I was thinking about the Wii U gamepad today, and how I think it has a lot of potential to change the way games are played. Having a touch screen to accompany the existing standard buttons on PS3/360 controllers doesn't seem like it could be a bad idea. Of course it can't be known whether Nintendo's investment in the gamepad will be successful or not yet, but I have high hopes.

I began to think about the possibility of Sony and Microsoft trying to do something similar, or better, than the gamepad. If both companies were able to make Nintendo obsolete with something to rival the gamepad and even more impressive graphics, I can't see Nintendo standing out too well. 

However, I don't think Sony or Microsoft are going to be able to imitate the gamepad effectively for the sole reason of the cost of manufacturing.

If Sony and Microsoft both create gaming hardware with very up to date specs, that hardware is not going to be inexpensive. This is why I don't think either company will do a good job rivaling the gamepad, since the gamepad tech itself is quite expensive and both companies will probably want to avoid making their systems cost a fortune to own.

There does happen to be the Vita-PS3 and potentially Vita-PS4 combo that exists at this time, but I do not think this cross-play will ever be supported the the extent of the Wii U's gamepad. My reason is not only would people have to buy the Vita in addition to Sony's home console, which is a quite expensive set just to replicate what's done on the Wii U, but also Vita-PS compatible games will never have the support that the Wii U and the gamepad will see.

I say this because, first, Nintendo will support the gamepad and not the Vita/PS3/4 :P It seems obvious, but Nintendo created the Wii U to work with the gamepad. The Wii U's focus is the gamepad. Therefore, if Nintendo wants the Wii U to succeed, they are going to have to do a good job supporting the gamepad.

The Vita/PS exists as an additional option for PS console owners, in case they happen to own both and care to use the functionability. However, because Vita/PS isn't a main focus of PS consoles (as of yet) I cannot see Sony going out of its way to support the technology in the way Nintendo must support the gamepad.

Whatever the PS4 and Xbox 720 turn out to be, I don't think they will fill Nintendo's "niche", and therefore PS4 and 720 will once again be much more directly in competition while Nintendo is in a league of its own. 

That isn't to say that I think Nintendo will win the 8th generation. If anything, I think the Wii U won't be able to outsell the PS4 and 720. However, I do think Nintendo will do a good (enough) job garnering support for its console (including the indie game market) to keep itself afloat as a company, and relevant in the gaming industry.

What do you think the 8th gen will be like? I know it's a little soon, but that'll result in more creative answers, no?

I don't know why people think that Sony's new console will have very up to date specs. Sony is not in the financial position to take a major loss on their hardware. If Sony released a console only slightly more powerful than the Wii U, they could make the Xbox's extra power worthless since developers are not going to just develop for the Xbox, and ignore the other 2 weaker consoles. Doing so would also give them the opportunity to actually make a profit on their hardware. If Sony's next console is overpowered and overpriced just like the PS3 and the Vita, it will be their last console.

I think Microsoft will go full force with Kinect 2.0 and include it in all their consoles from the start, that means they will have their own extra expenditure and will not go too crazy on hardware specs because it will make the console very expensive.
Sony for me is the wild card... it does not have anything special to differentiate itself from the competition, and cannot afford to lose too much money on its hardware. If it goes overboard nobody will spend the extra money/effort to make the games look way better, if it falls short the people will not find a reason to buy the console itself.

PS4 - 3D Head mounted display. Enables 3D for any TV. Affordable.
720 - Kinect 2.0.
Wii U - Tablet controller

all next gen consoles will have something unique.

No one is. But taking a loss on hardware is a MUST if you want it to last 5+ years. A powerful console is especially important now more than ever. There are tablets coming every year that just keep on getting more and more powerful. The Nintendo strategy only works if you target families, and Sony doesn't have the IP to do that. PS4 will be powerful AND affordable. it will be comparable in power to an Xbox 720.

P.S. Vita isn't overpowerd and overpriced, its just that the 3DS is underpowered and cheap.

This is my first post in a Long time but I just have to say the 3DS isn't underpowered and the PSV isn't overpowered. They both do their own thing.

PS4 wont have a gamepad but instead a decoupling motion controller. It's cheaper and doesn't contradict any of your points. Also like VGKing said it will probably have an SR headset.

now that you mention it i remember seeing a patent for a dualshock/move hybrid controller. maybe it'll be the standard controller for the PS4?

http://www.digitalspy.com/gaming/news/a442633/sony-patents-hybrid-playstation-motion-controller.html

Incorrect.  The Vita and 3DS both are not really high powered because you would need to get an exponentially better battery to power both as you get more powerful.  Both systems had battery life still in mind, and they still have bad battery lives.  Price is definitely another issue, but compared to the last gen of handheld consoles, both beat their predecessors and competition by a fairly large margin.  

edit: let it not be confused that I know there's also a difference in the actual power the battery gives off and what makes it last longer (in terms of battery life).  

The latest dev kit indicates that the PS4 is built around an AMD A10 APU, which is an integrated CPU and GPU, similar idea to the Wii U. I don't see any indication that it's going to be a huge graphical powerhouse. Sony has already said they want to make it affordable, and regardless of saying they 'have to' take a loss (it would be a big loss to make it both powerful and affordable), not having the money to do that makes it impossible to take a big financial hit (they could easily bankrupt the entire company with a repeat of the PS3). My opinion is that by current PC standards, it won't be 'powerful' by any stretch, but it will definitely be more powerful than the PS3 and a bit more powerful than the Wii U. I would assume they'll take a small loss, probably on par with the loss Nintendo is taking. That being said, Microsft may follow suit as well, being marginally more powerful than the PS4, but not blowing anybody away with specs. I think the new consoles from both Sony and MS will focus more on the 'tricks' and efficiency that the new GPUs have up their sleeves to create significantly better looking games without needing as much of a 'power bump' as was traditionally needed for a graphical leap. It's going to be a tough choice as to whether I add a PS4 or 720 in addition to my Wii U. It'll come down to the games for me.