Console Wars Heat Up With PlayStation 5 Price And Games Reveal

Sony Corporation SNE shared a look at its upcoming PlayStation 5 console and games with a presentation Wednesday.

Console Wars: Sony unveiled its PlayStation 5 will cost $499.99 and the PlayStation 5 Digital Edition will cost $399.99.

Microsoft Corporation MSFT had previously unveiled its consoles would cost $499 for the Xbox Series X and a digital-only version called the Xbox Series S will cost $299.

The consoles from Sony will be released in North America and Japan on Nov. 12. Microsoft will release its consoles on Nov. 10.

The last console war between the two companies saw Sony win with a commanding lead. Over 113 million PlayStation 4’s have been sold since the console launched. The Xbox One trails with 48 million consoles sold. Rival Nintendo NTDOY also beat Xbox One with over 63 million devices sold. The PlayStation 4 has over 50% market share in the latest console generation launch.

See Also: Gaming Survey Shows 'Solid Trends' As PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X Prepare For Launch

PlayStation 5 Exclusives: The biggest exclusive unveiled during the presentation was “Final Fantasy XVI,” which will be exclusive to PlayStation 5 and PC. “Final Fantasy XV” was the fastest-selling version in the games history with 5 million copies sold and downloaded on the first day back in November 2016. A remake of “Final Fantasy VII” recently sold 3.5 million copies in three days.

Sony teased a new “God of War” game with “Ragnarok is coming” appearing on screen. This game is set to launch in 2021 for the PlayStation 5. The last “God of War” game was a Sony exclusive and sold over 10 million copies while also being named IGN’s “Game of the Year” in 2018.

The new “Spider Man: Miles Morales” game was a big part of the presentation and is set to be released in 2020. Sony bought Insomniac Games, the studio behind the game, for $229 million to help with its library of exclusive titles.

PlayStation Plus Collection: Sony showed off a wide library of titles of popular PS4 games that are set to be part of PlayStation Plus Collection, a subscription service. This offering will take on Xbox Game Pass, a similar service offered by Microsoft.

GameStop Effect: Jefferies recently upgraded shares of GameStop GME believing the company will be a big winner with the new consoles. Credit Suisse and Benchmark were not impressed by the recent earnings report.

Benzinga’s Take: Microsoft and Sony both launching a digital-only version of the console could put further pressure on GameStop, as consumers will be less reliant on purchasing physical games in store.

Immersion Corporation IMMR could be a company to watch here as it's providing the haptic technology for the PlayStation 5 controllers.