I saw this quote today, and it struck me as being pretty true. The context is that Sweeney has been praising the PlayStation 5 as being the best piece of hardware since the toaster:
"Tim Sweeney always says what the highest bidder wants him to say. He sold his company to Tencent. He 'feared' that Microsoft would create a walled garden with the Windows Store - and went on to create the walled garden called the Epic Games Store. He spoke out against microtransactions and lootboxes, only to create Fortnite which is literally micro DLC hell. He promoted UE3 with PS3, UE4 with PS4 and UE5 with PS5 - and the best games on the engine were still Xbox exclusives, some even made by Epic themselves."
On the "system wars" note, there are three announcement and demo gates: spec and appearance, exclusive content, and price. For Sony being two thirds through and Microsoft only one third in, I thought the former would have captured most of my mindshare by now-- but they haven't. I don't really care about price-- I could afford a thousand dollar system, if that's what they'd cost-- so the content aspect is the key.
In order, "Flight Simulator", "Forza Motorsport 8", and "Halo Infinite" are must-plays for me-- but all three will be on Windows 10, on day one. So what I'll be looking for from Microsoft in July is evidence that there will be value in having a dedicated box, devoted exclusively to their ecosystem, in the coming months and years-- not just for this fall. If they do that, they'll get my money.
If not, "Gran Turismo 7", "Horizon 2", and the new "Ratchet and Clank" look great. I even have a convenient spot in my office for the PlayStation 5 behemoth to sit upright, if I go that route.