The Rise of the Micro Console
With Ouya and the GameStick taking Kickstarter by storm, smaller consoles released in shorter intervals may become the standard over lengthy 5+ year hardware cycles. These micro consoles are undoubtedly influenced by the popularity and immediacy of smart phone gaming and, if they can combine the accessibility of mobile gaming with better controls and hardware, they may dethrone console gaming as we know it.
Indie Popularity
Courting independent developers seems to be on the mind of all three major platform holders at the moment, a vital ingredient for modern console success. With indie games offering some of the most original and creative experiences at the moment, future consoles may live and die based on their support from indies. Of course, the thing to remember is that the more open nature of the PC means that it will always be supported by the independent community, meaning the PC is in a better situations than consoles.
Tablet Gaming
Here’s where things get really tricky. PC systems offer a core and indie game experience, whilst mobile platforms have an accessibility lacking in other hardware sectors. The rise in tablet gaming shows how larger touch screen devices merge the two together. Bigger screens and bluetooth controllers remove the usual control issue levelled at smart phones, and this attracts awesome core game and ports such as the GTA series and the recent Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic release for Ipad. That and they can also be used for work, rather unlike your Xbox 360 or PS3.
The Console Market is Losing Money
There was a point at the height of the economic recession when commentators boldly claimed that the games industry was recession proof. They were wrong. Very wrong. Some areas of the industry have proven resilient to economic decline, but the reported losses of companies like Square Enix and the total bankruptcy of giants like THQ shows the perils involved in developing console titles. Sure, the rewards are high, but the risk is even higher when you develop games for the populist market. With the economy still in a questionable state, low risk platforms will prove more attractive to developers and publishers than conventional consoles.
