I just think Sony managed well with yearly releases.  While MS had a meh last 24 months.  Granted the tables look opposite this year.  

And PC gaming is new as of Nov.  Prior I was waiting for a reason to grab a xbox and never found one.

Most everyone agrees MS needs to up their software.  There is a reason why there is a high level of alignment.  

And to be fair, if Sony keeps supporting steam I will drop Playstation like I did xbox.  

Maybe my issue with Xbox is all their games are on steam.  Unlike Nintendo I don't see the need to own MS's hardware.  Granted I wish Nintendo would port to steam as well.

SNY is working on first person shooters and live service games right? Since that's an XB strong point and a PS weak point? And now MS is possibly looking to put some if not all of its shooters and live service titles on PS5? Prior to those SNY shooters and live services launching on PS5?

I wonder if this is yet another reason why MS is looking to make this multiplatform move right about now? Attempt to get PS and Nin gamers interested in XB stronghold type games before PS or Nin come up with their own?

I don't think there's a way for them to be competitive anymore. The damage has been done. They aren't hurting like Sega was in the latter half of the 90s, and they'll probably continue offering their own hardware, but there's no way for them to get back to where they were doing the 360 era.

They dropped the ball big time with the Xbox One thanks to the pre-release debacles. Nobody in 2013 wanted a system that wouldn't function at all without an online connection, that blocked used games, and that force-bundled Kinect. PR blunders like Adam Orth's "Sometimes the power goes out. #dealwithit" spiel (remember that?) and Don Mattrick shitting on the idea of backwards compatibility ("If you're backwards compatible, you're backwards") didn't help things. Neither did the relative lack of must-have first-party exclusives.

While they reversed course on always-online requirements and blocking used games, they stopped force-bundling Kinect a few months after launch, and they finally added backwards compatibility two years after launch (albeit in a piecemeal fashion), it was too little, too late to salvage the situation. The PS4 emerged as the clear market leader thanks to its lower launch price and the perceived gamer-friendly reputation it developed before launch, which they intentionally cultivated with things like this:

A friend of mine once stated that MS permanently lost a lot of customers last generation because with digital becoming more popular, people got locked into whatever ecosystem they chose, and millions of people who bought a 360 in Gen 7 switched to the PS4 in Gen 8.

There is probably still some wiggle room left, but they'd have to make a system that isn't just an equivalent offering to PlayStation in terms of price, specs, etc., but is something more appealing. Offering beefy hardware at a lower price point could work. Or better yet, they could fully utilize the massive library of IPs and studios they now have at their disposal to create a lot of quality games that you can't get on PlayStation.

The problem with that is that the things that could realistically make Xbox more competitive are things they're not really aiming for. They really do seem like they want their games on as many platforms as possible. Like I said before, they're still going to offer their own hardware in the future, but it seems more like they're looking to position themselves as a sort of first-party/third-party hybrid, having their own consoles for people who really, really like Xbox (and don't mind going digital-only), but also putting their games on PlayStation, Nintendo, and PC... if that truly is their strategy going forward. I guess we'll find out soon if that's the case.

The Sony/MS exclusive ecosystem model is falling apart. They are both going to have games all over the place in the coming years, don't think much can be done.

The economics that they're trying to make work, just don't work great when game development is this expensive and takes 5-8 years per major game.

MS is just in a much worse spot as far as the console side goes. 

Think XBox is a sinking ship of a brand no matter what. Their best bet honestly would be to beg Nintendo to take over the XBox brand and try and get some of their older Nintendo IP titles (you're not going to get the up to date ones, those are for Switch 2 only) on it in exchange for Nintendo getting a big cut of the licensing fees and MS eating any and all hardware losses, but I don't think Nintendo would even agree to that. 

Ultimately, it comes down to exclusives. That's the sole reason I own a PS5 and Switch, but not Xbox Series X/S. It's really not all that complicated. Also helps to not be tone deaf: Yes, it is possible for a massive company to buy out all of its competitors (as they have been trying to do with the Activision Blizzard acquisition, free day one GamePass drops, lowering prices as a means to outcompete competitors which are less able to drop prices so much, etc etc.)...however, you aren't going to win over the gaming community if you're -- for instance -- looking to do-away with physical media.

Not an incredible coherent take, just spitballing a little here, but this is how I'm feeling at the moment.

Thanks

I've played Minecraft, Age of Empire, Ori (both games) and Hellblade already. My PC can't run Flight Simulator but it looks amazing 

I don't like racing so no Forza for me 

I'll take a look in Tokyo Ghostwire

This is a very odd take.

The Xbox brand actually innovated the industry over the generations, the only time they played it safe was with the Series S/X.

Xbox entered the market with their own game Halo and took the industry by storm.

Nintendo entered the market with their own games and dominated.

Sony Moneyhatted 3rd parties away from Nintendo to leap frog to the top.

Tell me whos soulless out of the 3 again?

The issue is the industry isnt big enough for 3 big hardware manufacturers. It has choosen the two. It was Nintendo and Sega to now Nintendo and Sony. The 3rd manufacturer always struggles to stay in. Its shown in the history. Thats why we have seen so many brands drop out of the hardware industry. Its not sustainable unless you are 1 of the top 2.

You keep propagating that lie. And it's just that... A lie.

The console market has supported 3 manufacturers just fine for decades now.

And Microsoft has literally just confirmed they are staying in the console hardware space.

Bro, stop calling it a lie. 

There is a difference between having 3 companies in the industry and sustaining 3 companies in the industry.

Yes the industry has always had a 3rd, and history has shown eventually that 3rd drops out. 

MS is willing to bite the bullet on it, good for them. Mark my words and iv said it plenty of times now. It may not be this gen or the next, Xbox will leave the hardware space for either some hybrid type system or flat out full digital/Streaming service provider.

I think Xbox should do three things to actually remain relevant.
1. Embrace steam level of customer service
2. Embrace nostalgia like never before
3. made mods actually compatiable with games for windows.