Will Nintendo, Sony and Microsoft go the way of Sega?
Nintendo is one of the biggest names in gaming, as is Sony and Microsoft. But among those three
companies, only one has an exclusive focus on gaming. So while Sony and Microsoft can willingly
look to another device for their revenue stream, it is all or nothing for Nintendo.
The demise of Sega
Before the rise of the big 3, the console battle was fought between Nintendo and Sega. Nintendo
had consoles like the NES and the SNES, while Sega contributed the Genesis and Mega drive.
The console gaming industry was booming. Sega had its company mascots like Sonic driving the sales of their hardware with games that customers loved. Nintendo fought back with exclusive Mario and Zelda games that were equally valued by customers.
This gave fuel to the fire, ensuring that these gaming companies were pushed to create greater
hardware with even better games. This also attracted a new player into the gaming market, Sony. At
the time of Nintendo’s N64 and Sega’s Genesis, Sony burst on to the scene with the Playstation.
Many gamers flocked to this new console which boasted a strong lineup of games as well as
introducing an appealing slimline version. It was up to Nintendo and Sega to respond with their respective console iterations.
When the next generation of consoles were upon us, a new competitor in the form of microsoft’s Xbox was introduced. At this time Sony also introduced the massively popular PS2. Nintendo responded with the Gamecube and Sega with the Dreamcast. Though both had strong initial sales figures, neither could compare with the juggernaught that was the PS2. Even less so when the PS2 slim was introduced, a console that is still on sale today. The Xbox found a niche market in the online gaming community with it’s online gameplay service, Xbox live, and it’s string multimedia capabilities.
Nintendo managed to weather the storm of these new consoles through their strong mobile gaming
platforms, but Sega was not so lucky. Initially consumers loved the interesting design of the
Dreamcast, but the excitement soon faded. Consoles weren’t moving from store shelves, and Sega
was no longer profitable.
Here began the loss of Sega’s hardware business in favour of becoming exclusively a software
manufacturer. One of the great console-making companies was forever lost.
Nintendo
Though not totally overcome, Nintendo was under pressure to compete with the stronger
competition of Microsoft and Sony after the disappointing sales of the N64 and Gamecube. It did this by taking a gamble and redefining the gaming experience with the Wii.
The demise of Sega led to a new breed of gaming console, Nintendo realised that the traditional
console gaming life cycle had to change. For every new console, manufacturers were in a race to
produce the fastest processor for the best graphics. In the three-horse race between the Gamecube,
PS2 and Xbox, Nintendo was oftentimes seen as the winner in terms of graphics performance. This,
however, did not result in good sales figures for the Gamecube. Customers still fled to the added
features provided by their competitors.
This prompted the radical change from Nintendo, they would aim their next console at an even
bigger market: the non-gamer. Nintendo realised that is was only the core gamer that longed for a
more complicated gaming experience. Once the bar was raised too high, the casual gamer would be
less interested in continuing play. So the learning curve for gaming was removed.
Nintendo introduced the Wii console that abandoned the traditional controller in favor of the
motion controlled "Wiimote". All that was required to play these games was a swing of the arm or a
flick of the wrist. Even shooting games were made as simple as pointing the remote at the screen,
just like arcade games. This concept was so popular that Nintendo could often not keep up with
demand for the console.
So what would cause consumers to move away from such a popular platform? What could possibly
lead to the end of the console as we know it?
Recent developments
The 2012 iteration of the E3 gaming conference gave us a look at what the major console
manufactures have in store for gaming in the coming months and years. Nintendo has upgraded its
graphics to create the Wii U console with a new tablet controller. This is the first hint as to what’s
changing in the console industry. Manufacturers are looking to extend the console experience onto
mobile devices.
For Sony and Microsoft, already having a strong footing in the mobile gadget domain with Windows
Phone and the Xperia respectively, this will be an easy transition. Nintendo has no say in the tablet
and smartphone market. And with more and more games and developers flocking to these devices,
there is less reason for the consumer to rely on the dedicated gaming console. The current
generation of smartphones can now extend the smartphone screen to an HDTV, and even
accommodate a Bluetooth controller.
Conclusion
Interest now seems to be waning among the public for gaming consoles that cannot do something
more than play games. Blu-ray players and streaming services are now becoming must-haves for the
console manufacturers to attract customers. More and more the games station is being seen as the
media hub. How long before its purpose for gaming becomes forgotten?
Comments