Did Xbox One Just Win The Battle For Hardcore Gamers?

Critics and consumers will surely argue about which company had the better presentation at the 2014 Electronic Entertainment Expo.

Some analysts have already chosen a winner, but Wedbush Securities analyst Michael Pachter has a different take on the matter.

"They both did as well as they have ever done, so not sure it makes a lot of sense to call a winner," Pachter told Benzinga. "Microsoft MSFT and Sony SNE were both incredibly gamer friendly, and both focused primarily on games. Sony's presentation went 20 minutes longer, and they talked about a few other things (PS TV, PS Now), but the presentations were primarily about games, and that's what the audience wanted to see."

Related Link: Microsoft's E3 Briefing Highlights The Company's Ongoing Evolution

Last year, consumers expressed great disappointment when Microsoft chose to promote Xbox One with a focus on non-gaming entertainment. Its E3 2013 press conference had numerous games. However, the initial reveal (which came at an Xbox-dedicated event in May 2013) made the console look more like a set-top box than a gaming device.

Microsoft learned its lesson and quickly changed its strategy. According to Pachter, the company might have managed to surpass Sony in one regard.

"I thought Microsoft's games had more hardcore appeal, and Sony's games had broader appeal, so Microsoft may have won the hardcore battle and Sony won the broader market battle," said Pachter.

Most consumers could find at least one new game to get excited about. Sony and Microsoft introduced roughly 20 games each, and that's in addition to the plethora of third-party games that were announced elsewhere.

Even Nintendo, which struggled in 2013 with very little software, unveiled a healthy lineup for 2015.

As Pachter concluded, "The truth is that gamers won" at this year's E3.

Disclosure: At the time of this writing, Louis Bedigian had no position in the equities mentioned in this report.