Well you have to wonder if MS was so sure they were screwed this gen, and couldn't be behind next gen, why wouldn't they wait and launch a next gen console 2018, or 2019 then, instead of just extending this gen even further? Unless they really thought the most powerful console ever was really going to turn things around for XB1, but if that was the unbelievable case, they might as well pack up and go home because that type of logic is out to left field.

With the head start jump into next gen that the 360 had, and it's success (minus RROD), why would MS wait a year to sell an upgraded XB1, knowing full well it was a much worse idea then moving onto next gen asap and doing everything they could to shut down PS4? Since XB seems to have a 4 year cycle, all they needed to do was wait an extra year and they could have launched something like a 14/12nm Ryzen APU with 8TF, for $499. It would have been up to PS to decide if they were going to then add another upgraded PS4, or make sure PS5 landed holiday 2019 at the latest.

Not when it comes to certain types of gamers maybe, but the third party only gamers, the GTA's and COD's, especially in NA, will be much more likely to buy an 'XB2' if it's basically the same performance and price as PS5 from the get go. Just look how bad XB1 screwed up and look how well it's sold, and is still selling in NA. As long as the 'XB2' message and policies are far from what the XB1 was, most sins will be forgiven. MS could even decide to give away a free year of XBL as a bonus for early adopters, which could get them back in the game and could put them on top of next gen quickly. They can't win yet on exclusives, so they have to do something third party or online related. It would be a subsidy/loss for just the first year, but would surely help 'XB2' gain strong market share in NA early on, and would probably help some in Europe. That's if XB cares about overall console hardware market share anymore.

Sega may think otherwise, but you do have a point. MS has put themselves in a tough spot regardless. By 2020 MS is unlikely to wait, and would probably launch alongside PS5. It's still early and a gamble for them, but far from a 2019 next gen start. Pro was fine overall after 3 years, so MS can follow suit now if they like and shouldn't get much blow back. 2021 is the latest MS would wait, since that's when their 4 year cycle would be up again.

Last of us Part II at E3 confirmed... We got some crazy shit cooking up, can't wait for people to see it 😬 https://t.co/htTqsUMefy

— Anthony Newman (@BadData_) May 11, 2018

Well, the XB1X really is just about relevance. I doubt they ever expected it to turn things around for them this gen, but it gives them a good footing to launch into next gen. Its at least got people talking about XB1 as opposed to the platform fading into extinction. And MS couldn't jump start a new gen at an affordable price point ($399-$499) in 2018 and as of 2016/17 they wouldn't even know if it was possible to do it in 2019. Simply cause if they were building their APU with anything other than 7nm fabrication, there wouldn't be a big enough jump betwen the XB2 and the PS4/Pro to warrant it being called a next gen cconsole or they would have had to go with a discrete CPU/GPU..... which would have meant they did be targeting a 10TF system, in 2018/19 such a system will still have cost them over $800.

Read above..... if they had done that it would have been worse. a $500 box in 2018 is not enough to represent a generational leap over the PS4/Pro. All they would have had to show for themselves is the exact same thing they are doing now with the XB1X, hey!! look look look!!! We are running at a higher rez than the PS4!!!

And I am sure that even MS knows that they had sony to thank for the success of the XB360. Even if they came a year later, Just imagine sony had released a console that came out at $399 , was easier to develop for (or at the very least had a less exotic architecture), still had a BR drive, had unified memory (and a little more of it than the 360), was slightly more powerful....etc. It woyuld have been a very different gen from what we all remember.

Its like sony did everything possible to ensure MS ravaged their market share.

Well that is true..... and at the very best only in NA... but that is possible. Only unknown here is just how important is the whole PS+ subscription thing?

MS can't wait when it comes to next gen. There will be next gen games that will just not run on the current platforms. Even the XB1X.... and we have the CPUs in these consoles to thank for that. I mean i guess its possible to massage the games to run, but at what would probably be unjustifiable costs. But you never know right? Afterall all the major third party games has a way of being cross gen for at least the first year or so.

Is it wise to wait for the competition to make the crucial move, taking the risk of reacting and consequently lagging behind? It would be bold, considering the competitor has resources to match your own or even exceeding them. It didn't turn out well the last time Sony thought they're on top of things.

What's imperative, as a company, is to pursue your own game, be proactive, not just to stay ahead in an ongoing race, but to be ready for the next round and look for new ways to expand.

"The expert in battle moves the enemy, and is not moved by him". Sun Tzu

What people like to completely ignore in this discussion (especially on VGC) is VR.

https://www.techradar.com/news/virtual-reality-displays-just-got-upgraded-to-1001-ppi-will-we-see-it-in-playstation-vr-2

How long do you recommend Sony should wait for the next big step in their virtual reality endeavour? PS5 2021/22 ... PS VR II 2023/24 or even later? Seven or more years after the predecessor was launched?

Gaming hardware has come to a point where straightforward more power doesn't have the weight it used to have. Why wait on 'updating' old (base) hardware, when graphics weren't perceived as impactful at the transition 6th - 7th gen anyway? The PS4p is an intermediate step to follow the trend of shortened technology life cycles. The X1X too of course. But Sony didn't pour as much resources into it as MS. Understandibly. It's not suppose to prolong the inevitable. Rather concentrate efforts on the next generation to come and start it... according to strategy. Not according what the others might do or don't do.

It's save to say PS5 will have backwards compatibility. One reasons why they did go for a more economical hardware solution, to close the chapter of isolated architecture as we ve seen with a Ps2/Ps3 and homogenize the hardware ecosystem.

I think Sony should release their console in the holidays of 2020. Sony should release PSVR gen 2 during the holiday of 2021 or 2022. With a PS5 pro releasing in 2024 for 4k VR. While the original PSVR remains compatible with the PS5. We are in an era of diminishing returns so even if the X2 launches in 2019. Sony can rely on the PS4 for a year longer and easily counter it with a more powerful and cheaper console in 2020.

MS only beated Sony barely in a gen, with a headstart of a year whilst Sony literally fucked everything up. In general Playstation is a much more powerful brand than the Xbox, which was made painfully clear this gen. Even the PS4 pro is outselling the Xone X if still only 20% of the PS4 units sold are PS4 pros.

Surely Sony shouldn't sit back but PS5 development started in December 2013 anyway. They continually are making concepts and probably have designed  most things around the PS5 already. The only thing they probably don't have is the defenitive CPU and GPU.

So if I where Sony I would hold on to Sony's own schedule (which is flexible) and based on the current position of Sony. Most likely they can easily release the PS5 in 2020 instead of 2019. MS can't release the X2 in 2019 without serious backlash, since MS released the X1X in 2017. I also doubt that MS is willing to wait till 2021. MS has more to win than Sony.

So the most likely and preferably scenario is when both consoles release Q4 2020. A period of 7 years is fine for a console gen, especially with mid gen updates. Playstation is the stronger home console brand, but MS can surely do better next gen. Also third parties probably have a say when the next gen starts.

Considering the price of what XB1X actually costs to make is still up in the air, but is thought to be some amount greater than $499, I don't see how a Ryzen based APU in a 2018/19 console couldn't be done for a similar cost to XB1X, based on AMD's existing products. MS no doubt have insight into what AMD is cooking for the future because consoles take years to go from scratch to launch. 

An 8TF console in 2018, which isn't out of the question since XB1X is 6TF on 16nm in 2017, and it would be double the performance of Pro, GPU alone, and the CPU would absolutely stomp Pro. Many people said Pro wasn't enough of a jump to make it worth a purchase, yet it's selling pretty decent for a new product mid gen. MS in a way dropped XB "early" for 360 and that didn't hurt them at all in terms of sales, and Nin basically dropped Wii U "early" for Switch, which in terms of a performance increase is as minimal as it get's, and it's going great. Nin's situation is slightly different due to Switch's unique path, but MS seems to be going their own direction slowly, so why a "next gen" console wouldn't work in 2018/19 is odd since MS says their will no longer be gens and their systems will be FC and BC going forward. Since we know Ryzen will be the next step, there doesn't seem to be much justification why they couldn't do it soon.

PS no doubt helped 360 a lot, too much, but a lead is a lead. Launching a next gen console in 2018/19 may not have guaranteed 'XB2' a victory, but I have to believe it would have given MS much more of an advantage than waiting to launch alongside PS5. Especially knowing the likelihood that both consoles will be even closer in power than this gen, given a close launch date, and PS is unlikely to screw up at all, if only a small amount at worst.

NA would be the real battle. Europe more competition but nothing for PS to really worry that much about. Japan isn't worth mentioning. PS could do the same thing and match a free year early on with PS+. They obviously wouldn't want to, but that's competition, if they felt they needed the edge.

Well this is part of my 2018 new next gen XB hardware point. Since MS doesn't seem to be pushing much for more first party, they might as well have launched next gen early, and poured their money into third parties. Anything they could do and get their hands on. Have the games be built around 'XB2' and it's much more advanced hardware, and have those games get "shitty" ports to PS4 and Pro. It wouldn't be anything like going from 360 to PS3 ports, but it would make a much bigger difference than going from XB1X to Pro. This would give them the boost they desperately need, and the time to get their first party titles going in a better direction, and building up more studio's hopefully.

This approach obviously wouldn't be easy at all, since the PS4 overall user base would be quickly approaching 100mil, so pubs and devs wouldn't be easily swayed, but I can't believe it would be as bad or worse than the way things are going for XB1 now, and where it looks to be headed for the next couple years. Launching later than PS5 isn't a great idea other than for a major tech leap, and alongside is better but still more than a challenge, so launching at least a year if not two earlier than PS5 and getting the biggest lead possible seems like the best way to grab as many hardware sales as you can, if that's what your goal is.