A Decade of Progress: PS4 and Xbox One Launches

The gaming industry is known for its rapid pace, with a focus on the latest developments and innovations. However, it is also important to reflect on the past and learn from it. In this article, we will take a look at the launches of the PS4 and Xbox One, which took place 10 years ago. The year 2013 was a significant one for the gaming industry, with the launch of two major consoles. The PS4 and Xbox One were released in November of that year, after years of speculation about the potential demise of the console market. There were several factors that contributed to this speculation, including the rise of mobile gaming and the prolonged lifespan of the previous console generation. The Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3 generation was the longest in the industry's history, with the original Xbox being discontinued just four years after its release. The Xbox 360, on the other hand, was eight years old when the Xbox One was launched. The PS3 arrived six years after the PS2 and remained the flagship console for seven years until the launch of the PS4. The industry had never been this deep into a console cycle before, and it was clear that enthusiasm and interest were waning. The launch of the PS4 and Xbox One was a significant event, with hundreds of people waiting in line at stores and cosplayers braving the chilly weather to show their support. The PS4 was launched first, with a November 15 debut in North America, followed by the Xbox One a week later. The launches were notable for their excitement and anticipation, despite the fact that the consoles did not have many great launch games. The standout hit of the PS4 launch was Resogun, a $10 downloadable game inspired by the arcade classic Defender. The Xbox One launch fared slightly better, with Forza Motorsport 5 and Dead Rising 3 being the best exclusives of the bunch. The promise of what each system would have coming down the pipe was enough to offset their iffy launches, as both the PS4 and the Xbox One sold more than 1 million units in their first 24 hours on sale. The next-gen launches quickly put to bed any concerns that consoles were a dying business, and instead provided evidence that the consoles were evolving. The launches marked a watershed event, with the arrival of the first generation where all games would be available for download on the day they were released. The PS3 and Xbox 360 era began with AAA games shipping exclusively on disc, and it was often years before they received a digital release. Microsoft did not even allow full game downloads for Xbox 360 retail games until 2009, almost four years into the console's lifespan. The shift to digital distribution has been significant, with Activision Blizzard reporting that its revenues from retail channels accounted for just 4% of its revenue last year. Electronic Arts reported packaged good sales as just 9% of its business, while Take-Two Interactive's physical sales were less than 5% of its business in 2022. The numbers for all three have been slightly skewed by significant acquisitions in the mobile field over the years, but the absolute dollar amounts of the physical business for these publishers is in freefall. Nintendo has been an outlier, with a significant chunk of its revenues still coming from physical software sales. However, even this is changing, with the company's fiscal 2023 ending with 48% of all software sales coming digitally, compared to 17% for fiscal 2018. Physical media is withering in general, with DVDs and Blu-rays being supplanted by streaming services. Best Buy recently decided to stop carrying DVDs and Blu-rays entirely, even through its website. The future of physical games is uncertain, with the rise of digital distribution and the decline of physical media. The question remains as to whether there will be enough demand for physical media in the future to support the inclusion of disc drives in consoles. The shift to digital distribution has also raised questions about the role of publishers and platform holders in the industry. As the industry continues to evolve, it is clear that digital distribution will play a significant role in its future. The launches of the PS4 and Xbox One marked a significant milestone in this evolution, and it will be interesting to see how the industry continues to develop in the years to come.