Analytics: Xbox One Looks Set To Launch Earlier than PS4 In Europe

Based on analytics, the Xbox One has released a hell of a load of pressure over the last few days. It has removed countless inferior price-point based countries for a reason it seems.

Possibly, Microsoft have had enough of Sony's taunts and jibes that have led to fighting back, now the release date, (which some europeans may not like) has been announced between North America and Europe.

[ArchangelMike]

I'll believe it when I see it. Microsoft have to have sufficient units manufactured and prepped in time for release. At the present time they cannot ship enough unit to cover the main European territories. I doubt they can launch much earlier than Sony in any territories, even in NA.

EDIT: Article is allover the place, and hard to read. Dude you need to edit your stuff, and don't just pour out your thoughts, at least sort through it first.

[kewlkat007]

Of course you doubt..

[black0o]

doesn't matter
12 vs 32 that matters

[dantesparda]

@ at kewlkat

and of course you dont. Speculations are not facts

[GaminGuys]

Sorted through and edited 5 times my friend. I believe I raised the reasons and counter-reasons for all the points you discuss in the post.

[deputyspade]

neildee, that was one of the worst opinion pieces I've ever read. At least learn how to write out coherent paragraphs and thoughts before submitting an article.

[DrRobotnik]

How much do you get payed for writing stuff like that? Damn I chose the wrong career field. That's it! I'm going to be a internet journalist/writer or whatever they call themselves. Just going to walk right into some random office and start writing articles n shit.

[HammadTheBeast]

It'll be close either way.

[Chevalier]

Actually I agree with ArchangelMike. Something is definitely wrong with production so I don't see it happening.

Just look at my store preorders Sony PS4 250 units and counting - preorders still open to day ONE units, Xbox One total preorders 42 units - told by our company STOP all preorders effective immediately just last week (across the whole country). So not only is our allocation pathetically low, we're told NOT to take more. PS4 we're told day ones are still available and to continue even after day one units aren't available.

Also my store is the biggest in my city, we have 9 stores. Average stores PS4 preorders/allocations already taken 150+ PER store. Average xbox 0ne preorder/allocation PER store - 30 whole units.

Canada as a whole for EB/Gamestop 4-1 in favour of PS4.

[GaminGuys]

It's technically a short amount of time so far considering MS got the publics opinion so wrong. A quarter of a year is a long time for sales and likely both parties are holding back with further news.

3rd Party Company decisions are just that... 3rd party instructed. Very likely you may receive instructions to do otherwise at some point. Let's hope.

It's strange how most saw Xbox 360 as the winner over PS3 yet more PS3 units have sold overall, however don't underestimate Microsoft. For every game you played online free, many of us filled their coffers gladly. I doubt Sony have Microsoft funding and the closer we get, the more thats likely to become apparent. theres already news of other downloads going on the X1. You just need to listen close.

Emilio can I get more bubbles please? 3 is so lame considering the approvals I have already.

[nukeitall]

Well, now that MS is releasing in less territory, more units should be available in those regions.

With MS closing the gap on the price difference, I think MS come back is on course. We even get articles and comments people are switching over. It has only been 2 months since the E3 reveal, going from massive PR hate to acceptance and soon embrace.

" doubt Sony have Microsoft funding and the closer we get, the more thats likely to become apparent."

It is already apparent. Sony couldn't afford AAA games, so they are hanging onto indie games, the sort you can get cheaply on Android or iOS smartphones and tablets.

Sony's release schedule is heavily lopsided towards indies.

[stuna1]

I take it because they're releasing Fifa14 free with a pre-order there! But I also see it being a repeat performance like this gen just backwards, where Microsoft takes the lead in Europe and Sony takes the lead in the US.

[Chevalier]

No it's a moot point and I'll tell you why. Fifa is ONLY going to be free on preordering day ONE units and if there aren't many units to begin with then the promotion is ineffective also buying a PS4 with Fifa in all areas of Europe is cheaper then buying a xbox One preloaded with Fifa, in the U.K. it'll be something like 40 pounds cheaper to buy PS4+Fifa then Xbox One preloaded. Also they are only releasing in SIX European countries which are as follows - U.K, France, Germany, Ireland, Italy and Spain.

PS4 release in EIGHTEEN European countries as follows:

Austria
Belgium
Denmark
Finland
France
Germany
Ireland
Italy
Luxembourg
Netherlands
Norway
Poland
Portugal
Russia
Spain
Sweden
Switzerland
United Kingdom

So yeah releasing a week or two early with so few units already available is NOT going to compete with Sony's significantly larger allocations and 3 times as many countries as well.

Also Microsoft does NOT have the lead in Europe they only had the U.K., all other countries buy Sony products.

[SniperControl]

@Stuna1

What are you smoking dude?

Europe has always been a PS stronghold, indications are also pointing towards the UK returning to the Playstation fold as well.

Since both conferences on the 20th, PS4 has jumped up to 2nd place on the Amazon UK bestsellers list, while the X1 has dropped to 23rd.

However the US is a different story, traditionally xbox territory. Sony might have a battle on there hands there, but it wont be as lop sided as last gen was.

[nukeitall]

Europe traditionally spread out has always been Sony's stronghold. That is why despite MS domination in the UK, the overall summation of all countries in Europe adds up to be about even between MS and Sony.

However, with the FIFA bundle I can see that pendulum swinging a little in MS favor. Especially with the heavy hitting games MS is releasing. If Driveclub is delayed, or plays like sh!t, Sony got an even bigger problem on their hand.

Europe loves their soccer and driving games.

Right now, the battle for hardcore gamers are on, but the real battleground isn't the niche hard core group. It is the casual consumers such as the Wii crowd.

These people don't pre-order, rely on word of mouth advertising a lot and base their purchasing decision on an overall fit of said device to the whole family. With XBL Gold and PS+ being the equalizer last generation, the Xbox One and PS4 is more similar than ever.

I think MS might hit slightly lower than Sony initially, but will come back swinging hard very long term.

MS console is broader, has better features, has more major games and now closing the gap on price.

[stuna1]

@Chevalier & nuketail

Thanks for your response, I should have worded more as a question! I realise Europe is one of Sonys strongholds, considering that the PS3 was released there a year and a half after the Xbox 360, and was able to retake that territory quicker than any other in the world.

@SniperControl

I word my comment wrong and I'm smoking something!? Not everyone are drug-heads, just so you know.

[SniperControl]

@nukeitall

Do you seriously think having FIFA 14 as a free game is going to sway the casual gamer into buying a X1?

The PS4 in the UK costs £350, FIFA 14 costs £47.00 that's £397 total. X1 with free FIFA 14 costs £429, that's a saving of £32 in the PS4's favor, which can buy a couple of good indie games from the PS Store as well.

What do you think the casual gamer is going to see?

Besides FIFA is only free on pre-orders, dont see many casual gamers putting down pre-orders. Most casual purchases will be walk-ins from the street after both consoles have launched.

[Chevalier]

@Nukeitall. Actually preorders are a very good marker of how something is going to sell. I have been selling games for 6 years and can tell you which games will be hits based on preorders alone. Also I have many customers coming in and switching to PS4 and taking friends and family with them. These people aren't just switching themselves, their whole groups or pairs switching together.

Also you are very shortsighted saying Sony has no AAA and can only afford indies. Based on your logic about funding and billions spent on games then where are the 360 games this year? Do the 80 million 360 owners not matter? PS3 has plenty of stuff late in the cycle and PS4 will be no different. MS has to do more than a handful of launch titles.

@Stuna -No prob just pointing out that it is unlikely that Fifa will be enough the number of countries receiving launches and low allocations are not helping MS. Also the interest talking to my customers is just not there.

[Animal Mutha 76]

Ah but consider this:

What if MS deliberately reduced the number of launch countries to allow them to launch a limited strike earlier than Sony but still in most key markets.

If they did come out and announce an earlier launch date then I would surmise that was their plan all along.

It would be a small PR coup.

Just saying its possible but not necessarily likely.

[SniperControl]

As NateCole says below it will be a short term victory at the very least.

I think a lot of gamers have made up there minds 100% to which console to buy, sure there will be a few stragglers.

This gen, alot of gamers adopted the 360 due to the year headstart it had over the PS3, quite understandably they wanted to use next gen tech, not a lot of people were willing to wait a year for PS3(myself included). However with a timescale of just a few weeks(supposedly) most gamers will wait on there chosen console, be it PS4 or X1.

[NateCole]

If they beat Sony it will be just for a week or two at best. Not the 16 months they had over Sony the last time for Europe.

[cootdog123]

Indeed my brother.

[C-Thunder]

Maybe? But they sure don't seem to be as far along as Sony is with the PS4, so it'll certainly be interesting if it happens.

[theWB27]

The systems are already in production. Phil Harrison stated he already has one at home. Major Nelson unboxed one of the first 20 off the pipeline a few weeks ago.

It's only August 21st...systems release 3 months from now. Where are they not as far along as Sony?

[BitbyDeath]

Xbox one is still in development, hence why no FCC approval, low pre-order allotments, no show at gamescom and rollback of region numbers. The ones you have seen aren't final builds.

[CptFlashHeart]

Still the disagrees roll on. FML

[Animal Mutha 76]

@ BitbyDeath

What? Have you not seen the videos of Xbox at Gamescom? They had a large press event.

There are loads of Xbox Ones actually running software. Ryse, Forza, Dead Rising and CoD were all running on actual hardware and they all looked pretty final to me bar any software update.

The thing is in full tilt production no doubt. I agree stock might be less than PS4 at launch but that's not a disaster.

[iPad]

Kinda crazy how Microsoft had a lower price point and a 16 month advantage in Europe with the 360 and Sony still managed to dominate Europe.

Sheesh.

[theWB27]

It's even crazier how Sony went from selling 150 million consoles compared to Micro's 24 million to them both being about tied at this point.

You can look at the head start, other can look at the 60 million consoles Micro took away from Sony.

P.S- 16 months doesn't equal 60 million consoles sold.

[NateCole]

PS2 approx 150 million in 12 years. Lunch price 299

PS3 approx 80 million in 6 years. Launch price 599

Remember the PS3 has only now reached 199.

60million took away from Sony?. Any proof?. What about the Wii?.

[miyamoto]

no. just no with your lies

PS2 was not even at 150 million units sold when ps3 came out.

obviously you can't think straight with all the damage control that needs to be done for M$

you have better things to do in life,mate.
M$ ain't worth it.

Who knows may be you are target of Bill Gate's depopulation agenda.
http://www.youtube.com/watc...

[theWB27]

@NateCole
What about the Wii? They sold more systems than both so far, so obviously Micro didn't take much from them.

In order for Sony to reach that number of 150 in four years they would have to sell about 15 million PS3's a year for the next 4 years, which means it would need to increase by a few million a year than what it has this whole gen. Think that's going to happen?

So with the Wii selling the way it did, Sony selling less than the gen before and Micro selling more than the gen before, it's not hard to see where the extra units for Micro came from.

PS2 launch price is 400 with adjusted inflation. One could argue the only reason Sony caught Micro is because Micro doesn't sell well in certain territories, but I won't use that.

I guess there's your proof- Nintendo sales increased, Micros increased, Sony's fell.

@miyamoto
What does the PS3's launch have to do with PS2's 150 million sold?

Really answer me this...if Nintendo increased their sales, Sony's dropped but Micro's rose then where did the sales come from? Obviously the extra gamer went to Nintendo.

Other than a nonsensical retort, answer how that happens without Micro taking some of Sony's sales.

[NateCole]

My point is your 60 million taken away from Sony is not correct.

1. You assume it was all taken from Sony when they could be new gamers or multi console owners etc.

2. More importantly the PS2 was still 6 years old when the PS3 came out so using 150 million figure at the end of its life-cycle for your calculations is wrong.

3. The x360 came out in 2005 when the PS2 just passed the 100 million mark. Using your logic this means that gap is 20 million. However it the PS3 will be supported for another 4 years so until then we can't really make a final conclusion.

Heck believe what you want. Just know that your logic and numbers are wrong.

[GaminGuys]

Hmm dominating over a console base with free online services isn't happening next gen. Be interesting to see how that pans out no matter which way it goes.

My question is, does it get you wondering, as that was realistically the only point I was trying to get going.

If you guys can vision a difference by dropping certain countries, then you surely must also be able to envision a change in not only a gravity shift after the games releases etc but a hunger for MS to want to fight back.

If you can understand that, then by all means comment further with any differences you presume. After all, these are all presumptions based on stats and hey I did say that I logistically guess stuff.

If I was Michael Pachter good at guessing stuff, I would be pretty happy saying this, but don't for a second think I'm in my comfort zone just yet.

We'll save that (possibly) for another post and and another old link. Hope you read it and thanks for the comment.

[NateCole]

Yeah. $200 price advantage. Sony also had to deal with an unprecedented negative image against them.

Still remember the late 2006 to early 2007. Almost everyday you get doom PS3 articles. PS3 has no games articles. Devs hating PS3 development articles. Blu-ray not need articles. PS3 Blue-ray Trojan horse articles. PSN sucks articles etc etc. Great times lol!.

[cootdog123]

They need all the help they can get lol.

[Clarence]

360 had a 16month lead in Europe yet they still fell behind in the country. A 2wk lead will do nothing for M$.

[MRMagoo123]

They arent even releasing in most of europe lol who the hell cares if they get a week or 2 head start.

[Soldierone]

To be honest, its the first time that the ball has been put in Microsofts court. Them releasing early will be about the only thing they can do to make up for some ground. That and getting more timed exclusive crap.

I think they will attempt to release early, they will cut corners, but they will do it. Unless Sony knows something and placed the date where MS can't do anything about it at all.

[Ghosts]

I think they will release Xbox one nov 5th long with call of duty ghosts.. they think that will be their triumph card, either way PS4 is going to dominate them!

[Akuma2K]

Until MS can top Sony's 1 million pre-ordered PS4 console numbers there's nothing they can do, even releasing the Xbone earlier than PS4 will hurt MS more than it will help because your looking at faulty units from being rushed into production.

Sony is going to crush Microsoft in the first 6 months if not sooner...

[fOrlOnhOpe57]

And the last time MS raced to beat Sony out of the door?.....
Not exactly a confident vote catcher in my book.

[Sevir]

they are releasing in 13 markets, where as Sonny is launching the PS4 in 32. EVEN if MS launched the XBOX One a whole month a head of time! that lead would be instantaneously be taken away on launch day for Both the US and the UK regions the day it goes on sale. currently There are over 1 million units that were preordered and that a fraction of the demand right now.

Many estimate that Sony will Sell about 2-3 million consoles by Dec 31st.

Day one allocation is said to be between 500K-800k during launch week for each region currently! Given That Sony's Box passed through FCC almost a month ago its pretty safe to say they are far more prepared and far ahead of MS with manufacturing and production of the PS4 than MS is with the XBONE.

MS had to scale back its launch to 13 markets. a 2 week lead isnt going to help MS at all!

They Dont have nearly the buzz and consumer interest as Sony Does. And they weren't confident enough to take about preorder numbers!

even with the change of their policies and the the uptick in momentum, world wide Sony's console was selling at an average of 4-1... so do the math!

This launch year! Things are different, Sony Launches in 32 markets, in the same month as its closest competitor and with a much lower price point and has the consumer interest! The PS4 is going to clean house and it'll likely be the defacto console Most pick up.

Early adopters will see that it sells out for the first 4 months and the Ones looking to upgrade after the kinks are out in six months will push the system to sell more, and by next XMAS the Casuals will come roaring in!

[GaminGuys]

Sounds like you bought the PS4 to play it safe to me. Everything you said screams 'I'm getting one cos it looks most popular'

[christocolus]

Ms is doing good....

[The_Sneauxman]

..is *NOT* doing..

FIXED

[christocolus]

lmao...whats with you and my own personal opinion..or dont i have the right to that anymore???

[The_Sneauxman]

ohh that was an opinion? Well you need to ELABORATE and explain your opinion because "Ms is doing good...." doesn't tout any reasoning to where you may be deriving from

[MasterCornholio]

What about the production issues that caused them to delay their console in several European countries?

They decreased their launch from 21 countries to 13 countries meanwhile Sony are releasing theirs in 32 countries which is 19 countries more than Microsoft.

And add to the fact that Microsoft had to change so many policy's due to low preorder numbers which is something that Sony didn't have to do.

In my opinion the only one who´s doing well out of the three with the launch of their console is Sony.

[HaHa_Ostrich]

Makes sense, they need to compete in Europe much harder than in the US.
But, to be honest, I dont care who is first, Ill get myself a new console at xmas anyway.

[The_Sneauxman]

I don't think it matters if it's before or after Sony's launch date.

M$ has a rough road ahead of them, especially with the shying away we seen at Gamescom with them not streaming the event and the absence of a Press Conference.

[colonel179]

There is something that no one is taking into account. Microsoft haven't announce full support for TV and multimedia services on Europe. A lot of people want a videogame console to play games, but since MS is pushing the Media HUB too much, why wouldn't they have announced a TV deal in Europe? (Correct me if I'm wrong please)

If that is indeed the case, the console would launch "incomplete" regarding of features. So that would be a low point for MS when they review the console at release.

[HaHa_Ostrich]

A valid point. Would you pay extra for TV features that doesnt work at the moment in your country?

[CptFlashHeart]

Will be Sky and Virgin Media in the UK - this was already confirmed. Not sure about the EU providers though.

[TimeSkipLuffy]

Does not make a difference to me. I don't have that much time to play. I just want my PS4 and X1 to be arriving before Christmas holiday :3

[Rebo00]

My brain started to hurt after the first few paragraph of this poorly written article.
1st thing to do is proof read before submitting something

[GaminGuys]

its been 2 very late nights doing posts hence steadily gets harder

[CptFlashHeart]

So many analysts on this site. It's as if Sony are paying you to spread their word.

Give up. Noone cares what you think will happen, let it play out.

[fOrlOnhOpe57]

And if no-one cared, then MS would have taken gaming down the DRM road, probably persuading Sony to follow suit regarding used games etc.
Its precisely BECAUSE gamers cared that they didnt get away with their bullsh*t.

[seanpitt23]

Well that 2 week wait for Europe was a big blow if Microsoft comes in at a earlier date then alot of people will buy the system that comes out first. Sony should of done a worldwide launch on November 15th.

[pyramidshead]

Microsoft are welcome to release first....because to be fair they sound like they genuinely need a head start this gen. It would only be fair if Sony gave them that much, at least to catch up in potential sales.

[sprinterboy]

Sony have fcc approval but Xbox one has yet to do this, so surely ms can not give a release date until they have fcc approval, is Xbox one in production?

[GraveLord]

Unlikely. I'm betting the US launch is late November while the Europe launch gets pushed to early December.