Next Generation Questions

There’s no doubt in my mind that the next generation of consoles come out next year. Games like Star Wars 1313 that are convincingly meant for future consoles only further back up the case for new hardware in the next 15 months. Not to mention that the entire year of 2013 is going to feel like a runner with an unexpected lap. Gears of War: Judgment and God of War: Ascension appear like totally unnecessary fillers in an already long generation. Remember Kameo and Call of Duty 2? That felt like forever ago!

This begs several important questions on what is going on with the rest of the PS3 and 360’s lifecycle. Where the hell are high-profile titles like The Last Guardian and Final Fantasy Verses XIII? Are these games simply going to translate to new hardware? Is that why they’ve gone dark for so long? Regardless on what’s going on with dumb over-dramatic anime games, I’m more concerned with how the new consoles will work and how soft the transition form the Xbox 360 to the “Durango” will be. To be honest, I think using fake code-names for things that haven’t been confirmed to exist is totally dumb. For the purpose of writing, I guess I have to call “the next Xbox” something.

Achievements are my biggest question. Right now, I’m just shy of 70,000 points. Not to say I’m playing games on harder difficulties to boost my scores anymore, but it’s something I’m not comfortable with being completely ignored. Some sort of progression that covers every game someone plays on a central profile will exist. When I boot up my Durango and recover my profile will I have 70,000 points? Can I compare my Borderlands achievements wit friends? Would that be fair to new players? The guy who just gets on the Xbox wagon or can’t recover his profile for whatever reason starts with zero points. At some point in the Durango’s lifecycle the average Gamer Score would probably be like 500,000 points, who the hell is going to care about 10 point achievements? Then what the hell does Microsoft do with the next-next Xbox? Simply transferring Gamer Score isn’t the answer, but I also don’t want my profile completely ignored.

Rumors have been swirling around a “Kinect 2” for the Durango for a while. Since the Kinect’s launch, it has felt like more of a market interest test than a real piece of hardware anyone is going to seriously back up. Sony’s Move is just a depressing lack of vision. I’m curious how much longer companies are going to think motion control is a thing people are into. I’m not convinced that folks want to stand up to play games. Yes, mom bought a Wii Fit because she thought she wanted to lose weight, but when’s the last time she busted it out? Happy Action Theater and Dance Central are great to have on standby, but anything beyond that, I’m not interested. Is “Kinect 2” going to be packed with all systems? Is Sony just saying “fuck this motion stuff!”?

I’m looking forward to having new shiny things under my TV. I’m sure the new consoles will deliver great games. With the current hardware being built back in 2004, I can’t imagine what we’ll see with modern tech. Too bad the Wii U will probably be extremely outdated next year.

There’s no doubt in my mind that the next generation of consoles come out next year. Games like Star Wars 1313 that are convincingly meant for future consoles only further back up the case for new hardware in the next 15 months. Not to mention that the entire year of 2013 is going to feel like a runner with an unexpected lap. Gears of War: Judgment and God of War: Ascension appear like totally unnecessary fillers in an already long generation. Remember Kameo and Call of Duty 2? That felt like forever ago!

This begs several important questions on what is going on with the rest of the PS3 and 360’s lifecycle. Where the hell are high-profile titles like The Last Guardian and Final Fantasy Verses XIII? Are these games simply going to translate to new hardware? Is that why they’ve gone dark for so long? Regardless on what’s going on with dumb over-dramatic anime games, I’m more concerned with how the new consoles will work and how soft the transition form the Xbox 360 to the “Durango” will be. To be honest, I think using fake code-names for things that haven’t been confirmed to exist is totally dumb. For the purpose of writing, I guess I have to call “the next Xbox” something.

Achievements are my biggest question. Right now, I’m just shy of 70,000 points. Not to say I’m playing games on harder difficulties to boost my scores anymore, but it’s something I’m not comfortable with being completely ignored. Some sort of progression that covers every game someone plays on a central profile will exist. When I boot up my Durango and recover my profile will I have 70,000 points? Can I compare my Borderlands achievements wit friends? Would that be fair to new players? The guy who just gets on the Xbox wagon or can’t recover his profile for whatever reason starts with zero points. At some point in the Durango’s lifecycle the average Gamer Score would probably be like 500,000 points, who the hell is going to care about 10 point achievements? Then what the hell does Microsoft do with the next-next Xbox? Simply transferring Gamer Score isn’t the answer, but I also don’t want my profile completely ignored.

Rumors have been swirling around a “Kinect 2” for the Durango for a while. Since the Kinect’s launch, it has felt like more of a market interest test than a real piece of hardware anyone is going to seriously back up. Sony’s Move is just a depressing lack of vision. I’m curious how much longer companies are going to think motion control is a thing people are into. I’m not convinced that folks want to stand up to play games. Yes, mom bought a Wii Fit because she thought she wanted to lose weight, but when’s the last time she busted it out? Happy Action Theater and Dance Central are great to have on standby, but anything beyond that, I’m not interested. Is “Kinect 2” going to be packed with all systems? Is Sony just saying “fuck this motion stuff!”?

I’m looking forward to having new shiny things under my TV. I’m sure the new consoles will deliver great games. With the current hardware being built back in 2004, I can’t imagine what we’ll see with modern tech. Too bad the Wii U will probably be extremely outdated next year.

They will probably only show you 360 points when you compare 360 points and have two lists. That or they nuke the lists on the new console then give you a grade depending on how many points or percentage completion per 360 game and then that is displayed somewhere on your new Live profile.

For the new Xbox MS will probably port over all the most important streaming services but then keep the 360 as the streaming and Kinect box to clear all the stock. When the new console launches it will be all about the games to get a base then you put Kinect 2 on it with all the steaming services and then you stop talking about the 360.

Armchair analysis is fun!

Things have changed since 2005. It's looking increasingly likely that Sony will not release a successor to the PS3 for quite some time due to their financial situation. Sony just isn't in a position to release another powerhouse console like they did in 2006. Microsoft's next console is definitely in the works though, but there are rumors speculating that it won't be significantly more powerful than the 360. It seems that Microsoft's next console will most likely have expanded online, social, and entertainment capabilities with less of a focus on graphical prowess. I actually believe that consoles might actually be on their deathbed now, considering just how far ahead the PC platform is power-wise.

@EpicSteve said:

I’m looking forward to having new shiny things under my TV. I’m sure the new consoles will deliver great games. With the current hardware being built back in 2004, I can’t imagine what we’ll see with modern tech. Too bad the Wii U will probably be extremely outdated next year.

Modern tech? Every console is actually pretty outdated by the time it comes out. The thing in the past was that they offered truly unique experiences, so people didn't really cared if SNES games weren't as technically good as what was happening on PC. You just couldn't play Final Fantasy or Super Mario World on a PC. With the PlayStation 2 and Xbox, consoles and PC started getting the same games, give or take, so there was more room for comparison between multiplatform versions of the same game. With PS3 and 360, the parity is mostly universal (excepting a few honorable mentions, of course, but the vast majority of PC games are on consoles and the other way around, in one way or another).

If you really want cutting-edge hardware, don't look for it on consoles: "next gen" hardware will be extremely outdated by PC standards. If Microsoft and Sony were to slap in something relatively new like, let's say, a GTX 560 or an i3, the price for the console would skyrocket. If you thought a $500 PS3 at launch was expensive, don't even think about how much they would need to charge if they wanted to be profitable with truly current hardware.

So, yeah, summing up: consoles will always lag behind PCs.And even if the Wii U is extremely outdated when it is released, at least it will offer some unique experiences and approaches to gaming. Maybe they fail miserably, but at least it's something different. Variety is essential for this industry.

In fact, I wouldn't be surprised if Sony backed out of this industry sometime in the future. This is going to be an interesting "next-generation", so much has changed in the industry. I think what's going to happen is that consoles will shift more towards being like PC's with a gaming-centric OS. I mean, you could say that about the current generation, but I mean even more so. I also wouldn't be surprised if we started seeing gaming PC's in the console form factor being sold for a decent price. Basically more of these on the market, competing for spec/price/features :

What I'm trying to say is that it isn't profitable for consoles to be on the cutting edge anymore. PC's have always been more powerful than consoles, but this is the first time they have left them in the dust. I think the only place left to go for consoles is to either take Nintendo's route with their Wii U, or to build a machine that can do all of the things a PC can with an interface streamlined specifically for gaming (kind of like Windows 8 Metro but for gaming). Microsoft would be in the best position for something like this, as they already have an strong infrastructure set up with Xbox Live and NXE. Microsoft is also not in the shitter financially like Sony is. I'm actually quite excited to see what Microsoft can bring to the table, and I have a feeling it's going to be great.

@SathingtonWaltz said:

Things have changed since 2005. It's looking increasingly likely that Sony will not release a successor to the PS3 for quite some time due to their financial situation. Sony just isn't in a position to release another powerhouse console like they did in 2006. Microsoft's next console is definitely in the works though, but there are rumors speculating that it won't be significantly more powerful than the 360. It seems that Microsoft's next console will most likely have expanded online, social, and entertainment capabilities with less of a focus on graphical prowess. I actually believe that consoles might actually be on their deathbed now, considering just how far ahead the PC platform is power-wise.

Right, but your average person has zero interest in committing to a PC.You'd be surprised as to how many people know how Xbox Live works or that it exists.

@EpicSteve:

me being able to continue my Live profile into the next gen is a big deal for me. what about the games ive downloaded? will i still be able to play marvel vs capcom 2 or resident evil 5 on the next xbox?will my achivements carry over? i would be VERY upset if they dont.

This whole topic sounds like a lot of people who don't really know what they're talking about but are talking anyways.

@bwheeeler said:

This whole topic sounds like a lot of people who don't really know what they're talking about but are talking anyways.

I'm just speculating.

Aww, man. I thought this would be about Star Trek.

Why is there no doubt in your mind that next year will see the release of new consoles? Considering Sony just doubled down on the PS3 with two new IPs (Last of Us and Beyond), I think it's pretty unlikely personally. Microsoft though...who knows.

I hope the next gen kicks off with a Kameo equivalent. Had a damn good time with that one, although I can't count on Rare to fill these needs.

All I'm going to say is that if they call the Kinect 2 the "Kinext", I quit video games.

@SathingtonWaltz said:

In fact, I wouldn't be surprised if Sony backed out of this industry sometime in the future.

don't say that. i enjoy my free online play that i get from my ps3. it is one reason why i got my ps3 to play online for free.

who knows what is going to happen next generation. i have kind of a feeling like microsoft is going to release a new console and then a few years later sony releases one. i have a feeling it is also going to be a motion controls with everything. i don't like motion controls a lot. i don't want to stand and play my video games. when i am working i'm on my feet all day, i want to come home and sit.

Unfortunately I feel like your old gamerscore will just be in some sub menu of your profile. Look how they handled Gamerpics, abandoned like a postage stamp in the corner as soon as avatars came in, and since the newest update even the avatars are hidden so nobody ever gets to see any of the clothes of props you have bought/won. The only way to make it fair for new players is to reset everyone back to zero which really sucks. What other alternative is there, make new games have a potential 20 thousand million points so everyone's scores are inflated right out of the gate?

I only bought a console because it was cheaper (price/performance) than PC's for playing games. I have no interest in anything else related to consoles (never had gold, don't know my gamer score and don't care). Recently, PC stuff has gotten cheap, so I upgraded by video card, went crazy during the steam holiday sale, and haven't touched my Xbox since Bayonetta.

So as long as the new consoles significantly outperform my current (modest) PC (this is likely), while costing a lot less than upgrading my motherboard, CPU, and videocard (again, likely), I'll buy it.

I can see Sony sticking to the PS3 for a while longer than everyone else, but Microsoft is likely to announce their new console sometime next year. I don't know how much faster it will be though, doubtful it will be quite the jump we had from PS2 - Xbox 360.