When console gaming took off in the late eighties and early nineties, arguments over which system was best were everywhere. While these arguments often revolved around people wanting to justify their expensive new device, there were elements of objectivity in there too. If we try to analyse these platforms in the modern age, it can be possible to get a glimpse beneath the surface of what makes systems tick.
Before getting into the major consoles, it can be worthwhile to first take a look at more open modern platforms, such as mobile gaming. Here, systems like online casino game providers essentially act as microcosms of the greater gaming industry, taking a little from all major console developers to create something unique. This includes a reliance on special bonuses and features for each website to set itself apart.
Sure, a modern console might not include wagering requirements to compare, but in terms of game selection, expanding modes of access, and a constantly streamlined interface, the two areas are very much in sync. It is from the trails blazed by console gaming that mobile gaming has found its success, so let’s take a look at some of their most influential core elements.
The Nintendo Way
As a company, Nintendo has never been shy of innovation. In some cases, as with the ill-fated Virtual Boy, this experimentation met with disaster. In others, like with the Wii, doing something new led to the creation of one of the most popular systems of all time. With their latest system, the Switch, they’re following more the latter than the former.
With Switch as a hybrid console/handheld, Nintendo has limited themselves in terms of device power but opened the door back to their long-standing handheld legacy. The Game Boy and DS range of systems were all incredibly popular, even with their limited graphics, and the Switch leverages this idea. After all, as Nintendo knows far better than most, the graphical style is far more important than raw polygon count.
Sony’s Need for Exclusives
In the new generation, Sony has put most of its eggs in the exclusives market. Unlike Xbox, which has largely abandoned the exclusive way of life, PlayStation’s exclusives such as Spider-Man and Ratchet and Clank serve as the most powerful tool in its arsenal. Of course, other aspects of their system are roughly analogous to what Xbox offers, so by focussing on pushing platform exclusives the hope from Sony is that fear of missing out will be the deciding factor for many players.
Xbox Reaches Out
Without any exclusives for at least a couple of years after launch according to Xbox Studio head Matt Booty, Xbox might have had a rocky start. That is, if it weren’t for the fact that Microsoft doesn’t just run a console, they also operate the most popular operating system for PC. Working to fuse the two in a way that games on Xbox also work on PC, Microsoft’s efforts are great for multiplatform gamers.
In some cases, this multiplatform effort comes in shared games and saves over both systems. In others, Xbox intends to give out free PC versions of games alongside their console counterparts. Whatever direction, more value for customers is the result.
With the systems all now in the public’s hands (supply permitting), gamers are again faced with the choice of which platform is best for them. With all three major consoles aiming to achieve different goals, the question of which is the right fit is more subjective than ever. Whether you want to play on the go, transfer your games between systems, or sit down and focus on a single device, everyone is catered to in the new generation. That said, the console environment is still an evolving system, so we can’t wait to see what each developer will try next.
