Regardless of your platform affiliations, there’s no denying that the PlayStation 4 has had an historically successful start to this console generation. Even though the Xbox One is selling faster than the Xbox 360 did in the same time frame, the unexpected combination of Sony’s smooth execution of a solid gameplan and Microsoft’s mistake-filled rollout of a flawed strategy has led to the PS4’s two-to-one global sales dominance.

Loading

“ the Internet scratched its collective head over the PS4 Pro’s curious lack of an Ultra-HD Blu-ray optical drive.

Xbox One S Comparison Images 20 IMAGES

“ Scorpio’s unveiling needs to show off new games no one has ever seen live gameplay of before.

Loading

“ Will the average customer notice or care about the difference between Sony’s upscaled 4K and Xbox’s native 4K?

Loading

Recently, however, Sony has stumbled in the messaging and fan-confidence departments – arguably for the first time since its do-no-wrong run started back in February 2013 at the PS4 reveal. The question is whether or not this is simply a speed bump for Sony or a sign of a more permanent shift that will see Microsoft reclaim a substantial chunk of their lost market share. Let’s start by reviewing Sony’s recent history:Finally, the Internet scratched its collective head over the PS4 Pro’s curious lack of an Ultra-HD Blu-ray optical drive . While it’s true that digital distribution and streaming is the future – arguably even the present – a cost-cutting move like that just looks bad in the face of the rest of the machine’s 4K focus. Not to mention the fact that the older, cheaper, and less powerful Xbox One S includes it standard. A separate UHD Blu-ray player can run upwards of $300. over 250 Xbox 360 games (and counting) compatible with the current machine. Not to mention introducing the sleeker, smaller, and more feature-laden Xbox One S without hiking the price. Meanwhile, on the back of a discounted $250 price on the original Xbox One in July and the surge of interest in the S in August, Xbox One has been the top-selling console in North America for two straight months So what should Microsoft’s next move be? If it’s learned anything from the PS4 Pro reveal event, Scorpio’s unveiling needs to show off new games no one has ever seen live gameplay of before: Halo 6, Forza Motorsport 7, State of Decay 2 – games we know will play on Xbox One as well, but without any visual record of them to color our opinions Scorpio can help them make a huge first impression, and vice versa.The price of the Scorpio is likely to be a primary factor, however, and represents one of Microsoft’s biggest opportunities to hand the advantage back to Sony if it’s not done right. Will the average customer notice or care about the difference between Sony’s upscaled 4K and Xbox’s native 4K, particularly if Scorpio checks in at $499 – a full $100 more than the PS4 Pro at its launch? Microsoft has hinted at “premium” pricing for Scorpio , but will people be willing to pay more for a console just because its true pixel count is higher? Maybe. But the last time Microsoft shipped a console that was $100 more than its Sony competitor, gamers favored Sony (which, to be fair, was also offering the more powerful system). If Microsoft is serious about tilting the scales back in its favor in the console race, I hope it is prepared to sell Scorpio for a competitive $399. Relative to every other system on the market in late 2017, that technically would be a premium price.For now, though, Sony unquestionably remains the market leader this generation, and it would be impossible for Microsoft to catch up to – let alone overtake – Sony overnight. But for the first time since the PS4 and Xbox One were announced, Sony appears to be vulnerable. Microsoft has an opportunity to even the score, and it’s up to Spencer and his team to spend the next year trying to convert Sony’s vulnerability into Xbox One S and, eventually, Scorpio sales. Either way, the next 18 to 24 months of this ongoing battle should be fascinating to watch.

Ryan McCaffrey is IGN’s Executive Editor of Previews and Xbox Guru-in-Chief. Follow him on Twitter at @DMC_Ryan , catch him on Podcast Unlocked , and drop-ship him Taylor Ham sandwiches from New Jersey whenever possible.