My friends, this stage has been set. You've got Xbox in one corner, Playstation 5 in the other. You're asking yourself, what do I do about next generation gaming? Well, this is probably the most complicated it's ever been. I'm going to lay it all out for you and help you figure it out. [MUSIC] Now that we have pricing for both the PlayStation fives and the xboxes. It's time to unpack the whole situation and really lay it all out there. Should you buy a new console? Should you wait? Should you just get a PC and call it a day? Everyone's answer is going to vary by their personal situation. But the very best that I can do is educate you to a point Where you can make the right choice for yourself. So let's start with each console's messaging for Microsoft. It's been made very clear that this next line of xboxes is hyper focused on games as a service, specifically games. This monthly subscription will get you access to not just Microsoft first party games does Same day they're released but also over 100 legacy titles to boot. Then there's the value add of cloud gaming, which is already live with over 100 games that can be streamed to Android and mobile devices, but just not your Xbox console, which I know it feels kind of wrong. But don't forget with that game pass subscription, you can download those games anyway. Still feels weird, but let's just leave that for what it is. Game Pass Ultimate extends everything to PC. And then sort of opens up this whole question of, wait a second, I have a decent PC, I have Game Pass Ultimate. Why do I need an Xbox? And the answer to that totally reasonable question might be, you don't. And that's the other theme of next gen for Microsoft. You don't need an Xbox. You're still gonna need that game pass ultimate subscribe. Subscription but the actual box itself, it's not required. And it's that philosophy that really has brought upon this sort of rift between these two historically competitive brands for this next generation of consoles. Microsoft and Sony have two increasingly different ideologies. And this divide is probably no better exemplified. Then in Microsoft's Xbox all access plan a way to essentially finance owning a series S or an X. There is a credit check for signing up, but if you do qualify you can own the series S or X for 25 or $35 a month respectively, and get two years of game pass ultimate included. So that's Microsoft's plan to get you in the door. But let's talk about Sony's messaging over the last six months, it feels like they've doubled down on the notion that PlayStation is a generational console meaning if you want to play the new and shiny games, you got to buy a new machine and that still feels mostly accurate. Though there's been a slight walk back if you consider the new information that spider man and horizon forbid and West are both getting ps4 releases, in addition to their ps4 releases, Sony calls this a move in a way to support the ps4 community as they transition to next gen when they're ready. Okay, but it's also clear that Microsoft's concentration on bolstering xboxes value proposition has made a tangible impact. The introduction of the PlayStation Plus collection is that and it's a direct response to game pass even if it doesn't match game passes perks like day one releases. We don't know a whole lot of the fine details about PlayStation Plus collection. Odds are if you owned a ps4, you probably purchased a good amount of those games. But if for some reason you skipped over this generation, there is an impressive list of ps4 exclusives and others really to hold you over on ps4 until the real heavy hitters start to arrive. So where does this leave us? The game right? And right now, I do think in terms of short and midterm outlooks. The exclusive software does swing in Sony's favor. I mean, that's the thing they've been reliably able to hang their head on for years now. And there's only going to be one place to play certain games like, you know, the next god of war or whatever naughty dog does next. And that's by owning a PS5 with Xbox exclusives. The path to being able to play those games is a lot wider now, right? Like, you can do that with a PC and you can do it with. Microsoft has done an impressive job of acquiring serious development talent over the years. But the argument for an Xbox as a home for must play exclusive software just isn't fully realized yet. For overall value though, that's a different story. When it comes to value a 299 it is really tough to argue against Xbox series s Being the best deal to be had out of the gate. Now, it's not gonna get you to that 4k sort of Echelon, but it's gonna get you pretty close and it'll also get you into that next gen Xbox ecosystem where you can enjoy all the perks of game pass and beyond for the same price. Have an intendo switch. But now for just $100 more a digital PS five all of a sudden seems like a reasonable upgrade that doesn't require much of a compromise in hardware, unless you really want a blu ray Drive, which you might. And if you really want to compare the hardware specs of the PS five and the Xbox series X, you'll find pros and cons on either side of that chart. If you're buying a console specifically for the amount of teraflops, you're doing it the wrong way, specs are one thing, but until we're able. To compare multi platform games side by side, there's not a whole lot to argue about. And sometimes console exclusives look better than multi platform games, right? I mean, multi platform games didn't really look good on ps3, but those exclusive titles were out of control online. It's too early to tell. Both consoles are going to get you to 4k up to 120 hertz and support for ray tracing technology. Whether or not you have the display for that stuff is on you. Okay, let's take a step back for a bit of a recap, right? Okay, so you have Xbox, more economical, seemingly better value and it's all about game pass The consoles will have backwards compatibility with some Xbox One and some other legacy, Xbox games, Playstation five, slightly more of an initial investment, but more traditional and arguably straight Stronger console exclusives, and what appears to be a solid chunk of PS4 backwards compatibility. But there may be other reasons you pick one console over the other right? You might decide based on what your friends have or will buy. Even though the rise in cross platform gaming makes this less of a deal breaker. [MUSIC] And of course we can't ignore the timely release of Nvidia's new powerhouse GPU, the RT x 3080. Which judging from early reviews is as impressive as we all hoped it would be. Yes, it's a more expensive investment. But with a decent PC, you've unlocked all of the Xbox exclusives that are going to come out. And with something like a 30 ad in your machine, you're going to see performance that these consoles will just not be able to reach. I know this is a lot to consider. It's confusing, but put it this way. The advice I have for the average person weighing their options for next gen. Just wait. Just wait a little bit even I mean, wait to see where we are at the start of 2021. How are multi platform games performing on each console? What is the core console experience like? There are a handful of things we just don't know yet and won't know until these things are out in in our hands. Don't forget, neither Sony or Microsoft has made a truly compelling argument that a day one purchase is a necessity. And that's good for you because it gives you time to make a more informed decision. Now, of course, I realized this is not a cut and dry situation, there are more variables to consider, and I'm sure there's going to be impactful information. That trickles out between now and November. But the main storylines of this have been set right. We have the clearest understanding of what each of these consoles is going to be able to offer. Okay, I hope I've been able to lay out a good amount of that top line detail, So you can make a better educated decision about next gen gaming. Look, if I didn't have to test all these consoles out for my job, I would be waiting it out, that is a promise. And for my colleagues and friends that I've talked to, that are in a situation where they can afford whatever they want They say they're going to be going with a decent PC and a PS five. Well and a switch of course because they're not monsters.