Iterative consoles such as the PlayStation 4 Pro and the Xbox One Scorpio are all the rage right now, prompting a new shift in how the traditional generational life cycle of a console is perceived- and it seems as though developers may be coming around to the merits of a rolling upgrade approach like this one, too.
When GamingBolt had a chance to sit down and talk to Forrest Dowling of The Molasses Flood, the developers behind Flame in the Flood, in an exclusive interview, we asked him about the upcoming iterative consoles. Until now, Sony has had the more powerful console, and has led the ‘resolution wars’ and the ‘performance wars’- but that could all change with the upcoming Scorpio and the already released PS4 Pro. What, as a developer, are his thoughts on the changing paradigms of technology?
“One thing I’m excited about is the idea that the consoles may be moving more toward the sort of evolving platform that is common on mobile platforms,”he said. “Major generational shifts are extremely difficult to weather as a developer, so moving toward a more incremental approach hopefully will be less impactful on development.”
We also asked him about what his take was on why Sony is ultimately doing better than Microsoft in this round of the console wars. “I hesitate to armchair quarterback too much, as I’ve never been behind the scenes of a major console launch, or even the ongoing operation of one, but I think Sony just had a stronger message out of the gate,” he said. “Microsoft in some ways tried to be more ambitious, and it seems like consumers weren’t that interested in some of their marquee features like the Kinect. I think both have hit their stride a lot more, but as we’ve seen historically whoever is strongest out of the gate in a generational shift tends to keep their lead.”
I think I agree with his assessment- in the end, Sony had more focused, stronger messaging that resonated more with customers, and the momentum then translated into inertia, which has led to Microsoft’s inability to mount a proper comeback- then again, with the upcoming Xbox Scorpio, who knows how things might change? One thing is for sure, we need all three console manufacturers to do well within this industry- and right now, it seems like each is doing pretty well for themselves within their defined niches after all. It’ll be interesting to see how the new tech they have each released – the PS4 Pro, the Nintendo Switch, and the upcoming Scorpio – changes things.
