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[HAL_Laboratory]

Put that Splorgenborg pic away! I'm talking serious here. What direction do you think the big 3 will go next round?

My guesses:

Microsoft -- more power, more media and LIVE integration (downloadable original XBox games and some sort of community/interface for creating simple games?), HD-DVD standard, and a motion-sensing controller.

Sony -- I think they'll tone it down a notch on power next time and focus on making their next system more approachable by the masses, price-wise. I also think we'll see a TRUE successor to the Dual-Shock, in the form of a free-hand motion approach. If Blu-Ray takes off, that'll probably be the standard format. Downloadable PS2 games.

Nintendo -- okay, here's where it gets tricky (at least in my eyes). The way Nintendo has been operating lately, something tells me that simply beefing up the Wii with HD isn't going to cut it. I think since they've nailed down a "new way to play", interface-wise, their next move is a new way to see -- get a jump on the innevitable boost (and gap) in presentation from their competitors. 3D, perhaps? New graphics technology that isn't in the mainstream?

That's just my 2 cents, so don't bash me for my opinion! What are your thoughts.

 

[Odysseus]

My vision?

The one console future.

Even better would be the no console future. As in PS3 and Xbox 360 being around forever.



*forever is a relative term

 

[virtuafightermaster]

PS3 - Will Dominate Japan probably, and have all those Japanese games, probably will remain to be the most popular console.

Xbox - Probably remain in second place. I love my xbox360, but will probably have to get a PS3 for Virtua Fighter5 and Metal Gear 4.

Wii - The initial sale hype will die down, and it has far less power compare to PS3 and Xbox360, people will get tired at the Wii controller soon or later. And there is a chance Microsoft or Sony will make something similar. But the price is so much cheaper, it is hard to say.

 

[Battersea Power Station]

New way to see? That would only happen if the technology could be affordably incorporated into the console

... or if the viewing tech was standard in homes, and it looks like plain old, HD displays will be here for a while.

 

[A-Button]

i don't say that i expect but what i want is 3d projection and a better wiimote (one that always knows its position and can tell the console with no lag). i think that also physics acceleration will be very important (but this is VERY propbable because both ATI and NVidia are commited to physics now).
on the other side of course the media center features will improve at least for the sony/ms-part.

 

[HAL_Laboratory]

PS3 - Will Dominate Japan probably, and have all those Japanese games, probably will remain to be the most popular console.

Xbox - Probably remain in second place. I love my xbox360, but will probably have to get a PS3 for Virtua Fighter5 and Metal Gear 4.

Wii - The initial sale hype will die down, and it has far less power compare to PS3 and Xbox360, people will get tired at the Wii controller soon or later. And there is a chance Microsoft or Sony will make something similar. But the price is so much cheaper, it is hard to say.

Try it sometime.

 

[Barbacoatl]

I'm still waiting the secong coming of 3DO. M2, that is.

 

[Alien Bob]

holographams

 

[Andy787]

PS3 with Xbox Live.

 

[Alien Bob]

PS3 with Xbox Live.

And waggle

 

[Odysseus]

And waggle

Yeah, that would be the final sign to quit gaming.

 

[Battersea Power Station]

i don't say that i expect but what i want is 3d projection and a better wiimote (one that always knows its position and can tell the console with no lag). i think that also physics acceleration will be very important (but this is VERY propbable because both ATI and NVidia are commited to physics now).
on the other side of course the media center features will improve at least for the sony/ms-part.

There's no lag with the Wiimote.

Next gen, I imagine the controller being completely capable of 3D positioning.

 

[TekunoRobby]

PC Gaming and Arcades will mark a comeback.

PC joystick come home to papa.

 

[JB1981]

PS3 with Xbox Live.

Basically! :lol

And Gears of War

and Halo and Lost Planet .. ah ****! we do need multiple consoles!

 

[Alien Bob]

Yeah, that would be the final sign to quit gaming.

We won't miss you

 

[Zaptruder]

Competent display technology is beastly expensive. Competent display technology that is a paradigm shift away from what we have now would be even more expensive.

Unless we want another Virtual Boy, we're not going to see Nintendo changing the status quo on display technology.

That said...

I've been considering what it means to up the ante on graphics; what it means for gamers and for designers... and its simply that, the technology serves as the canvas for which the artists are able to express themselves. This last gen hasn't aged that badly at all... indeed, it's aged well enough that Nintendo is willing to hedge the bet of the next 5+ years on people still finding it acceptable despite better alternatives.
And it's because they've allowed artists to express their vision in a sufficient manner, which can't be said for the PSX/N64 era. People can obviously see what's going on and whats intended; they can look past the blurry textures, the lack of AA and AF and all that and see the real artistry in the graphics.

Of course, the better machine helps it be a more pure experience.

Given that... I don't think future consoles need to keep upping the ante at the pace they have to date; 2 gigs of system/video RAM (merely 4 times increase, as opposed to the 8x to 16x increase of the Xbox/PS2) would be more than adequate for high end systems I'd think; yeah, the textures will still be blurry in places... but, I think, I'd be fine if next-next gen systems stuck with the same architecture, but bumped up the speed and ram (in the same way that the Wii has), such that we'd get the graphics we're getting now, but in 1080p, full AF and AA at 60fps.
If Sony can reuse the CELL architecture and get it to pump out the vaunted 1Tflop (it's at 200Gflops right now... so a 5 fold increase isn't out of order), they can easily keep down R&D and even production costs.
To make up for the decreased costs of the technology, they can easily include a camera and microphone as well as two types of controllers; a wiimote and a classic controller... and of course a more traditional console price tag.

Basically gives the developers any type of interaction that they'd want out of the box.

On top of that, I'd expect the network side to be very fully featured in 5-7 years time; video, music downloads, online community portals, all types of online communications (voice, video, IM, email, messageboard, etc, etc), as well as accessibility during gameplay.

 

[Andy787]

And waggle

Shut up.

 

[Odysseus]

We won't miss you

But I'd miss you.

Specifically.

 

[Battersea Power Station]

Yeah, that would be the final sign to quit gaming.

Are there any doubts all next-gen consoles will include waggle? Might as well quit now.

 

[DieH@rd]

Playstation 9

http://youtube.com/watch?v=PcmtDAVM-3A

 

[Odysseus]

Are there any doubts all next-gen consoles will include waggle? Might as well quit now.

Well, it was an empty threat. I'm quite sure this will be my last generation anyway. I'm getting too old for this foolishness.

 

[HAL_Laboratory]

Well, it was an empty threat. I'm quite sure this will be my last generation anyway. I'm getting too old for this foolishness.

That's what I said last-gen. :lol

 

[Jake.]

handhelds destroy everything and become the new rulers of the world. final fantasy becomes a dreamcast 2 exclusive. believe!

 

[Odysseus]

That's what I said last-gen. :lol

I actually mean it. It wouldn't take much for me not to participate in this one. About the only thing making me hang on is wanting the conclusion of the Halo trilogy.

 

[HAL_Laboratory]

Competent display technology is beastly expensive. Competent display technology that is a paradigm shift away from what we have now would be even more expensive.

Unless we want another Virtual Boy, we're not going to see Nintendo changing the status quo on display technology.

That said...

I've been considering what it means to up the ante on graphics; what it means for gamers and for designers... and its simply that, the technology serves as the canvas for which the artists are able to express themselves. This last gen hasn't aged that badly at all... indeed, it's aged well enough that Nintendo is willing to hedge the bet of the next 5+ years on people still finding it acceptable despite better alternatives.
And it's because they've allowed artists to express their vision in a sufficient manner, which can't be said for the PSX/N64 era. People can obviously see what's going on and whats intended; they can look past the blurry textures, the lack of AA and AF and all that and see the real artistry in the graphics.

Of course, the better machine helps it be a more pure experience.

Given that... I don't think future consoles need to keep upping the ante at the pace they have to date; 2 gigs of system/video RAM (merely 4 times increase, as opposed to the 8x to 16x increase of the Xbox/PS2) would be more than adequate for high end systems I'd think; yeah, the textures will still be blurry in places... but, I think, I'd be fine if next-next gen systems stuck with the same architecture, but bumped up the speed and ram (in the same way that the Wii has), such that we'd get the graphics we're getting now, but in 1080p, full AF and AA at 60fps.
If Sony can reuse the CELL architecture and get it to pump out the vaunted 1Tflop (it's at 200Gflops right now... so a 5 fold increase isn't out of order), they can easily keep down R&D and even production costs.
To make up for the decreased costs of the technology, they can easily include a camera and microphone as well as two types of controllers; a wiimote and a classic controller... and of course a more traditional console price tag.

Basically gives the developers any type of interaction that they'd want out of the box.

On top of that, I'd expect the network side to be very fully featured in 5-7 years time; video, music downloads, online community portals, all types of online communications (voice, video, IM, email, messageboard, etc, etc), as well as accessibility during gameplay.

Those are some great points. Especially about Sony meeting the 1Teraflop benchmark. They could definately save alot on R&D next round -- maybe that was in the plan the whole time...

 

[Duderz]

I actually mean it. It wouldn't take much for me not to participate in this one. About the only thing making me hang on is wanting the conclusion of the Halo trilogy.

Really?

Man, that'd be pretty depressing.

 

[ZeoVGM]

Shut up.

Still bitter, I see.

 

[drohne]

a gamecube but more white and oblong

 

[Zaptruder]

Those are some great points. Especially about Sony meeting the 1Teraflop benchmark. They could definately save alot on R&D next round -- maybe that was in the plan the whole time...

Well, there was a article recently talking about how they expect to meet the 1tflop mark in 2010... which is only 4 years away. If this cycle lasts as long as the high price indicates it should, a 1tflop CELL processor will be quite cheap by the time PS4 rocks up.

They might even be able to modify the architecture and include an in order core (although to be fair, I have no idea what kind of limitations there are in CPU design, so it's more just wishful thinking).

 

[nubbe]

The Matrix

 

[HAL_Laboratory]

a gamecube but more white and oblong

Play nice.

 

[ToxicAdam]

How about a machine that JUST plays games? That would be a great start.

 

[Odysseus]

Really?

Man, that'd be pretty depressing.

That is to say, Halo is the one story arc I'm involved in that is still hanging from the Xbox generation. KOTOR, too, if the third is ever announced. Beyond that, there's nothing tethering me to gaming, so I could very well give it up if I chose to do so. I'm interested enough in the next gen to say "yeah, I'm in... eventually," but only barely so.

 

[mrklaw]

Playstation 4 with wii remote and Xbox wireless controller, Xbox live2

software from nintendo and MS first parties naturally.

 

[Safe Bet]

This is the last-gen of 'hardware' exclusives...

One Format Future

 

[Moderation Unlimited]

My console would cost no more than $200 dollars, be online enabled, be heavy on ram, moderate on processing power (CPU/GPU/Dedicated Sound Chip)...and be solely for gaming - nothing else. Games would be plug-and-play cartridge-based (flash memory based). Games could incorporate polygons or sprites, but NO FULL 3D. It would be the true successor to the 16-bit era had gaming stayed on that path (ultimate 2D/3D arcade-like console). It would have wireless joy-stick pads with 6 buttons each (arcade-style). There might be emulation and download of older MAME/console games via a SD memory card expansion slot. A requirement would be that no IP could have more than 3 successive iterations and that every IP had to be original day 1. IPs being original, diverse, and creative would be highly encouraged-even pushed...genres that haven't been tapped in a long time would be revived. Controllers would cost $25.00. Games would cost between $40 to $50 on average.

Wait a second...I'm going to make this console happen, somehow...someday.

 

[deepred]

Playstation 9

http://youtube.com/watch?v=PcmtDAVM-3A

Am I the only one to think that video games and virtual reality are two different things ?

 

[Battersea Power Station]

Am I the only one to think that video games and virtual reality are two different things ?

Yes. Video games are optimally a subset of virtual reality.

 

[deepred]

Yes. Video games are optimally a subset of virtual reality.

No. Immersive games are a subset of virtual reality. Tetris or Monkey Ball are not among them. And I don't want them to disappear as a gamer. And I want to play Mario games without being Mario. See ?

 

[EverSoTrendy]

Xbox360 with Xbox(AKA oldschool Sega Channel) Channel. It will never happen. Ever. sux.

 

[deepred]

Xbox360 with Xbox(AKA oldschool Sega Channel) Channel. It will never happen. Ever. sux.

As a former Sega fanboy I don't understand. :\

 

[EverSoTrendy]

Sega channel all the games you can play for a single monthly fee? The best service ever in life when it actually worked? I wish X360 Live had that only it lets you download Xbox1 unlimited for a single monthly fee.

 

[LCGeek]

Well I don't see none of these machines as worthy of being truly next gen, to me it's must meet all the DX10 requirements. Sans the DX requirements I'm truly disappointed by the lack of 60fps and High quality AA/AF. I know certain members who identify with certain platforms say that's not important, I tend to agree though a flaw in that argument exists. Since I grew up on glide one thing I learned before nvidia came in and took over was the power of frames. Games take on a new life form regardless of what type of genre it falls under. A 3d game at 60fps owns a 3d game at 30fps. Simply put can't claim your next gen when 90's era 3d accelerator can do most games in it's api at 60fps or better.

That doesn't qualify as answer but really I get most if not all the systems during generations along with a few pc upgrades.

 

[Aaron]

A quieter Xbox 360 with a larger hard drive, built it HD-DVD drive, and HDMI right out of the box. I'd add full BC support for the entire Xbox line, but that's pure pipedream.

NO WAGGLE PLEASE.

 

[deepred]

Sega channel all the games you can play for a single monthly fee? The best service ever in life when it actually worked? I wish X360 Live had that only it lets you download Xbox1 unlimited for a single monthly fee.

Ok you mean a similar service to Sega Channel but with XBox games instead.

 

[SpinningBirdKick]

a next-gen console is nothing without next-gen software.

truely next-gen software for me wouldn't need to have amazing graphics or great physics or even online.

i'd settle for games that were fun to play where the game designers and producers didn't make the same stupid mistakes that we've seen time and time again.

no danger of that happening but i suppose i can dream, can't i?