Well, we know they saved it once, at least in America, and now they're keeping it from dying in Japan, but really, going the route of the PS3 and 360, where would games go? They'd get bigger and bigger, cost more and more, ceasing to grow in new content, and eventually, for the developers involved, costs will rise far beyond returns, and sales will drop, because there are too many too similar game experiences. Already, we're beginning to see demand for licensed games rise, compared to what it is, and performance of the same games are being rated lower and lower. Most gameplay today is already a rehash of what's been done before.
There's not a place for an old fashioned home console anymore. People already had one of those. The graphics were great whenever a developer actually put in effort last generation. If I buy a 360 or a PS3, I'm going to pay ten more dollars a game for a marginal difference in graphics. Let's say I'm an uneducated, semi-casual gamer, which I would consider the largest portion of gamers that actively purchase console games. I play Madden, Halo, and other frathouse games. I've recently bought a PS3, the "most powerful" game machine out there. And then I bought Spider-Man 3. I liked the movie, and think that the game would be a fun extension. I play the game, it sucks, and I decide that I've wasted at least 660 dollars, noting that I could have bought the same thing, only slightly less pretty, for my PS2. Only I don't, because I've realized that I've already got all the gameplay experience I want in the last gen.
Let's say I'm an middle-aged woman gamer. Another majority in gaming, apparently. I've got my MMORPG capable computer, along with bejeweled. What else do I need? I've got everything I enjoy playing right there.
Let's say I'm a hardcore gaming "nerd." What's out there to appeal to me? RPG's? I'm better off with a PS2. Shooters? PC shooting is really the best type, what with free online gaming and the accuracy a mouse and a keyboard offers. What does a new generation have to offer that I don't already have?
Those three seem to be the most common situation right now to me. People are either growing tired with the same thing, only prettier with worse control than what they had previously, or they are satisfied with the hardware and software of the last generation of game machines, when they think about it. This is pretty close to what happened then, from my reading. Though I wasn't alive at the time, I think we all know the story of how ET is an icon of the death of the very first breed of video games - All the games were rip-off of the originals and developers made lousy games of franchises, because they thought it was easy. Then, we saw maze games, all spinning off from Pac-Man. This time, we see GTA-style knock-offs and cookie-cutter FPSes, still bringing nothing new, but slapping a franchise on to it, with many bugs and glitches. More and more of these games are being produced, but their sales are beginning to drop, because people realize each game offers the same experience as the last, with nothing new.
In comes Nintendo, with the Wii. Offering innovation, among other things, also, once again making a system that families enjoy sitting around. Sure, there are FPSes, and sure, there are free-roamers, but there is also Trauma Center. There's new revival in racing games, offering an arcade feel at home. There's more opportunity here for allowing people to experience the game, rather than just playing it. I think given all of this, if the Wii doesn't succeed in revitalizing and expanding the market, gaming's future will be in trouble.
Feel free to disagree, though. I'd love to hear different perceptions and opinions, especially since we all see how successful most analysts, and this is just an analysis. As far as I know, the best way to tell where gaming is going is to see where gaming has gone before, which is something most analysts don't do, so hopefully you'll find me more insightful than all of them.
Topic: Miyamoto Discusses Zelda in Japan, Making Halo (Read 19280 times)
