Is Xbox in trouble? Retailers cutting back stock, third-party publishers prioritizing PS5 and PC

The last few years haven’t been an easy ride for console manufacturers. The sales for all three Xbox, PlayStation, and Nintendo have witnessed a decline, at least compared to the projections. The global chip shortage added to the woes. But the situation seems far worse for Xbox!

Chris Dring, Head of GamesIndustry.biz, in a podcast available on YouTube, shared his experience at the GDC (Game Developers Conference) and talked about the troubles mounting for Xbox in Europe.

As per Dring, many retailers have either already started or are planning to cut back the stock of Xbox consoles in their stores.

Third-party developers, too, shared reservations about releasing games on Xbox Series S and Xbox Series X. According to Chris, publishers believe that it’s too much effort tailoring the game for Xbox when PS5 and PC serve as a more viable and profitable market.

He also heard publishers claim that most Xbox exclusives will soon end up on PS5 and that Game Pass wasn’t as big a success as Microsoft had expected.

Chris Dring went on to say,

And with Xbox putting some of the games on PS – from what I understand the majority of them will be coming across at some point, assuming it progresses as Xbox believes it probably will, I think Xbox is in real trouble as a hardware manufacturer, and that was the thing that came out of GDC for me. I thought it would be fine, but then I didn’t really factor in that some developers and publishers might just go, ‘yeah I don’t, you know, is there any point?’ And that is when you can lose it.

That’s true! Hardware and software upgrades to Xbox will only work if retailers and publishers are interested. The moment their interest starts to wane, Xbox will lose the console war or at least be on the back foot.

Xbox’s position in the market and future projections

If we look at the sales figures for Xbox vs. PlayStation, the latter has a significant lead. PlayStation has so far sold over 500 million units, while Xbox stands at a feeble 180 million in comparison.

In the handheld console market, where Xbox plans to make an entry, Nintendo Switch commands the top position with over 139 million units sold. Beating it would prove to be a challenge!

As for the new Xbox console under development, we will have to wait to find out what it has to offer. For Xbox to survive in the current market dynamics, its upcoming console should be a match for Sony’s PS5 Pro.

Besides, Microsoft should go for AI integration in Xbox. We recently reported that attackers manipulated Xbox’s automatic banning system to get accounts suspended, and this is something artificial intelligence can help with.

With this and other similar features, Xbox could make a comeback in the hardware market, where it’s reportedly in trouble. As for game development and publishing, Microsoft’s recent acquisition of Activision does put it in a secure position, at least in the near future!

What changes would you recommend to Xbox to get out of this trouble? Share with our readers in the comments section.