![]() Sony Play. Station 4: Shawn Layden and Jim Ryan on Play. Station 4 Pro and Play. Station VRSorry, Microsoft. Sorry, Nintendo. As we go into next week's E3 conference, the biggest video game event of the year, Sony wants you to know that the Play. Station 4 is the one to beat.
![]() Today, Sony announces that it's sold "almost" 6. Play. Station 4 consoles to customers since its launch in 2. To underscore the point, it revealed a few new stats, too: Microsoft no longer reveals sales of the Xbox One, but recent estimates peg it at below 3. And while the Nintendo Switch, which launched in March, is too new to compare, Nintendo had sold around 1. Wii U consoles since 2. In other words, Sony is taking a victory lap ahead of E3, and taking its fans along, too: From June 9- 1. Sony will be holding a "Days of Play" promotion, with big sales on Play. Station software and hardware. Sony is even using the event to launch a gold- colored Play. Station 4 console, which will sell for $2. Business Insider sat down with Play. Station global sales and marketing head Jim Ryan and Sony Interactive Entertainment America CEO Shawn Layden to talk about Sony's blockbuster 2. Microsoft and Nintendo, and the master plan for the year ahead.'That's the way we like to do things'Sony had a very busy fourth quarter last year. On October 1. 3, 2. Sony launched Play. Station VR, a $3. Play. Station 4 console — its play to beat Facebook's Oculus to conquer virtual reality in the living room. One month earlier, on September 7, Sony introduced the Play. Station 4 Slim, a refined version of the original console, and the Play. Station 4 Pro, a version with more robust graphical capabilities."That's the way we like to do things," jokes Layden. Now, almost eight months after that hardware blitz, Ryan says "it could have scarcely gone better" — an assertion backed up by those sales figures. He also says high demand has led to shortages of the Play. Station VR and the PS4 Pro console. But Sony has ramped up production, and he expects they'll be easier to find going forward. The Sony Play. Station VR, a virtual reality headset that works with any Play. Station 4 console. Facing speculation that they would have to reboot or rethink their video game businesses to respond to rival Sony’s dominance, Nintendo and Microsoft instead. Darren Weaver/Business Insider. The Play. Station 4 Pro has found early success for a very simple reason, says Layden: There's a "constant desire of every developer to make their games look better." The console games with the most impressive graphics are landing on the Pro, he says, and gamers are coming along for the ride. And when it comes to virtual reality, Ryan says the company is "intrigued" by where it stands with the Play. Station VR, even as he acknowledges that one million headsets sold is hardly a dent in the Play. Station 4's 6. 0 million- strong customer base."We would not describe one million units the same as mass adoption," says Ryan. But we would call it a good start." 'We won't be frightened of what they do'Sony may be way out front, but Nintendo and Microsoft have both indicated a revitalized willingness to compete. Ryan says it's too early to really gauge the Nintendo Switch's success, but that "there's room in the market." When it comes to Microsoft, however, Ryan is a little more skeptical. Xbox boss Phil Spencer has promised that its forthcoming "Project Scorpio," slated to launch this holiday season, will be "the most powerful console ever." That's a not- so- subtle indication that Microsoft is planning on something even beefier than the Play. Station 4 Pro. The Sony Play. Station 4 Pro, a souped- up version of the Play. Station 4, that can play all the same games. Ben Gilbert / Business Insider. Still, when it comes to the burgeoning market for super- powerful game consoles, Ryan says Sony is "building a strong position" with its early sales. So while Sony welcomes the competition and looks forward to hearing more about Project Scorpio at E3 with the rest of the world, it's not exactly keeping the Play. Station team up at night."We won't be frightened of what they do," says Ryan. Because ultimately, it's all about the games, and Ryan thinks Sony has the edge. The "vast majority" of Xbox One games are also available for Play. Station 4, notes Ryan — and Play. Station 4- exclusive blockbusters like "Horizon Zero Dawn" and the forthcoming "Uncharted: The Lost Legacy" tip the scales. What comes next. In a broad sense, Layden says the way for Play. Station to grow is by expanding the traditional notion of the video game industry. As the leading console maker, Layden says the next real frontier for Play. Station lies in enticing people who might never otherwise play games."We have to also create new segments, new genres," says Layden. An early example of this can be found with "MLB: The Show 1. Sony's baseball series, explains Layden. Originally, Sony's inclination was to market it "as a game," he says. But when they started pitching it instead as a kind of ultimate experience for MLB fans, he says, it became the best- selling entry in the franchise."Horizon Zero Dawn," a blockbuster Play. Station 4 exclusive. Guerrilla Games/Sony. Now, the Play. Station VR provides a new opportunity to take that even further. Since virtual reality is so new, there's no accepted way of doing things. That means there's a real chance to reexamine what works and what doesn't, opening the door for new innovations that can encourage new players."[Play. Station VR is] not a peripheral, so to speak; it's a whole new medium," says Layden. The goal for Sony, then, is to push on both software and hardware: With excellent exclusive games, Layden says, Sony can drive the market forward by showing developers what's possible. Those games, in turn, will sell more Play. Station 4 consoles and Play. Station VR headsets, enticing developers to make more games."Our part of the bargain is to provide the install base," says Layden. Get the latest Microsoft stock price here. Nintendo Is Now Worth More Than Sony. But, but, but.. Nintendo is dying!” My foot. The Big 'N' has been trudging through the negative press all throughout 2. Nintendo was finished, that the Wii U was their demise, that smartphones have destroyed the handheld market. Well, if all of that were true, what does that say about Sony? The UK's Metro has a very telling article about the state of the corporate wars (it kind of extends beyond just console wars) and it's hilarious that the company that so many people have trashed over each and every generation is now worth more than the loved- more- than- ever- before Sony. That's right, investors, stockholders, the general market now values Nintendo higher than all of Sony. Metro reports that Sony is worth $1. Sony does have the PS4 to thank for a lot of their success lately as it's been trailblazing through the market like a Skyline running on jet fuel. Nintendo, alternatively, is worth $1. Yes, Nintendo is worth $7. Sony. That's like the entire fiscal sales period of an Assassin's Creed game, or a little under the first- day sales of a Grand Theft Auto game. A lot of the moving and shaking of Nintendo's stock comes through the recent transition from mainland China lifting the ban on home consoles. There's a lot of strong sales potential for many of the big three to be had by selling their products to a potential billion customers. In addition to this, there has also been a lot of talk from said market analysts and pundits claiming that Nintendo is becoming a third- party supporter because otherwise they'll be consumed by smartphones in 2. Of course, a lot of these guys can't actually tell their anus from their own puckered lips and have a hard time gauging trends in markets they don't understand. The reality is that if Nintendo decided to go third- party and make some of their exclusive brands on other systems the brands themselves would lose all valuation. This would mostly be due to the fact that – much like the whored out Sonic – you'll be able to get Mario and Pokemon games from anywhere, thus their prestige and presence in the market becomes devalued. Of course, investors and stockholders don't think like that and are only concerned with “a billion smartphone owners = a billion software sales” and that's really not how it all works. Nevertheless, with the Wii U making a huge comeback, the 3. DS is currently the best selling gaming platform on the market and Nintendo having an extremely strong 2. Microsoft and Sony combined) I would guess that the ban lift on consoles in China could help Nintendo soar to new heights in 2. Main image courtesy of Newgrounds.
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