When the Sony Playstation launched in 1994/5 it had significant competitive advantages that enabled it to beat off the competition from Sega and Nintendo to become the dominant console gaming brand. Sony marketing concentrated on the fashion and trendiness aspects and targeted at the affluent 20ish male demographic. By the standards of anything that had gone before it was a massive success, but we know now that they were actually under-performing.
It has taken Nintendo with the Wii and the DS to show us just how limited Sony’s ambitions were. Nintendo have revolutionised the market by going after the broadest possible demographic. All ages, all incomes and. most importantly, both sexes. The female audience was all but ignored by Sony and, in this alone, they were throwing away half their potential customers. Innovations like Eyetoy and Singstar that could have opened up the market for Sony were pretty much under exploited and it has taken Nintendo to show the power and marketing potential of a gesture interface. Despite Sony having the technology several years earlier.
So now Sony are in a difficult position. Their current home console offering, the Playstation PS3 has no significant competetive advantage yet demands a premium retail price. It is mainly the cult of the Playstation and the attendant fanboys that sustain Sony in the market. But this is just a niche, a fairly broad niche, but still a niche. Microsoft, as the underdog, were far quicker than Sony to see what Nintendo had done and have massaged their offering in several ways to try and follow. However this market is ruled over by technological limitations and it takes two years to react in a significant manner.
The real test will come with the next generation of consoles. The Playstation 4 and the Xbox 3. These will need to appeal to the widest possible demographic whilst offering a significant processing power hike and being economic to manufacture. Interesting times.
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Sony is definitely a company who has lost its way, much like Nintendo did in 1995. I would argue the PS2, with over 100 million sold, had mass appeal and crossed demographics better than Xbox and GameCube. Had Sony followed the PS2 template ($299 lower-spec machine, backward CPU compatibility, 2005 launch) this would likely be a different ball game. Historically, the most powerful system on the market has never won the war, and Sony should know that after two generations of domination.
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While Nintendo certainly has shown that targeting the casual gamer is a great business opportunity, it has done little in the current generation that appeals to more experienced gamers. I’ve been playing video games for years, but would drop out of the market entirely if Wii was the only console available to me. Let’s hope that there will always be consoles and games that are targeted to the most sophisticated and experienced end of the market.
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Well, as soon as GTAIV is out HD console sales are going to skyrocket.
Oh…
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oldscool , I think that Sony were probably in a tough position with their new format Bluray and the upcoming release at the time. By using the PS3 to cover both company issues I think that they have failed to provide sufficient value to their customers. Things are improving though.
I think that you’re being a little over pessimistic here Bruce. It is unfair to say that Sony were unperforming in capturing a wider audience considering the wide success of the Playstation brand. Although Sony have never prioritized casual gamers as being their dominate market focus they have provided and promoted great games for a variety of audiences, including games which have a greater, including women.
I prefer Sony’s approach to casual gaming. Their approach is much more diverse and targets particular segments of the casual market to great effect. Unfortunately as much as Phil Harrison promoted these games (Eye Toy, Singstar and Buzz!) in Europe and Australia, Sony America never really caught on (supposively he urged more action from Sony America and they didn’t listen). I agree, this is a missed opportunity, especially considering how those games are always in the top 10 sales charts down here.
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“I’ve been playing video games for years, but would drop out of the market entirely if Wii was the only console available to me.”
Funny that. The wii is the only reason I got BACK into video games. Without it, I never would have bothered.
My guess is, the Wii is bringing more people into and back to gaming, than it’s pushing away. I think only the wannabe hardcore are nervous about the Wii.
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Why must the “real test” come with the next batch of hardware? What will make that set of consoles different than today’s?
Not a lot has been said in regards to what people are expecting from the next cycle of hardware. In terms of processing power (which doubles for most as purely graphical capability) – what can’t developers accomplish in this generation?
This round has been the test. Markets have been disrupted, standard demographics thrown into question – and there is still much to accomplish. The fact that patents from Sony and Microsoft both point toward motion controlled devices (and more recently, touch sensitive ones), shows that their next iteration will look very much like the present-day Wii, albeit with higher quality visuals.
Unless a company like Microsoft again prematurely forces the market into the 8th generation of hardware (due to poor performance), I see little reason to even consider a next round at the moment.
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“Funny that. The wii is the only reason I got BACK into video games. Without it, I never would have bothered.
My guess is, the Wii is bringing more people into and back to gaming, than it’s pushing away. I think only the wannabe hardcore are nervous about the Wii.”
funny that. becouse i also have been playing games since i was like 5 years old, now i am 19, and if the wii and its cheap price(couse its cheap processor and cheap video card) wins, and becomes the only console in the market(a thing that will never happen) then its goodbye to games that need a lot of power and are my favorites, like Final Fantasy, Metal Gears, Gran Turismo, etc, they will end also, and so my gaming tendencys. Let’s hope that those little childrens stop buying wiis becouse its “innovative” control that will get you bored and make you sell it when you realize that after mario galaxy and smash brothers theres is nothing more.
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I am pretty sure somewhere someone wrote “’did Microsoft screw up the video game market� The answer is yes because they rushed out 360 to make the same profit as failed windows vista. If it weren’t for playstation 3 I probably wouldn’t be playing video games this generation. Playstation 3 is truly the next step in this generation because of blue ray and the cell processor. Now the reason why Microsoft screwed everything up is because they have more units out there and developers can’t ignore that money they are going to make. What brings multiplatform games down is the fact that developers can’t use the full potential of blue ray or the cell processor. Developers instead have to create games on dvd’s and use microsofts hardware which processing power is no where near ps3’s. With the release of metal gear solid 4 you can clearly see what a true next generation video game looks like. A true next gen game uses the full potential of blue ray and the characters models in metal gear 4 look more detailed than any other game out there.
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Every company is this business has its two cycle reign.
Thank god sony’s reign is over.
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I can’t believe a “professional” would use words such as “fanboys”. This is the second article I’ve read now by Bruce in which you’ve claimed that Sony is falling apart. These things happen, what Sony didn’t handle in the beginning of the generation they’re taking care of now and providing much more than before.
Advertising has not been Sony’s strong part period this year. Look at MGS4. I didn’t see an advertisement for that pretty much until it came out. Now I see 1 advertisement for the Playstation 3 and it hardly ever plays. To be able to confidently say that they aren’t targeting the broadest demographic would have to be complete bull shit. I don’t know if you’ve noticed but the games I see on the advertisements are just games with no correlation to each other, meaning – the advertising pretty much doesn’t exist period.
So in order to advertise to the broadest demographic, they would first have to up the scale on their own advertising period.
PS -> You’re a 360 fanboy.
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The author is saying Sony screwed up since day one; they didn’t think outside of the box and ended up turning gaming into smaller niche than it should of been. The author is envisioning what could of happened – but he’s wrong, Sony didn’t screw up anything – they went with what was already screwed up. Sega screwed everything up and Akira’s lack of vision that Famicom Japan did have.
By inciting supplimental competition Sega co-opted Nintendo and forced a “Me Too” situation – which lead to moving up the niches and more toward mainstream video gamers. In that logic the mainstream will always seem like the widest demographic when reality has proven it is the thinest point.
Before Sega Nintendo was aggresively pushing for appeal from children then young adults with the arcade movement, their next step was supposed to be adults with the incorporation of business (work) elements in the NES, this was supposed to be linked through out the United States (Japan & Europe**) but Akira was too busy seeing the competition with Sega and only woke up to it in 93 or 94 was it? When he got that faithful survey showing only 6 – 16 year old play their SNES other’s have no interest in it.
** – Being sued by Atari slowed this down.
Should Sega never had either entered the gaming market as a console developer OR not co-opted Nintendo – the niche of gaming would probably make the group that don’t play games seem niche. We probably would see games selling 5 million copies at the least.
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“A true next gen game uses the full potential of blue ray and the characters models in metal gear 4 look more detailed than any other game out there.”
so you’ve never seen crysis?
personally i think all 360/ps3 fanboys are too poor/computer illiterate to simply just be pc gamers
they want the best technology, then whine about how expensive pc gaming is and how their 360/ps3 is so superior to the wii technology, despite not being able to output in TRUE HD
mgs4 is the best game to define next gen? then this ‘next gen’ is pretty fake considering very few games output in native HD
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I would have to agree with xhairs on this one. Sony can learn a thing or ten when it comes to marketing. Every 15 seconds there is some add playing for pet my virtual dog for the DS, or look another FPS for the 360.
What are we here for? The games. Each system has something that the other system lacks. Now I’m no fanboy since I have all 3 “next gen” consoles, (and has had every lame ass system since sega master system. Yes including a 3DO that is a great paper weight) but if you look at the big picture, the Ps3 while off to a snail pace start can be upgraded by firmware. So little things can be corrected and make a big deal in the long run. Can my hard drive less Wii do that? Am I really gonna give in to the rumor of a 60gb Blu-ray 360 by years end?
Long story short…its us gamers that are killing video games.
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This article is terrible. First of all just because Nintendo is selling alot of Wiis doesnt mean its winning.
The one problem with the Wii is that it hardly has any good games. The hardcore gamer that buys all the games plays on PS3 and 360. There may be 20 million Wiis sold but one must take into consideration how people that have Wii hardly ever play it and dont own more than a 2 or 3 games. And all the profit is made from games not consoles. Where is 360 owners probably own more like 5 to 15 games. PS3 is behind the eightball somewhat but that is going to change. You can already see MS getting desperate with MGS coming out. Sony’s Triple A titles are around the corner.
The DS does well cause it is cheap and you have to be 5 to 10 years old to think it has good graphics. Makes sense cause that is who mainly playing it. Perfect low cost for parents.
My dearest Bruce did you already forget how the PS2 owned the video gaming world and is still selling to this day?
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@Kim Dong Hwan:
Funny you say that those games need more power. Metal Gear and Final Fantasy are NES games, and Grand Turismo is a PS1 game. Maybe you forgot that, just like all those third parties who are doing games for the Wii.
I’m 21, play since 3 years old (Good old Atari), and don’t care about HD consoles. My Wii and my PC can give me broader and better experiences.
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Der much?
Sony picked up the Ball and ran with it – it was fumbled long before. They scored two touch downs – but they never saw who was on the other team.
Sony is not competing with Nintendo, Sega, SNK, Atari, Microsoft, Electronic Arts or Sony* – they are competing with where they are all losing money to. 😉
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1. “funny that. becouse i also have been playing games since i was like 5 years old, now i am 19, and if the wii and its cheap price(couse its cheap processor and cheap video card) wins, and becomes the only console in the market(a thing that will never happen) then its goodbye to games that need a lot of power and are my favorites, like Final Fantasy, Metal Gears, Gran Turismo, etc, they will end also, and so my gaming tendencys.”
2. “I think only the wannabe hardcore are nervous about the Wii.â€
I have to agree with the second quote. People like the ones in quote 1 fear the distruption the Wii is bringing to gaming and how the change will effect their niche market. I really can’t argue with blind hate like that.
“Let’s hope that those little childrens stop buying wiis becouse its “innovative†control that will get you bored and make you sell it when you realize that after mario galaxy and smash brothers theres is nothing more.”
That is probably one of THE most moronic statements I have ever heard. There are so many ingrained hardcore Wii stereotypes, bias, ignorance, and close-mindedness in that one sentence it is astounding.
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The niche that develop the game industry to what it is today is what keeps the hardcore PS3/360 going. The gamers who grew up with the NES in the 80s are NOT looking to play no Singstar or Cooking Mama today. We’re out for intensity and quality. We want the best that gaming technology can give us now. We want to be dazzled by superior graphics, effects, storyline, and gameplay.
The fact that so many grandmas, mothers, and girlfriends are suddenly playing games now due to the Wii doesn’t mean that we, the experienced gamers want to play the games they do. Yes i’ll admit that I bought into the Wii fad myself, only to realize how dull its become in compared to high quality games like GeOW, Bioshock, GTA4, MGS4..etc. Granted there are a few gems like Zelda TP, Galaxy, SSBB, No More Heroes, and MP3, but they are far overshawdowed by loads of crap games that manages to slip by Nintendo’s no-longer-functioning-seal of approval. If this is what the future of gaming is, its going to be a dull one.
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sony’s sold over 200 million ps1s and ps2s, and somehow they “ignored” potential gamers out there? everybody and their brother (and sisters) for that matter, has a ps2. has nintendo and microsoft combined sold more than 200 million n64s, xbox’s, wii’s, DS’s/lites, and 360s? maybe slightly, but once you add in psp sales and ps3 sales, sony’s still king.
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Maybe they were ignored because they are unlikely to buy a system and/or games. Therefore, it would be stupid to waste money trying to get them to buy. The Wii sucks. I bought one, played it for a week, and haven’t since. All Nintendo did was play to the stupidity of the market. The Wii shouldn’t be selling, and I think its time will be over shortly. What killer title is there left to waiting for now? The new generation it still going to end with the battle between Sony and Microsoft. The most powerful system never wins? NES maybe?
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Snake
“What brings multiplatform games down is the fact that developers can’t use the full potential of blue ray or the cell processor.”
What is the full potential of bluray?….the only potential of bluray is space. And lets be honest, switching out a dvd is a whole lot easier and faster than the download that had to take place for Metal Gear Solid. Also, do your research on the cell processor…it has serious bottleneck issues. With that said, explain Lair…and other console exclusives that having nothing to do with Microsoft.
Sony did not screw up the market……it helped make the next step in video game evolution….so that the world would receive the Wii. Remember the power glove? The world was not ready…so it did not work. It took a process to get video games to where they are now…and Nintendo should be thankful for the competition….all the companies should be.
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“The niche that develop the game industry to what it is today is what keeps the hardcore PS3/360 going. The gamers who grew up with the NES in the 80s are NOT looking to play no Singstar or Cooking Mama today. We’re out for intensity and quality. We want the best that gaming technology can give us now. We want to be dazzled by superior graphics, effects, storyline, and gameplay.
The fact that so many grandmas, mothers, and girlfriends are suddenly playing games now due to the Wii doesn’t mean that we, the experienced gamers want to play the games they do.”
And I’m sure the people who grew up with computer in the 70’s and 80’s were not looking to play these “simplistic and mainstream” games of the NES. If you grew up on the NES, an “elite” gamer label that you pride yourself with, you were probably considered a casual gamer by the “elite” computer and Atari gamers. The situation is the same here. The casual gamers you look down upon today could have been yourself twenty years ago. As hardcore gamers of today, we don’t have any more rule over gaming than the hardcore gamers of last generations did. Everyone has to start somewhere.
“sony’s sold over 200 million ps1s and ps2s, and somehow they “ignored†potential gamers out there?”
Yes. 200 million may seem incredibly large, but it still pales in comparison to the potentional gaming market the Wii has unlocked. Everyone.
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I love Sony’s Playstation! I only owned a Nintendo once and that was a Gamecube which i purchased years after my PS2(got it a little before realese date). I hated my Gamecube and still do. It was the worst ever system i bought. Mario was fun, but not for long. I like PC gaming, but my GPU sucks @ 128mb. I need to get a whole new computer. I am not a fan of Microsoft’s Xbox. I have seen it and played it, but i think PSN will be better with the coming updates. Also, Sony has always done well with each generation they have participated in. I will always stick with the playstation brand because it has so far always been the right choice for me. PS i have to admit i am a PS fanboy.
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“Maybe they were ignored because they are unlikely to buy a system and/or games. Therefore, it would be stupid to waste money trying to get them to buy.”
Actually, reaching out to non and potential customers can result in large profits from uncontested marketspace, so the investment is greatly worth it. It’s called “blue ocean strategy”, in case you haven’t heard the phrase connected to the Wii yet.
“The Wii sucks. I bought one, played it for a week, and haven’t since.”
I’m sure one week with a minimum library of games is adequate time to judge a consoles entire lifespan.
“All Nintendo did was play to the stupidity of the market.”
If by “stupidity”, you mean the tendency for people to buy games that appeal to them, then I suppose you’re right.
“The Wii shouldn’t be selling, and I think its time will be over shortly.”
I have no idea how you reached that conclusion. The Wii is cheap, comes loaded with features and a free game, has games with mass appeal to large audiences….How could it not sell? And with big hits like Mario Kart and Wii Fit, and more great Nintendo and third party efforts to come in the future, what makes you think the Wii’s lifespan if over? Your conclusion is baffling.
“What killer title is there left to waiting for now?”
Nintendo still has plenty of its standard IPs to roll out, plus new ones, and third party game quality is on the rise, so I would say there is a lot to look forward to. But of course, you, being a biased anti-Nintendo fanboy, wouldn’t see a great game past an incredibly hyped Mario, Smash Bros, or Zelda game, and maybe not even then.
“The new generation it still going to end with the battle between Sony and Microsoft.”
The Wii isn’t entirely competing with the PS3 and 360 in the first place, so yes, the battle for the shrinking niche extreme hardcore market will rage on with Sony and Microsoft.
“The most powerful system never wins? NES maybe?”
The NES was competing with the Sega Master System, which happens to the be the more powerful of the two.
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Ok Daniel Prime, what oldschool was trying to say is not that the PS didn’t capture alot of audiences, but it didn’t do a good job as to the Nintendo Wii. The first PS didn’t really go to capture the female audiences, but mostly males because we are the dominant consumers of games…and we like hardcore gameplay…I think that alot of people close there eyes to the mistakes of the PS (Sony) because they are too much of a fan to this console…I still have my PS 2 and to me it’s the second best thing to my Xbox 360….Microsoft has taken a big leap from its predecessor and really came through…..yes it hasn’t won over the hearts of all gamers, but it is doing a hell of a lot better than Sony…I still can’t understand how you’ll say you like Sony’s approach to gaming…..Yes it appealed to alot of gamers when the PS w was out, but now, it’s like a whole different ball game….Sony crashed with that BLU-RAY, if you take your time and read you’ll realize that the GPU and the Blu-ray is keeping Sony back tremendously….they made a strong CPU (perfect) and a GPU to assist the CPU….but the GPU wasn’t strong enough to support the CPU also the frame rates for games would not be as good as they wanted it to be, they were out of time so they asked NVidia and they gave them the 7800GTX GPU and it still wasn’t enough for the CPU…..so they miscalculated and are paying for that mistake right now…It takes too long to make games for the PS 3….until Sony gets up on there feet (hopefully, but really doubting) I’ll just be playing my games on the 360…..best console to have right now…
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Well what really sunk PS3 for me was that god awful game they had as a launch title. MotorStorm or what was it? First of all whats new in a racing game? Hey I have been playing racing games since days of Test Drive 3, so i know what I’m talking about. Second and most important, all that processing power and fancy system architecture, and what do I get? Ultra realistic mud splatter?!? For God’s sake whose bright idea was that.
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It’s incredible to see all of these broad assertions, posing as logic:
i.e. “The DS does well cause it is cheap and you have to be 5 to 10 years old to think it has good graphics”
I can see why this is such a confusing audience for marketers and manufactures to get a grip on these days. Unless you’ve been immersed in the medium (and all its eccentricities), one would have hardly any idea how to tackle it.
Nintendo knew – and here is where the flaws of other companies who came into the picture later start to show. As surprised as everyone was to see the Wii succeed, it was a very well planned execution that was meant to bolster games as a whole; to see them succeed for some time to come. Games aren’t simply a division for Nintendo, it’s their sole source of revenue.
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“First of all just because Nintendo is selling alot of Wiis doesnt mean its winning.”
I dont’ know how you figure that. Sales is really the only way to track the progress of a console versus the others.
“The one problem with the Wii is that it hardly has any good games.”
I disagree with that. I find the Wii has plenty of good games. If the Wii’s library is not appealing to you, then that’s a different matter.
“The hardcore gamer that buys all the games plays on PS3 and 360.”
Thank you for falling victim to stereotypes. I happen to own 6 Wii games and 13+ Virtual Console games and I know a few people who own even more games than I do. Hardcore gamers are ever-present on the Wii; just look at the game sales for Resident Evil 4 and VC sales.
“There may be 20 million Wiis sold but one must take into consideration how people that have Wii hardly ever play it and dont own more than a 2 or 3 games.”
That consideration should also be taken towards the PS3 and 360 as well.
“And all the profit is made from games not consoles.”
Except Nintendo, who makes profit on consoles as well as games.
“Where is 360 owners probably own more like 5 to 15 games.”
It was also released one year earlier than the other consoles.
“The DS does well cause it is cheap and you have to be 5 to 10 years old to think it has good graphics. Makes sense cause that is who mainly playing it. Perfect low cost for parents.”
Thank you for falling victim to stereotypes and generalizations yet again. The DS has a large amount of hardcore games, I happen to own 10+ games for the thing, but you probably don’t care enough to persue the subject and resort to making blind assumptions based off popular stereotypes. Other notes: the DS doesn’t need great graphics to excell, and handhelds have always appealed to children, so I don’t know why that should come as a suprise or be something to hold against the DS.
“My dearest Bruce did you already forget how the PS2 owned the video gaming world and is still selling to this day?”
The point of the article wasn’t whether it owned the video game world, that much is evident, but did it expand outside the gaming world to reach other audiences? The author was only pointing out that Sony failed to unlock the demographics that the Wii has now expanded on.
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@ PENGUINKK
@Razien
I have the chance to own a Sony PS3 and Xbox360….I really do not feel threaten by the Nintendo Wii I am the biggest fan of Nintendo and I have no desire to rush and hunt down a Nintendo Wii…
If I buy a Wii it would be for my 4 year old daughter..and maybe the wife but she prefers to play GOW(Xbox360)
PC gaming I have never been into it.. say for Prince of Persia I use my PC for PC stuff such as Downloading HD movies to my PC and then transferring it to my PS3 HDD..I also use my PC for paying bills, blogging and educating the young one….
When I think gaming I really do not think PC…I rather have a console…..and I rather have MGS4 versus Crysis any day of the year? Does Crysis have a plot? or any depth? Crysis a soup up COD4…..
And last but not least no offense how cares about casual gamers anyways they are dumbing down my hobby……and they are making developers make some of the most hideous gaming decisions in gaming just for a quick buck…..
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“And last but not least no offense how cares about casual gamers anyways they are dumbing down my hobby……”
They will shape the future of gaming. This is their “starting console”, just like the NES was for many gamers (refer back to my Wii-NES analogy a few posts ago). They may grow up and become more “hardcore” and join the more advanced gaming audience, affecting sales and company decisions.
“and they are making developers make some of the most hideous gaming decisions in gaming just for a quick buck…..”
Not much more than any of generation, if you think about it.
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I dont think sony has underachived, so sony ps3 came out last of all the next gen soldes consolesw wow big woop, but the sony always had 0.2% or lower fail rate, and also history will does repeat it self look at ps2 had no game at beginning and at the end loads of games and selling extrmely well the same will happen for the ps3, also the ps3 still has a lot more capabilaty then the 360 does, so all in all they will come out on top once again. also the reasent relase of mgs 4 just look at it so beatiful and ps3 excusive, when we got more beatiful games like that then sony will shine
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“if the wii and its cheap price(couse its cheap processor and cheap video card) wins, and becomes the only console in the market(a thing that will never happen) then its goodbye to games that need a lot of power and are my favorites, like Final Fantasy, Metal Gears, Gran Turismo, etc, they will end also,”
This may be the dumbest thing I’ve read all day.
Every game you list has existed on multiple generations of consoles, in some cases back to the 8 bit era. There is no reason any of the franchises would die, or even any reason why they couldn’t potentially improve on hardware like the Wii. Metal Gear was great on the NES. It was great on the PS1 and PS2 and xbox and gamecube. It could be just as great on the Wii. I’m sorry, but processing power does not equal a great game. Processing power is not even required to make a good game. You need a great team with great ideas and some some funding. If you have those, you can have a great game on virtually any console. To say otherwise is fanboy fearmongering.
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“And I’m sure the people who grew up with computer in the 70’s and 80’s were not looking to play these “simplistic and mainstream†games of the NES. If you grew up on the NES, an “elite†gamer label that you pride yourself with, you were probably considered a casual gamer by the “elite†computer and Atari gamers. The situation is the same here.”
Actually, there’s quite a difference there. “Elite” gamers in the 80s did have their Amigas and STs, and revel in it’s higher capabilities and complexities of certain games. But Nintendo revitalized console gaming to the world by storm and much of the Nintendo games then would probably not fall into the casual stuff that dominates the current gen of today. While other “elite” gamers would stick to their home roots of computer gaming/simulators/RPGs, the “core” gamers would arise from the ashes of the NES and SMS of the 80s to swing into full effect towards the 16-bit era. These guys are the ones who are playing the PS3 and 360 now.
The Wii gamers of this gen is not the same as back then, as the general demographics of Wii gamers are no longer the young males but everyone else who normally dont even play video games. Will these “mothers, grandmothers, girlfriends” be the future of the gaming industry? Will grandmothers of the future challenge you to a game of Halo 10? Or join you in stealing a car in GTA7? Who knows, it’ll be a different world then.
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Jeez, another anti-Sony piece from a pro-Microsoft guy. Big suprise. Have you given any thought to what MS has and is doing to the games market? Have you taken into consideration the utter greed they’ve brought to the market, with their paying off anybody who will cash their checks? They’ve bought their way into the console market and with that, have possible ruined it for good. Consider that before doing another “Sony=wrong” piece that are so common these days. In fact, they’re so overdone, they’re beyond being cool anymore -they’re just old and incorrect.
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First of all, I have to disagree on three points:
1. The Nintendo Wii has not revolutionized gaming. Motion sensing controllers have been out for nearly two decades, starting with ones on the original Nintendo. The Wii has IMPROVED motion sensing controls, but I would hardly call that revolutionary.
2. Nintendo is not trying to get all the gamers. Why? Because I consider myself a “hardcore” gamer. I owned a Wii for a fews months and sold it because there aren’t enough good games coming out. All the games out now seem to be more young adult or casual gamer oriented. The system also lacks the processing power I would like, and also lacks a strong online support from various companies.
3. Sony is not leaving out half the market by not focusing on female gamers. While the female gaming population is increasing, it doesn’t and probably never will make up half the market. I hope this changes, but it likely will not. If Sony does want to focus more on casual gamers, they will need to make more “casual games”. The thing is, casual gamers don’t spend $500+ on a console. So Sony not focusing on casual gamers makes perfect sense.
Why do so many people consider the Wii revolutionary? “Wow! I get to make myself look like a jackass in front of my friends/family! I’ve never done THAT before!” Come on, really. I believe the real reason people think that the Wii is “revolutionary” is because of casual gamers going out and buying a system. This is good, but hardly revolutionary.
Quit screwing the hardcore gamers like myself by making only casual games or mediocre ports of titles from the truly next-generation systems. The Wii is a casual (read: “dumbed-down” or “simplified” or “noob”) gaming system and is a waste of money for the most part (for the hardcore gamers). It collected dust on my shelf while my other systems blew me away with amazing graphics and online features.
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So, Nintendo is selling consoles to people that don’t buy games and that’s the meaning of “revolutionised”(BTW check your spelling)? Rock Band has no board appeal, right?
Bruce Everiss, give me the numbers on the game that does not come with a Wii controller. What happen to Boom Block and Zelda? Two 10/10 games that sold nothing. The name of the game is longevity. Party game only last as long as the party.
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Guess all the people in Japan who already bought the DS must be on average 7 years old.
And history has shown us that more “advanced” handheld always loses.
And the Wii is hardcore Nights proves it granted due to Sega being a shell of it’s former self it didn’t do too hot.
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“the Playstation PS3 has no significant competetive advantage” That has to be one of the dumbest things i have heard in quite some time thanks for the laugh.
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Amazing…
I own all 3 consoles. I play the wii when I want to play mindless(based on the 6 total titles i have on wii) games for the gimicky controller. I play the 360 for the great downloadable content and the ps3 for the bluray player and mgs4. The wii in no way touches the depth of gameplay that exists on the 360 or ps3, or the graphics that let you immerse yourself into the games. Sure, if you never saw or played games on the 360 or ps3, the wii would be neat. But, once you have, the wii is hard to play and not wish that the game could be so much better looking… Bottom line, the reason the wii is a success is linked to the fact that most people buying it don’t know the difference and don’t care either way about the graphics(see bluray players sales figures), and the gimmick remote. If the same remote was available on all 3 systems, the wii would still be outselling the 360 and ps3 because of price alone.
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P A T H E T I C
How many consoles where sold by anyone before Sony came to town??? How many did Sony sold??? If you follow the simple logic, there is only one conclusion: PS indeed tapped into a broader market. Now Wii may be doing that again, video games for everyone: kids, the elders, 30ish, babies, toddlers, etc, etc, etc… and they will cash in… good for them… BUT, at the end of the road, I just don’t care… cause they don’t have Gran Turismo, MGS, Final Fantasy, Halo, Bioshock, etc, etc, etc…
So, Toyota may be the largest car company that appeals to the broadest market in the world. And you own one. Good. I will still have more fun in a Ferrari that you in your Toyota. Regardless of which company taps what. As long as business is good for Ferrari so they can keep bringing out cool super cars Toyota can become 1000000 times more wealthy. I don’t care. Give me my Ferrari and let me drive like the devil!!!
P.S. The last parragraph was just an example. I do not own a Ferrari unfortunately. Probably never will. But the simily still stands.
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With the PS1, Sony should of put its foot down and put a stop to the release of poor games. It’s easy to point the finger at Sony though as the PS1 was far more popular than the Sega Saturn and Nintendo 64. But take any console and it has poor quality games so Sony, Microsoft and Nintendo are all to blame as it allows poor quality games to be released on their consoles. As for PS4, I can’t see PS3 lasting as long as PS1 and PS2, so PS4 will be released early. As for the Wii, it doesn’t cater for everyone. It’s never going to have any hardcore racing, FPS games is it? The Wii is limited. The controller sold the Wii, not the games. Sony and Microsoft will catch up though, bringing out their own Wii style controller, or maybe something better.
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I think all 3 console makers have their own differences, lets start with the Nintendo Wii, Wii targets the casual gamers like kids and those that are new to gaming who are facinated by the Wii-Mote bcus of its unique controls and also those people who played Mario, Donkey kong Etc. since they were kids, this people are loyal to this kind of fun games.
Next lets look at Playstation 3, its very true what some of you are saying “The most powerful console does not win the console war”. There are some tittles that really outstanding like “Metal Gear Solid 4”, “Resistance” Etc. with the success of PS1, PS2 I was hoping they do the same with Playstation 3 but something went wrong, they are not producing as much good games like they used to like PS1 & PS2, Bcus I believe its the games that sells the console. Before, they have games for all categories aside from the usual first person shooters, action, survival horror,sports,racing games they also have fishing,RPG and unique games like Devil Dice Etc. remember they have so many unforgettable RPG’s on PS1 & PS2? like FFVII,Azura Dreams,Guardian Crusade on the PS1 & Steamboat Chronicles,Wild Arms 5, Persona 3 FES on the PS2 to name a few, but now they are not producing games like they used to, I hope they fix this problems, Cause I really love the Playstation brand, most of the games I played is with this brand.
And last The Xbox 360, Their games falls on the more mature side of gaming and also for the hardcore gamers, if u are really into First person shooters, Sports,World war II combat, racing, action,RPG Etc. then this is the console for you. The most surprising thing is a lot more J-RPG tittles are coming to this console than the Playstation 3. You see this 3 consoles have their Pros & Cons, its not for everyone, you just need to choose which one suits you the best, More power to all of you gamers.
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@MechanicalGamer….you do realize that Nintendo pulls a profit with EACH Wii sold, right?
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Nintendo would never have done what they did if it wasn’t for Sony’s huge success. They tried to beat them with N64 and the Gamecube, on the same demographic, it was with Wii they realised they have to give up the hardcore fight and do something different.
You really can’t say that Sony has underperformed because Wii is performing better. Nintendo has still not sold any console in greater numbers than the Playstation 1 and 2 has. Which makes your conclusion obviously biased.
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The wii´s no PS3 or Xbox360,
i own both ps3 and wii.
and the ps3 offers cinematic gaming on a totally different level,
nitendo cutting hardware costs, means they can sell their system for a mucher lower price and the innovative input devices mean better gameplay which attracts more people to gaming.
now add the price for a blueray player and consider the fact that the ps3 replaces my linux desktop
which the wii can’t do
and the xbox360
needs hdd with digitally signed firmware and lacks blueray and wifi
so the ps3´s price is not so premium
it´s just a question of perception
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Although the ps3 does attract some hardcore Sony fans, the oversized console is currently in second place of Microsoft AND Nintendo. And so the battle of the consoles rages on…
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@ravenwolf,
“The Nintendo Wii has not revolutionized gaming.”
Nonsense. Have a look around. You’ll see people of all ages and interests playing video games. I’ve seen 60 year olds holding wii bowling tournaments. Video gaming isn’t just for 15-25 year old males anymore. This IS revolutionary. The motion controller was just the vehicle to get us to the revolution. It wasn’t the revolution in and of itself. Your myopic vision is making it hard for you to see it.
“Nintendo is not trying to get all the gamers. Why? Because I consider myself a “hardcore†gamer.”
Nonsense. I’m a hardcore gamer too and I love my Wii.
You don’t represent the entire hardcore market. Sorry. You don’t.
“Sony is not leaving out half the market by not focusing on female gamers. While the female gaming population is increasing, it doesn’t and probably never will make up half the market. I hope this changes, but it likely will not.”
Again your myopic perspective shunts your ability to understand reality. Sony isn’t ignoring half the CURRENT market. They’ve been ignoring half the POTENTIAL market. As we’ve seen, Nintendo has grown its market share by embracing females and mature adults, rather than just teens and immature adults. It’s working. Plain and simple.
It’s the people like you who fear change that are going to get rolled over by the new gamers who enjoy wild and crazy games even if they aren’t super duper shiny. Call us noobs all you want, but a lot of us are actually coming BACK to gaming on the Wii and to us, YOU look like the “noob” although, honestly anyone who actually uses that word should probably be left to rot on the side of the gaming highway with their games that are identical and boring.
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First of all i think Wii and The other two consoles are in two different categories, If you want something more casual and easier to pick up and play then by all means the Wii is a good choice. If you want something more hardcore and in-depth then choose the other 2 consoles. Even without the blu-ray there is no way Sony could of priced the Ps3 the same as a Wii, the wii is basically a glorified last gen device with a great peripheral. Yes the Ps3 started expensive about prices go down and in a year 2 it will be even more affordable. Plus sony consoles have some of the longest life cycles so you do get a console that base specs that will last you longer than both the wii and the 360. Don’t get me wrong i do think sony has done some stupid things this gen, and yes they should of done better with their more innovative products like the eye toy. I just don’t agree with your point that this generation is “screwd up”, for the first time in a decade there are three competing consoles that have widened the videogame market while still keeping it’s duty to the loyal hardcore gamers.
What i fear might destroy the industry is Microsoft getting a taste of this generations success might rush out the next Xbox to be first again, thus shortening the life cyles of other consoles. I’t would suck to have to change consoles every 4 years or so especially since it take developers years to squeeze the full potential of each
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“But Nintendo revitalized console gaming to the world by storm and much of the Nintendo games then would probably not fall into the casual stuff that dominates the current gen of today.”
Well, of course. It’s a matter of perspective of the “elite” Atari gamers, not ours.
“2. Nintendo is not trying to get all the gamers. Why? Because I consider myself a “hardcore†gamer. I owned a Wii for a fews months and sold it because there aren’t enough good games coming out. All the games out now seem to be more young adult or casual gamer oriented.”
You may be a hardcore gamer, but you do not represent the interests of the entire hardcore gaming crowd. Nintendo is appealing to hardcore Wii owners, with Metroid, BWii, Galaxy, Brawl, and third parties add to the list with Resident Evil, No More Heroes, Medal of Honor, The Conduit, ect….If you dislike these games, it is a matter of personal taste, and has nothing to do with Nintendo actually appealing to the hardcore.
“Quit screwing the hardcore gamers like myself by making only casual games or mediocre ports of titles the truly next-generation systems. ”
I don’t know who that shout-out is going to, because Nintendo isn’t the one making the ports and cheap casual cash-ins.
“the truly next-generation systems. ”
“Next-gen” does not mean “large hardware update”, otherwise it would say so. Next-generation means the next line-up of consoles with significant improvements. The Wii may not be up with the PS3 and 360 in technical terms, but it sets itself apart with its other features, and I believe that warrants the Wii a “next-gen” title.
“What happen to Boom Block and Zelda? Two 10/10 games that sold nothing. The name of the game is longevity. Party game only last as long as the party.”
Zelda actually sold well, so I have no idea what you’re talking about there. And Bloom Blox was a severly under-advertised game that didn’t sell well because of precisely that.
“Bottom line, the reason the wii is a success is linked to the fact that most people buying it don’t know the difference and don’t care either way about the graphics(see bluray players sales figures)”
Caring is not the same as having the highest standard. I care about the graphics of a game, it is a factor in making purchases. Do I feel the need to buy a $3000 computer to play Crysis? No. It’s similar to selecting a Honda over a Mercedes.
“If the same remote was available on all 3 systems, the wii would still be outselling the 360 and ps3 because of price alone.”
Wrong. While yes, the Wiimote is a large part of the Wii’s appeal, it ultimately comes down to the games available for the system. Do the 360 and PS3 have the mass casual appeal of Wii Sports, Wii Fit, Galaxy, and Mario Kart? No, and those games and ones like them are the reason the Wii is selling as it is.
“BUT, at the end of the road, I just don’t care… ”
That means absolutely nothing. You not caring does not make the Wii’s market expansion less than Sony’s.
“It’s never going to have any hardcore racing, FPS games is it?”
The Wii already has several FPSs, and hardcore racing games are certainly possible.
“The Wii is limited. The controller sold the Wii, not the games.”
Imagine if the Wii retailed without Wii Sports, or if the “Wii—” series never existed. I doubt the Wii’s success would be the same as it is with those games. The Wiimote is part of the initial appeal, but the games take it the rest of the way.
“You really can’t say that Sony has underperformed because Wii is performing better. Nintendo has still not sold any console in greater numbers than the Playstation 1 and 2 has. Which makes your conclusion obviously biased.”
The point of the article was Sony underperformed on capturing other audiences in comparison to the Wii. It has nothing to do with sales numbers.
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“You really can’t say that Sony has underperformed because Wii is performing better.”
Wrong. The PS3 was predicted by EVERYONE to outsell the Wii. Well, since the Wii is actually outselling the PS3 by a HUGE margin, it’s perfectly fair to say it underperformed. Also, you need to remember the PS3 failed to meet even Sony’s sales projections. That is the textbook definition of “underperforming”. Sorry.
” Nintendo has still not sold any console in greater numbers than the Playstation 1 and 2 has. ”
Wrong again. The Wii is selling at a MUCH faster rate than the PS1 and PS2. Naturally it would be stupid to compare lifetime sales of 2 consoles that have had different release dates. But if you compare them by matching up their release dates, the Wii is outselling every Sony console, ever.
“Which makes your conclusion obviously biased.” The only one who sounds biased here is you.