Day 22: Nextnext Gen in 18 months?

What the shit?

This is totally and completely accurate.  No lie.

I know it's been a couple of years since the 360 and PS3 came out and they've been excellent thus far, but why the fuck do we need to see the next next generation Sony console in under a year and half?  Of course this is just a rumor, and the information isn't substantiated in any way, but this is how Sony, Microsoft, and Nintendo tend to work with releasing new consoles or developing something super exciting.  Soon we'll be "leaked" information about Project Moonbound and we'll see infamous pictures of things like the controller on the right that have little or no resemblance to what they'll eventually become.  Or if they do resemble in image, they'll be piles of glamorized, over-hyped shit like the Virtual Boy.

So clearly this "announcement" is linked to the development and release of the Wii U.  I'm sure that on a corporate level, Sony and Microsoft are both petrified that the Wii U is going to blow them out of the water in terms of sales when it first hits the market, but I don't think that they're seeing clearly long term.  If they are going to grunt out whatever pieces of shit they can in 18 months, or even two years for that matter, it's going to be a waste of good toilet water.  The 360 and PS3 have consistently outsold the Wii except for maybe in the early stages of Nintendo's baby when it was an extreme novelty.  After that, third party support dropped due in part to the companies love of using it's mascots as well as the newer, yet awkward technology used in the WiiMote.  My analysis brings me to one conclusion then, start development of a new console, but take the longer, more considered approach rather than shitting something out in 18 months or so.  The Wii U will outsell the next next generation consoles until it's novelty wears off and people realize that it's just a redesigned Wii with little or nothing new to offer. 

The clown child is sad for the Wii U.

To that end, Sony and Microsoft can wait a bit.  Not all three consoles need to be released at the same time.  In fact, it might just be better for all involved if each has it's own launch window.  Let's think this through, why release your console on the same day as its competitor?  Say that there are 100 people who want to buy a new console gaming system but there are two being released on the same day.  On that day potentially 50 would buy one and 50 would buy the other for a variety of reasons including game library, appearance, cost, etc.  I made those factors all even because let's face it, how different are the PS3 and 360 really?  Besides, it's not like much goes into the thought of buying a new console for most people, it's usually just personal preference or purchase history.

None of this please.  This is all bad.

The bottom line here is that Sony and Microsoft shouldn't jump the gun with their next consoles.  I think that they can take a measured approach and wait more time before releasing their next big console without pressuring their sales versus the Wii U and it's launch.  My own psyche just doesn't want to see another decent console that completely bites the dust like the Dreamcast.  I do like to think that as a community, gamers have evolved beyond the necessity of novelty, but I doubt that will ever actually be true.  The Wii U will most likely satisfy that annual need and it will suck more sales than it probably should from consoles that have a more thoughtful design, but once that time passes things will be right in my tiny little gaming mind and a new console will be all that I need to console any lingering fears about another Virtual Boy.  It literally haunts my dreams; the goggles burn red in the darkness, staring, watching, waiting.

Day Seven: Pioneer's Syndrome

Nintendo has always attempted to be an innovator in the field of video gaming.  Just take a look at the Power Glove or ROB the Robot.  The problem with being that innovative is that pioneers usually die.  Think of the Donner Party or what can happen when you play Oregon Trail.

Nintendo has dysentary and left ROB and the Power Glove dead on the trail.  Over the years, more and more peripherals came out, each one improving on the last, but all suffering from what I call Pioneer's Syndrome.  Even the Wii suffers from it.

The Kinect holds an easy first place over the Wii in the motion gaming department.  It's like, why wave a stick around when you could be punching the shit out of zombies?  The whole point of the discusion is Nintendo's latest invention, the Wii U.

First off, what the fuck kind of name is the Wii U?  Am I going to the Wii University so I can learn to play the piece of crap?  So the idea is that it's essentially a Wii with updated graphics, backwards compatibility, and a tablet controller.  To be fair, the tablet controller is fairly complex and pretty neat, but why the fuck do I need it?  Nintendo already has a successful line of portable devices, so why would I need to "take my game with me"?  It's like they took their two most successful franchises to date and slapped 'em together.  A tablet craze may be starting in the mobile world, but it doesn't justify making an entire system designed to work with it when you already have the DS, DSi, and 3DS to dominate the market.  Take a look at the thing for yourself and decide how you feel.  For myself, though, nothing will ever beat a controller, your console, and your TV.  After all, isn't that what it's all about?