GR Debates is a weekly Game Revolution community feature where we ask our readers to vote on a topic. The results will be revealed in next week’s GR Debates!
The PS5 and Xbox Series X are gearing up for launch, with the next generation of consoles set to release at the end of this year. But outside of their games, what’s the biggest determining factor in getting you to buy a new system?
In this week’s GR Debates, we want you to vote on the biggest selling point for a new console that isn’t its video games. Let us know in the poll below, and leave the reason behind your vote in the comments section.
Vote Below
What's the biggest selling point for a new console, that ISN'T its games? #PS5 #XboxSeriesX
— GameRevolution.com (@Game_Revolution) April 24, 2020
Game Revolution’s Thoughts…
“If the price is too high, then I start comparing consoles to gaming PCs”
Mack Ashworth, lead editor: I’m going to say price. If the price is too high, then I start comparing consoles to gaming PCs, with the latter quickly becoming more appealing. This is especially true of the Xbox Series X, which doesn’t have any exclusive games to use as leverage. Sony can get away with a higher price with its arsenal of IPs and first-party studios, but pushing beyond $500 for the PS5 would be too much for me.
While the PS5 and Xbox Series X will be powerful, even compared to modern PCs, their prices need to be low enough to bring in a significant number of adopters. A sizeable install base is needed for developers to justify putting in the effort. Sony and Microsoft may need to sell at a loss to secure users, which is again why price is so important.
With next-gen consoles implementing SSD technology, I’m curious how that will affect overall pricing at launch. Sure, there’s the system itself, but then there’s also additional memory. Normal SSDs aren’t cheap, so I can’t see Microsoft or Sony selling these fancier SSDs at a discount, and that’s definitely something potential buyers should be aware of at launch. I’ll certainly be pricing the entire setup before putting down my money.
“The integrated SSD is going to be the most significant upgrade”
Jason Faulkner, senior editor: I think the most significant upgrade with upcoming consoles is going to be the integrated SSD. So, I’ll likely prefer whichever system leverages the tech the best. I’ve had an SSD in my PCs for almost eight years now, and after you get those snappy load times, it becomes increasingly harder to deal with consoles. This is especially true now that we’re at the end of this console generation, and games are putting the PS4 and Xbox One to the test.
After SSDs, I think raytracing is going to be the killer feature for consoles. I’ve been playing Minecraft RTX, and it’s incredible how raytraced lighting enhances the environment. Even a graphically simple game like Minecraft becomes much more immersive when the sun passes overhead and shines light through the trees that changes in real-time. Games this gen have been really good about pre-baking and faking light and shadow, but that doesn’t hold a candle to what well-implemented raytracing can do.
I’m excited to see how the PS5 and Xbox Series X leverage the two techs above in the real world. I’ll end up getting both, but how well they handle raytracing and SSD integration will probably be a big factor in which one I end up preferring.
“You can create a monster of a console, but if the price isn’t right, people won’t buy”
Paul Tamburro, executive editor: Price. You can create a monster of a console, but if the price point isn’t right, people will flock to the console that goes easier on their bank accounts.
When it comes to a new console, the system that most people were buying used to be a big determining factor for me. Why would I want to be the only person who picks up a console, if everyone else is playing the latest new release on a different platform? But now that I only really play PC online games, I’m less interested in what others are buying. Now, if the price is right and the launch line-up looks great, I’m in the queue to buy it at launch.
“Performance is a huge factor”
Michael Leri, lead writer: While pretty visuals are definitely a pleasant feature, performance for this next generation is going to be a huge factor. I’m still running my launch PS4 and many, many games have pushed that thing too far. Control, for example, had no business coming out on current systems as it ran terribly on most things it could be played on.
That’s an extreme case but it is symbolic of the gluttony of games that have either had choppy frame rates or abysmal loading times this generation. The faster SSDs will help kill loading and maybe free developers up to actually get games to run better this time out. And that’s good because I’m sort of over wanting the most insane graphical details.
Most games already look fantastic. You can’t look at God of War or Red Dead Redemption 2 and tell me games should look better or run at native 4K. We’re at a pretty decent place right now with visuals. But that’s not the case with performance and hopefully this generation changes that.
Last Week’s Results
Question: Should a game remake be different to the original?
Answer:
- 56%: Absolutely
- 25%: Other
- 19%: No, never
