The Next-Gen Misunderstanding…

Next Generation ≠ Graphics or Sony???

Let’s face it, the next gen console wars are starting to sound like a couple of guys comparing the sizes of their, let’s just say ummmm…trucks, the two biggest competitors, Microsoft and Sony -Nintendo is intelligently doing their own thing)- seem to fixated on who’s console can push more polygons, render more on-screen characters and play like a “lucid dream” (sorry Mr. Moore, I had to bring it up). A lot of this has to do with the hard on these guys are getting for the soon to be mainstream transition to high definition TVs, but the biggest thought process that is seemingly -I’ll explain why I used that word in a little bit- floating through these two corporate giant’s heads is that this generation is going to be won by whoever delivers the most awesome, radical, insane, holy shit that was awesome graphics to have ever graced the living room. Yeah, the graphics are going to be amazing and eventually they will blow away the previous generations but they always do. Anybody out there remember how realistic Quarterback Club ’98 was? I’ll even go farther back, “Oh my god! Star Fox is 3d!!!” So, why is it that this generation has been plastered as being The Next Generation? Is it because the graphics are going to be Toy Story quality? Oh wait, never mind, according to Ken Kuturagi, that was supposed to be the Playstation 2. Here’s the real reason why this is the “Next Generation” of gaming: functionality and integration. It’s really that simple, but unless something drastically changes in the upcoming months, which is possible but unlikely, I think there’s going to be a very significant shift in the console power rankings.

Let me clarify what I mean when I say integration, in regards to winning the console wars. I’m talking about integration that actually changes the way we think about and play games. Blu-Ray drive? Nope. HD-DVD accessory? Definitely not. 1080p resolution? I guess it’s cool for the .2% (exaggeration/estimation) of people that own a TV that can actually put out that high resolution of a picture, but it’s still not what I’m talking about. How about this one- mandatory customizable soundtracks? That’s getting a little bit closer. Being able to download demos of unreleased games, classic games (some of which come with new online compatibility), mods, Indie games, patches and playing them all on the same console? Now that’s the integration I’m talking about.

Obviously, Nintendo is going to try and do this and they’ll probably succeed and Microsoft is already doing this with amazing results. The only question left unanswered is where the hell is Sony? As of right now, Sony hasn’t officially announced anything, but gamers like to speculate and there’s pretty good evidence out there that points to Sony having not a centralized online service like Xbox Live, Xbox Live Arcade/Marketplace or Nintendo’s still untitled service and even if they do it might be too late. Nintendo has a back category of games so large they can easily survive from within, and while Sony is developing their console Microsoft is already in the process of bringing in third huge party games like Street Fighter 2 Hyper Fighter to XLA. Xbox Live has already proven itself as a success, which is something developers are going to cling to. It might not have been their intention and they could have just been outmaneuvered by Microsoft, but Sony really is stuck in a corner with their online integration. I’m not saying you won’t be able to play Playstation 3 games online; obviously, you will I’m saying that the total online experience of the Playstation 3 might not be as integrated or Next-Gen as the Xbox 360 or the Revolution. I’ll be the first one to say I was completely wrong if Sony comes out and blows us away in the next couple months with an incredible online service, but it’s almost crunch time for Sony and they’re running out of time and more importantly, customers.

The second key to being Next-Gen that I mentioned above was functionality. Once again, I’m not talking about watching HD movies, streaming media, integrating the living etc, I’m talking about games. The online plans that I wrote about above fall into this category, but functionality is more then that.

Functionality doesn’t have to be complex, in fact, it can be very simple. It’s always about the little things anyways isn’t it? Gamer Cards are the best example of this. Xbox 360’s Gamer Cards have tapped into the simple physiological build that every gamer has, pride. People play games to win: they level up their character in World of Warcraft to be unstoppable in raids; people beat Ninja Gaiden because it’s a worthy accomplishment, and a couple million people play Halo 2 on Xbox Live to show they are the best. Gamer Cards allow gamers to show that they are the best to a community of 10 million other gamers. That’s Next Gen functionality. Currently, there aren’t announced plans from Sony or Nintendo to do something similar, but it wouldn’t be very hard to do so one would think that they will.

The most obvious use of Next-Gen functionality can be seen in the Nintendo Revolution controller. When the controller was debuted at the Tokyo Game Show last year gamers were left thinking either “what the fuck? Nintendo’s officially dead” or “Oh my god. Nintendo’s going to rule the world1!!!111!!” Judging from the people that actually tested it or have seen the demos, the controller is probably going to be great. Granted, a lot of questions are still unanswered like issues on multi-console 3^rd party games, but it’s clear that Nintendo is extremely confident they’ve created a “Revolution”ary product that is truly Next-Gen.

The Revolution is still a little more then 10 months away and I doubt that only a few elite individuals at Sony know the Playstation 3’s launch window. The Xbox 360 is still extremely early in its life cycle. What this means is that a lot can and probably will change before next Christmas. Everything that I’ve talked about here are my impressions on what I see going on right now and my speculations on what is going to happen. Hopefully there is a place in the market for all three consoles because the better competition, the better the games because everything I’ve talked about above means nothing if the games aren’t great. From what I’ve seen so far, the Next Generation has started to arrive.

Next Generation Power Rankings

1. Xbox 360- The console is on the market and besides a few minor gripes that were blown out of proportion because of people like me who like to write on the internet, it’s been a huge success.
2. Nintendo Revolution- My favorite song off of Queensryche’s masterpiece “Operation Mindcrime” keeps ringing through my head. The song name? “Revolution’s Calling” It seems like Nintendo has found the perfect medium between saying too much and saying nothing. They hype train has been rolling for a little while now and Nintendo’s only made one minor mistake, this quote from Reggie Fils-Aime, the executive vp of sales and marketing of Nintendo of America— “We will sell more units than Xbox 360 did here in the United States in our launch window,”—Sort of seems like a moot point considering the 360 will have been on the shelves for a year already and established with games like Gears of War and Elder Scrolls IV. Nintendo probably should be more worried about the launch of the…..
3. Playstation 3- So….I’d say something here if there was anything to say or I could just throw around random speculation like a delayed release date, redesigned controller or a launch shortage due to manufacturing problems of their much bragged about cell processor, but I have way more integrity then that. Wait, never mind. Don’t worry PS3 fan boys once the middle of February comes around, I’m fairly confident this will jump a spot or two.