The Xbox One X looks to be a hard sell- it’s an extremely powerful and technologically sophisticated machine, sure, but it lacks enough compelling exclusives that justify purchasing it (even more so than the base Xbox One consoles, which already have this problem to begin with).
DFC Intelligence, an analyst firm, agrees, saying that it will sell upwards of 20 million units worldwide by 2022, with 17 million sold by 2021 end, bringing the total projected sales for Xbox One to 63 million units worldwide.
The problem will be in the considerable opposition that the system will face in the market by the PlayStation 4 and the Nintendo Switch. “Xbox One X is an expensive system designed to appeal to a fairly narrow demographic of gamers who want high quality graphics but do not want to spend money on a high-end PC,” said DFC analyst David Cole. “The challenge is that is a fairly small addressable market, even as sales of 4k television sets start to soar. Both the Nintendo Switch or Sony PlayStation 4 offer a very strong value proposition that consumers seem to be flocking to.”
“Many of the exclusives are fairly minor indie titles that will probably not take advantage of the enhanced graphics features of the system,” he added. “Furthermore, the leap from 1080 to 4k resolution is simply not as revolutionary as the previous movement from standard definition to high definition.”
This should lead to slower sales for the system than expected, with the PS4 and the Switch chipping away at the lion’s share of the market.
Do you personally think the Xbox One X, and indeed, the Xbox One family as a whole, will manage to carve their niche in the market? Or do you think the PS4 and Nintendo Switch will make things difficult? Let us know in the comments section below.
[via GamesIndustry]
