Guest Editor Terrance White "Layeth the Smacketh" Down on Microsoft and Xbox.

XBOX is loosing itself… gamers too

On Day 1 of E3 we saw what the next generation of consoles has in store. In all honesty, I thought the XBOX presentation was great… until I saw PlayStation’s. When I first saw the XBOX One I was pretty excited by all the new features it offers. Microsoft has almost spited itself by keeping the XBOX fresh with all the new software updates and apps. To be completely honest, until I watched the unveiling of the new XBOX I had almost forgotten that I’ve had mine since 2006. Xbox One offers so many amenities that one has to question how much dedication it has to being a great gaming machine. Yes, this machine has more processing power, great looking new games and ten thousand new apps to keep you connected all day everyday. But what if that’s more than need? What if that’s more than I want? What if I just want to play video games?

The problem here is that Microsoft is fighting 2 too many wars at once. They’re battling Sony and it’s PlayStation in the video game console war. That’s the fight everyone showed up and tuned in yesterday to watch. Upon watching their presser though, it was clear they are preoccupied with another adversary who was not in attendance; Apple. Microsoft is fighting Apple in the wireless device and constant connectivity market with their new windows phones, cloud connectivity and tablets that people only want because they don’t want to join the iCult (Come on over, its fine).

Is Microsoft Blowing Hot Air?

I have tons of apps and features on my XBOX now that I never use so I didn’t really look at all the focus on those things as a problem during the Microsoft presser. Then I saw Sony’s plans for the next generation of PlayStation. They made it a point to put the focus on the gamer. There were three stages to their knockout of the XB One. First is the fact that all of the games they demo’d looked much more detailed than their XBOX counter parts. Second was their support of the trade in model. People have been buying and trading in games for years and they should not have to pay extra to pay those games online once they’ve already paid for them. Finally is the lower starting price of $399 for PS4 vs $499 for XBOX One. 1, 2, 3, You’re out!

I’ve been an XBOX gamer since 2001, so I’m going to give Microsoft a chance to win me back before I make the switch. But if they don’t come down on the price and take the restriction off of used games the XBOX Live gamer tag “the real twizzy” will be available to someone else very soon. I’m sure I’m not the only one who feels this way. Or maybe some of you feel completely different. Leave your comments on my Facebook page or tweet me @t_white_55 to let me know what you think.

TW