If you look at the central processor in Microsoft's (MSFT) Xbox 360 you will see something that can trace its ancestry right back to the Intel 8086 of 1978. Over its evolution this has forced endless fudges and compromises. An analogy might be trying to build a working supertanker on the plans of a model rowing boat. And the 360 itself owes its architecture to the IBM PC of 1981 and so carries with it the accommodations that this architecture imposes. These factors, ultimately, must impinge on the working of the console.
Compare that to Sony (SNE), who were able to design the processor and the console it is in with a clean sheet of paper. The Cell processor, designed jointly with IBM and Toshiba at a cost of $400 million is the state of the art in processor dessign. It is scalable, highly flexible and excellent at distributed processing.
So it is little surprise that the PS3 now holds the Guiness world record for the most powerful distributed computing network. Or that an astrophysicist has replaced a supercomputer with eight PS3s. This is one very special and very powerful machine and when game programmers eventually work out how to get the best from it we are going to see some spectacular results.
But there has been a price to pay. Whilst the 360 was cheap to develop and cheap to make, the PS3 has cost a fortune. Sony has absorbed some of this cost in losses and passed some of it on to end users in the form of higher prices, which has hit sales. Sony has bet its computer entertainment division and maybe the whole company on this device.
Wedbush Securities analyst Michael Pachter believes the next Xbox console might be already dead due to Microsoft embracing Game Pass at $30.
You know the world is f’d up when Michael Pachter has given up cheerleading Xbox.
The crazy part is that this crazy fool was saying that Sony was doomed (or in his words 'going to be run over by Microsoft') because of GamePass after the Activision Deal. He was the one telling them to embrace GamePass and now that its killed them he is acting like he never said that.
Wouldn't it be the case of Pachter finally agreeing with parts of us rather than we agreeing with him?
I remember vividly that back in the day when GP was introduced and shaped further, many of us were saying that it's a great service on one hand. But were also already skeptical, too, as to how Microsoft would be able to keep the service running financially in the future.
Or/and how it would affect studios and game development in general.
As of March 2026, I think we have the answers some of us anticipated back then, when it was still Pachter who had forecasted «100 million subscribers».
Likely the next Xbox will have a premium price tag so they have some profit margin on the low numbers they sell. We all know that the bulk of revenue will come from 3rd party sales on other devices and perhaps some from game pass.
Not to mention the fact that if it does have steam, nobody is going to buy games off the windows store.
If they dont have free online, this thing is dead to me.
And even Gamepass flopped. The end goal of Gamepass was to be hegemonic, to kill game purcahses with subscriptions. But that never happened. Game sales are still thriving, Gamepass' subscriber count has stalled, it's costly for MS and studios and its price is increasing.
The purchase of Activision allows them to hide Gamepass' failure. Not suprising that gamepass was removed from Nadella yearly bonus, they knew they would never hit the targets.
the tinfoil hat is on!
You think they spend 75 billion to hide that gp isnt doing well? XD
They totally didnt buy activision because they got some of the biggest and most profitable ips on the planet, but instead they bought it so you can't say online that gamepass failed!! that's totally the reasoning fr fr
I am not a Pachter fan , but I have to agree...who would have though. It used to be to sell cheaper hardware that is subsidised by First party game sales in the first few years until you can reach millions owning the console and by that time you can cheapen your hardware because the tech have been revised. With gamepass on everything and developers losing sales that option is now limited. With the onset of more options for games and developers going for Gass gambling FOMO style games and dlc consumers have become rightfully picky. Add that to growing hardware prices and escalating ram and pandering to society... it kills a brand. Most og gamers are gonna find you out and stay away. Put on the pressure of companies demanding higher revenue for sales, the poor developer has no other option to put a new coat of paint on a copy of another successful game. Innovation , what we are looking for doesn't happen a lot because the danger of failing could lead to budget cuts and them letting you go...so you play it safe and make a copy of a copy. Yes we get genres and types but 80% is the same game we have had for ages. So then because you are scared you let them put it on gamepass and you know you know at least what you get.
Nintendo announced Friday that several of its long-time partners, including DeNA, will sell off some ¥300 billion in company shares.
Digital intelligence and analytics firm Sensor Tower has released its State of Gaming 2026 report, revealing flat growth in mobile game revenue, double-digit growth for PC and console gaming, and another record year for PC, with more games sold on Steam than ever before.
well this is something we all know even xboys.if u dont believe heres an example.Its call uncharted drakes fortune.its alive its alive i tell u
Or that an astrophysicist has replaced a supercomputer with eight PS3s. Sony did not make Cell for games. I don't care about that article, Xbox outsell almost 4 time the PS3 in USA (PS3 2.6m Xbox 8.3m), and they dare to launch the rumbble more than a year after, and give it to Japan first.
"and when game programmers eventually work out how to get the best from it we are going to see some spectacular results. "
Ok let's wait again.
By the way 1st Xbox and Sega Saturn where the strongest and did not win over PS1 and PS2.
the cells not fr gaming an xboy say.please kid go drink sum koolaid the play heavenly sword r n c and uncharted then come back with the cell aint fr gaming theory
Flamewar in 5. ..4. ..3. ..2. ..
We know it's powerful, but it's just starting to show now that devs are getting over the learning curve and Sony is ponying up the tools. Insomniac, Naughty Dog, Game Republic, and Ninja Theory (for the games that are out currently) pulled off some sweetness on the system which makes me wonder what they're doing different that a lot of 3rd parties aren't doing Epic and IW aside. Nevermind I already know, developing on the system from the ground up instead of porting from other stuff seems to do the trick.
personally im a sony fan but if sony within 2008 dont showcase games that have that have that 'couldnt be done on xbox' wow factor its going to be a disaster, but the good news is uncharted is hopefully starting that early trend to say ps3 might just be as powerful as we all hoped.
sony has to get its 1st party tools in as many developers hands as possible, finally wake up and realise thier early arrogance was a role in the negative aura and that games sells consoles and not the other way round,ps2 was a global phenomenon due to the fact of ITS games (remember original xbox was more powerful but ps2 trounced it due to its exclusives)but i genuinly believe it made sonys head swell due to thier dominance and in some twisted way thought people were buying ps2 because of the console,yeh the console was great but the games were greater and this is what made the system.
xbox owners have to agree that 360 is a poorly designed piece of kit with a mind boggling failure rate,but it still sells why? games simple.aint bashing xbox i prefer ps3 but im just keeping it real
2008 is gonna be interesting and i persnally believe sony are waking up fom their arrogant slumber and are slowly realising microsoft are no pushover (they seem to be blueprinting the ps2 way forward meaning games sells)and gamers demand games not PROMISES!xbox outsold ps3 in JAPAN its sonys hometown,for one week because of what? ace combat a GAME!i never thought id see that day and i hope it never happens again playstation is a strong brand ps3 is now more affordable,and sony have that as their advantage to make a succesful comeback.