Handheld gaming has seen a lot of evolution in the last several years, largely due to the technological advances of smartphones and tablets. For many years, the handheld gaming market was practically monopolized by Nintendo's GameBoy, a dedicated mobile gaming console, then Sony's Playstation Portable (PSP) \ brought fresh new vitality to the market as another dedicated mobile gaming console. But since the introduction of the iPhone, the handheld gaming market has become dominated by smartphones and tablets (see Source 5), and Nintendo has instead fallen to last choice for handheld game developers (see Source 3). Dedicated handheld game consoles appeared to be slowly dying out. In these last 2 or 3 years, though, a few manufacturers are pushing to keep dedicated handheld game consoles alive, and Nintendo is no exception.
But what direction are we going with our devices? Smartphones and Tablets are allowing for multi purpose platforms. Nintendo is taking their DS consoles into the realm of portable 3D. The PS Vita is exploring new styles of touch and motion controls. The upcoming Project Shield by Nvidia (see Source 2) is blurring the lines between full desktop gaming and handheld games. Each platform of handheld gaming is pushing boundaries in unique directions, and each has their own appeals and drawbacks. But are we pushing too far? When do these impressive and unique features become so unique that it turns off gamers?
Sometimes, maybe simpler is better. There are a few reasons why I think smartphone and tablet games are surpassing dedicated consoles in popularity. One is the simplicity of the controls. Only 1 screen, only a few on-screen controls, and no superfluous clutter of hardware-based gameplay mechanics. The Nintendo 3DS's 3D screens are impressive, but are they really necessary to compete? It's stylus and double screens can be useful, but based on the numbers, they aren't necessary. The PS Vita has unique touch controls across the back of the device as well as the main touchscreen, and has impressive gyro controls; but from my own experience, the additional touch controls were actually more of an annoyance than a beloved tech feature.
Interestingly, one console gaming giant has neglected to stay out of handheld gaming entirely: Xbox (see Source 1). COO and CFO of for Microsoft's Interactive Entertainment Business, Dennis Durkin, said that the reason for this is because of how crowded the mobile gaming market is currently. Do I think this is a good reason? Honestly, not really. Yes, the market is pretty crowded, but I think there's more than enough room for a dedicated handheld console from Xbox that, rather than pushing yet another technological boundary, kept it simple and gave gamers a portable experience that was simple and worked solidly. The market is definitely flooded, but that flooding isn't anything that the minds of Microsoft and Xbox can't seriously compete in.
Perhaps makers of dedicated handheld game consoles need to take a lesson from smartphones and tablets. Just because a system does not have fancy, cutting-edge features does not mean it will be successful. It's the games that make or break these systems, not the systems themselves; if they focus too much on the technology that they lose sight of their customer base, they'll keep shooting themselves in the foot. The video game industry in general is loaded with failed attempts to cache in on unique hardware mechanics which have never been used before that seemed promising and impressive yet crashed and burned horribly (*cough*cough*powerglove*cough*). Perhaps for the next generation of handheld gaming consoles, the giants of dedicated systems will take a serious look at the smartphone and tablet community's success, and remember the old adage: keep it simple, stupid.
~Peter J.T. Langdon
Source 1: http://www.engadget.com/2011/06/27/xbox-coo-sees-dedicated-handheld-market-as-a-red-ocean-will-l/
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