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Mike_L on 06 September 2016
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CGI-Quality said:
danasider said:

I think the games matter to a certain extent, but as far as the casual market goes, the system that sells best is usually the cheaper one. PS3 arguably had the best exclusive line up of its generation and came in dead last in America. It was the highest price system out the gate, and it only became competitive when the prices went down.

I still believe the PS4 will get a pricecut, and it will again overtake monthly sales in the states within the next few months because the brand is better, but the primary reason the console will consistently stay ahead in the US is if it remains competitive in the price department.

Has the cheapest system always won the US?

Not always. But the cheapest system with strong 3rd party support always win in the US. With PS4 and XB1 having identical 3rd party support this is why I think price is important for Sony if they want to continue their lead in the US.

 

Additionally, the console that launches the cheapest always gains huge traction and generally wins the gen unless it releases years later than the competition. Below prices are launch prices.

SNES ($199) > Sega Genesis ($189) (though SNES ended up selling a little more, the cheaper Genesis gained huge traction and market share compared to Sega Master System vs NES)

PlayStation ($299) > Sega Saturn ($399) (N64 launched 2 years after PS and lacked 3rd party support)

PlayStation 2 ($299) > Xbox ($299) (Xbox and GameCube both launced 1 year later than PS2 with weaker 3rd party support)

Xbox 360 ($299) > Wii ($249) > PlayStation 3 ($499) (360 was $50 more than the Wii but had strong 3rd party support, the 2 are practically tied in the US)

PlayStation 4 ($399) > Xbox One ($499) > Wii U ($299) (Xbox One has been doing a lot better since its price drops and Wii U isn't winning because of its lack of 3rd party support)