Forget about the solid messaging and slick hardware – the real reason that the PlayStation 4 will top the Xbox One during this console generation is its price point. At least, that’s according to Wedbush Securities analyst Michael Pachter, who spoke at the Game Monetization USA Summit in San Francisco (via GameIndustry International) about the future sales figures for the recently released next-gen hardware.
He noted that people are playing games on more devices than ever before and while that’s encouraging for the health of the industry, it won’t translate to massive buy rates for the Xbox One and PS4.
"I don't think you're ever going to see 500 million consoles out there," Pachter said.
Pachter expects the Wii U to eventually sell 30 million "or fewer" units. The PS4 will sell 100 to 120 million units, and the Xbox One will sell 90 to 110 million units.
"The reason Sony beats Microsoft is solely the price," Pachter continued. "Microsoft loses the next generation unless they cut price. If Microsoft drops its price to $399, I expect the sales to be equal to the PS4."
Both consoles have hit the ground running, but we just can't be able to predict how long the consumer interest will last.