NickSCFC wrote:I don't think people would be happy to have to upgrade a console every 4 years, this isn't like a phone contract.
6 years generations just work, let's keep it that way.
What if its an optional upgrade? Sony seem to be very keen for the Neo to be a PS4+, theyre working hard to make sure all games will still work just fine on a bog standard PS4, so what if the second revision is when launch consoles start to not run things? That would give you 6-8 years of being able to play every game and another 2-3 years of being able to play some new releases but not all. I know phones and consoles are different, a closer comparison is consoles and tablets, but Apple and Samsung have shown that consumers will upgrade their tech on a reasonably frequent basis, if you have a significant section of your userbase that always have to have the latest and greatest then why not exploit it while maintaining functionality for those who arent ready to upgrade.
Weve seen with Steam and app stores that the real money lies in providing the content, not selling the hardware, so the console manufacturers moving to a more phone like model seems inevitable really. They shouldnt directly copy it, a 12 month cycle is too fast, 3 years sounds like a better fit, gives a machines 6 years of playing everything before it starts to be pushed aside, gives the console a regular cycle of hype building to generate some interest, seems like it could work.
The more interesting thing here would be if MS and Sony decoupled their releases, instead of both going at (roughly) the same time, what if MS waited 12-18 months before launching the +One? Instead of trying to match Sonys machine they could handily beat it and be the top dog for a while, obviously Sony would do the same 18 months after that but it would be an interesting cat and mouse game I think.