What IS "Success" In The Console Industry?

[RPGD]

An interesting article popped up on 1UP.com regarding the whole "console wars" thing, focusing on the whole "X company's going under, Y company cannot compare to Z because (insert numbers here)" extremes mentality. I believe it's worth a look.

http://www.1up.com/do/feature?cId=3147953&did=1

My sentiments exactly.

[Magus]

Re: What IS "Success" In The Console Industry?

Sounds good to me.

[ErikaFuzzbottom]

Re: What IS "Success" In The Console Industry?

Sucks to be all y'all!

But I'm sure we're not all 'OMG [favorite system] is beating all of yours1' here.

[AbstractOrigin]

Re: What IS "Success" In The Console Industry?

A very intresting read. This has actually brightened my outlook on the whole console wars crap. Very nice.

[Big Rick Cook]

Re: What IS "Success" In The Console Industry?

There was a big thing about PSP vs. DS a while back at the Pavilion. Based on sales, the DS was killing the PSP and it all felt very "OMG MY SYSTEM'S BETTER THAN YOURS!" even though Valk was the one who made the topic and I don't think he even had one of the handhelds.

Valk rules.

[Valkysas]

Re: What IS "Success" In The Console Industry?

I now own both, however.

[JLaCroix]

Re: What IS "Success" In The Console Industry?

I think it depends on who you ask. If you ask Sony, Nintendo, or Microsoft what success in the industry is, they would probably all tell you that success is their system outselling the others.

To a gamer like me, a successful system is the one that has the most games that appeal to me personally. I feel that is what makes it a success to a particular person, anyway. If a particular system has all the good games to you, then great. That's the best system in your eyes.

To me, Playstation is the best, because it has all the games that interest me, even though what I like may not interest others. Gamecube is second, it doesn't have all that many games that interest me but it does have a few. XBox is dead last, because it doesn't have a single game I like that isn't already on Gamecube or Playstation.

When it comes to hardware, of course the top list would be different. However, calling your system the best because its hardware is better, that's stupid. What good is hardware, if it doesn't have anything you have fun playing on it? Or games you can't already get on the other systems?

For this reason, I prefer GBA to DS. DS, so far, doesn't interest me. I don't think its a bad system, however nothing on it has interested me yet. If DS was to get a handful of games I liked, than I would probably buy one.

PSP also doesn't have many games that interest me yet, but I'm sure it will.

[Magus]

Re: What IS "Success" In The Console Industry?

I will rue the day some Final Fantasy/true Metal Gear Solid/THAT EVA GAME gets announced for PSP.

*mortgages house*

[ErikaFuzzbottom]

Re: What IS "Success" In The Console Industry?

I'm just waiting for BoF3.

[Riotsword]

Re: What IS "Success" In The Console Industry?

I just changed shifts at work, so even if I had a handheld(I broke my GBA's screen because of Castlevania: Circle of the Moon ), it wouldn't get much playing time anymore. Not between the internet, my second re-start of Dragon Quest VIII(Somebody stop me, please), and Mega Man X Collection.

[tjoris9]

Re: What IS "Success" In The Console Industry?

I will rue the day some Final Fantasy/true Metal Gear Solid/THAT EVA GAME gets announced for PSP.

They apparently have a true MGS game in the works last I checked. I don't think they have a release date yet, though.

Quite honestly, the DS has lost its appeal for me. I'm looking at the selection at Target and Wal-mart and all I see is "Lame, got it, lame, lame, kiddie game, boring, lame, got it, kiddie game". I think the only two games I've got right now that I really care much for is Advance Wars and Feel the Magic. FTM is just not quite as interesting as it used to be, and I kind of wish I hadn't bought AW, because I already had Advance Wars 2. Aside from somewhat better graphics and touchscreen use on the DS, the two games are basically the same, the way that buying GTA:LCS felt a little like a waste of money because I already owned GTA3, and they take place in the same city, only a couple years apart (So there's a few buildings in GTA3 that aren't complete yet).

At least the PSP has a couple RPG's, and Untold Legends and Sims 2 are totally worth the extra cost of being PSP games.

As for consoles, I rank them in the same order as JLC, PS2 and PC are my primary game platforms, and most of the X-box's titles end up on at least one of them eventually.
Gamecube has a little more appeal than X-box, and they occasionally get X-box titles. At least they try to put out good games, or maybe they just luck out (Considering I seem to remember Valk saying they'll take anything they can get).

[MC Ardle84]

Re: What IS "Success" In The Console Industry?

they would probably all tell you that success is their system outselling the others.

Disagree. A console that has sold 4 Million Units and 100 Million Games is more successful than a console that has sold 10 Million Units and 10 Million Games.

Hardware is only a means to an end, they don't sell them for profit--they sell them so they can make a profit with the games they sell.

I would think that would be pretty obvious, seeing as every magazine makes it a point that Microsoft was losing $100 whenever they sell a console.

Not to mention, it doesn't matter that Microsoft lost 1 Billion on the first Xbox Hardware. Their definition of success was "getting an Xbox in people's homes for the next generation", not making money in a short term.

[The Dark Jester]

Re: What IS "Success" In The Console Industry?

Personally I think true success for a console would be the one that is remembered the most down the line for the experience and games it provided at the time.

Personally I think the Dreamcast was a success because I will always remember that system and its games. Me and DC will never leave each other. <3

[Magus]

Re: What IS &quot;Success&quot; In The Console Industry?

They apparently have a true MGS game in the works last I checked. I don't think they have a release date yet, though.

That's news to me. I never heard that before. Where'd you read that?

[DK]

Re: What IS &quot;Success&quot; In The Console Industry?

Personally I think the Dreamcast was a success because I will always remember that system and its games. Me and DC will never leave each other. <3

Amen!