I probably should've worded the OP differently as there is a lot of hate against the word 'casual' from Nintendo fans.

I'd use the word casual in terms of depth. Wii games are simple and great fun, but the majority lack the depth I usually look for when paying £40-50 for a game (*waits for flames*, try to look at this objectively).

@DKII

The Wii has hurt the sales of PS360 games and consoles HUGELY. Just look at the recent NPD figures. People are now choosing Mario Kart and the like over GTA, completely reversing the trends of last generation.

MarioKart sold fantastically last generation, and has every generation so I don't think that's a good example.

HD consoles just don't have enough variety to separate them from the Shooter genre. I'm not saying they have no games, but most of their successful games are shooter/very violent. Maybe having their parade being rained on will make them switch things up a bit.

I won't say anything about "depth" in specific games. You have your preferences I have mine. We'll both stay open minded and discover new things.

That said it's possible that Sony and MS hurt themselves too. Sadly I will be referencing Bruce Everiss twice in one thread but he makes some very good points about HD gaming without bringing Nintendo into the argument, so it's fanyboy safe. http://www.bruceongames.com/2008/05/16/sony-playstation-2-outsells-playstation-3/

Your final sentence is false. Do you look at the sales? They are right on the front page.

Next generation will have a HD console from Nintendo, so I don't see a downfall. Just like before in video game history, sometimes it is to early for the next big step. Anyway, Microsoft and Sony is doing just fine.

I think Wii will have most of the innovative hardcore games in art and control setup this generation, and I don't worry over seeing to few hardcore games this generation and many casual games are great.

 Wich is a good thing, the less violence there is the better.... hmm forget that MKWii has alot of violence now that I think on it but without the blood.

Hardcore gamer != core gamer. I am a hardcore gamer by most definitions, but I am not really a core gamer. I like all of 2 FPS games, and have a healthy distaste for GTA. Gore, blood, and violence don't really appeal to me at all. Realistic graphics bore me as they tend to lead to settings I find boring. I have a ridiculous collection of games, and will play them for huge stretches though. I devour new games. They typically last me a week tops if I give them my full attention.

With that out of the way I feel I should address your second concern. Core games are present and thriving on the Wii. RE4, Twilight Princess, Red Steel, No More Heroes, and a slew of other games are big hits on the Wii. Just because a new type of game is emerging does not automatically mean the old types are fading away. There is plenty of room for both to survive. The casual game market is not devouring the core gamer market. The casual game market is expanding the video game market.

All of that aside, I am slightly pleased to see the PS3 doing not so well. I have no beef with Sony, nor do I care how the games perform on the system really. I just hate the thought of paying $600 for a console. I believe the message is clear that your standard consumer won't either at this point. Even with a massive turn around I can't see anyone making that expensive a system anytime soon. So I think I can safely say I really don't care how any system does so long as I have fun games to play.

Mostly, I enjoy watching the preconceived notions of elitists get turned on their heads. Who doesn't like watching an arrogant smirk transform into a slack-jawed picture of bewilderment?

And in my experience, high budgets and innovation rarely walk together. The bigger the investment, the more risk-averse the investor. As somebody who craves new experiences, I tend to prefer independant music and film to the recycled stale trash put out by large studios. With the HD platforms, barriers to entry were getting too high. High costs reduce the number of projects as well as the diversity of said projects, because they all aim for the same big markets in an attempt to reduce risk. FPS, RPG, racer.

Wii not only allows for cheaper development, thereby allowing more projects to fill the niches in the market, it also drives creativity by exploring new input techniques. Input techniques which other console makers weren't prepared to embrace fully because their huge hardware investments (once again) made them risk-averse.

So in a sense, yes, I want the PS360 model to fail, because they're stifling creativity by raising the barriers to entry in the game development market. Requiring such huge development budgets will only lead to more and more consolidation of developers until game development is a near oligopoly, like movies and music. The music industry is in turmoil right now as creators and consumers try to break out of the control of the oligopoly, but I'm not sure if gaming could stage a similar revolt. I think it would stay locked in the oligopoly, much like movies have.

Wii brought back the smile on my face when playing games. Graphics doesn't make you laugh, nor they entertain you. Games should be 90% gameplay and 10% graphics, not the other way around like they are now.

"Oh man but trees looks so real in that game from PS360". Honestly, what about going out to walk your dog in the park, that should be more real.

HD is the way to go, but not when developers put 90% of their efforts in graphics and 10% in gameplay.

If PS360 games would look half as good as they are would you still play them ? I doubt.

What are all the steps to recovery? First Denial, then anger, then what else? I want to see what's next!

On-topic:

Well... Hrm... But... I give up, I don't post in nonsense threads.