My topic is on the future of video gaming console. Throughout the semester, I have posted blogs as it relates to the video gaming industry. The reason why I picked this topic because I am a video game enthusiasts. Video games have been part of my entire life. It's amazing to see the evolution of video games from the days of Super Mario to Metal Gear Solid IV. I was amazed to learn that over 71 consoles have been developed since the 1970s. I have owned and played about 10-15% of the consoles built. And hopefully more advanced ones to come in the future.
In my blog, I began with introducing the history of video game consoles. I found a website that shows all the consoles that were built since the 1970s. It gave description of each console, sort of a historical biography about them. There was over 71 consoles that I counted. You may see Playstation 2 counted two or three times because they released different version of the consoles during its 10-year period that Sony supported the system.
The next blog was a video on the evolution of video gaming. I thought the video provided an visual illustration of what games in the past look like to how they are today. Dr. Weisband actually played the one i posted on the blog in class. However, I have a new video that is very similar that I will present to you in my presentation.
I also went over the Video Game Industry Outlook for this time period. This was done by PriceWaterhouseCooper and is a little bit outdated. Their study found that the gaming industry will expand by a compound annual rate of 9.1% over the next five years. It also had a chart depicting the growth in gaming revenues from 2002-2006 which was compared alongside the music and movie industry. It shows that gaming revenues have grown by 5.7 percent while music industry suffered declines of 11.6% of revenue growth. The final chart that I posted was the U.S. gaming media consumption that showed how many hours per person an individual played games. As you know, some games may take several hours to complete and others more than double digits. On average, the consumption of video games per person in the U.S. is around 75 hours per year.
The next blog was about Project Natal. I posted a video demonstration that was presented at the E3 or Electronic Entertainment Expo. The video shows how controllers may be irrelevant. In my opinion, I rather play with a control than without one. But it appears the next generation consoles that Microsoft and even Sony will feature this option. I believe the attempt of this feature is to compete with the Wii and their hold on the casual gaming market.
I posted an article on my blog about the U.S. Air Force investing into 2,200 Sony Playstation 3 consoles. This is for research on a cost-effective technology for modernizing the military's high-performance computer system. It described that they already have 336 PS3s hooked up in what is described as a Linux-Based cluster. USAF has found that it is cheaper to purchase 2,200 Playstation 3 than it is to purchase from vendors such as IBM and Intel Corp. It mentions the chip technology and how a single 1U server configured with two 3.2-Ghz cell processors can cost up to $8k while two Sony PS3s cost approximately $600. The difference between the PS3 and another vendor chip technology are similar: A single 3.2-GHz cell processor is capable of delivering 200 GLOPS, where as the Sony PS3 configuration delivers approximately 150 GFLOPS.
Next blog was about cloud computing and how Valve Inc. Steam Cloud along with newcomers are going to change gaming on the PC. This technology allows gamers to play PC games on multiple computers. In the past, games were exclusive to one PC. The Steam Cloud takes your saved games, keyboard configuration, and others onto their servers. This will make it convenient for gamers as well as making it safer to upgrade your computer without the fear of losing the games you have. This could be the business model that change the industry. We will wait and see.
The last blog was an interview with the founder of Video Game giant Electronic Arts, Trip Hawkins. He described how the i-Pad has a market potential of 1 billion people because people are adopting computing formats that are simpler, more convenient and portable. He has very good viewpoints and it is important that we learn what the founders of companies have to say.
The interesting part that I've learned is that video games, like computers and social networking, are evolving to newer and better things. Consoles today have expanded on their features becoming an entertainment device where you can play games, watch movies, listen to your music, chat with friends, and even buy things like DLC (downloadable content). Wii already has motion controls and PS3 and Xbox 360 are going to follow that up with their motion control-less schemas.
My future outlook of video games is that we are heading towards a more social networking platform and electronic commerce. We can connect a gaming profile from Xbox 360 to our Facebook. We can also download video games from Xbox Live Marketplace instead of going to the outlet stores like EBGames. I foresee digital distribution to be featured heavily in the future as we leave physical product for the digital form we call bits.
Wednesday, April 28, 2010
Monday, April 5, 2010
Founder of Electronic Arts Envisions Future of Video Gaming
The article is from the following site: http://articles.sfgate.com/2010-03-28/business/20447361_1_social-gaming-video-games-ceo-of-digital-chocolate.
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Trip Hawkins, the founder of video game giant Electronic Arts and currently CEO of Digital Chocolate, is unveiling a new Facebook gaming platform called NanoStar Social Games that he thinks will take social gaming into the next generation. Chronicle reporter Ryan Kim recently asked him about the future of video games.
Q: How has the iPhone changed the video game industry, and what effect will the iPad have?
A: The iPhone will result in billions of mobile devices being sold in the next three years by Apple and its clones. In the same way, the iPad is an archetype for consumer tablet computers, for which I foresee a market potential of at least 1 billion people. People are adopting these new computing formats because they are simpler, more convenient and portable.
Q: What's next for social gaming that can keep up its momentum and keep players happy?
A: Better games with more value that are truly fun with friends, like our new NanoStar game platform. Up to now, many so-called social games have had thin and repetitive gameplay that feels more like work than play. And many current games are not really social - they're just using social networks to spam their social graph as a form of marketing. With truly great and classic games, it is fun to play again and the outcome is always different. The right gameplay design makes you sincerely want to play with friends.
Q: What else needs to happen before video games are truly considered mainstream entertainment?
A: We need new social games that can become timeless classics like we already have with online poker and fantasy baseball. The truly mass-market games can be played by anyone and that makes the social engagement much easier. Recent examples include the Texas Hold 'Em variant of poker, which only came to Vegas in 1967; the runaway success of Trivial Pursuit beginning in the 1980s; fan voting in the last decade with "American Idol"; and hit casual console games like Guitar Hero. We need more original games on new platforms like Facebook to follow in their footsteps.
The future of gaming: up the beanstalk and into the cloud
From the article: http://arstechnica.com/business/future-of-cloud/2010/04/cloud-gaming.ars
The article explains how cloud computing is changing the way casual gamers and even non-gamers are playing games. Such sites as Steam and Impulse along with the newcomer OnLive, are examples of the cloud computing making significant changes to the gaming industry. These changes are expected to grow enormously in the next couple of years. This will have implications not only the gaming experience, but from the distribution and sales to quality assurance to anti-piracy controls.
This started in late 2008 when Steam released a brand new service called the Steam Cloud. The Steam Cloud enables users to store their saved games, multiplayer settings, and keyboard configurations on Valve (company who developed Steam) Servers instead locally on their computers. This allowed gamers to play their games on multiple computers instead of exclusive on one PC. This capability also made it easier for people to upgrade their computers without the fear of losing games. After this concept started taking off, Impulse jumped on the bandwagon and it expected many others will join this crave. Impulse CEO said that it will cut support cost for the developers along with improving the experience for the customer most importantly.
To read more, go to the link provided on the top of the page.
The article explains how cloud computing is changing the way casual gamers and even non-gamers are playing games. Such sites as Steam and Impulse along with the newcomer OnLive, are examples of the cloud computing making significant changes to the gaming industry. These changes are expected to grow enormously in the next couple of years. This will have implications not only the gaming experience, but from the distribution and sales to quality assurance to anti-piracy controls.
This started in late 2008 when Steam released a brand new service called the Steam Cloud. The Steam Cloud enables users to store their saved games, multiplayer settings, and keyboard configurations on Valve (company who developed Steam) Servers instead locally on their computers. This allowed gamers to play their games on multiple computers instead of exclusive on one PC. This capability also made it easier for people to upgrade their computers without the fear of losing games. After this concept started taking off, Impulse jumped on the bandwagon and it expected many others will join this crave. Impulse CEO said that it will cut support cost for the developers along with improving the experience for the customer most importantly.
To read more, go to the link provided on the top of the page.
Monday, March 8, 2010
Late last year, it was reported on Computerworld.com that the United States Air Force issued a request for proposals to purchase 2,200 Sony Playstation 3 video game console.
Of course, they are not planning to play Modern Warfare 2. The Air Force Research Laboratory in Rome New York is interested in the Cell Broadband Engine Architecture, a chip technology inside the PS3 according to Gartner Inc. analyst Andrea DiMaio blog post.
The USAF are looking into whether the PS3 chips could be a cost-effective technology for modernizing the military's high-performance computing system.
The Air Force already has 336 PS3 consoles hooked together in what is called an experimental Linux-based cluster. In order to expand the research project, they want more than 2,200 PS3 from Sony since other vendors such as IBM and Intel Corp. are more expensive.
The RFP-related document jusitified the purchase that a single 1U server configured with two 3.2-GHz cell processors can cost up to $8k while two Sony PS3s cost approximately $600. A single 3.2-GHz cell processor is capable of delivering 200 GLOPS, where as the Sony PS3 configuration delivers approximately 150 GFLOPS. A total savings of $7k.
The rest of article is below:
DiMaio said the Air Force's interest in the PS3 is in line with the trend toward the consumerization of IT. "This is a pristine example of how consumer technology can be used in pretty demanding government contexts -- although still in an R&D rather than operational capacity," she wrote.
The Air Force said the PS3 Cell processor has shown strong potential for applications such as high-definition video image processing and "neuromorphic computing," which mimics the neuro-biological architecture of the human nervous system.
"The additional PS3s will allow the R&D community to expand its current capabilities and investigate other applications that require many more processors to perform real-time tasks," the Air Force document said.
Link: http://www.computerworld.com/s/article/345642/Air_Force_Taps_PlayStation_3_for_Research
Of course, they are not planning to play Modern Warfare 2. The Air Force Research Laboratory in Rome New York is interested in the Cell Broadband Engine Architecture, a chip technology inside the PS3 according to Gartner Inc. analyst Andrea DiMaio blog post.
The USAF are looking into whether the PS3 chips could be a cost-effective technology for modernizing the military's high-performance computing system.
The Air Force already has 336 PS3 consoles hooked together in what is called an experimental Linux-based cluster. In order to expand the research project, they want more than 2,200 PS3 from Sony since other vendors such as IBM and Intel Corp. are more expensive.
The RFP-related document jusitified the purchase that a single 1U server configured with two 3.2-GHz cell processors can cost up to $8k while two Sony PS3s cost approximately $600. A single 3.2-GHz cell processor is capable of delivering 200 GLOPS, where as the Sony PS3 configuration delivers approximately 150 GFLOPS. A total savings of $7k.
The rest of article is below:
DiMaio said the Air Force's interest in the PS3 is in line with the trend toward the consumerization of IT. "This is a pristine example of how consumer technology can be used in pretty demanding government contexts -- although still in an R&D rather than operational capacity," she wrote.
The Air Force said the PS3 Cell processor has shown strong potential for applications such as high-definition video image processing and "neuromorphic computing," which mimics the neuro-biological architecture of the human nervous system.
"The additional PS3s will allow the R&D community to expand its current capabilities and investigate other applications that require many more processors to perform real-time tasks," the Air Force document said.
Link: http://www.computerworld.com/s/article/345642/Air_Force_Taps_PlayStation_3_for_Research
Tuesday, February 23, 2010
Project Natal
Project Natal is being developed by Microsoft and will bring control-free gaming and entertainment experience to the Xbox 360 game console. It is an add-on peripheral that will use gestures, spoken commands, or presented objects and images. It is expected to be released in Christmas 2010 for the predicted price of $80.
Here is a video demonstration from E3 last year.
The sensor used is a 9 inch wide horizontal bar. The depth sensor consists of a infrared projector combined with a monochrome CMOS sensor, which allows the sensor to see in 3D under any ambient light conditions. As a result, the sensing range of the depth sensor is adjustable, with the Project Natal software capable of automatically calibrating the sensor based on gameplay and the player's physical environment, such as the presence of chairs.
Israeli developer Prime Sense software will be adopted by the Natal, which interprets 3D scene information from a continuous infrared pattern.
Here is a video demonstration from E3 last year.
The sensor used is a 9 inch wide horizontal bar. The depth sensor consists of a infrared projector combined with a monochrome CMOS sensor, which allows the sensor to see in 3D under any ambient light conditions. As a result, the sensing range of the depth sensor is adjustable, with the Project Natal software capable of automatically calibrating the sensor based on gameplay and the player's physical environment, such as the presence of chairs.
Israeli developer Prime Sense software will be adopted by the Natal, which interprets 3D scene information from a continuous infrared pattern.
Monday, February 15, 2010
The Video Game Industry Outlook
Data source:PricewaterhouseCoopers
According to PricewaterhouseCoopers report, Global Entertainment and Media Outlook 2007-2011, they predict the gaming industry will expand at a compound annual rate of 9.1% over the next five years. It is estimated that the industry will grow from $31 billion in 2006 to close to $49 billion in 2011. It is expected the biggest growth will take place in the Asia Pacific region.
The in-game advertising market is expected to grow 64% in the U.S. China will experience the largest growth in any region with a compound annual rate of 14%. Most of the growth will be due to online gaming. However, retail packaged game are nonexistent in China due to rampant piracy.
Data sources:RIAA, MPAA, The NPD Group
The chart shows the growth by the three industries from 2002-2006 and it reveals that the gaming industry has grown while movie and music have shown a decline.
Data source:Veronis Suhler Stevenson
The consumption of video games per person in the U.S. averages around 75 hours per year.
Monday, February 8, 2010
A Video of the Evolution of Video Gaming
The video i posted from YouTube illustrates the evolution of video gaming from a time it was something individuals did on a game board to the visual representation on a screen through the use of a joystick or game pad. We have come a long way from the days of simplicity (Pacman) to an age of complexity (Gears of War). The basketball clip shows how the graphics changed as we added more pixels giving it more definition. The basketball characters have evolved to what we see today which are close to their accurate description. The recent jump from 480i television to 720p and 1080p television shows how far we come in less than five years. Standard def has been replaced by high def. What is in store of the future of video gaming? We will find out more next week.
Sunday, January 31, 2010
The History of the Video Game Console
-To change the future, we must understand the past.
In the first posting of the blog, i want to present the history of the video game console in snippets that were found directly from a website. There are over 71 gaming consoles developed since 1970. And there are more planned in the future.
The website in its entirety can be found here: http://www.thegameconsole.com/videogames70.htm. The site has photos of the variety of consoles.
Now presented below are 18 gaming console that I selected directly from the website, copied and pasted below. If you want to see the other gaming console, i suggest visiting the link above. Otherwise, i hope you enjoy.
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Magnavox Odyssey
Released in 1972
The Magnavox Odyssey is the first home video game console, predating the Atari PONG home consoles by three years. The Odyssey was designed by Ralph Baer, who had a working prototype finished by 1968. This prototype is affectionately known as the "Brown Box" to classic video game hobbyists. Unlike most video game consoles, the Odyssey is analog rather than digital, which makes its invention all the more amazing in spite of its rather crude graphics and controller responsiveness. Also, unlike any conventional console today, this system was powered by batteries. The Odyssey and its variants also lack sound capability (hence a silent console), which was not uncommon in early PONG systems of that era.
The Odyssey was released in May 1972. While it did not perform badly, it did not take long before it succumbed to poor marketing by Magnavox retail chains. One of their mistakes was misleading consumers into believing that the Odyssey would work only on Magnavox televisions. It did, however, prove that consoles for the home could be designed.
Atari PONG
Released in 1975
In 1973, after the success of the original PONG coin-op, an Atari engineer by the name of Harold Lee came up with the idea of a home PONG unit. Since the PONG coin-op that Alan Alcorn designed was nothing more than the game board connected to an actual television set, he thought it would be possible to scale it down a bit and modify it for use at home. This would be a new direction for the fledgling Atari consumer electronics. If they could pull it off, they would be one of the pioneers of using high tech custom integrated circuits in the consumer industry.
In 1975 it was decided Sears would sell PONG under it's own specially created Tele-Games label, and production was initially projected at 50,000 units. This was soon raised to 150,000 for the 1975 Christmass season. Atari agreed to give Sears exclusive rights for the following year, and would continue to make custom Tele-Games versions for any future consoles. This was the beginning of a long relationship between Atari and Sears, which would continue even after Nolan Bushnell sold Atari to Warner.
Atari 5200
Released in 1982
The Atari 5200 is a video game console introduced in 1982 by Atari. It was created to compete with the Mattel Intellivision, but it also competed with the Colecovision shortly after the 5200's release. In some ways, it was both technologically superior and more cost efficient than any console available at that time.
The Atari 5200 was in essence an Atari 400 computer without a keyboard. This made for a powerful, proven design which Atari could quickly bring to market. The system featured many innovations like the first automatic TV switch box, allowing it to automatically switch from regular TV viewing to the game system signal when the system was activated.
The initial release of the system featured four controller ports, where all other systems of the day had only two ports. The system also featured a revolutionary new controller with an analog joystick, numeric keypad, two fire buttons on both sides of the controller and game function keys for Start, Pause, and Reset.
Nintendo Entertainment System (NES)
Released in 1985
Following a series of arcade game successes in the early 1980s, Nintendo made plans to produce its own console hardware that had removable cartridges, a feature not included with the company's earlier Color TV Games product. Designed by Masayuki Uemura and released in Japan on July 15, 1983, the Nintendo Family Computer (Famicom) was slow to gather momentum: during its first year, many criticized the system as unreliable, prone to programming errors and rampant freezing. Following a product recall and a reissue with a new motherboard, the Famicom's popularity soared, becoming the best-selling game console in Japan by the end of 1984. Encouraged by their successes, Nintendo soon turned their attentions to the North American markets.
In June 1985, Nintendo unveiled its American version of the Famicom at the Consumer Electronics Show (CES). With a completely redesigned case and a new name, the Nintendo Entertainment System (NES) proved to be just as popular in America as the Famicom was in Japan, and played a major role in revitalizing interest in the video game industry.
Sega Genesis
Released in 1989
It was 1989. Nintendo's NES had reigned supreme in the video game market for nearly five years, and it was time for a new system to take over the throne. Sega's Master System, while graphically superior to the NES, failed to make any kind of lasting impression in the U.S. market (although it was very popular in Europe), and Sega knew that their next system would not only have to be superior to everything else out there, but they'd have to have a lot of third-party developers lined up.
After two years of development, Sega introduced their "next generation" system to the world in late 1989. Known as the Genesis in the West, and the Mega Drive in the east, Sega began an aggressive marketing campaign, not only to customers, but also to developers.
Although NEC's TurboGrafx-16 had beat the Genesis to market by nearly four months, Sega quickly regained lost ground, thanks to their line-up of quality arcade conversions, killer sports games, and most of all, the full support of Trip Hawkins and Electronic Arts.
Super Nintendo Entertainment System (SNES)
Released in 1991
The Super Nintendo Entertainment System was Nintendo's second home console, following the Nintendo Entertainment System (often abbreviated to NES, released as the Famicom in Japan). Whereas the earlier system had struggled in Europe and large parts of Asia the SNES proved to be a global success, albeit one that could not match its predecessor's popularity in South East Asia and North America - due in part to increased competition from Sega's Mega Drive console (released in North America as the Genesis). Despite its relatively late start, the SNES became the best selling console of the 16-bit era but only after its competitor Sega had pulled out of the 16-bit market to focus on its 32-bit next generation console.
Nintendo released the Super Nintendo Entertainment System which initially sold for a price of $200. The North American package included the game Super Mario World. The SNES was released in the United Kingdom and Ireland in April 1992 for £150, with a German release following a few weeks later. The PAL versions of the console looked identical to the Japanese Super Famicom, except for labelling.
Sega Saturn
Released in 1995
Sega's Away Team worked for an entire two years exclusively to make certain that the Sega Saturn was launched with some of the world's best hardware and software. The 27-member Away Team comprises Sega employees from every aspect of hardware engineering, product development, and marketing. Their sole mission was to ensure that Sega Saturn's hardware and design met the precise needs of both the U.S. and Japanese markets.
In May 1995, Sega launched the Saturn in the USA, a full four months ahead of schedule. This was announced at that year's E3 (Electronic Entertainment Expo) where Sega representatives were engaged in a public relations battle with Sony. This surprise move resulted in very few sales, however. This was due largely to the $399 USD price of the system and the lack of available software at time of launch. Also, Sega chose to ship Saturn units only to four select retailers. This caused a great deal of animosity toward Sega from unselected companies, including Wal-Mart and KB Toys.
Sony PlayStation
Released in 1995
Nintendo asked Sony to develop a CD-ROM add-on called "PlayStation" for the SNES. Because Sony wanted 25% of all profits Nintendo earned from sales of this PlayStation and all PlayStation games, after Sony revealed that they were developing it, Nintendo instead went to Philips. This caused Sony to consider abandoning their research, however instead they used what they had developed so far and made it into a full blown console. This led to Nintendo filing a lawsuit claiming breach of contract and attempted, in U.S. federal court, to obtain an injunction against the release of the PlayStation, on the grounds that Nintendo owned the name. The federal judge presiding over the case denied the injunction.
The PlayStation was launched in Japan on December 3, 1994, the USA on September 9, 1995 and Europe on September 29, 1995. In America, Sony enjoyed a very successful launch with titles of almost every genre including Toshinden, Twisted Metal, Warhawk, and Ridge Racer. Almost all of Sony's and Namco's launch titles went on to produce numerous sequels.
Nintendo 64
Released in 1996
The Nintendo 64, commonly called the N64, is Nintendo's third home video game console. The N64 was released on June 23, 1996 in Japan, September 29, 1996 in North America, 1 March 1997 in Europe/Australia and September 1, 1997 in France. It was released with only two launch games in Japan and North America (Super Mario 64 and PilotWings 64) while Europe had a third launch title in the form of Star Wars: Shadows of the Empire (which was released earlier in the other markets). The Nintendo 64 cost $199 at launch in the United States.
During the developmental stages the N64 was referred to by its code name, Project Reality. The name Project Reality came from the speculation within Nintendo that this console could produce CGI on par with then-current super computers. Once unveiled to the public the name changed to Nintendo Ultra 64, referring to its 64-bit processor, and Nintendo dropped "Ultra" from the name on February 1, 1996, just five months before its Japanese debut.
Super Nintendo Entertainment (SNES) Model 2
Released in 1997
By 1996, the 16-bit era of gaming had ended, and a new generation of consoles, including Nintendo's own Nintendo 64, caused the popularity of the SNES to wane. In October 1997, Nintendo released a redesigned SNES 2 in North America for $99 USD (which included the pack-in game Super Mario World 2: Yoshi's Island). Like the earlier NES 2, the new model was designed to be slimmer and lighter than its predecessor but lacked S-Video and RGB output, and would prove to be among the last major SNES-related releases in America.
Nintendo of America ceased production of the SNES in 1999. In Japan, the Super Famicom continued to be produced until September 2003 (also some new games were produced until the year 2000). In recent years, many SNES titles have been ported to the hand held Game Boy Advance, which has similar video capabilities. Some video game critics consider the SNES era "the golden age of video games," citing the many ground breaking games and classics made for the system, whereas others question this romanticism. See video game player for more.
Sega Dreamcast
Released in 1999
The Dreamcast was released on November 27, 1998 in Japan, on September 9, 1999 in the United States (the date 9/9/99 featured heavily in US promotion) and on October 14, 1999 in Europe. The tag line used to promote the console in the US was "It's thinking", and in Europe "Up to 6 Billion Players". (The vagueness of these campaigns and almost total lack of any in game footage has been touted as one of the reasons for the Dreamcast's eventual downfall. Many Americans knew that the Dreamcast was coming, but didn't know what one was.)
The Dreamcast was the first console to include a built-in modem and Internet support for on-line gaming. It enjoyed brisk sales in its first season and was one of Sega's most successful hardware units. In the United States alone, a record 200,000 units had been pre-ordered before launch and Sega sold 500,000 consoles in just two weeks (including 225,000 sold on the first 24 hours which became a video game record until the PlayStation 2 launched a year later). In fact, due to brisk sales and hardware shortages, Sega was unable to fulfill all of the advance orders.
Sony PlayStation 2 (SCPH-5000x)
Released in 2000
The PlayStation 2 had a difficult start. Only a few million users had obtained consoles by the end of 2000 due to manufacturing delays. The PlayStation 2 was such a hot item after its release that it was near impossible to find one on retailer shelves, leaving those wanting a PlayStation 2 to either wait or purchase the console on-line at sites such as eBay, where the console was being sold by many people for twice and sometimes five times as much as the manufacturer's listed price.
The PlayStation brand's strength has lead to strong third-party support for the system. Although the launch titles for the PS2 were unimpressive in 2000, the holiday season of 2001 saw the release of several best-selling and critically acclaimed games. Those PS2 titles helped the PS2 maintain and extend its lead in the video game console market, despite increased competition from the launches of the Microsoft Xbox and Nintendo GameCube. In several cases, Sony made exclusivity deals with publishers in order to preempt its competitors.
Nintendo Game Cube
Released in 2001
Unveiled during Spaceworld 2000, the Nintendo GameCube was widely anticipated by many who were shocked by Nintendo's decision to design the Nintendo 64 as a cartridge-based system. Physically shaped similar to a geometric cube, the outside casing of the Nintendo GameCube comes in a variety of colors, such as indigo, platinum, and black (also a limited edition Resident Evil 4 platinum and black game console).
The Nintendo GameCube uses a unique storage medium, the GameCube Optical Disc, a proprietary format based on Matsushita's optical-disc technology; the discs are approximately 8 centimeters (3 1/8 inches) in diameter (considerably smaller than the 12cm CDs or DVDs used in competitors' consoles), and the discs have a capacity of approximately 1.5 gigabytes. The disc is also read from the outer-most edge going inward, the opposite of a standard DVD. This move was mainly intended to prevent piracy of GCN titles, but like most anti-piracy technology, it was eventually cracked.
Microsoft X-Box
Released in 2001
The Microsoft Xbox is a sixth generation era video game console first released on November 15, 2001 in North America, then released on February 22, 2002 in Japan, and later on March 14, 2002 in Europe. The Xbox was Microsoft's first independent venture into the video game console arena, after having developed the operating system and development tools for the MSX, and having collaborated with Sega in porting Windows CE to the Sega Dreamcast console. Notable launch titles for the console include Amped, Dead or Alive 3, Halo: Combat Evolved, Oddworld: Munch's Oddysee, and Project Gotham Racing.
In November 2002 Microsoft released the Xbox Live on-line gaming service, allowing subscribers to play on-line Xbox games with (or against) other subscribers all around the world and download new content for their games to the hard drive. This on-line service works exclusively with broadband. 250,000 subscribers had signed on in 2 months since Live was launched. In July 2004, Microsoft announced that Xbox Live reached 1 million subscribers, and announced in July 2005 that Live had reached 2 million.
Microsoft X-Box 360
Released in 2005
The Xbox 360 is Microsoft's newest video game console, the successor to their original Xbox. It was released on November 22, 2005 in North America, December 2 in Europe, and December 10 in Japan. It will be released on February 2, 2006 in Mexico, February 24 in South Korea, and March 2, 2006 in Australia, New Zealand, Hong Kong, Taiwan and Singapore.
The Xbox 360 will compete against the upcoming generation of consoles, including the Sony PlayStation 3 and Nintendo Revolution, and was officially unveiled on MTV on May 12, 2005, a week before the E3 trade show.
Except in Japan the console is sold in two different configurations: the "Xbox 360" and the "Xbox 360 Core System". The Xbox 360 configuration, often referred to as the "Premium Edition", includes a hard drive (required for backwards compatibility with original Xbox games), a wireless controller, a headset, an Ethernet cable, an Xbox Live silver subscription, and a component HD AV cable (which can also be used on non-HD TVs).
Sony PlayStation 3
Released in 2006
The PlayStation 3 was released in North America on November 17, 2006. During its first week of release in the United States, PlayStation 3s were being sold on eBay for more than $2300 USD. Reports of violence surrounding the release of the PS3 include a customer shot, campers robbed at gunpoint, customers shot in a drive-by shooting with BB guns, and 60 campers fighting over 10 systems. Two GameStop employees fabricated a robbery to cover up their own theft of several PlayStation 3 and four Xbox 360 consoles.
Sony stated every PlayStation and PlayStation 2 game that observes its respective system's TRC (Technical Requirements Checklist) will be playable on PS3 at launch. SCE president Ken Kutaragi asked developers to adhere to the TRC to facilitate compatibility with future PlayStations, stating that the company was having some difficulty getting backward compatibility with games that had not followed the TRCs. It has been confirmed (image) that initial PS3 units include the CPU/rasterizer combination chip used in slim PS2 (EE+GS) to achieve backward compatibility.
Nintendo Wii
Released in 2006
The console was known by the codename of "Revolution" until April 27, 2006, when it was renamed Wii, spelled with two "i"s to imply an image of players gathering together, as well as to represent the console's controllers. It is said Wii sounds like 'we', which emphasizes that the console is for everyone. Wii can easily be remembered by people around the world, no matter what language they speak. No confusion. No need to abbreviate. Just Wii"
The Wii Remote is a one-handed controller that uses a combination of accelerometers and infrared detection to sense its position in 3D space. This allows users to control the game using physical gestures as well as traditional button presses. The controller connects to the console using Bluetooth, and features force feedback, 4KB non-volatile memory and an internal speaker. Perhaps the most important of these devices is the Nunchuk unit, which features an accelerometer and a traditional analog stick with two trigger buttons. In addition, an attachable wrist strap can be used to prevent the player from unintentionally dropping or throwing the device.
GAME CONSOLES
...
In the first posting of the blog, i want to present the history of the video game console in snippets that were found directly from a website. There are over 71 gaming consoles developed since 1970. And there are more planned in the future.
The website in its entirety can be found here: http://www.thegameconsole.com/videogames70.htm. The site has photos of the variety of consoles.
Now presented below are 18 gaming console that I selected directly from the website, copied and pasted below. If you want to see the other gaming console, i suggest visiting the link above. Otherwise, i hope you enjoy.
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Magnavox Odyssey
Released in 1972
The Magnavox Odyssey is the first home video game console, predating the Atari PONG home consoles by three years. The Odyssey was designed by Ralph Baer, who had a working prototype finished by 1968. This prototype is affectionately known as the "Brown Box" to classic video game hobbyists. Unlike most video game consoles, the Odyssey is analog rather than digital, which makes its invention all the more amazing in spite of its rather crude graphics and controller responsiveness. Also, unlike any conventional console today, this system was powered by batteries. The Odyssey and its variants also lack sound capability (hence a silent console), which was not uncommon in early PONG systems of that era.
The Odyssey was released in May 1972. While it did not perform badly, it did not take long before it succumbed to poor marketing by Magnavox retail chains. One of their mistakes was misleading consumers into believing that the Odyssey would work only on Magnavox televisions. It did, however, prove that consoles for the home could be designed.
Atari PONG
Released in 1975
In 1973, after the success of the original PONG coin-op, an Atari engineer by the name of Harold Lee came up with the idea of a home PONG unit. Since the PONG coin-op that Alan Alcorn designed was nothing more than the game board connected to an actual television set, he thought it would be possible to scale it down a bit and modify it for use at home. This would be a new direction for the fledgling Atari consumer electronics. If they could pull it off, they would be one of the pioneers of using high tech custom integrated circuits in the consumer industry.
In 1975 it was decided Sears would sell PONG under it's own specially created Tele-Games label, and production was initially projected at 50,000 units. This was soon raised to 150,000 for the 1975 Christmass season. Atari agreed to give Sears exclusive rights for the following year, and would continue to make custom Tele-Games versions for any future consoles. This was the beginning of a long relationship between Atari and Sears, which would continue even after Nolan Bushnell sold Atari to Warner.
Atari 5200
Released in 1982
The Atari 5200 is a video game console introduced in 1982 by Atari. It was created to compete with the Mattel Intellivision, but it also competed with the Colecovision shortly after the 5200's release. In some ways, it was both technologically superior and more cost efficient than any console available at that time.
The Atari 5200 was in essence an Atari 400 computer without a keyboard. This made for a powerful, proven design which Atari could quickly bring to market. The system featured many innovations like the first automatic TV switch box, allowing it to automatically switch from regular TV viewing to the game system signal when the system was activated.
The initial release of the system featured four controller ports, where all other systems of the day had only two ports. The system also featured a revolutionary new controller with an analog joystick, numeric keypad, two fire buttons on both sides of the controller and game function keys for Start, Pause, and Reset.
Nintendo Entertainment System (NES)
Released in 1985
Following a series of arcade game successes in the early 1980s, Nintendo made plans to produce its own console hardware that had removable cartridges, a feature not included with the company's earlier Color TV Games product. Designed by Masayuki Uemura and released in Japan on July 15, 1983, the Nintendo Family Computer (Famicom) was slow to gather momentum: during its first year, many criticized the system as unreliable, prone to programming errors and rampant freezing. Following a product recall and a reissue with a new motherboard, the Famicom's popularity soared, becoming the best-selling game console in Japan by the end of 1984. Encouraged by their successes, Nintendo soon turned their attentions to the North American markets.
In June 1985, Nintendo unveiled its American version of the Famicom at the Consumer Electronics Show (CES). With a completely redesigned case and a new name, the Nintendo Entertainment System (NES) proved to be just as popular in America as the Famicom was in Japan, and played a major role in revitalizing interest in the video game industry.
Sega Genesis
Released in 1989
It was 1989. Nintendo's NES had reigned supreme in the video game market for nearly five years, and it was time for a new system to take over the throne. Sega's Master System, while graphically superior to the NES, failed to make any kind of lasting impression in the U.S. market (although it was very popular in Europe), and Sega knew that their next system would not only have to be superior to everything else out there, but they'd have to have a lot of third-party developers lined up.
After two years of development, Sega introduced their "next generation" system to the world in late 1989. Known as the Genesis in the West, and the Mega Drive in the east, Sega began an aggressive marketing campaign, not only to customers, but also to developers.
Although NEC's TurboGrafx-16 had beat the Genesis to market by nearly four months, Sega quickly regained lost ground, thanks to their line-up of quality arcade conversions, killer sports games, and most of all, the full support of Trip Hawkins and Electronic Arts.
Super Nintendo Entertainment System (SNES)
Released in 1991
The Super Nintendo Entertainment System was Nintendo's second home console, following the Nintendo Entertainment System (often abbreviated to NES, released as the Famicom in Japan). Whereas the earlier system had struggled in Europe and large parts of Asia the SNES proved to be a global success, albeit one that could not match its predecessor's popularity in South East Asia and North America - due in part to increased competition from Sega's Mega Drive console (released in North America as the Genesis). Despite its relatively late start, the SNES became the best selling console of the 16-bit era but only after its competitor Sega had pulled out of the 16-bit market to focus on its 32-bit next generation console.
Nintendo released the Super Nintendo Entertainment System which initially sold for a price of $200. The North American package included the game Super Mario World. The SNES was released in the United Kingdom and Ireland in April 1992 for £150, with a German release following a few weeks later. The PAL versions of the console looked identical to the Japanese Super Famicom, except for labelling.
Sega Saturn
Released in 1995
Sega's Away Team worked for an entire two years exclusively to make certain that the Sega Saturn was launched with some of the world's best hardware and software. The 27-member Away Team comprises Sega employees from every aspect of hardware engineering, product development, and marketing. Their sole mission was to ensure that Sega Saturn's hardware and design met the precise needs of both the U.S. and Japanese markets.
In May 1995, Sega launched the Saturn in the USA, a full four months ahead of schedule. This was announced at that year's E3 (Electronic Entertainment Expo) where Sega representatives were engaged in a public relations battle with Sony. This surprise move resulted in very few sales, however. This was due largely to the $399 USD price of the system and the lack of available software at time of launch. Also, Sega chose to ship Saturn units only to four select retailers. This caused a great deal of animosity toward Sega from unselected companies, including Wal-Mart and KB Toys.
Sony PlayStation
Released in 1995
Nintendo asked Sony to develop a CD-ROM add-on called "PlayStation" for the SNES. Because Sony wanted 25% of all profits Nintendo earned from sales of this PlayStation and all PlayStation games, after Sony revealed that they were developing it, Nintendo instead went to Philips. This caused Sony to consider abandoning their research, however instead they used what they had developed so far and made it into a full blown console. This led to Nintendo filing a lawsuit claiming breach of contract and attempted, in U.S. federal court, to obtain an injunction against the release of the PlayStation, on the grounds that Nintendo owned the name. The federal judge presiding over the case denied the injunction.
The PlayStation was launched in Japan on December 3, 1994, the USA on September 9, 1995 and Europe on September 29, 1995. In America, Sony enjoyed a very successful launch with titles of almost every genre including Toshinden, Twisted Metal, Warhawk, and Ridge Racer. Almost all of Sony's and Namco's launch titles went on to produce numerous sequels.
Nintendo 64
Released in 1996
The Nintendo 64, commonly called the N64, is Nintendo's third home video game console. The N64 was released on June 23, 1996 in Japan, September 29, 1996 in North America, 1 March 1997 in Europe/Australia and September 1, 1997 in France. It was released with only two launch games in Japan and North America (Super Mario 64 and PilotWings 64) while Europe had a third launch title in the form of Star Wars: Shadows of the Empire (which was released earlier in the other markets). The Nintendo 64 cost $199 at launch in the United States.
During the developmental stages the N64 was referred to by its code name, Project Reality. The name Project Reality came from the speculation within Nintendo that this console could produce CGI on par with then-current super computers. Once unveiled to the public the name changed to Nintendo Ultra 64, referring to its 64-bit processor, and Nintendo dropped "Ultra" from the name on February 1, 1996, just five months before its Japanese debut.
Super Nintendo Entertainment (SNES) Model 2
Released in 1997
By 1996, the 16-bit era of gaming had ended, and a new generation of consoles, including Nintendo's own Nintendo 64, caused the popularity of the SNES to wane. In October 1997, Nintendo released a redesigned SNES 2 in North America for $99 USD (which included the pack-in game Super Mario World 2: Yoshi's Island). Like the earlier NES 2, the new model was designed to be slimmer and lighter than its predecessor but lacked S-Video and RGB output, and would prove to be among the last major SNES-related releases in America.
Nintendo of America ceased production of the SNES in 1999. In Japan, the Super Famicom continued to be produced until September 2003 (also some new games were produced until the year 2000). In recent years, many SNES titles have been ported to the hand held Game Boy Advance, which has similar video capabilities. Some video game critics consider the SNES era "the golden age of video games," citing the many ground breaking games and classics made for the system, whereas others question this romanticism. See video game player for more.
Sega Dreamcast
Released in 1999
The Dreamcast was released on November 27, 1998 in Japan, on September 9, 1999 in the United States (the date 9/9/99 featured heavily in US promotion) and on October 14, 1999 in Europe. The tag line used to promote the console in the US was "It's thinking", and in Europe "Up to 6 Billion Players". (The vagueness of these campaigns and almost total lack of any in game footage has been touted as one of the reasons for the Dreamcast's eventual downfall. Many Americans knew that the Dreamcast was coming, but didn't know what one was.)
The Dreamcast was the first console to include a built-in modem and Internet support for on-line gaming. It enjoyed brisk sales in its first season and was one of Sega's most successful hardware units. In the United States alone, a record 200,000 units had been pre-ordered before launch and Sega sold 500,000 consoles in just two weeks (including 225,000 sold on the first 24 hours which became a video game record until the PlayStation 2 launched a year later). In fact, due to brisk sales and hardware shortages, Sega was unable to fulfill all of the advance orders.
Sony PlayStation 2 (SCPH-5000x)
Released in 2000
The PlayStation 2 had a difficult start. Only a few million users had obtained consoles by the end of 2000 due to manufacturing delays. The PlayStation 2 was such a hot item after its release that it was near impossible to find one on retailer shelves, leaving those wanting a PlayStation 2 to either wait or purchase the console on-line at sites such as eBay, where the console was being sold by many people for twice and sometimes five times as much as the manufacturer's listed price.
The PlayStation brand's strength has lead to strong third-party support for the system. Although the launch titles for the PS2 were unimpressive in 2000, the holiday season of 2001 saw the release of several best-selling and critically acclaimed games. Those PS2 titles helped the PS2 maintain and extend its lead in the video game console market, despite increased competition from the launches of the Microsoft Xbox and Nintendo GameCube. In several cases, Sony made exclusivity deals with publishers in order to preempt its competitors.
Nintendo Game Cube
Released in 2001
Unveiled during Spaceworld 2000, the Nintendo GameCube was widely anticipated by many who were shocked by Nintendo's decision to design the Nintendo 64 as a cartridge-based system. Physically shaped similar to a geometric cube, the outside casing of the Nintendo GameCube comes in a variety of colors, such as indigo, platinum, and black (also a limited edition Resident Evil 4 platinum and black game console).
The Nintendo GameCube uses a unique storage medium, the GameCube Optical Disc, a proprietary format based on Matsushita's optical-disc technology; the discs are approximately 8 centimeters (3 1/8 inches) in diameter (considerably smaller than the 12cm CDs or DVDs used in competitors' consoles), and the discs have a capacity of approximately 1.5 gigabytes. The disc is also read from the outer-most edge going inward, the opposite of a standard DVD. This move was mainly intended to prevent piracy of GCN titles, but like most anti-piracy technology, it was eventually cracked.
Microsoft X-Box
Released in 2001
The Microsoft Xbox is a sixth generation era video game console first released on November 15, 2001 in North America, then released on February 22, 2002 in Japan, and later on March 14, 2002 in Europe. The Xbox was Microsoft's first independent venture into the video game console arena, after having developed the operating system and development tools for the MSX, and having collaborated with Sega in porting Windows CE to the Sega Dreamcast console. Notable launch titles for the console include Amped, Dead or Alive 3, Halo: Combat Evolved, Oddworld: Munch's Oddysee, and Project Gotham Racing.
In November 2002 Microsoft released the Xbox Live on-line gaming service, allowing subscribers to play on-line Xbox games with (or against) other subscribers all around the world and download new content for their games to the hard drive. This on-line service works exclusively with broadband. 250,000 subscribers had signed on in 2 months since Live was launched. In July 2004, Microsoft announced that Xbox Live reached 1 million subscribers, and announced in July 2005 that Live had reached 2 million.
Microsoft X-Box 360
Released in 2005
The Xbox 360 is Microsoft's newest video game console, the successor to their original Xbox. It was released on November 22, 2005 in North America, December 2 in Europe, and December 10 in Japan. It will be released on February 2, 2006 in Mexico, February 24 in South Korea, and March 2, 2006 in Australia, New Zealand, Hong Kong, Taiwan and Singapore.
The Xbox 360 will compete against the upcoming generation of consoles, including the Sony PlayStation 3 and Nintendo Revolution, and was officially unveiled on MTV on May 12, 2005, a week before the E3 trade show.
Except in Japan the console is sold in two different configurations: the "Xbox 360" and the "Xbox 360 Core System". The Xbox 360 configuration, often referred to as the "Premium Edition", includes a hard drive (required for backwards compatibility with original Xbox games), a wireless controller, a headset, an Ethernet cable, an Xbox Live silver subscription, and a component HD AV cable (which can also be used on non-HD TVs).
Sony PlayStation 3
Released in 2006
The PlayStation 3 was released in North America on November 17, 2006. During its first week of release in the United States, PlayStation 3s were being sold on eBay for more than $2300 USD. Reports of violence surrounding the release of the PS3 include a customer shot, campers robbed at gunpoint, customers shot in a drive-by shooting with BB guns, and 60 campers fighting over 10 systems. Two GameStop employees fabricated a robbery to cover up their own theft of several PlayStation 3 and four Xbox 360 consoles.
Sony stated every PlayStation and PlayStation 2 game that observes its respective system's TRC (Technical Requirements Checklist) will be playable on PS3 at launch. SCE president Ken Kutaragi asked developers to adhere to the TRC to facilitate compatibility with future PlayStations, stating that the company was having some difficulty getting backward compatibility with games that had not followed the TRCs. It has been confirmed (image) that initial PS3 units include the CPU/rasterizer combination chip used in slim PS2 (EE+GS) to achieve backward compatibility.
Nintendo Wii
Released in 2006
The console was known by the codename of "Revolution" until April 27, 2006, when it was renamed Wii, spelled with two "i"s to imply an image of players gathering together, as well as to represent the console's controllers. It is said Wii sounds like 'we', which emphasizes that the console is for everyone. Wii can easily be remembered by people around the world, no matter what language they speak. No confusion. No need to abbreviate. Just Wii"
The Wii Remote is a one-handed controller that uses a combination of accelerometers and infrared detection to sense its position in 3D space. This allows users to control the game using physical gestures as well as traditional button presses. The controller connects to the console using Bluetooth, and features force feedback, 4KB non-volatile memory and an internal speaker. Perhaps the most important of these devices is the Nunchuk unit, which features an accelerometer and a traditional analog stick with two trigger buttons. In addition, an attachable wrist strap can be used to prevent the player from unintentionally dropping or throwing the device.
GAME CONSOLES
1970-1976
Atari PONG
Magnavox Odyssey
Magnavox Odyssey 100
Magnavox Odyssey 200
Atari Super PONG
Coleco Telstar
Coleco Telstar Classic
Fairchild Channel F
Magnavox Odyssey 300
Magnavox Odyssey 400
Magnavox Odyssey 500
RCA Studio II
Wonder Wizard 7702
1977
Atari Stunt Cycle
Atari VCS 2600
Atari Video Pinball
Coleco Telstar Alpha
Coleco Telstar Combat
Magnavox Odyssey 2000
Magnavox Odyssey 3000
Magnavox Odyssey 4000
1978-1980
Atari 400
Bally Professional Arcade
Coleco Telstar Arcade
Coleco Telstar Colortron
Coleco Telstar Gemini
Magnavox Odyssey²
Mattel Intellivision
Zircon Channel F System II
1980-1982
Atari 5200
Coleco Gemini
Colecovision
Emerson Arcadia 2001
Mattel Intellivision II
Vectrex
1983-1989
Atari 2600 Junior
Atari 7800
NEC Turbo Grafx 16
Nintendo Entertainment System
Sega Genesis
Sega Master System
1990-1993
Atari Jaguar
NEC TurboDuo
Nintendo Entertainment System 2
Panasonic 3DO Interactive
Sega CD for Genesis
Sega Master System II
SNK NEO-GEO
Super Nintendo
1994-1995
Atari Jaguar CD
Panasonic 3DO FZ-10
Sega CD for Genesis 2
Sega CDX
Sega Genesis 2
Sega Genesis 32x
Sega Saturn
SNK NEO-GEO CD
Sony PlayStation
1996-2000
Nintendo 64
Sega Dreamcast
Sega Genesis 3
Sony PlayStation 2
Sony PlayStation PS1
Super Nintendo 2
2001-2006
Microsoft X-Box
Microsoft X-Box 360
Nintendo Game Cube
Nintendo Wii
Sony PlayStation 2
Sony PlayStation 3
XaviXPORT
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