Microsoft delivered some truly great announcements at Gamescom today that have fans and the entire industry excited for the future. There is no doubt that the folks over at Microsoft are proud of themselves and the amazing presentation they gave today. Great games, new tech, and awesome new features helped carry them through the nearly two hour long briefing, but there is another element that may have provided the green machine a bit more of an edge.
Microsoft is the only member of the “Big Three” to hold a press conference at Gamescom this year. With both Nintendo and Sony opting out of a stage presence, the Xbox had the floor all to itself as it streamed to millions of people across the world. The fact that they were the only ones to present may not seem like such a big deal, but sometimes all it takes is for one to be absent for another to shine.
Sony made a decision not to present at Gamescom and instead opted solely for a booth presence on the show floor. While the show floor is better than nothing, it’s the briefings that people all over the world tune in to see. There are some who feel that the PlayStation didn’t need a big presentation at Gamescom, after all, they’re dominating the European console market and show no signs of relinquishing the territory anytime soon. Also, they will be at Tokyo Game Show (TGS) later this year, so skipping the stage at only one show couldn’t be such a big deal, could it?
Gamescom is an opportunity for companies to get out in front of the gaming community on a large scale. The PlayStation 4 may already be leading the pack in terms of worldwide sales, but that doesn’t mean they can rest on their laurels. An opportunity passed upon is one seized by the competition.
Microsoft showed up at Gamescom with one goal in mind: wow everyone. Being able to present pretty much uncontested is one way that they can do just that. They were able to make big announcements and share their plans for the future, opening them up for more announcements later this year at TGS since they managed to get these out of the way. Not only that, but they managed to get the hype train rolling for some big titles on top of what everyone was already anticipating.
Sony, on the other hand, has a bit of catching up to do next month. Missing Gamescom may mean having to cram more into their TGS presentation. That means they won’t be able to be as relaxed as they normally are since Microsoft has taken a sizable chunk of interest with their latest showing. Instead of riding things out with an okay showing to follow up their E3 presentation (which left a crowd of adults crying in joy), they now have to figure out a way to counter the events of today in a very big way.
Once a company is put on the offensive, that gives an edge to the one that can finally sit back and react. Sony and the PlayStation team’s intention may not have been to let Microsoft soak up more of the spotlight, but that is exactly what is happening. They were the company with a lot to prove over the past year (something they’ve handled amazingly), and now they’ve delivered what is arguably their best presentation yet. Naturally, everyone’s attention has now shifted to Sony as they await their next move. Let’s all just hope it’s a good one.
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