The future of the game industry - PS3 vs. Wii. Graphics vs. Gameplay...and xbox 360...and PCs...

The Battle of Next Gen
VS.  VS.


This is absolutely rediculous. PS3's are going for 1,500 up to 15,000 on ebay.

Here are the highest bids for the ps3.

http://cgi.ebay.com/Sony-PlayStation-3-PS3-60GB-Premium-System-Brand-New_W0QQitemZ120054081662QQihZ002QQcategoryZ62054QQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem

http://cgi.ebay.com/Playstation-3-PS3-PREMIUM-60GB-CONSOLE-1st-in-LINE-EB_W0QQitemZ180048584021QQihZ008QQcategoryZ62054QQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem

http://cgi.ebay.com/Sony-Playstation-3-60GB-Premium-System-PS3-Brand-New_W0QQitemZ120053236745QQihZ002QQcategoryZ62054QQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem

People have been robbed and potentially killed.

Never has the game industry seen such a frenzy for games. With new generations of game players, with parents as game players, it's inevitable that our culture will be engrossed by interactive media, not just as a niche market, but as a mass communicator. But behind the curtains of the game industry, speculation about what is good for the industry comes to question. Graphics or Gameplay? and which console will pioneer the future...

So what is better, the ps3 or the nintendo wii...or the xbox 360?

This is a difficult question to answer, considering that the opinion of the uninformed consumer can vastly differ the opinion of the informed game designer. The feeling of the industry tend to be far different from the normal consumer buyer in the respect of how video games should evolve.
The video game industry at this moment supports the Wii more than the playstation 3 according to industry revered gama sutra. This being that development costs of next gen video games is not sustainable, not for the publisher, and even more so for the developer, innovation in gameplay has been lacking because of the mounting costs of marketing and production. Cookie cutter games that come from publishers like EA are a result of this. To the game industry the Nintendo Wii represents the innovation of many game developers out there in terms of gameplay. In the long run, the Wii, if successful will lead to a more fruitful video game industry and economy, where gameplay over takes graphical superiority for sustainable development. We must remember that the lines of evolution for video games is far different from movies. As movies have become a constantly evolving image, games have become a constantly evolving game play mechanic. Graphics merely support the core gameplay (that is not to say I am undervaluing the graphics). For movies, if you don't have the image or the "graphics", you won't have the movie at all at it's core.  If the ps3 is allowed to garner success, as it has sudo-created through the limited quantities it has shipped for this much hyped, "much violent" weekend of lining up a week ahead and selling on ebay, the future of the industry will eventually lead to a collapse internally because of how the video game profits are split. Few developers will survive. Only the major publishers can sustain themselves, but for how long? Today, next gen games cost roughly 10-20 million for development. Times two for marketing. Most of the time the profits don't even equal the costs. 1 out of 6 games are able to break even, let alone be a hit. To the uninformed consumer, all people know is that ps3 is a superior technological system for graphics and a vehicle for bluray, to the industry designer, it's calling for loss of money, high production costs, and at many times, loss of creativity because most companies aren't willing to take risky innovative game design decisions without the approval of marketing. With the Wii, it's the gameplay that will allow for a proper line of gameplay evolution --an area that can be expanded to create compelling and creative gameplay. Eventually with it's success, higher end games can come out for the Wii or a next gen nintendo system. But the sad thing is that consumers tend to associate games with graphics, rather than gameplay. That is because "gameplay" is a design term that the average consumer doesn't understand. The average consumer only believes what they see, rather than what they play. The way games are marketed is through their graphical magic. You can't exactly play a commercial, can you?

In terms of the competition...
One of the main reasons for the ps3 lines being so long (time wise, and length wise) has been the limited quantity and high profit margin on ebay. There is a demand for it, but with such limited quantities, the success is yet to be determined if there are only 400,000 in the US. If the Wii gains an advantage with their large quantity of release, the ps3 could easily become a flop, considering many consumers have missed out on the initial opening night purchase. Sony is still losing 250 dollars per console. The high sales on ebay are caused by the limited quantity. This short term success does not mean it's making money. It only says that there are few ps3s to go around. Not much money is being made by Sony. The success of the ps3 will depend on the games and it's sustainability. As of now, the launch titles, in my most objective game design opinion, SUCK. Later titles like Metal Gear Solid 4 will help the ps3 regain an advantage. The success of the ps3 will depend on the adaptability of bluray by the consumer. Ever since the square enix shift from the SNES to PS1, sony has developed a fan base that will potentially keep sony alive in this battle. Large franchises from Namco to Konami will help the ps3 in coming years.

With the Wii, people are buying to keep, rather than to sell off to some person who's willing to spend a lot of money. Lines seem shorter for the wii initially after release of the ps3, but this really doesn't mean much  from an informed perspective.Seeing that the releases are back to back, ps3 seems to have gained an advantage. But that's not to say that the Wii won't sell. The numbers may tell a different story. The numbers are relative to the quantity available. Just because every ps3 sold out doesn't mean it's successful. Just because lines being not as long doesn't mean the ps3 was more successful. It just means sony sold a few ps3s, at a loss. The Wii's quantities are 5 times what the ps3's is. People won't have to wait in line, because there are so many to buy, and so many to sell out. All pre orders have been sold out. In terms of quantity of pre orders, Nintendo wins. Potentially Nintendo could come out the winner, when it sells out it's first million shipments. Since more people will have a wii than a ps3, more people will be exposed to the games, creating word of mouth marketing, that is one of the best sources of promotion. But with the lack of bluray or hd dvd support, it places the wii at a slight disadvantage. Though Nintendo has a huge back catalog of games and will eventually support DVD formats. Though at the same time, the stigma that nintendo has developed as a "kid's console" may plague it's success. If nintendo adapts more games like "Resident Evil 4" for gamecube, and opens itself to newer forms of technology and media, will it survive. Nintendo is taking a risk in this console release, but it's the best risk one can take in a internally decaying industry, that may not seem in the external consumer sense. With games like Red Steel, they are potentially heading in the right direction with innovation as well as formula ideas. Though, we can't forget the large franchises that Nintendo posseses -- though more aimed at the younger audience, and the growing audience of former gamers of classic games. Massive franchises like Zelda, Mario, and Pokemon. Nintendo is aiming more at the casual gamer, rather than the hardcore gamer (which is what sony and microsoft are doing), which may increase it's appeal. Since video games, though seemingly mainstream, is still a niche market, the wii may create a wider and broader appeal to ages old and young.

Casual gaming for a larger audience->
INNOVATION ->

Something I haven't mentioned...
The Xbox 360 has already reached it's plataeu of sales. Since it's been out for so long, the demand will start falling, as the other consoles overtake. The only things saving the xbox 360 are it's games. Lately Gears of War has helped to reinvigorate interest in the system. Games can become "console-killers". Also, with the coming release of Halo 3, many new fans will buy an xbox 360. In terms of graphical power, it does not lose out to the ps3. They are neck and neck. The 360 will support HD DVD and has online capabilities that easily match both competing systems. Depending who wins the media battle, will also determine how many will be sold. As of now, the Xbox 360 is not much of a competitor in terms of the console sales. But it really doesn't matter in the end because those that sell the games, wins.


The battle is still up in the air. Will Wii or ps3 or xbox 360 win? Gameplay vs. graphics. Time will tell.

as for the PC market...Blizzard will take over everything.

7.5 million subscribers to World of Warcraft, with a highly anticipated expansion pack. Over a billion per year in revenue for Vivendi. They are like the bigger version of Pixar for the video game industry. They can't lose. The pc industry will slowly die in the US. This is not to say for Asia though. The burgeoning economies of Asia, especially in China and India, will create a new population for gamers to come. The future still has potential for growth thankfully.