Despite Microsoft Flight Simulator being the first worthwhile Xbox Series console exclusive, some seven months into the Series eh, series life, Microsoft can claim that those seven months have been the most successful start to one of their consoles in the history of the brand. In terms of sales, their dual-console approach has netted more sales than even their only console success to date, Xbox 360.
Outwardly, this is an achievement. But on closer inspection, it morphs into exactly the positive spin you expect to pour from an autocue at a fourth quarter earnings call.
An All-Round Slow Start for 360
Xbox was undercooked and underrated. Though people have come to respect the black beast in recent years, it was paddled by PlayStation 2. Xbox One lagged far behind Sony’s PS4 from day one all through the 8th generation. 360, sandwiched between the two, stands as Microsoft’s sole absolute success in the console market. Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella was banking on investors and fans thinking of 360’s ultimate success and how besting its sales, even at this early stage, bodes well.
The truth is that 360 didn’t truly take off for many months after its launch. As we discussed in our Enduring Legacy of PlayStation 3 piece, the pre-release hype for Sony’s third machine mirrored that of PS2, complete with a ‘chilling effect’ for competitors’ machines.
After its November launch in 2005, Microsoft sold 1.18 million Xbox 360 consoles, far fewer then the widely-panned Xbox One’s 3.08 million in 2013 with XO also launching in November.
A Slow Follow-Up to that Slow Start
Even in its second year, Xbox 360 didn’t move massive numbers until two events. Sony’s monumentally bad E3 2006 in May 2006 and the release of Gears of War in November that year served as catalysts for 360 sales.
This left 360 slowly coming off shelves for a whole six months after its launch. Despite its eventual success, beating it during that truncated launch year and its first full year shouldn’t be difficult.
And it isn’t.
Despite the legendarily bad E3 2013 and despite Microsoft keeping their disastrous Kinect for the first six months of Xbox One’s life, that console outsold Xbox 360 over the corresponding 14 month period. In fact, Xbox One also outsold Xbox 360 during the consoles’ respective third years, 8.65M (2015) vs. 7.88M (2007).
Lies, Damned Lies and Statista
If you aren’t a fan of PR spin aimed at you – the discerning, skeptical and relatively knowledgeable public – then listening to a CEO speak to investors at events like this can be hard going.
Softening any potential blows to the brand while bigging up their progress is the secondary aim of an earnings call. After the titular call of the earnings, obviously. And with the will to encourage optimism, a hard-working fleet of speechwriters can make any situation appear rosier than it truly is.
Do you ignore proclamations like quarterlies? Or do you listen in to try decipher the saccharine corporate-speak? How do you think Xbox Series X|S are performing? Is 6.5 million units sold after six/seven months good enough? What about these numbers when considering PS5’s 10+ million sold? How big a factor is the delay in big exclusives in that 2:1 sales deficit? Let us know in the comments below…
