PlayStation versus Xbox is arguably the biggest rivalry in video games. I don't know if any others have been quite as direct, highly publicized, or impactful. I mean, it has been referred to as a console war. And, you know, it must be intense if they're using the word war to describe it.
Another thing that makes it unique is that PlayStation and Xbox are not companies themselves. They're products, each made by a much larger company that was already well-established before entering the video game market. Sony is a Japanese company that was primarily involved in electronics and entertainment before releasing the PlayStation. Microsoft, on the other hand, is an American company mostly concerned with computers, specifically software like the Windows operating system, before releasing the Xbox.
So, you can see how these companies are actually very different from each other, with video games being the only major area where they overlap into each other's territory.
Before I say anything else, I want to acknowledge that Nintendo, of course, has been right there alongside the other two, releasing consoles and games—sometimes even at a higher level. However, I think most would agree that they have been kind of doing their own thing and have not been as directly competitive as the other two. So, to keep things simple for this article, I want to leave Nintendo mostly out of it as I outline what has been happening between PlayStation and Xbox from the beginning, throughout four generations of consoles.
Though, oddly enough, it was Nintendo that first got Sony involved with video games. Being an electronics company from the same country, Sony created an advanced audio chip for the SNES that sparked a friendly working relationship between the two. From there, they worked together to create a wild gaming system called the PlayStation that would play SNES cartridges and CD-ROMs.
It was never officially launched to the public, and one of the few that was ever produced was later sold at an auction for over $300,000. So, the Nintendo PlayStation has become a legend in gaming. The reason it was never widely produced is because the two companies could not agree on the terms, and Nintendo was a bit disrespectful in the way they handled it.
The story goes that at the last minute, right as everything was being announced, they abandoned Sony in favor of a European partner called Phillips. Understandably, Sony was upset with the situation, so they ended up pushing forward with the PlayStation on their own.
They released it in late 1994, initially in Japan, and from day one, it was a big success. Three-dimensional gameplay and some iconic series like Resident Evil, Gran Turismo, and Crash Bandicoot attracted millions of customers and helped it become a sensation. It only took four years for the PS1 to surpass the Walkman as Sony's best-selling electronics product. In total, it sold over 100 million units.
And the craziest part is that the second PlayStation was even more popular.
That is going to lead me into my first comparison: the PlayStation 2 versus the original Xbox.
Throughout the second half of the 1990s, while the PlayStation 1 was making its way into people's homes, Microsoft was aggressively trying to get Windows 95 and then Windows 98 into people's homes. When Sony started developing the more powerful PlayStation 2—which was likely going to have the ability to play DVDs—it made Microsoft nervous.
They were looking at it like a computer for the living room, which was venturing into their territory. So, they felt that they would be losing ground unless they got involved in it in some way.
At first, they tried approaching Sony and Nintendo, wanting to develop a special version of Windows for their consoles, but they all declined. It is rumored that Microsoft then considered acquiring Sega, but ultimately ended up developing their own computer-like gaming console that, ironically, did not utilize Windows.
It was revealed to the public on stage by Bill Gates in early 2001 and released toward the end of that year. And I have to say, Microsoft put a lot of effort into it. At the time, during an interview, Bill Gates said, “We are so committed to this thing. When we do something, we stick to it.”
They acquired the developer Bungie so they could have Halo: Combat Evolved as a launch title. They spent $500 million marketing the Xbox in just about every way that you could imagine. I'm talking about television commercials, in-store displays, trailers touring the country, and setups with DJs where people could test the system. They even gave away thousands of them through a promotion with Taco Bell.
To establish themselves in the market, they were selling the system at a loss, estimated to be as much as $100 per unit. I would say that Microsoft did as much as you could reasonably expect.
But unfortunately for them, for this generation, PlayStation was simply unstoppable.
The PlayStation 2 was everything people wanted at the time. It was backwards compatible for the 100 million people who had already bought PS1 games. It added a bunch of cool new titles, had that DVD player, and was released well over a year before the Xbox. Twenty-five million people had already bought a PS2 before they were even able to buy an Xbox.
The movie Lara Croft: Tomb Raider, based on the popular PlayStation game, made over $200 million in the months leading up to the Xbox release. Even though Xbox had the incredible power of Microsoft behind it, it was always a massive underdog.
In the end, I think the numbers reflect that. Nothing has ever outsold the PS2. It remains the best-selling console of all time. So, that was a tough battle that I can’t really blame Xbox for losing.
For the next generation, it was the PlayStation 3 versus the Xbox 360, and this is where Sony made some of their biggest mistakes.
Going in, they had two major things going for them: the momentum from the previous two consoles and Blu-ray. Blu-ray, as I'm sure you already know, is a higher-definition DVD format made by Sony. To help promote their two products, they made it so that the PS3 could play Blu-rays, which was a very attractive feature that Xbox simply could not match.
Microsoft did not want to integrate the Sony product into their system, so their best answer was to separately sell an accessory that could play the competing format, HD DVD—a format that was quickly discontinued, partially because the PS3 helped make Blu-ray so popular.
Aside from that, the Xbox 360 was probably the more attractive console. Xbox Live had become popular, and it had exclusive titles like Gears of War and, of course, the Halo series, which was setting sales records with the release of each sequel.
Also, consider the fact that the 360 was launched almost a full year before the PS3. During that time, all the PlayStation fans were stuck on the older generation unless they switched over to Xbox.
When the PS3 was finally made available, it cost a whopping $499 for the lowest 20 GB model, and an extra $100 for the 60 GB model. Back then, customers almost expected a $299 price point. That was the price of the PS1, the PS2, the original Xbox, and the base model of the competing Xbox 360.
Due to all these factors, the 360 outsold the PS3 for many years and ultimately did outsell it in North America. However, on a global scale, when it was all said and done, the PS3 did sell more units than the 360 by a small margin.
Setting the stage for the next generation, it really looked like Microsoft might finally be able to come out on top.
The next comparison is the PlayStation 4 versus the Xbox One. Unlike the others, these two were released within a week of each other in North America in November of 2013.
The issue here is that the Xbox team at the time seemed to have a very different vision for the console compared to what users wanted. The Xbox One was initially announced as an all-in-one multimedia device, where non-gaming features were emphasized more than gaming itself.
It came with an HDMI input for your cable box and was bundled with Kinect for voice and motion commands. That turned out to be a disaster. It was surprising, confusing, and poorly received.
On top of that, they announced a digital licensing system where games had to be linked to your account, making it difficult to share or resell them. PlayStation took advantage of this by making a comedic video showing how easy it was to share their games.
Xbox eventually reversed the decision, but the damage was done. Xbox had never received more backlash from the public. The person in charge of the department left the company between the announcement and launch, which says a lot.
Considering they had been losing money on consoles for over a decade—and had spent over a billion dollars repairing Xbox 360s due to the Red Ring of Death—they priced the Xbox One at $499, largely due to the bundled Kinect. That was $100 more than the PlayStation 4.
Phil Spencer later said, “We lost the worst generation to lose in the Xbox One.” About twice as many PS4s were sold, showing that many users jumped from Xbox to PlayStation during this era.
Finally, we arrive at the PlayStation 5 versus the Xbox Series S and Series X.
This matchup is arguably less important than any before it. Phil Spencer has openly admitted that Xbox has lost the console wars and has shifted focus toward games and services like Game Pass.
Exclusives have historically been one of the main ways to attract users. While I haven't focused heavily on that here, it's worth noting that Microsoft is a much larger company than Sony. That is largely how they forced their way into the console market in the first place.
Recently, Microsoft has used that power to acquire major developers and publishers. In 2014, they paid $2.5 billion for Minecraft. In 2021, they paid $7.5 billion for ZeniMax Media. And in 2023, they paid nearly $70 billion for Activision Blizzard.
They now own multiple mega franchises. If they made them all exclusive, Xbox could easily pull ahead—but instead, they’ve chosen a wider strategy, even releasing former exclusives on PlayStation.
Not surprisingly, the PS5 has sold considerably more units than the Xbox Series consoles. But the console war is no longer what it used to be.
Let me know in the comments what you think about everything that has happened between PlayStation and Xbox. Which side have you favored over the years? Have you switched sides between generations, or stayed loyal?
What do you see for the future of these consoles? Will Microsoft eventually discontinue Xbox like Sega did, or will something reignite the war?
Leave your thoughts in the comments. It truly is the future of video games, and I’m excited to be a part of it.