The Next Generation of Gaming Consoles

History of the Last Gen  Sony had the #1 Console (PS2), was also the oldest and weakest, but had strong developer support  Newcomer, Microsoft X-Box, attracted more mature gamers with its power and adult oriented games  Nintendo lost a lot of its fan base due to its lack of support for its middle powered, kid-friendly console, the GameCube

Market Strategies Everyone knew that this next generation was going to be difficult to win with such steep competition…

Microsoft’s Look-around  They wanted a console which….  HD graphics  Robust online play  Unified community  Backwards compatible  Familiar to old players  Customizable  Integrated media player

Xbox 360

Xbox 360 Dashboard

360 Stats Triple core PowerPC at 3.2GHz ATI GPU 512MB at 700MHz 3 USB slots, two up front, one in the back HDMI (elite), Component, VGA or composite cables for connection to TV 20 GB removable Hard Drive or 120GB (elite) Tray loading drive uses DVDs and can read cds and dvds, plus an additional drive add-on can read HD-DVDs Up to 4 wireless controllers similar in design to first xbox Port in controllers to plug in Headset Ethernet port and can use wireless with adaptor 2 versions with a 3 rd coming out end of april $299 for core, $399 for premium, $479 for elite

What this means…. HD graphics capable of 480i-1080p (although only HDMI and VGA connection can be used for 1080p) HD graphics capable of 480i-1080p (although only HDMI and VGA connection can be used for 1080p) Can only play HD-DVD movies with additional drive Can only play HD-DVD movies with additional drive Robust Xbox Live community with most every game online Robust Xbox Live community with most every game online Ipod and other mp3 players can plug into it Ipod and other mp3 players can plug into it Can connect with windows based PCs Can connect with windows based PCs Downloadable TV episodes, movies, HD movies, music, games, demos, additional content Downloadable TV episodes, movies, HD movies, music, games, demos, additional content

Sony’s Dominance or Demise Having the most developers and having the highest selling console and fan base, Sony decides to take advantage of it Possibly too much advantage…

Wanting to push blu-ray, a technology it owns, sony decides to make this the format of the PS3 Developers find blu-ray much to expensive of a format Sony’s console will use state-of-the-art cell processors to power it, again expensive Sony had an original controller design but got rid of it in favor of the almost exact same controller design they have had since PS1 They want it to push HD graphics to the max and be wi-fi with free online gameplay

PlayStation 3

PS3 Interface

Sony Home

PS3 Stats 3.2 GHz cell processor 3.2 GHz cell processor Nvidia GPU of 256MBs at 650MHz Nvidia GPU of 256MBs at 650MHz 20gb ($499) or 60gb ($599) hard drives 20gb ($499) or 60gb ($599) hard drives Plays blu-ray discs, dvds, cds through slot loading drive Plays blu-ray discs, dvds, cds through slot loading drive Memory card slots for SD, memory stick, xd, Compactflash on $599 version Memory card slots for SD, memory stick, xd, Compactflash on $599 version Backwards compatible Backwards compatible USB slots USB slots HDMI, component, composite cables for video HDMI, component, composite cables for video Wireless controllers (with some motion sensing) using bluetooth up to 4, possibly 7 Wireless controllers (with some motion sensing) using bluetooth up to 4, possibly 7 $499 or $599 $499 or $599

What this means… HD graphics form 480i-1080p (no HD cables come with the console unlike 360) HD graphics form 480i-1080p (no HD cables come with the console unlike 360) Online play is free Online play is free Media player abilities Media player abilities Can watch blu-ray movies cheaper than current blu-ray players Can watch blu-ray movies cheaper than current blu-ray players Lots of computing power for advanced AI Lots of computing power for advanced AI

Nintendo’s new style  The company realized that they could not compete monetarily with the machines of Microsoft and Sony, who could afford any and everything  So they tried a new, radical approach by making these necessary requirements for their new console…

 Cheap manufacturing costs  Easy to develop for  Small and efficient  Innovative  Allows for new people to join the gaming industry (grandparents, parents, women)  What did they come up with…

The Nintendo Wii

Nunchuck add-on to the wii remote to allow for more involved gameplay Wii Classic controller to allow for classic style gameplay of downloaded games from Nintendo and Sega past

The Console Interface

The Wii Stats  PowerPC Processor clocked at 729MHz  ATI GPU Processor clocked at 243MHz  Over 100MB of ram memory  512 MB of built in flash memory for storing games and data  SD card slot  Slot driven disc drive capable of playing both Wii DVDs and GameCube mini-DVDs  2 USB slots  4 GameCube controller ports and 2 memory card ports  Up to 4 wireless Wii controllers using bluetooth technology  The ability to use GameCube contollers along with Wii controllers for possibility of 8 player games  Wi-Fi out of the box  Wii controllers have an accessory port to allow controller add-ons to plug in  Sensor bar for mouse-like pointer ability  Can use Component cables for up to 480p resolution  $250 for console

What this all means… The Nintendo Wii is the weakest of the new systems only 2.5 times as powerful as its predecessor and 1.5 times as powerful as the first Xbox The Wii’s controllers are all motion sensing and can point in precision like a mouse. The Wii is not in HD, but is much cheaper to produce for Wii channels offer new ideas

Advantages/disadvantages Xbox 360 pro… Xbox 360 pro… Cheaper than PS3 with minimal to no loss on graphic quality Cheaper than PS3 with minimal to no loss on graphic quality Comes with all the cables necessary for HD and online play Comes with all the cables necessary for HD and online play Xbox live has largest user base for any online community and the xbox live arcade downloadable games Xbox live has largest user base for any online community and the xbox live arcade downloadable games Downloadable TV and movies are taking off fast Downloadable TV and movies are taking off fast Has largest library of games due to its release a year before competitors Has largest library of games due to its release a year before competitors

PS3 Pro… PS3 Pro… Most powerful console Most powerful console “Home” Sony’s new 3d Avatar based virtual world (like the sims) is used for online community and gaming “Home” Sony’s new 3d Avatar based virtual world (like the sims) is used for online community and gaming Blu-ray player Blu-ray player Downloadable games Downloadable games SIXAXIS motion sensing (although not near as advanced as the Wii’s) SIXAXIS motion sensing (although not near as advanced as the Wii’s) Linux support Linux support

Wii pro… Wii pro… Cheapest choice Cheapest choice New style of gameplay using motion sensing and pointing New style of gameplay using motion sensing and pointing New types of games New types of games New types of players New types of players Virtual console downloadable classics Virtual console downloadable classics Opera Browser support Opera Browser support Largest base of exlusive franchises Largest base of exlusive franchises Miis Miis

Xbox 360 cons… Xbox 360 cons… It is the “middle” console It is the “middle” console No motion sensing at all No motion sensing at all Does not use bluetooth Does not use bluetooth Not as broad of a genre and age base as Nintendo and Sony Not as broad of a genre and age base as Nintendo and Sony Too many versions Too many versions

PS3 cons… PS3 cons… Too expensive, puts it way out of reach of many customers Too expensive, puts it way out of reach of many customers Least exclusives thanks to lost support Least exclusives thanks to lost support No rumble feature in the controller No rumble feature in the controller Poor marketing Poor marketing Too much reliance of fan base Too much reliance of fan base If blu-ray fails…. If blu-ray fails….

Wii cons… Wii cons… Expensive controllers Expensive controllers Not many deep games as of now Not many deep games as of now Not capable of HD graphics Not capable of HD graphics Little memory for downloaded games Little memory for downloaded games Poor online support Poor online support Too much reliance on franchises Too much reliance on franchises Not as much multi-media features Not as much multi-media features

What this means…. The final choice is yours… There is no “better console” they all have their own strengths and weaknesses PS3 and Xbox 360 are very similar in both games and power PS3 is selling very poorly due to its high price Wii is selling the best in time but over Xbox 360 has sold more due to its longer length of availability

The general rules… Non-gamers should get the wii RPG lovers and HD movie fanatics should get a PS3 First-person shooter fans should get an xbox 360 Two huge advantages the wii has is that it is cheap enough to have it and one of the other consoles and its appeal to new gamers and non-gamers which could swing the war in its favor….. But keep in mind that it is the quality of games which will sell the system more than anything

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