Sony officially announced the PlayStation 4 last week and kicked off the next round of the so-called ‘Console Wars’. Much of the mainstream consumer media has been quick to compare it to the unannounced Microsoft Xbox 360 successor and the Nintendo Wii U as the ‘next big thing’, however they’re failing to look past the hype, see the bigger picture and educate consumers.
The developments in gaming since the last round of consoles mean that a new wave of devices that just run games and connect to the Internet won’t cut it. Because of this Sony has had no choice but to design the PlayStation 4 as essentially a closed PC that you can’t upgrade. This means that no matter how shiny and fast it is when released, nothing can prevent the PS4 becoming out of date in a couple of years.
Valve Software’s upcoming Steam Box is one example of a living room PC-based gaming device that you can upgrade, and is the real sign of things to come. Technology advances mean that you’ll no longer need a huge, expensive PC to stay within the cutting-edge of gaming, and manufacturers will no doubt make it easier and easier for even the most technologically illiterate consumer to upgrade their gaming machines.
Unless the next Xbox console is properly upgradable, which is very unlikely, the ‘Console Wars’ between Sony, Microsoft and Nintendo are an irrelevance designed purely to generate marketing buzz around products that don’t deserve the attention. It is the journalist’s job to see past the flashy product launches and big-budget marketing stunts and inform consumers that the gaming console in the traditional sense is an archaic concept.
Of course, it’s not just gaming consoles that are kept alive and kicking by clever marketing strategies. Some parts of the TV (Sky, anyone?) and music industry (the ‘big four’ labels) are clinging on when they shouldn't be thanks to great marketing campaigns that really maximise on their dwindling relevance.
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