The dawn of a new generation is finally upon us, and with it comes a difficult choice. Do we yield to the might of the Xbox Series X or allow the PS5 to continue Sony's recent dominance of the console market? It's a decision that many will have already made, but, for some, it's one that might not be so black and white.
Both consoles certainly have their fair share of strengths, but there are also plenty of weaknesses that need to be factored into the equation. For those leaning towards the Series X, these are the key components that need to be taken into account. It's a great console, but, just like its rival, it is not without its flaws.
10 Best: Its Power
The Series X is around twice as powerful as the Xbox One and, in spite of it using a similar processor, features faster CPU clock speeds than the PS5. It also offers a more powerful solution when it comes to graphics. Both of these things will be incredibly important in the pursuit of 4K gaming and high refresh rates and, on paper, the Series X definitely seems to have the edge.
Video games aren't played on paper though. Whether or not developers will be able to translate this additional power into a noticeably superior gaming experience remains to be seen. Even if they are successful, the Xbox One was a more powerful machine than the PS4, but Sony's machine came out comfortably on top in that battle.
9 Not Great:Â Its Launch Titles
The loss of Halo Infinite was a huge blow to the Series X's chances of a strong start. Many older games will receive enhancements for the new machine, but top new titles are few and far between. The good news is though that the PS5's launch line-up is just as lackluster, making for a fairly even playing field.
Both systems feature many of the same launch games, with each having their own exclusives. Unfortunately, however, none really fall into the bracket of system sellers. As a result, system sales will likely end up being determined by brand loyalty — assuming, that is, that people don't decide to just wait until a more impressive selection of games are available instead.
8 Best: Its Backwards Compatibility
Although the PS5 will support backwards compatibility for PS4 titles, the Series X will allow players to play games from all of Microsoft's previous consoles. It's worth noting that not every game will work, but early testing suggests that a considerable amount of them will. Simply put, this is huge.
Over the years, people have built up some fairly substantial game collections and so the ability to play them all on a single console is worth its weight in gold. Furthermore, being able to play older games should fill some of the gaps in the console's launch line-up and keep players busy until some of the bigger titles finally arrive.
7 Not Great: Its Price
With everything going on in the world right now, $499 is a lot of money to a lot of people. Although both platforms offer a cheaper alternative, the chances are that the majority of gamers are going to want the most powerful version and, in the case of the PS5, a disc drive.
Some gamers might not have a problem with the high launch price. As new consoles have traditionally seen a fairly significant price cut within their first six to eight months though, others might opt to wait before making the leap. Given the limited selection of launch titles and the continued support for older machines, that might not be the worst idea.
6 Best: Its Quick Resume Function
High resolutions and refresh rates will grab most of the headlines, but one of the most impressive additions to the Series X comes in the form of its quick resume function. It allows players to switch between games almost instantaneously and pick up right where they left off.
The PS5's may be faster in some departments, but when it comes to jumping between titles, it really can't compete. Quick resume even works when the console has been powered off, allowing players to jump straight back in to the action whenever they're ready. The days of having to run around and find a save point are well and truly behind us.
5 Not Great: Its Appearance
Neither the PS5 nor the Series X are going to be winning any beauty contests, but the PS5 at least has character. The Series X is just bland. It is, for all intents and purposes, little more than a big black box. Microsoft may have packed a lot of power inside of it, but it doesn't seem like they put anywhere near as much effort in to designing the exterior.
Appearance needn't be an issue if the console isn't on display, but, given its size, it will likely prove to be too big to fit inside most media centers. All three of Microsoft's previous consoles have had a stylish and distinctive look to them, but the same just can't be said of the Series X.
4 Best: Its Storage Size
The Xbox Series X ships with around 802GB of available storage space, which, considering the ballooning size of game installs, may prove to be invaluable. Compared with the PS5's 667GB of usable storage, the Series X offers around 20% more space, which is a pretty significant difference.
Given some of the rumors popping up about the high price of purchasing additional storage for the new machines, that 20% could save gamers either a sizable amount of cash or a sizeable amount of time. Whichever is the case, both are invaluable and allow for more games to be played.
3 Not Great: Its Storage Speed
Sometimes bigger isn't always better. While it may offer more useable storage, the hard drives that the Series X uses are slower than those found in the PS5. Although this isn't a big issue at the moment, as more expansive and demanding games are developed for the new systems, it's possible that loading times will start to become an issue.
To be clear, they'll still be infinitely shorter than some of the loading times of old, but may just be long enough to start causing annoyance. While faster expandable storage could perhaps mitigate this problem if and when it arrives, it would be another additional cost for an already expensive machine.
2 Best: Its Future
The PS5's dominance of the last generation can be attributed to a few different factors. Its biggest edge though came thanks to its huge selection of high quality exclusive games. Zero Horizon, God of War and Marvel's Spider Man are but three of the many great titles that the Xbox One just didn't have an answer for. However, that should all be able to change.
Microsoft's recent acquisition of Bethesda should go some way to levelling the playing field, with some of gaming's biggest series now owned by Microsoft. This isn't the first time we've seen Microsoft buying up development studios and it hasn't always gone well for them in the past. One hopes though that they've learnt their lessons from the Rare debacle and we'll see some top quality Bethesda titles arriving on Xbox consoles over the coming years.
1 Not Great:Â Its Younger Brother
Although the existence of the Xbox Series S offers a cheaper alternative to those who can't justify or afford the Series X's hefty price tag, it also has the potential to be problematic further down the line. While many games will receive dedicated Series S versions, it's possible that some developers will instead look for a middle ground between the two machines.
From an optimization point of view, focusing on developing the Series S version first and then cranking the dials up seems a lot easier than trying to do things the other way around. If this happens, it's possible that some of the Series X's power will be left on the table. It might never come to pass, but it's something that we've seen before with enhanced versions of consoles.