No Negativity(Well, almost)

Folks, I am not here to talk about anything negative.  Not on EA ignoring Nintendo for other systems.  Not about declining World of Warcraft numbers.  Not about any form of negativity.  Well, except one.

There's certainly a lot riding on Sony and Microsoft in 2013. The gaming industry has been waiting for the arrival of the next generation for quite a while, fearing another industry crash, as seen in the early 1980s, if new products weren't revealed soon. The Nintendo Wii U beat them both to the punch, but has suffered lackluster sales since the beginning of the year.

Earlier this month Nintendo, blamed the slow Wii U adoption on customer confusion and a lack of premium first-party games. But is that indeed the case? Or has the global economy taken such a beating that customers just aren't willing to spend big bucks on an entertainment device that can't be used on the go? Tablets are selling like hotcakes, especially the smaller sizes, and these provide cheap but quality gaming the big three have yet to really harness.

He's right.  Why do we need high-powered consoles when we can play smaller games that have the same quality as a Nintendo Game Boy Advance?   But even that's not enough to calm Bobby Kotick's nerves.  

“There are still many unknown factors, such as pricing, launch dates and quantities, the level of first-party support and, importantly, consumer purchase intent in a world where consoles are no longer just competing with each other, but also with new platforms, such as smartphones and tablets," said Activision CEO Bobby Kotick.

  Now, before I move on and before you all go "Oh PCs are still the dominant force in entertainment, I wanna interupt this article with another one.  This one is based on  PC's being outsold by Tablets and Smartphones



Laptops fell by 8.1 percent and 0.8 percent, respectively, in mature and emerging markets, while desktop PCs declined by 4.8 percent and 3.8 percent. Meanwhile smartphones soar, with shipments up 20.6 percent in established regions and by 69.7 percent in emerging markets.
Looking at 2013, growth cools for the more-portable devices, but still greatly exceeds PCs. The analyst firm expects smartphone and tablet shipments to grow by 35.1 percent and 60.7 percent, respectively, in emerging markets, while desktops fall 3.5 percent but laptops rebound to 4.1 percent.
IDC predicts that tablet shipments will surpass desktops this year, and notebooks in 2014. The forecast contradicts another by NPD DisplaySearch, which contends tablets will out-ship laptops this year.

Many analysts had expected emerging markets to be fertile ground for PCs following Windows 8's launch. But converging events, some economic, others technological, make tablets good-enough alternative -- and more familiar.

The importance of familiarity cannot be understated. Tablets running Android or iOS, for example, are easy transitions from smartphones -- versus PCs where buyers must learn something new. Meanwhile, consumers carry forward their time and monetary investment in apps rather than having to buy and learn new ones.

You see, it's not just console suffering from the Tablet phenomenon.  The Computer side of things is also suffering, only because people don't need to switch out their PCs.  Which means gaming is gonna get held back to those who think Graphics Matter.

But back to our other article at hand.  Bobby Kotick is freaking out at the time being.


Not only are next-gen consoles competing with each other and mobile devices, but a wave of Android consoles are set to arrive in June like the OUYA and Nvidia's Project Shield. Throw in the fact that customers can purchase a high performance desktop or notebook at a low price – and they do more than just play games, movies and TV shows – and there's a wider arena than just the Big Three duking it out at Walmart. It's a different playing field than it was three or four years ago.
Kotick, who spoke during the company's recent Q1 2013 Earning conference call, hinted that Microsoft and Sony will likely face the same challenges as Nintendo has faced since the Holiday 2012 season. So far the back half of 2013 looks more "challenging" than previously expected.
"While we have had a solid start to the year, we now believe that the risks and uncertainties in the back half of 2013 are more challenging than our earlier view, especially in the holiday quarter," said Kotick. "The shift in release dates of competing products, the disappointing launch of the Wii U, uncertainties regarding next-generation hardware, and subscriber declines in our World of Warcraft business all raise concerns, as do continued challenges in the global economy."


Wait a minute.  Didn't I talk about how PCs are on the decline?  Something's fishy here.  Maybe Bobby Kotick is unaware of that.  Anyway, back with the article.


Because of this, Activision will remain cautious. "The newest console, the Wii U, has had a very slow start,” Kotick added later. "All of these factors further heighten our concerns heading into the back half of the year, particularly during the very competitive fourth quarter."
It's undoubtedly a scary year for publishers and developers who must sit back and see how consumers react and what they will eventually do towards the end of the year, and into 1Q 2014. Sure, customers will eat up the new consoles during the holiday season, but will sales sizzle out come January 2014?

With E3 coming up, we may have something to worry about, especially if the NeXtbox and the PS4 go down the same path as the Wii U.  It sounds alot like the 3DS and the Vita, except first, Consoles are normally doing well and second, the Vita is still stuck on Neutral.

But are rough times coming for Sony and Microsoft?  Will Generation 8 be the first without a clear winner?  Is E3 gonna become tablet central?  Stay tuned.

Works Cited:
Toms Guide
Beta News