Xbox One X, PlayStation 4 Pro and the Content Conversation We Are Not Having

With the impending announcement and branding of Microsofts Project Scorpio, and the recent reports from Sony about success of the PlayStation Pro, so many news sites and social media posts are creating a conversation over the power and performance of both consoles. Who's stronger? Who's faster? Who's games will be better? And while it's a valid conversation to have, and one I'm interested in reading and seeing from some of my favorite places like Digital Foundry, I feel an important conversation is being ignored.

I'd say the biggest shortcoming and challenge that the Xbox has faced over the last year isn't around hardware and performance (though the Xbox One's design did put it behind the 8 ball at the start of this generation). The biggest battle they've faced is one against themselves. Where is the content? What games will you be playing that'll perform stronger? What games will be faster? What games will be better?

If all we're going to be talking about is teraflops and 1's and 0's, and this is coming from a PlayStation fan, Scorpio wins. Let's pack our bags PlayStation gamers, we've lost. The war is over and it's time to go home... Scorpio is going to be a more powerful machine than the PlayStation Pro. It's architecture is designed to enhance and run all non-"Pro" titles with faster frame rates and even upscale resolutions without patches or developer support. This is actually a win, I'd say. This is a feature I'm jealous of on paper, and looking at the hardware, I'd like a "full throttle" system like this myself.

The thing is, I feel that power and performance isn't where Microsoft needs to be focusing their efforts to recover from the brutal sales beating they are reviving this generation. The Xbox One was oddly designed for non-gaming features that have taken away resources from optimized gaming performance, yes, so there is a need to correct that, but here is where I'm not seeing the conversation going. This is where most of us aren't taking a step back and looking at the bigger picture here. I guess before I can make my point, I need to go through a bit of a history refresher.

Let's set the stage here. When the PS2 launched, it was competing only against the Sega Dreamcast. It'd be another year before the Xbox and GameCube hit, but by then Sony had strong software support and companies were rolling out 2nd wave titles. Both the Xbox and GameCube were more powerful machines compared to the PS2, as well. Performance wasn't the issue, though. Sony had an established install base, software and momentum that kept the lead and ended the generation significantly ahead in sales and original and exclusive software over Microsoft, but it was their first system. They were young, and they studied their opponent here.

Here is where I feel the higher ups at Microsoft at the time did something right. The designed the next system to be easier to develop for, they saw what developers needed and they worked hard with Japanese and 3rd party developers to start making exclusive and unique content for their system. Microsoft acquired Rare, had Lionhead studios and other 2nd party companies generating a significant number of titles and created Xbox Live Arcade. In its infancy and with its 50mb limit, the Arcade was not the home of fully featured games or the marketplace it is today, but it was a bright idea that evolved and was focused on delivering more and unique games between the big games. Microsoft started creating unique new titles and partnered with companies like Epic on new franchises. They were leading with games and succeeding. They had the right focus early and had really done a 180, not 360.

The PS3 launched, and it stumbled. It was expensive. It tried to be an ultimate entertainment machine. It wasn't easy to develop for and Sony seemed to lose its focus, maybe because of the success of the PS2 made them feel untouchable? Those first few years, Microsoft had them beat. But once Sony fleshed out its own online marketplace, and its internal studios started to create original and exclusive games, updates to favorite franchises and partnerships on new properties, the games started to look and play better. The games became the focus again, and what did Microsoft do to respond? Announce partnerships with ESPN, UFC, the NFL Network and video content. Did they just assume the games would keep coming or that gamers would enjoy big E3 shows showcasing big media partnerships over new game announcements?

Towards the end of the generation, the sales gap grew smaller and smaller, and the PlayStation 3 was outselling the 360 on the monthly charts. Sony ended the generation on a high with AAA original titles like The Last of Us and unique original titles from 2nd party partners like Beyond Two Souls. This is where both juggernauts were celebrating success and responding with our current generation.

The PS3 humbled Sony. It recovered from a rocky start, but it found its place, it was a success, and it was anchored by its internal development teams and partners and its biggest win was its games.

The Xbox 360 started off with a bang, hit some turbulence, but established itself as dominate gaming force. It's sales successes lead to partnerships with Activision on early and exclusive content for the generations biggest franchise, Call of Duty. Xbox Live was rolling, and there were some real wins to reflect on. Unfortunately, they were still focused on new entertainment avenues and were preparing to launch a multi-use, multi-entertainment machine.

The Xbox One hit E3 hard, but for all the wrong reasons. A confusing direction over the gaming abilities, odd focus on other Microsoft technology integration, and no new or fresh gaming content to write home about. The fumbled the "always on" concept that just confused gamers, and their used came license system felt like an attack on gamers. They were poking holes in their own ship before Sony even responded.

The PS4 E3 was the polar opposite. Games, games and games were the focus. A panel of indie game developers took the stage to showcase the rapidly growing indie community, and the features Sony offered were all gaming related. Screen shots, video sharing, share play, network improvements and more. They wrapped with a memorable jab about how you can play used games in a brief video that stole the show. Sony clearly had the right focus and the right timing for the launch of a new system. Lead with the content.

At this point, the biggest difference between the gaming focus of both companies is the number of 1st and 2nd party partners. Sony has a stable of unique and varied developers, making all styles of games, big and small. They take chances on odd projects and balance new and fan favorite AAA titles throughout the year.

Microsoft has stopped acquiring smaller developers and does not grow and foster its current talent. They lost the focus of Bungie and Epic, but retained their big franchises. They acquired Minecraft, but that seems to be the only game they'll do and maintain. They've almost all but quit trying to develop original properties this generation, and the latest installments are all shells of their former greatness beyond Forza.

So, my point, after all this, is even with the performance, that isn't enough. Even with the performance, just like the PlaysStation Pro, both these systems aren't designed to do both 60fps and 4K simultaneously, it's one or the other, so what does that mean? A game can't be more 4K than another, or a faster 60fps than another. What matters is the game itself, and Sony has got more. They've got more internally. They've got the install base and third parties. It's hard to see Scorpio really doing anything other than being an amazing technical machine on paper.

I'm just looking forward to a good E3, and a good second half of 2017 for video games. As a Sony fan, I've been through ups and downs, but I've always had fun and entertaining games available to me.

- -Darren Hupke @darrenhupke

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