There was an episode of Big Bang Theory that accidentally predicted the future of gaming. In one of the sequences, we see Sheldon Cooper desperately struggling to decide between the XBox One and the PS4. He mentions how they both have their strengths, and couldn’t quite figure out which one is the better option (Side-Note: He calls one of the female characters “Grandma” when she mentions the Wii—in case you ponder what Nintendo’s reputation is on the show). The one thing he doesn’t even mention is which one has the better games. Although the concept isn’t explored, one can argue it’s because both consoles have the same exact lineup of games—barring minor, minor differences with indie gaming, backwards-compatibility, and a few first-party exclusives. One major conclusion can and will be reached from all this:
The Console War is extremely stagnant, extremely devoid of change, and the leader out the gate (system that looks and feels like the second place console) wound up conquering it altogether.
The Playstation 4 is a nice machine. The XBox One is a nice machine. The PS4 has performed much better because of the forward momentum from PS3’s surprise finish, the Microsoft PR debacle involving DRM gaming, and because Nintendo killed every ounce of momentum it had during the peak Nintendo Wii period. This has been the case since 2013. And absolutely nothing has changed. It might crash the market, or at the very least make these sales wars extremely predictable. The eighth generation has secretly been far more boring than we could have ever predicted.
We will never have the epic battle that occurred between Nintendo and Sega during the early 90s. The two consoles (SNES and Genesis) shared the lead, exchanged the lead, made drastic changes, threw so much shade at each other that it took years to truly discover the winner. 1994 would ultimately be the turning point when Nintendo started separating itself but the damage was so intense it accidently created a new monster: The Sony Playstation. The mudslinging and backstabbing was so bad that Sony got hurt, and ultimately decided to chime in on the video game market—leading to what we see today.
It is practically impossible to imagine the gaming world if Nintendo had not betrayed Sony and if Sega had not gotten arrogant and refused to cooperate with that same company. The past might be the past, but that console war shoved video games into the economic mainstream, and proved the Wall Street world the potential of money involving video games, and the sheer competition that comes with attempting to enter the wars.
Fast-forward to today. We see Microsoft making good money, Sony making good money, and even Nintendo managing to make decent money despite the WiiU being its biggest failure since the Virtual Boy. Sony has done little to bolster its lead simply because it doesn’t have to. Microsoft hasn’t formed crazy partnerships, hasn’t made epic purchases, and hasn’t made much of a move to try to reach into Sony’s lead. There is no price cut, no special deals, no video game that is going to change the culture of gaming. Microsoft seems perfectly content with the second place positioning, even though the spoils of having the lead is all too obvious.
Sony as a company is literally being saved because of the video game division, especially when the film, television, and computer lines are nowhere near what it used to be. And outside of collecting third-party exclusives like Final Fantasy VII and Street Fighter 5, it really hasn’t had to do much to maintain its lead. Increase software output, and then sit there to collect the profits. It is great for business, extremely boring for the rest of us expecting more of a dogfight.
With the competition already well-established and minimal threats of a shift, the decision-making and the landscape will remain flat. The games won’t be as prevalent, the companies won’t be as aggressive, and in the end all we see are two machines extremely similar and unwilling to separate itself from the other, and a third machine that has been quickly abandoned in favor of an upcoming console.
The Eighth Generation blog had predicted a lot of craziness, but instead we have witnessed years of ho-hum decisions, and a lack of true battling. Even the seventh generation had more craziness, and that was with the Nintendo Wii faaaaaaar outpacing everyone else. This blog is on its final moments, as Nintendo is already looking into the ninth generation. If the Nintendo NX becomes a major success, expect the competitors to follow ship and move along to the next step.
Until then, there isn’t much to say here: Sony is #1, Microsoft is (once again) #2, and Nintendo is (once again) refusing to play by the rules by establishing another unique system that will bend the rules on how we play games.
Its boring, and its not good for gaming. Expect a slow 2016, from this blog and from the entire industry itself…barring a major push from anyone.
(Image Credit: Megamodsplanet.com)
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