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Since the earliest days of gaming, there has always been a sense of “competition” between the various companies and brands that made both consoles and games. Thus was born the “Console Wars.” Today, we have three companies/publishers that are trying to dominate the marketplace: Sony, Nintendo, and Microsoft. They’ve been in the console-making business for varying amounts of time, and the games they’ve made speak to what they feel is the “best for gamers.”
However, in the year 2025, there have been major shakeups and releases that make one wonder just who is “coming out on top.” The “Console Wars 2025 Edition,” if you will, has a few different avenues to measure success. Yet, when you look closer, you’ll see that there really is one side winning right now. So, let’s break down each side to showcase who’s winning…and who’s not.
3rd Place – Microsoft/Xbox
If you’re surprised by this first placement, you haven’t been paying attention to the gaming industry recently.
Microsoft came into the console game in the early 2000s and made waves with its focus on online multiplayer and high-quality graphics. It took a while, but they found their place in the industry, with the Xbox 360 selling about 86 million units.
However, with the arrival of the Xbox One, things slowly started to go wrong. Then, by the time we got to the Xbox Series X/S, Microsoft seemed to have lost the plot with what they were supposed to be doing with the Xbox brand. They literally tried to “buy success” by scooping up companies left and right and not guiding them to be proper parts of the Xbox line.
Sure, they had successes with the Activision Blizzard deal, but it came at the cost of many other groups and companies. Since their “buying spree,” they’ve had to try and recoup costs, and that’s meant heaps of layoffs over the last few years alone. Heck, we just got one the other week that many are still fuming about.
Adding to its woes is that the Xbox “brand” isn’t really a brand of games anymore; it’s mainly about hardware and Game Pass. Their “exclusives” are few and far between, and as seen in the opening months of this year and last year, they don’t remain exclusive for long. Many still debate whether Xbox Game Pass is even profitable due to how it’s handled just to get games on there “Day One.” It’s so bad that they’ve even screwed up Halo and its new studio to try and “fix the franchise.”
All of this doesn’t even cover how the Xbox Series X/S is trailing behind in sales. It’s an absolute joke in Japan, and it’s even getting outsold by the Xbox One in some cases. Microsoft did announce a mobile version of its console, but many think that’ll flop, too, and why would anyone have hope for its next true console?
Many wonder if “the end is near” for Microsoft as a console maker, and we don’t blame them for thinking such thoughts.
2nd Place – Sony/PlayStation
Sony and its PlayStation brand are honestly really curious to talk about. On the one hand, they aren’t failing anywhere close to what Microsoft is doing, and there are numbers that easily prove that. However, if you were to call them the “clear winner” of the console wars right now, you’d be lying on multiple fronts. If we were to “put it nicely,” they’re “treading water.” They’re doing just enough to survive, but they’re also making moves in questionable directions that make you wonder what they have against gamers.
We’ll start with the positive. PS5 sales…are good! Great, even, depending on what region you’re looking at. As of earlier this year, they have sold over 80 million units since 2020, putting them on pace with the PS4’s sales in the same period.
The question, though, for them comes with the games. Sure, they just had a big release with Death Stranding 2: On The Beach, which apparently sold over a million units in a few days, but they want a lot more. Plus, if you look at the games they’ve touted for the PS5 this year, many aren’t exclusive to PlayStation, and many of their third-party partners, like Square Enix, have shifted from giving Sony exclusives due to lackluster sales.
Plus, while games like Astro Bot got “Game of the Year” awards, it wasn’t the biggest sales hit. It only did 1.5 million in its first few months and is now over 2 million, but that’s a far cry from what other epic platformers have done, like with Mario’s various entries.
Let’s also not forget that they have been pushing HARD into the live-service market with all manner of backfires, not the least of which was Concord, which Sony itself billed as the next great franchise that could rival other legendary series…and they shuttered it in two weeks.
And while not as bad as Microsoft, they, too, have had layoffs over the last year or so. They’re still doing well, and they have titles like Ghost of Yotei to look forward to in 2025, but they need to do a lot more to win back the trust of some gamers.
1st Place – Nintendo
Is this really a surprise? It shouldn’t be. If I did “Console Wars 2025 Edition” in 2024, I would have the list the very same, except with the OG Switch being #1 instead of the Switch 2.
However, focusing on the Nintendo Switch 2, it’s the most hyped thing out there right now, and even with detractors saying one random thing after another, the console is selling like hotcakes, and it’s getting love from fans and critics alike.
The easiest reason that we can put it at No.1 is that it had the biggest launch in video game history. It sold 3.5 million units in its first four days, and that was just the start! Rumors are swirling that it may be over 6 million in its first month, and it’ll only grow from there.
Then, there’s its launch title, Mario Kart World. While not the most popular game ever, or even the most popular in its own series, it’s selling like hotcakes. In Japan alone, it has sold over 1 million units. So, when you factor in high attach rates for the UK region, the United States, and more, you can bet that it’s likely over 3-4 million right now, if not higher.
Focusing on something a bit more immediate, Donkey Kong Bananza has already made fans go “bananas” over it, and some even feel it’s a GOTY contender! With it being the second first-party title to drop on the Switch 2, it’s destined for big sales.
However, what really puts Nintendo and the Switch 2 in the No.1 position…is anticipation. Unlike with PlayStation and Xbox, gamers aren’t excited solely for one title that’s coming to the Switch 2, but EVERYTHING that will drop in 2025, 2026, and beyond.
The OG Switch had arguably one of the greatest gaming lineups in history, and Nintendo knows that to repeat its long-term success, it needs to keep that up. So, as we wait for the next Nintendo Direct, people will be wondering, hoping, and anticipating what The Big N brings to the table for its new console.
When you have that kind of hype around you? All the while NOT laying off people and making games the right way? You know you’re winning the war.
