Stop the Nonsense: Apple will not destroy the video game console!

[Mongoose]

Dude, I'm so sick of hearing different "industry experts" claiming that the iPad and iOS will be the end of the gaming console. Can you seriously believe that eventually people will play Metal Gear Solid or Street Fighter or whatever on an iPad touch screen and enjoy it like they would holding a real video game controller? Don't get me wrong, Apple products are nice and everything, but I really think people are going way to far by claiming (or wishing) that iOS will eventually one day wipe out all video game consoles. The iPad might be good for casual games and some strategy games, but real hardcore action, shooting, and fighting cannot be done with a touchscreen for control.

[BoyBettaKnow]

Right... I don't think you'll have any gamers disagreeing with you.

It'd be nice if it gave the consoles a run for their money though.

[Tutankhamun]

It is more complicated than looking at the iPhone, iPod Touch and iPad. To understand if Apple can disrupt the video game console business (disrupt, not "destroy") we have to understand disruption theory so can Apple bring a new type of gaming experience to the current market? Yes. Will they? They have already done so.

It is quite clear mobile gaming in general is disrupting console gaming but console gaming still have an big audience, and more importantly a profitable one, so could Apple (or someone else) bring something new to attract console gamers it is plausible. The Apple TV can run apps but it isn't enabled so can a future Apple TV steal console gamers? Time will tell - if it will have games that is to say.

[Ghost-Rhayne]

Apple will cater for a certain kind of gamer. They will NEVER sway those who were raised on consoles and controllers, and there about 250,000,000 people with PS3s, 360s and Wiis out there who are probably part of this group. I couldn't care less about smartphone gaming if my life depended on it. I play angry birds on the loo sometimes or while on the train or some shit, but as soon as Vita comes those birds can GTFO. I will ALWAYS want control inputs that are physical, not just some zone on a touch screen. If Apple release a home console, perhaps, but even then they will lack the long standing heritage of IPs that each console has. Im sure the suckers who buy every iphone and every ipad as it comes out would jump on board, but I sure as hell wont.

[Cybertox]

The apple devices wont replace the consoles at all.Cause they will never have such good hardware and controls as the consoles.

[F34R]

Disagreed Cyber... with the tech evolving the way it is, you can easily see a future ipad with some mad gaming prowess, and external controls as a "tag a long" option. Replace them? I not willing to bet that IOS/Tablets, etc. could replace the console, but it can definitely keep pace with the way the mobile tech is evolving....

[Mael Duin]

When the time comes that you actually have some kind of control system other than just touch pad on tablets etc. then we can take them as a serious competition to home consoles. Until then, tablets will stay on their own market and home consoles will stay on their own market.

[keefy]

ITs taken them 12 years to get this far Jobs said it himself "we want to be the best gaming platform in the world" they failed with regular desktop Mac's so now this mobile device stuff might just make them the biggest, its no doubt cheaper to develop games for an ipad or iphone than a full blown gaming console or a PC with the unlimited amount of configurations.
http://youtu.be/hNF4qioOD1I?t=1m58s

[jj03]

couldn't give a shit about apple tbh...they can keep their fuckin ipads n shit.

.

[F34R]

couldn't give a shit about apple tbh...they can keep their fuckin ipads n shit.

.

Sheesh, why the hostility?

[Seahawkk]

Sheesh, why the hostility?

Because umm Apple sucks? There desktops fail miserably compared to PC and Android is catching up to them very very fast. Basically the only people who buy Apple products are fanboys. The iphone 4s is the only thing i would consider purchasing because it is one of the most powerful phones on the market, but Android will toss something out in the next few months that will surpass it.

[F34R]

Because umm Apple sucks? There desktops fail miserably compared to PC and Android is catching up to them very very fast. Basically the only people who buy Apple products are fanboys. The iphone 4s is the only thing i would consider purchasing because it is one of the most powerful phones on the market, but Android will toss something out in the next few months that will surpass it.

I'm going to have to disagree with you here. I'm as far from a apply fanboy as someone could be, yet I find the iOS software better than Android. It has more support, more reliable/stable, and is a lot easier to use. When you say Android is catching up, in what regards? Android doesn't make phones fyi... all the horsepower in the world doesn't do any good if the software it's running isn't stable, doesn't have dev support, etc.

[keefy]

The ease of use of an OS matters not when gaming is concerned most people would say Mac OS is easier to use than Windows yet MAc has struggled to get anywhere near the same gaming dominance that Windows has.

[Seahawkk]

I'm going to have to disagree with you here. I'm as far from a apply fanboy as someone could be, yet I find the iOS software better than Android. It has more support, more reliable/stable, and is a lot easier to use. When you say Android is catching up, in what regards? Android doesn't make phones fyi... all the horsepower in the world doesn't do any good if the software it's running isn't stable, doesn't have dev support, etc.

They are equally as stable except for ios5? my friends itouch 4th gen crashes at least 3 times a day. I will say iphones are better for gaming, but android is far better for applications and development.

[F34R]

They are equally as stable except for ios5? my friends itouch 4th gen crashes at least 3 times a day. I will say iphones are better for gaming, but android is far better for applications and development.

Um, no. Android is a mess in terms of stability within its own code, and operating with apps developed for it. Hopefully this is fixed with ICS, but I'm not holding my breath right now. Fragmentation from carries and versions is a problem as well.

[Seahawkk]

Um, no. Android is a mess in terms of stability within its own code, and operating with apps developed for it. Hopefully this is fixed with ICS, but I'm not holding my breath right now. Fragmentation from carries and versions is a problem as well.

well i never have problems on my thunderbolt.

[F34R]

well i never have problems on my thunderbolt.

... and I've never had any issues with my iPhone 4, while the constant F/C, app crashing, etc., on my Samsung Fascinate (Galaxy S), is what initially had me on the trail to try the iOS alternative. I'm hoping that ICS gets me back on board soon though because I do miss the customization I had with Android. All these versions, different for carriers, etc., keeps the customers fragmented.

I'll never go to another phone that has a carriers skin over Android.

[Sufi]

I don't get why people can't accept change.

Say if gaming was going to get destroyed by something (such as Apple in this case), then so be it. If it can't withstand change then it was inevitable.

If there's demand for the way we prefer gaming then there will always be games (even if less games eventually, which seems like will happen).

[SchaffinOSX]

It is often difficult for all of us, who have grown up with controllers and console gaming, to imagine a world where gaming looks and feels entirely different. And frankly, none of us can confidently predict where gaming is going, because there are plenty of options. For one, motion gaming could continue to become more and more prominent. I myself am not a huge fan of motion-controlled gaming, but who knows? If it becomes more prominent, I just might come around to it.

Then there are things like iOS and mobile gaming... There are becoming increasingly popular, but are meant entirely for casual gamers; not hardcore gamers. Who's to say that someday, game developers won't find a way to bring hardcore gaming to one of those avenues? As Tut hinted on, however, I think Apple has its best shot with the Apple TV. The biggest obstacle I think Apple would face in trying to bring hardcore gaming to the Apple TV would be finding developers who aren't already tied up with Microsoft and / or Sony. Then again, that could be Apple's biggest strength -- it would provide an opportunity for newer developers to make their mark on the gaming industry.

What the future holds, I don't know. Nor do any of you. But I'm not afraid. Gaming will change over time, and as gamers, we have to have an open mind and see what comes our way. Remember, if gamers wholly don't like the direction gaming is going in, the direction will change. Changes in the direction of industry only change when it is believed that more consumers will be brought in. If that isn't the case, gaming won't go in that direction.

Apple has a shot, and have already appealed largely to casual gamers. We can only wait and see what they do next.

[uofmtiger]

They are definitely putting a dent in the hand held game market, so it would not surprise me if they developed something for larger screens. I don't see it right now, though.

PS I love my iPad.

[Wasib]

I don't get why people can't accept change.

Say if gaming was going to get destroyed by something (such as Apple in this case), then so be it. If it can't withstand change then it was inevitable.

If there's demand for the way we prefer gaming then there will always be games (even if less games eventually, which seems like will happen).

It is often difficult for all of us, who have grown up with controllers and console gaming, to imagine a world where gaming looks and feels entirely different. And frankly, none of us can confidently predict where gaming is going, because there are plenty of options. For one, motion gaming could continue to become more and more prominent. I myself am not a huge fan of motion-controlled gaming, but who knows? If it becomes more prominent, I just might come around to it.

Then there are things like iOS and mobile gaming... There are becoming increasingly popular, but are meant entirely for casual gamers; not hardcore gamers. Who's to say that someday, game developers won't find a way to bring hardcore gaming to one of those avenues? As Tut hinted on, however, I think Apple has its best shot with the Apple TV. The biggest obstacle I think Apple would face in trying to bring hardcore gaming to the Apple TV would be finding developers who aren't already tied up with Microsoft and / or Sony. Then again, that could be Apple's biggest strength -- it would provide an opportunity for newer developers to make their mark on the gaming industry.

What the future holds, I don't know. Nor do any of you. But I'm not afraid. Gaming will change over time, and as gamers, we have to have an open mind and see what comes our way. Remember, if gamers wholly don't like the direction gaming is going in, the direction will change. Changes in the direction of industry only change when it is believed that more consumers will be brought in. If that isn't the case, gaming won't go in that direction.

Apple has a shot, and have already appealed largely to casual gamers. We can only wait and see what they do next.

If the profitability of casual gaming increases exponentially (this will be shown by forecasts and resultant profits of the companies who are making in-roads into casual gaming) the chances are conventional game companies will likely divert resources to the most profitable activities (as the goal of the Corporation is to maximize the wealth of its shareholders). And if casual gaming is the way for increased profits so that will be the choice.

For instance look at how Nintendo's internal first-party this generation has been 'geared' towards creating new casual IP. Imagine now - those same resources being diverted to core games. There is a loss to the core-gamer but a gain to the casual user.

Similarly look at how Microsoft have recently 'tuned' down their first-party studios and re-organized them into creating more casual orientated 'projects'. Again imagine such resources being devoted purely to core-gaming. Again there is a loss to the core-gamer but a gain to the casual user.

There is therefore a transfer.

It is this transfer that concerns because the desire to maximize profits means what for the graphics, story, narrative, quality, length, experiences of those epic high production core games? - that for me represent the highest epoch of gaming.

Are we going into a era where the first-party (internal studios) of Nintendo, Microsoft and perhaps one day Sony gear, let us say, 70% of their resources to casual gaming?

[claud3]

i hear the word ICONSOLE in the near future... But its good that theirs even more formats out there to play games on