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Home video games consoles have been around since Magnavox first
released the Odyssey console in 1972. Since that time, the video game
console has overcome its share of adversity, surviving two periods of
uncertainty and market crashes in 1977 and 1983, which cast doubts over
the future of the industry.
In recent years however, the video games console industry has gone from
strength to strength, and the competition between developers is fierce.
New technologies have driven games consoles away from the game
cartridge format, as used by such consoles as the Nintendo SNES and
Sega Megadrive towards a compact-disc format as used by today's
generation of consoles - a technology pioneered by Sega's Saturn
system. However, it was the launch of Sony's Playstation console in
Japan in 1994, and Europe a year later which really made home video
gaming popular.
Since then, there have been three major developers in the
games console market. Nintendo are perhaps the most well-known of the
three, having been designing and developing games consoles since the
1980s. From their SNES and N64 systems through to the Gamecube and
today's Wii console, Nintendo have earned a hardcore following among
video gamers and are perhaps the dominant entity in the handheld
console market since the launch of their Gameboy system and more
recently the Nintendo DS.
Having seen phenomenal success with their Playstation console, Sony has
become almost synonymous within the video game consoles market. Their
Playstation 2 console was released in 2000 and has been the most
commercially successful and fastest selling home console in video game
history, with over 120 million units shipped worldwide by May 2007.
Following a delay, Sony released their latest console - the Playstation 3
- in March 2007, and it became the fastest-selling home games console
in the UK, selling around 165,000 consoles in its first two days of
availability.
The third company, Microsoft, are seen as the newcomers in the
video games console market, having launched their Xbox console in 2002
as a competitor to Sony's Playstation 2. The Xbox was seen by many to
bring desktop computing and games consoles together, with the console
being the first to employ an internal hard-drive for storage instead of
removable memory cards, as well as other similarities with its hardware
specifications when compared with a personal computer. Although it
proved popular, it was unable to make much of an impact against the
Playstation 2's market share. In late 2005, Microsoft launched the new
Xbox 360 into the marketplace.
For many, the latest 'Console War' has only just begun and it
is not yet possible to determine which, if any, of the three major
consoles - Sony's Playstation 3, Nintendo's Wii and Microsoft's Xbox
360 - will come to dominate this new generation. The Xbox 360 has
gained an early lead in terms of market share, but this is due in no
small part to having being launched a year before its rivals. Sony's
Playstation 3 has Blu-ray capabilities, which allow it to show
high-definition video, and both consoles appear to have been aimed
towards the hardcore gamer.
At the expense of cutting edge graphics, Nintendo's Wii console
utilises a wireless, interactive controller which can detect motion and
rotation in three dimensions. The controller also plays sound and
includes force feedback, allowing the user to experience vibrations
that mimic feelings experienced during the game. Despite some quarters
dismissing the Wii as 'gimmicky', Nintendo have found themselves being
unable to make consoles fast enough to satisfy demand. Since January,
it has outsold both the Sony and Microsoft consoles due to its mass
appeal among casual gamers, as well as its ease of use.
The audience for games is bigger than ever, with the game
industry enjoying a record year. In the U.S, revenues during 2006
increased by 20 per cent to $12.5 billion, with predictions for 2007
rumoured to outstrip that figure. Even so, it's too soon to tell how
the latest 'console war' will fan out.
About the Author
Adam Singleton is an online, freelance journalist and keen amateur photographer. His portfolio, called Capquest Photography is available to view online.
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