Now this is my latest blog started to discuss everything about games and consoles from the Big N. Yes ... The Big N. Let the Behemoth Microsoft talk down the "good and cute" pioneer of Tv gaming. Let Sony dismiss the threat that is set to revolutionize the industry. From what I've been tracking the game industry for the past few years (as well as my fond memories from the days of NES, SNES, Megadrive etc ...), I can foresee a huge change in the industry to come. Starting from the last generation (or current, whichever way you choose to see it), we have 3 major corporation who sees TV gaming as a opportunity to make shit loads of money.
Sony, entered the game with the original Playstation, which was ironically supposed to have been a joint collaboration project with Nintendo, and captured the hearts of the consumers, players and developers. It was the first game console to uses "optical disc" as key media, which was a cool choice compared to Nintendo's ugly and highly limiting cartridge (storage wise that is). Developers embraced it because it freed them to do what they want, and they broke away from the arrogance of Nintendo. Then we know what happened next .... Playstation 2 came and further established itself as THE defacto standard in the console gaming market.
Microsoft wouldn't enter any market if it wouldn't help them make more money. So we have them rather quickly put together a console (rather ugly one that is) and market it so well, that now in the 3 legged race, they have captured a huge piece of mind share from the market. They have money to burn, and they spent it wisely in their first foray into the gaming industry. Well done. They are using the same philosophy and strategy in this market as they have done in the past: Outspend everyone, undercut everyone, and overhype everything, then bleed the competitors to death, and then start slacking. You've seen them do it to Netscape and Real, and they are trying to do it again.
Now the past 2 generation is almost coming to the end of their life cycle (thanks to MS for pushing the timeline). And we can almost smell the strategy of Sony and MS. They wanna grow the market by doing mainly one thing - make a more powerful machine, and deliver higher horsepower. Leverage off the internet and make a convergent product. We know they want the console to be more than just gaming, it should be a hub for entertainment.
Nintendo on the other hand is crying "This is not enough!". They know what Sony and MS strategies are and they feel innovation is lacking. So far Xbox 360 is announced, and yes, it is truly impressive - that is compared to the current generation system. However, if you ignore the upgraded graphics and horsepower, it is just another console update. I forsee Sony to be more or less the same. And Nintendo is saying "This is not enough!!". Me for once, am keeping my fingers crossed hoping Nintendo will deliver finally what the consumer wants, as well as doing something different to make the next generation more than just an upgrade cycle. I want it to be a whole new experience in gaming. We shall see in a few days when Nintendo announces their new Revolution plans.
