So says EA.....

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/technology/7052420.stm

Would it make sense? How about the fanboys, how would they fit in?

Oh great, just what we need...

while it may make some sense from a developers point of view, from a technology point of view a monopolistic ' console' stifles innovation, why evolve when there is nothing to fight against. We (as gamers) are lucky that we have 3 console systems trying to outdo each other for our money with different offerings.

Set-top boxes? I want my Tivo to record Jericho and Family Guy, not play watered down games.

Erm, isn' t PC about as open format as you can get?

Um yeah, that would be a PC.

Not only is it a PC, it' s a gimp PC that you can' t customize.

That' s retarded.


The set-top box idea is a flawed concept from step one. A free market simply wouldn' t allow it to exist. As soon as someone made one, someone else would make a better one.

From the developer' s pont of view, wouldn' t it be more desirable to have a standard software toolset as opposed to standard hardware anyway?

An open platform would be interesting. I' ve always thought we' d eventually get a standard gaming platform made by dozens of elctronics companies, like we do for TVs, DVD players, toasters etc. You know once gaming becomes as ubiquitous as watching telly.

It' d then become very cheap to have that hobby. You' d have the benefits of a non-proprietary platfom like the PC (ie cheaper games) and copy and paste cheap hardware.

Upgrading would only happen when significant new leaps in technology occurred.

Consoles would become obsolete and hardcore gamers wanting more would jump to build their own PCs. EA would stick to the casual masses, and less greedy more ambitious developers would all dev for the PC.

The would would be a happier place.

So nobody fanices the PS360Wii then?

Get rid of consoles completely and have a standard controller for PC and I' m happy.

what a horrible industry this would be with just one console.

Good thing it will never happen, Nintendo would never go for it.

A single platform would have plusses and minuses.

+
Only one console to buy - yay
All the games without the need for buying another machine - yay
publishers needed worry about userbases as everyone would have it - in theory

-
Lack of competition (from which the next points come)
potentially high price
not necessarily break through tech
etc etc... there is quite a few more negative that come to mind but i think you all know them

Personally I hope this never happens. But i' m greatful for only 2 system I want to own this gen (just wish they were cheaper when i got them - especially one of them ;-) )