Which console to buy in 2019?PS4 vs XBOX One vs Switch
For about 3 decades now, since the release of the Nintendo 64 and PlayStation (the previous generations during which Nintendo's NES - SNES had no real competition), home game consoles have had a great appeal, which is shown by their sales over time (Sony's game consoles alone have a total of over 400 million sales!), by the amount of people who are actively involved in console gaming, on forums, on streaming platforms, at exhibitions and tournaments...
So, as we approach the dawn of the current generation, as we slowly prepare for the next consoles, and Playstation 4 and XBOX One are almost six years old, it's time to put them side by side, now that their price has become more affordable and their "libraries" are filled with games, along with the newest Nintendo Switch, which of course plays in a different genre, but still belongs to this generation, even though it's only 2 years old.
Anyway, let's see what each console has to offer us on a practical level, excluding the many technical details, going straight to the "important" ones!
Playstation 4 - Playstation 4 Pro
The most popular console of our generation opens our article in two versions, the basic and the Pro.
The differences between them are in their power, as well as the resolutions they can offer, with the Pro offering users 4K quality, while the simple one, depending on the game, offers up to 1080. In addition, in some games, there is the right to choose quality or performance mode, depending on the effect the user wants to see. On a practical level, there is a difference, which in some titles is enough, but beyond that, unless you have a 4K TV or monitor to connect your PS4 to, buying the Pro is not recommended. However, it's your call obviously, and keep in mind that there's no game that's exclusive to the Pro that you can't play on the regular version. Their performance, of course, on the other hand, is another matter...
Anyway, the functions with the XBOX One are pretty much common, because apart from games, you can watch Netflix, Youtube through the reverse apps, some TV channels which have their own app, use Spotify, and there's an internet browser, which you probably won't find very practical to use to deal with.
In terms of a subscription service, PS Plus will come in handy if you want to get involved with the online part of the games you play, as well as giving you a few free games each month (usually one of which is a bigger release), as well as Playstation Now, which is used to play older titles from previous Sony consoles, on various platforms of course.
Although many of the games that are released are on both PlayStation and Xbox, a big issue in choosing a console is always the exclusives, the exclusive titles.
The biggest Playstation 4 exclusives so far are Horizon: Zero Dawn, Spiderman, Uncharted 4, God of War, Ratchet and Clank, Gran Turismo Sport, Persona 5, The Last of Us Remastered, Bloodborne, Detroit: Become Human, and more to come, with the highly anticipated The Last of Us 2 and Death Stranding just around the corner...
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Microsoft's counterpoint has come, then, with the Xbox One, which also has quite a few fans, but certainly fewer than the PlayStation 4, which of course doesn't make it any better or worse as a system.
Performance-wise, there aren't any significant differences between the systems, but if we had to give our vote to each of the systems, it goes to Sony for the simple version of the consoles (PlayStation 4), and Microsoft for the expensive ones (XBOX One X), but again, if you care about the exclusives of each console, don't let the performance issue between the companies sway you, as it's not that noteworthy of a thing to choose the other company and miss out on the exclusive titles you want.
As you can see, the differences between the plain XBOX One and the One X are similar to those of the PlayStation 4, namely in the computing power and image resolution they can offer.
So, in its subscription service, XBOX One has been getting better reviews than PS Plus, but it still follows the same model, it is clearly a matter of personal choices in games, and what titles everyone likes, as well as what each company will happen to release in its subscription service each month, while in correspondence with Playstation Now, where one can play via streaming the titles offered, there is also the XBOX Game Pass of Microsoft.
Another positive thing, meanwhile, is backward compatibility, which if you want to play titles from the older Xboxes on One, will come in handy, as many titles are supported and more are on the way, something Sony hasn't pursued doing on PlayStation 4, except by offering some older titles on PlayStation Now.
In terms of exclusives, in HBOX One we can find Gears of War 4, Forza Horizon 4, Crackdown 3, Sea of Thieves, Halo 5: Guardians, Sunset Overdrive, and although it's a lot less than Sony's, about appetite...
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Nintendo has stirred the waters again, but this time without going head-to-head and taking on its competitors, but actually going to their side. The difference it offered was not in how you use your console, but in where.
The Switch is a hybrid console that works like a handheld, but can also connect to a TV like the XBOX One and PlayStation 4. Although as a power you can't talk about 4K, 60 frames per second and the graphics found on the aforementioned consoles, the "little one" of the bunch has excellent titles from other consoles, such as Doom, Wolfenstein 2, LA Noire, Skyrim, Dark Souls Remastered, obviously with concessions in graphics, but they are still accessible on a portable console, which is a great thing in itself.
Of course, Nintendo's great strength lies in its own titles and exclusives, which is what has made it so popular throughout its existence. Thus, one can find Super Mario Odyssey, The Legend of Zelda : Breath of the Wild, Mario Kart 8 Deluxe, Super Smash Bros Ultimate, Pokemon Let's Go (Pikachu & Eevee), and so many more Nintendo games coming in the future (Luigi's Mansion 3, Animal Crossing, Metroid Prime 4 and more).
In addition, many indie games that are released on other consoles and on PC are now also coming out for Switch, which are, admittedly, very much in line with the nature of the console (portability and connection to a big screen whenever the user wants), and which are booming, both in terms of releases, but also in terms of popularity. Some of the most popular of these are Stardew Valley, Hollow Knight, Celeste, Cuphead, Dead Cells, Minecraft.
However, the Nintendo console is certainly not infallible. The absence of Netflix and Spotify is quite noticeable, the almost imperative purchase of a memory card, especially if you buy your games digitally is something that may not cost you much, but it's still there, as is the familiar Nintendo Tax. Such, then, is what the company's pricing on its games is described as, which is quite steep, as the company's exclusives even years after their release remain very close to their original price, and it's difficult to either find them at a discount or for the company itself to put them at a lower price than their original price. This is of course helped by the fact that you can play the same games on mobile, which has a direct correlation to the higher prices, which may put off many people seeing the same games on other platforms for much cheaper.
But in the end, what should I get?
As you have understood, this is clearly up to you. You have to consider your wants, as there are no needs in buying a console that is purely for entertainment, and settle on the one that covers most of them, and why not all of them, if you're so lucky!
Among the "constants", it's clearly your choice as to what you prefer in terms of titles. The PlayStation 4 has a few more exclusives, but if it's not your cup of tea then there's no particular reason to go for it, while if you're a "louse" with performance quality, frames and anything else technical, if you go for the big versions, you can go for the XBOX One X, which has the upper hand, if only for a little while, in this area.
Now, from there, the Switch offers a pretty different experience, which you can opt for if you move around a lot and want to have something portable with you at all times, or don't have as much need for AAA impressive titles, which is not that they're completely absent from Nintendo's console, but there's no comparison with Sony and Microsoft's...
Study hard, check out the existing and upcoming titles for each of them, and in the end follow your instincts, because above all you're buying a console to have fun, so whatever you read, however many technical analyses and opinions you see, yours is the one that counts in the end. Have fun!
