The Four major consoles for the 8th Generation include Nintendo Wii U, Sony PlayStation 4, Microsoft Xbox One, and Valve Steambox which each have different media distributions.
Nintendo Wii U uses optical discs and has digital downloads tied to the console itself but cannot play any Blu-Ray or DVDs. Since the Super Nintendo, Nintendo consoles have been behind on media distribution compared to competitors. The Nintendo 64 was the last Console to use cartridges instead of discs though the Fifth Generation disc based consoles(3DO, PlayStation, Saturn) but played better 64 bit graphics than the usually 32 bit PSone. GameCube used discs but smaller ones than normal CDs and had a small cube size in hardware but suffered from lower hardware specs than PlayStation 2 and Xbox. The Wii had normal sized discs but were not DVDs like the Xbox 360. You couldn't play DVDs on your Wii. The Wii did have online capabilities and features such as digital downloading like the Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3 but failed to have the hardware strong enough to last as much as either PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360. When the Wii U was released, not only did it set back it's predecessor Wii by two generations but also outpowered Xbox 360 and in some cases even PlayStation 3. Wii U at launch had a charming appeal in crisp graphics and HD. Despite this, it still cannot play DVDs or Blu-Rays. To this day, there has been no Nintendo console that has used traditional discs such as CD's, DVD's, nor Blu-Ray's, even though Wii U is one generation ahead of the Blu-Ray PlayStation 3. Instead, Nintendo has it's own special optical discs which are neither CD, DVD, nor Blu-Ray. Nintendo has been making consoles two generations before Sony and the former once competed with Sega. Future Nintendo consoles are likely to support casual and some hardcore gaming while at the same time being less advanced than competitors but cheap. The Wii U unlike the Wii can play hardcore games that the Wii could never accomplish. Plus, the Wii U Gamepad adds appeal to gaming so the Wii U has a change of healthy longevity, unlike the Sega Dreamcast.
Sony PlayStation 4 will have a Blu-Ray player just like it's predecessor. Blu-Ray's will have more longevity than DVDs due to the former's ability to extend data capacity and increase quality of picture and sound. Though there are HD DVD's, Blu-Ray discs are made for HD from the start and PlayStation 3 is likely to outlive Xbox 360 and Wii by several years(4-6 years est.) due to it's advanced hardware and better quality in picture thanks to blu-ray superiority over DVD technology. Sony entered the console market in 1994-5 with the CD-Rom based PlayStation, competing with 3DO, Saturn, Jaguar, and N64. The PlayStation outsold all competition combined and became the first console in history to sell over 100 million units. Though the N64 had better graphics than PS1 from the start, the latter appealed to a broader base plus upgraded it's dualshock controller to include two analog sticks, something never seen in the video game industry before. The Dualshock controller was considered the most advanced controller due to button functionalities. The PlayStation 2 was released in 2000 and crushed Dreamcast due to the former's broader base of abilities. The PS2 not only had more advanced selection of games and better hardware specs than Dreamcast but also had a DVD format which was new at the time. Dreamcast only had CD based games. PlayStation 2 was able to outlive it's competition by several years and wasn't disconnected until 2013. When PlayStation 3 was released in 2006, it was expensive($500-600) and bulky compared to Wii and Xbox 360 but has not only better hardware but also a blu-ray player, which was also new and just one generation ahead of DVD. For it's first years PS3 wasn't as popular as Wii or Xbox 360 due to PS3 being pricy and bulky, which made Xbox 360 more preferable to hardcore gamers in Early to Mid 7th generation and Wii more appealing to Casual gamers. However overtime, Xbox 360 and Wii got old and PS3 was becoming more appealing due to it's advanced technology. As blu-ray was expanding, PS3 was rising above the inferior 360 and Wii. PS3 has gone from less appealing in 2006 to more appealing in 2010. Today, Xbox 360 and Wii are becoming more like relics like the PS2 with the Wii aging faster towards retirement as less games are being made for it now than several years ago. Combining the longevity of PS1-3, it combines to be approx. 31 years combined longevity and this longevity is consecutive for three generations (5th-7th). Plus, PS3 also supported HDMI from the start which is not available for Wii and pre-2010 Xbox 360 models. PlayStation 3 will likely survive for several more years, even after the Wii and Xbox 360 are discontinued. PlayStation 4 has a higher GPU and better hardware unit making gaming more enjoyable due to better graphics than Xbox One. It has a 500 HDD which can be replaced and will have the best graphics of any gaming console to date. PlayStation lasted for 11 years, PlayStation 2 lasted for nearly 13 years, and I anticipate PlayStation 3 will last until 2020 as Sony has promised to keep PS3 going as long as demand flows and that demand will flow until 2020. If this pattern follows, PlayStation 4 could continue well into it's 15th anniversary. Thank advanced hardware and broad appeal in game selection. Plus, could the PlayStation 4 sell more than 7 times the units as it's strongest competitor? Could even sell more than 250 million units by the end of it's lifespan if it reaches more than 15 years of longevity.
Microsoft Xbox One will also have a blu-ray player, leaping from the DVD format of Xbox 360. Xbox One is not only a gaming console but a TV box and movie player and is geared more towards broader entertainment categories which is probably why Xbox One will have more compromised graphics than PS4. Microsoft entered the console wars in 2001 with the Xbox, which has not only the most advanced hardware in it's day and possibly better graphics but also had a HDD which could store saved game data without a memory card. Xbox had the most advanced multiplayer of it's time with not only four players split screen but online multiplayer, giving birth to Xbox Live, which became a smashing success for the online multiplayer community, something PlayStation 2 and Nintendo Gamecube were incapable of doing with some exceptions. Xbox 360 came 4 years after Xbox despite the latter being the most advanced. Xbox 360 despite having only a DVD drive compared to PS3's blu-ray drive was a bigger success than PS3 for it's first five years. When Kinect was released in 2010, it was more like a prototype but an awesome concept which will be upgraded with Xbox One. Xbox One features are some which no other console has ever had before such as voice command, Kinect functionalities, entertainment abilities, etc. The Xbox One will feel different from the PlayStation 4 as the former has lower graphics specs than PS4. Plus, Xbox One can't reach the same popularity as PS4. I anticipate that while Xbox One won't be a commercial failure, it will certainly fall between the longevity of the Xbox(7yrs) and the Xbox 360(11yrs anticipated).
Valve Steam Box will be a PC style digital download console that uses Steam software, which is currently used for PCs. Unsure what this expensive yet impressive console will look like or what specs it will have exactly but it will use Steam software and give themselves their own console, becoming the fourth longest competitor in the console wars to date. It would be Valve's first generation for video gaming unless you count the PC and Steam as a gaming console. Steam has been around since mid to late 6th generation of gaming with it's home being for Microsoft Windows. Steam doesn't have peripherals themselves because Steam is integrated with PCs. Valve finally decided to make a dedicated PC gaming console that runs on Steam software. Valve will likely make their PC style console's digital downloads only as Steam has been digital download. In the end, Valve should be given credit as having a console that competes in the 8th generation of gaming.The difference between a PC and Steam Box is the latter is built specifically for gaming wheres gaming PCs are made for a wide variety.
Each console has their own advantages such as the Wii U being easy to develop, Wii U Gamepad abilities, and casual gamer experience; PlayStation 4 being more effective, more marketable, more popular, more powerful, and the most high end gaming system to date; Xbox One having HDMI in and voice command abilities, and overall entertainment varieties that PS4 isn't fully capable of, and better cloud computing; Steambox is PC specifically for gaming, easy digital downloads, uses Steam software, and will be lightweight.
I also hear Google is set to reveal an android based console this fall. This could change the course of what home consoles can be. I heard the next thing after Blu-Ray discs are HVD discs which can hold up to 6TB.Of course, any android or iOS based consoles will be digital downloads in the form of apps. Another option would be to make optical discs for playing games like Nintendo.Only time will tell as Apple and Google have yet to have their own consoles, the PlayStation 3 has several more years until it exceeds the lifespan of the PlayStation 2(2000-2013) and it's only a matter of several years until we find out if Xbox One will fall between living 7-11 years and whether Wii U will survive to 2020.
No comments:
Post a Comment