Editor’s Note: This comparison is made through the perspective of one writer, and therefore isn’t representative of the entire CraveOnline Gaming staff.
It’s been an odd year for video games. While there have been some good releases, it’s hardly been a memorable 365 days when compared with the heady heights of 2013. In 2014 we’ve had to stand idly by while developers find their feet with the new tech, and while Sony, Microsoft and Nintendo each continue to try to carve their place out in the market. As such it’s been a tentative year, one with a few highlights, a lot of disappointments and a smattering of surprises.
But which console fared the best in 2014? We’re here to find out.
A huge factor in determining which console had the best 2014 is how many units their manufacturers sold and how much software they each shifted. How did the three home consoles stack up?
PS4 Sales
The PS4 had a predictably strong year after the amount of pre-launch hype it had behind it and its record-breaking launch. Thus far the system is the best-selling console of this console generation, leaving even Sony baffled by its immense popularity, with Shuhei Yoshida, Sony’s President of Worldwide Studios, saying: “It’s just beyond our imagination. We are so happy. But I for one am a bit nervous because we do not completely understand what’s happening. You need to understand why your products are selling well so you can plan for the future, right? It defied the conventional thinking.”
Also See: 8 Reasons 2014 Was Another Year Best Enjoyed by PC Gaming
The console’s software has also frequently topped the NPD sales charts for each month, with multiplatform titles typically faring better on the console when compared with their Xbox One counterparts due to the PS4’s larger install base and, in the case of games such as Destiny, higher marketing budget.
Xbox One Sales
Though the Xbox One still had a strong launch back in 2013, it was certainly lagging behind the PS4 both in terms of sales and consumer reception. Though the console is certainly an impressive piece of tech, Microsoft is still recovering from its awful launch event and subsequent controversies that placed it firmly in the bad books with consumers. However, public opinion is a fickle thing, and Microsoft seem like they’re well on their way to turning around the fortunes of the Xbox One.
The Xbox One was every bargain hunter’s dream.
The November NPD sales chart indicated that the console had outsold both the PS4 and the Wii U, a surprising statistic that showed the race isn’t over for Microsoft just yet. The boost in sales was chalked up to a substantial price cut, a business tactic Sony has yet to roll out with the PS4, combined with a myriad of great Black Friday deals that saw the console retailing alongside a selection of great games bundled with it, making it every bargain hunter’s dream.
Wii U Sales
Lagging behind Microsoft and Sony is the Wii U, Nintendo’s latest home console which failed to set the world alight when it first released. While the console is still hardly the sales behemoth that the original Wii was, it followed in the footsteps of the 3DS this year by releasing the one-two punch of Mario Kart 8 followed by Super Smash Bros. U, two must-have titles that saw sales of the console increase greatly.
Reports from the UK indicated that sales of the console increased by 600% when Mario Kart 8 was released, with most of those sales being attributed to console bundles containing the game. Super Smash Bros. U brought with it similar fortunes for the company, though they’re still behind both the PS4 and Xbox One in terms of overall software and hardware sales, and are unlikely to catch up with them at this point.
Sales Winner: PS4
Though larger sales will mean more to the console manufacturers, what matters most to gamers is having great titles to play. Here’s how the three consoles fared in terms of software releases this year:
PS4 Games
It was a rather lackluster year for games for the PS4, with its major coups either being multiplatform titles that Sony had cleverly/sneakily marketed as exclusives i.e. Destiny, disappointing releases such as DriveClub (we’ll get to that later) or games that could be purchased on its rival consoles. Though there were definitely some good releases on the console, there wasn’t much to force people who were on the fence about jumping into the new console generation to take the plunge with Sony’s system.
Also See: Best of 2014: Top 10 Video Games of the Year
Hopefully with the likes of Bloodborne and The Order: 1886 on the horizon, Sony will enjoy a more fruitful 2015 in the software department.
Xbox One Games
Though 2014 wasn’t bursting at the seams with great Xbox One games, there were certainly a couple of stand-out titles that could only be purchased on Microsoft’s console. Forza Horizon 2 stood head and shoulders above the rest, with it being a marvelous addition to the Xbox One’s library that gave racing fans a true reason to opt for the Xbox One. Though it received rather mixed reviews, Sunset Overdrive certainly carved itself out an audience with its outlandish humor and frenetic gameplay, adding more ammo to Microsoft’s arsenal. Then there was Titanfall, an early contender for best shooter of the year that provided some excellent online thrills and launched a brand new IP.
The Xbox One has had its fair share of great exclusives this year, and certainly gave Microsoft the edge over Sony in terms of software in 2014.
Wii U Games
The Wii U had a great year packed with excellent, exclusive games. While the console still struggles with third-party support, a continuous glaring issue with Nintendo consoles in general, Ninty can certainly pull it out of the bag when it comes to their own franchises.
In terms of quality, there was only one winner here.
Mario Kart 8 was arguably the best game in the history of the racing series, and Super Smash Bros. U more than lived up to the hype, becoming one of the highest-rated games of the year. Elsewhere Platinum Games delivered with Bayonetta 2 (which was our reader-voted Game of the Year) and a selection of oddball releases such as the Legend of Zelda/Dynasty Warriors mash-up Hyrule Warriors and the puzzle game Captain Toad: Treasure Tracker proved that the Wii U was the go-to console for gamers who were looking for something a little different.
While the PS4 and Xbox One may have had more games to play this year, in terms of quality, there was only one winner here.
Games Winner: Wii U
2014 was another year of big controversies in the gaming industry. Which console managed to avoid tarnishing its name?
PS4 Controversy
A major gripe for PS4 owners this year was the distinct lack of software for the system, accompanied by the hugely disappointing launch of one of the console’s most heavily anticipated games. DriveClub is still struggling under the weight of severe online issues, with it now a strong contender for one of the most awful launches of all time. The game, which was initially intended to be a free launch title for the console, was eventually pushed back by a number of months in order to improve its quality. Unfortunately, that didn’t seem to work. The game is still in a bit of a mess, and while it has improved somewhat it’s certainly not up to the standard consumers would expect.
Then you have Destiny, a game that Sony put all of its might behind… but it wasn’t what we were expecting.
Then you have Destiny, a game which Sony put all of its might behind prior to its release, throwing industry buzzwords such as “groundbreaking” around with giddy abandon. However, when the game released it was clear that it wasn’t quite what we were expecting, and while it’s still found itself a dedicated audience, it’s far from the experience we were expecting. Barren worlds, repetitive gameplay and an irritating leveling system combined to make it a huge timesink, but for many of the wrong reasons.
In the end two of the PS4’s most heavily anticipated releases turned out to be disappointing, one moreso than the other, meaning that Sony didn’t get away scot-free this year.
Xbox One Controversy
After pissing off mostly everyone in 2013, Microsoft kept a low profile in 2014 and mostly avoided controversies with the Xbox One through the duration of the year. There was an early blip on the radar when the company announced that it would sell a Kinect-less Xbox One bundle, despite them previously saying that the motion-detection controller was “integral” to the console, but that was balanced out by the substantial price cuts the console received later in the year.
However, just when it looked like they would go through the entirety of 2014 without raising the ire of the gaming community, along came Halo: The Master Chief Collection. What looked to be a gorgeous compilation of Halo‘s 1 through 4 eventually turned out to be a huge mess, with the game completely sullied by a myriad of online problems which, along with ruining its multiplayer component, also created some weird issues for its single-player campaigns, too. The Master Chief Collection has so many problems, in fact, that it has led many Halo fans to lose complete faith in 343 Industries as developer of the series, making many skeptical of the fate of the upcoming Halo 5: Guardians, the biggest game that Microsoft has lined up for the Xbox One. Not good.
Also See: Most Anticipated Video Games of 2015
Wii U Controversy
With sales and general public interest in the Wii U lower than it is for the PS4 and Xbox One, it was inevitable that the console wouldn’t attract as much controversy as its peers. However, with so much riding on the success of Mario Kart 8 and Super Smash Bros. U, Nintendo could have easily failed to match expectations with these releases and plunge the Wii U into oblivion. Luckily that wasn’t the case, as both games released to rave reviews and an excellent reception from consumers.
Unfortunately the issue with the Wii U’s considerable lack of third-party support persists and with multiplatform titles continuing to perform extremely poorly on the console it’s incredibly unlikely that they’ll ever improve. For Nintendo fans, though, this is hardly an issue, as they purchase the console to play games such as Mario Kart and Smash Bros., which Nintendo duly delivered this year. In an ideal world the Wii U would offer both its fantastic exclusive titles whilst also paying attention to output from third-party developers, but at the moment they’re just doing what they do best: making great games. And how can we complain about that?
Controversy Winner: Wii U
In terms of sales, PS4 has its competitors beat hands down. The Xbox One has also put in an admirable shift this year, giving us a selection of great games whilst also besting Sony’s system financially at the tail-end of the year. However, consoles are all about the games, and in that department the Wii U has truly shone in 2014. With two colossal exclusive titles in the form of Mario Kart 8 and Super Smash Bros. U under its belt, along with the excellent Bayonetta 2 and a small selection of unique third-party games, Nintendo proved that its latest console can hang with the rest of ’em, even if it isn’t shifting as many units.
