who doesn't yet have a console of any kind -- the PS4 is the clear winner there -- but any console with such a narrow focus on 4K graphics just feels like it will have a hard time justifying its existence.

We'll see more soon, hopefully.

 

https://www.forbes.com/sites/davidthier/2017/04/03/microsofts-xbox-scorpio-should-be-worried-about-the-nintendo-switch/#79e3ec336c0e



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What? I think the Scorpio should worry about the fact that MS is making it...



He has a point.If the Scorpio is just an upgrade, it will have as much selling potential as the PS4 Pro.And those looking for a different or new experience will find that the Switch is the better choice.For now, at the very least.

We shall know the Scorpio potential tomorrow



My (locked) thread about how difficulty should be a decision for the developers, not the gamers.

https://gamrconnect.vgchartz.com/thread.php?id=241866&page=1

The Scorpio's biggest weakness is the fact that Microsoft left so much time for the PS4Pro to run unchallenged. THese upgraded versions of consoles catter mostly to people who either want to upgrade or don't own the console from the beginning. And those people have had the Pro option for a while now, making a difference that will continue to grow in the upcoming months. The Switch, while in the same market, is not as much a direct competitor than the Pro (Scorpio and Pro are aimed at the exact same group, Switch is more varied in that regard).



You know it deserves the GOTY.

Come join The 2018 Obscure Game Monthly Review Thread.

That's good for Ninty!

They just need games to keep the feeling and need alive!



Switch!!!

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"Microsoft and Sony compete over minor differences in their libraries"

lol

Scorpio's biggest problem is that it is still an Xbox, and having the most powerful console on the market only solves one of the many reasons they are miles behind Sony. The idea that is milling around that Scorpio is some kind of game changer when it comes to console sales is bizarre and seems more like fantasy than anything else



I think that Nintendo's audience is just different. Not intentionally a different target audience but games releasing on Xbox and PS4 are already quite different to what you get on a Nintendo platform and given numbers from last gen, Wii was a really huge success but that didn't stop 360 and PS3 to be also very successful.



Nonsense, completely different markets.



Bet with PeH: 

I win if Arms sells over 700 000 units worldwide by the end of 2017.

Bet with WagnerPaiva:

 

I win if Emmanuel Macron wins the french presidential election May 7th 2017.

KLXVER said:
What? I think the Scorpio should worry about the fact that MS is making it...

Exactly this, lol.

I don't know which userbase they are actually going for. Their Xbox exclusive brand also moved over to PC, so they don't need to buy one. Sony and Nintendo have their own share of great exclusive content.

So, what reason is there to buy their brand?

Their new console just going for 4k? Not that the PS4 Pro also doing this, but what about software? I don't think that the Scorpio will be able to compete with any of the consoles at an reasonable price point.

I just don't know what Microsoft is going for.



Intel Core i7 8700K | 32 GB DDR 4 PC 3200 | ROG STRIX Z370-F Gaming | RTX 3090 FE| Crappy Monitor| HTC Vive Pro :3

That's not 100% on topic and not related to the information in OP but how does it come that people seem to use Forbes articles so often on VGC? It's like they are quoted on a daily basis and more often than most gaming sites even when these articles are only written by some random free journalists on Forbes.