Friday, 11 January 2013

Can you Topple the Console Giants?



The world is run by a few major corporations, companies with huge power and huge influence as a result of huge money and here’s us thinking the government has a say. Little companies have few words in the matter, this seems into every crack of the world, from big budget filmmakers like Disney to big income charities like Oxfam, (yes I know, I insulted a charity). Even when a small company looks as though they’re going to push forward, they get bought out, like Android did by Google. It is very difficult to reject a big bid from a big bidder, like when Disney bought LucasFilm or when Disney bought Marvel or when Disney bought…you get the picture (yes, I realise LucasFilm and Marvel are not small independent companies). This transcends into the world of games consoles this current generation is a pure three horse race between Microsoft, Nintendo and Sony. I’m only talking about home consoles here because the handheld story is completely different with the idea of a phone or tablet being considered a gaming device, as an occasional purist, it hurts me to say that (but it won’t in a couple of years). These three though have a monopoly, when you speak about games consoles, no one will ever think of anything other than the three above, many won’t even consider the Wii.
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Who needs 101 Dalmations when you can buy 101 other companies

The last corporation to have a major foothold in the industry was probably SEGA with their Dreamcast. SEGA has since given up on consoles after a series of flops, the last hit being the Megadrive, released in 1990. So for 13 years we’ve had the big three we’ve known today (though Microsoft released late), SEGA decided the company had no future in consoles and thought to streamline their business by becoming a third party developer. That’s the trouble with console development, it requires serious cash. Research, marketing, distribution, they’re all expensive, and all harder to do when you’re new to the game.

Research is a big part. As a new console you want to provide something new and unique to the market, something competitors can’t. This can be through software, though more often hardware innovations. If you’ve already got people doing this, it is often easier. Research doesn’t end when a new console comes out, arguably, this is when it begins. Research is lengthy, especially when you’re pushing technology to the forefront of what it is at, so a company like Nintendo have been developing consoles since the late eighties. Those 25 odd years have been spent finding new ideas, learning what people like and don’t and what works. Nintendo would’ve started work on motion controls long before the Wii came out, they would’ve been doing it while getting an (kind of) income from the GameCube, hence the company was earning money (sort of) during the development. Thus, the company stays afloat and those profits can be pushed into research. That console researched then earns money while new research on a new console begins, it’s a cycle. That could be one of the reasons Sony tries to give their consoles a ten year life span, with a long life span, Sony can make sure their next console is the best it can be. For a new player, they may not necessarily get this time when the company is earning money to research, hence lots gets ploughed in without return for a long time and not every company has the financial income to do that, this is almost impossible for a start-up company.
Time also gives you experience in how to conduct research and what avenues to take, hence bigger companies may be more efficient in doing what they aim to do. In doing so, they can also attract better employees. If a person sees a company with a great reputation, where their careers have a future and where they’ll get a good pay, they’re going to go there, success breeds success.

That reputation also helps when you have to present your product to the general public. If you’re a well-established company then people will trust in what you will bring out. They can look at your previous successes and relate back and will assume that you know what you are doing. People trusted Microsoft because they had a past in the tech biz, even though it may not be in the video games industry, they’re reputation as the first ever software company meant people had a feeling that they might pull it off. People saw Sony as a company that had a history of great hardware, so they would be able to bring out a good home console. Maybe this is where Valve has an advantage. Valve have revealed some details about the Steambox, their new console, at CES. Valve has an incredible history in the industry with Half Life & co. They also know about games distribution with Steam. Steam’s big picture mode which makes using Steam with a controller much easier shows that they know how to work a console. Big Picture mode is innovative and easy. It is the best way to browse the web with a controller, and it has the best controller keyboard EVER! The keyboard is designed with a controller in mind and designed to fit the controller, the result is the easiest typing on a controller you’ll ever do. Sony and Microsoft were lazy and just forced a QWERTY keyboard into the controller, the result, very difficult typing.

Valve announced at CES that the Steambox will be able to stream different games to different displays in different rooms from one device, with all games running smoothly, so there is innovation with the Steambox too. Knowing Valve, there is more to come. Also Valve have made it easy to load Windows onto the Steambox and get rid of Linux. Of the developers out there, Valve appears to be different, more caring and unique than anyone, hence it is much easier to buy into their trust than it is to go with Evil Incarnated, who label themselves as EA.
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The many calling cards of The Devil, EA servers are currently unavailable while Satan does his bidding
 So maybe there is hope for a new company to break into the current console market. Apple and Google invaded the handheld market and may become much stronger very soon. Truth is though, it will have to be a well established company to do it. A company with the knowledge and the funds to research. A company with the experience and reputation to be trusted. Most importantly though, a company who is willing and able to push the boundaries of technology and bring something new to the industry that our little minds have not even thought of. Chances are we won’t see an indie console anytime soon, and even if a little company produces a great piece of innovation, chances are Disney will just buy them.

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