4K gaming has set itself up as out next evolutionary step in gaming, cranking out screen resolutions that the human eye can’t even pick up without a proper television. Microsoft announced its plans to create a 4K gaming console called “Project Scorpio” at E3 2016, and Sony followed-up with the recent reveal of the PlayStation 4 Pro.
The PlayStation 4 Pro is meant to be a replacement for the PlayStation 4 in this new age of gaming beyond console generations, the first mid-console release of its kind. However, many have not been impressed with Sony’s machine, complaining about its relatively small leap in power and inability to run many games natively in 4K. HDR gaming looks like it could ultimately be its biggest innovation, but as long as the PlayStation 4 Pro only upscales games to 4K, the number crunchers of the gaming world won’t be satisfied.
Meanwhile, Microsoft is hyping itself as having a far superior product, a “premium” machine that was recently confirmed to run all first-party releases in 4K. Hypothetical superior hardware puts it far ahead of the PlayStation 4 Pro, but at what cost? If Microsoft were to release such a powerful machine at a price that matches the performance, what’s to stop gamers from just buying a PC?
Besides shoddy ports, of course.
While this unfolds, those who already game on 4K PCs are shaking their heads, wondering what the whole point of this is. Console gaming is catching up to PCs at the sacrifice of the barriers that set the two apart for so long.
What is this newest squabble really over? Which gaming console can run the exact same games better with performance that the human eye can barely register? We’re in for an exhausting age of gaming, one where Sony and Microsoft constantly try to one-up one another every two or three years and at the same time, attempt to convince gamers not to jump ship buy a PC.
Sounds fun, right?
Well, it’s not the only fight for the future of gaming. Remember, we still have mobile games that are raking in hundreds of millions of dollars and an indie scene that cranks out surprise blockbuster hits at least once every other month. And unless we forget, Nintendo is prepping something that looks to be an answer for those who don’t want anything to do with this recent performance race.
Between all of these fronts, we have yet another battlefield forming, and that is over support of third-party releases. Sony and Microsoft only have to worry about timed exclusivity really since all non-first-party games eventually find their way to both consoles. But these from are the biggest of the big companies out there: Bethesda, EA, Square Enix, Activision, Ubisoft. The usual suspects who probably won’t be budging from this model that has done so well for them.
What about the mid-sized publishers, the ones barely able to create games at a standard HD level?
Unless we’ve forgotten, the last time we saw a jump in gaming resolution on consoles, we sadly went through an era of mass extinction of gaming developers. Companies we had known for years were not able to keep up with the speed at which technology was evolving or dedicate the resources needed to creating enough visual information on a 1080p screen, and a good many of them were forced to shut down.
Nintendo warned against the closure and flight of companies when it discovered the actual price of developing HD games, and in the end, it proved to be true.
Konami, despite the gaming population thinking business executives just want to pee in their soup, left AAA gaming because it was becoming too much of a risk. Budgets were proving too high, especially with the artiest of artists helming a good many of its games, and the revenue wasn’t matching that risk. Gamers take it personally, but it was a cold business decision based on the money it costs to develop for modern consoles.
Another fine example is Capcom, a company that has struggled furiously through the age of HD gaming. Many of its internally developed projects wound up scattered on the cutting floor, and a most of its big releases had to be licensed out to cheaper developers with unproven records. This smacked Capcom’s reputation and sent it into a tailspin on the HD scene. Only recently has it caught up by re-modeling its biggest franchise in the image of indie scene hits.
Two companies who have been with us since the dawn of gaming itself are now either uninterested in making games or struggling to hold on.
On the flip side, Capcom has found nothing but universal success on handheld consoles with Monster Hunter, and as it usually does, Nintendo is rolling in the money through its handheld market. Many of the games that are made on the Nintendo 3DS or PS Vita provide little risk, sell well, make steady cash flow, and are ultimately, just as fun as their big console brothers.
Microsoft and Sony can throw stats at the market, but it will mean nothing if companies are unwilling to take an even larger financial risk on making 4K games, a risk that is certainly going to be larger than the one made when we leaped to 720p and 1080p.
Meanwhile, if Nintendo provides an outlet to make fun games that fans love at a fraction of the risk, what’s to stop a good many of these companies from throwing more resources its way?
Capcom, currently staying afloat on Monster Hunter money, is going to want to keep that market going, especially if the NX turns out to be a portable machine. Bandai Namco follows the popularity of machines so it can sell its anime licenses, and it has rarely ever shown interest in the powerful specs. Square Enix has done well for itself on the current consoles, but it has signaled supporting this line of gaming with Dragon Quest XI, a guaranteed mega-hit in Japan, confirmed for release on the NX.
Who knows? Maybe even Konami will find an interest in development for the NX if the price is right.
This future battleground of gaming is not only going to be between Microsoft and Sony. It’s going to be convincing mid-range companies to either sink unprecedented finances into the latest games or take a smaller risk to play it safe with what works. Only the largest publishers are set to benefit from making games even more resource demanding, but what about the rest?
Spend more money to make games that might sell a little better or maybe even a little worse?
No thanks.
The only unknown factor here is the success of the NX. Should Nintendo’s next console flop, then 4K gaming will be our only outlet for experiences outside of mobile phones and tablets. Should it succeed, it will open up an entirely new market, one that could sway wary third-party publishers from their fear of surging AAA budgets and still allow them to make impressive games.