XBOX ONE VS PS4
What is the better console?
XBOX ONE Initially the Xbox One console cost £80 more than Sony’s console – £349 for PS4 vs £429 for Xbox One – a difference largely accounted for by Microsoft bundling its motion-capturing Kinect controller with every console. However, while the PS4 has kept its price, the Xbox One has had a number of price cuts, and bundle deals, in its first six months.
A first price cut occurred in late February dropping the cost of Microsoft’s hardware down to a slightly more reasonable £399. It also continued its launch trick of bundling a game with the console for free, initially this was FIFA 14, but now must-have shooter Titanfall has taken its place, which in effect brings the console down to around £360 – as most people would buy the game anyway. This deal is still available today from Microsoft, see Xbox One + Kinect Titanfall Edition.
More recently Microsoft has given in to pressure from gamers and is finally selling the console without the Kinect peripheral. This version of the Xbox One costs £349, though you can’t get a free copy of Titanfall with this bundle – see the GAME: Xbox One order page to see the kind of deals on offer. Given that Titanfall is still the must-have game on Xbox One (and arguably the best ‘exclusive’ on either next-gen platform) the bundle with Kinect is still the better deal.
PS4 The PS4 remains at its original £349 price, and is now widely available as a standalone console as well as in various bundles. There’s nothing we can find that competes with the Xbox One Titanfall bundle for value, but then it’s cheaper to start off with. An eye-catching deal at present is a Last of Us bundle which you can pick up for under £370 if you shop around. It’s not a next-gen game, but if you haven’t played it then it’s still one of the finest action-adventures ever made.
The big price move has now occurred with the Xbox One joining the PS4 on £349. But the big question is whether it will stay that way in the run-up to Christmas. Neither company will be keen to enter a price war this early in the console lifespan, as you can’t put the price back up easily once you’ve dropped it, and both will have large R&D costs they need to recoup. However with Microsoft slipping behind in sales, it may just decide to go for it and slice a chunk off the price.
Microsoft may be behind on sales, but with arguably a better line up of exclusives this Christmas, and with Call of Duty still being stronger on the Xbox, it’s possible it may simply continue its practice of bundling highly-desirable games with the console for free, rather than cutting the retail price. It’s a very hard one to call, but if price is a big issue for you, and you’re swaying toward Xbox One, then you may want to hold off – at least until after Gamescom next week.
Another reason to wait is because retailers bundle deals are bound to get sweeter on both consoles as we approach Christmas, just how sweet will depend on the amount of consoles the two companies can manufacture this year. If demand is high, retailers won’t care to cut prices, if there’s an excess of consoles though, then expect bigger deals. Don’t leave it too late though, as a sell-out is still a possiblity this year, especially of the more-popular PS4.
