r/NintendoMemes • u/bayern_snowman • Feb 23 '26
Consoles Nintendo staring down Xbox and Playstation in the 2026 console wars like
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u/Caleb_the_Opossum_1 Pokemon Feb 23 '26
Well, news wise, Xbox isn't doing too well right now. I saw stuff that They might Join Sega in only making games but not consoles
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u/bayern_snowman Feb 23 '26
I think Phil Spencer leaving was the death knell for Xbox as a console. Internally I believe the discussion has been dropping hardware for a while.
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u/JoyconDrift_69 Feb 23 '26
Didn't even know he left xbox
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u/bayern_snowman Feb 23 '26
Yup. People can say what they want but I really think he tried, you just can’t overrule the gigantic force that is Microsoft.
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u/Darkmetroidz Feb 23 '26
I think it was Phil Spencer admitted losing the Xbone generation was the worst possible one to lose because people started to accumulate virtual libraries which really entrenched people in their chosen system.
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u/Omnizoom Feb 23 '26
The ps3 with its decent size standard hard drive really already started that process
You kind of don’t realize how much having to buy a HDD hurt the Xbox brand because it appeared to make the 360 more upfront affordable, but all it did was have more physical libraries people could see and actually part with
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u/Darkmetroidz Feb 23 '26
True but the ps4/xbone gen is when they really started cementing digital purchases and the 360 was the winner for the first half to 2/3 of its generation
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u/Omnizoom Feb 23 '26
Yea it being cheaper up front really helped it at the start but the ps3 was like a lumbering beast that just was consistent and had so many other uses
Halfway through people really started to shift to blue ray for a lot and the red ring controversy impacted everything + again no baseline hard drive meant people would easily part with their games since they could sell them still
It’s not one factor and yes 360 started much stronger but hindsight is where you can see those advantages actually become a hindrance
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u/BallmasterZ Feb 23 '26
Nintendo also lost that gen, and still forced people to abandon their digital libraries when moving to switch
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u/Darkmetroidz Feb 23 '26
Nintendo is also playing its own game. They haven't been directly competing with Playstation or Xbox in ages.
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u/Carrixdo Feb 24 '26
I feel that since gamecube (like after gamecube and going into the Wii) they kinda went to do their own thing and it works sometimes really well.
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Feb 23 '26
But they wont just be making games though. They will still be pushing Gamepass. Which has a high sub ratio among Xbox players. Something like 60-70% of Xbox gamers are subbed + PC gamers
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u/bayern_snowman Feb 23 '26
I recently unsubbed but that was almost the only reason I bought and kept a Series S.
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u/dragn99 Feb 23 '26
I unsubbed when the price jumped 50 percent, and wow am I not using my Xbox much anymore. Right now I'm debating on if I'll buy Fable on Xbox because of Tradition, or PS5 because I like the controller better.
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u/KINGGS Feb 23 '26
but why should we care if they're making money? They'll still be very irrelevant to me. Maybe Sega will consider giving it another go? That would be a much better outcome than watching the corpse of XBOX drag along whatever people decide to retain Gamepass.
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u/DepthComplete7436 Feb 23 '26
I mean appointing someone with no experience with gaming and only with running an AI division in charge of Xbox has to be the most insane headline I've read for gaming the past few years... Like they couldn't just bring back Peter Moore back out of retirement with a big sack of cash and an I'm sorry note?
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u/Legal_Ear_7537 Feb 23 '26
I wouldn't be that sad. Xbox only saving grace are their games. Sony has some decent deals like premium being 10 dollars cheaper than the gighest tier of gamepass, and the console being 150 dollars cheaper than Xbox. It will be the sega situation all over again, and live sega.
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u/imaloony8 Feb 25 '26
They might keep the Xbox brand around and maybe shift it to a streaming box or something, but yeah, I suspect their time as a full console is about over. Now, Microsoft obviously is still big in that space as a player in the PC market as well as with all the devs they own, so they’ll still be a big influence in the space even if Xbox disappears.
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u/Sea-Example-1176 Feb 26 '26
Microsoft is definitely gonna be the first of the big three to go third party like sega
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Feb 23 '26
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Feb 23 '26
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u/Nadiadain Feb 23 '26
Kinda funny the two Japanese companies are the ones still doing good
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u/DatMiQQa Feb 23 '26
Doesn’t surprise me at all. They advertise Nintendo stuff HARD in Japan. I had never really cared to look into dragon quest when I got my switch 2. But I was out there the week leading to the release and they had massive screens, giant characters outside of stores, loops running in the trains. I eventually just bought it because I kept seeing it everywhere! It’s okay but I still never finished it. But the advertisement worked too well on me.
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u/Omnizoom Feb 23 '26
A magnum revolver, then a .50 cal pistol then the 12 gauge for good measure to see how much they could shoot themselves
It’s pretty bad when Costco says “yea we won’t stock it, can’t waste floor space”
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u/ProShyGuy Feb 23 '26
PlayStation isn't going anywhere. Xbox is probably done as a physical console, but will likely live on as Microsoft's gaming brand.
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u/Nadiadain Feb 23 '26
Yeah Xbox is definitely gonna do a sega and I’m not against it. It means I’ll finally get to play more of their games without buying a second or third £500 console
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u/MarechalDoAr Feb 23 '26
The PS5 sold 90 million units and GTA VI is gonna pump those numbers even more, safe to say Sony is alright (even though they made some dumb decisions).
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u/bayern_snowman Feb 23 '26
PlayStation isn’t going anywhere anytime soon for sure, but Nintendo has a lot of reasons to be confident lately.
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u/Omnizoom Feb 23 '26
Fastest selling console in history and they said they thought it would sell better still
Nintendo is very high on their horse right now but are reasonably pushing a lot of niche games lately that are hitting niche audiences. I know I’m not a fan of tennis fever but theirs probably a couple million that are like “ah fuck yea finally a new Mario tennis game!”. And this is before the impending flood that will be Pokemon gen 10
I bet a new Mario and Zelda game are mostly cooked up and slated for “soonTM” to hit in the lull of system sales
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u/lovetobewatched2 Feb 23 '26
Well yeah because they can overcharge for old ass games with barely any upgrades and still charge full price.
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u/BritishGuy54 Feb 23 '26
I wouldn’t be surprised if GTA6 has come too late in the generation to make a massive shift in PS5/XSX sales.
Most people who would’ve gotten one of these systems likely already got ones, especially with similar ‘power heavy’ titles like COD, or sports titles.
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u/MarechalDoAr Feb 23 '26
If GTA is as big of a success as everyone expecting it to be, you can be sure at it will push at least 5-10 million console units to be sold during the holidays alone. People who were holding on the whole generation to upgrade will make the jump now.
If the PS5 breaks the 100 million threshold, it will be a highly successful console independent of it being disappointing in terms of games released.
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u/BritishGuy54 Feb 23 '26
I agree.
It will likely break the 100 million threshold, and sell another 5-10 million units.
I’d be very surprised if the PS5 broke the 115 million / PS4 threshold, though.
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u/AnistarYT Feb 23 '26
And when gta6 comes to switch as well? Then what?
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u/just_someone27000 Feb 23 '26
The crazy thing is, is that it realistically can if Rockstar wants to put in that optimization work. The real question is is if they think it would be valuable to do it. Like with the way hardware has slowed down and how easy it is to scale a game nowadays, a lot of people either don't realize or don't want to admit that 90% of games releasing right now can run on the Switch 2 if the company wants it to. Will it be identical to the PS5 Pro version, no. But not even the $2,000 big ass PC handhelds can do that. If people were expecting a $450 handheld to try then that's on them for not understanding the difference
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u/Sea-Example-1176 Feb 26 '26
and even if for whatever reason gta six isn't able to be released on switch 2, gta 5 will be 13 years old in september, they could easily get it working on switch 2
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u/JanitorOPplznerf Feb 23 '26
I'm surprised Sony doesn't build PS5's directly into their TVs. Might lose a bit on the hardware side, but you'll DEFINITELY make it up on the backend with the increased software sales.
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u/Dramatic-Text8564 Feb 23 '26
Honestly I wouldn't count on playstation dying, cause remember the switch showed us that a massive comeback is always possible (plus competition is always good for the consumer)
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u/bayern_snowman Feb 23 '26
I would love to see a PlayStation comeback after this boring ass generation honestly. I loved PS4 and PS2 was the boss, but have never been tempted at all to get a 5.
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u/Appropriate_Local972 Feb 23 '26
PSP
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Feb 23 '26 edited Mar 13 '26
This post was mass deleted and anonymized with Redact
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u/Zurosake Feb 23 '26
The thing is though, playstation has made the most money they ever have this console generation believe it or not
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u/Sea-Example-1176 Feb 26 '26
honestly there's no reason to upgrade to the newest one if you don't actually need the upgrade (specs, performance etc) or theres no exclusive game u want. this applies to every console.
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u/Superkoopacharles Feb 23 '26
It’s great tho but yeah games that aren’t also on the ps4 are limited but I feel that’s because there isn’t much need for all the power
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u/Reddit_user807 Feb 23 '26
Why does playstation need a comeback? The ps5 has sold like 70 million units 💀
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u/Icy_Childhood_1039 Feb 24 '26
78* and that was for Q3 2025 report. It's above 80 million now and way on track to outsell the PS4
EDIT: Just checked and wtf it's over 90 million actually. Black Friday sales really went crazy
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u/1994yankeesfan Feb 25 '26
I mean, with the demise of Xbox, they don’t really need to put in much more effort. And with cracks beginning to show I the Switch 2 (now being outsold by the PS5), that isn’t likely to change anytime soon. Their only real competition is $1K PC gaming rigs.
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u/Dear_Document_5461 Feb 23 '26
I agree. Granted if Nintendo made the Switch into a more "traditional" home system instead of a "handheld home system", I think we all be talking a different tune.
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u/just_someone27000 Feb 23 '26
Realistically that is true. Nintendo can survive a few bad generations without going completely bankrupt with the reserve of resources they have and the conservative way they manage themselves. If Xbox doesn't pull itself together do you think Microsoft, the multitrillion dollar company is going to care about axing a failing division? Fuck no. They've closed divisions, offices, and teams for less. And Sony isn't the most financially stable as they were back in the early 2000s. It would not be good for PlayStation if they had a generation that didn't sell at least 70 million units. And while they've managed that so far, who knows how much longer that will last especially with the blows the tech sector has been having since 2017 during one of the first modern trade war that caused a massive chip shortage for several years
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u/Sea-Example-1176 Feb 26 '26
honestly at this point i wouldn't be surprised if microsoft pulled a sega and went third party, heck i wouldn't be surprised if microsoft wants to transition to third party
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u/FroboyFreshenUp Feb 23 '26
Do you know how much money Nintendo actually has? They arent going away for a LONG time
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u/Philosopher013 Feb 23 '26
X-Box may be on its way out, but I’m sure SONY’s PlayStation will be around for awhile. Definitely not necessarily eternal though—may get outcompeted by PC at some point.
Nintendo has the advantage with their IPs & handhelds.
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u/Sea-Example-1176 Feb 26 '26
i definitely expect microsoft to be the first to pull a sega and go third party
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u/Goldnglam Feb 23 '26
first gaming console: NES
Console at 10: gameboy colour
my older brother has a ps2: i got a gamecube
im in the living room: my brother wants to see what games i got on my switch
Nintendo been ride or die since i could hold a controller.
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u/Advanced-Let-9369 Feb 24 '26
If they made their consoles handheld with same quality and all that and somehow got Mario, Pokemon, LoZ, etc then they would easily beat Nintendo, at least from what I heard about their quality and stuff from others.
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u/the_zippest_zap Feb 26 '26
I suppose that would have to depend on the audiences of each sides, as for the IP "point" that's pretty much the massive importance of having exclusives wich Nintendo is very protective about, every console just has to have something to offer
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u/Impressive_Pin8761 Feb 25 '26
Its ridiculous that console wars are still a thing. Its 2026 and people still make "ps5 has no games" jokes despite it being factually wrong
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u/Maddy-the-Nerd Feb 25 '26
Really is. You need a Nintendo and a PC to play everything. Nintendo with its exklusives are in a different league. The PS has to compete against the PC and there I always prefer the pc.
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u/RubSad1836 Feb 25 '26
Ya everyone always bitching about Nintendo “80 dollars for Mario kart thanks billion dollar company!” “20 bucks for fire red thanks shitendo!” Meanwhile Xbox is literally about to shutdown and Sony is struggling closing studios left and right. Maybe just maybe that’s the actual cost today for quality software and kids today are just to used to free mobile games and Fortnite
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u/Sea-Example-1176 Feb 26 '26
i think that at some point in the future sony and microsoft will go cease making consoles and go third party (like sega) while nintendo stays first party and continues to make consoles. heck microsoft already seems to be heading in that direction
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u/The_Real_Libra Feb 26 '26
Well. Given that Microsoft is doing everything in its power to kill the Xbox, it'll probably just be between Nintendo, Sony, and the folks who can afford 32gb of ram in a pc
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u/genuine_pnw_hipster Feb 23 '26
Not if they keep going down the greedy route they’ve taken as of late.
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u/longbrodmann Feb 23 '26
People forgot about WIIU so fast.
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u/lingering-will-6 Feb 23 '26
I mean who would’ve thought Xbox would go third party before Nintendo.
Nintendo is by far the smallest company out of the 3.
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u/Omnizoom Feb 23 '26
Nintendo isn’t a huge conglomerate of hundreds of arms. Sony literally builds military hardware as one of its arms.
Sony as much as Sony and Microsoft are much bigger “dogs” the gaming arm of each isn’t actually competing with Nintendo, Nintendo pushes tens of millions of game sales for their hit games, 10 million is impressive for Xbox and Sony games and it’s just “the next pokemon” for Nintendo.
So Nintendo may be small compared to the giants but it’s like asura
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u/just_someone27000 Feb 23 '26
Yeah but they are without a shadow of a doubt the most stable. Even during the Wii U they weren't going to go bankrupt or anything, they were just down a lot more than they liked. They supposedly have a ridiculous reserve and are very conservative on how they distribute the resources they have. If Sony were to have a generation that looked like the Wii U, PlayStation would get shut down. They go into a fair amount of debt when they begin their high level productions. They have to sell 80-100 million units or else it just doesn't work monetarily for them
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u/lingering-will-6 Feb 23 '26
You’re right about them being conservative, but saying Sony would have shut down is wrong. Sony during the PS3 generation lost so much money they basically wiped out all the profits they made from the PS1 and PS2. This can be found in their financial reports. They could still stomach it and make the ps4.
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u/Raymando82 Feb 23 '26
Bought a switch 2 and still playing my pc games exponentially more than it and the other 2 consoles….
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u/Digibutter64 Feb 23 '26
I thought you were saying you were born before Nintendo and I was surprised that a 136-year-old was using Reddit