The New Console Debates

[DreamCaster]

The next generation of consoles lies on the horizon: Nintendo Revolution, PS3, and Xbox360. E3'05 gave us a glimpse of what is to come (and hopefully even more goodies will await us at TGS'05 this fall). It was obvious what had to be done, and lo, the "Official Console Debates" have been resurrected from its slumber to discuss and debate the current status of consoles and the up and coming next generation of consoles.

Many Lighthouse gamers know my current stance and opinion of the current consoles. I strongly believe that Nintendo needs to go third party, unless they change their act around with the Revolution. The GC's main draw was Nintendo games, yet when you hear people talk about the Revolution do they talk about an upcoming Capcom game? Upcoming Square-Enix game? Namco, Konami, Sega, or Atlus game? No, everyone is talking about the Revolution's new Nintendo games: the new Smash Bros., Metroid, Zelda, and Mario games. GC's, main draw is it's Nintendo games, Revolution's main draw is its Nintendo games. Nintendo consoles are for Nintendo games... throw in a handful of 3rd party exclusives. It just seems kind of... stuck up... for Nintendo to do this (if you want to play Nintendo games you must buy Nintendo hardware), and it may or may not be their own fault.

Why does Nintendo have a lack of third party exclusives? Maybe it's Nintendo's "image". Maybe it's Nintendo's hardware. Maybe third parties trust companies that are more aware of how to market hardware and software like business moguls Microsoft and Sony, rather than Nintendo, a company just out to push their own games and the hardware to run them. But that's just how I view Nintendo: as a game company, not a hardware company. I'm not saying GC's 3rd party exclusives are low quality, but when you compare the GC's third party exclusives to PS2's third party exclusives the GC pales in comparison. GC's "exclusive titles" that draw people to it are it's 1st party exclusives (Nintendo band games), and IMO I see this as Nintendo ostracizing itself from the rest of the gaming community (and with it's lack of online support and bizarre hardware... i.e. the DS, and third parties having to program their games with a separate touch screen, it seems like Nintendo only wants hardware to run it's own brand of quarky and unique games). It's like the old Nintendo slogan, "get 'N' or get out". If third party games can't conform to Nintendo's "style" (i.e. Final Fantasy Crystal Chronicles) then Nintendo doesn't need your support, and IMO this must put off a lot of third parties, thus lack of third party support.

Nintendo needs to find a solution to is quarky hardware/software issues to fix the problem they are in right now. Nintendo shouldn't have to force its quarky hardware issues on third parties. Third parties should make games their own way instead of Nintndo-izing their software (adding GBA linkups, touch screen compatibility, cutting out online features, etc.). If Nintendo can solve these issues, maybe, just maybe they can regain it's hold in the console market, otherwise, looking at Nintendo's current status, I see them a path that Sega once tread, and I really don't want anything like that to happen again ... (DC hugz his DreamCast tight... sniff)...

 

[Aruun]

I vote Dreamcast 2.

 

[Bahamut]

Personally I think it's kinda pointless to do a console debate when they aren't even launching until 2006. Heck, the general public barely knows anything about the Revolution, so it'd be difficult to have any rational debate.

Give it a year or so, THEN bring this up again. You'll just get a bunch of fanboys now . . .

EDIT: JMY - lawlz.

 

[B0r3d*m Alien]

Well the only reason anyone saw this had to be resurrected is because of the arguements going on in the Revolution room.

I concur, there isn't much to say for on Nintendo's side.

The true Revolution would be for Nintendo to prove that they have what it takes to make consoles as well, not just games.

It's not about the hardware specs because every generation of consoles basically share the same graphical capability.

On Nintendo's side though, like DC said, these little "quarky" hardware additions (or even the original hardware itself like the controller problem people have) take away from a broader gaming experience because third party games have to build around these additions. So what? Some try to work with it, while many others just choose not to.

To me Nintendo cares only about the diehard fans who are just as "quarky" as them and don't care about spending money for additions. While others who just want to play the Nintendo games are at the mercy of what Nintendo puts out due to the lack of third party support.

Will this carry over onto the Revolution? So far, no...Rev will be using the large disks now...but we have yet to see the controller and what's really "revolutionary" about the Revolution.

Alls that is left to argue is whether PS3 is better than XB360...or vice versa..

Although these forums are so Nintendo inclined...
Ah well, discuss..
BA out..

 

[Cashed]

*Splits topic*

Why stay in the same topic that was started back when Xbox and GCN came out?

 

[thepixlyzdpitbull]

Oh snap. I didn't see this thread when I made my long-winded post in the Revolution thread.

About your DS argument and developers having to develop for the touch screen, good move by Nintendo, IMO. If they don't need the touch screen, there's the GBA. More innovative games on the DS and less straight ports, please. "Third parties should make games their own way", but they have a choice. DS for innovation, GBA for "me-too" games.

Nintendo may be a video game company as opposed to a hardware manufacturer, but think about it. Doesn't this qualify them to make consoles? The GameCube and GBA are excellently designed systems. Seriously. Both are minimalistic and very efficient, which is just what a game system should be.

I must wonder... if Sega had not switched to games-only (keep in mind that this was not a choice for them - they had to do it), then would all you people feel that Nintendo should go this route?

EDIT: I want to mention that I lurk Smashboards inconsistently and I may not check this thread too far in the future. Just FYI. Let the discussion continue.

 

[Flok]

You still believe Nintendo needs to go third party, DreamCaster?

I would like to search for my old posts in the old Console Debates topic for confirmation and recognision but **** the search button doesn't work.

I'll post in here again when it's working again.

 

[Mic_128]

The Rev and PS3 (And even the X369 really) still have a lot to anounce/confirm. Give it a break, too early. The debate in the Rev topic is mainly about history, not present. This'll be the same.

 

[thepixlyzdpitbull]

By the way, I suggest that you guys read this. It gives valuable insight to Sony's strategy.

The PS3 graphics processor only exists theroetically. It hasn't been made in silicon yet. How can you rant and rave about a GPU that doesn't physically exist yet? The XBox 360's hardware isn't complete yet either. Miyamoto talked about this - these companies are really just giving you made-up numbers. Nintendo keeps quiet until their hardware is finalized and they get flak for it. But whose philosophy should we really be listening to?

 

[Bahamut]

Like I said . . .

Originally posted by Bahamut
Give it a year or so, THEN bring this up again. You'll just get a bunch of fanboys now . . .

 

[Cashed]

Originally posted by thepixlyzdpitbull
By the way, I suggest that you guys read this. It gives valuable insight to Sony's strategy.

The PS3 graphics processor only exists theroetically. It hasn't been made in silicon yet. How can you rant and rave about a GPU that doesn't physically exist yet? The XBox 360's hardware isn't complete yet either. Miyamoto talked about this - these companies are really just giving you made-up numbers. Nintendo keeps quiet until their hardware is finalized and they get flak for it. But whose philosophy should we really be listening to?

The 360 hardware is final, Microsoft has a few finished dev kits right now and will be shipping them to developers early July. The specs Microsoft released is the information that they gave developers to go off of while making their games right now so they would take advantage of the final hardware.

 

[The Windwaker]

You can't really be sure about Nintendo and Sony, since they both really have nothing. Nintendo at this point only has "backwards compatability" and "online play", which of course should have been included in the gamecube in the first place, but hey, better late than never.

Sony pulled some numbers out of their *****, as usual, and tried to say that Killzone 2 was running real-time, which is hilarious.

You can't really judge right now, too early. Gotta go with the Dreamcast 2. It's slick and sleek.

 

[Venom Dream]

My thoughts:

Xbox 360:
I really don't like the 360. See, nothing has really changed. The online service is the same, the controllers are wireless, and the graphics are so slightly better than the current Xbox that it's barely even noticable. So way pay $300 for a new system that just does the same thing?Seems like a scam to me.
And yes, it will have it's fair share of good games, but I just don't understand why the console is being rushed out to be released before the PS3 when it's not going to do much at launch anyways. There is no way at all Xbox 360 will beat the PS2 in sales at launch. Microsoft is just trying to create hype, when really almost anything that could be done on the current generations of consoles anyways. They've been trying to hype up their new system with graphics, and the truth is that the graphics just aren't that impressive. Xbox 360 does, on the plus side, have some nice looking games, inclueding the much anticipated (and much delayed) Perfect Dark Zero. The Xbox brand will survive no matter what, though, because Microsoft most definately does not have any financial problems.
In conclusion: Unless the 360 has a big hyped up monster of a game like Halo at launch, it will sell much less than the Xbox.

PS3:
I don't think there is any possiblity of the PS3 not selling well. The Xbox 360 had an MTV spot and still more people know there will be a PS3. It doesn't matter wiether it has quality games, graphics or features, it will still sell better than the Revolution and 360 combined. I think the PS3 will have a "Dreamcast Effect" on the Xbox 360. Many people will hold off buying the Xbox 360 because they know that the PS3 is just around the corner. You can also count on the usual great third-party support because of these garantied sales.
In conclusion: PS3 will stay exactly where they are, that is, in a healthy first place position.

Revolution:
Although we STILL don't know anything about the controller (which will be a big factor), except that it will be wireless, the Revolution is coming along nicely. Nintendo has finally got on the online bandwagon, with a free wi-fi based service out of the box. It's also already announced many big hitters already in development and likely to be launch/near to launch titles. Games mentioned to be in development at Nintendos E3 press conference inclued Metroid Prime 3, SSB3 and a 'special project' by Miyamoto. The system is backwards compatible, and all Nintendo games from all of the previous Nintendo consoles will be avalible for download online (they are currently having talks with other developers to have their games avalible too). I believe that Nintendo will move slightly up from they're position in the console race with the Revolution, passing Mircosoft but still staying impossibly far from reach of the Playstation brand. Although Nintendo is fixing many of the problems that they faced this generation, they have lost so much of they're fan base that it will take generations to get it back, and thats if they do everything right. But their handheld systems are still doing remarkably well, even with the release of Sonys PSP.
In conclusion: After a few ill advised moves and the absolutely terrible system that was the N64, Nintendo is once again on the right track.

So, my prediction for the next generation is that it will turn out almost the same as this one. In number of consoles sold, highest at the top (Inclueding handhelds):

DS (Nintendo)
-
PS3 (Sony)
-
-
PSP (Sony)
-
-
-
Revolution (Nintendo)
-
Xbox 360 (Microsoft)
-
-
PS2 (Sony)

Oh, and to Dreamcaster: If you would look at the upcoming release list for the DS, there are many more 3rd party games than 1st party.
In fact, the DS has twice as large an upcoming release list as the PSP. It just got off to a bad start. Thats why I haven't bought one yet.

 

[B0r3d*m Alien]

DC is talking about lack of third party support for the GC.

I highly doubt the power that PS3's Cell has. From the tech demos Sony displayed, it may very well have the processing power of a "Super Computer in a chip".

And don't discredit that Killzone tech demo. So it's "fake". And? It still shows the capability of PS3 to run so many things at once (explosions, dynamic lighting, particles (bits and pieces))...Who knows? Maybe we can expect graphics to look that good. That would be something if in game graphics looked like that.

But anyways, Sony exaggerated a bit..it's ok, every big company does it.

I'm still looking foward to the Sony titles on PS3 more than anything else.

BA out..

 

[Giygas]

when you hear people talk about the Revolution do they talk about an upcoming Capcom game? Upcoming Square-Enix game? Namco, Konami, Sega, or Atlus game? No, everyone is talking about the Revolution's new Nintendo games...

Lol, what do you want us to talk about?

DC, the reason everyone isn't talking about the "new Capcom game" or the "new Namco game" is because they WEREN'T ANNOUNCED. Revolution was just shown a week ago. The only games that were even announced were Smash Bros., Final Fantasy CC, and Metroid. The others (Mario, Zelda, etc.) are just confirmed because Nintendo said they wouldn't forget those franchises.

There's like 3-4 games announced for the system. So what do you want us to talk about, games that aren't announced?

 

[RaptorHawk]

Originally posted by B0r3d*m Alien

And don't discredit that Killzone tech demo. So it's "fake". And? It still shows the capability of PS3 to run so many things at once (explosions, dynamic lighting, particles (bits and pieces))...Who knows? Maybe we can expect graphics to look that good. That would be something if in game graphics looked like that.

-Unless the demo is a REAL demo, I would discredit it. Bungie's "demo" of Halo2 was a demo NOT run on the xbox, and what ended up happening? Bungie ended up scrapping the project and restarting because the real xbox couldnt handle it. So this Killzone demo may not show what the PS3 can do at all. It could just be what Sony is trying to accomplish with the game.

 

[Cashed]

Originally posted by Venom Dream
So, my prediction for the next generation is that it will turn out almost the same as this one. In number of consoles sold, highest at the top (Inclueding handhelds):

DS (Nintendo)
-
PS3 (Sony)
-
-
PSP (Sony)
-
-
-
Revolution (Nintendo)
-
Xbox 360 (Microsoft)
-
-
PS2 (Sony)

Oh, and to Dreamcaster: If you would look at the upcoming release list for the DS, there are many more 3rd party games than 1st party.
In fact, the DS has twice as large an upcoming release list as the PSP. It just got off to a bad start. Thats why I haven't bought one yet.

PSP is catching up to the DS, despite its high price. I really wouldn't be too surprised to see it pass it sometime soon.

While the PSP price is high and it's doing great, the PS3 price right now is close to $500. Is a console (that Sony says isn't even what they call a game console but instead a super-entertainment center) that costs $500 going to win the console war? Hell no. People may be willing to pay $250 for a handheld, but most people will likely see the cheaper Xbox 360 and Revolution at the store when PS3 comes out and purchase it instead.

 

[Cyrahk]

Answer this question, which I will as well when I can elaborate and have the time.

So my question is, should Nintendo wait for 4th quarter 2006, or would it be too late, 3rd quarter could also be an option.

 

[McFox]

Really, I think the Revolution should launch in June 2006. Beginning of summer, and just a few short weeks following the inevitable E3 euphora that will be surrounding Nintendo. I can't think of a better time, except holiday season, but if PS3's coming out anytime before June 2006, then yes, Q4 2006 would be too late.

And a console priced at 500$? Not a chance. They're going to have to bite down and take the money out of their own pockets. There's no way a console costing 500$ is going to sell well. Yes, a lot of gamers are 18-34, but a whole lot of other gamers are under 18, meaning, their parents buy games for them. No parent is going to spend 500$ on a console when they can grab the much cheaper other systems. Sony's going to have to get the price lower than that, or Microsoft or Nintendo could easily pass them.

 

[Venom Dream]

Originally posted by Cashed
PSP is catching up to the DS, despite its high price. I really wouldn't be too surprised to see it pass it sometime soon.

Actually, last time sales we're released about a week ago, the DS had sold just over 5 million units, and the PSP just under 3 million. Counting in that the DS doesn't even have a good lineup of games yet, I expect that gap to widen a bit once it does.

 

[Cashed]

PSP is close to 3 million after 2 months... DS is close to 5 million after 6 months. PSP is selling better.

 

[Revolutions]

And without the benefit of a Christmas release, I would add.

But seriously, guys, this is a very important argument right here.

 

[Mic_128]

How? We know barely anything of the Rev and PS2, and the Xbox360 is the only one that's released real info....

 

[Cashed]

Originally posted by mic_128
How? We know barely anything of the Rev and PS2, and the Xbox360 is the only one that's released real info....

I know a lot about the PS2.

Ohohoho.

 

[white peachy]

i think it's important to look at the big titles released on the Gamecube over the past year and a half (or so...). i think that this push towards games like this new zelda, metroid prime 1 & 2, etc... has brought a lot of fans back to nintendo. nintendo was originally criticized for being "kiddy" yet these titles have been really successful. i think diehard fans of nintendo are still going to love 1st party titles, and the affordable prices of nintendo products. Xbox360 is going to have a huge advantage by being released thanksgiving 2005, and all those frickin halo fans. i think PS3 will be the most amazing system overall, but the pricetag and waiting will cause a lot of people to buy other systems. plus, smash is on the revolution, thank god. i hope the rev is awesome, or at least ssbm3 is.

 

[Giygas]

Yeah, remember the PSX? Probably not. I don't even think the thing was released in the states but I remember it had an insane price tag over in Japan. It was a PS2 but it could also do all the other things you'd want in an entertainment device such as a carbon monoxide detector and being able to create life out of dust bunnies.

But it didn't have the grill on the PS3! It's hard to beat that...

 

[Hmoob Koob]

Has anyone ever thought that the games from the systems will contradict more of the system's fate, then the system itself...? Gee...go figure, it's been that way before, and IT'S going to be that way again, I don't really care which system is more powerful, blah blah, that's all jibberish, as "graphics" has not always been the strong point of a system, the system is made to play the games, the game's are the one's that will sell the system.

Am I wrong...why would the sales for the PSX shoot up dramatically and give Sony the edge over the other systems in 1997...hmm, Final Fantasy VII played a big hand in that department. How about the Halo series...one of the reasons why X-Box does solid, is because this game, is probably one of the most heavily played games on the system period...even after over a year of it's release, it was still being sold at a high priced, until Halo 2 came around.

Or for me, I would've never bought a GameCube...luckily they had SSBM on it, and I spent in my cash to get the system, so what is all of my story telling saying...yes, what I wrote earlier, the games will contradict which system will dominate. Equally all 3 of the systems are equally powerful, with sony being "technically" supposedly slightly more powerful then the two...this doesn't make any difference for the systems, my only concerns now are the games.

Sony already has my money flushing into them because they have always released a Tekken game with every system release, so with Namco consitantly making solid games for Sony, and Squaresoft with their ongoing Final Fantasy games...Sony already has my money put on their table...yes, these games make me want to get the system, had they come out from the Revolution or 360, I would turn tail and get those systems just for the game.

Again, it's too far fetched to decide which system is Top Tier, well, because they aren't out yet, predictions...yeah...maybe, but they won't be very good predictions at all. It's best to wait until all the 3 systems are out, then we can truly decide which games they have to offer to make us fork over our money the most.

 

[Crimson King]

Nintendo really was screwed from the Nintendo 64. With the Playstation and Dreamcast introducing cds for people that boasted better games and graphics and Nintendo sticking to carts it was no surprise they would fall behind in that gen. The most current gen of X-Box, PS2, and GCN saw them making another mistake, no online capablity. X-Box and PS2 had great online capabilities and great games to back. The next gen has XBox360 and PS3 showing games at E3. GCN already put themselves at a disadvantage. They want to rely on the stupid fanboys who will buy it just because it's Nintendo.

With the 64, the lacked carts but had the "4 ports." Which was supposed to override that. This gen they didn't have online play but let "innovation" play that over, and now XBox and PS2 have both a single player base and online. The next gen already has Nintendo behind by having LITTLE TO NO info. With no games at E3, the last E3 before the launch of the XBox360, they are putting themselves at a disadvantage.

The only impressive thing was the ability to download past games, but who's to say that's ALL games and not just a select number.

 

[Giygas]

Originally posted by Eric_The_Red
The only impressive thing was the ability to download past games, but who's to say that's ALL games and not just a select number.

Finally someone sees that Nintendo won't be making every single game available, at least not for a good while. Technically it's possible, of course it is. Technically it's possible to play any old Nintendo game on GameCube. That doesn't mean that all 2,000+ NES, SNES, and N64 games are going to be available on Revolution just 'cause Nintendo says they could. You know how much time that would take, especially for the later, more complex titles?

I expect we'll see titles in small droves like the classic NES series for the GBA. It would be much more profitable that way for Nintendo as well. People will buy games they wouldn't normally buy just because the games they want to buy aren't available for download yet.

 

[Mic_128]

Food for games

Hideo Kojima, creator of the Metal Gear Solid series, has spoken out in an online interview on the next generation consoles from Sony, Microsoft and Nintendo. Speaking to Boomtown.net, Kojima-san seemed particularly keen to talk about how diverse each of the three consoles are.

And despite his involvement in Metal Gear Solid 4, a game destined exclusively for the PlayStation 3, he had some cautionary words for Sony, warning that they may be expecting too much from those developing PS3 software. 'For PS3, Sony is aiming for a very high level,' argues Kojima. 'I’m not sure if everyone can live up to that high standard that Sony is expecting. So if everyone is expected to meet that high level, I am not sure that every creator, every publisher will be able to meet these high expectations.'

Xbox 360 is 'a little bit more down to earth, more realistic.' This, argues Kojima, means that 'people maybe can join easily to start creating on the 360.' Meanwhile, Nintendo's Revolution seems to have impressed him. 'There are still a lot of secrets [to come from Revolution] and I don’t know everything but from what I heard like you could connect your portables or you could play old games, I get the impression that the developers could create games on less budget or create titles that are not super high expensive in cost.'

Musing on this somewhat further, Kojima then embarked on a rather bizarre analogy about how consoles are a bit like dinners.

'Xbox 360 will still be a special dinner so you might go there two or three times a month on the weekend or something. Revolution is the kind of great dinner that you have everyday at your home. What I want to emphasize is that all three are dinners meaning that they have a salad, they have a soup and maybe have a dessert but they are a little differently, maybe other dinners have two salads or two appetizers or maybe extra coffee on top of that. The point is that they are all individualistic dinners. So if they are all dinners, like a steak dinner, the choice is up to the users and the game designers at the same time.'

Enjoying this train of thought and clearly not afraid of stretching his analogy to breaking point, Kojima continues, 'If the game creators and the users want to have a great steak for their anniversary, they go maybe to PS3. But if they want great dinner, great steak with their family, a little bit more casual during the weekends, they might select Xbox 360. Or why not have a great steak at your house everyday, they might choose Revolution. So my impression of the battle between the consoles is, it’s not about what kind of dinner it is. It’s more about how much the dinner will be. Will it be worth the cost of being served? Or where can I have this dinner - number of restaurants, is it near my house or do I have to take a cab or train or bus? I think the battle amongst the next-gen platforms lies in that area.'

 

[Mic_128]

And yet more info...The Japanese newspaper Asahi Shinbun's Friday edition featured an article with comments taken from the heads of the three console makers: Microsoft senior vice president and chief Xbox officer Robert J. Bach, Sony Computer Entertainment president Ken Kutaragi, and Nintendo president Satoru Iwata. All three contenders talked about the strategies behind their own consoles and tossed harsh words over the corporate walls toward each other.


Microsoft senior vice president and chief Xbox officer Robert J. Bach--

(NOTE: Bach's comments are translated from Japanese and not directly quoted from his English statement.)

Asahi Shinbun: What do you think of the competitors' machines? Will Sony continue to dominate the gaming market?


Robbie Bach: The other two companies' presentations [at E3] weren't surprising. Sony's [PS3's] capabilities are the same as ours. Nintendo is aiming for the niche market [with its Revolution]. The current-generation Xbox sold more than the PlayStation 2 in North America last Christmas. We will become the market leader with our next-generation console.

Sony's [PS3] will be able to use seven controllers simultaneously and connect with two high-definition TV sets. But it's hard to share a single screen with seven people, and it's also difficult to imagine a room with two high-definition TV sets. We don't know about the selling price yet, but to say the least, our cost of manufacturing [an Xbox 360] is less than Sony's [PS3].

AS: Why doesn't the Xbox 360 adopt a next-generation disc format?


RB: The next-generation disc standard hasn't been solidified yet. Sony is taking a risk. We can decide after the standard has been created.

AS: What has Microsoft learned from its previous game console release?


RB: We'll basically be starting again from square one in the Japanese market. Our current Xbox console didn't have enough software for Japanese consumers. This time, we're teaming up with powerful Japanese game makers, including Square Enix, the maker of Final Fantasy. As for Microsoft's overall game division, we plan to get out of red ink by June 2007.

Ken Kutaragi, Sony Computer Entertainment president--

AS: What do you think of the competitors' machines? Will Sony continue to dominate the gaming market?


Ken Kutaragi: Microsoft is trailing behind us, but they are not a threat. They are good at improving [on products], but we will be advancing to the next level with revolutionary technology. Beating us for a short moment is like accidentally winning a point from a Shihan (Karate master), and Microsoft is still not a black belt. Just like with their operating systems, they might come out with something good around the third generation of their release.

It isn't a bad thing to have a high price. When we released the original PlayStation at 39,800 yen ($368), Nintendo's Super Famicom was in the 10,000 yen range ($100 range). Still, everyone went for the PlayStation. This time, ours [the PS3] will be like a BMW that's equipped with a Ferrari engine. Nintendo's [Revolution] will be something like a new model of a family car. Some people might want it, but if it was me, I'd want to advance to the next level.

AS: Why is Sony's next-generation console adopting a next-generation disc format?


KK: The current DVD [format] had a slow growth during its first three years of release, but it dramatically penetrated [through the market] after the release of the PS2, and its software prices had gone down. By using Blue-ray in the PS3, we hope to boost the amount of available [Blu-ray] software and sales of high-definition TV sets. With enough product [in the market], the Blu-ray will be one step closer to becoming the standard [next-generation] format.

Satoru Iwata, Nintendo president--

AS: What do you think of the competitors' machines? Will Sony continue to dominate the gaming market?


Satoru Iwata: It's questionable what the "horsepower" of the two other companies' consoles will be used for, such as fast calculations and high-definition resolution. Creating game software in high definition will require everything from the [graphic's] models to the background to be redone, and it will bloat up development costs. And yet, it has no use for people that aren't playing with a high-definition TV set. Game consoles are not an essential product in life, so we want to make ours as compact, thin, and as inexpensive as we can so that it won't be viewed with hostility by family members.

AS: What has Nintendo learned from its previous game machine release?


SI: We launched the Nintendo DS last year, and the release of our Nintendogs, which came out this April, is being called the second launch [of the DS, since Nintendogs massively boosted sales of the handheld in Japan]. We want to push the DS's sales with the release of game software during the first year. There's a big gap between people that enjoy games that take time and playing skills, and people that don't. I'm feeling a real sense of danger about the decline in the Japanese gaming population. Patting a dog and telling it to stay [in Nintendogs] is something that anyone can enjoy. We're aiming to increase the population of game players with these new kinds of games.

AS: Sony's PS3 is adopting the Blu-ray next-generation disc format. What about the Revolution?


SI: It will be more beneficial to the consumer if we took the money for [adopting the use of] a next-generation disc format and used it somewhere else where we can present more new fun. Nintendo is a company that likes to see smiles on the faces of people that love entertainment. We're not about selling new kinds of TVs or taking control of the living room.



I still say it's too early to debate the consoles....

 

[Cyrahk]

That PS3 better be **** good, because they're cockiness is getting really annoying.

 

[Cashed]

Originally posted by Cyrahk
That PS3 better be **** good, because they're cockiness is getting really annoying.

I agree. Whenever I read a comment from a Sony Exec. I nearly gag.

 

[Venom Dream]

Worldwide: Total sales
DS - 6,424,796,191
PSP: 3,877,833,004
Sales Chart as of 5/12/05

Nintendo's lead has increased since the last sales numbers I posted (which were from about three weeks ago).
You were saying, Cashed?

Also, Miyamoto had an interview with CNN reciently about the next generation consoles. Here
He just says the same old thing, though. Not really worth checking out.

 

[Giygas]

DS has been out since November what, 21st?

That's a little over 7 months. The PSP has been out since March... 23rd? That's a little over 2 months. Yet the PSP has more than 1/2 of the DS's numbers, plus the DS had the benefit of a holiday launch. Hmm...

 

[Crimson King]

Exact point I was going to back up. Right now, I regret buying a DS so soon. I should have waited for the PSP launch cause now there are no games that really interest me out and the two I own, I lost interest with completely. PSP has quite a few games OUT that look great. With the exception of NintenDOgs, I didn't see too much vastly exciting for the DS. Thanks again Nintendo, I feel disappointed. Why not a DS only Zelda game? I kept assuring myself how great the DS will be because of the name sake and backwards compatiblity. Then I realized I would like games for the system I bought and can't get anywhere's else.

As for the next generation, Revolution needs to have GOOD games on the actual revolution. I hate E3 because typically the games are so far away. Sigh.

 

[Cashed]

Giygas pretty much hit on the head what I was saying. The PSP sales are amazing for it being out two months.

 

[Cyrahk]

Originally posted by Cashed
Giygas pretty much hit on the head what I was saying. The PSP sales are amazing for it being out two months.

Ah, but a recent article on GameSpot has basically said, that while it had a good start, it's slowed down now.

And then I'm sure if you compare the two systems, and I mean by comparing sales between the months they've been out, (The first months the PSP has been out, compared to the same amount of months the DS was out, it'll show that DS was better).

 

[thepixlyzdpitbull]

Originally posted by Giygas
DS has been out since November what, 21st?

That's a little over 7 months. The PSP has been out since March... 23rd? That's a little over 2 months. Yet the PSP has more than 1/2 of the DS's numbers, plus the DS had the benefit of a holiday launch. Hmm...

Just want to point out that the PSP was released in Japan in December. Doesn't really matter since the DS has been out longer, but the gap is a bit smaller than you make it seem.

 

[demoncaterpie]

Personally, I'm not interested in the DS or the PSP right now. Neither of them have good games out that look incredibly interesting. I think right now it's a race between Nintendo and Sony to get the first Killer App. Who ever can do that first will have a good hold on the hand-held market.