the end of consoles?

The console market is strong as ever. Console hardware makers have taken loss on hardware after launch for generations, only to profit from the software and in the long run. Sony said that the PS3 will last 10 years (as the ps2 nearly will), not that they won't make another one for 10 years. And so on...
 
The truth is it would be cheaper for Microsoft to focus on PC gaming then to continue with the xbox.

Big businesses lose a lot of money when developing new consoles. Microsoft could just focus on making games for Windows and it would cost them significantly less.
 
Diesel_Power said:
The truth is it would be cheaper for Microsoft to focus on PC gaming then to continue with the xbox.

Big businesses lose a lot of money when developing new consoles. Microsoft could just focus on making games for Windows and it would cost them significantly less.
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i´d like that, finally a Freelancer sequel :D
 
Not going to happen...a pc centric living room has really struggled to take hold, even amongst geeks. (I am one of the exceptions) The console has had much better success at being acceptable and used as media center.
 
zoobaby said:
Not going to happen...a pc centric living room has really struggled to take hold, even amongst geeks. (I am one of the exceptions) The console has had much better success at being acceptable and used as media center.
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indeed, Consoles are just more simple to use and to maintain for the average person than a PC
 
I can kind of see his point, but he's only counting one part of the sales: console hardware. Sony and MS eventually will make money this generation including 1st party software, accessories and services (XBL).

Living room PC/entertainment convergence will happen in the next few years, maybe not in time for the next generation, but it's almost an eventuality in the future. Consoles will become more PC-like (except as a fixed platform), and PCs will try to be everything to everyone. One will win out because by that time there will be a lot of duplicated functionality.
 
I love the way people completly ignore that the console business model is designed to sell the hardware at a loss and recoup money through charging developers for games. Of course the hardware is cheaper, but the games are significantly more expensive, in the UK its about £30-35 for a new AAA PC game and about £45-50 on a console.

No one in their right mind would argue now a days that a certain car is cheaper without also considering fuel costs over time, why people completely ignore this with consoles is beyond me. If you play a lot of games then PC gaming can not only be superiour but cheaper as well.

If you only ever buy a few games then yes consoles are probably cheaper.
 
I kind of feel this generation of consoles (excluding Wii) has been a failure. First they cost a small fortune even with taken loses. The decent 360 is just getting to (after 3 years) the selling price I paid for previous generation of consoles on their release date of $299. Mainstream doesn't buy consoles at $299. At the current rate they will be hitting mainstream near their end of life. $60 dollar games plainly suck and I always get the PC version which is cheaper, usually improved upon, looks better graphically and controls better. Plus I don't have to worry about paying for extra content and the patches come quicker. Also hook it to my 1080p tv when I'm in the mood. :p

I really don't see how they are going to pull of the next generation. With development costs increasing again for this generation they are even losing their third party exclusives. Practically every third party game is going multiplatform. Hell, even the PC is getting an upcoming Square Enix game "The Last Remnant" which Im buying for PC ;).

Kinda nice to see "consoles dying" thread for a change :D
 
leSLIe said:
indeed, Consoles are just more simple to use and to maintain for the average person than a PC
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zoobaby said:
Not going to happen...a pc centric living room has really struggled to take hold, even amongst geeks. (I am one of the exceptions) The console has had much better success at being acceptable and used as media center.
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Exactly, PC people have been declaring that PCs would take over the living room for over a decade now. Heck, back in the day when I bought my first Hollywood TV Tuner card people were like, "This is it, everyone will have a PC hooked up to the TV once the price of these goes down!" Simple fact is that its just a pain in the ass for most people to deal with a PC in a living room environment. People want to press a button, turn something on, have it work _every time_, do their stuff, then turn it off when finished.
 
I dunno about that.

I have my PC in my living room hooked upto a 30" which doubles up as my TV, the 1080 content looks abolustely stunning on a screen like this. In addition to that a the Asus D2X soundcard is hooked up to a AV reciever via Coax for uncompressed incredibly decent 5.1 sound.

With downloadable content becoming more popular I think the PC might become a big market for home entertainment, in the UK the BBC are now putting all their tv shows on the BBC's site for free through iplayer, you can watch for free anything in the last 7 days and just stream it directly.

I could buy a 30" HDTV, then put in a console, and then put in an audio system for CD's etc, and a satalite box for tv, and a DVD player, and a Bluray/HD player, a digi box or vivo type recorder etc....or I can use a sinle PC, plus I can do all the typically PC things, browse the net do my work, etc.
 
Frostex said:
I could buy a 30" HDTV, then put in a console, and then put in an audio system for CD's etc, and a satalite box for tv, and a DVD player, and a Bluray/HD player, a digi box or vivo type recorder etc....or I can use a sinle PC, plus I can do all the typically PC things, browse the net do my work, etc.
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Unfortunately many people would be completely unable to setup something like that on their own.
 
On other hand, to have a high-functioning computer, a consumer needs to spend at least $1,000, and then $1,000 every year thereafter to upgrade and maintain it.
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Hmm, Bought my rig back in June of '06 but I can't remember how much I paid for it. Since then I've bought my LCD, an 8800gt, my X-FI, and my X2 4200+. Around $700 for all of that and I can play pretty much any game fine at high settings. $350 a year ain't bad and my rig is much much more powerful than any console and it has a lot more utilities.
 
Am I the only one who thinks that the difference between a PC and console isn't all that much to the mainstream consumer? For Joe Schmoe, his pc is for emailing, internet, games, free pron, and some other basic functions like word processing.

As soon as Sony has a user friendly (i.e. idiot proof) web browser and email program for the PS3, it will essentially become the mythical "PC for the living room." When you compare a $400 PS3 to a $1000 Dell/Gateway, the PS3 will win hands down. You can hook it up to your existing TV/Home theater, sit in your favorite spot on the couch, and get all of your online desires done there. With a PC, you need a separate room with a desk and an uncomfortable chair. I just see the day of the console becoming a very user friendly version of the PC.

Look at the new netbook craze. They are easy-to-use, basic-functionality laptops. The average consumer doesn't want to setup a POP3 account to use Outlook or download updates regularly. They want to turn on the machine, have it work without crashing, and see the pictures their cousin Matilda sent over. All in all, the home theater PC and console will eventually evolve into one machine. It just depends on which side of the coin will take the step first and get the initial market share.

 
i alwyas thought hooking a PC up and making it go was eaiser than fighting with the "home entertainment" shit....multiple remotes and switching and orders of powering shit on...meh.


live by the pc, die by the pc.
 
thisperishedmin said:
i alwyas thought hooking a PC up and making it go was eaiser than fighting with the "home entertainment" shit....multiple remotes and switching and orders of powering shit on...meh.


live by the pc, die by the pc.
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Buy a Logitech Harmony remote. Your life will get MUCH easier. :)
 
lol i dont even have that stuff...just from helping parents and siblings here and there...

my desktop is my haven lol...and that "uncomfortable chair" is perfectly molded for my seating pleasure. i only wish i had a futon nearby for movie viewing......buto nce i have more room i probably will lol.
 
pxc said:
I can kind of see his point, but he's only counting one part of the sales: console hardware. Sony and MS eventually will make money this generation including 1st party software, accessories and services (XBL).
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Sony and MS have both lost billions already this generation, neither one will make it up before next generation. The original Xbox ended up losing $4 billion.
 
Now is the time that the old school console makers need to come back and make old school console games, such as 3DO , Sega, Atari, and Neo-Geo.

I say back to the basics , Nintendo and Sega!
 
zoobaby said:
Not going to happen...a pc centric living room has really struggled to take hold, even amongst geeks. (I am one of the exceptions) The console has had much better success at being acceptable and used as media center.
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that is because a console has turned into a PC more so now, i have been saying it for sometime now, Consoles are PC's now, it doesn't just play games anymore, so i would say the pc centric living room is more and more, just in a different form.
 
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