Okay, so my last blog entry (from over a year ago...) basically said that I thought that Nintendo was all washed up, what with the technologically inferior DS, and the quote about better graphics not being what the gamers want in the next generation.  Well, a year plus later, it now seems that Sony is the one in trouble, and Nintendo could very well become the gaming giant it once was.  Now don't get me wrong.  Nintendo has never gone anywhere in terms of game quality and creativity, they just weren't as well received in the era of GTA and Halo as they were in the era of Chronotrigger and Sonic the Hedgehog.

     Who could have ever guessed that the DS would be the handheld to have over the PSP?  I ended up choosing the DS after looking at the software lineups of both.  And it seems as though the lineup is the deciding factor for lots of people, especially in Japan. 

      As far as the Next Gen goes, the Revolution with it's definitely different controller seems to be gaining some ground in the minds of gamers, while the PS3 with all the questions with no answers surrounding it is coming under some suspicion from lots of gamers.  Who really has $600-$800 to spend on the console alone?  And now it seems as though the Blu Ray is a bit premature.  Eight old movies at Blu Ray's launch, with a potential price tag of up to $40?  And I thought spending $20 for a UMD copy was bad.  "Hey, who wants to come over and check out my sweet new Blu Ray setup with my huge HDTV?  We can watch the Fifth Element...again...

      I think the rest of 2006 will be very interesting.  I predict that the Blu Ray thing isn't going to take off as well as the people involved in it are hoping it will (FYI: NEW realeases would have helped...), the PS3 will be a bit too expensive at launch, thus hurting initial numbers, and the Revolution will come out around Thanksgiving and will quietly end up in a huge number of people's hands by Christmas.  But, I have no inside knowledge, and am merely guessing.

I'm not really sure what Nintendo is doing these days. I'm sure I'm not the only one who remembers the 16-bit console war, where Sega and Nintendo were almost trading physical punches in an effort to have their console beat the other. Now, it almost seems as if Nintendo is like the weird kid in school who just does his own thing regardless of what's going on around him.

If you think about it, take the DS for example. There is almost no way that the DS can compete with the PSP. Sony has basically disregarded it as any sort of threat to the PSP. It makes you wonder if the DS was ever intended to compete with anything. Pardon the comparison, but it is a bit like the Virtual Boy. It's the only thing like it on the market, and its "innovation" is also one of it's weaknesses. The touch screen, while a good idea, is also a little annoying when trying to also use the D-pad and buttons. I just hope that the DS fares better than the Virtual Boy. Maybe the next Game Boy will be Nintendo's competition for Sony. That is if it even really exists. The mysterious Game Boy Evolution is but a whisper in the wind at this point.

On the console end of things, Nintendo's continued refusal to embrace online gaming makes you wonder if they are trying to stay competetive with Sony and Microsoft. The Gamecube has a great staple of games, but third party publishers are moving more and more towards implementing online features in their games, making Gamecube less and less attractive to them. First party support alone can't keep a system alive for very long. Looking to the future is even more confusing. The Revolution is all but nonexistent except in rumors, whereas both Sony and Microsoft have been a tad more forthcoming about their upcoming consoles. It also seems as though Nintendo is putting less of an emphasis on power and more on innovation. Sony and MS are in a pissing match to see who's system is going to push the most polys and run the fastest, but not Nintendo. I seem to remember Nintendo's bigwig talking about how we've reached the pinnacle of grahical power, so now it's time to focus on games. saying this almost sounds like a justification for lesser technology. While the hardcore gamers out there applaud Nintendo for focusing less on graphics and more on content, the majority of the gaming populace will take one look at a few screenshots, and if the graphics "suck," they will be put off and will not even think twice about buying the system or games. Hardcore gamers alone can't keep a system alive for very long either, just ask Sega.

As I follow the advent of the next generation of game consoles and the new Game Boy, I can't help but wonder what is going on in Nintendo's collective head. I just hope that Nintendo isn't going to end up like Sega. Can you imagine a gaming world controlled solely by Sony and MS?

We are fast entering an era where it is not enough for our handhelds to just play games, they have to play music, movies, and resist the Dark Side. However, my GBA did something I never thought it could do this past week. It survived vomit. My son was sitting on the couch playing Warioware, which is pretty cool when you consider that he's only two and a half, when all of a sudden he threw up, my Game Boy in the direct path of it all. Needless to say, my son came first, and my Game Boy therefore didn't get cleaned for about an hour, during which time the lovely substance had ample opportunity to soak into every crack and crevice and cause who knows what sort of problems. But, after about five minutes of cleaning, it was working just fine (although not smelling too pretty...). So, though my GBA may not have MP3 or movie playback capabilities, it can survive puke. Hats off to you NIntendo for making a portable that's nigh indestructible, even when in the hands of a toddler.