As the major video game consoles again prepare for marketplace battle, it appears Sony and Microsoft are doing everything they can to differentiate themselves from one another.

Just over a week after Microsoft revealed the upcoming Xbox One and expressed interest in turning the gaming system into a household entertainment center for all audiences, Sony CEO Kazuo Hirai remarked today that his company’s Playstation 4 has been designed specifically with the hardcore gaming audience in mind.

“The most important thing we need to make sure we do, at least initially, is that we all agree and understand that the PS4 is a great video game console that appeals to video gamers,” Hirai said.

Hirai’s remarks, which came in the midst of the high-profile D11 convention, a media and technology event, could be taken as jabs at both Nintendo and Microsoft. Nintendo’s Wii saw great success last console generation for targeting more casual gaming audiences, but the updated version of the system, the Wii U, has failed to make an impression. Meanwhile, Microsoft’s Xbox 360 was able to retain industry prominence and longevity largely because it stayed true to its core fanbase and unleashed a steady stream of high-quality gaming content. Hirai seems to be suggesting that, in moving to support more general audiences and entertainment needs, Microsoft may be heading into dangerous territory.

Of course, Sony, like Microsoft, is a technology company with many different devices and capabilities under its umbrella, and consumers can still expect to see non-gaming applications on the PS4. However, Hirai made a point of mentioning that such auxiliary applications will play little role in the company’s campaign to launch and market the console. Where Microsoft is building the identity of the Xbox One a versatile entertainment workhorse, Sony wants to posit the PS4 as a gaming console first, entertainment center second. It remains to be seen which business decision is the better one.

That said, the battle between the two consoles may ultimately come down to timing. During the last console generation, Sony lagged behind both Microsoft and Nintendo for the first time since the Playstation brand was established in the early 1990s. Some blamed the gaming content and the high pricing, but the fact that the PS3 hit the market over a year after the Xbox 360 could have played a role as well. Since both the Xbox One and the Playstation 4 are scheduled to arrive in retail stores sometime in the fourth quarter, neither console will have that kind of insurmountable lead again, but considering the developers’ contrasting goals, getting to stores first couldn’t hurt.