Imo it's still too early to tell. But, some bad omens are pointing towards another videogame crash...

In that case I'll just return to my beloved 5th and 6th Gen. consoles.

Yes but it's due to wii u,psv and 3ds i expect xbox one to sold similar to xbox 360 ans ps4 a lot more then ps3

I think it's fair to say that this generation will have less total hardware sales then the 7th gen, There's 3 systems that are not going to reach the sales of there predecessors (3DS, WiiU, PSVita)

I think it's too early to predict PS4/XB1 sales. But so far both consoles seem to be doing well.. Obviously PS4 is doing better in terms of sales at the moment and it hasn't launched in Japan yet so it's looking good for PS4.

Nintendo inflated hardware sales heavily in the 7th generation, There's going to be a drop there without a doubt.. 3DS will sell well still but not DS levels and WiiU is obviously going to sell no where near Wii.

Sony's Handheld market is also another part that is going to cause a big drop in 8th gen hardware sales from PSP to PSVita.

That being said, I don't think that this means that gaming is doomed or anything, I think it's just the numbers were going to drop now that the handheld market has declined and WiiU has not grabbed Wii's casual market.

This is my last generation with consoles. I doubt I'll buy another console beyond the PS4. I could see the PS4 lasting a good 6-8 years before being replaced.

I'll still play video games until I go to the grave. I've been doing it since 1977.

Deary me... how on earth do you expect the x1 to sell like the 360 without a one year headstart and a lower price advantage? Miracle from the holy mother?

It's not going to be the last one, but with a huge drop. 3ds and Vita are already underperforming compared to ds and psp. In case sony makes another handheld, it should do worst than Vita (if that can be possible) and 3ds's succesor will follow the same track.

On the side of home consoles the drop will be more notorious for wii u's fault, for not being able of attract the casual mass again. PS4 should win against Xone and together do numbers like PS360.

8th gen could be bigger than 7th, at least for home consoles.

Against 8th gen: existing markets could shrink.
In favour of 8th gen: PS4 and XB1, thanks to their PC-like architecture, could drop in cost, and so price, quickly enough to meet growing purchase power of middle classes in developing country. Wii U, thanks to its frugal design and the possibility to use a smaller screen for its pad, could drop in price quickly enough too, despite not using x86-64 PC components.