When Sony released the PS2 in 2000, it got a one-year head start on the competition. In late 2005, it was Microsoft’s turn. Microsoft launched the Xbox 360 on November 22, 2005, and it sold out completely. The system sold in two configurations. The standard system, which cost $399.99 in the United States, came with a detachable 30 GB hard drive, an Ethernet cable, an Xbox Live headset, a remote, and a wireless controller. The ‘‘core’’ system, which cost $100 less, did not have any of these accessories, although a wired controller was included.
Many people who bought the Xbox 360 with preconceived ideas about it were quickly disappointed. While the system was able to produce high-definition graphics, they could only be displayed on high-definition television sets. For those who did not own an HDTV, the graphics displayed were similar to the original Xbox.
Another problem was that the Xbox 360 was not really backwards compatible with games from the original Xbox. In order to play Xbox games on the Xbox 360, emulation software first had to be loaded onto a CD from Xbox Live. Then the software had to be installed from the CD onto the Xbox 360’s hard drive. Yet those who purchased the Xbox 360 core system did not get hard drives. And even with the emulation software, there were too many technical differences between the two systems to render 100 percent compatibility. Only approximately 30 percent of the entire Xbox library can be played on the Xbox 360. Although Microsoft regularly updates the emulation software so that more games can be played, the company has announced several times that it is doubtful that all Xbox games will ever be compatible.
Sony PlayStation 3
The PlayStation 3 (PS3), released in Japan on November 11, 2006, and a week later in North America, did not suffer from the incompatibility problems that haunted the Xbox 360. Sony has assured the public that if a PS2 game adhered to Sony’s Technical Requirements Checklist, it would be playable on the PS3. Approximately 3 percent of the 1,500 PS2 games are incompatible with the new system, and Sony is working on patches for this.
Still, the launch of the PS2 echoed that of the Xbox 360 a year earlier and the PS2 in 2000. People lined up for hours outside stores before the official launch, only to be turned away due to a shortage of consoles. Many who were fortunate to obtain systems quickly turned around and sold them on eBay, where prices as high as $2,300 were recorded.
The pricing structure of the PS3 was also similar to the Xbox 360. A premium system featuring a 60 GB hard drive sold for $599. A system with a 20 GB hard drive sold for $499. Another similarity between the two systems was that they both played video games with high-definition video, for those who had an HDTV set. People who hooked the PS3 up to standard televisions would not see any difference between the new console and its predecessor.
Despite Microsoft’s one-year head start, Sony still figured the PS3 would eventually outsell its competition. But as of early 2007, that lead was not apparent. For one thing, in the months following the launch, the system was in short supply. Sony announced that it would have 400,000 units available worldwide before the end of 2006. And even when it was available, its high price had limited appeal to those who did not own HDTVs.
Surprisingly, the PS3’s main competition did not come from the Xbox 360. Instead it came from Nintendo’s newest console, one that could not compete with the PS3 or the Xbox 360 in pure processing power. But it did offer something innovative that even appealed to non-gamers.
Nintendo Wii
During the development of a new console Nintendo was going to call Revolution, Nintendo’s goal was not to compete against Sony and Microsoft, but to attract as many
gamers as possible. The company knew that they had to come out with something really revolutionary to do so. While the final console was not as revolutionary as most people thought, it did gain the attention of most. By the time the system was launched on November 19, 2006, in North America and two weeks later in Japan, the name of the con- sole had been changed to Wii, a word that sounded like the English word ‘‘we,’’ meaning that the system was for everybody.
What Nintendo delivered was a system that at first glance acted amazingly like the XaviXPORT. Packed with a title called Wii Sports, the system allowed gamers to play sports such as virtual baseball and golf while using a wireless controller that acted as the baseball bat or golf club. While the controller did not actually look like the sports equipment, Nintendo kept the controller amazingly simple. Unlike the current trend in controllers in which seven buttons were the norm, Nintendo’s Wii Remote only had two buttons.
But as simple as the Wii Remote was, it led to trouble from the first day of launch. The Wii Remote came with a wrist strap that attached to the remote and looped around the player’s wrist. While involved with the sports games, many players got caught up in the action and let go of the controller. The wrist strap came apart and sent the remote flying, sometimes straight into TV sets. Nintendo quickly rectified the problem by making the wrist band more secure and offering them free of charge to all Wii owners.
The Wii made great use of wireless technology, including using a wireless connection to hook up to the Internet. The system allowed players to obtain news and five day weather forecasts. Players could also use the Internet to access the Virtual Console, an online service that allowed players to download earlier Nintendo games which played on all pre- vious consoles from the NES to the N64. Games from the Genesis and Turbografx-16 could also be downloaded. In addition, the Wii was completely compatible with the GameCube, although it used standard 5-inch discs.