Now that both of Microsoft’s and Sony’s new consoles have been revealed, complete with price and release dates, it’s time to lay it all out there and predict our winner of this year’s console war. We will be putting each console version side-by-side and look at the price difference, performance, game catalog, and services. Since each console has 2 versions, a traditional one and a digital one, we will be pairing them with each other. Let’s get started.

Specs

Playstation 5 vs. Xbox Series X

	Playstation 5	Xbox Series X
Price	$500	$500
CPU	AMD Zen 2-based CPU with 8 cores @ 3.5GHz	AMD Zen 2-based CPU with 8 cores @ 3.8GHz
GPU	10.28 TFLOPs, 36 CUs @ 2.23GHz	12.15 TFLOPs, 52 CUs @ 1.825GHz
RAM	16GB GDDR6	16GB GDDR6
Memory Bandwidth	448 GB/s	560 GB/s
Visual Capability	4k up to 120fps, HDR	4k up to 120fps, HDR
Storage	825GB SSD	1TB SSD
Disk Drive	4k UHD Blu-ray	4k UHD Blu-ray
Release Date	November 12	November 10

In terms of power capabilities, Xbox Series X takes the victory by a narrow margin. However, with Xbox’s lack of large, first-party exclusives, it will be rare to see the full power of the Series X utilized. For the same price point, it’s impressive that Microsoft was able to put together a better console all-around.

PS5 Digital Edition vs. Xbox Series S

	PS5 Digital Edition	Xbox Series S
Price	$400	$300
CPU	AMD Zen 2-based CPU with 8 cores @ 3.5GHz	AMD Zen 2-based CPU with 8 cores @ 3.6GHz
GPU	10.28 TFLOPs, 36 CUs @ 2.23GHz	4 TFLOPs, 20 CUs @ 1.565GHz
RAM	16GB GDDR6	10GB GDDR6
Memory Bandwidth	448 GB/s	224 GB/s
Visual Capability	4k up to 120fps, HDR	1440p up to 120fps
Storage	825GB SSD	512GB SSD
Disk Drive	n/a	n/a
Release Date	November 12	November 10

With the PS5 Digital Edition priced at $100 more than the Series S, it’s a clear cut winner in terms of power and graphic fidelity. To be honest, paying $100 more to be able to play in 4k, have more internal storage, and almost double the power is a bargain. Personally, with no other factors involved, the PS5 Digital Edition would be my choice.

Exclusive Games

That we know of so far:

Playstation 5	Xbox Series X/S
God of War: Ragnarok	Halo Infinite
Spider-Man: Miles Morales	Forza Motorsport
Demon’s Souls	Fable
Horizon Forbidden West	State of Decay 3
Death Loop	Hello Neighbor 2
Ratchet & Clank: Rift Apart
Gran Turismo 7

It’s no secret that Playstation blew Xbox out of the water in terms of console exclusives these last 7 years and Playstation looks to continue the trend. With confirmed games like God of War: Ragnarok, Spider-Man, and Horizon Forbidden West, it would be extremely difficult for Xbox to put out a steady stream of competition even if Halo Infinite is successful. Not to mention the other Playstion exclusives that they haven’t announced that will surely make it’s way to the PS5 eventually (Uncharted, Last of Us, Silent Hill).

Services

Playstation 5	Xbox Series X/S
During the most recent Playstation 5 event, Sony announced something called the Playstation Plus Collection. It comes at no additional cost if you are a PS Plus member and it is available at launch. It includes games such as: -God of War -The Last of Us: Remastered -Uncharted 4 -Fallout 4 -Battlefield 1 -Batman: Arkham Knight -Mortal Combat X -Resident Evil: Biohazard There’s more to that list but those are the big hitters, so far. It’s unclear if Sony plans on adding to this list or if this is just a one time thing so you have games to play on the PS5 when it launches. Anyway, I still expect there to be 2 free games every month for PS Plus members.	If you read one of my previous articles about Xbox and their new consoles, you would’ve also seen that they made a little upgrade to their fan-favorite Game Pass Ultimate subscription. Along with a list of over 100 titles provided by Xbox, they will throw in EA Play for no additional cost. For $15 a month, you will have access to almost 200 titles. That’s a pretty good deal even if don’t play a fraction of those titles.
https://www.eurogamer.net/articles/playstation-plus-collection-game-list-ps-ps5-6300	https://www.xbox.com/en-US/xbox-game-pass/games

It would be pretty hard for Playstation to compete with the bargain that is Xbox’s Game Pass. The Playstion Plus Collection is a nice little gift especially if there is a title on there that you never got around to playing. Like I mentioned in my Xbox-centered blog, Game Pass Ultimate is the best bang for your buck deal on the video game market.

Conclusion

I’m having a lot of fun with these tables so I’m going to create one more. I thought of few scenarios that will help with making your decision if you want to only choose one.

Scenario	Console you should get	Why
The boys are getting the PS5	Playstation 5 or PS5 Digital Edition	You don’t want to leave the boys behind, do you?
The boys are getting the Xbox Series X/S	Xbox Series X/S	Gotta stick with the boys.
You are a casual gamer that plays all sorts of games and don’t own a 4k TV	Xbox Series S	Coupled with Game Pass, this console is perfect for someone that just wants to play games without breaking the bank
You enjoy narrative driven games that look and play great	PS5 Digital Edition	Playstation’s exclusive lineup is unmatched.
You are a collector of physical copies and bundles	Xbox Series X or Playstation 5	If you are religious about buying the physical copy of games, you’re going to have to buy the higher end consoles.
Your name is Justin DiSanto	PS5 Digital Edition	I know what’s best for you.