I think alot of the problem is Microsoft brought the Xbox 360 out 2 years too early. When they did that, Sony were soon to follow suit and all of a sudden the HD era was on us probably 2 years earlier then it should have. Games like FFXIII and MGS4 began developement on the PS2 but then moved when Microsoft moved things on.
I don't think Wii is the profitable goldmine some people on here have it wirtten up to be, there isn't as high risk on a Wii game but with few third party games breaking 500k - many of which only do so after heavy price cuts - I don't think there is that much profit left for the developer once you take all the other deductions out the way. Not enough to satisfy the likes of Factor 5 and Free Radical's share holders - albeit it does give a steady income of revenue.
So companies are left with two options - higher risk with bigger potential gains, or lower risk but not so much to gain. I think the obvious choice is to try and get a mixture of the two, and time the releases so you can at least stand up financially if the high risk doesn't pay off. Whether these companies have the resources to developer a few Wii / PSN / XBLA / DS games simultaneously is the problem I guess.
I just don't think theres a black and white answer, nor do I think HD developement is really hurting the industry that great or is Nintendo Wii saving it. A Multiplatform strategy is the way forward for all companies, I don't think this generation holds any more risk or less potential payoffs then any others - it's just companies need adjust their management and not put all their eggs in one basket hoping for to have the hit of the summer.
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