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Generation Eight


TheFlyingGerbil
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Yeah, it's just been in the pipes for so long now that I'm really losing interest a bit.

 

One of the guys makes a point about making the hardware more similar. Even if you can't get MS and Sony to make a console together at least they could bother to make their architecture more compatible which I think would be good for gamers as there would be more continuity between systems.

 

Edit: It seems it was 2006 when I was excited about PhysX.

 

Edited by Yantelope V2
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PhysX is in a lot of stuff. The main issue is that's 2006. By which point the current consoles we've bieng lumped with for the past 6-7 years were already finalised and out. Given how much multi-plat devs hate even making keyboard and mouse work properly You can see why they'd be reluctant to use what's pretty much a PC only thing into their games. (Ps3 can use a somewhat limited version since it has a Nvidia GPU).

 

GPGPU is booming(There's probably at least a couple programs on your PC making use of it), but its games use is somewhat limited, once again due to the fact current consoles came out before it took off (mainly with DirectX 10 back in 2006).

 

As for a compatible Architecture: It is the Microsoft DirectX-box. They're never going to make a compatible console. Wii and PS3 will be using OpenGL as always n MS will be using their DirectX API.

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  • 1 month later...

So sales of the PSP are super low, The Vita isnt really selling, the PS division of Sony had huge losses, everyone on the planet has a Wii and a 360 by now, so those aren't going to sell hugely anymore either and the 3DS has recently begun to sell like crazy, even if Nintendo actually had it's first loss....so I guess people aren't really buying anything anymore except 3DS.

I just don't see new consoles doing any company any favors right now. I don't really know what other people's thoughts are, but I personally wouldn't buy a new PS4 or new Xbox this year, probably not even next year. The thing is, I don't really want one either. I get the impression people think new consoles will get all these game companies out of their rut, but I feel like it's just going to put them more in the hole.

Im no games analyst and Im not going to pretend like I am, but it just kind of feels like there's really no surefire way to jumpstart this gaming thing and get back to companies making money and studios not going out of business. I think were all fucked for the forseeable future.

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Yes, I really think anyone outside of Nintendo would be making a mistake launching a system, especially in this economy.

Sony, especially, would be unwise to launch the Orbis. The PS3 is selling strong, and the gap between the 360 is very narrow and/or non-existant at this point. They have a lot of momentum with the PS3, they need to keep it up, and focus a lot of attention on saving the Vita.

They could do themselves a lot of favors by not supporting the PSP in Japan anymore. That's hurting them, I think.

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It could motivate gaming companies to produce more/higher quality titles. If hardware sales are not giving you enough, then you have to leverage it with software and aftermarket products.

 

The thing is, this is true for any generation. What gets most people to buy a new console is a gimmick. Not just a single thing, but a variety of features that either improve or innovate on a prior attribute (like graphics). So far, only Nintendo has a console that would break itself apart from the Wii, but at the same time not alienate Wii users due to the new console relying on Wii Remotes.

 

I can't forecast its success though, and personally, unless a family member is going to give me a Wii U for Christmas, then I'm not going to be getting one right away.

Edited by Atomsk88
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Im not sold on the Wii U either. I really dont see the appeal. Then again, I didnt see the appeal of the Wii either when that came out.

Im assuming that Nintendo is banking on the Wii craze of 2008-20010 to repeat itself. Whether the Wii U innovates or not, Im not so sure people will fall for the same trick again. I still feel the Wii was a trick, not really innovation. Very few games were actually a lot more fun with Wiimote controls than without them. Most weren't. They were either worse or exactly the same. Except with 12% more hassle.

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A "trick?" That would mean the technology was absent, like those cheap PSP and DS knock-offs with false advertising on the packaging of either what the graphics will look like or actual device specifications.

 

No, we all had an idea of what should be motion controls, but the real games didn't have proper control mechanics most of the time. Same could be said for most upcoming technology, that most developers are at first attempting the technology rather than applying it. To this day, Nintendo was mainly the developer that got it right, with a few exceptions from others. With how the industry is adopting variants of motion controls, I think there is a place in the future for motion controls to apply to games, like rumble became. Rumble use to be a battery-powered attachment on the underside of the N64 controller, but now we don't have "rumble paks" (ending with the DS Lite) because every controller onward came with rumble built-in.

 

It's not that I'm not sold on the Wii U, I just wouldn't be able to make a next-gen leap this year. As TCP said, the PS3 is going on strong. There are even upcoming games I want to play that are now sliding into the 2013 mark. I don't think I could justify to myself about getting another console, just like getting a 360 now. I've had two chances where I could have bought a 360, but there were also other games. Getting another console and its games or stay with my current consoles and buy more games?

 

I chose to buy more games. Such is the price to pay when you own more than one console. If I were solely a Wii owner... oh, I think my only option would be to get a Wii U. Now I don't see how you can go wrong with a tablet controller, but that's just it, it's a tablet and a Wii U will only be worth owning if games make use of it. The Rayman Legends concept trailer was interesting to say the least, but that's only one concept game.

Edited by Atomsk88
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The casual audience will still be fine with their Wii console. The reason why the PS2 still sold well even with the introduction of a PS3 was that it was both cheap and filled with a library of games, both excellent and family-friendly. I can only imagine being a sales associate and trying to push a $400-$600 console compared to its predecessor which was $100-$120. Now the PS3 is immensely cheaper and you're bound to find consumers looking at (if not buying) the console.

 

The same will happen this time with the Wii and Wii U. I can only see the Wii U being the hot holiday item for either a family of Nintendo fans with the income or habitual first adopters.

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Ninty is being typically cagey with their hardware too so there won't be any exciting 3rd party titles for quite some time either, i don't even know what the online is going to look like yet. Unless Nintendo can come out with some quality new home-grown titles they're going to struggle to replicate the success of the Wii.

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Yeah that's a good point that Nintendo fanboys forget, a lot. While Nintendo always sold the Wii at a profit, they didn't get the software sales that 360/PS3 see. If Nintendo wants to up their profits this time around, they might want to try selling more systems to people who buy a few games a year.

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