I read somewhere that Nintendo is easily winning but elsewhere that it came out too late and that Sony is stronger. I know Microsoft is relentless because of its $$$. so who is winning and why is it distorted in the media?

In my opinion, each console has a seperate ''targeted audience''.
Nintendo will always have ''its share'', and Sony and Sega usually competed over the rest...
But now we have Sony, Microsoft, and Dreamcast. As far as I can tell Microsoft and Sony will be down each others throats which will hurt both consoles.

This is just my opinion so feel free to flame me and tear it down because I insulted .

From having played and developed on all of the platforms...

I would say the PS2 is "winning" the console wars, as in it is the current console with the largest market penetration. In North America, the PS2 is followed by the Xbox then the GameCube. World-wide, the GameCube is ahead of the Xbox because the Xbox has not releasesd in Japan or Europe, while the GameCube has released in Japan (but not Europe).

The *real* question is not who is winning right now, but who will be on top (and still growing) this Christmas. Personally, I hope that it''s the Xbox, though the PS2 wouldn''t suprise me. From my experience with all of the consoles, I prefer the Xbox -- with my PC background, I like developing for it, and from a gamer''s perspective, it''s got by-far the most potential (raw performance + harddrive + networking out of the box).

I do love the PS2, it''s got great games -- but honestly, if the games I like on the PS2 were moved to the Xbox, I wouldn''t play the PS2... but alas, some things will never happen!

I would agree with Moe: in the end, consumers win. While it might be frustrating if you can only afford one system, the competition between the consoles provides opportunities that will benefit the consumer big time!

I would hate to see Nintendo fall because they have always put out classics, ie most recently Zelda 64.

What''s the point of the Xbox if it''s the same as a really powerful PC? Just another example of Microsoft''s inevitable domination.

But I don''t know, here in Australia we don''t have the Gamecube or Xbox yet. I have seen the PS2 and I''m not that impressed.

Its too early to decide I think, since it all depends on the games. XBox will probably have the best looking graphics, but finding a developer that can actually make good use of its superior engine will be a challenge. Also, I think the XBox''s networking capabilities will be somewhat limited since you have to have a decent connection and it is rather complex for many users ( especially the younger audience ).

One thing I have noticed is that GameCube has been getting a lot of criticism for its target audience. Their first wave of games seem to be rather childish and simple, but I still think it is too early to decide. They have several classics lined up for the near future which might balance it out a bit.

Interestingly, console sales skyrocketed in 2001 and did more business than ever before. It''s possible that the "war" will not wipe out any of the competitors because there are enough sales to support everyone. That''s probably wishful thinking, but it would be nice, eh?

Hmmmm... Maybe it''s not wishful thinking:

1) Sony is currently entrenched with millions of consoles and loyal fan base.

2) Nintendo has traditionally had a smaller share of the market ever since the post-NES era, but has managed to still make money and remain viable. What''s to stop that now?

3) Microsoft is the newcomer, but has $BILLIONS$ to back up their box. However, they also have a habit of dumping projects where they don''t see market dominance very quickly. Of the Big 3 competitors right now, I''d have to guess that Microsoft would be the most likely to leave the field in 2 or 3 years. But definitely look for a strong Xbox presence this Christmas. It''s too early for MS to throw in the towel, especially after the phenomenal sales of launch.

>> What''s the point of the Xbox if it''s the same as a really powerful PC? <<

Whats the point of buying any console then? They''re all computers. It''s the exclusive games that set them apart.

Xbox being PC-like isn''t going to change the quality of it''s exclusive titles.


-Janus