Questing in Kalimdor, I received word that, yes, the Wii has dropped in price to $199. After I logged out, I got to thinking: how long can this last? Like, the Wii (and the PS3) came out three years ago, and the Xbox 360 came out four years ago. Given how quickly consumer electronics evolve, how long we can expect to play these systems?
We pretty frequently hear rumors of a “Wii 2,” or whatever you want to call it, but that could well be because the Wii is only slightly more powerful than the GameCube, itself eight years old. How long can you expect people to play a GameCube with a fancy controller? (That’s not a knock against the Wii, of course, but it’s been a little while since we saw all those IT PRINTS MONEY articles.) That said, when was the last time you read something alluding to a PS4 or new Xbox? Heck, you can make the argument that the PS3 is just now starting to find its legs, what with the success of the PS3 Slim. Microsoft, for its part, seems to be clinging onto Xbox Live as a place where you’ll find its innovations.
Then you’ve got the fact that both Sony and Microsoft are tacking on motion control to their respective systems, and you get the feeling that neither company is looking to rush into the next generation. Nope, they’re gonna squeeze as much life out of these guys as they can.
And is there anything wrong with that, maximizing the current crop of systems before tossing them aside?
And let’s not forget that a significant number of people are still playing their games on a small, non-HD TV (probably with the TV’s built-in speakers, too), so these people aren’t even taking advantage of the current generation, let alone some crazy Future Techno gigaflops and whatnot.
I don’t know, I guess the point is: how long do you think the Xbox 360 and PS3 will last? You have to assume that Microsoft and Sony are already working on their next systems, but that doesn’t mean we’ll be playing them any time soon! And if we’re looking at another three years with the same systems, does that bother you? To me, the answer is “no,” it wouldn’t bother me to keep playing these systems (never mind that I mostly play WoW these days) for several more years. (Apologies if this seems disjointed, I’m writing this with one foot out the door.)
Well, I can’t speak for sony, but I am sure they are on the same page here. Microsoft has said in the past that they intend to have the 360 stay around for several more years to come. They said, and many others in the game industry agrees that we are reaching a point where new hardware is not needed every 4 years as it was in the past.
Everyone realizes that the profit margins on consoles are near nonexistant and in most cases actually a loss, and the real money comes from accessories and from games. It would be beneficial for all parties involved (the big wigs of Sony/Microsoft, the game developers, and the actual game players) if the systems lasted longer.
A better and hopefully bigger return on initial investment is probably what they are aiming at.
I for one am happy with my 360 and wii and probably will be for the next 2+ years. Come 2012 I’ll be excited for a new console, but not right now.
I agree. Since the games are HD, I think we’ll be playing them for a while. Sony and MS has said as much. Honestly, I just want Gran Turismo 5. Now. Please.
Sony has said all along that they plan for the PS3 to last 10 years. The Xbox 360 will probably last the same length unless PS3 games really start looking a lot better in the coming years.
I too, was one of the people playing on a SD TV for a long time. I found out that I could easily sell my Xbox 360, build a new gaming computer, and buy a 1080p monitor for about the same price as a decent 1080p TV. I ended up with a PC that is much more powerful and useful than my 360 ever was and I couldn’t be happier.
My only concern about the current consoles lasting another 5+ years is that it’s likely that PC games are often scaled to console graphics. The next generation of consoles will likely bring in the next jump in PC graphics. For the record: I think another 3 years is a good guess for the coming of the new generation of consoles.
Does it really matter?
I thought the whole point with game consoles was to play games. And as long as you get new interesting and good games you want to play, the platforms age and technology are totally irrelevant.
As a gamer it makes more sense to spend the money on new games, rather than buying new platforms every 2 to 3 years.
I realized earlier this year that the current generation would be here for a while longer. As others have mentioned the PS3 is stated to have a 10 year life cycle, and the Xbox 360 will probably be around for a while longer as well.
Even though it’s been out for 4 years, I just bought my first Xbox 360 a couple months ago. I’m glad it’ll be relevant for at least a few more years.
In my opinion, video games are at their end. Honestly, the only new thing they could do it virtual reality. The graphics cannot get better (except for the Wii.)
So I don’t beleive a new system is coming out for any company.
Hah, what? You’re kidding right? Graphics can’t get better my ass.
Imagine when the first Playstation came out, and how much of a leap for “photo-realism” it was. Now, I get a headache trying to play such low-res, badly designed games.
Games always have room to grow on the graphics front. We’re just now approaching the uncanny valley in face renders… and that’s just pre-rendered graphics, not in-game.
You can expect uncanny valley references to expand to outdoor environments. You can also expect to see much larger game environments, more life-like character movements and interactive scenery.
well the graphics next leap would probably be 3d gaming that would be sick and be fully interactive wear a suit or something and you control your avatar just like that movie with the SPARTAN! :b
thats all im sayin :)
To be honest the console platform in the traditional sense may end with the Xbox 360 and PS3. The next platform will most likely be streaming game play direct to TV using some sort of connect device. A new service is comming out in the next few years with strong developer support.
Creating a massive improvement to graphics for a new generation of consoles is problematic not in a hardware sense but a developer sense. Higher graphics means longer production schedules that may not be worth it.
I love the games of the Xbox 360 and PS3 but the superior tech of the PS3 may push Microsoft to go next gen sooner, especially with the Slim boosting the PS3 brand.
I live in an apartment with 8 guys and we have an Xbox 360 and an old N64. They both get the same amount of playing time, because in the end, it’s the games that matter. People don’t play cell phone games for the graphics!
Talk of a 10 year life will include an overlap. The PS2 is still in production so in 2010 will also have had a 10 year life cycle.
I never thought about it that way, really… I remember the old XBOX was pretty much a regular Pentium 3 computer that had the same specs as the ones I had at high school, only it looked way cooler and was more reliable. I was kind of pissed when the new console came out, since the first didn’t have that many games and it took me a while to shell out the $300 for a new system plus I didn’t even bother with live initially because I was broke from buying the console. I personally hope that these stay around for a while, just as long as they don’t give me the red ring anymore… and keep coming out with fun games to play. Plus it makes sense to stick with what makes you the most profit, and they can still milk these machines for a while longer.
hi there my name is tony i live in a box
I think this generation will last much longer then previous generations partly because of the features that continually get added to the console through internet firmware updates. (ie Home and NXE etc..)
I think with the exception of the wii these systems have come to a point where graphics aren’t as impressive as they were before. By that I mean that they have become so good across the board that they aren’t as jaw dropping when the next big game comes out. What has become more important is the quality of the games and their story lines and fun factor. Why else would people still be playing team fortress 2 after so long. I.E. graphics isn’t the end all be all. It’s all about entertainment. So as long as we are happy why waste money on new hardware? It costs more for us the developers and the manufacturers (sony,nintendo,microsoft) so till the graphics get stale why upgrade. look at the wii cheap as shit and a cash cow. Plus it’s the most affordable and with fun (some) games. Everyone wins.
I think given the current state of consoles, everyone is rushing to be the next innovator at a time when maybe…(wait for it)…we don’t NEED innovation. I mean, the graphics afforded to us by the PS3 are amazing stuff. Can we do better? Sure! But what’s the point of doing so at this point? As the article mentioned, there’s still a lot of people playing these games on SD TVs, meaning most of us haven’t even reached CURRENT-gen than to think about what comes next.
I say Sony has the right idea. Keep core things people will always like. Nice graphics, watching moving, Free online play, and expand on it. Don’t change the console, add to it! So the addition of the new eyetoy and the motion controller works fine – it’s not entirely new, it probably shouldn’t be too expensive to upgrade, and it provides a new thrill on a console just starting to pick up steam. If anything, the Wii should be trying to stay the way it is, just up the graphics to an acceptable level!
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