The Future of Console Gaming

Given the rise of mobile gaming and the ability for newer phones and tablets to be able to AirPlay/Cast/mirror to big screen TVs, what do you guys think will be the fate of console gaming in future years?

Now that I have so many great titles on my iPhone and iPad, and little time to hammer out long sessions, I can't foresee myself buying another console ever again. I think 10 years down the line we'll all be carrying the world's best gaming systems in our pockets or at the very least have the devices to connect to gaming in the cloud (Like Moonlight, formally Limelight).

It's a interesting discussion, What will happen to the fate of consoles. For now I think they got the upper hand with sharper graphics, Crystal clear audio and an overall more emirsive gaming experience. (That require longer play sessions) Most of the iOS games I have come across that offer more depth then angry birds are often divided into smaller digestible bits. In Implosion, a stage lasts about  five minutes. It's a really nice looking game but the way it's chopped up to be accesble on a portable device, breaks the illusion for me. Don't get me wrong, I love playing on my iPhone 6 plus. I am always on the hunt for new mfi supported games. But the iOS/android games have to evolve abit more before I sell my consoles. But in 10 years I probably won't buy a console either. Hopefully our phones and tablets will be as powerful as a juiced up gaming computer in 10 years.

This IS a good topic, and one I've been thinking a lot about.

I think for the foreseeable future, there will always be a place for a big screen, because TV based gaming in a living room is a fundamentally different experience from mobile.

I also think that since TV-based game consoles don't have the same battery life or energy efficiency concerns as smartphones, there will always be a market for boxes that cram as much power as possible into high-end gaming.

I think the squeeze will come in the low end. Something like the Apple TV with AirPlay, or potentially a microconsole-style new Apple TV, has the potential to open up living room gaming to a wider, more casual audience. At the same time, performance will continue to increase such that hardcore gamers will be able to get more out of less.

I think it's an interesting time, and I can't wait to see what Apple has been working on...

Ah. I always enjoy this discussion. I think there will be a place for consoles in the foreseeable future.

Mobile gaming is making huge strides forward, and will probably / already does dominate the casual users gaming experience. But, as Kevin pointed out, it is a fundamentally different experience.

The future of computing in general is up in the air at the moment. The personal PC ushered in the era of each person owning a powerful, non-integrated machine that continues in the PC and mobile market today. That being said, there is a huge push by businesses to start using thin clients that pull information from remote servers, vs having a powerful system at every desk.

This, coupled with new technology like Artemis and the now dead OnLive, may usher in an era of on demand computing / gaming.

It will be interesting to see if the constant advancement in mobile tech will continue to push the every device is powerful model, or if tech will move back to the central hub / server model.

Maybe both?

What I THINK will happen is that companies will continue doing moronic things until the end of time.

What I HOPE will happen is:

Sony Playstation:
The PS4 is nice. Remote Play is REALLY nice. I've occasionally played a bit using my Vita to remote control my PS4, and it works well. Moreover, the rest mode feature of the PS4 means you can essentially just pause a game, enter rest mode, and continue from that point after waking from rest. No "restart from checkpoint", because you continue literally where you left off, and a total of maybe 30 seconds to go from grabbing the Vita to having woken the PS4, connected to it, and jumped into the game.

BUT Sony needs to give up the smartphone business. Currently, Remote Play is exclusive to Sony's Xperia phones and the Vita, but has actually been ported (with some limitations) to other devices by people on the XDA forums. Other ANDROID devices that is. Sony needs to give up phones, release Remote Play for Android in general, AND for iOS. It has a killer feature in Remote Play and Rest Mode, it shouldn't use it to keep its failing smartphone business artificially alive. 

Nintendo:
Should give up consoles and start making games for other platforms. Both originals and emulators with game stores for classics. I've played N64 games with custom high-res textures and a controller on Android, and it's something that Nintendo should be cashing in on, especially since it's so ridiculously bad at making hardware. I sold my New 3DS XL within a few weeks because as fun as Super Mario 3D Land is, and as high a priority gameplay has over graphics, there is a limit to what I can accept. Playing Paper Monsters with my new MFI controller on the i6+ just shows how traditional game mechanics can live on just fine with 1080p graphics and be better for it.

It should also get into making gaming accessories, including MFI and MFA controllers, in an effort to use its brand to help promote that aspect of mobile gaming.

Microsoft:
Should stop making the Xbox, and focus on releasing games in its exclusive series' for PC and PS4. THEN it should buy the remote desktop software maker Splashtop, team up with NVIDIA, and make sure that GameStream isn't a niche thing for NVIDIA's Android devices but rather an integrated feature of Windows 10 that is as integrated as Remote Play is on the PS4.

Steam:
Integration with the above.

Apple, Google, and Amazon:
Should completely change how the fees work for games. App stores in general should prioritize games without infinite in-app purchases (henceforth IIAP, different from IAP as IAP could be used for level packs etc, whereas IIAP allows repeat purchases of ingame currency and such). Freemium games should be looked upon as the plagues they are. Including:
*Lower the fees for non-IIAP games to 15%
*Increase the fees for IIAP games to 50%
*Put 10% of the fees from IIAP games aside to create a foundation to help fund non-IIAP game developerment
*Put another 10% of the fees into a fund that non-IIAP game developers can apply to get support from whenever an OS update or other issue (such as the introduction of new screen resolution optimization options or MFI controllers) are introduced. This in an effort to make sure games never become outdated because it's not financially viable to support them.
*Cap the revenue of IIAP games at the revenue of the top non-IIAP game that's been in the app store for at least a month, on a monthly basis.
*Add warnings for IIAP games (similar to "this game has in app purchases") and the ability to block any and all such games from displaying when you browse the store.
*Make it easier to release proper DLC by adding a way to display that in the store, similar to DLC promotion in e.g. the PS Store.



Just my 2....hundred...cent

Last edited by Userius (May 13 3:44 PM)

Userius wrote:

App stores in general should prioritize games without infinite in-app purchases (henceforth IIAP, different from IAP as IAP could be used for level packs etc, whereas IIAP allows repeat purchases of ingame currency and such).

This would be incredible and needs to happen sooner rather than later!

There are many games that fans are extremely loyal to, as long as console exclusive games stay console exclusive, consoles will be around.-a great example of this is the new super smash bros that was only on the wiiU and 3DS. I personally have seen my friends willing to spend the money either on the wiiU or more likely the 3DS(less $), because they wanted to play just one game.  Even then, after some of them bought the 3ds they wanted to buy or get the wiiU as a present(Birthday, Holiday, etc), just so they could experience it like the previous games in the series.

I'm done with consoles. My iPad is my primary and only gaming device.

I used to be a huge console/pc gamer.

But my gaming PC died and i converted to Mac and this generation of consoles have ridicules game prices with ridicules DLC passes and pre-order bs for what seem to be mostly remakes and ports or badly designed games with million bugs.

It had a good run.. so for all i care the consoles could die

That said.. Nintendo is the only one making solid games that is not broken on release.

SwipeNova wrote:

I'm done with consoles. My iPad is my primary and only gaming device.

...

That said.. Nintendo is the only one making solid games that is not broken on release.

Yeah, I'm pretty much in the same boat. I do keep a gaming PC, but the allure of consoles is gone for me. This generation isn't doing much to change my mind.

I find iOS more interesting than consoles. I find indie games on iOS a hell of a lot more interesting than whatever the latest console military shooter is!

Ali wrote:

Given the rise of mobile gaming and the ability for newer phones and tablets to be able to AirPlay/Cast/mirror to big screen TVs, what do you guys think will be the fate of console gaming in future years?

Now that I have so many great titles on my iPhone and iPad, and little time to hammer out long sessions, I can't foresee myself buying another console ever again. I think 10 years down the line we'll all be carrying the world's best gaming systems in our pockets or at the very least have the devices to connect to gaming in the cloud (Like Moonlight, formally Limelight).

This would be incredible and needs to happen sooner rather than later!