Sony and Microsoft Portable Hybrids?

[TacoSenpai]

So I want to open a discussion topic for this.  In the console space it would seem that both Microsoft and Sony are set on home console and home consoles alone going forward.  You have Microsoft pushing Scorpio and its "4K" capability and Sony going as far to revise their PS4 Pro with 4K up scaling and a beefier GPU.  I can't access the article now but I think I even remember Sony saying something along the lines how the Switch is a completely different business model with it being a hybrid and they don't see themselves in the same market.  Its also no secret that Microsoft generally loses money on the hardware of their Xbox line I think this has been the case since the OG Xbox and instead rely on licenses and game sales to help even the loss.  The Xbox brand to Microsoft is more or less something to get Microsoft into the "we make OS's and business stuff but we make cool stuff too like Xbox" marketing stick. 

 

At face value it would seem that both Sony and Microsoft do not seem interested in the portable market let alone the "hybrid" market which would leave the Switch practically uncontested.  This seems especially true given that Sony tried twice to contest Nintendo with portables and was debateably only successful once with the PSP giving the DS solid competition and fizzing out with the Vita.  However, there seems to be an unspoken impetuous that might change this that I find both myself and others almost obliviously falling into.  We are waiting third party titles out.  What do I mean by this?  Seeing that the Switch is at least capable of running games like Skyrim, Doom, LA Noire etc has shown that it is capable and in the right hands of good optimization teams can get portable/home versions of AAA third party titles.  I mentioned this in a previous thread how I was holding off on getting Dragonball FighterZ to see if Bandei would cave and put a version on the Switch which is more than capable of running the game.  This means I'm not getting it on PS4, Xbox, or hell even Steam. 

 

I have a feeling (albiet an uneducated gut one) that if there are enough people like me with this attitude it might very well shift both Microsoft's and Sony's view on their approach to console design.  Or maybe dare I say...Sega? 
 

[Mira Yurizaki]

I don't think either would want to make the move to a hybrid console like the Switch as their only system. And neither seems to want the idea of two consoles in tandem. The other thing is that Sony and Microsoft want to battle for a space in the living room as the entertainment system. And that still means adding an optical media drive.

 

Also two of the games you mentioned running on the Switch were last generation titles. DOOM managed to fit on the Switch after trimming a lot of details and the performance to 30 FPS. I don't think it's going to run say Horizon Zero Dawn (if it could) anywhere near the level of detail it has on the PS4.

[TacoSenpai]

1 minute ago, M.Yurizaki said:

I don't think either would want to make the move to a hybrid console like the Switch as their only system. And neither seems to want the idea of two consoles in tandem. The other thing is that Sony and Microsoft want to battle for a space in the living room as the entertainment system. And that still means adding an optical media drive.

 

Also two of the games you mentioned running on the Switch were last generation titles. DOOM managed to fit on the Switch after trimming a lot of details and the performance to 30 FPS. I don't think it's going to run say Horizon Zero Dawn (if it could) anywhere near the level of detail it has on the PS4.

Horizon Dawn is also a PS4 exclusive (a true one at that at least so far).  Yeah I wouldn't expect something like that to get on the Switch.

 

Optical Media now that you bring it up is also in question.  I mean sure games for both come on disc to then only be installed on the HDD.  I wonder how much longer that will last but that gets onto a tangent of physical vs digital media.

[SteveGrabowski0]

No one has ever competed with Nintendo on handhelds. Everyone from Sega to Atari to Sony kept trying to out-power Nintendo handhelds but that company really knows how to make games that are fun on portables. I don't ever want to see Sony throwing good money at portables again. Their studios have never shown the kind of talent Nintendo's have at making handheld games. I could give a shit what Microsoft does since their exclusives don't interest me and thus the XBox brand doesn't either.

[Mira Yurizaki]

10 minutes ago, SteveGrabowski0 said:

No one has ever competed with Nintendo on handhelds. Everyone from Sega to Atari to Sony kept trying to out-power Nintendo handhelds but that company really knows how to make games that are fun on portables. I don't ever want to see Sony throwing good money at portables again. Their studios have never shown the kind of talent Nintendo's have at making handheld games. I could give a shit what Microsoft does since their exclusives don't interest me and thus the XBox brand doesn't either.

Honestly, I don't see what makes any given Nintendo portable game something that wouldn't work on a home console. Heck, a lot of games I own on my 3DS are basically remakes of home console games or wouldn't have any trouble living on such.

 

The only exception is Pokemon because its ethos still seems to permeate even in the internet of things era.

[bcguru9384]

6 hours ago, M.Yurizaki said:

Sony and Microsoft want to battle for a space in the living room as the entertainment system. And that still means adding an optical media drive.

well they both already do have plenty of living room ad space(device logos)

sony actually dominating this area currently as it has for a few decades now

sony tv

sony stereo reciever

sony multidisc cd dvd bluray players

sony mp3

sony vinyl players

sony tape players

sony hometheater recievers

 

ya microsoft/xbox are really no competition to sony for living room space

now if next xbox came loaded with inputs to take place of home theater reciever that be great product and hot seller if gpu cpu ram were upgradeable

call it the johnny5box (play on the input input input j5 does)

[Mira Yurizaki]

42 minutes ago, bcguru9384 said:

well they both already do have plenty of living room ad space(device logos)

sony actually dominating this area currently as it has for a few decades now

sony tv

sony stereo reciever

sony multidisc cd dvd bluray players

sony mp3

sony vinyl players

sony tape players

sony hometheater recievers

Sony has flooded the market yes, but they're no where near dominating it.

42 minutes ago, bcguru9384 said:

now if next xbox came loaded with inputs to take place of home theater reciever that be great product and hot seller if gpu cpu ram were upgradeable

And it'd be too expensive for most people who are interested in console gaming.

 

And if you want something upgradeable, get a PC.

[TacoSenpai]

2 hours ago, M.Yurizaki said:

Honestly, I don't see what makes any given Nintendo portable game something that wouldn't work on a home console. Heck, a lot of games I own on my 3DS are basically remakes of home console games or wouldn't have any trouble living on such.

 

The only exception is Pokemon because its ethos still seems to permeate even in the internet of things era.

Its funny you mention that because a large portion of the Wii U library has versions on the 3DS which is probably a big reason the Switch is the way it is.

[Kyle_N]

MS has a portable system. A lot of Xbox games can run on newer Windows tablets. Halo Wars, Forza, I think Recore works, gonna try Sea of Thieves this weekend. Those are all Xbox Play Anywhere games, so crossbuy/crossplay/crosssave with any number of PCs and Xbox systems. There's even native Xbox controller support built into their own Surface devices (wifi direct-based, not bluetooth). 

Of course you also have third party games (but no crossbuy/crosssave whatsoever) and PC-only games as well. 

 

That being said, a tablet with a decent processor isn't cheap and certainly isn't in the same market as a Switch or DS. But, within a few years, I would expect it to, with more powerful CPUs being available in tablets, and system requirements aren't really going up. I mean the Switch is a literal example of what a tablet can be capable of. I think that's exactly where MS is headed.

I'd say the Switch is to normal tablets as the Xbox One X is to PCs. Not really all that powerful in comparison, but able to make it work at a relatively low price.

[TacoSenpai]

On 1/24/2018 at 4:24 PM, DOGC_Kyle said:

MS has a portable system. A lot of Xbox games can run on newer Windows tablets. Halo Wars, Forza, I think Recore works, gonna try Sea of Thieves this weekend. Those are all Xbox Play Anywhere games, so crossbuy/crossplay/crosssave with any number of PCs and Xbox systems. There's even native Xbox controller support built into their own Surface devices (wifi direct-based, not bluetooth). 

Of course you also have third party games (but no crossbuy/crosssave whatsoever) and PC-only games as well. 

 

That being said, a tablet with a decent processor isn't cheap and certainly isn't in the same market as a Switch or DS. But, within a few years, I would expect it to, with more powerful CPUs being available in tablets, and system requirements aren't really going up. I mean the Switch is a literal example of what a tablet can be capable of. I think that's exactly where MS is headed.

I'd say the Switch is to normal tablets as the Xbox One X is to PCs. Not really all that powerful in comparison, but able to make it work at a relatively low price.

Thats pretty interesting I didn't even think about the Surface Pros which is funny since I work on migrating them and setting them up at my day job.  I don't know how capable they are at gaming but I suppose I could see devices like that getting more powerful over time certainly if they have tablets that can run Forza it would seem plausible.