God of War Creator Says Next Gen Will Be the Last

[John Funk]

God of War Creator Says Next Gen Will Be the Last

David Jaffe thinks streaming services will be the future.

Nintendo's next-gen Wii U system is on its way, and everybody knows Sony and Microsoft are working on their PS4 and Xbox 720, respectively. God of War and Twisted Metal creator David Jaffe thinks that these next consoles will have the longest cycle lifetime yet - and they will be the last.

"Look, consoles are going away. I think in 10 years - probably sooner, but 10 years is always the safe thing to say so you don't sound like an idiot - but here's what I'll say: I'll go on the record and say that the next generation of hardware will be the last consoles. And they should be," Jaffe told GI.biz [http://www.gamesindustry.biz/articles/2012-06-13-game-consoles-will-be-extinct-after-next-gen-says-jaffe].

The arrival of mobile gaming on iOS and Android combined with streaming services like Gaikai meant that Jaffe could only see the traditional console model in decline. "It doesn't mean you won't buy a piece of hardware from Sony, but you'll probably buy a television that streams the stuff," said Jaffe.

You'll still have Sony, loud and proud and strong making these great, big, epic games like God of War and Uncharted, and they'll be making great little games like Sound Shapes, but they'll become more like movie studios for video games. I'll be able to stream in the next Uncharted and Plants vs Zombies and you won't even think about it. It'll just be like I can watch a public access show on my TV or I can watch Avatar.

In the end, said Jaffe, the games would stick around, but it would all come down to new delivery mechanisms. Still, in speaking about his lack of enthusiasm for the Wii U, he admitted his track record for prediction wasn't perfect. "But I don't f***ing know - I mean I thought PSP was going to clobber the DS. I'm in the industry, I make a living in the industry, but I have no track record of guessing this shit."

Source: GI.biz [http://www.gamesindustry.biz/articles/2012-06-13-game-consoles-will-be-extinct-after-next-gen-says-jaffe]

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[Richardplex]

I don't fucking WANT streaming! It's just more part of gaming being taken out of my control.

I think digital distribution and PC gaming will remain though - since streaming is just streaming games from a high end PC. Just the consoles will disappear, and hard copies of games. Whether that's good or not... *shrug*

 

[Triforceformer]

So basically that thing Extra Credits was talking about sometime last year? I can agree with that.

 

[Therumancer]

I pretty much agree, I am against this whole trend for streaming because it gives me less control over my games and access to them. What's more as someone pointed out, it does mean you'll wind up having to have 3 TV packages instead of three consoles, probably costing more money, and taking up more space, in order to play all the games. This is a problem especially with all of these companies wanting their own exclusive services like Origin, the same thing is probably going to happen with the hardware.

I seem to remember people saying this console generation being the last. To be honest I sort of suspect consoles will be around until such a time as more consumer protection and control can be added to other technologies.

 

[Formica Archonis]

"But I don't f***ing know - I mean I thought PSP was going to clobber the DS. I'm in the industry, I make a living in the industry, but I have no track record of guessing this shit."

Most insightful thing anyone predicting the future has ever said.

 

[Wolfram23]

I was going to rant.

Now I'm not. I'm just going to say this guy is always full of shit.

 

[Klumpfot]

I find it much easier to sympathize with people who admit their own fallibility. I don't think streaming will completely replace gaming hardware that quickly, however. Partly because of the developing world progressively becoming a more and more important market, while still lacking the IT infrastructure for the kind of high-speed internet that's needed for viable live streaming of that kind. One of the last few Extra Credits episodes is about the problems of high-volume wireless data traffic, which would also need to be solved.

He does have a refreshingly direct manner of speech though, doesn't he?

 

[JaceArveduin]

"But I don't f***ing know - I mean I thought PSP was going to clobber the DS. I'm in the industry, I make a living in the industry, but I have no track record of guessing this shit."

Most insightful thing anyone predicting the future has ever said.

That's what I was thinking. This is one of the reasons I like this guy. That, and some of the things he says are just epicly hilarious.

 

[Birdfalcon]

Heres the thing..hard copies will always be in demand...thing is what if a perosn who buys streaming exclive games has a crash and loses all his or her data...what if there is a hackvist attack...No I don't see consoles going away anytime soon. People used to say email and bloggers were going to be the death of the post office and newspapers.

 

[Pedro The Hutt]

I certainly hope that future won't come to pass in a hurry. I've got a DSL connection that is SUPPOSED to be very fast. But since I live in on the outskirts of a relatively small town the phone lines are easily over twenty, if not thirty years old and simply can't handle data transfers of that speed, so at best I get up to 500kb/s, if BitTorrent really cooperates I can get up to 1mb/s, streaming a next gen game to me is probably going to require more than that so.. that won't fly.

So until a day comes that Belgian phone operators get to updating phone lines across the entire nation, I don't really want to see physical consoles going anywhere. Not to mention that I have friends in the UK suffering from similar issues where due to having outdated phone lines they aren't getting the download speeds they're paying for.

 

[draythefingerless]

Heres the thing..hard copies will always be in demand...thing is what if a perosn who buys streaming exclive games has a crash and loses all his or her data...what if there is a hackvist attack...No I don't see consoles going away anytime soon. People used to say email and bloggers were going to be the death of the post office and newspapers.

When was the last time you bought a newspaper?

 

[UnderGlass]

I don't fucking WANT streaming! It's just more of gaming being taken out of my control and leaving me more vulnerable as a consumer.

Since when have these feelings ever stopped publishers? They really don't care what you want.

I pretty much agree, I am against this whole trend for streaming because it gives me less control over my games and access to them. What's more as someone pointed out, it does mean you'll wind up having to have 3 TV packages instead of three consoles, probably costing more money, and taking up more space, in order to play all the games. This is a problem especially with all of these companies wanting their own exclusive services like Origin, the same thing is probably going to happen with the hardware.

I seem to remember people saying this console generation being the last. To be honest I sort of suspect consoles will be around until such a time as more consumer protection and control can be added to other technologies.

Gaikai currently runs as a java appelet in any web browser. Onlive has a similar, multi-platform client that runs completely independent of their optional hardware.

You really don't think that in the next 10 years internet-enabled TVs will be able to play host to numerous publisher-developed software platforms? It seems to me a certain publisher/developer has already had a modest success with this model. It is totally in line with the publisher push to move away from software as a commodity, towards an entertainment service. And it sure as shit beats taking a financial beating on hardware development and manufacture like they have every generation.

A new generation is expected this time around. The current gen is gasping and wheezing to the finish line and neither Microsoft nor Sony are in a position to pursue streaming technology uniquely. Nintendo has entered their horse already so they're committed. But take note how these past few years everyone has been developing their online distribution channels and strengthening their offerings.

Don't expect more than a set-top box next-next gen from any of these guys. This, or some iteration of this, is the future of electronic entertainment - period. Handhelds, mobiles and other portable devices will be the only exception to this.

Having a Sony TV will probably provide some limited advantages for Sony's online offering but with the number of manufacturers out there they'll be extremely careful not to hobble themselves by making anything essential exclusive to their products. The service with the widest distribution will always lead in profits.

 

[gigastar]

As with all things industry-related, we can only assume that if such a shift is going to happen its going to happen slowly, if at all, and only when internet providers can produce a network capable of handling the bandwith this would produce.

So, its safe to treat this guy like that mad hermit who lives in the park. At least until what he says comes to pass.

 

[UnderGlass]

Heres the thing..hard copies will always be in demand...thing is what if a perosn who buys streaming exclive games has a crash and loses all his or her data...what if there is a hackvist attack...No I don't see consoles going away anytime soon. People used to say email and bloggers were going to be the death of the post office and newspapers.

When was the last time you bought a newspaper?

Snap!

Fuck hard copies. Proponents of physical media are very loud on the interwebs but I'm convinced I'm not in the minority as someone who abandoned the collection of those little round plastic discs with relief. The thing is, having physical copies doesn't protect you anymore from the online/ownership demands of publishers. Always online DRM anyone? Diablo 3 teething fiasco? Sure. But I don't see Blizzard actually apologizing for the requirement or it having had a truly negative impact on sales.

I don't fucking WANT streaming! It's just more of gaming being taken out of my control and leaving me more vulnerable as a consumer.

It isn't going to happen.

How's the sand down there? Coarse?

 

[wrightguy0]

I really only use steam for older titles i can't find in the store anymore or PSN for DLC and indie titles, I'm i'm going to shell out 60 bucks i want a physical copy, on a machine i know will be able to play it, i've had so many problems with my laptop for gaming, from freezing, to crashing, sound looping, overheating, poorly optimized, memory leakage, it's nice to have a system that i know works when i want it, and that booting up a game isn't going to make it slit it's wrists in anguish. Even minecraft is freezing on this old POS.