Xbox One vs. PS4: Who won the Experiential Marketing battle?

Within the space of a week, back in November, the two heavy weights of the gaming console world launched in London and across the world.  The showcasing of genuine gaming innovation was always going to be a spectacle, and this did not let us down. With ambitious ‘live’ plans and seemingly sizeable budgets to match, it was great to sit on the sidelines and watch the action unfold.  
But, from an experiential point of view, who came out on top?  Firstly let’s look at what they did.

Xbox One:
The Xbox One Square, a takeover of London’s Leicester Square on the launch evening was no mean feat.  The fact that this was the first ever concert in ‘the Square’ was a real statement of intent.  A sculpted stage and light show gave the spotlight to celebrity talent in the form of Plan B doing a live gig and Andros Townsend taking to the controls on the big screen.  Partygoers were entertained throughout by well executed street theatre and even an appearance from the Stig, arriving in a McLaren Supercar.
Cracking entertainment it was, but the thought went further.  The event was tied in with a pop-up store in The Trocadero, to ensure the glitz was tied in with the important bit, the Xbox One going on sale at midnight that evening.  This was mirrored in 500 stores throughout the UK with live streaming of the concert to those retailers.  Not content with just the UK, the launch stretched to New York and LA.  Predictably such an event attracted national press interest, with coverage in The Telegraph, Mail and Express. 

PS4:
One week later and the PS4 launch was in full swing.  Their ‘London first’ was to adapt the iconic lights of the OXO Tower chimney to the recognisable ‘triangle, circle, cross, square’.  This was a real gold star production and provided great teaser material in the two weeks leading up to the launch date.
As well as lighting up the skyline, PS4 also produced a pop-up store on Bedfont Street in Covent Garden.  Again, this was set up before the launch date to provide core gamers, celebrities and press the chance to get involved and try out the new goods.  It also provided the focus for PlayStation First Development, an academic development programme for young and future game developers. Nice thought!
And then launch night, a VIP party at the OXO Tower attended by a host of celebrities with live music from the Rizzle Kicks and McBusted.  All coordinated with Apartment 4 in Paris, France’s equivalent.

Verdict:
The reality is that without access to the campaign objectives and results, we cannot scientifically judge the outcome.  However, we can give our opinion. We think that both sets of live activity were of a very high quality and undoubtedly caught the attention of core and casual gamers, and even beyond.
But, what caught our eye was Xbox One’s approach to retailer coordination and ensuring they took the message out of London and included their partners across the country.  At the end of the day, this is an NPD and ensuring the end retailers were engaged and empowered really set this activity apart.  We also like this because this level of coordination is not a budget driven achievement, just smart thinking at both ends of the communications spectrum.

That said, well done to both.  We look forward to the next bout in a few years time.