EA to develop own console? – I’ll stick to my PS3, Xbox 360 and Wii
I don’t know about you but the last thing I think the games industry needs right now is another console. I think the PS3, Xbox 360, and Wii between them offer all the gaming delights one could ever ask for. In fact, as regular readers will know, I’d rather there was just one console that played all games. So I’m not too happy to hear about speculation that EA (Electronic Arts) could make a foray into console manufacturing.
I should be clear about this – no-one from EA has ever stated that the company is about to start developing a games console, this is pure conjecture from certain game sites, one of which is Game Stooge. But there are some interesting points made about why EA would be the logical choice of company to enter the console race, especially if one of the current big three decide they’ve had enough.
There is of course a chance that Sony, Microsoft, or Nintendo could decide to pull out of the console market after the current generation. Well actually, scrub Nintendo off that list because it’s the one of the three that only sells games and games consoles, and it has won this generation by a mile. But the other two? It could happen.
If it did, there’s a good chance that someone would be there in the wings waiting to step in as the third console manufacturer. And Electronic Arts certainly has the money and commercial muscle to be the one to do it.
There would be a few reasons for EA to give it a go: the financial benefits if it works, having all the EA Sports franchises on one console, and the chance to move up from being the biggest games publisher to an even bigger player in the industry. It worked for Sega… for a while at least.
But despite all that I really hope this never happens. The three consoles we have currently cover a very wide range of interests and gaming needs. The PS3 for those of us with too much money and not enough sense; the Xbox 360 for all FPS addicts who want to marry Halo and have its children; and the Wii for, well, everyone else really.
We don’t need another console on the market, further saturating it and spreading the exclusive games even thinner than they already are. Even if Sony or Microsoft were to pull out, I think most of us would reject a newcomer on the scene and stick with Nintendo and the other survivor. So EA, forget it. And to those speculating that it could happen, please stop.
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39 Responses to “EA to develop own console? – I’ll stick to my PS3, Xbox 360 and Wii”
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January 11th, 2009
no Dave… they wont… they can barely provide an online store… now most of their games are on steam… cus EAs online store sucks…
January 11th, 2009
Perhaps a console is a bit much for the moment, but I think EA is definitely destined for more lucrative things.
EA has a strong portfolio; Disney wants EA; Disney has Steve Jobs on the board; Steve Jobs wants the iPhone to be thought of as a gaming device.
Any substance? No? Just me then. Thought so
January 11th, 2009
What is this “FPS” you speak of? I personally like the RPG’s- not to mention most of the other genres on the 360.
January 11th, 2009
I think Apple would make a console first… or maybe Microsoft a handheld. One of the major three would definitely have to fall from grace first, and that doesn’t look like it will happen for the foreseeable future.
BTW, on a different note, Wii Sports may be the bestselling game so far, but Guitar Hero III: Legends of Rock has made the most money so far, at over 1 billion dollars and counting (let alone 14 million copies sold since fall 2007). The PS2 and 360 individually sold more than the Wii, so maybe it is not such a powerhouse after all. Now if EA ever acquires Activision…
edge-online.com/news/activision-guitar-hero-iii-passes-1b
January 11th, 2009
“The PS3 for those of us with too much money and not enough sense;”
Harsh words. Take this money and change them.
January 11th, 2009
‘he PS3 for those of us with too much money and not enough sense’
You upset me sir! I don’t just have little sense, I also have little money! (I mean sheesh, its not like you’re buying a house for $300k or anything, its < $400)
January 11th, 2009
Nintendo fanboy Dave lol. It would be the next gamecube tbh if they did make it. No-one would buy it.
January 11th, 2009
NO NO NO!!! No one is stupid enough to create another platform… too much RnD and the current consoles have a way tight grip on the market… iPhone may be the only new contender because people like to buy snazzy phones ( just buy a blackberry already)… and most of the apps there are like $2… so its cheap…
also… ROY!!! Stop spreading your filthy propaganda… gawd invented clothes for a reason… clothe your women you heathen… this innernet is filled with heathens… jaysus…
good review on Wipeout… I now know you get sadistic pleasure from crashing your demon mobiles at 900 miles per hour…
I hope they release it on a disk with more maps for like $30… that would be cool…
January 11th, 2009
DWH… why you talk like… this… I dont understand…
January 11th, 2009
Stop yelling my real name DWH, you are giving me away.
And DWH you don’t have to look at them, I bet you are the one regularly clicking on my link, my hits have increased since I mentioned there were nudes there.
Whats wrong with downloading Wipeout from the Store? The extra tracks will be coming at some point, but the ones available are pretty varied I reckon anyway.
January 11th, 2009
well ROY!!! hahahahaha
welllll hahahahaa
anyways… hahahahahaha
um… hahahahahaah once I start downloading one game… I know Im gonna start downloading em all…
Im restraining myself till I get a 500GB hDD… because Im worried that I wont be able to re download them once I change HDD… so if you could delete your and re download them without incurring Sony’s wrath… I could rest easier…
Im keeping my eye on Fat Princess…
what we should do… like during a slow games month… like probably later this year… we should buy Calling All Cars or some forgotten muliplayer game and play it togather…
I remember Calling all cars was not played much on PSN…
youre a great artist Roy… once you are famous.. dont forget to buy me a mansion or something… cus I KNOW YOUR NAME!!!
January 11th, 2009
DWH,
You can download up to 5 times, anything you buy from the store though at any time, you can even do it on other people’s consoles (except the more expensive stuff they say only your console). Or has that changed?
Wasn’t Calling all Cars supposed to be crap? I never played it mind. We should play some GTA multiplayer at some point…
I’m afraid I’m no artist yet, I don’t have that spontaneity of: 1, 2, 3 *poof* – “look a pretty picture!”
But when the day comes, I’ll buy you that diamond encrusted cage you always wanted.
January 12th, 2009
Well, I came into some extra $ and picked up a 52 Bravia, so I bit the bullet and picked up the 80gig PS3. I must say I am impressed. And even my non-gamer 4-year-old girl played LittleBigPlanet with no problems.
I love this machine. And anyone that says upscale is almost as good as blue ray is a retard and needs glasses.
I ran superman returns at the same time on upscale and blue ray and there is no way it comes close.
January 12th, 2009
Ncassie, glad to hear you liked it. You will also be happy to learn I picked up a DS and love it.
Royzy – how the hell did you manage to beat all of those tracks in Wipeoput? I know they patched the game to make the tracks easier, but I still can’t get p[assed the fourth circuit.
January 12th, 2009
HOLY SHIT!!! NC… FIFTY TWO INCH!!!
what did uncle sam cough up the cash intended for the auto industry or something??
how much did the bravia cost?? also.. what kind of HDMI cable are you using?? the official Sony one or a third party one??
January 12th, 2009
I think I’ll pay off my second mortgage first. Good thing I’m not a videophile or have a large tv set or entertainment room.
January 12th, 2009
welcome to the family ncaissie.
Calling all Cars is great. There was just never enough people playing it online.
January 12th, 2009
Yeah, and it sucks. I purchased the damn game a few weeks ago and no one plays it >:(
Its a good job Crash Commando came along!
January 12th, 2009
ncaissie
No-one ever said upscaled DVD is the same or almost the same on a 52″ HD TV.
But let’s be honest, I’ve seen Blu-ray, HD DVD, .mkv & DVD upscaled on a 100″ screen from a 1080p projector and DVD is by no means ‘horrible’ or unwatchable.
It’s not as sharp (obviously) but it is perfectly acceptable.
I dont know about you but when I start watching a movie I’m watching the movie, I’m not examining the image for the tinniest detail visible.
Nevertheless the point has always been that on the type of HD TV most buy (32″ – 42″, 720p sets) it is so close that the ‘benefit’ Blu-ray offers, at the prices demanded, just isn’t worth it.
Especially as most will never have the high-end audio kit (that’s high-end speakers as well as a high-end receiver) required to even hear the new audio codecs.
January 12th, 2009
….and no, I don’t expect to see a totally new and unique EA console.
Maybe a rebadge is possible (and perhaps of all 3 of the current types on sale) for particular games
(in the way that a Halo version of XBox appeared, for example).
January 12th, 2009
I picked up a total Sony system. Sony TV 1080p, Sony BR, 1000Wt Sony stereo and the Sony PS3.
loblaws has their Sony PS3 HDMI and USB cables on for $10 so i picked up 5 and everything is straight HDMI. Picking up the HD sat receiver tonight I hope. Got the TV, Stereo and BR for $2300 Canadian at futureshop.
So I rented the Hulk and cranked it. Man that was sweet @ss.
Just picked up the Orange box because I like Half life 2 on PC and wanted to try Portal.
I need to check out the Sony store on the PS3 still but Home was cool.
January 12th, 2009
I don’t think EA should or will get into Hardware this gen.
They may be getting ready for next gen though. After seeing the Wii phenomenon they may want a piece of that.
I admit I was one of the people that said Nintendo messed up when they announced the revolution for the first time.
January 12th, 2009
@Happyhockum I didn’t say you said it but many people have and on my TV I can see a Big difference.
January 12th, 2009
Barnabe Jones,
I am really struggling with the last set of races on Campaign (Meltdown). Phantom is sketchy enough without being shot at. I found it was best to practice tracks I was struggling with by playing them in Zone mode until I could handle them at lightning speed. Haven’t played since xmas because I was getting too traumatised by it.
Has anyone watched the iMax scenes from The Dark Knight on Blu Ray? Films in Blu Ray are lush, but if they have bits filmed in iMax (Dark Knight is the only action film so far I believe) then they are mind blowing.
It does change the aspect ratio slightly when the film returns from 70mm to 35mm, but then it did in the iMax cinema too (hardly noticeable).
January 12th, 2009
i fuckin hate yo NC… sooo much… to my knowledge the Bravia is the best of the best HD… but id buy a cheap Vizio one for like $500 which has 42 inch.. Bravia for when Im rich or can rob a bank or something…
January 12th, 2009
I’ve got the 40 inch Bravia, but ncaissie just shat on it.
January 12th, 2009
how much did you buy that for Roy??
I have a pretty crappy TV 35 or something inch… not full HD… so Im looking to buy a cheap full 1080p TV in the future… price tag between 500-800… hopefully near 500… Costco has some cheap Tvs
January 12th, 2009
I bought it for £600, it was £200 off in Sainsbury’s in November.
January 12th, 2009
yeah it’s sweet.
I’m kicking myself for not spending the extra $300 to get the W series instead of the V. the difference is the W has the 120Hz instead of the 60Hz. Stay away from the S. It looked bad beside the W and V series.
Went to the sony store and they said thats a supper deal and they can’t beat it. With their own product.
January 12th, 2009
FUCK NC!!!
jaysus… dude… I head from CES… the new 3D thing that they are bringing to the PS3… it needs TVs that can play 120Hz… dude you need to research that shit and see if you can future proof that TV… otherwise… no 3D for you…
January 12th, 2009
I can’t imagine it would be 3D for many of us…
Are you still playing your console in peasantvision then DWH?
January 12th, 2009
no just a regular HD tv.. crappy one.. called Emerson… its new but its still crap… I lub Bravia…
the recent news of 3D is interesting… will definately buy it if its affordable…
January 12th, 2009
Until I got this Bravia, I had a 32inch CRT. My mum’s husband has carried hundreds of fridge/freezers in his time, but never carried anything as heavy or awkward as this 32inch CRT.
It sucked, and now it is dead. Me and Bravia will live together happily ever after…until the next new thing.
January 13th, 2009
I bought my 46″ Sceptre X46BV for about $1000 from Costco the year before last. Still looks and works great, but I think I’ll splurge when I get back and upgrade to a Pioneer PRO-111FD and Samsung BD-P1500. The first mortgage should be paid off by then, so the renters there can pay for my second mortgage.
January 13th, 2009
you all disgust me…
January 13th, 2009
I have a 46” 1080P Polaroid that I picked up from WallMart on sale. It’s not the greatest brand name for a TV, but it looks great and I have no complaints. I also have a nice Pioneer receiver with JBL 5.1 satellite speakers… I forget how many watts the bass is (120?). I live in an apartment, so I can never really crank my system when playing, which kills me. I think sound is almost as important as picture.
January 13th, 2009
I had a 62inch RCA before this. It wasn’t HD but still looked ok.
So when It died I had a crapy 27 inch CRT for a filler till I got the Bravia. Now I’ll never go back to standard def. I just got an HD receiver and subscribed to all HD channels!
January 13th, 2009
Going smaller huh?
January 13th, 2009
You guys are making me feel like my 32″ HP widescreen HD monitor is small potatoes…
-Arvis