Sales
In terms of sales, Microsoft’s exclusives sold around 9.2 million copies this year but that was mostly due to the giant that was Halo: Reach, most of its other exclusives failed to live upto expectations and did very poor sales wise.
Sony’s exclusives sold more than 12 million copies (including MAG which we have left out of this comparison) which is a big surprise considering Xbox 360 exclusives were known to sell more than Sony’s. However, this is thanks to a joint success for exclusives on the PS3 this year with multiple titles selling more than a million copies for the console. This proves that the PS3 did far better in terms of sales this year as it’s more of a cumulative effort rather than one huge success only.
Critical acclaim (Metascore)
Xbox 360 exclusives achieved a joint metascore of 324/400 and that was mostly thanks to Halo: Reach getting some amazing reviews. Titles like Crackdown and Fable III were subject to some really harsh criticism and overall, the Xbox 360 exclusives apart from Halo: Reach didn’t really manage to woo the critics this year.
The PS3 exclusives managed to score 343/400 which is marginally better than what the 360′s exclusives managed to secure this year. However, the PS3 too faced mixed response with games like God of War 3 at one hand, which got some amazing response from the critics and highly anticipated titles like Gran Turismo 5 on another which failed to live upto the critics’ expectations.
Verdict:
While it’s been a close contest between both the consoles in 2010, the PS3 can be considered to have fared better when it comes to delivering gaming experiences which are exclusive to its userbase. Multiple titles did well both commercially and review-wise and Sony were happy with most of what they got this year. However, most of the 360 exclusives dissapointed with titles like Crackdown 2 and Alan Wake, falling well short of expectations.
When it comes to being the most powerful exclusive released this year, the title can’t be decided as it’s a close contest between Halo: Reach and Gran Turismo 5, with both the games doing exceptionally well for their respective console makers.
Overall, the PS3 has produced better exclusive experiences for gamers in 2010 and things looks to be only getting better in 2011, with its stellar line-up of exclusives which overshadows anything which it managed to achieve this year. Things however, does not look so bright for the Xbox 360 with only a handful exclusives releasing next year for Microsoft’s HD giant.
