PixlBit

As the dust settles on the launch of the new consoles, the overall value of the new consoles has been a frequent topic of discussion. Here's my take:

The PS4 - Sony's new box has completely reversed the value argument that hovered over it's predecessor like a black cloud.

The PS3 was not worth buying in the first couple of years. Not only was it FAR more expensive than the 360 and Wii, but the price was driven up by stuff that took several years to bear fruit, if at all. Blu-ray support became a non-issue as Netflix and Hulu rose to prominence. Hardware BC with PS2 games and Linux support were nice, but did little to spur sales. It took years for developers to get used to the Cell, and it's ballyhooed numbers advantage turned out to be minimal in practice.

Their new box turns things around in every way. It's price-performance ratio easily bests both the Xone (weaker and more expensive) and WiiU (weaker and cheaper, but still too pricey). It fully embraces streaming from the off, with Ustream and Twitch support from day 1. The system is not only the most powerful, but it's PC-like design means developers can take advantage of that power more easily. And we've been seeing that from day one, with several games running better framerates or higher resolutions.

For me, the PS4 offers the best long term value proposition of all three consoles. I'm not deeply attached to the first-party exclusives on any of the 3 platforms, so having the most solid performance in third-party games is important to me. I would absolutely pay $400 for it with the right games, but I bet we'll see price-cuts or same-price bundles by the time it gets Guilty Gear Xrd and The Order.

Xbox One - Microsoft had to dig itself out of a VERY deep hole to get back into contention. Once they dropped the all-digital DRM future and turned off Kinect, the Xone's marketability skyrocketed. Their solid performance during the holidays reflected the success of the turnaround. Sure, they sold less than the PS4, but there's no way they'd have sold 3 million units over Christmas with their old policies. Getting rid of them was the right choice.

Unfortunately, there are still serious problems with the Xone's value proposition for people who aren't Halo or Gears addicts. The weak price-performance balance compared to the PS4 has been well documented; at $500 with weaker specs, Microsoft's heavy reliance on third party titles becomes a negative, as the worse performance in game after game makes the rounds online. Plus they are adamant that the Kinect is vital to the experience, meaning they have an option to cut the price immediately that they don't want to take.

However, it's too early for them to take that step. Unlike the WiiU, people are still buying it at full price, and there are plenty of upcoming games that could move units. It's not like the PS3, where there was little to justify the expense. MS should hold off on any big price drops until later in this year, if not longer; if the current situation doesn't change or gets worse, though, then they have to seriously consider it.

As for me? Apart from Killer Instinct, I'm not super interested in MS's existing IP. New exclusives like Quantum Break and Sunset Overdrive are still unknown quantities. They'll have to be absolutely stellar to convince me to pay full price for it; otherwise, I'll wait until I can get one for less than the PS4 before I even consider it.

The WiiU - Of the three consoles, the WiiU is struggling the most with proving it's value.

Being much weaker than the other 2 consoles, the WiiU is not only competing with the PS4 and Xone, but current gen boxes as well. The internals work differently from the other two as well (PowerPC for Nintendo vs X86 for Sony and MS), making it more complicated to work with. Both current and last gen consoles have far better prospects for third party support. Thus while Nintendo's games have been great, their struggles with HD development have led to long droughts. There wasn't much worth buying on the WiiU between launch and Pikmin 3's arrival, and that pattern looks to repeat itself in the first half of this year.

With all that, and continued brand confusion that Nintendo itself ackowledged, the WiiU being the cheapest console hasn't done much for them. The issue isn't just the price, but long term prospects; for people who aren't deeply invested in Nintendo IP, paying more for consoles that will have robust third party support seems like a better trade. The Gamepad could've been a major "X factor" that combatted this, but Nintendo has been doing jack shit with it. No one needed it to enjoy 3D World outside of small sections with Toad, I know Smash won't need it, Mario Kart 8 only uses it as a horn, and it's completely turned off in the new Donkey Kong game.

The Wiimote was a solid selling point for the Wii that was easy to understand and intuitive to use. Nintendo has done little to prove the Gamepad's worth, which is vital considering it's more complicated than a typical controller. They've sworn to double down and prove that the pad is worth buying, but even if they do pull it off it may be too little too late.

I myself don't see the WiiU as anything more than a secondary console for Nintendo games. Thus I wouldn't feel comfortable spending anymore than $200 on it.

----

Do you have any of the current gen consoles? Does it feel like you got your money's worth? If you don't have one, what would compel you to get it? Let me know in the comments.