Rumored Tech Specs Give Wii 2 More Power Than Xbox 360
- Thread starter Tom Goldman
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Nintendo, you do know that Xbox 360 was out a year before the Wii right? What are you possibly accomplishing by one-upping a system that's been around since 2005? Microsoft'll make a system that's more powerful than the Wii 2 within a year of this console's release, if not sooner.
Gather round me children, there's some history I would tell.
There was a time when it looked like Nintendo would be pushed out of the hardware market, going the way of Atari and Sega. M$ and Sony both had large budgets and were willing to suffer considerable losses for the longterm strength of their consoles. It seemed their would be no console-based companies, only larger electronics/software companies with console divisions. Because the Gamecube sucked and Xbox was by far the strongest console in its' generation, I didn't mind.
Sony decided to adopt M$ strategy of having the best hardware. M$ decided to adopt Sony's strategy of getting a 1-year head-start. Meanwhile Nintendo, having profited from its' cheap Gamecube while the Xbox sold at a loss, planned to release a repackaged Gamecube with lightgun controllers. The key to their victory would be in marketing their console to incompetents and families.
Nintendo's strategy was monstrously successful. The electronics and software giants had been staring down each other so intently they'd missed the mouse between them. Already it had made great profits from its' handhelds and found it didn't need the best hardware to have the best-selling hardware.
The giants saw how well Nintendo's shit sold and realized they didn't have to release new consoles, only new controllers. Motion controllers opened up a whole new market of non-gamers who'd be happy to play any shit, or buy the consoles and let them sit. Both M$ and Sony adopted Nintendo's strategy and released motion-controllers. Sony had long stated a commitment to a 10-year lifecycle for their console, perhaps to promise consumers that the expensive initial price would be an investment against having to update their console in the next 5 years. Their new console goes back on this word partially but only partially as their certification requirements don't demand developers use motion controls. Meanwhile, M$'s motion controller has sold well, proving the audience of non-gamers willing to buy gaming equipment hasn't been saturated.
Now new developments stir and, loathe though I am to recognize this truth, I dread Nintendo will profit most again in the new generation. Their marketing "leaks" have it that their new systems better than their current competitors (if barely) which is only coming up to par and their controllers have another gimmick (screens in them, like the Dreamcast remotes, where's Sega's patent or the guy that went to court w/them over that?). More importantly, the DS, best-selling console of all (proving casual = mass appeal = better sales) is being reiterated with another gimmick (3d!) adopting movies marketing plot. I suspect Nintendo will do best for the following reasons:
1) Profit Margin. The Gamecube/wii is sold well above its' cost-to-make. M$ has relied on a high attachment rate to profit and the PS3 nearly reduced Sony to its' movie/music divisions. As Nintendo's new systems are barely improvements over the old, they're continuing their tradition of small upgrades and cheap hardware well-overpriced vs. Sony and M$'s strategems of pushing console standards (M$ less so than Sony, their plan in the last generation seemed to be to nearly match Sony and go no further).
2) Consumer response. I suspect most of the saps who want motion controls already own wiis. I suspect (though would need data to know) M$ and Sony are selling mostly to folks who already have own their consoles. This means that the non-gamers who bought the wii still don't know them for the most part. So when the wii2 comes out, uncontested by anything from M$ or Sony (their new consoles are their motion controls, as the wiimote was Nintendo's improvement on the Gamecube) it'll sell record-settingly well, like MW2 did the Q4 multiple publishers decide to delay their titles until spring.
It's possible a lack of opposition will cause consumers to feel upgrading less necessary, that the rival's necessary to say, "now's the time to buy a new console" but I don't think so. People buy PS2s and 360s when they're the first system out and I don't think many consumers are keeping track of the competitors launches. More importantly, the demographic of non-gamers who bought the wii don't know any other console. The new console will seem like just another gadget up to them, like a 5G phone being replaced by a 6g. Having not played their wii since they bought it, they might feel a pang of want to play games again, advertisements convincing their filterless minds.
3) Split competition. Part of the wii's success was that it forced anyone who wanted to develop for it to use its' shit motion controls. This made its' entire library accessible to n00bs. They never needed to feel threatened by demands that they gain skills to play a game. They were even willing to buy new peripherals like expensive scales for wii fit. Meanwhile, M$ and Sony have attempted to appeal to both camps, gamers and people-who-buy-whatever-they're-told-to.
Perhaps in the long run this will pay off. Since folks who buy motion-controllers don't use them there's less of a likelihood they'll encounter the confusing scenario of buying a game they don't know how to play. Even if they do, they'll forget and not hold it against M$/Sony.
Gamers don't give a shit about motion controls and M$/Sony have invested in them instead of games developed in-house, publishing 3rd-party titles, or otherwise improving their consoles in a meaningful way.
There was a time when it looked like Nintendo would be pushed out of the hardware market, going the way of Atari and Sega. M$ and Sony both had large budgets and were willing to suffer considerable losses for the longterm strength of their consoles. It seemed their would be no console-based companies, only larger electronics/software companies with console divisions. Because the Gamecube sucked and Xbox was by far the strongest console in its' generation, I didn't mind.
Sony decided to adopt M$ strategy of having the best hardware. M$ decided to adopt Sony's strategy of getting a 1-year head-start. Meanwhile Nintendo, having profited from its' cheap Gamecube while the Xbox sold at a loss, planned to release a repackaged Gamecube with lightgun controllers. The key to their victory would be in marketing their console to incompetents and families.
Nintendo's strategy was monstrously successful. The electronics and software giants had been staring down each other so intently they'd missed the mouse between them. Already it had made great profits from its' handhelds and found it didn't need the best hardware to have the best-selling hardware.
The giants saw how well Nintendo's shit sold and realized they didn't have to release new consoles, only new controllers. Motion controllers opened up a whole new market of non-gamers who'd be happy to play any shit, or buy the consoles and let them sit. Both M$ and Sony adopted Nintendo's strategy and released motion-controllers. Sony had long stated a commitment to a 10-year lifecycle for their console, perhaps to promise consumers that the expensive initial price would be an investment against having to update their console in the next 5 years. Their new console goes back on this word partially but only partially as their certification requirements don't demand developers use motion controls. Meanwhile, M$'s motion controller has sold well, proving the audience of non-gamers willing to buy gaming equipment hasn't been saturated.
Now new developments stir and, loathe though I am to recognize this truth, I dread Nintendo will profit most again in the new generation. Their marketing "leaks" have it that their new systems better than their current competitors (if barely) which is only coming up to par and their controllers have another gimmick (screens in them, like the Dreamcast remotes, where's Sega's patent or the guy that went to court w/them over that?). More importantly, the DS, best-selling console of all (proving casual = mass appeal = better sales) is being reiterated with another gimmick (3d!) adopting movies marketing plot. I suspect Nintendo will do best for the following reasons:
1) Profit Margin. The Gamecube/wii is sold well above its' cost-to-make. M$ has relied on a high attachment rate to profit and the PS3 nearly reduced Sony to its' movie/music divisions. As Nintendo's new systems are barely improvements over the old, they're continuing their tradition of small upgrades and cheap hardware well-overpriced vs. Sony and M$'s strategems of pushing console standards (M$ less so than Sony, their plan in the last generation seemed to be to nearly match Sony and go no further).
2) Consumer response. I suspect most of the saps who want motion controls already own wiis. I suspect (though would need data to know) M$ and Sony are selling mostly to folks who already have own their consoles. This means that the non-gamers who bought the wii still don't know them for the most part. So when the wii2 comes out, uncontested by anything from M$ or Sony (their new consoles are their motion controls, as the wiimote was Nintendo's improvement on the Gamecube) it'll sell record-settingly well, like MW2 did the Q4 multiple publishers decide to delay their titles until spring.
It's possible a lack of opposition will cause consumers to feel upgrading less necessary, that the rival's necessary to say, "now's the time to buy a new console" but I don't think so. People buy PS2s and 360s when they're the first system out and I don't think many consumers are keeping track of the competitors launches. More importantly, the demographic of non-gamers who bought the wii don't know any other console. The new console will seem like just another gadget up to them, like a 5G phone being replaced by a 6g. Having not played their wii since they bought it, they might feel a pang of want to play games again, advertisements convincing their filterless minds.
3) Split competition. Part of the wii's success was that it forced anyone who wanted to develop for it to use its' shit motion controls. This made its' entire library accessible to n00bs. They never needed to feel threatened by demands that they gain skills to play a game. They were even willing to buy new peripherals like expensive scales for wii fit. Meanwhile, M$ and Sony have attempted to appeal to both camps, gamers and people-who-buy-whatever-they're-told-to.
Perhaps in the long run this will pay off. Since folks who buy motion-controllers don't use them there's less of a likelihood they'll encounter the confusing scenario of buying a game they don't know how to play. Even if they do, they'll forget and not hold it against M$/Sony.
Gamers don't give a shit about motion controls and M$/Sony have invested in them instead of games developed in-house, publishing 3rd-party titles, or otherwise improving their consoles in a meaningful way.