Console Wars: Difference between revisions
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[[Fan Dumb|They can get very stupid.]] Avoid at all costs. Just buy the system(s) whose games intrigue you the most, and don't worry about what anybody else thinks. (The [[Computer Wars]] were arguably worse — the [[ZX Spectrum]] vs. [[Commodore 64]] punch-up still rages in some quarters of the Internet, with the victor depending almost entirely on who you ask — but they faded out in the early 1990s, when geeks made far less noise than today.)
There is a certain degree of reason in rooting for a particular console that isn't merely fanboyism. The greater the install base of your chosen console, the more likely it is to receive exclusives and technically superior originals rather than platform ports. There is also the psychological phenomenon called "post-purchase rationalization", where people who have sunk a large amount of money into a gaming machine want to feel as if their purchase was worth it (see also the [[Sunk Cost Fallacy]]). Particularly in earlier generations, consoles were expensive enough that a middle-class income couldn't support two or three consoles and a library of games for each, so a gamer had to choose a machine and stick with it. By convincing others and reading supportive viewpoints, they reduce cognitive dissonance and avoid "buyer's remorse". This is why the <s>[[
And if you really want to rile people up, you can throw in the bickering between [[PC vs. Console|PC and console owners]]. You're sure to get [[Flame War|enough noise to]] [[Internet Backdraft|drown out a jet engine]].
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===The Seventh Generation: The HD/Motion Control era===
* '''Duration''': 2005-2014
* '''Sides''': ''Sony's [[
* '''Winner''':
Microsoft was last in, first out with the Xbox 360, gaining a comfortable head start thanks to an even more advanced version of the Xbox Live system (with a point-comparing gimmick which catches on fast) and HDTV compatibility. However a hefty price tag, limited backwards compatibility with original Xbox games, and complaints about machine malfunctions plagued the console's early days (and, in the case of the malfunctions, continue to hurt it). Surprisingly, however, Microsoft did gain traction as a console developer after negative publicity in the run-up to the PS3 launch (specifically about Sony's hardware bottlenecks, poor viral marketing via fake blogs, and what is seen as the mistreatment of Sony's European customers) causes some waverers to jump to the 360. This is not helped by what is perceived to be Sony's decision to [[Follow the Leader|copy its competitors' unique selling points]] and the whopping [[Memetic Mutation|five-hundred and ninety-nine US dollars]] price tag of the PS3. However, Sony's die-hard supporters, gathered through the PS1 and PS2 days, remained in droves, and reported excellent stock take-up in the first weekend of sales, through sales really didn't pick up until the eventual and inevitable price cut.
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Whether the three systems are in competition with each other is a point of debate. Some dismiss the notion, claiming that the Wii targets a different demographic to the 360 and PS3, while others point out that they're all competing in the broader arena of "recreation time" with other forms of entertainment. One undisputed fact, however, is that [http://www.neogaf.com/forum/showpost.php?p=22291228&postcount=262 Microsoft and Sony have lost hundreds of millions] on their consoles and Nintendo is the only company to have profited throughout this generation (for instance, Sony's losses on the PS3 have already eliminated all the profits from the PS1 ''and'' PS2) and only in Summer 2010 have begun to turn a modest profit. This is seen as the main reason why Microsoft and Sony have [[Follow the Leader|released their own motion-control schemes]], in an attempt to grab some of the Wii market. (This made their "[[It Will Never Catch On]]" claims about the Wii [[Hilarious in Hindsight]].) The actual ''structure'' of this generation is a matter about which analysts will debate and argue (and, given the increasing size of the gaming market, it actually now ''has'' analysts!).
The latest convolution in all these events happened in April 2011, when Sony suffered a ''major'' breach of digital privacy and someone was able to make off with the financial records of millions of consumers, both on their [[Playstation Network]] which serves the [[
Meanwhile, far away from all this mess, a Brazilian company known as Tectoy has released the Zeebo, their first original entry to the console market (they had previously been highly successful distributing Sega consoles in Brazil), which is specifically targeted at emerging markets such as Brazil, China, Russia, and India (except that no one has really heard about it outside of Brazil, which has import laws so ludicrous that having a local console seems to be the only realistic outcome) with its less powerful architecture and lower price point, but a wide variety of classic games from past console generations delivered through [[Useful Notes/Digital Distribution|online downloads]]. The system also boasts infrared technology, similar to the Wii, on some games and has a very user-friendly controller. However, it failed horrendously in the markets it was launched in (India, Brazil and Mexico) and ceased production in September 30 2011.
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Another footnote could be added for the V.Smile Motion: It's basically a V.Smile console, but with slightly upgraded hardware- namely, it now has an integrated wireless controller receiver and the controllers now come with a built-in accelerometer. Again, due to the educational franchise tie-in, it's largely ignored by the mainstream.
'''
At the
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=== The Eighth Generation
* '''Duration''': 2012
* '''Sides''': ''Nintendo [[Wii U]]''
* '''Winner''': PlayStation 4, with the second place going to Nintendo by default since Microsoft [[Sour Grapes Tropes|stopped releasing sales numbers]] after 2014.
While generations have typically refreshed every 5-6 years, this does not seem to be the case for the current systems, necessitating new predictions of when new consoles will finally be released. None of the three console makers are in a rush to launch new systems — the Nintendo Wii maintains its lead, and it's in Microsoft and Sony's best interests to keep selling their current systems and recoup the millions they've lost already. Another factor prolonging the life of seventh-generation consoles is widespread broadband access in American, Asian, and European homes; rather than roll out a new console to support better graphics or, in Sony's case, 3D games, the manufacturers can simply provide a firmware update for their customers to download. [[Digital Distribution]] has also expanded the retrogaming and [[Expansion Pack]] market, providing all three consoles with enormous libraries of not only games and add-ons, but also movies, music, game trailers, and other fresh content. The late-2000's recession hasn't helped matters either; it's far easier for consumers to justify buying a $60 game than a $500 console.
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This generation will be met with a fair amount of competition from tangent industries. Cellular phones and handheld computers have advanced to the point of being able to play simple but graphically appealing games; this could cut into the casual market, as such games are cheap, can be played for a few minutes at a time, and assuming the player already has a cell phone, don't require additional hardware. As consoles become more full-featured and offer non-gaming services, while PC services like Steam standardize the buying, installation, and customer support processes, the two camps will find themselves in closer competition for consumer dollars.
A number of rumors in 2009 about Microsoft kick-starting the 8th generation ended up being Sony and Microsoft jumping late onto the motion-control wagon with PlayStation Move and Kinect, respectively — and most analysts are bullish on their chances of success. Microsoft has apparently reported that the Xbox 360 (which came out first in the 7th generation, mind) is only halfway through its lifespan, expecting it to last until 2015. Similarly, Sony has claimed that the [[
So it was up to Nintendo to upset the applecart. They did, announcing the [[Wii U]] at E3 2011, with a release planned for sometime in 2012. It is back-compatible with all Wii games, controllers and accessories, but not Gamecube ones (Officially). The console itself looks like a downsized X360, but that's because all the excitement's in the controller, which is the lovechild of a Wiimote and an iPad — in addition to rumble, motion control, and all the buttons and thumbsticks you'd expect, it's got a touch-screen (single-touch only), camera with videochat support, and can display both secondary outputs (non-important information) ''or'' be used to play the game directly while someone else uses the TV to, say, watch TV. However, it is ''not'' a portable; without a set-top box to think for it, the controller accomplishes little on its own.
(Interestingly, during the '11 holiday season, the Wii's last as Nintendo's premiere console, its sales took a nosedive. The question is whether this makes Nintendo prescient, releasing the Wii U just as the Wii achieved market saturation, or stupid for crashing sales of a perfectly good product by announcing a perfectly-gooder one. Given the market's current antipathy towards the U, it seems safe to assume the former, but only time--and the console, you know, actually going on sale--will tell.)
Of course, there is little information on the [[Wii U]] at the moment, and information on future Sony and Microsoft consoles are limited to rumors from Kotaku, who reported on the "[[Xbox]] 720" in [http://kotaku.com/5879202/sources-the-next-xbox-will-play-blu+ray-may-not-play-used-games-and-will-introduce-kinect-2 January '12] and the [http://kotaku.com/5896996/the-next-playstation-is-called-orbis-sources-say-here-are-the-details/ PS4], also called "Orbis," in March. Both
Near the middle of the decade, the technology of all the eight generation systems was getting long in the tooth, yet Sony and Microsoft were not ready for totally new consoles. Thus Sony released the PS4 Pro and Microsoft the Xbox One X, enhanced versions of those consoles designed for the upper end of the market.
If that were all, this would be but a footnote, but Nintendo very much wanted to cut its losses with the Wii U, which despite having a number of critical successes, was hugely underwhelming commercially. The result was the NX, later known as the Switch. A true Hybrid console, it was slightly more powerful than the Wii U but could actually be played on the go as well as on a TV. Throw in a low price point with a series defining title at launch and a killer game lineup in the following years and the Switch sold gangbusters, outselling the original Game Boy line and giving titans like the PLayStation 2 and Nintendo DS a run for their money in terms of units sold.
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=== The Ninth Generation ===
* '''Duration''': 2020-20??.
* '''Sides''': ''[[Nintendo Switch|Switch]]'' (Holdover) vs. ''Sony [[Playstation 5]]'' vs. ''Microsoft [[Xbox Series X]] and Xbox Series S''.
The Sony PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X and Series S consoles both launched in late 2020 in the middle of the COVID-19 pandemic, which made actually purchasing them hard for many at first.
A few competitor consoles were launched or planned, mostly focusing on a particular niche and not competing outside of it.
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An odd twist of this generation is the invention of smartphones--Apple [[IProduct|iProducts]], Android phones by [[Google]]--which have become competitors in their own right. They provide download-only games and are popular among some gamers — particularly for simple, low-cost games. They're not competing directly with the Nintendo DS or Sony PSP, but they still have a noticeable market share — certainly more visible than the GP2X. Major third-party developers, such as Konami, Capcom, and Square, have all launched classic as well as new/exclusive titles in the App Store, proving that it's being taken seriously. Also, the App Store has brought many other budding companies to the surface, such as [[Gameloft]]. But it remains to be seen how big a presence this new market is in the Console Wars, because we can't measure their impact yet.
The first question one might ask is, "Why are we bothering to include these smartphones at all? People don't play games on them." In counter-argument, we offer a simple sales figure: ''[[Angry Birds]]'' has been downloaded more than ''[https://web.archive.org/web/20111104182936/http://finance.yahoo.com/news/Angry-Birds-tops-500-million-rb-3399719282.html 500 million times]'' since December '09. The nearest competitor, ''[[Tetris]]'', does not offer any hard-and-fast figures; only [[Game Boy]] and mobile phone sales have been tabulated, leaving out shareware, piracy and its gazillion [[Spin-Off|Spinoffs]], but they total 135 million over the course of ''26 years'' of sales. So, although Tetris is almost certainly the most well-known video game in history, ''officially,'' ''Angry Birds'' is the most proliferate video game ever made. And it's on smartphones. And it brings its own complications to the competition.
* One would think the easy way to figure out smartphones' market share is to do what we do for everybody else, which is count how many consoles Apple, Verizon, Google etc has sold. That's kind of the problem: smartphones ''aren't'' consoles. When you buy a DS, you're buying it to play games. When you buy an iPhone, or an iPad, or an iPod Touch, you're buying it to do...what? Maybe you want to play games on it. Maybe you don't. Maybe you're a grandma who received it as a Christmas present and you never took it out of the box.
* It's easy to claim that smartphones aren't consoles, and, well, that's kind of true. While gaming consoles don't really have a standardized definition, we [[Blatant Lies|learned experts]] here at [[TV Tropes]] are going with, "an electronic device that is designed ''primarily'' to play games," which smartphones obviously aren't. The problem is, this sidesteps the real issue. The simple fact is that most people don't want to carry around more than one electronic interactive device at a time, so smartphones compete with consoles in the greater arena of "pocket space" (and, more concretely, "leisure time"), even if they aren't consoles themselves.
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'''VERDICT:''' With each major player developing and announcing their plans for the next generation, it seems safe to say that the Nintendo DS took the win for dedicated hand-helds, outselling the PSP nearly 3:1 world-wide and bringing in a much higher profit margin. The various gaming-phones had success in their own fields, and let's... leave it at that.
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===The
* '''Sides''': ''[[Nintendo 3DS]]'' vs. ''Sony [[
* '''Winner''': Depending on who are you asking. The 3DS is the main standalone machine, but the mobile sector is technically bigger if you agglomerate the incredibly segmented market.
In March 2010, Nintendo announced plans to release the [[Nintendo 3DS]]. More details about the system were made available at the 2010 E3 trade show; features included a wider upper screen, which is capable of full, scalable, glasses-free 3D effects (similar to those seen in recent films like ''[[Avatar (film)|Avatar]]''), an analog nub in place of the D-Pad (which is still present, but placed lower on the left side of the unit), and has graphics capabilities on par with the Wii and some times the Xbox 360 and [[
Sony has now officially announced one next-generation hardware platform, the [[
Rumors of a [[Fan Nickname|PlayStation Phone]] have circulated since 2006, but it was five years before Sony's Ericsson subsidiary confirmed that they were trying to revive the NGage idea. The Xperia Play is an Android-based phone with a slide-out gamepad, including a central touchpad in place of dual analog sticks. (Note that, while it is associated with the [[PlayStation]] brand, it is ''not'' a [[PlayStation]] console.) It was announced in an ad during the 2011 [[Super Bowl]] and finished its worldwide rollout in May of that year, and can not only play any games available to Android (IE ''[[Angry Birds]]'') but can access Sony-exclusive games through the "[[PlayStation]] Suite". Precisely what games ''that'' service offers is a question nobody can seem to answer, possibly because nobody wants to ''buy'' the darn thing; as such, claims that ''[[Assassin's Creed]]'', ''[[Need for Speed]] Hot Pursuit'', ''[[Splinter Cell Conviction]]'' and ''[[Call of Duty]]: [[Call of Duty: Modern Warfare|Modern Warfare]] 2'' are available have gone unsubstantiated. By late July, the American press had written the device off as a dud.
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Meanwhile, the sucess of the Angry Birds has opened the door to several companies, and soon both the iWhatevers from Apple and Android-powered devices in general became viable venues for gaming. Along with hundred of start-ups releasing games, several companies that traditionally dabbled on consoles, like Square-Enix and Konami, had released iOS and Android ports of their most popular frannchises, along with new games directed to cellphones.
As for other
* The GP2X's latest iteration(s) will also stuck to the small black plastic Switzerland role like before.
*
* Panasonic flirted with plans for a handheld called the Panasonic Jungle, but quickly changed their minds.
* Many cellphone manufacturers have began a shift towards gaming. Nokia resurrected the N-Gage name to now refer to both a framework and a section in many Nokia phones in which downloaded games are found, Google's Android OS is beginning to become noticed for gaming, Samsung's launch of its Bada store which is primarily to act as an app store that's mostly filled with games, Microsoft's integration of Xbox Live into Windows Phone 7, and Apple ramps up its seriousness in the iDevice-as-a-gaming-system strategy by introducing a Game Center segment in iOS 4.1 and newer. (And of course there's the Xperia Play).
'''VERDICT:''' Smartphone gaming by raw size and cultural zeitgeist. That said, in terms of traditional handheld gaming, the 3DS won, though with serious competition.
'''Current Standings:''' At the moment, Nintendo obviously has the biggest lead. The 3DS got off to a rocky start with not much in the way of software its first few months; the high point being an [[Updated Rerelease]] of ''[[The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time|The Legend of Zelda Ocarina of Time]]'' in June 2011. Soon afterward in August, Nintendo announced that they were slashing the system price by $70 (and offering 20 retro games - 10 from the [[NES]], 10 from the [[Game Boy Advance]] - to early adopters as an apology), which many took to be a giant red flag as to the system's future. However, it seems to have done the trick, as sales shot up to surpass the first-year numbers of the ''original'' DS. On top of that, the system is considered to have hit its stride in the holiday season thanks to system updates and true [[Killer App|Killer Apps]] like ''[[Super Mario 3D Land]]'', ''[[Mario Kart]] 7'', ''[[Monster Hunter]] 3G'' in Japan, and downloadable title ''[[Pushmo]]''.▼
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The Xperia Play, on the other hand, has done pretty dismally in its short time of availability
Ultimately the 3DS did OK, and the Vita had standout titles while failing to achieve a huge market presence, ending Sony’s interest in bespoke mobile consoles for a time, with their next handheld being nothing more then a streaming accessory for the PlayStation 5.
{{reflist}}
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