Will the game console industry shrink or go under?

[Mummelmann]

MohammadBadir said:

Mummelmann said:

d21lewis said:
I think it's going to have to change. Gaming has always evolved so as long as it isn't just a remake of the 7th gen, things should be fine. If things get boring and there's a lack of innovation, expect gamers to move on to the next big thing.

So much this. The industry will change; not go under. This is what I've been chanting for years in here now.

I wonder how though.

Moving to something like streaming services would suck IMO.

Yeah, there still isn't any proper system in place. I think we'll see some transitional devices and ideas. The music, movie and TV industry had their revolutions, and they survived them with good margins, only makes sense that gaming would need a similar shift in time.

We're already seeing some fairly creative solutions to keep the industry pumping; Steam have started doing free-to play weekends, among other things, where you can download and play games for free to get a taste of them, as a step-up from the old demo days from the 90's and earlier 2000's. I think we'll see more fusing of concepts in the next few years and I don't think the 9th generation will have a single traditional console in it (as in; a gaming device still relying heavily upon retail sales and TV campaigns and sporting online components that take the gaming community and connectivity a huge step forward).