Microsoft Xbox One
Which Console Won Q1 2018?
By comparison, Microsoft’s 2017 certainly didn’t have the same ring to it in terms of software releases, and this year’s lineup doesn’t exactly inspire a great deal of confidence from what’s been confirmed so far, either. What the Xbox One surely needed was to start the year putting its best foot forward, but that hasn’t quite been the case.
Of course, owners of both the vanilla and Xbox One X version of the console will have enjoyed the same third-party releases that have been such a boon on PS4. Monster Hunter might have been marketed first and foremost for Sony’s hardware, but it’s still likely to have been a big hit on Xbox One. Far Cry 5 has also been declared a superior graphical experience on the X by Digital Foundry, too, which will have affirmed the console’s status as the definitive machine for multiplatform titles to its owners.
However, the Xbox One’s big exclusive – and one of the only in its confirmed 2018 lineup – hasn’t impressed as much as Microsoft would surely have hoped. From a commercial perspective, at least according to its claims, Sea of Thieves has been a success. But in terms of it being a critical darling to match the offerings on rival platforms, it’s been woefully under par. In our own review, we felt that in its best moments, Sea of Thieves was a wonderful co-operative experience, but there just wasn’t enough substance to the overall package.
What will have pleased Xbox One owners is that the console’s online service has mostly kept pace with Sony’s with respect to free game offers. In combination with features such as backward compatibility and the attractive value of its new Game Pass program, Microsoft’s pro-consumer decisions have somewhat made up for shortcomings in exclusive software.
