“Let’s just be honest: we are at the absolute end of the road for gaming consoles,” Jonathan S. Geller writes for BGR. “There is no reason that you are going to need a dedicated gaming machine in the next year or two — you probably don’t even need one now. What makes this more troubling for Microsoft’s upcoming Xbox One and Sony’s PlayStation 4 is that these big, heavy, bulky, hot and loud gaming consoles have to last for an extremely long time in order for them to be profitable for each company. We have been on a 7 to 8-year life cycle for game consoles for the last couple decades, and that model isn’t going to be sustainable going into the future. In fact, Nintendo can’t even sell its brand new Wii U. This is where Apple comes in.”
“Does the world, the consumer, the living room, need a $400-$500 box at the center of it? A $400-$500 box that is going to be obsolete within a couple of years when we all have desktops, laptops, tablets and smartphones all over the place? I think not,” Geller writes. “All we need is a gateway between our smart devices and our televisions, and here is how I think Apple is going to pull this off.”
With “Apple’s introduction of a new Wi-Fi protocol called 802.11ac,” Geller writes, “We can assume you will be able to stream an incredibly high-resolution feed from your phone or iPad to your Apple TV without issue, just what exactly are you going to stream? Videos, and games.”
Much more in the full article here.
Related articles:
Apple’s new Apple TV SDK could completely revolutionize home gaming; Sony and Microsoft should be very afraid – June 19, 2013
WWDC 2013: Now it looks like Apple’s going to take out the console market – June 14, 2013
Apple TV dominates digital media receiver market with 71% share – May 29, 2013
SHHHHHH!
Ballmer is reading these threads, or his minions. One day it might sink in, so SHHHHH!
Nothing to see here. Go back to those silly cat pics and videos Ballmer.
SHHHHH!
The talking heads may stop trashing AAPL and the stock will get properly valued.
Let’s talk server farms
Both Microsoft and Sony realise that the game console market is disappearing. That’s why both are selling their new boxes as media centres that play realistic games.
I suspected it wouldn’t be long before Microsoft’s culture destroyed the XBox. They simply can’t help themselves.
Am I the only person who thinks that Nintendo have pretty much always been perfect to partner Apple?
They have always been the company valuing game quality above everything else (they are the most picky about which games(/apps) play on their consoles…
They love innovation and ‘new’ things and aren’t afraid to break the mould to ‘invent’ (hence the original NES, the original Game Boy, the original N64 with Mario and incredible 3D, the Nintendo DS, the 3DS and the Wii and Wii U… (the SNES was like the NES-S, the GameCube was the N64-S)
And last but not least, they sell Portable consoles with touch screens… And they have just released a games console that uses a touch screen interface to talk to a big screen… If Apple were to start selling an Apple TV with what was basically a Wii U inside (even if the processing had to be done on the iPad/iPhone/etc.) wouldn’t Nintendo be in a brilliant place to make it a joint product with Apple and immediately provide them with a list of compatible games?
I’ve always thought that I was in love with Apple and Nintendo for the same reasons – they new that the experience was what was important and they weren’t afraid to stand up for that belief/Think Different. If you’re just looking for an interface between a TV and gaming devices/iPads/iPhones/laptops and consoles aren’t worth the money anymore… Isn’t now the perfect time for these two companies to recognise how similar they are and start working together for the best all-in-one ‘experience’ imaginable?
Apple doesn’t need Nintendo. They have their own touch interface and OS X which is much more powerful than anything Nintendo’s people can come up with.
The problem with your logic is that you are only seeing what Apple (and Nintendo) have released. Apple works on five/ten year plans. Nintendo is a one trick pony that is trying to remain relevant. Apple builds ecosystems. Nintendo is going to fade into the abyss along with other game box makers like Pong, Atari, and Intellivision.
I think of both Apple and Nintendo as software companies that love vertical integration of their own hardware products…
I agree that Apple are much better at making powerful/top-of-the-line engineered products, but I think that Nintendo are better at making exciting new-age gaming platforms – things like 3D handheld gaming, the Wii controller and dual screen gaming – and I don’t think Apple are alone on working on 5/10 year plans. There were 5 years between the Gamecube and the Nintendo Wii – and I highly doubt that that was a ‘last minute’ invention. But in terms of software, I think that Nintendo has always made fantastic games and Apple has always built fantastic interfaces/applications. I think that if Apple was moving into the games market that it would make sense for them to partner with someone rather than simply opening up to 3rd parties and lose all chance of vertically integrating all of their controller hardware. They could of course make their own hardware and if they did then it would be spectacular, but I think that Nintendo could help with their innovation in this area now and in the future – Jony Ive working together with Games console designers could be a phenomenal combination if done right. And even beside all of that, Nintendo could help massively by providing Apple with an instant library of games – a lot of which would instantly be ‘Apple only’ and proven to be extremely popular – it would be ridiculously awesome to imagine that Apple could suddenly say that Microsoft and Sony were worse not only because they had the worse gaming platform, but also because they didn’t have Zelda, Mario, Pokémon, Kirby etc… I’m not saying that Apple would hugely associate itself with these games – Nintendo would simply become a branch of Apple, but the games would remain the same – I’m just imagining a keynote where Tim Cook comes on to the stage, says ‘One More Thing’ and tells everyone that the new Apple TV is actually a fully functioning games console in it’s own right with every game that’s on the Wii U now and that Wii U controllers and Wii controllers will work with it out of the box. I think that Nintendo is the best qualified for this and indeed the only company uniquely qualified for this – Microsoft and Sony could not be bought as their branches into gaming are just that – branches… And as you say, companies like Atari, Pong, Intellivision and I was thinking of Sega have all failed to keep up with technology. I think Nintendo need to recognise that the best way to entertain people is not by giving them a new device anymore – people don’t want to put down their iPhones after they’ve picked them up!! But the best way to bring them games is by bringing gaming to the screens they already have – providing functionality for gaming on iPhones/iPads and yes Apple TVs and I think that they can best do this with a partnership to recognise the sorts of physical changes that would need to be made to an Apple TV to make it into the perfect games console/media centre combination. I think Apple would benefit hugely from a gaming branch (not necessarily called iWii of course) like Nintendo who has aimed as mass market as possible rather than specifically at ‘gamers’ and I think even more that Nintendo could benefit from a parent company bringing new-age media to the living room.
I understand that both Apple and Nintendo prefer to stand on their own, but for that reason I think that it would make sense for Apple to purchase Nintendo because Nintendo can add a huge value to a gaming machine if they were to produce one (both with a library of compatible games and in terms of games hardware design/innovation) and Nintendo are in the dying industry – whose profits largely depend on games consoles competing against iPads/iPhones/AirPlay devices for access to Televisions rather than working together with them, but an industry that Apple can only move into if they get the library of games and the controller aspect as right as possible.
Also ‘Apple builds ecosystems’
Well, yes it does, but I don’t think that with movies, TV shows, games consoles, handheld games consoles and an ever expanding range of exclusive games that Nintendo has not succeeded in creating an ecosystem. I think they made a fantastic one.
It’s more that their current strategy is trying to compete with the new smartphone/tablet/mobile laptop ecosystem for customer’s attention rather than embracing and adding to it.
I think that bringing the exclusivity of both ecosystems together is a great strategy. And I don’t mean that in a Ballmer-esque fashion.
Things apple need to pull this off:
A powerful console
A standardised, comfortable and intuitive controller
Developers on board
Compelling exclusives
Sony and MS have it all over them in this regard.
From what Apple presented at WWDC, they’re standardizing on already available controllers. So far they have no interest introducing their own controller.
Apple already has literally hundreds of game developers on board. A bigger concern is having the BIG game developers on board. That is going to happen with time thanks to Apple’s current strategy. Then the compelling exclusives will be inevitable.
Meanwhile, I expect Sony and MS will do their best to maintain their strangleholds on the game market. But both companies are on slow nosedives into the ground. With time, Apple will ascend and attract the most modern games and developers.
Hint to Apple: (my usual rant) – Focus on enabling 3D within OS X and Apple hardware to the max, making 3D gaming dirt easy to develop! AKA plug and play powerful 3D APIs. YES! 😀
I understand what you’re saying, but to me there are too many assumptions in there for me to believe that it will pan out.
Come November Sony will have on the market a 1.8TFLOP box with an established ecosystem and developers lined up around the block for $400. To me that’s an easy purchase decision to make. I can see Apple making inroads with casual gamers and kids, and I think that’s where they’ve cornered the handheld market. All the kids used to have a Nintendo DS, now they have an iPod Touch. I think there’s a good chance that an Apple move into living room gaming will happen, but I believe it will be creating a new market rather than entering an established one.
I wish I had any decent handle on the gaming market. At the moment I know what Apple is telling developers and providing to them for game development on iOS. I know the management at both Sony and Microsoft is crap thanks to what I call ‘Marketing-As-Management’, a reliable and time tested way to send a company down the drain. I don’t see that changing at either company. I know nothing about Nintendo except their repetitive games bore the hell out of me, but I like their hardware strategies.
Apple is making some nice inroads into enabling nice game development. They’re adding relevant APIs (but not enough, as I alluded to) and integrating the ability to use current standard game controllers with their software APIs.
As for the rest, we’ll see what happens. Apple is stirring and interesting pot of technology. At the very least, gaming on iOS devices is going to continue to grow. Whether it ‘kills’ Sony or MS gaming, certainly not in the near future.
Has nothing to do with getting Big developers to back the App Store and it’s vision. They already have big developers porting games to the app store. It has to be when console gaming can actually become irrelevant. That the mobile gaming market can take over.
People have to remember console gaming is a gaming rig at heart. People bought ’em because they either didn’t want to go through the trouble of building one or like me it was my first gaming experience.
While what was shown in WWDC is promising for the future of mobile gaming specifically iOS. E3 which occurred the same week also garnered an interesting look at the future to where the experience in the what was shown can only be achieved via console.
So like I stated in a similar post. There are already things like what apple is providing before it’s peripherals are even out in the market. Yet no one is making a peep out of it in the gaming community. Compare that to high expectations went higher in pre-order sales and Microsoft changing a policy.
A powerful console – AppleTV
A standardised, comfortable and intuitive controller – iPad/iPhone/iPod
Developers on board – Done
Compelling exclusives – Unnecessary
Sony and MS have nothing in this regard.
Apple’s plan to take over the living room while destroying Microsoft and Sony
Actually, I don’t think of Apple destroying anyone. Microsoft and Sony (among others, hello Samsung!) are doing a great job destroying themselves all on their own. Apple is simply propagating the Wave Of The Future. If Microsoft, Sony et al. are washed away in the surf, that’s their problem. 😛
The article just reiterates points that have been made many times in the past. I don’t see anything new. That said, I agree with most. It’s clear to anybody paying attention that Apple is trying to zero in on the living room. They’re just having problems with the studios. But the gaming aspect of the article is certainly valid. I’m sure they’re going as fast as they can to get this accomplished. And when Apple does it my guess is that it will be done right.
Well the report that Amazon just came out with makes this write up look like trash.
The PS4 is listed as number 2 on the best selling item list while the Xbox one is number 7, and the best selling game is a PSN game.
Even Amazon was surprised at the high numbers that doubled and even tripled the previous selling of new consoles.
Apple does have a way to inject itself into the home but it is a different kind of Game Play it will offer.
And on a closing note, We have seen write ups like this for many years and its the same old garbage that consoles are dying, while the numbers of units and AAA games along with indie games take the high marks in retail sales.
It’s just not going to happen ( the loss of console game systems).
Apple may add the option for game play, as for Sony and Microsoft, it won’t touch sales of those console units;
Console gaming is much more diffrent then portable app gaming, Apple may encourage portable game play in the home as Apple may offer many different types of options the consoles don’t have within there own stores, but this tune has been sung before and has been debunked over and over again.
This author does not know anything about gaming at all.
Do your research if you believe this fool. I’m an apple lover through and through but this is the most asinine thing I have ever read. First if that is what he is actually touting and stating the impending doom. We don’t need to wait for iOS7 or a future controller accessory (btw; hope these accessories help charge my devices). We need to only wait a few more days for OUYA, or what about a couple of months for Gamestick? Despite the nice pricepoint of $99 (sound familiar) no one is paying attention to it in the gaming community much because it is only going to produce what a mobile gaming device can produce!!!
Sure you can produce great apps with great content but can you get developers backing? If people are actually for this people might as well go straight up PC because no matter what the current mobile gaming platform at this day and age can’t produce what the current console gaming platform can. Think about it when only one game from the current and on it’s last leg console generation was able to be ported onto the mobile platform. Given it’s content… it was not that monumental of a feat at all compared to if it were a AAA blockbuster like say Assassins Creed or Uncharted 2 or the recently released The Last of Us.
Until it can do that or provide an experience that would make me want to use it then maybe just maybe.
This does not point out that Consoles do not target casual gamers, they target the people who want insane graphics, sound, gameplay, and competitive online play, the high end gaming PC, XBOX and Playstation target these people, and sales are always strong, they only reason they have slowed down is new consoles are coming out. Both the PS3 and XBOX 360 will shift well over 100 million units by the time they go out of production, I wouldn’t call that slow sales. At all, the next generation will do well to.
If you want real gaming, you go console or PC, not touch.
Don’t get me wrong, i love Apple, and anything mobile and I think it could be great in the future, but an iPad just cant push what an console or PC can push, an iPad 4 cant match gaming PCs from 2003 yet.
But I would love it when it could. But that day isnt here yet.
Well, the console market is tightly held and I don’t see any point in another console on the market. BUT, the Apple TV in conjunction with an iPad or iPhone or iPod Touch could be a very interesting solution. Let the games begin!