In a recent blog post, God of War creator David Jaffe put forth his arguments for a one-console future, saying that “we’ve gotten used to this [one platform] in so many other hardware products and – in doing so – reaped the many more benefits of a single system.”
Furthermore, “we have it with DVD, we had it with VHS. We have it with televisions (in the sense that – for the most part – every TV is capable of broadcasting the same signal). So what do we lose by having it for game consoles? And you get MORE competition on the software side – which is, to me, where it counts – because there is MORE competition to be the best on a single system instead of content creators splintering and never ever worrying about competing with 2 out of the 3 groups”.
Sure, that would be a nice idea, but it’s a one-size-fits-all solution that’s overly simplistic. True, software publishers can probably reap the benefits of having a standard gaming platform, but as long as there is money to be made by being different and inclusive, the one-console future will never materialise.
Even for a product line like the personal computer that’s known for standardisation, there is still the Mac sitting next to the super generic Wintel machines. Regardless of the Mac’s market share, it does offer users a choice. No doubt, a world where merchants accept only one credit card makes life simple, but it also deprives the industry of competition and users of convenience and choice.
Extending Jaffe’s arguments to people, imaging a world with only one race. How dull can things be?
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