Major changes are coming to video games, including new consoles and new ways to play. Here is what to expect.

Video games have come a long way since they started as a few pixels on the screen accompanied by bleeps and bloops. The way we play games, and even what we play them with has changed drastically in the more than thirty years that video games have become a part of our everyday lives. It is a business that has outstripped even movies in yearly sales. The video game industry has gone from a series of technical gadgets to toys to a lifelong hobby for many. It is an ever-growing, ever-changing medium, and starting next year, the gaming landscape will look much different.

How Video Games Are Already Changing?

A few years ago, most video games were played on a console like the PS2, Gamecube, and X-Box with a wired controller and an average of 10 buttons, a control pad, and two control sticks. The market was flooded and dominated by first-person shooters, and online play was reserved mostly for shooting and racing games.

Today, much of the market share is taken up by games played on mobile devices like the IPad and cell phones. Video game consoles look very different as well. Sony, Nintendo, and Microsoft still have their respective consoles on the market, but traditional controllers are making way for motion controls and controller-free gaming through the Wii-mote, Playstation Move, and Kinect. There are still plenty of first-person shooters to choose from, but more casual games involving dancing, singing, and exercising have found a huge audience in today’s market.

As for online play, nearly every game has some form of internet connectivity, be it multiplayer, leaderboards, or user-generated content. Many games are even available to download or stream from every gaming device on the market.

What Has Already Been Announced for the Future?

Nintendo has already released information on their next console. It will be a high-definition console, more powerful than the X-Box 360. It will have modern online capabilities, as opposed to the Wii’s prohibitive friend codes and poor matchmaking systems. It will employ a controller that has a screen on its face, similar to the screen the Dreamcast controller had years ago, but much larger, in high definition, and with touch screen capabilities. Nintendo plans to support the new console along with the Wii.

Word has surfaced that some developers are getting development kits for the next Microsoft console, but it has not been substantiated by the console manufacturer.

As for Sony, the only thing expected from them on the video game front for now is the PSP 2, or NGP (Next Generation Portable). The handheld is supposed to be as powerful as a PS3 and may be easier to play than the original PSP thanks to an added joystick and a larger screen.

What Can Be Expected in the Future?

Microsoft and Sony have yet to announce clear timelines for their next consoles, other than the vague “around ten-year life-cycle” speech they have given over the past few years. Even with the impending Nintendo console (currently code-named Project Cafe), it seems unlikely Sony and Microsoft will launch new consoles so soon after the release of their respective Move and Kinect peripherals. These devices have the potential to prolong their respective consoles’ life-cycles for a while.

Major changes are coming to video games, including new consoles and new ways to play. Here is what to expect.

Video games have come a long way since they started as a few pixels on the screen accompanied by bleeps and bloops. The way we play games, and even what we play them with has changed drastically in the more than thirty years that video games have become a part of our everyday lives. It is a business that has outstripped even movies in yearly sales. The video game industry has gone from a series of technical gadgets to toys to a lifelong hobby for many. It is an ever-growing, ever-changing medium, and starting next year, the gaming landscape will look much different.

How Video Games Are Already Changing?

A few years ago, most video games were played on a console like the PS2, Gamecube, and X-Box with a wired controller and an average of 10 buttons, a control pad, and two control sticks. The market was flooded and dominated by first-person shooters, and online play was reserved mostly for shooting and racing games.

Today, much of the market share is taken up by games played on mobile devices like the IPad and cell phones. Video game consoles look very different as well. Sony, Nintendo, and Microsoft still have their respective consoles on the market, but traditional controllers are making way for motion controls and controller-free gaming through the Wii-mote, Playstation Move, and Kinect. There are still plenty of first-person shooters to choose from, but more casual games involving dancing, singing, and exercising have found a huge audience in today’s market.

As for online play, nearly every game has some form of internet connectivity, be it multiplayer, leaderboards, or user-generated content. Many games are even available to download or stream from every gaming device on the market.

What Has Already Been Announced for the Future?

Nintendo has already released information on their next console. It will be a high-definition console, more powerful than the X-Box 360. It will have modern online capabilities, as opposed to the Wii’s prohibitive friend codes and poor matchmaking systems. It will employ a controller that has a screen on its face, similar to the screen the Dreamcast controller had years ago, but much larger, in high definition, and with touch screen capabilities. Nintendo plans to support the new console along with the Wii.

Word has surfaced that some developers are getting development kits for the next Microsoft console, but it has not been substantiated by the console manufacturer.

As for Sony, the only thing expected from them on the video game front for now is the PSP 2, or NGP (Next Generation Portable). The handheld is supposed to be as powerful as a PS3 and may be easier to play than the original PSP thanks to an added joystick and a larger screen.

What Can Be Expected in the Future?

Microsoft and Sony have yet to announce clear timelines for their next consoles, other than the vague “around ten-year life-cycle” speech they have given over the past few years. Even with the impending Nintendo console (currently code-named Project Cafe), it seems unlikely Sony and Microsoft will launch new consoles so soon after the release of their respective Move and Kinect peripherals. These devices have the potential to prolong their respective consoles’ life-cycles for a while.

Whether gaming on a portable device or in the comfort of one’s own home, there are plenty of options, gadgets, and ways to play to look forward to in the near future.

Whether gaming on a portable device or in the comfort of one’s own home, there are plenty of options, gadgets, and ways to play to look forward to in the near future.