In light of the rather pessimistic slant of part one, full of DRM, games that will be in inaccessible over the long term, and the overall damage being done to gaming's potential cultural impact, it is equally important to ponder the brighter horizons of gaming's future.
The PS3, Xbox 360 and Wii have been hanging around longer than a typical console cycle. The big 'what's next?' question has been on "core" gamer minds for some time and Kinect, Move, and Motion Plus offered little distraction or relevance. Not to mention the concern that the folks in game development/publishing were not listening to what most gamers wanted. Given the reaction to Xbox One, that concern seems quite founded. Factor in the current market focus on games developed for phones, tablets, and browsers, and... wait, weren't we trying to go somewhere positive with this?
But these trends in gaming do in fact have benefits for us "core" gamers, for many reasons that may not be immediately apparent. Let's start with the Xbox One. It's the true, unfettered, undisguised vision Microsoft has been coalescing since their first console; a single living room box through which Microsoft becomes the middleman service provider for entertainment. They've slowly unclouded that goal over the years, though its never been a secret, and us gamers who are grumpy about a dashboard full of stuff besides games (even on a paid service, no less!) are at least partially guilty of looking at a cat and expecting a dog. This has been Microsoft's purpose all along, and while we don't have to like it, it does us little good to expect a company that has spent billions to realize this longterm strategy to alter its course for "core" gamers that largely got the Xbox platform where it is. We're not the ultimate market they've been after, and we never were; just like the Wii, we are not the ultimate target demographic, because "core" gamers cannot financially support the gaming industry behemoth, not to mention the lucrative service provider vision Microsoft is after. I'm not as ready to write off MS for gaming as many; they will undoubtedly provide some excellent games in the future. But that's a train I'll be hitching onto at my convenience and price-point, both which will reflect the fact that MS and I are expecting to travel to different places, with paths that will occasionally intersect. I'll play my new Halo and Gears games later rather than sooner.
The Xbox One strategy is actually a benefit for gamers, as either a success or failure. If the system takes off, more money will be provided for the outrageous AAA game development costs that, more and more, cannot be sustained by the current business model. Basically, all those folks using the machine for TV and Sports will be funding my new Halos and Gears. On opposite end, if the model is a spectacular failure, (and it would be wise for all of us predicting such to remember the unprecedented success of the Wii, which no one expected) it will serve as a precautionary tale for other companies to not follow such a route, at least not to the exclusion of "core" gamers.
Next up is Sony; while I'm historically skeptical of the giant, recent years and a slight corporate humility have placed the company in the best position to care for "core" gamers since the beginning of the PS2 era. If Sony does indeed have an ear to the ground over the Xbox One backlash, as recent Twitterverse chat suggests, it is the perfect time to capitalize on gamers almost ready to sit on the fence for the next few years of new gaming. Whatever Sony does, this moment highlights the fact that, more than any other time in gaming, gamers have a loud voice and new channels by which to be heard. It can be easy to assume that no-one is listening, but that cynicism belies the responses received. From tweets by corporate heads that show they are aware of internet responses, to free downloadable expanded game endings (which, whether or not we like, we have to remember it came from the company's own dime and time, and had to meet approval of the same business heads we envision with dollar signs in their eyes.) We gamers now live in an age where our dollars and internet umbrage vote stronger than ever. From Kickstarter to online petitions, blog articles to indie developers, gamers have more power in their own industry than ever before.
And no company seems more in tune with this lately than Sony. It's been a long trip from expecting gamers to "pay for steak instead of hamburger" to the playful DRM trolling of "Death Ray Manta." More vocal support of the indie platform, a greater focus on games themselves, free online play, and the game rental service of Playstation Plus shows that, at least over the last few years, Sony seems to be picking up the pieces Microsoft has been breaking off. If the PS4 launches at a competitive price-point and forsakes restrictive DRM, Sony may yet retake the throne it once firmly held in the PS2 years.
Which leaves us wondering what to think about Nintendo. While the Wii U has been largely dismissed by many "core" gamers as an underpowered gimmick, so was the DS, which went on to become the second-best selling console of all time (as of March 2013.) Once Wii U price point drops, and as Nintendo continues its history of creating excellent gaming experiences built around the hardware, there is little doubt the console will have some great games in its lifespan. The second screen may indeed prove key to its success, since games built for it can give completely unique experiences compared to the PC-inspired hardware race of the competition. Much like the Wii before it, if a gamer focuses on the games built for the console and not the ports, many excellent experiences await.
And lets not forget about the 3DS and Vita. Lately, I've enjoyed my 3DS library at least as much as my console library. Adventure Time, Bit.Trip Saga, Code of Princess, SMT Soul Hackers, Super Mario 3D Land, and many more have kept my 3DS XL from ever powering down. While I can't say the same for my Vita, there is a slow but steady stream of great games building for it, and the promised PS4 connectivity has a lot of potential. Portable gaming is no longer a second-class experience; as long as watered down console ports and shovelware are avoided, there are many gems to be discovered on our eighth generation Game-And-Watches.
I've said it before, and I still believe it; there has never been a better time to be a gamer. The future of our industry may not be as connected to our personal preferences as we would like, but our industry has also never been more in our own hands. The aforementioned precipice of cultural relevance that video games are approaching means we are in an exciting time, where our newly relevant voices can make a difference. Gaming is valuable for many reasons, not the least of which are fun, artistic display, and community. If any of these are continuously promoted, gaming's relevance will be on display.
RFGeneration is not just a niche community for hobby enthusiasts. We are a vanguard of passion for the experience and worthwhile nature of video games. Sites like ours exist because we enjoy playing, sharing, and being involved with the gaming community. Some exclusively use the collection tools, some may pass through and just leave a few posts, and some stay to become an integrated part of our ever-changing community. But no matter how the future of video games turns out, we here at RFG will be hanging around and enjoying ourselves, the great Meta-game of video gaming, the MMO of life. I hope you are as excited about the multiplayer here as I am.
