Sony vs. Microsoft vs. Nintendo: Which Company Was Best to Gamers in 2018?
Sony
“For the Gamers” has been Sony’s slogan for the PlayStation 4 since its reveal. Following Microsoft’s fumble regarding game-sharing and always online requirements, Sony doubled down on the idea that games were more important than anything else.
That philosophy has continued well into 2018 with their slate of exclusives blowing the competition out of the water. God of War, Marvel’s Spider-Man, and Detroit: Become Human from first-parties would have been enough on their own, but exclusives from third-parties meant that PS4 was the only place to play many of 2018’s best games.
Dragon Quest XI, Ni No Kuni II, Tetris Effect, and more all came to PlayStation 4 first, giving fans of any genre something exclusive to play on their PS4.
Elsewhere, however, due to their dominance this generation, Sony has often been outdone when it comes to other initiatives. In order to preserve their place at the top, they’ve shied away from ideas such as cross-play.
However, 2018 saw their stance change slightly. After some backlash, a cross-play beta program was opened up for Fortnite Battle Royale (recently being joined by Rocket League) which saw Sony begin to play nicely and join Nintendo and Microsoft in offering cross-play options.
They’ve got some way to go to match the competition in how open they are to it, but steps are being made in the right direction.
Elsewhere, Sony finally answered players’ calls for an ability to change their PSN names, with another beta program being introduced. There are some kinks to be worked out and caveats to consider, but it’s a solution that should please many gamers.
Some gamers may be disappointed, though, at the lack of events that are scheduled to showcase what Sony have coming up. PSX didn’t happen late in 2018 and the company announced that they’d be skipping E3 in 2019.
We’ll still see everything they have to offer in one way or another, but celebration events like the great E3 press conferences of recent years are exciting and we’ll be missing that this year.
With the likes of Days Gone already scheduled, The Last of Us Part II and Death Stranding coming soon, and a PS5 announcement on the horizon, Sony will continue to treat gamers with stellar titles over the next few years.
Sony vs. Microsoft vs. Nintendo: Which Company Was Best to Gamers in 2018?
Microsoft
Microsoft has taken almost the opposite approach to Sony’s for the last few years by offering services that make playing Xbox games easier and cheaper, and that continued into 2018.
Cross-play continued to be a non-issue, being widely available, including on the likes of Rocket League and Fortnite.
Backwards compatibility, one of Microsoft’s best moves this generation, continued to evolve and offer gamers a way to play their old games, as well as many of the free titles on offer with Games With Gold.
The standout service in 2018, though, and what Microsoft seemed to be pushing more than anything else, is Game Pass. With every notable exclusive being included in the subscription, it’s perfect for players who use their Xbox One as their second console.
Overall, though, Game Pass is an easy to use, fairly priced rental service of sorts that allows you to test games that you are unsure about or would never have bought.
On top of opening up your gaming catalogue, you can jump into the likes of Forza Horizon 4 and Sea of Thieves at no extra charge. It’s a wonderful service and head and shoulders above Sony’s equivalent, PS Now.
Elsewhere, Microsoft are making moves to improve the exclusives they have to offer Xbox gamers. The acquisition of Obsidian is very exciting and should lead to some quality exclusive RPGs in coming years.
Also, in a wonderful move to help maximize enjoyment for disabled gamers, Microsoft revealed the Adaptive Controller in 2018.
Sony vs. Microsoft vs. Nintendo: Which Company Was Best to Gamers in 2018?
Nintendo
After the Switch’s wonderful launch year that was 2017, 2018 was always going to be a year in which Nintendo needed to keep fans happy and interested.
In terms of games, there was a good mix of tentpole exclusive releases and a barrage of indies.
The highlight for many of course, and the game that kept many Nintendo fans happy, was the release of Super Smash Bros. Ultimate in December. It’s the biggest, most varied Smash game yet, and was always going to be a hit on Switch.
Pokemon Let’s Go Pikachu was both what every Pokemon Yellow fan has been dreaming about for years and a great taster for Gen 8 next year, and Octopath Traveler was a wonderful and deep JRPG.
The games, on top of the frequent indies that prompted Switch owners to buy games they already had elsewhere just so they could take them on the go, made for a great 2018 release lineup.
Where Nintendo let their fans down, though, was with its online service. Of course, it’s new and has time to improve, but it’s so far behind the quality of the rival systems’ online services.
Yes, it’s cheaper at just $20 a year, but it’s unreliable, lacks basic functions like integrated party chat, and the free games that are on offer as a sweetener are lackluster. It’s far from the Virtual Console replacement many hoped for.
Sony vs. Microsoft vs. Nintendo: Which Company Was Best to Gamers in 2018?
Who Wins?
Sony, Microsoft, and Nintendo each treated gamers in different ways throughout 2018. Although the game lineup was huge and featured some highlights, Nintendo’s year was more about consolidation after its launch, being let down slightly by the underwhelming online service.
Sony and Microsoft, however, generally treated gamers well in 2018, albeit in different ways.
Sony’s year was focused on games, offering more impressive exclusives that the competition. They gave gamers what they wanted elsewhere, though. By softening their stance on cross-play, they dispelled the idea that they were scared of losing the ground they have.
Cross-play is something that Microsoft already offered, making them more attractive to some gamers, but Sony realized that it will only become more important to gamers as more and more online and social experiences release.
Services have been Microsoft’s focus, though, showing that they’re putting gamers first as they build their studio force to offer in the future what Sony do.
By pleasing Xbox fans with the excellent Game Pass service, the expanding backwards compatible catalogue, and their openness to things like cross-play, they’re putting themselves in pole position for the coming years.
Having ways to play a huge selection of games at the touch of a few buttons, including all the system’s exclusives, for a low price is something that cannot be overlooked, and it’s not surprise that Microsoft continues to push it as one of the Xbox One’s coolest features.
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