New Nintendo

Naturally, it makes a lot of logical sense for Nintendo to make the first splash into a new console generation… whenever that is. Apparently Sony agrees as well.

Looking from the outside, it was Microsoft that released the first of this generation of consoles. Naturally, in my opinion, Microsoft will make the first move. Or, because Nintendo’s approach was not to upgrade much on its basic hardware – Wii doesn’t even support HD resolution – so they might be the first to move. Probably the watch should be on these companies, in my opinion. Because PS3 was later than Xbox, and is more powerful, so it has a longer lifespan.

This statement comes from Shuhei Yoshida, Sony’s Worldwide Studios boss. Of course, Microsoft is reference a tad more because they are Sony’s direct competition for third party support, while Nintendo is still viewed, in general, as a first party console. Plus the fact that the Wii seems to have a more casual audience by comparison. Still, I agree that due to how underwhelming in the power department the Wii is, Nintendo is in prime position to jump start the new generation whenever they feel like it. Sony does have most likely the longer life span in terms of staying power, but thats really more so due to their blue ray player in my mind.

Nintendo should be the first ones to make that step, and if done correctly that could also give them the major advantage in the next era of console wars. When will that era happen? Who knows, but it should be a fun fight when it does. It’s pretty clear Nintendo won this time around, but can they win down the road? Now that they have the casuals, can they eat into the “core” audiences of the Xbox on Playstation? Time will tell, but I think they have the ability to pull it off. New hardware combined with a massive focus on online networking could really put Nintendo over the top.