Roundtable: Our Thoughts On The Current Console Cycle

Josh Miller – The Family Man/Deserter of PlayStation

It started with the size of the box. It really was that simple. My space for consoles is limited and the console maker I ditched back in 2010 found its way as my main console again in 2020. And the main reason again? The Xbox Series S wasn’t the size of a tractor like the PlayStation 5.

The sad thing is…I want to own a PlayStation 5. The exclusives on that end had me far interested than what Microsoft has put out in years. But between the size, the element of Game Pass, Xbox Design Labs, putting more effort in the exclusive space (even if I have my issues with how they did it), and more; my trepidation in owning an Xbox again has disappeared. And that is ultimately the trend of the current consoles, at least for me. While Sony may be winning on the sales front (from what I understand at least), Microsoft is slowly building itself back up in the best ways possible.

But that’s also something I feel I should comment on. There’s a lot of promises. Hopes. Things that look great on paper. But as of right now…the new consoles have mostly felt unnecessary. I’m not a developer, so I’m sure games being released are doing better or wouldn’t be anywhere on par if they were only released on last-gen platforms, but the leap feels almost negligible in my eyes.

There will no doubt be a moment people will point to that really was the “onset” of new-gen games. Maybe it’s Ratchet and Clank: Rift Apart. Maybe it was Forza Horizon 5. Maybe it hasn’t been released yet. But whatever it is, I’m still waiting. Waiting for something that makes me feel like it could only exist on these new consoles. So my overall thought on this cycle: a lot to look forward to, but little having actually been delivered.