short answer: yeah.
long answer:        yes.

I can't speak for MS as I am not really fully up to speed with Xb one exclusive games, but are you kidding me with PS4? PS4 has had a good output of exclusive games throughout the year. I think it is extremely narrow thinking to say that exclusive game releases in the holidays is what's important. Arguably more important is being able to use exclusive games released earlier in the year as giveaway strategies. If the game was successful and highly regarded (Bloodborne for instance), it will have made most of its money back and possibly even become profitable before the holidays, that means Sony can throw Bloodborne into bundles for free and sweeten the pot. If Sony was to release Bloodborne in October, they would have two problems: trying to get attention for Bloodborne among a slew of highly popular 3rd party releases; and having to sell the game at full price in order to at least break even with the game. I'm sure Sony wanted The Order to be a better received game, because they could have had a pretty decent holiday strategy around that game to counter Tomb Raider and the Xb one marketing exclusivity of Fallout 4. It just happens things didn't go so well for The Order

Franchises like Halo aside, it's strategically better to release 1st party / exclusive games outside the holiday period so that they can be used as sales sweeteners during the holidays.

I think rather than being just plain wrong, you've mostly failed to properly analyse the situation and therefore your conclusions are flawed.

StarOcean said: The topic itself is fine. I wouldn't even question it if you wouldn't have basically said, "I just know I'm going to get banned for this. I'm totally not trying to troll or anything and definitely not click baiting but I know I'm going to get banned for this, come and get me mods!" I mean, seriously, get rid of that part of your OP and not many will bat an eye. Anyway, I agree with what Wright said above

Just chimming in, its the second time I read anything you wrote about a "mod related situation" and both times you were super cordial, rational, fair and just overall pretty great. And you actualy comunicate with ppl wich is also awesome. You are a very good mod.

DakonBlackblade said: StarOcean said: The topic itself is fine. I wouldn't even question it if you wouldn't have basically said, "I just know I'm going to get banned for this. I'm totally not trying to troll or anything and definitely not click baiting but I know I'm going to get banned for this, come and get me mods!" I mean, seriously, get rid of that part of your OP and not many will bat an eye. Anyway, I agree with what Wright said above Just chimming in, its the second time I read anything you wrote about a "mod related situation" and both times you were super cordial, rational, fair and just overall pretty great. And you actualy comunicate with ppl wich is also awesome. You are a very good mod.

Thank you very much! I appreciate the feedback. I try my best to be as fair as I can and I believe communication is key in keeping this community active and supportive of each other.

Why wouldn't you? Sony and Microsoft make console hardware, and they are concerned with selling as much hardware as they can. They also have software development branches who concern themselves with software. If partnering with a game means they can sell more of that game and their console, no one loses.

Do yourself a favor and take a long hard look at the Wii-U's sales, and then ask yourself how exactly strong third party support is irrelevant. Fact is, at least 90% of the games we play are from third party developers. Third party rules the industry, and that's a fact. PS would have never become the most successful home console brand in history, had it not been for their strong third party support from the beginning. Exclusives are great, and act as a good incentive to buy one system over the other, but third party titles are the most common reason people will go out and buy a console to begin with.

Regardless, third party deals are smart, and they do push sales. Always have. Are exclusive marketing deals kind of ridiculous? Yes, but at the end of the day, this is a business, not a church group. The end state is to make money.

On that note, you're obviously referring to Sony's plethora of third party bundles this holiday, and your OP is implying that they somehow don't have a strong exclusive lineup. If you actually pay attention to what's coming down the pipeline for PS4, as far as exclusives go, you'd realize that is completely false. Sony is producing exclusives, and quite a few at that. 

So Dragon quest heroes, uncharted collection, tales of zestiria, until dawn, disgaea 5 don't count?

Also Microsoft also did the bundle thing last year too with sunset overdrive, assassin's creed unity, COD advanced warfare, and again this year with master chief collection bundle, Forza 6, and halo 5.


It sounds like you just have a problem with Sony being market leader this generation instead of Xbox.

This whole topic is just a bunch of ridiculous whining simply because PS is the one doing it and not Xbox. 

Grow up. 

Well bundles are working wonders. 90% of sales in the US are now bundles and 10% are standalone consoles.

Consumers are more likely to buy if a game they want is bundled with the console.

Oh, Nintendo did value third parties very much at the release of the Wii U, just check how many of them where on the console at release. It was them who jumped ship and left Nintendo with only their first party titles and a few multiplats (mostly movie licenses and party games).

As for the issue the OP is mentioning, I must agree the first party lineup of both Xbox ONE and PS4 is pretty dodgy at best yet. Bloodborne was great, Sunset Overdrive was different, Rare Replay, InFamous and Forza where routined without great peaks and what's left where letdowns and last gen remasters. None of this incites me to buy one of those 2 consoles, as I have a gaming PC and thus can play a felt 99% of their lineup.

In fact, I have always bought a console just for their exclusive titles, and the lack of interesting ones already made me get a PS3 only very late into it's life, while I bought the Wii in it's first 6 month of release (and no, I never felt let down by it). I feel history repeats again this gen where I bought the Wii U in it's first 6 moth of release but have no interest at all yet for the other 2 consoles.

And you have been very benevolent... since his original OP were in a way complaining at modding you could have sorted things in a way that he was expecting himself (maybe even would victmize over it)