Nintendo President: Console Obsolesence is "Unthinkable"

[Andy Chalk]

Nintendo President: Console Obsolesence is "Unthinkable"

Cloud gaming services like Gaikai [http://www.onlive.com/] may be the Next Big Thing but Nintendo CEO Satoru Iwata says that for the next few years at least, the demise of conventional gaming hardware is "unthinkable."

Cloud-based gaming, which eliminates the need for complex hardware by streaming content to players on the fly from central servers, may not be ready for prime time just yet but it appears to be coming on strong, leading some to warn of (or gleefully predict) the end of the console as we know it. But Iwata, the top dog at Nintendo [http://www.nintendo.com], believes that while the winds of change are blowing, it'll be a number of years before sweeping change really starts to take hold.

"We do not think that the combination of a game system and dedicated software will last forever," he said in a Q&A session with analysts. "However, we do not believe that hardware dedicated to gaming shall [become obsolete and] perish in a few years. I personally think that kind of scenario is unthinkable."

He said Nintendo is dedicated to making "engaging experiences that cannot be available on other devices," noting that the Wii's [http://www.amazon.com/Nintendo-Wii-Games/b/ref=amb_link_6252482_1?ie=UTF8&node=14218901&pf_rd_m=ATVPDKIKX0DER&pf_rd_s=top-2&pf_rd_r=10RVET2DPKN0NYATFY6Y&pf_rd_t=301&pf_rd_p=1263611662&pf_rd_i=wii] unique motion controller was "key to game design innovations" on the platform and largely responsible for the popularity of the console and the huge growth of the mainstream gaming audience.

"Should we stop what we are doing, the current business configuration with a video game system and dedicated software could become obsolete," he said. "However, as we have been thinking and proposing new ideas one after another, we do not think that it will become obsolete at all."

Source: Gamasutra [http://www.gamasutra.com/view/news/28535/Iwata_NearTerm_Console_Obsolescence_Unthinkable.php?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+GamasutraNews+%28Gamasutra+News%29]


Permalink

 

[Icecoldcynic]

To be honest I think he's right. While I'd love to believe these services will be everything they claim, I doubt it will be perfected for some time, and even if it is, it will take a LOT of convincing to get me to believe it will make consoles obsolete.

 

[Gigaguy64]

I agree with him.

while we are moving towards stream gaming i don't think we will ever see the end or Consoles of Hardware dedicated to gaming.

Its still one of the most efficient ways to play games.

 

[Jared]

I think this rings true, to me anyway. Despite all the advances consoles will always play a part for people.

 

[rembrandtqeinstein]

The problem with those streaming systems is always latency. Even if everyone has an unlimited bandwidth, always on, gigabit connection everywhere they want to play they still need to take into account network effects and routing issues between them and the central server. And even the handheld/portable market will still be there because people want to take games on the bus/train/plane/for the kids in the backseat.

Back in the olden days Xwing vs Tie fighter worked over UDP because TCP was too much overhead for the ubiquitous dialup connections.

I'm sure the game companies would love to perpetually rent games or get paid every time the game was played the infrastructure just isn't there. Maybe in 20-30 years when fiber is the main short range terrestrial data transport mechanism instead of copper that will be the case but not now or in the next few years.

 

[Cabisco]

I too think it will be some time before it's workable. I can't but think about Assassins Creed 2 with this, what is the server goes down or is hacked etc etc. But it's a fantastic idea and I hope all the best to the people developing this technology.

 

[Truly-A-Lie]

Cocky bastard. Basically saying "Should WE stop making consoles, then there's no way Sony and Microsoft could continue without us. Nintendo and our marvelously important last-gen hardware are the only thing keeping consoles alive." Shut up and get back to work on the sequel to that 70 quid set of gym scales software you've been trying to call a game.

 

[Optimus Hagrid]

I don't think cloud gaming will replace the convenience of consoles - you stick 'em in the telly, bong in a game, sit down. For this reason I think consoles will be a viable gaming option for years to come. Also, will all the games we want to play be on the cloud system? There will always be console exclusives and the Nintendo franchises.

 

[GonzoGamer]

I don't know.
I think after this generation, I'm going to be pretty sick of consoles.
I'm sticking with PC next gen.

 

[Onyx Oblivion]

Consoles have mass market appeal because of the simplicity. So, they'll never go away. Your average Joe/Jane on the street doesn't know how to upgrade their computer, and get freaked out by tech talk.

 

[Kiithid]

Agree with him, aside the arguments my fellow Escapists brought there's always the account fees to use cloud-gaming services, I'd stick to my old bricks if it saves me another monthly expense.

 

[Sixties Spidey]

Consoles have mass market appeal because of the simplicity. So, they'll never go away. Your average Joe/Jane on the street doesn't know how to upgrade their computer, and get freaked out by tech talk.

Pretty much this. Part of the problem is that new PC's are expensive, so the price tag is likely to scare people away.

 

[GiantRedButton]

I would say the same thing if my stock market positiondepends on it.
When cloud gaming is "the thing" in 20 years it could be obsolete.
Consoles will be obsolete when we eventually all have powerfull enough mobile devices.
Think of a mixture between omnitool and iphone.
never say never

 

[Jandau]

Cloud Gaming will take over only when everyone (or at least a vast majority) of people have constant, stable, low-latency internet connections.

Now, you might be sitting in your warm home in suburban US or downtown London and thinking how everyone must have it by now. You would be wrong. Large parts of developed world don't have the quality of connection that would be required to eliminate the downsides of Cloud Gaming. Even if they do, the internet is too unstable and unpredictable to guarantee perfect service. And as long as that is the case, there will be a market for consoles, gaming PCs and games made for them.

 

[RatRace123]

I hadn't been aware that console obsolesence was even a problem, I know that there are tons of people like me who still prefer the hard copy of something, digital distribution won't become a monopoly as long as we "hardcopiers" exist.

 

[AceDiamond]

He said Nintendo is dedicated to making "engaging experiences that cannot be available on other devices," noting that the Wii's unique motion controller was "key to game design innovations" on the platform and largely responsible for the popularity of the console and the huge growth of the mainstream gaming audience.

"Should we stop what we are doing, the current business configuration with a video game system and dedicated software could become obsolete," he said. "However, as we have been thinking and proposing new ideas one after another, we do not think that it will become obsolete at all."

Maybe I'd believe this if Wii Fit and Wii Bowling we're actually decent contributions to gaming, instead of just overpriced wastes of time. Besides, I wasn't impressed with the Wiimote anyway when you first released it and called it the "Power Glove".

Wii Bowling was not a single release so your scathing remark comes off more as ill-informed. Also way to pick two out of at least 20 Nintendo developed releases for the Wii and claim that they're wasting time. Way to generalize there.

Besides, he has a point whether you like it or not, though to be honest I initially thought this was going to be about planned obsolescence like some companies seem to love doing.

 

[Jack and Calumon]

I agree.

What more must we say?

Calumon: We could talk about Kojima?

Jack: Nah, someone'll talk about him somewhere in these comments and declare a East Game Dev War or something.

 

[Tolerant Fanboy]

It's interesting to note that between WiiWare and the DSi, Nintendo is already using cloud-based distribution. Of course, this isn't the only means of acquiring games for Nintendo systems, and the software can only be accessed by Nintendo-made hardware, but the point stands.

 

[Nerf Ninja]

Personally I believe cloud gaming will be the end of pc gaming rather than consoles, the console will just evolve to be able to connect to cloud gaming servers.