HG131: The problem is is that sooner or later people will stop going back to Nintendo. You know the saying, Fool me once, shame on you. Fool me twice shame on me. There's a reason there isn't a fool me thrice. Also, even idiotic people who love games like Wii Sports stop falling for it sooner or later. Do you really think people will buy the same game 3 times? Sooner or later the housewives will stumble upon WoW and then Nintendo loses another buyer. Also, kids grow out of the kiddy game phase. Finally, I don't think Epic Mickey will do good. Most kids associate him with kiddy games, and won't buy it just because of that. Face it, people like to kill things. WHY do you think that the best selling games are games like GoW, Halo, GTA, and Borderlands. Violence.
EA would like a word with you. Look at all of their IP's where they change the number each year and it goes straight to number one in the sales chart.
There are loads of successful franchises that keep repeating, COD, HALO, Tomb Raider, Guitar Hero/Rock Band, GTA, Madden, FIFA, Streetfighter, Resident Evil, Mario, Castlevania, Final Fantasy, Tekken, Sims, Virtual Fighter, Civilisation, Total war, Metal gear solid, I could go on and on. Your fool me twice philosophy seems to have stopped working.
The Wii isn't for me. I don't watch Soccer either, It does not mean that either successful business is destined to fail. I'd argue MS disagrees with you as well or they would not be pursuing NATAL. The Nintendo gimmicks you mention seem to be getting picked up by MS, look at avatars and now NATAL.
Anything that increases gamings popularity is a good thing.
COD had to leave WWII. Halo changes things each time. TR sucks in a different way each time while fixing the last suck, Mario... I got nothing, Castlevania changes things a bit at least, FF.... Nothing, GT/RB have different music and sometimes modes, GTA adds new guns/cars (besides for GTAIIII), Madden sometimes adds new modes and ads people, FIFA nothing, SF changes stuff, RE at least has new locals, Tekken new stuff, Sims different stuff, VF same as other fighters, Civ. has some improvements, MGS again changes stuff. One thing though, they don't repackage THE EXACT SAME GAME (with a new minigame) like Wii Sports/Resort.
Also, Gaming becoming mainstream = bad shovelware. Here's my favorite quote. Buyers are idiots who will buy anything as long as you staple on more gimmicky words.
Wii Sports Resort has more new games in it than old ones. It's really not the same game at all. Anyway, people mainly buy it for the WiiMotion Plus, which whether or not you disagree with, was genius on Nintendo's part.
Nintendo; "We've made the Wiimote work like we said it would!" Consumers; "Great!" Nintendo; "It's gonna cost you Ł40!" Consumers; "Uhm... Okay then?" *goes and buys two copies* Nintendo have loads of money.
Also, Halo changes things each time? You shoot aliens. Then sometimes, you don't. Don't get me wrong, I like the Halo games, but Bungie really cracked the formula of "people like to shoot aliens", it's hardly dramatically varied gameplay.
Aardvark Soup: Didn't they say exactly the same during the GameCube era? Anyway, even if the Wii would completely stop being profitable (which I highly doubt) Nintendo has always got the handheld market, which they have been dominating since 1989.
Didn't the Gamecube fail epically and get mocked be everyone, including VG Cats?
The gamecubes main problems were that it was ill timed and didn't have a truly "killer" game that made it essential. As a console it was actually pretty good, metroid prime proves this by being the highest rated game of the previous console era.
JacOak: More or less the truth - I challenge someone to find me a quality Wii game released this year.
Tales of Symphonia: Dawn of A New World.
Hmm... interesting point. I don't know if that's out here yet, so... your point is accepted. But that's a recent release either way, yes?
Yep. EDIT: Ah, you're in the UK too! I should qualify. For us, it comes out next Friday, but I have a friend who got an American import (I have no idea how he managed to play it, but he's good with computers like that), and I played that. In the US, it came out last year.
HG131: So, the Wii is the highest selling console, right? That sounds good to me, you? Well, they forgot one thing. This generation of gaming is going to be the longest gen ever, and it still has another 7 - 10 (or more!) years left. It's like in horse racing. Being at the front of the pack at the start normally means you burn out and lose before it's over. They have to make good games for it to last, as lasting on console sales is impossible. They are making the kinds of mistakes 2 other companies made. Sega and Atari. Sega did good at first with the Dreamcast. But then everyone else got better and it died. Atari had a popular console. So, what did they do? Sell stuff like ET and that port that turned Pac-Man Fever into Pac-Man Cancer. Nintendo thinks they can live off of console sales for 10 more years? There is only so many housewives, Nintendo. Either stay with the pack or die alone, it's your choice.
As a 43 year old housewife, mum and gamer I take exception to the suggestion that the only thing I am likely to be interested in is the current selection of non-gamer games like I guess, Wii fit etc! I do own a Wii, but I also own a (Halo) 360 which is my favourite console, PS3 (at xmas, since I let my older son have the brand new PS3 I bought earlier this year for for his xmas present, cos mums do that sort of thing) PS2, Gamecube (which I like better than the Wii) DSi (upgraded from GBA to GBA SP to DS to DS Lite) PSP. I own well in excess of a hundred games (yes, I know that there are plenty of people with more, but there are equally plenty of people who say they are gamers with less too, I have financial responsibilities though) I am not particularly agreeing or disagreeing with the substance of your post, I am still hoping that Nintendo eventually make some games for the Wii that I will be interested in (My 'Cube games consist of games such as Eternal Darkness and Skies Of Arcadia) but hey, if they don't I will hang on to the Wii so that when my 7 month old baby is a bit older he can play some kid friendly games before graduating to the 360 and PS3. Anyway, my main point is, if you are going to make sweeping statements about housewives, leave me out of it, say something like ''housewives that aren't Jenova65'' ;-) I thank you!
You like Skies of Arcadia? Damn, if you didn't just become my favourite housewife. :P Way to stick it to the stereotypers!
Like it???????????? I blimming love it , I mean c'mon............ Pirates! Pirates in flying ships! It is just a great game, I only wish I had two copies 'just in case', I have two copies of Jade Empire for that reason. :-)
If only the rumours about a second one, other than Legends, which was more of an expansion, were true...
HG131: The problem is is that sooner or later people will stop going back to Nintendo. You know the saying, Fool me once, shame on you. Fool me twice shame on me. There's a reason there isn't a fool me thrice. Also, even idiotic people who love games like Wii Sports stop falling for it sooner or later. Do you really think people will buy the same game 3 times? Sooner or later the housewives will stumble upon WoW and then Nintendo loses another buyer. Also, kids grow out of the kiddy game phase. Finally, I don't think Epic Mickey will do good. Most kids associate him with kiddy games, and won't buy it just because of that. Face it, people like to kill things. WHY do you think that the best selling games are games like GoW, Halo, GTA, and Borderlands. Violence.
EA would like a word with you. Look at all of their IP's where they change the number each year and it goes straight to number one in the sales chart.
There are loads of successful franchises that keep repeating, COD, HALO, Tomb Raider, Guitar Hero/Rock Band, GTA, Madden, FIFA, Streetfighter, Resident Evil, Mario, Castlevania, Final Fantasy, Tekken, Sims, Virtual Fighter, Civilisation, Total war, Metal gear solid, I could go on and on. Your fool me twice philosophy seems to have stopped working.
The Wii isn't for me. I don't watch Soccer either, It does not mean that either successful business is destined to fail. I'd argue MS disagrees with you as well or they would not be pursuing NATAL. The Nintendo gimmicks you mention seem to be getting picked up by MS, look at avatars and now NATAL.
Anything that increases gamings popularity is a good thing.
COD had to leave WWII. Halo changes things each time. TR sucks in a different way each time while fixing the last suck, Mario... I got nothing, Castlevania changes things a bit at least, FF.... Nothing, GT/RB have different music and sometimes modes, GTA adds new guns/cars (besides for GTAIIII), Madden sometimes adds new modes and ads people, FIFA nothing, SF changes stuff, RE at least has new locals, Tekken new stuff, Sims different stuff, VF same as other fighters, Civ. has some improvements, MGS again changes stuff. One thing though, they don't repackage THE EXACT SAME GAME (with a new minigame) like Wii Sports/Resort.
Also, Gaming becoming mainstream = bad shovelware. Here's my favorite quote. Buyers are idiots who will buy anything as long as you staple on more gimmicky words.
As far as packaging the exact same game, there is very little difference between ProEvo soccer 09 and 10, Tekken 5 and 6, I could go on. You might also want to read the Escapist News piece Car Smashing Returns In Super Streetfighter IV. Repackaged with new minigames...
Most of the "improvements" you listed on those games were cosmetic, new guns/cars/locations/players hardly innovations a title, similar to the cosmetic changes to wii minigames. I found it interesting you made no comment on mario when hes been in platformers, beatemups, rpgs, racing games, puzzle games, and all manner of different sports.
To me that says troll. You could not think of a single change from Super mario brothers to mario kart or MArio 64, or paper mario? You are not here for discussion, you will not move on any of your opinions no matter what has been said or offered in counter argument. You are here to try and wind people up.
I don't own a wii and I have bought the repackaged games like SFIV, the odd Madden title and love COD. It does not make them bad, it just raises a flaw in your argument. Show me Nintendo are going into administration and I might believe you. The DS sells really well as does the Wii, hardly a failing company.
Mainstream might bring shovel ware but it also raises budgets for other titles, R&D and a wider selection of games in general. A wider audience is good.
RenegadeAngel: Also, Halo changes things each time? You shoot aliens. Then sometimes, you don't. Don't get me wrong, I like the Halo games, but Bungie really cracked the formula of "people like to shoot aliens", it's hardly dramatically varied gameplay.
Halo 1 had good story, decent Multi Halo 2 had passable story, great Multi, extra vehicles, extra weapons, dual weilding the ability to play as elites. Halo 3 has good story, 4 player co-op, better graphics, more guns, equiptment, vehicles, multi-player maps, custimizable armours, forge level editor, saved films, bungie space, online rankings and stat tracking... So, no real changes at all hey? And while I love zelda, you get the same abilities and items from the previous titles. The only things that change are story and grahpics.
Its not just about gameplay changing when it comes to sequals, its about advancing the story line. So games like Wii Sports (which have no story) need to change significantly to warrant the purchase of the sequal.
Unfortunatly the attempts of competing in terms of games has failed. Even MWII has been refused for the console because it was dubbed as just not being capable- so unfortunatly the Wii will exist based of its party game collections, and the retro arcade (along with the eternal titles of Mario, Metroid etc) My biggest gripe with this is it means Nintendo will feel the need to re-release classic games almost constantly to make up for lost sales of new, higher budget games. Soon it won't just be the classics being released I'd wager. Secondly, we're in for a LOT of new Mario and Zelda games to pick up the slack.
Lexodus: You know what would signal the apocalypse? Not of Nintendo, but of the whole gaming industry? A Pokémon 3d RPG, like the ones on the DS, but on a home console. Coliseum be damned (it was 3d, but it wasn't the same; no running around, catching things in tall grass, etc.), the day a proper Pokémon game on the Wii (or whatever it is at the time) would have fanboys tearing down cities just to get to games stores quicker. Myself included.
That or an official Pokemon MMORPG. So, you getting HeartGold or SoulSilver? I'm thinking both.
I had silver last time, and I think I'll do that this time too. My bro had Gold last time, and I just much preferred the silver colour of the cartridge, and Lugia was much better than Ho-oh. Ahhh, that game... I got it in Singapore, lost it in Singapore, spent the whole time looking for it, found it on the last day, got it home, played it for around 200 hours, lost it, found it a year later as we left the house and the carpets were taken up, took it to Australia, played it like mad in Australia (at this point, my entire main team was legit lvl 100, I'd filled the 'dex, cloned the pokemon I liked so I could have all the Eeveelutions, bred the starters and had a horde of them running around... good fun.), lost it in Australia, found it the day we left, got it home again, lost it at home, then found my brother had nicked it to go on a trip. I eventually got it back, but... Anyway, that game was fucking awesome.
Lets be honest here, the DS is hardly a console to play a proper game on. You cant compare the DS to a 360, PS3 or any others. Off the top of my head other than failboat PsP there arn't any other hand helds therefore if someone wanted a handheld they would buy the DS. Sucks how theres more handheld users than actual gamers but thats another story. (Look at the sales)
(Biased against handhelds)
Also offtopic I still don't get the WII. seriously just why is it good?
troutmonkey: My mum's Wii has been collecting dust and has only had one game brought for it since we got it (Wii Fit, which was brought on the day). My Xbox account on the other hand has had a whopping 53 games to it's name, 47 of which are retail games (Check LIVE ID Troutmonkey for proof. I also have 3 games on Pre-order (CoD4 MW2, Assassin Creed 2 and Mass Effect). I have at least three friends with Wii's, none of which are used regularily. On the other hand I have many friends who own 360s and actually use them, and buy the latest releases (Most of these people also High End gaming PCs). LANs happen fairly often.
As for the lust for blood drying up? Are you kidding!? Humans having been fighting each since the dawn of time and continue to this day. It will not end any time soon. People are competitive, and there is no simpler way of displaying dominance than through violence. There is no reason to not target BOTH Hardcore, Casual and Mainstream audiances. Which it looks like Xbox is doing with Natal.
The Wii is a fad. People don't buy it to play games, but to be stylish. It was the latest and greatest thing at the time. The media hyped it up and told them (the non-mainstream gamers) to buy it and be cool. When these people move onto the next fad the Wii will be left to collect dust. Either Nintendo will have to create that fad, or someone else will (possibly Natal).
I bought the Wii to play games. I have no other console, but I'm fine with it. Only tools buy something for show... Also, Natal is BS.
As an owner of all 3 current gen systems, the Wii is the system I have least games for, and it definitely gets played the least. In fact, the only reason the Wii gets played right now is when I play Mario kart with my 3 year old son, or when I want to play an old Gamecube game, like Skies of Arcadia. As for games bought. I haven't bought a game for my Wii for over a year. The last one I bought was No more heroes. (And I had a real issue with the framerate in that game). In comparison, I have bought 5 for the PS3, and 2 for the 360 in the past 6 months.
Although the Wii might be selling alot of systems, and selling 1st party games, but they are not selling significant numbers of games by 3rd parties developers. If this tend continues, expect less and less 3rd party support from game companies down the track. This, coupled with the lack of 1st party support to cater for the long time Ninty fans, means potentially alienating consumers.
On top of that, the DS, which is Nintendo's golden egg risks facing trouble in the next generation of handhelds by gaming on mobile phones. Apple with its app store is testing the waters of cheap and fun games on the iphone. With cell phones becoming more and more common for younger children, it makes alot more sense to download a game to a phone for $10, compared to buying the same title (albeit slightly more sophisticated) for the DS for $50.
nintendo is screwed put a ring around the bulls balls and they will fall off nintendo has a band around it and now the only factor left is time. (im sorry this is a horrible metaphor but alright)
What a laughable thing to say. It's one thing not liking the console and its games, and another one completely to say that it's doomed. How many years have we been hearing this? Oh wait, 5 years, when the DS was lauded as "Virtual Boy 2" by the analysts. No, Nintendo is NOT doomed. Their consoles sell fantastically well (DS will soon reach PS2 in sales) and software-wise Nintendo sold a crapload with New Super Mario Bros, Mario Kart Ds and Wii and Wii Fit.
If Nintendo is doomed, then console gaming is doomed. End of story.
Don't taze me Bro: On top of that, the DS, which is Nintendo's golden egg risks facing trouble in the next generation of handhelds by gaming on mobile phones. Apple with its app store is testing the waters of cheap and fun games on the iphone. With cell phones becoming more and more common for younger children, it makes alot more sense to download a game to a phone for $10, compared to buying the same title (albeit slightly more sophisticated) for the DS for $50.
If the iPhone represents the future of handheld gaming, I think you'll have to excuse me while I swear incoherently. The iPhone is the most horribly compromised electronic device of the modern generation - trying to be all things to almost all people, and ending up as a shit device which is vastly overhyped. The interface is the most potentially harmful thing to the games industry - a touch screen needs a set of buttons to supplement it in the gaming world.
HG131: So, the Wii is the highest selling console, right? That sounds good to me, you? Well, they forgot one thing. This generation of gaming is going to be the longest gen ever, and it still has another 7 - 10 (or more!) years left. It's like in horse racing. Being at the front of the pack at the start normally means you burn out and lose before it's over. They have to make good games for it to last, as lasting on console sales is impossible. They are making the kinds of mistakes 2 other companies made. Sega and Atari. Sega did good at first with the Dreamcast. But then everyone else got better and it died. Atari had a popular console. So, what did they do? Sell stuff like ET and that port that turned Pac-Man Fever into Pac-Man Cancer. Nintendo thinks they can live off of console sales for 10 more years? There is only so many housewives, Nintendo. Either stay with the pack or die alone, it's your choice.
As a 43 year old housewife, mum and gamer I take exception to the suggestion that the only thing I am likely to be interested in is the current selection of non-gamer games like I guess, Wii fit etc! I do own a Wii, but I also own a (Halo) 360 which is my favourite console, PS3 (at xmas, since I let my older son have the brand new PS3 I bought earlier this year for for his xmas present, cos mums do that sort of thing) PS2, Gamecube (which I like better than the Wii) DSi (upgraded from GBA to GBA SP to DS to DS Lite) PSP. I own well in excess of a hundred games (yes, I know that there are plenty of people with more, but there are equally plenty of people who say they are gamers with less too, I have financial responsibilities though) I am not particularly agreeing or disagreeing with the substance of your post, I am still hoping that Nintendo eventually make some games for the Wii that I will be interested in (My 'Cube games consist of games such as Eternal Darkness and Skies Of Arcadia) but hey, if they don't I will hang on to the Wii so that when my 7 month old baby is a bit older he can play some kid friendly games before graduating to the 360 and PS3. Anyway, my main point is, if you are going to make sweeping statements about housewives, leave me out of it, say something like ''housewives that aren't Jenova65'' ;-) I thank you!
You like Skies of Arcadia? Damn, if you didn't just become my favourite housewife. :P Way to stick it to the stereotypers!
Like it???????????? I blimming love it , I mean c'mon............ Pirates! Pirates in flying ships! It is just a great game, I only wish I had two copies 'just in case', I have two copies of Jade Empire for that reason. :-)
If only the rumours about a second one, other than Legends, which was more of an expansion, were true...
I seriously haven't played my Wii in the past year other than to show it to some friends I was having over, once, and we got bored in like ten minutes. My Wii was a waste of $250, but anyone who sits flicking peanuts like this at Nintendo's colossal sales ("they have a ridiculous amount of money but their stilled doomed!") is a bit near sighted, way I see it. The regular Wii fan base (younger casual gamers and their parents) aren't going to care, they will keep spending more money on Nintendo products, and hopefully keep their shrieky voices off of Xbox LIVE.
If the iPhone represents the future of handheld gaming, I think you'll have to excuse me while I swear incoherently. The iPhone is the most horribly compromised electronic device of the modern generation - trying to be all things to almost all people, and ending up as a shit device which is vastly overhyped. The interface is the most potentially harmful thing to the games industry - a touch screen needs a set of buttons to supplement it in the gaming world.
I said it was testing the waters, and it won't be this generation. If you heard their press conferences back in September, you would have heard their intent to take on Nintendo and Sony. I see Apple as a larger threat to Nintendo in the handheld department, more so than Sony.
nintendo is a marketing genius, why do you think the shitty wii is the highest selling console? nintendo will be fine, besides, since everybody and their mums seem to own wiis, nintendo will do best because people will just keep buying more games. besides, nintendo doesn't solely rely on tv-console gaming to stay afloat.
Nintendo is far from doomed. They're wining the console war hands down. Third-party support is increasing for the Wii, and the DS already has a great lineup of 'core' games.
Let me say this: Just because YOU don't like Wii Sports or Wii Fit, doesn't mean that they're A) Crap or B) the sign of Nintendo's doom. Because if anything, it's quite the opposite. So kindly remove you head from your anus.
Nintendo isn't doomed. It can rely on its trusty hand-held market.
As for the Wii - maybe that is doomed. I certainly haven't used mine recently, and I don't know of any upcoming games that interest me. But you never know what games are going to come out.
There is no rule set in stone which says that Nintendo CAN'T release another console before the other's release theirs. I suspect Nintendo is going to release the Wii 2 in about 3 years time, maybe less.
Anyhow - what is your definition of doomed? Just because it might lag behind Sony and Microsoft in the future in terms of console sales does not mean the company will suddenly go bankrupt. This isn't a "last man standing" fight - as long as Nintendo continue to make money from the Wii and the DS, it will continue to exist.
troutmonkey: ...As for the lust for blood drying up? Are you kidding!? Humans having been fighting each since the dawn of time and continue to this day. It will not end any time soon. People are competitive, and there is no simpler way of displaying dominance than through violence...
I'll assume that comment was directed at me, so allow me to clarify.
I never said anything about blood lust drying up, no way. What I was getting at was that violence in the same form repeated consistently will get boring. Playing Gears' Horde mode was fun at first, but hours later it was just machine gun here, shotgun there, peppered with the odd chainsaw dismemberment. It just got dull seeing the same thing happen over and over, you know? Violence will never get boring, but there needs to be a variety to ensure this. When I first got Mortal Kombat vs DC, I played it relentlessly for a couple of months, but it eventually started to wear thin. I stopped playing, explored other stuff. Months later I booted it up again, and felt fresh again. So no, blood lust will never die, but seeing Evil Alien du Jour being decapitated with the same blood stained machete will lose its charm around the thousandth time you see it in a row.
Georgeman: The hell? The thread hasn't been locked yet?
What a laughable thing to say. It's one thing not liking the console and its games, and another one completely to say that it's doomed. How many years have we been hearing this? Oh wait, 5 years, when the DS was lauded as "Virtual Boy 2" by the analysts. No, Nintendo is NOT doomed. Their consoles sell fantastically well (DS will soon reach PS2 in sales) and software-wise Nintendo sold a crapload with New Super Mario Bros, Mario Kart Ds and Wii and Wii Fit.
If Nintendo is doomed, then console gaming is doomed. End of story.
I think this thread is quite ridiculous too, but hear me out. Of course, Nintendo isn't doomed, it is just that it has alienated its original fanbase. They don't care so its probably the gans who are doomed. Nintendo doesn't represent console gaming. If Wii was the only console, boy, would I be a rabid pc gamer. They're not doomed, they're earning money but they don't represent console gaming in any way.
DrDeath3191: Let me say this: Just because YOU don't like Wii Sports or Wii Fit, doesn't mean that they're A) Crap or B) the sign of Nintendo's doom. Because if anything, it's quite the opposite. So kindly remove you head from your anus.
I really hate when people bring this up. I agree with your overall idea but not with the point you're trying to make. If I say that "Wii Fit is as fun as getting repeatedly punched in the face", it is automatically my opinion. It doesn't mean that it's crap, it means that I THINK it's crap. It seems to me that you're the one who needs to follow your own advice.
I was a big nintendo backer for the longest time. I tried my damndest to like the Wii. I bought franchise games like Zelda and Metroid desperately trying to hold on to the games that Nintendo made great. However, their quest for money and trying to get more casual gamers has left us dedicated ones hanging out to dry. I had no choice but to switch to a 360 this late in the game because, well, it actually provided the types of games I wanted to play. Nintendo is doing very well, but I think at the cost of alienating its former audience. It raised a big middle finger to all of the people that stuck with it through the NES all the way to the Gamecube. Was the gamecube a failure? Maybe in sales, but its games were great (mostly)because they tried to give its community what it wanted. I actually enjoyed the gamecube more than the PS2. Nintendo, I'm glad that you're leading the pack again, but don't leave your supporters in the dust, or they'll find someone else who WILL pay attention.
Why do people even feel the need to state their meaning about things instead of waiting and seeing what actually happens? Like really. Maybee nintendo is doomed, maybee nintendo has world domination in five years. I don't know, even though i care. So what do i do? I wait. I don't go on escapist and post a thread about it. Why would you do that? To have a minor chance to get a badge for a good thread? Is this REALLY something you wan't do discuss with us? It is a good topic. If good is that it gets over 4 pages of people insulting each other's opinions and gaming habits. I have a strange feeling that that is not good. =(
But with Nintendo's evilness and the fact that they're probably going to realease five more versions of the DS within those years, I think they are unfortunately very, very safe.
HG131: So, the Wii is the highest selling console, right? That sounds good to me, you? Well, they forgot one thing. This generation of gaming is going to be the longest gen ever, and it still has another 7 - 10 (or more!) years left.
You forget a very important point.
Microsoft has lost money on the 360, it still hasn't broken even on it. Sony has lost money on the PS3, it still hasn't broken even on it. Nintendo has made money on every Wii since day 1, even if it's sales stop tomorrow they have made more profit than either of the other two are likely to make in the entire generation.
It's a long held fanboy-ism that Nintendo 'aren't' part of this console generation, but it's true. They've already won this generation, got all the money they need and can afford to sit and look at what they are going to do next. Even with their 'slump' in sales they are making more profit than the entire Sony corporation. Sony and M.Soft aren't sticking to one platform through choice, if they could they would make you sell up and upgrade every four years, the reality is they've sunk so much money in they are stuck, they can't afford to develop new hardware.
HG131: ... This generation of gaming is going to be the longest gen ever, and it still has another 7 - 10 (or more!) years left...
Well, more like 7-10 years for this generation IN TOTAL assuming this gen started in 2005 with the xbox 360 it is fair to say we'll see the next console iteration in late 2011 to early 2012. But the idea of no new console till 2020?!?! Not going to happen.
Even if both consoles would rather stay where they are at the moment the problem is they don't know if their competitors are working on a console, it takes up to 3 years to develop a new console, they don't want to be caught with their pants down as the next iteration is released while they desperately try to catch up!
I have no doubt that right now both the Playstation 4 and next Xbox are in development by their respective parties, but how much longer they will be working on them? How much more can they push the design? They don't want to release too soon like Dreamcast, yet not too late like Gamecube, ideally they want to release about a year before the competitor and most of all use that year REALLY well by releasing lots of quality software.
But with this financial crisis of 2008-2009 that likely delayed everything and with Natal/PS-motion they will likely try to milk each console as long as possible till as far as 2011 probably and 2012 not being unlikely. I would not consider a Wii-HD a "next gen" console, merely Nintendo finally catching up to the competition.
One approach they might take with the next gen is merely release "Super" versions of their current platforms a bit like what Wii was to Gamecube though with a more significant resolution boost.
I mean did anyone see those videos of those 4 PS3 consoles plugged together running a super high resolution super high quality game? Considering developers are only just getting the nack of the Cell processor, there is a Chance the Playstation 4 will just be a console with either multiple cell-processors of the PS3 or even a "Super-Cell" with up to 16 individual cores, then dial up the internal bandwidth and slot in a new GPU, it would be easy to render every single game in 1080p @60fps and even full 3D! But the best part is all the knowledge developers used on PS3 could be dropped right into PS4 and expanded upon. So a developer could be half way through making a PS3 game then gets a hold of PS4 SDK then just expand on it from there. Backwards compatibility would also be inherent. I also think Sony will stick with Blu-ray, it already has enough space, not much more would be needed.
I think 360 is going to go a similar route, they will almost certainly up the System memory and likely pump up the Developer's favourite, that lovely eDRAM from 10MB to possibly as high as 100MB considering reduced memory costs that would make it an incredibly powerful vertex pumper.
But I think the 360 will take a BIG note out of Nintendo's book with Natal + 360 it will likely become their legacy product that they will push for as long as PS2 was, they will likely do their best to allow a seamless transition from 360 to Xbox 720 but I predict Microsoft will attempt the impossible of being as much a casual console as hardcore. Though if they go casual they MUST figure out how to get the mom/pop to buy new software, Nintendo is suffering and Likely won't last from poor software pickup to sustain them. They need to get you off he couch, flailing about but more importantly reaching for your credit card or spending points on new stuff.
I don't like that but it will be good business for Microsoft.
Also interesting, Natal will work directly with Windows 7 PCs as well, this suggest that the next gen there will be even further integration between the Xbox and Window's Computers. There is a chance the Natal will be marketed directly to PC users in attempt to open up another casual market, maybe integrate on-Live style video-game streaming?
On-live may very well be bought by Microsoft to implement their software with the 360/PC/Natal. You heard the prediction here fist folks! On-live is far more casual oriented anyway.
I don't think Microsoft will use blu-ray, even though they should, it would be bad PR and there is a lot to going a 100% digital download route, though a DVD drive may be present to play old 360 games + DVDs but likely not that games themselves. There is a chance they may use the PC model of distributing games on multiple DVDs for install to the Xbox 720's hard-drive and play 100% off the HDD.
I also think the next Xbox won't be called the Xbox 720, too predictable, more likely 360 x 3 = 1080 ~ 1080p? So "Xbox 1080" to maybe follow a guarantee of "every game in 1080p" or something else like that.
Then there is the question of Apple... they are not going to go head to head with a home console, too competitive. That's not their style, they are going to spot a niche and fill it so quick it won't even be funny, most likely handheld where IMHO both Sony and Nintendo are floundering, Microsoft seems poised to strike but will Apple beat them to it? What if they jump the gun with a product that turns out to be inferior to what the other 3 bring out? No, Apple will push iphone/itouch but will likely make a big move if any somewhere else.
DrDeath3191: Let me say this: Just because YOU don't like Wii Sports or Wii Fit, doesn't mean that they're A) Crap or B) the sign of Nintendo's doom. Because if anything, it's quite the opposite. So kindly remove you head from your anus.
I really hate when people bring this up. I agree with your overall idea but not with the point you're trying to make. If I say that "Wii Fit is as fun as getting repeatedly punched in the face", it is automatically my opinion. It doesn't mean that it's crap, it means that I THINK it's crap. It seems to me that you're the one who needs to follow your own advice.
Yes, you're right of course. Everyone has their own opinion. But they can't use that opinion to say that Nintendo is doomed, especially when any and all evidence proves otherwise. I can respect that you might not like Wii Fit, but don't demonize the game as the end of Nintendo because yhou aren't fond of minigame collections. That's what I'm getting at.
Wii Sports Resort has more new games in it than old ones. It's really not the same game at all. Anyway, people mainly buy it for the WiiMotion Plus, which whether or not you disagree with, was genius on Nintendo's part.
Nintendo; "We've made the Wiimote work like we said it would!"
Consumers; "Great!"
Nintendo; "It's gonna cost you Ł40!"
Consumers; "Uhm... Okay then?" *goes and buys two copies*
Nintendo have loads of money.
Also, Halo changes things each time? You shoot aliens. Then sometimes, you don't. Don't get me wrong, I like the Halo games, but Bungie really cracked the formula of "people like to shoot aliens", it's hardly dramatically varied gameplay.