Yoichi Wada, President of Square Enix, believes that the tide is changing in regards to the current console demographic, especially Microsoft’s Xbox 360 and Sony’s PlayStation 3. Wada believes that instead of focusing on home consoles, companies should focus on handheld consoles.
Wada said, "There is a new breed of gamers in the market…we could focus on the PlayStation or the GameBoy, but the environment has changed completely."
Case in point, Wada refers to the awesome success Nintendo has had with their Nintendo DS; it has sold over 40 million units since launch. Compared to the Xbox 360, which has only sold over 10 million units since its launch, the DS is the clear dominance in the console wars.
Although it is a given that the DS was released a year before the Xbox 360, it looks like consumers prefer a handheld that has portability, is cheaper price and is more casual-stylized in its appeal.
Referring to the Xbox 360 and PS3, Wada stated, "There are too many specs – and you also need a high-definition TV, a broadband connection and a deep knowledge of gaming – these consoles are mismatched to today’s environment. In a year or two years they will fare better."
While I agree with the domination of the DS compared to the other consoles, the market between the Xbox 360, PS3 and handhelds are a bit mismatched, as Wada would put it. While the handhelds have more "pick up and play for a few minutes" types of games, the games for home consoles are for more in-depth game play — an entirely different market.
Still, it is evident that a great many gamers prefer portability and advancement of technology — just look at the proliferation of iPods and mp3 players compared to CD players.
[Via Financial Times]
