There isn't a lot of reason for any of the 3 companies to get the next gen started. With the economic crisis it may be unwise to try to get people to buy new systems in general, but there are other reasons specific to each.
What the bleep would a PS4 even be? The PS3 is still the most expensive console, and way above the $200 mark that was standard before this gen. What are they going to do, make another $600 console? How would developers be able to even afford graphics more detailed than those the HD systems can do now? Nintendo wisely realized that the industry had skipped a generation. I also wonder if Sony would even be able to launch a system again in 3 years. They probably won't be at a point where they've had a return on their PS3 investment by then, and would not have the reputation that guaranteed 3rd party support this gen.
Nintendo might have a motive as more people get HDTV, but being in the dominant position, they have the most risk in pressing the reset button. Going HD also loses the advantage of being cheaper to develop games with.
Microsoft is kind of a combo of the others. Their system can already handle ridiculously powerful graphics, and they are doing pretty well. They started a year before the others, though, and do have an obvious upgrade to make. Including lots of cores would allow them to continue to make PC ports convenient. It might make sense though if their next console was simply 360 with Natal included, to offset the cost of the complicated control scheme.
Nintendo wisely realized that the industry had skipped a generation.
Are you referring to the Nintendo 64 with that statement? Also, I think I remember recently reading somewhere that an official Japanese figure/figures associated with Sony (can't exactly remember who) said that the PS3 could be around even for as long as 10 years (!) because they don't really know right now which direction they could take when producing PS4s. I think the current console generation (ie. Nintendo Wii/Xbox 360/PS3) is awesome just the way it is and I wouldn't mind at all if it stayed that way for several years to come.
Im guessing he means the Dreamcast, PS2, Gamecube and Xbox generation. Because Microsoft and Nintendo released their consoles quite late to the party and Microsoft pushed forward with the 360 and PS3 just behind and Nintendo thought hey lets do Wii. It cant hurt us!
Project Natal seems to suggest that even Microsoft aren't thinking about a new console yet. So thats good.
None of them were "late". MS released the X-Box in 2000 and then the 360 in 2005. The PS2 and GCN came out in 2001, the PS3 and Wii came out in 2006. They're following a five-year cycle now, which means that the next MS systems (already under development) is due in late 2010 and the next Sony and Nintendo are due in the fall of 2011.
MS IS preparing a new system. It'll be a Zune-based portable, similar in layout to the PSP. It's expected later this year.
They're following a five-year cycle now, which means that the next MS systems (already under development) is due in late 2010 and the next Sony and Nintendo are due in the fall of 2011.
Source?
MS IS preparing a new system. It'll be a Zune-based portable, similar in layout to the PSP. It's expected later this year.
Source?
I have a subscription to EDGE magazine, and they reckon that this will be the first gen in decades which lasts longer than 5 years. The idea of new systems coming out by 2011 is highly unlikely. They reckon the Wii might come out with a HD version, but there won't be a true next gen til 2013.
They reckon it'll be better for both the manufacturers and the games developers; the manufacturers don't need to spend money developing new consoles for a bit when they are making money as is, and the game developers don't have to spend money and time getting used to a new console to code for.
I don't know about the portable consoles though.
I'm hoping not @ new gen anytime soon.
Also this bs about a Microsoft portable needs to stop. We've been hearing about it for years now, and it still hasn't arrived. Microsoft would be stupid to enter the market right now, for a number of reasons. First and foremost, Nintendo still dominates the portable realm. Sony has already tried to wedge their way it, with a far superior system in terms of raw horsepower, and have largely "failed". Secondly, you have the crappy state the economy is in.
Finally... where's the announcement? One doesn't just surprise launch a brand new system with only a few months heads up. If there were a new system, we would have seen some leak of somekind... and someone on the internet blogging about it doesn't count.
Yea...forget next-gen. I'm so hoping this stays as it is...for atleast another 5 years. These consoles have lots of life left...surely. Xbox 2000? Really...I was pretty positive the Dreamcast was first...then the PS2 the next year. Xbox and GC were around the same time, I thought. But to be honest...I don't know...didn't pay the Xbox any attention at all. Honestly though...these systems are still pretty much new to lots of people. So many people I know want to buy a so and so...but finances don't allow it. Once/If the economy turns around, I would expect a surge in system sales. Most def. This gen...it ain't going nowhere, honey! 
I'm so hoping this stays as it is...for atleast another 5 years.
Yeah, I totally agree man.
Xbox 2000? Really...I was pretty positive the Dreamcast was first...then the PS2 the next year. Xbox and GC were around the same time, I thought.
From what I remember, Xbox and GC came out late 2001/early 2002. Dreamcast came out in Japan in 1998 and in the rest of the Western world in 1999. The PS2 also came out in Japan in 1999, from what I can remember. But the PS2 reached the rest of the Western world in 2000, since I remember my cousin getting his PS2 in late 2000. Me and my cousin both have PS3s now and we both hope this current gen sticks around for quite some time to come! 
Im guessing he means the Dreamcast, PS2, Gamecube and Xbox generation. Because Microsoft and Nintendo released their consoles quite late to the party and Microsoft pushed forward with the 360 and PS3 just behind and Nintendo thought hey lets do Wii. It cant hurt us!
I think that you could even call the DC the actual successor to the previous gen, and PS2/GC/XBox a gen that happened to start just after it. That's why the next gen after that had a $600 console.
And eww, Pachter agrees with me? Well, he did at least get his required wrong by saying that WiiHD will be coming in 2010. That's insanity, unless they somehow do it without making a new format.
None of them were "late". MS released the X-Box in 2000 and then the 360 in 2005. The PS2 and GCN came out in 2001, the PS3 and Wii came out in 2006.
Launched-
Dreamcast: 1999.
PS2: 2000.
Gamecube: 2002.
Xbox: 2002.
Xbox 360: 2005.
Wii: 2006.
PS3: 2007.
Because lol other continents 
and everyone ignores the "eurozones" 
This is good for me.
I just got a current-gen console.
PS3 was so before Wii[like just two weeks or something]. 😛 But that's just me being strange and particular. We don't ignore the eurozones...do we?
>_>
Some people on the forums do D: We should complain louder.
And let's call it PAL zones cause Aus always tends to be invited late to the party too 🙁 While you're all playing your games all early us PALs are sat outside barbequeing crumpets 🙁
iirc we got the PS3 super late and also super expensive compared to everyone else! That was fun times. I got a 360 instead 🙂 I'm fine with my 360 for a while longer, I don't use it particularly frequently anyway.
If it makes the Europeans feel any better, Americans are almost always shafted when it comes to European pop culture.
Anyways, I hope that none of the big 3 rush out their next consoles, and that when they do, they build them on tested technology and use upgraded versions of the current gen hardware instead of producing consoles with experimental hardware.
360/PS3 Generation! The Wii is kind of in its own category.
All 3 have things they still need to work on. PS3 has the most promise since it is the most powerful but being that it's a bugger to program for, alas silly Sony. There is that price but it'll come down soon enough. Improve the online too...gotta love their 1st party stuff (If you still haven't played Ratchet and Clank, I'll strangle you)
360...I've supposedly heard that some games that are coming out for it have pushed it to its limits. I find that a bit hard to believe but whatever the case, they could stand to do less buying the hearts of others (Square, Namco) and continue to develop their 1st party. Yea and...add a wireless adaptor to the 360. Oh and Microsoft should take their dreams of a handheld and flush them down the toilet.
Nintendo...kind of wish the Wii had more power to it but the thing spits out money. Only thing I wonder is when the bubble will burst. Soon everyone and their mom should have a Wii (They're no longer hard to find and I see them all the time now)...will they just continue with the massive amount of shovelware and occasional stellar title or will they step it up a notch? Results look a little promising but darnit Nintendo, develop new IP's! They practically swim in money, they can afford to take a risk.
This all a big IMHO.
Nintendo...kind of wish the Wii had more power to it but the thing spits out money. Only thing I wonder is when the bubble will burst. Soon everyone and their mom should have a Wii (They're no longer hard to find and I see them all the time now)
It took two years for production to catch up to demand. The 360 hit that mark in March 2006...In August 2007, the Wii passed the 360 in total and US sales and has never looked back.
http://www.mcvuk.com/news/34650/Sony-says-360-and-Wii-owners-will-upgrade-to-PS3
Some moron at Sony is confirming they are thinking this. LOL @ them citing the N64 vs. PS2 battle that never occurred. PS2 came out 4 years and at least 1 gen later. The Dreamcast came out 2 years earlier.
The translation of this is "don't expect a PS4 any time soon."
Sony is the only one that may step back after what happened at the release of the PS3...MS is still going ahead and Nintendo seems to be starting R&D on a Wii replacement. From what I have heard, the next Nintendo will have the same control setup as the Wii, but will have much better graphics and full HDMI support and an HDD, though they may be looking at an SSD instead.
The rumoured "WiiHD"? Well, I don't doubt that plans are being drawn up to address some of the Wii's perceived weaknesses in regards to their next console. But it probably won't be anything more than a modest upgrade. Think "DSi".
LOL @ them citing the N64 vs. PS2 battle that never occurred. PS2 came out 4 years and at least 1 gen later. The Dreamcast came out 2 years earlier.
Nintendo released Majora's Mask the same week as the PS2 debut in North America, in a bid to steal some of Sony's thunder. They lost.
To be honest, I don't think he was talking about industry fisticuffs here: he's describing N64 owners, many of them young children or first time console purchasers "graduating" by choosing a PS2 as their next console after the N64 had begun to lose its luster to them. Granted, at the time the only other "next gen" console available was the Dreamcast, and the PS2 hitting retail was the death knell for that unfortunate console. There was only one real clear choice, as far as the casual market was concerned. The GameCube came just a tad too late to stop many from jumping ship to Sony.
Well, I know he's right for me as I'm probably gonna get a PS3 epspecially if a price drop is coming like I've heard. As a matter of fact, the way the guy is talking, it sounds like he's just confirming it to me.
Well of course they'll upgrade to PS3, if they like the games that is...oh yea and that pesky cost thing. I can see Wii games upgrading to the PS3 but 360? The same 360 which keeps snapping up properties that were usually Sony exclusive? We shall see. Sony does have some awesome first party stuff going for it though.
Too bad they had to scrap the whole backwards compatibility thing. Being able to play PS1/2/3 games on one system is so nice. Oh and Virtual Console makes Playstation Store look like a joke (Why oh why does the Japanese store blow ours out the water?). Oh hey we got FF7, very good, very good...
/sarcasm
Being able to play PS1/2/3 games on one system is so nice.
Yeah, no kidding. That's a MASSIVE catalogue of games right there!
How dare you jest at the VC, foo! I had probably, up until recently, plugged in more hours on VC games than actual Wii games. My Wii was basically a Genesis/SNES/Turbo Grafx/and 64 for about 5 or 6 months there. And Playstation removing backwards compatibility...don't even get me started on that crap. Small children visit this forum...
*bites tongue...off*
YOWZAA!!
='(
Where is it in my statement that I jeer VC?
Edit: About that 360...New 360 in works?
Could this perhaps include Natal? And is it really a new 360 sku or something more?
Where is it in my statement that I jeer VC?
Edit: About that 360...New 360 in works?
Could this perhaps include Natal? And is it really a new 360 sku or something more?
Ahhh...I see, you that sarcasm was only directed at FFVII. My bad, dude. Couldn't tell. So many people talk smack about the VC...I was just trying to defend my love...that's all. 😛 And this new 360...seriously. Why even...? lol
Sony's average console lifespan is longer than 3 years. The PS1 launched in 1995. The PS2 launched in 2000, 5 years later. The PS3 launched in 2006, 6 years later. As such, I do not see any reason to expect only a 3 years life span for the PS3, when the others averaged 5.5 years.
X-Box launched in 2002 (2001 in the US), and the 360 launched in 2005. Granted, that's only 2 consoles, but given that, and the comments on the aging software even from their own developers, I would not be surprised to see Microsoft announce a new console before long.
The Famicom launched in 1983 (NES hit the US in 1985), followed by the Super Famicom / SNES in 1990 /1993 respectively. A whopping 7 years, 10 from Famicom to SNES. The N64 hit in 1996, 6 years for Japan, but only 3 years later for the US. Gamecube hit in Japan in 2001, and the US in 2002. 5 years in Japan, and 6 again in the US. And finally, the Wii hit in 2006, only 5 years for Japan, and an even shorter 4 years in the US.
What does that mean? The Japan releases just keep getting faster and faster for Nintendo, longer for Sony, and Microsoft hasn't put out enough consoles to really have a pattern yet. Microsoft is the only one to actually hit the 3-year life cycle for anything but the US launches, which I only included for Nintendo because of the length of time between their Japan launches and their US launches. Microsoft and Sony generally release their consoles closer together in different markets than Nintendo does.
So, with all of that in mind, I would say the next new console we will see is probably going to be the new X-Box, followed by either a new Nintendo console or an update / re-design of the Wii.
Sony's average console lifespan is longer than 3 years. The PS1 launched in 1995. The PS2 launched in 2000, 5 years later. The PS3 launched in 2006, 6 years later. As such, I do not see any reason to expect only a 3 years life span for the PS3, when the others averaged 5.5 years.
X-Box launched in 2002 (2001 in the US), and the 360 launched in 2005. Granted, that's only 2 consoles, but given that, and the comments on the aging software even from their own developers, I would not be surprised to see Microsoft announce a new console before long.
The Famicom launched in 1983 (NES hit the US in 1985), followed by the Super Famicom / SNES in 1990 /1993 respectively. A whopping 7 years, 10 from Famicom to SNES. The N64 hit in 1996, 6 years for Japan, but only 3 years later for the US. Gamecube hit in Japan in 2001, and the US in 2002. 5 years in Japan, and 6 again in the US. And finally, the Wii hit in 2006, only 5 years for Japan, and an even shorter 4 years in the US.
What does that mean? The Japan releases just keep getting faster and faster for Nintendo, longer for Sony, and Microsoft hasn't put out enough consoles to really have a pattern yet. Microsoft is the only one to actually hit the 3-year life cycle for anything but the US launches, which I only included for Nintendo because of the length of time between their Japan launches and their US launches. Microsoft and Sony generally release their consoles closer together in different markets than Nintendo does.
So, with all of that in mind, I would say the next new console we will see is probably going to be the new X-Box, followed by either a new Nintendo console or an update / re-design of the Wii.
This.
The SuperNES was released in the US on 28AUG1991. I know, because I pre-ordered one from Electronics Boutique (EBGames now) and they called me to let me know that they had arrived in the store for pickup.
Yeah where did this madness about SNES in 1993 come from? Is that the Australian list?
The info comes from the Japanese site.
I know when and where I bought MY SNES and for how much. I don't give a rat's arse what some website says. I've seen plenty of inaccurate info out there. The Famicon didn't come out until Xmas 1984.
