Console war

Console wars is a term used to refer to periods of intense competition for market share between video game console manufacturers, with particular emphasis on television advertising. The winners of these wars may be debated based on different standards: market penetration and financial success, or the fierce loyalty and numbers of the fans of the system's games.

Due to different manufacturers releasing consoles at different times the wars described below are not exact definitions and don't necessarily have firm beginning and ending dates. Also, these wars had different years and combatants on different continents, since traditionally the 3 main markets- Europe, Japan and North America; have been treated as totally separate entities with machines and games released at totally different times or even totally different games being released. Today this situation is not quite so apparent however it is still there particularly with regards to Japan vis-a-vis the other two markets.

In the mid-1980s low-end personal computers were used as game consoles by consumers worldwide (since no other competitive consoles were then available) and that era is included here as well.

In North America the devotees of each system are referred to as fans or by linking to the platform name, as in PS3 owners. In the United Kingdom the term fanboy originated during the 1980s during console wars between many home computer systems, particularly the ZX Spectrum and Commodore. It should be noted, however, that the two terms have been used by people of the other countries. For example, the term fanboy is used quite often on US-based Video Game message boards. By any name, fanboys attack systems they see as opposition viciously, often without any logical basis.

General concepts found in system wars

Although a "console war" can be thought of as a battle between competing console manufacturers, much of the controversy and notoriety is associated with the supporters of each console, who often pledge loyalty to a console even before its release and engage in intense arguments over the merits of their chosen console.

This phenomenon is unusual in the world of consumables; there are, for example, hardly any "stereo system wars", where people care about what kind of stereo system others purchase. The only explanation usually put forth as to why there are console wars amongst gamers, is based on the idea that the more popular a console is, the more games will eventually be developed for it. This is the positive network effect and is the underlying reason for a related phenomenon, the computer operating system OS Wars.

What makes the wars even more fierce, is that often the major controversies and debates occur before any of the systems are even released, based on what historically have often been dubious specifications released by the manufacturers.

To certain gamers, the whole concept of a console war or a player's loyalty to a console is seen as the "tail wagging the dog", that is to say, a way of thinking which is backwards. To these gamers, one should select a console based on the quality of the games available on that console. This behaviour, however, is definitely not encouraged by the console makers themselves, who are generally not able to release more than a handful of games when the console itself is released.

Psychologically, debates amongst fans in a console war can be seen to be a way of dispelling buyers remorse. This is because game consoles are often a significant outlay for a youth, and often a gamer feels they can only afford to choose one. Realizing as more games are released that one has chosen incorrectly can be a major ego bruise.

The original console wars

This console war took place primarily in North America, between 1980 and 1984, and was fought between three American companies. The pyrrhic outcome and virtual bankruptcy of all the major combatants set the stage for Japanese dominance of video game console manufacturing by eliminating competition and discouraging American and European investment. When Nintendo brought console gaming back to North America in 1985 the discredited market segment held no American-based competition.

The Atari VCS was introduced in 1977 at a price point of $199 USD after two years of research and $100 million in investment. Its name was changed to Atari 2600 in 1982 when Atari introduced the "next generation" Atari 5200. By 1980 sales were doubling annually and three million homes had Atari consoles.

Seeing this success, toy company Mattel began work in 1978 on their own console, the Intellivision, which debuted in 1980 and was immediately a success with a price tag of $299 and a pack-in game, Blackjack. Though not the first system to challenge Atari (systems from Fairchild Semiconductor, Bally, and Magnavox were already on the market), it was the first to pose a serious threat to Atari's dominance. A series of Intellivision TV ads featuring George Plimpton mercilessly attacked the Atari VCS's lesser capabilities with side-by-side game comparisons. Nevertheless, Atari held exclusive rights to most of the popular arcade machine conversions of the day, and used this key segment to support their older hardware in the market.

This game advantage and the difference in price between the machines meant that each year Atari sold more units than Intellivision, lengthening its lead despite inferior graphics. This need for price parity has influenced every console war in the quarter century since Atari and Intellivision faced off.

Colecovision was introduced by Coleco in 1982 and sold 500,000 units its first year, further dividing the marketplace. It was priced similarly to Intellivision and had slightly greater technical power, and Coleco licensed several major coin-op games for its system as well.

This first console war ended with the Video game crash of 1983, when huge oversupplies of games and competition from personal computers caused game prices to drop precipitously.

Personal computer wars

These console wars are grouped under one category though really they are many different minor wars that ran from the mid 80s until the mid 90s. All of the computers involved had many upgraded versions released however due to their nature as computers and not true consoles (though that is what they were mostly treated as) the release of a new system was not the big milestone it would become with the dominance of Japanese consoles. These wars mainly took place in the United Kingdom which during the late 80s was the centre of the world computer game industry having been unaffected by the crash that took place in Japan and the US. This period is also renowned for being the time of the 'bedroom programmer' and many companies formed by such people have lasted until the current day.

ZX Spectrum vs. Commodore 64

In the UK the Atari vs. Intellivision war never reached the major scope and impact that it did in North America. In great Britain the Spectrum vs. Commodore wars of the mid 1980s were the true origins of the console wars as the beginning of single format computer game magazines and their far greater entry into mainstream youth culture than the previous consoles. The Commodore machines were generally the far more technically advanced, but they usually sold for double the price of the Spectrum and thus did not gain much support from the bedroom programmers. One aspect of this period was a 'class war' of the low priced Spectrum and Commodore owned by average working class children against the superior technology and far higher cost of the BBC Micro.

Amiga vs. Atari ST

The Amiga vs. Atari ST wars took place in the late 80s and lasted well into the early 90s by which time it overlapped with the beginnings of true game consoles with the Amiga in particular keeping a strong fanbase which tried to keep up a format war of sorts against PC owners.

The 8-bit era

In the 8-bit era, the NES came out on top in North America and Japan (where it was known as Nintendo Famicom), partially due to its earlier release, and the fact that Nintendo banned developers from releasing their games on other systems if the game was released on the NES. This put a damper on third party support for the Master System, and, indeed, the rest of Nintendo's competition. However, in Europe and Brazil, the Master System clearly came out on top. Many more games were released in Europe and Brazil than in North America, and the Master System had a very long shelf-life in Brazil, finally "dying" in the mid-1990s.

World wide sales figures

• Sega Master System: 12 Million
• Nintendo Entertainment System: 61.78 Million (Japan: 19.23, Other: 42.55)

The handheld wars

In the handheld wars, the Game Boy came out well on top in America and far outlived the Game Gear, becoming one of the most successful consoles of all time. The Game Boy's victory is generally attributed to its greater battery life compared to that of the Game Gear. The Game Boy's green and black LCD screen consumed less power than the Game Gear's high-quality color screen, even if the black-and-white screen was described by Sega as "a spinachy, creamy colour type screen".

The Game Boy had many ports of games from popular Nintendo franchises. It was also launched with the extraordinarily popular puzzle game Tetris as a pack-in.

Many other companies attempted to get in on the handheld market and they could also be added into this category especially with the Atari Lynx as it was released at around the same time as the Game Gear and Game Boy. The only other major challengers were the Neo Geo Pocket and the WonderSwan (though the latter was in Japan only).

World wide sales figures

• Sega Game Gear: 8.65 Million (Japan: 1.78, Other: 6.87)
• Nintendo Game Boy & Game Boy Color: 118.69 Million (Japan: 32.47, The Americas: 44.06, Other Regions: 42.16)

* * Game Boy: 69.42 Million (Japan: 20.61, Other: 48.81)
* * Game Boy Color: 49.27 Million (Japan: 11.86, Other: 37.41)

The 16-bit era

The 16 bit era is mostly known for the notorious war between the Sega Genesis and the Super Nintendo Entertainment System. The Sega Mega Drive (known as Genesis in North America) came out about two and a half years earlier than the SNES (known as Super Famicom in Japan), however its first few years were not very successful and it was not until the release of Sonic the Hedgehog that it really started to sell. The results of the war revealed that the Mega Drive outsold the SNES in Europe and North America though in Japan the Super Famicom sold the most. Overall, the SNES came out the winner in the console war.

Even though Sega saw success in the 16 bit console war, this proved to be the beginning of the end for them with their attempts to usher in the new generation needlessly ahead of time, for they were performing well in the current one. The worst examples of this were the Mega Drive add-ons the 32x and Mega CD which were flops and dented Sega's previously 'cool' reputation. Combined with this, Sega's dropping of virtually all support for the Mega Drive and it's add-ons in favour of the upcoming Saturn upset loyal fans, and resulted in the Saturn unfortunately getting off on the wrong foot.

A knock on effect of Sega's early ending of the console war and releasing the Saturn was that the SNES eventually went on to sell more than the Mega Drive in North America, however, this took place after the end of the console war.

World wide sales figures

• Turbo Grafx 16: 5 Million
• Sega Mega Drive: 35 Million
• Super Nintendo: 49 Million

The 32-bit / 64-bit era

In the 32-bit era the Sega Saturn, although the technically more advanced console, suffered from poor marketing and comparatively limited third-party support. Sega's decision to use dual processors has been roundly criticised, and some wrongly believe the second CPU was added as a "panic" response to the Sony PlayStation's specifications. It has been said that only Sega's first-party developers were ever able to utilize the second CPU effectively. The Saturn was the more difficult console to program for, and therefore the 3D graphics on it's 3rd party games often lacked the lustre of the PlayStation or Nintendo 64 (N64), a severe disadvantage at the dawn of 3D games.

Sega was also hurt by the plan to have a surprise four month early US launch of their console [1]. This head start failed for several reasons. One of the major reasons being there was few software titles ready. Also, the fact that the Saturn was $100 more expensive than the PlayStation at launch put the buying public off, and they went for the cheaper PlayStation. The Saturn, too, was only available at four retailers, not including Wal-Mart.

Sony took an early advantage by tapping the mass market and positioning the PlayStation as a "lifestyle accessory" for males in the late teens to late twenties. Sega and particularly Nintendo's offerings were characterized as appealing more to children (both companies, for instance, featured mascots that appeared in Saturday morning cartoons). The securing of this new market is widely credited as the key to the system's success. With greater hardware sales came greater third party support; ultimately the PlayStation won the era. Sony carried this momentum over into the release of the PlayStation 2 (see below).

The Nintendo 64 is also often grouped into this era, as it competed with the PlayStation for market share towards the end of its life, although it was a 64-bit console and did not arrive until some time after the other two systems after the war had ended.

The N64 was released one year later in North America than its competitors, and after numerous delays. By the time of its release Sony had already established their dominance and the Saturn was starting to struggle. Its use of cartridge media rather than compact discs alienated developers and publishers due to the space limits and the relatively high cost involved (compare £2($3.50) for an N64 cartridge to 20p(35¢) for a PS1 disk), despite the fact that the Nintendo 64 had much faster load times because of its cartridge media (The PlayStation and Saturn typically had loading times because of the need to load from discs). In addition, the initially high suggested retail price of the console may have driven potential customers away, and many early adopters of the system who had paid the initial cost were angered by Nintendo's decision to reduce the cost of the system within a few months of its initial release, although compensation was available to those who had claimed. The Nintendo 64 sold more than the Saturn, but much less than the PlayStation.

World wide sales figures

• Sega Saturn: 9 Million
• Nintendo 64: 32.93 Million (Japan: 5.54, The Americas: 20.63, Other Regions: 6.75)
• Sony PlayStation: 102.49 Million (as of March 31, 2005)

Current generation era

This era is currently drawing to a close; it appears to be a sales victory in North America for the PlayStation 2, with the Xbox second, and GameCube third. Also included in this era was the Sega Dreamcast, which arrived prior to all of the others. However, the impending and much-hyped PS2 competed with the Dreamcast before it was even released and combined with the shadow of the Saturn's downfall and the vast piracy problems it suffered all led to the Dreamcast's early demise. The brand Sony had established with the original PlayStation was a major factor in their victory here, both in terms of securing a consumer base and attracting third party developers; the gradual increase in one tending to reinforce the other. The PS2 was also able to play DVDs and was backwards-compatible with PS1 games which many say helped the former's sales. Any user considering buying a DVD player or PlayStation could view the PS2 as a sensible alternative, and the system effectively had a back catalogue available before it even went on sale.

The Xbox, despite the formidable financial backing of Microsoft and its status as the most powerful of the consoles (733 MHz processor/64MB RAM, compared to 485 MHz processor/40 MB RAM for the GameCube, 295 MHz processor/32 MB RAM for the PS2 and 200 MHz 16MB RAM for DreamCast), has failed to significantly threaten the PS2's place as market leader. However, it has attracted a large fanbase in the United States and Europe and has become a recognisable brand amongst the mainstream. In Japan its sales are far poorer, possibly due to the physical size of the console, and Microsoft's inability to acquire many major Japanese developers for their franchises as exclusives for the platform (contrast with Microsoft's multi-million dollar acquisition of UK developer Rare). There is still a niche fanbase there, however, particularly as the online services for the console (Xbox Live) are exceptional, and way ahead of the competition.

Nintendo is still struggling with their own conflicting brand images, particularly the family-friendly one developed during the 1990s, Nintendo's arsenal of franchises and history in the industry have failed to give them an advantage against the Xbox and PS2. The GameCube sits comfortably in second place in Japan, and in last place (behind the Xbox) in the United States and Europe. The GameCube's profits per console sold are better than those of Microsoft's Xbox. With the Gamecube there is a distinct lack of piracy in comparison to the PlayStation 2 and Xbox.

World wide sales figures

• Sega Dreamcast: 10.6 Million (8.94 Million as of March 31, 2001; America: 4.28, Asia: 2.69 (Japan: 2.32), Europe: 1.97)
• Sony PlayStation 2: 103.69 Million (as of March 31, 2006)
• Nintendo GameCube: 20.61 Million (as of December 31, 2005)
• Microsoft Xbox: 24 Million (as of December 31, 2005)

The current-gen handheld war

Although both companies deny competing with each other, it is widely believed that a new handheld war has begun with the releases of the Nintendo DS and Sony PlayStation Portable (PSP) in late 2004 and early 2005, respectively.

The Nintendo DS's power is slightly below that of the Nintendo 64, but more powerful than the PlayStation due to the lack of Anti-Aliasing and texture filtering which the N64 had, and the faster CPU than the PlayStation has. It is notable in its use of two screens, one of them being a touch screen. It also sports a microphone input. It has shown considerable early success, particularly in branching out from the usual core demographic of computer game players due to the intuitivity of the touch screen control system. The DS is the less expensive of the two systems at retail, and has a considerably longer battery life. It also has free online multiplay, which launched in mid-November in the US with Mario Kart DS and Tony Hawk's American Sk8land. Animal Crossing, a simulation game, Metroid Prime: Hunters and Tetris DS shortly after, and Lost Magic coming in April.

The PSP is the more technically powerful of the two, considered to be at around the level in terms of 3D rendering as a Sega Dreamcast, and is advertised as a portable multimedia system, as well as a handheld console (much in the same way as the PS2). For example, films are being released on the PSP's UMD format, and the system can play video and audio from Sony's Memory Sticks. The PSP sports a large high-resolution display, and a small analogue stick, as well as standard controller buttons.

Both systems support Wi-fi networking. Nintendo has worked closely with companies like McDonald's and Hilton Hotels, with plans to set up hundreds of Wi-Fi networks across the USA and Europe to make sure every DS owner will be able to fully experience the handheld's features. Also, both of them have main menus.

The DS has the ability to play the games of the Game Boy Advance platform, but nothing prior. The slot is also used for other features, like the DS Rumble Pak. In terms of "victory" in this console war, Nintendo's lead is rapidly increasing with more and more new games being announced. It is taken as a telling sign that the number of Sony PSPs "Shipped", always considerably more than the number sold, is still below the number of Nintendo DSs actually sold.

Current system sales

World wide figures recent as of April 2006:

• Nintendo Game Boy Advance: 75.3 million units sold
• Nintendo DS: 17.8 million units sold
• Sony PSP: 17.03 million units shipped

The next-generation war

In 2006 the next-generation war is expected to start with Microsoft, Sony, and Nintendo releasing new consoles. The Xbox 360 was released on November 22, 2005 in North America (two days before Thanksgiving, in preparation for one of the biggest shopping days of the year), December 2 in Europe, December 10 in Japan and elsewhere in 2006. The PlayStation 3 was originally expected in the first half of 2006 (in Japan, other territories had no firm dates), but on March 15, 2006 Sony announced that the launch would be delayed until November 2006. At the 2006 Electronic Entertainment Expo, Sony announced that the PlayStation 3 would launch on November 11th in Japan and November 17th in North America. Nintendo's Wii is expected to launch shortly before Thanksgiving 2006.

The Xbox 360 is based around a multiple-processor core developed in association with IBM and PlayStation 3 is built around a new processor technology named Cell which was developed by Sony, IBM and Toshiba. Nintendo has chosen to keep Wii's information vague until closer to launch.

A significant aspect of the coming console war is the fact that this will be the first generation in which wireless controllers will be standard on every major console. Unlike the infrared wireless joypads of the past, these new controllers will utilize radio frequencies to transmit data to (and, in the case of force feedback, from) the console. The precedent for this technological leap, as well as perhaps the inspiration, may largely be due to the popularity of Nintendo's own wireless Gamecube controller, the Wavebird. While wireless controllers do drastically reduce visible cable spaghetti and grant players a new degree of physical freedom, they introduce the nuisance of having to manage the controller's battery life. This may be one of the reasons that all three consoles will still feature multiple ports for traditional wired controllers, just as future console generations are likely to do until the battery issue is brought to a resolution.

Another major enhancement in these consoles is the use of an accelerometer in the PS3 controllers, giving six axes of freedom (x, y and z, as well as pitch, roll and yaw), and motion-sensing technology in the controllers in Nintendo's Wii, allowing the console to determine the controller's position in 3D space in addition to six axes of freedom. Wii's controller is in the shape of a television remote which can have different peripherals attached to it, such as a grip with an accelerometer,an analog stick and two buttons (the so-called 'Nunchuck controller'), and is the main feature of the console. The controller features Bluetooth for communicating with Wii and a built-in speaker, as well as rumble functionality. The controller can be used in a variety of ways, ranging from a tennis racquet or a golf club in Wii Sports to a katana sword in Ubisoft's Red Steel. This has generated much interest in the console, as seen by the five-hour-long queues at 2006's E3. Much controversy has been raised over the alleged 'copying' of Nintendo's motion-sensing functionality by Sony and the near-identical nature of the PS3 controller to the PlayStation 2 controller, and some reports say that Sony's controller is not as responsive (nor as innovative) as Nintendo's.

Internet play also looks to be built upon from the current generation with all companies emphasising it as a key part of their strategy. Nintendo plans to do so by including wireless internet standard, while Sony and Microsoft include wired ethernet ports, though Microsoft has released a USB dongle to connect the Xbox 360 to a wireless network.

The PS3 will be backwards compatible with most PS2 and PS1 games, whilst the Xbox 360 will be compatible with some of games via downloadable patches (estimated to be around 250 games). Nintendo's new console will be their first home system with backwards compatibility, with the ability to play GameCube games; GameCube controller and memory card slots are installed under a flap on the system. It will also be able to download and play games for the N64, SNES, Sega Genesis, TurboGrafx and NES from the internet via an announced feature dubbed the "virtual console".

All three of these console manufacturers have been known to use a bit of secrecy in their marketing strategies, so the information presently available shouldn't be taken as complete.

Current system sales

• Xbox 360: 3.2 Million
• PlayStation 3: 0 (Release Date: November 17, 2006)
• Nintendo Wii: 0 (Not yet released)

Links

http://www.nintendo.com/corp/report/NintendoAnnualReport2005.pdf

http://www.scei.co.jp/corporate/data/index_e.html

http://www.microsoft.com/msft/download/FY06/MSFTQ2_06.ppt

http://www.segasammy.co.jp/english/ir/pdf/ir/kako/sega_AR_all_2000.pdf

http://www.segasammy.co.jp/english/ir/pdf/ir/kako/sega_AR_all_2001.pdf

http://forum.pcvsconsole.com/viewthread.php?tid=18610

http://www.neogaf.com/forum/showthread.php?t=33628