{"id":932852,"date":"2026-05-02T12:16:32","date_gmt":"2026-05-02T12:16:32","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/932852\/"},"modified":"2026-05-02T12:16:32","modified_gmt":"2026-05-02T12:16:32","slug":"gamers-still-pick-consoles-for-exclusives-new-data-finds","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/932852\/","title":{"rendered":"Gamers Still Pick Consoles for Exclusives, New Data Finds"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"Gamers<\/a> Image: Push Square<\/p>\n

According to Circana data, the number one reason gamers choose to buy a particular console is because of exclusive games.<\/p>\n

The Game Business<\/a> reports that 41% of US players said they picked their platform of choice because of exclusives. The figure was closer to 50% a year ago, but it\u2019s still the number one decision maker for most American consumers.<\/p>\n

(Interestingly, the second reason with 38% was because friends and family already own a specific format, despite the prevalence of crossplay these days.)<\/p>\n

It\u2019s hardly a groundbreaking observation, but it runs counter to the narrative Xbox leadership has been espousing<\/a> over the past two or three years. It seems like the company\u2019s stance may be softening under new CEO Asha Sharma<\/a>, but its previous executives described the model as \u201cantiquated<\/a>\u201d.<\/p>\n

Exclusives have always been a key differentiator between devices, and it seems Sony has also got the message. It spent much of this generation porting its biggest first-party PS5 hits to PC, but after poor sales<\/a>, it looks like it\u2019s pulling the plug on that strategy<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Interestingly, The Game Business does note that while first-party franchises like Ghost of Yotei<\/a> and Marvel\u2019s Spider-Man 2<\/a> have prompted an uplift in PS5 sales, Sony tends to enjoy the biggest bumps to its hardware from third-party titles, like EA Sports FC<\/a> and NBA 2K<\/a>.<\/p>\n

But we think there\u2019s a cumulative effect taking place here. Sony does a brilliant job tethering its wagon to those big third-party releases \u2013 it markets the crap out of multiple sports games every year \u2013 but they comprise a piece of its overall strategy. PS5 is the only place you\u2019ll be able to play Marvel\u2019s Wolverine<\/a> and GTA 6<\/a> this year, for example.<\/p>\n

As you\u2019d expect, Nintendo franchises like Pok\u00e9mon<\/a> and The Legend of Zelda<\/a> have a greater influence on Switch hardware sales overall, but the data is pretty conclusive here: consumers do factor exclusives into their decision making when it comes to picking a piece of hardware.<\/p>\n

How important are exclusives to you when you pick up a new console?<\/p>\n

How important are exclusives when you choose a console? (459 votes)<\/p>\n

    \n
  1. They\u2019re the main reason I pick a platform<\/strong>55%<\/li>\n
  2. They matter, but other factors are just as important<\/strong>34%<\/li>\n
  3. I mostly follow where my friends play<\/strong>\u00a0 0.7%<\/li>\n
  4. Price, features, and services matter more to me<\/strong>5%<\/li>\n
  5. Exclusives don\u2019t influence my decision at all<\/strong>5%<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

    [source thegamebusiness.com<\/a>]<\/p>\n

    \n
    See Also<\/dt>\n
    \n<\/dd>\n<\/dl>\n

    \"Sammy<\/p>\n

    As the Editor of Push Square, Sammy has over 15 years of experience analysing the world of PlayStation, from PS3 through PS5 and everything in between. He\u2019s an expert on PS Studios and industry matters, as well as sports games and simulators. He also enjoys RPGs when he has the time to dedicate to them, and is a bit of a gacha whale.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Image: Push Square According to Circana data, the number one reason gamers choose to buy a particular console…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":932853,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[7],"tags":[806,55,53,16,15],"class_list":{"0":"post-932852","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-technology","8":"tag-industry","9":"tag-ps5","10":"tag-technology","11":"tag-uk","12":"tag-united-kingdom"},"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/pubeurope.com\/@uk\/116504939971358360","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/932852","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=932852"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/932852\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/932853"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=932852"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=932852"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=932852"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}