Former Nintendo of America president Reggie Fils-Aimé concludes that the console wars of years past are over.
Last month, Microsoft confirmed that Halo: Campaign Evolved is coming to PS5, next year, which, to many, signaled that the days of Xbox as a competitor in the console race were over, as it's bringing its flagship series to PlayStation. Although, granted, this has somewhat played out well for Microsoft as it has been one of the most successful publishers on PS5 this year, with Forza Horizon 5 and Oblivion Remastered doing well on the platform.
Speaking to The Game Business, former Nintendo of America president Reggie Fils-Aimé discusses the console wars, noting that "I do think that the years of direct competition are done," and describing Xbox as a "big third-party publisher that also makes some hardware."
Fils-Aimé explains that Xbox "are no longer directly competing with the PlayStation business," saying that Microsoft needs "support from Sony for Microsoft's software to reach the largest audience." However, Fils-Aimé continues, saying that he thinks "it would be in their best interest to find ways for Xbox software, beyond Minecraft, to make its way onto the Nintendo platform," noting that the third-party releases haven't really hit the Switch 2 yet.
However, even if he thinks there isn't a direct console war going on anymore, he notes that "on the other hand, gamers out there have limited budgets," adding that "there’s always going to be a war going on. It may be below the surface, but there's always going to be a battle for attention and mindshare." This somewhat echoes recent Xbox statements that the platform's biggest competition is the likes of TikTok and Netflix.
