This what anyone with sense could have figured out 6 months ago!

I would agree that the Wiimote is not the end of controller development, but that's about all I can agree with in this article. Controllers will continue to evolve over time, becoming better and more fun to use with each new console.

I disagree on his assertion that graphics will somehow undo the Wii. That is a very old school way of thinking in terms of video games. I think the DS is proof enough that creativity and innovation can overrun graphics easily.

Since the inception of video games, each new generation has lead to a leap in the graphical capabilities that video games can employ. 16 bit looked significantly better than 8 bit, and full 3D blew both out of the water. Last gen brought the ability to recreate the world around us realistically in a game. This gen. all that's left to do is improve on the details of the last gen. Textures and lighting are sharper, models have more polygons to give them smoother, more natural edges, more realistic physics engines and particle effects can be used, but none of these features really improves gaming as drastically as previous generation leaps, and certainly don't improve them enough to warrant the prices of the HD systems, at least in my opinion.

In other words, we are entering a new era in gaming, where the technological leaps between the generations becomes less and less apparent, and where new innovation will have to take its place. You can't judge this generation of consoles by preconceived notions from the past.

That is your opinion, though mine is a bit different.

a. The PS3 and 360 are no different from their predecessors. They pretty much the exact same games, with slightly improved graphics, and not a lot else.
b. HD graphics are admittedly a fad. In five years time, the current graphics level will be last gen, and everyone will be onto the next generic "Pretty" game. In fact, graphics tend to lose their effects on a game in minutes. Once the initial awe wears off, you stop caring if their are five thousand dust particles on screen, or if your virtual Shaq is sweating. You just play the game.
c. The Wii isn't exactly stone age here. It certainly has better graphics than anything last gen, and is certainly playable.
d. Nintendo has a habit of turning "fads" into long running successes, such as reviving console gaming.

If people don't care about graphics now, why would they suddenly start caring later?

Dave Perry is the guy doing low-budget "free" games for Atari. i.e. Dance!

Do you REALLY want to trust him?

p.s. The DS was a "fad".

GRAPHICS WILL PLATEAU. EVERY GAME WILL EVENTUALLY LOOK NO GREATER THAN THE OTHER.

The next big thing may be, say, physics.

Actually i agree with that.. i think as it stands, the best any console can get to the best graphics is if they become like real life.. and right now, alot of games are already reaching that plateau..I mean i was watching the Gran Turismo 5 trailer and i have to say that if gets any more realistic than that, it just means we ourselves are living in a sub-standard graphic world.

games will get better on the wii, just as they get better on the PS3

The only things the competition could beat Wii in is graphics. The Wii should hold up, though like I said before...releasing too many huge titles so soon isn't a great idea.

But knowing Nintendo (since the first NES), they'll pull through

This is a new era of lives in America and the world.. People want to have the graphics and it makes the game a more fun experience.

Consumers are stupid, and as long as Nintendo keeps making games like Wii Fit and Wii Sports they'll sell a lot of Wiis. We're at a point right now were people (who have a life and occasionally play) would rather have something that is new and fun than something that looks good, and this is why Wiis will keep selling. Consumers are the reason why a company can give a console a cosmetic makeover and it will sell millions all over again(Gameboy, PS2, DS).

quote weskraudaon

This is a new era of lives in America and the world.. People want to have the graphics and it makes the game a more fun experience.

I guess that's why the graphically inferior console of every generation has ended up far outselling their competition, correct?

Leaving out pre 16-bit era consoles just because there is some debate as to which consoles were more powerful, PS1 beat out a superior N64, PS2 beat out superior GC and Xbox, DS is in the process of beating PSP. Why will this gen. be different?

Sadly he's right. Nintendo had a great marketing idea with sacrificing the graphics for an innovative, compact and cheap console that appeals to a large audience. However, even now the Wii is leagues away from the other two consoles. Despite what controller I'm using I'm still looking at the screen. I think Nintendo could have truly dominated the gaming market had they have released a graphically capable system with the innovative controller at a higher price point. It's clear that people are willing to pay upwards of a thousand dollars to play games, and I don't think Nintendo should have worried about the cost of it's console as much as they did.

That being said, the Wii is bad ass, and I think that as long as developers continue to find new uses for the wiimote there will be a lot of attention given to it.

But you guys are missing the point except weskraudaon, Its not about console though. Like i listed above how many great games does the wii have over ps3 and xbox. Its practically inferior. The playstation will probably end up having over 70 great exclusives and titles, that will dominate the wii. Xbox will probably have over great titles compared to the wii. Yes we know how fad the wii is now. But remember its not consoles sales that makes you win seeming how that's what making the wii great, its the games and like i listed xbox and playstation combine at the very least has 200, compared to wii lets say at the very least 24. Now how many consoles from the amount of games would xbox and playstation get during the big guns year against the wii games.

The reason why the Sony won last year wasn't the consoles sales it was that combined with 100s of millions of games sales. Nintendo won't have that much success, cause it will come down to a few things graphics, gameplay and story. And right now Nintendo only has 5 top guns coming out and maybe a few in the later time. MS and Sony has like 5 times that amount of great games in the future. So that's why Nintendo is a fad.

I'm sick of all these "the Wii is just a fad" articles. What proof do these people have that the Wii won't last much longer? Have they built a time-machine and gone into the future? Because that's the only way anyone could tell what will happen to the Wii.

Everyone is just assuming that the 360 and PS3 are getting a "late start", but will eventually "wipe the floor" with the Wii once more of their exclusive games are released.

But that is all mere speculation.

The gaming future isn't all about who has the best graphics or how realistic/intense a game can be, so there's no guaranteeing that the 360 and PS3 will suddenly rise to major success, while the Wii falls into the back-row.

The Wii is about "fun" games with "good-enough" graphics, and that's why so many people find it appealing.
While some people are waiting for MGS4 to be released for PS3 (with it's detailed characters and deep storyline), others are waiting for SSBB to be released on Wii (with it's simple, fun gameplay and the chance to see much-loved favorites bash the crap outta each other).
It's not just a matter of "PS3 or 360 will be getting good games soon, so people will switch to those consoles, and Wii's sales will soon go down". Different games appeal to different people. Some people might not be interested in the 360 and PS3's exclusives AT ALL. But that doesn't make them any less of a gamer.

I personally think the Wii is more than just a passing faze. It's a decent console, simple as that.

I agree with Gothic.

And I mean, both the Xbox and Gamecube were graphically superior, with a rather large amount even mind you, but... Well. We all know how that battle went.

I mean, I still play SNES, NES and all of those games and I swear to god, if Final Fantasy VI had been released today, I still would have bought it.

I have to disagree, Nintendo is continuously finding new ways to appeal to the people playing the games. Saying the graphics of Xbox 360 and PS3 will be more appealing than the Wii isn't exactly true, look at Super Smash Bros Brawl. The graphics in that game are amazing even compared to the other two consoles. I wouldn't be surprised if most Wii games after Brawl do have excellent graphics. Also, the way Brawl is, you can use the Gamecube controller, so if a problem with the Wii Remotes rises, then Nintendo still has the option to create games that require the Gamecube controller on Wii.