2003 Rants

4th December 2003

Five New Consoles in 2004?

Are we supposed to be enjoying one of the high points in the games console cycle, or are we at the tail end or it, waiting for the next generation? Just when you thought it was safe to feel contented with your Xbox and Gamecube, the rumor mill spins into overdrive. Enter Sony, the current hardware kings, though left with the least powerful hardware at the highest price. In a way they are now victims of their own success. They push the concept of playing video games into a socially acceptable sphere, no longer are gamers geeks. Indeed, the Playstation 2 is aimed as a fashion accessory, pushed along on a wave of celebrity lined enthusiasm. All it’s contemporaries had to do was say, “oh yes, us too”

So, gaming booms, and instead of 90% of people playing one console, you have 60% owning two or three of the current formats. Those who laugh last laugh longest, and this time round it’s microsoft. Last to enter the hardware market, the Xbox remains the most powerful console available. Sony and Microsoft pretty much depend on third party companies to produce 90% of their content, and exclusivity is something the independents have grown tired of, as Grand Theft Auto 3 on Xbox would testify. Now, if you own a PS2 and an Xbox, which version of Prince of Persia or Need for Speed Underground are you going to buy? The most powerful one of course, Xbox wins.

Finally you have Nintendo, who’s original content and low prices make it the perfect choice for those who want to own a second console. Despite what you may have read in rival format magazines, the Gamecube, while not as powerful as the Xbox, has considerably more grunt than the PS2. So the question arises again, if you own a PS2 and a Gamecube, which version of SSX3 are you going to buy?

Price is the big issue with where this current war is heading. Sony aren’t budging, though there are signs that things will change after the Christmas boom. Xbox is losing money hand over fist, but Microsoft has the biggest pockets of all, and market share is what it’s buying. Nintendo have been brave, the current UK price of £79 is staggering. This is a console more powerful than the PS2 which is selling at £140. In Europe and the US sales of the Gamecube are up 400%, so now we have a real fight on our hands again for the number two spot. Industry opinion is that post Christmas, Nintendo should be back in second place. With all the attention being centered on the battle between its rivals, Sony have to make sure they don’t have their lead diminished in the process.

If you were running Sony, what would you do? You could slash the price of the PS2, make it harder for Microsoft to price match, and give Nintendo a run for its money at their price point. Or maybe, as Sony handle all the game disc production, they could enforce a new price policy. All new releases at £20, compared to £40. You’d be more tempted to go for the PS2 version of Prince of Persia if it was half the price of the Xbox version. Problem is that the publishers wouldn’t like it, and you devalue the worth of games software for the next generation.

There’s only one answer, you’ve told everyone that your PS3 is not coming out till the end of 2005, but Ken Kutaragi has built it already, you know it will sell millions, ah, lets release it early!

It’s a big step. The Playstation division is the main profit earning part of the Sony empire, and the release date of PS3 will determine the future of Sony as a whole. The console cycle is hard to fathom, and the last thing Sony will want is to buy into the Sega effect.

The Megadrive was the Playstation of its day, but instead of holding off development and investing in their next console, we got several flops. First the expanded AVP cartridges like Virtua Racing, then the Mega CD, then the 32X and MultiMega, and finally the Nomad. Every one was a sales disaster, and we very nearly had another to add to the list, the Sega Neptune - a Megadrive and 32X In one, was canceled despite going into preproduction. When their new console, the Sega Saturn, finally launched it struggled against against the weak 3DO and Jaguar. The hype surrounding the Playstation was too big, despite some great games the Saturn never stood a chance. You have to wonder what the Saturn could have been if it had benefitted from all that R&D time wasted on the Megadrive developments.

The early death of the Saturn spawned the early birth of the Dreamcast, a quality console with great games which struggled for sales from day one. I’m sure if the Saturn had been moderately successful, the Dreamcast would have benefitted from longer gestation, and could have easily matched Playstation 2, particularly when you take into account the incredibly poor software to debut on Sony’s second console.

The point of all this is, that thanks for pressure from Xbox and Gamecube, Sony may be about to rush into the release of the PS3. While Microsoft have stated that they won’t let Sony get a head start in the next console cycle, they could do well to stand back and watch a while. We are currently in a situation where the most powerful console isn’t number one, but there have been plenty of times when the more advanced, but later released console has taken pole position. As for Nintendo, apparently they are more than ready this time around, and won’t wait as long as they did with the Gamecube. If the next round is going to be totally fair, don’t we need all three consoles to be released on the same day? Now that’s some party!

Current Rumors:

Sony

The rival to the Gameboy, the Sony PSP is penciled in for release at the end of November 2004, initially in Japan, though it is thought that a worldwide release for Christmas is desired. Some opinion though, is that if the PS3 is revealed at next year’s E3 it will steal the PSP’s release slot, with Sony unlikely to release two consoles around the same time. A third machine (not the Sony PSX DVD Recorder - that’s coming in Spring) is scheduled for release in the Summer of 2004, this is a rival to Apple’s IPOD offering MP3 music storage as well as simple games. If the PS3 comes out for next Christmas, it’s likely the PSP will be redeveloped for release in 2005.

Microsoft

Xbox 2 is rumored to have been designed before the release of the Xbox. It is thought that as soon as Sony confirm a PS3 release date, Microsoft will join them, no more than a month earlier or later. You have to wonder though whether they are prepared for Sony to spring a surprise release. Rumor is that they are more than ready with development tools already shipped to first party developers.

Nintendo

Far from the Gamecube being Nintendo’s last home console, there are many rumors of new machines from the mighty N in 2004. Firstly, Nintendo themselves have announced that they will show new console hardware at E3, but it won’t be a successor to Gamecube. That doesn’t mean that a Gamecube 2 style console won’t be released next year, and some sources are saying there is a machine finished and ready to go into production for a late Spring/Summer release. This seems a little early, but you never know. Secondly the new Gameboy, scheduled for Autumn 2004. The tastiest rumor on Nintendo’s new handheld machine (which is only being rush developed because of the media interest in Sony’s PSP) is that it will in fact be a handheld Gamecube, capable of playing all available gamecube games. Rather than putting the games in a tray, the unit will open like a GBA SP, with the bottom half of the machine opening again, to insert the discs on a centre spool like you do with the Gamecube. As I say, only rumors gleaned from Nintendo fan sites, but you never know how accurate they may be. Finally, there is a rumour that the mystery machine Nintendo are developing is a completely new concept, like the Virtual Boy was. Maybe a self contained headset with VR style games cartridges plugged directly into it. We can all dream can’t we!!

14th MAY 2003

SONY’S HANDHELD RAMPAGE

So, today Sony announce that they are to release a handheld version of the Playstation, based on the original first version of the console. Nintendo shares drop 10% and Sony’s rise 20%. Onlookers would say it was inevitable, but what does this really mean for the Gameboy, and in the end, Nintendo.

As i’ve mused before, Sony do make good games inhouse, but if you look at their A list titles, in sales terms, they are a tiny publisher in comparison to EA, Take 2, or Infogrammes (Atari my arse!!) The Gameboy is what it is, not because of technology, but because of intellectual property. It is the last fortress in the Nintendo dynasty. Unlike the mainstream console war, technology is far less important. Top GBA sellers have been Mario Kart, Advance Wars, Mario Bros, not exactly cutting edge, but incredibly well designed and playable games. Sony are to launch their 32-bit handheld with disc technology, pretty obviously based on their own mini-disc format, a system which would perfectly replicate a mini-playstation gaming philosophy, or in other words, allow old games to be converted to the system.

But what games? I remember when Ridge Racer blew me away on the original Playstation launch, but if you tried to play it now, you’d run screaming back to Mario Kart. Sony’s roster of PSOne titles relied on technology as the driver, not gameplay. Apart from quirky Japanese games which never got released here in the first place, I can’t think of a single title worth converting over. Would anybody really rush to play a convertion of the original Grand Theft Auto?

In contrast, Nintendo could delve a complete generation back, digging up all their Super Nintendo games, giving them a spit and polish, and in the process reminding gamers why 3D was so over rated in the Playstation era. It’s a war which Nintendo, as the super established king of handheld market, should win very easily. but...

The mass market are so bewitched by the Playstation, Sony have the casual gamer in the palm of their hand, and any of those idiots who still think Nintendo are just for kids, might well ditch their Gameboys for Sony handhelds. It’s a worrying prospect for Nintendo, even though the hardcore will support them to the bitter end.

The hardcore gamer it seems according to recent research, is becoming a truly tiny part of the games market. It’s not that we have got less in number, rather the mass market has grown so huge. Our influence is quickly dissapearing, despite most of the games press being dominated by hardcore gamers. How else do you explain Primal getting in the top 10?

On the brighter side, GBA is selling by the bucket load, and is a fantastic console. There are a lot of people out there who wouldn’t go for a dump without a GBA in their back pocket. More great games on the way too, rumours of a new GBA mario kart, Advance Wars 2, and no doubt more Nintendo surprises. Then there is the time frame, Sony are saying that their new console won’t appear until the end of 2004. Well, that’s a nice development frame for a GBA sequel, and I think I know what would do the trick.

Ever thought how cool the Gamecube’s 3” discs are? They are also the perfect size for loading in a GBA sized handheld console. So, how about it Nintendo, strike Sony where it hurts with a full on Handheld Gamecube. If they can sell the full console for less than £100, surely that could be £99 too. Imagine that, Zelda Windwalker in the palm of your hand!! Talking of which..

21st February 2003

WHAT THE HELL WERE WE PLAYING?

As regular readers will know, i’ve been a gamer since the seventies, and while it’s rather painful to admit, 2002 rated as a hell of a year for duff games. While I, like many others, was tempted to buy games which recieved good review scores, or had a degree of pedigree associated to them, I was in most cases dissapointed. It is time to give you my top ten of the games of last year, and the selection process has been particularly painful. The reason? Well, how would you like to give a top ten of games where you didn’t particularly enjoy the games at the bottom of the list. Yes, that’s the kind of year it was, the kind where you play things for playing things sake. While there are many games I spent considerable time with in the list, it is bolstered by many which dissapointed from the outset, and should games be in any kind of chart if they fail to live up to expectation?

As ever, I like to comment on the current state of play in the games world within this column. It seems, and it brings a lump in my throat to admit it, that Microsoft are beating Nintendo in the console wars. I know I am not alone in my state of despair of an industry led by Sony and Microsoft. Nintendo seem to be backing themselves further and further into the corner of cult. Don’t get me wrong, Sony are a producer of amazing games. Their highly original games for Playstation 2 are to be applauded, the fact that none of them make it out of Japan and to the West however, should be deeply frowned upon. Microsoft on the other hand, don’t even try to produce original games, content with updating and refining first person shooters add infinitem. You can’t blame them if the mass market is going to continue to buy such un-originality. Sony’s problem is their own success, without the glut of third party producers bringing games for the format, they would have to work far harder in providing the kind of entertainment Nintendo regularly deliver. I’m sure Sony are very capable of it.

Nintendo may be on the back foot, but we’ve got some amazing games to look forward to, new Zelda, FZero and Mario Kart promised for Christmas. There is also the buzz about new hardware, a next generation console already in development. They aren’t ready to take the Sega “developer only” route yet. I find it unbelievable that a console as cute as the Gamecube, more powerful than PS2 and cheaper than both rival consoles, can sell less than Xbox, surely Mario Sunshine should have been more of a crowd puller than that!

I am a sad man, a so called hardcore gamer, I know the release dates for games I don’t even want, I hunt for pictures and news on new releases from all over the web. I owned an Xbox as soon as it came out. In the past three months, i’ve bought 8 Gamecube games, i’ve bought nothing for Xbox. There is one game on my wants list for Xbox, project Gotham 2. I did have Grand Prix 4 by Geoff Crammond on the list, but it seems to have disapeared into development hell. For Gamecube i’ve got six games on the list, all of which i’m really looking forward to. Perhaps things will change when the broadband adaptor for Xbox hits the shops at the end of March, i’m certainly hoping so. PS2 is getting some good titles for it’s network adaptor in the US, so the landscape of console gaming has a possibility of change. Problem is, it has never been made clear whether the mass market casual gamer has any interest in online gaming. Perhaps Nintendo are being clever keeping out of it, or perhaps it’s a worry they will be left a step behind. As ever, we will have to wait and see