The longest console life-cycle on record has had its drawbacks, but it’s got plenty of early adopters chomping at the bit to get their hands on next-gen consoles from Sony and Microsoft. The PlayStation 4 and Xbox One seem to be selling out as fast as retailers get new inventory to offer for pre-order, and launch for the systems will no doubt be an exciting time. However, a new research report is suggesting that neither the Xbox One or the PlayStation 4 will be as popular with consumers as their predecessors were.
According to ABI Research, the combined sales of the Xbox One, PS4, and Wii U will be down significantly after five years on the market. The research firm predicts that around 133 million consoles will be sold in the first five years, and that sales will down around 5% for the big three.
The researchers believe that many of the features for the new devices are considerably more costly with the gaming hardware, and can be found in lower cost variations. According to ABI, Sony, Microsoft, and Nintendo will need massive lineups of first party exclusive games to keep consumers coming to stores to pick up their hardware. Furthermore, ABI suggests that the market is saturated with very little room for growth. They also point to the likely culprit of mobile devices and tablets to take a large chunk out of the market by delivering low cost casual gaming experiences.
Published: Jul 16, 2013 06:00 pm