If there is one thing certain about this generation, the race between Sony and MS is going to be MUCH tighter. This gen, MS had a huge advantage. A year extra, Sony's $599, the botched PS3 E3, "PS3 has no games", PS3 games running worse than the Xbox, PS3 UI being terrible, etc etc.
Now? They are starting on really even footing. PS3 at $399, MS with TitanFall and DLC, releasing nearly together, etc etc. I can not see the PS4 doing as poorly compared to the Xbone as the PS3 did compared to the 360. Yeah, PS3 made up some ground, but never really reached parity in terms of sales.
I wonder how the non-factor of the WiiU is going to affect the next gen. I mean, this gen, the Wii just fucking destroyed everything. People were gobbling that shit up. At this point in time, there are really only 2 players instead of 3, unless Nintendo pulls a miracle with the WiiU.
Okay let's break this down. PS3 not only made up ground and reached parity, it surpassed 360 in sales. I don't know why you would narrow the competition to only specific markets, as world-wide sales is what accurately depicts the total number of units sold, which is the more appropriate measure of success.
Also, although I don't know the degree to which this is true, I think we can agree that a percentage of 360 sales was boosted by the RROD fiasco because of the same people having to get multiple units of the 360. Sure this probably happened with PS3s but the RROD was much more prevalent.
Now, they are not on even footing. Because
1) PS4 is $100 cheaper. You countered this with saying MS has Titanfall and DLC, but that's just false equivalency. The right comparison would be price of MS's system, which is more expensive in every market.
2) Pre-order numbers indicate/prove that they are not on even footing either, since almost unanimously PS4 has higher amount of pre-orders.
3) Why would Titanfall and DLC make things even? Titanfall is not at launch, and also releasing on PC. And its not like it will get pirated much on PC because its an online only game. X1 version will no doubt get more sales but PC version still dilutes its exclusivity and sales potential on X1. It is also an unproven IP by a unproven (sorta) developer.
DLC. Sony also has exclusive DLC on big titles as well such as Watch Dogs, AC4, and Destiny.
4) The PS4 has better public perception. It is indisputably the more powerful system. It set the internet on fire during E3 because of policies. It is getting better word of mouth. Not to mention brand loyalty is a factor.
I don't really see how they are releasing on equal footing this time around, especially also if PS4 releases sooner. I'm not saying X1 is a bad product, the 180s have been great and some of the games look cool, I'm just saying you're wrong when you say they're starting on even footing.