I always thought that the difference between having and not having 3rd party support is sorta like pushing a log by yourself or with others. If you do it by yourself than you will move slower but will become stronger in the process and easily more independent.
Do it with others and you can move further with less effort but you become more dependent on them.
I like how Nintendo was able to push the log all by themselves during the wii years. It shows they can do it but just need a better strategy. Honestly I prefer an independent console maker than one dependent on 3rd parties but this is from a sales point of view and sorta a games view