Now Microsoft wants to join the fray. Armed with its Xbox weapon and the superpowers of Marketing, it hopes to conquer Sony, and take the title of World Console Leader. It should be a good fight.
[VIDEO]The first console wars started around 1984, with the Nintendo Entertainment System (NES) taking on the Sega Master System. These eight-bit consoles battled it out for all of four years, with Nintendo beating the technically superior Sega console. This period saw a time of upheaval in the console market, with many smaller players muddying the waters, while the previous generation of Ataris and Amigas seemed to split into the IBM PC and the console - each performing its own dedicated role.
The second war (1990 - 1994) saw rivals Sega and Nintendo joined by Atari. Atari`s Jaguar was never truly a competitor, being significantly inferior to the other consoles. Nintendo`s Super NES may have been technically superior, but the Sega Megadrive - partly thanks to Sonic the Hedgehog - won the hearts and minds of the consumers.
The 32/64-bit fight, which started in 1995, once again saw change of leadership, with Sony`s Playstation snapping up the title from the Sega Saturn and the superior Nintendo 64. Sony proved once again that third-party support from game developers and a good marketing campaign make all the difference, while the N64 sold dismally locally, despite it being a truly awesome gaming machine.
And now we get to the present. The 128-bit battleground has been prepared, and the call has gone out for all competitors to gather to fight it out for the coveted Console King award. There can be only one winner. Each competitor has its weapons, its own strengths and weaknesses.
The technically superior machine looks like it will come from Microsoft - although historically, technical superiority does not guarantee success. The Nintendo Gamecube (or Cube) is also being touted as having some fairly high specs, although until all players have their machines in production, it will be difficult to pass verdict on the most powerful box. Sony looks like it will be left behind in the technology race - a price it pays for releasing the PS2 a year before anyone else.
The technically superior machine looks like it will come from Microsoft - although historically, technical superiority does not guarantee success.
Jason Norwood-Young, technology editor, ITWeb
The Xbox promises to come in with a higher processor speed than the Cube - 733Mhz to be exact. The Cube plans to include a processor called the 'Gekko`, which weighs in at 405Mhz, but with its copper-based technology and its PowerPC architecture - care of IBM, who manufacture the chip - the Cube could still compete well with the higher clock cycles. Sony`s chip will lag behind at a little less than 300Mhz.
One of the big features that Sony will be lacking is the broadband Internet connectivity - standard on the Xbox and optional on the Cube. Online gamers - an ever-increasing community - will probably favour the faster Net connectivity, although the lack of broadband in South Africa makes it unlikely that it will have much impact on the local market.
Another interesting feature on the Xbox - jokingly referred to as Microsoft`s 'worst-kept secret ever` - is the lack of DVD capabilities. Although the DVD drive is built in, it cannot be used without purchasing a separate DVD remote for the machine. This could be motivated by the need to keep the price down - the DVD licensing fee can be included with the remote.
I could harp on about technical specs, or do a feature-for-feature comparison, but at the end of the day, technology is unlikely to win the console war. Marketing, pricing, and developer support are the keys to winning the fight. Microsoft and Sony both excel in these areas, and could leave the Cube way behind. Hardcore gamers will still stick with the Cube, but the majority will side with MS or Sony. So far, the Playstation 2 has failed to deliver on pricing - with the machines selling between R3000 and R5000 locally - while developers are rumoured to be unhappy with the PS2 as a development platform. The Xbox`s pricing remains a mystery, but developers seem to be happy with the ease of development on the Microsoft platform - a tactic that MS has used before to wipe out competition in the PC market.
The great thing about console wars is that the real winner is the consumer. Expect lower prices, better apps, and some imaginative advertising coming down the line. My trigger-finger is itching - I intend to join the fray from the comfort of my own living room.
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