CNN.com Story : "Why console gaming is dying"
#1
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CNN.com Story : "Why console gaming is dying"
My wife steered me to this article (just like she used to steer me to articles that said that the home video market was dying and nobody buys movies on DVDs and Blu Rays anymore). Anyway, the gist here is that people are buying less games than previously (conveniently the article came out using data before Halo 4 and Black Ops 2 released). I certainly agree games aren't selling like they did a few years ago in the heyday of Wii gaming and Guitar Hero frenzy, but I don't think that console gaming is doomed for extinction by any means.
I disagree with their assertion that the fact that people now use their consoles for more than gaming has some sort of negative effect on game sales -- if anything, I'd think it builds brand loyalty; and of course just because you do other things on a console besides gaming, it doesn't necessarily mean you game less, it could just mean you use your console more. I do agree, however, that there will probably need to be a new generation of consoles before we see another spike in game sales.
Anyway, here's the article:
Why console gaming is dying
I disagree with their assertion that the fact that people now use their consoles for more than gaming has some sort of negative effect on game sales -- if anything, I'd think it builds brand loyalty; and of course just because you do other things on a console besides gaming, it doesn't necessarily mean you game less, it could just mean you use your console more. I do agree, however, that there will probably need to be a new generation of consoles before we see another spike in game sales.
Anyway, here's the article:
Why console gaming is dying
Spoiler:
#3
gamer for life
Re: CNN.com Story : "Why console gaming is dying"
Besides the obvious joke about CNN doing an article on something dying...up until this year, game sales have been doing record numbers. Console game sales do so much better than 10 or 20 years ago. I think this year is down big because there has not been that many must have games until now. I also don't know if they are actually counting actual console sales in that, but of course those are going to be down toward the end of a generation. You also have growing digital sales even on consoles that I am not sure is being counted.
#4
DVD Talk Godfather
Re: CNN.com Story : "Why console gaming is dying"
Yeah, I don't agree with any of it.
First in regards to graphics, I've said it before and I'll say it again, people have to *see* the next gen possibilities to get excited about it. When we were in the midst of last gen people said the same thing, this is "good enough" why do we need prettier. Then 360 kiosks hit with CoD2 on them and people saw the potential. 7 years later and you have Halo 4 and one of the biggest talking points is how pretty it is. As soon as MS & Sony show gamers the next gen potential, people will be on board.
Second, with the consoles so old there is just too many games on the release schedule for most of them to succeed. New generations help that problem.
First in regards to graphics, I've said it before and I'll say it again, people have to *see* the next gen possibilities to get excited about it. When we were in the midst of last gen people said the same thing, this is "good enough" why do we need prettier. Then 360 kiosks hit with CoD2 on them and people saw the potential. 7 years later and you have Halo 4 and one of the biggest talking points is how pretty it is. As soon as MS & Sony show gamers the next gen potential, people will be on board.
Second, with the consoles so old there is just too many games on the release schedule for most of them to succeed. New generations help that problem.
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Re: CNN.com Story : "Why console gaming is dying"
Sales of accessories are actually slightly up, and I think I've read a lot of that's attributed to Skylanders.
To be fair, sales of physical games (not taking hardware/accessories into consideration) are down quite a bit, but it's been kind of a soft year so far for really big releases. I'm sure sales will be really strong now that the holiday season is starting to kick in, and new hardware ought to help a lot.
#7
DVD Talk Ultimate Edition
Re: CNN.com Story : "Why console gaming is dying"
Exactly. This is a bunch of BS destined to piss off people. Console gaming will never die to me as long as I have two functioning hands. I mean really...what would actually replace it? Please don't tell me mobile or tablet gaming...or a "resurgence" of the PC. It's just not happening. Sure there are slow periods, but plenty of games do great sales to justify that it is sticking around.
BTW, Decker, your wife steers you towards those articles because she wants you to start spending more on her or less in general. That's usually the way it works .
BTW, Decker, your wife steers you towards those articles because she wants you to start spending more on her or less in general. That's usually the way it works .
#8
DVD Talk Legend
Re: CNN.com Story : "Why console gaming is dying"
Read it over the weekend, laughed.
It's essentially been 6-7 years since this generation began. That's a LONG time. Gamers are used to getting new hardware, and for whatever reason the big 2 have decided to ride this generation out as long as it can. So the base erodes away a little because they're bored.
It's essentially been 6-7 years since this generation began. That's a LONG time. Gamers are used to getting new hardware, and for whatever reason the big 2 have decided to ride this generation out as long as it can. So the base erodes away a little because they're bored.
#9
DVD Talk Legend
Re: CNN.com Story : "Why console gaming is dying"
Read it over the weekend, laughed.
It's essentially been 6-7 years since this generation began. That's a LONG time. Gamers are used to getting new hardware, and for whatever reason the big 2 have decided to ride this generation out as long as it can. So the base erodes away a little because they're bored.
It's essentially been 6-7 years since this generation began. That's a LONG time. Gamers are used to getting new hardware, and for whatever reason the big 2 have decided to ride this generation out as long as it can. So the base erodes away a little because they're bored.
#10
DVD Talk Platinum Edition
Re: CNN.com Story : "Why console gaming is dying"
Same is true for nearly every other genre popular on consoles - FPS, third person platform games, sports games - none of them benefit from motion controls.
I also disagree with the article. Consoles only continue to get more popular. However they are dying for me as they grow more and more franchise driven. I think this is one of the reasons sales might be slowing. Most console gamers only seem interested in the handful of big-budget, well hyped games that come out every year. There is no indie/niche scene which has helped the resurgence of PC gaming.
#11
DVD Talk Legend
Re: CNN.com Story : "Why console gaming is dying"
That's because motion controls are stupid. Except for a handful of dance games they limit control options, not expand them. It was one of the things that turned me off of consoles and sent me back to PCs. I couldn't believe MS and Sony were jumping on this bandwagon and selling us more hardware to play more basic games. It's like Wii Tennis - it was a fun concept at first, but then you realize it is just about the worst, most inaccurate tennis game ever. Okay, I get it wasn't supposed to be realistic, but the point is despite the fact motion control is supposed to feel more immersive, a motion controlled Tennis game will NEVER feel as realistic or engaging as one played on a controller like Virtua Tennis.
Same is true for nearly every other genre popular on consoles - FPS, third person platform games, sports games - none of them benefit from motion controls.
I also disagree with the article. Consoles only continue to get more popular. However they are dying for me as they grow more and more franchise driven. I think this is one of the reasons sales might be slowing. Most console gamers only seem interested in the handful of big-budget, well hyped games that come out every year. There is no indie/niche scene which has helped the resurgence of PC gaming.
Same is true for nearly every other genre popular on consoles - FPS, third person platform games, sports games - none of them benefit from motion controls.
I also disagree with the article. Consoles only continue to get more popular. However they are dying for me as they grow more and more franchise driven. I think this is one of the reasons sales might be slowing. Most console gamers only seem interested in the handful of big-budget, well hyped games that come out every year. There is no indie/niche scene which has helped the resurgence of PC gaming.
The same thing is sort of happening with touchscreens; I feel that they're not well-suited for action games. Although at least in that case they have a good excuse, since a phone or tablet doesn't have any other form of control (save for connecting a controller via Bluetooth or USB, which defeats the portability to some degree).
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Re: CNN.com Story : "Why console gaming is dying"
Isn't CNN a cable news station? Isn't cable TV dying? How many people actually get their news on TV at all?
lol@CNN. I'll be watching the news videos through a software app in my PS4 in a matter of years.
lol@CNN. I'll be watching the news videos through a software app in my PS4 in a matter of years.
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Re: CNN.com Story : "Why console gaming is dying"
#16
DVD Talk Legend
Re: CNN.com Story : "Why console gaming is dying"
There are people that I know that rarely purchase games that purchased Borderlands 2 back in September.
The same can be said for Halo 4 this past week.
The same will be said again for Black Ops 2 this coming week.
If you release games that goes beyond just your core group of "gamers," the masses will purchase it. Hell, Halo 4 sold over 3.6 million copies on its first day of release despite it being limited to one machine. Microsoft is estimating another 1.3 million copies sold during the remainder of the week (Wednesday - Monday).
Console gaming isn't dying and I can see it expanding based upon what hardware Microsoft and Sony push out with the next generation. All I want from the next generation is all gaming to have a native resolution of 1920 x 1080 resolution with 60 fps minimum.
The same can be said for Halo 4 this past week.
The same will be said again for Black Ops 2 this coming week.
If you release games that goes beyond just your core group of "gamers," the masses will purchase it. Hell, Halo 4 sold over 3.6 million copies on its first day of release despite it being limited to one machine. Microsoft is estimating another 1.3 million copies sold during the remainder of the week (Wednesday - Monday).
Console gaming isn't dying and I can see it expanding based upon what hardware Microsoft and Sony push out with the next generation. All I want from the next generation is all gaming to have a native resolution of 1920 x 1080 resolution with 60 fps minimum.
#17
DVD Talk Legend
Re: CNN.com Story : "Why console gaming is dying"
But this story is from their website. That's like saying the article is right because SNES sales are way down.
#19
DVD Talk God
Re: CNN.com Story : "Why console gaming is dying"
I don't agree with that article at all. Is CNN expecting Quarter arcades to make a huge comeback for everyone's gaming needs?
Yeah Games are really expensive and not everyone can afford to buy new games every month.
BTW, CNN has some of the worst ratings in cable news TV.
Yeah Games are really expensive and not everyone can afford to buy new games every month.
BTW, CNN has some of the worst ratings in cable news TV.
#20
DVD Talk Legend
Re: CNN.com Story : "Why console gaming is dying"
The biggest fear I have with console games going into the nest generation is rapidly rising developmental costs that are forcing some companies to play it safe with the titles they release. I'm all for different genres but I'm starting to get sick of FPS as much as I got sick of Fighting games by the late 90s.
#22
DVD Talk Legend
#23
Re: CNN.com Story : "Why console gaming is dying"
In a way, motion controls are almost as "niche-y" as a guitar or drum controller for Rock Band, or a dance mat for Dance Dance Revolution. But, they want to apply them to all sorts of games. The Kinect version of Steel Battalion seems like a cruel joke.
The same thing is sort of happening with touchscreens; I feel that they're not well-suited for action games. Although at least in that case they have a good excuse, since a phone or tablet doesn't have any other form of control (save for connecting a controller via Bluetooth or USB, which defeats the portability to some degree).
The same thing is sort of happening with touchscreens; I feel that they're not well-suited for action games. Although at least in that case they have a good excuse, since a phone or tablet doesn't have any other form of control (save for connecting a controller via Bluetooth or USB, which defeats the portability to some degree).
#24
gamer for life
Re: CNN.com Story : "Why console gaming is dying"
my problem is they are not as accurate as a controller. I play games to escape reality. I can be an assassin, or a super hero while playing a game. I would never be able to do these things in real life, but because all of those actions are put down to a controller, my finger is fast enough to do so. With motion control I am right back to be average again. Not even average because they are still a mess.
#25
DVD Talk Legend
Re: CNN.com Story : "Why console gaming is dying"
In fact, "40% of all Xbox activity now is non-game," Microsoft boasts. Amazon and Netflix streaming accounts for most of that, as they do for Wii and PS3.
Combined, game consoles account for half of all Netflix users. This is great news for the movie industry. Not so great for console gaming's bottom line, especially since the industry largely subsidizes consoles now.
Combined, game consoles account for half of all Netflix users. This is great news for the movie industry. Not so great for console gaming's bottom line, especially since the industry largely subsidizes consoles now.