Next-gen battle of innovations: Maybe there isn’t one

Innovation can be defined not just as being able to come up with something genuinely new, like a totally new technology. It can also be defined as being able to come up with something new from something that’s already existing, and giving it a refurbished look and appeal.

The first definition would have to fit Sony‘s idea, while the second would be Nintendo’s. Currently, there easily is a debate as to which next-gen console will be heralded as king. And with the PlayStation 3 and the Wii launching one after the other within just days, one of them certainly would have a lot of catching up to do.

But limiting it to just these two newcomers (because the Xbox 360 has been out for quite a while), it is pretty clear – and without any form of fanboyism bias – that it is the PS3 encountering more problems.

First of which would be the never-ending supply issues. True as it may be that the PS3 is garnering a lot of demand, the sad fact is that Sony has yet to come up with a suitable number of units to meet the staggering amount of people clamoring to get their hands on a PS3. And it’s not as if this scenario was totally unforeseen.

As early as last year, people have already been speculating that Sony might have a problem delivering on their lofty launch goals, primarily because of the complexity of the technology they were developing. Unfortunately, Sony failed to prove them wrong. Come the much-awaited launch, they were only able to ship around 500,000 units for the U. S., while Taiwan got a measly 500 units.

However, although that may be the case, there still remains to be a lot of good points for Sony’s PS3. The Cell Processor for one is viewed by developers as a lush mecca of possibilities for the gaming industry. Games like Resistance: Fall of Man have been made exclusive to the PS3 precisely because the developers believe in the cell’s power. Yes, they may only be exploring just the tip of the iceberg, but wait ’til they get to fully exploit the wonders of the technology.

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Innovation can be defined not just as being able to come up with something genuinely new, like a totally new technology. It can also be defined as being able to come up with something new from something that’s already existing, and giving it a refurbished look and appeal.

The first definition would have to fit Sony‘s idea, while the second would be Nintendo’s. Currently, there easily is a debate as to which next-gen console will be heralded as king. And with the PlayStation 3 and the Wii launching one after the other within just days, one of them certainly would have a lot of catching up to do.

But limiting it to just these two newcomers (because the Xbox 360 has been out for quite a while), it is pretty clear – and without any form of fanboyism bias – that it is the PS3 encountering more problems.

First of which would be the never-ending supply issues. True as it may be that the PS3 is garnering a lot of demand, the sad fact is that Sony has yet to come up with a suitable number of units to meet the staggering amount of people clamoring to get their hands on a PS3. And it’s not as if this scenario was totally unforeseen.

As early as last year, people have already been speculating that Sony might have a problem delivering on their lofty launch goals, primarily because of the complexity of the technology they were developing. Unfortunately, Sony failed to prove them wrong. Come the much-awaited launch, they were only able to ship around 500,000 units for the U. S., while Taiwan got a measly 500 units.

However, although that may be the case, there still remains to be a lot of good points for Sony’s PS3. The Cell Processor for one is viewed by developers as a lush mecca of possibilities for the gaming industry. Games like Resistance: Fall of Man have been made exclusive to the PS3 precisely because the developers believe in the cell’s power. Yes, they may only be exploring just the tip of the iceberg, but wait ’til they get to fully exploit the wonders of the technology.

And a lot sure is riding on this for Sony. If it does work out, and they come out as the winner of this race, they would have booked themselves solid as the leading technology pioneer for gaming (and even beyond) for the next decade or so. Their previously scoffed-at ideal of coming up with an all-in-one technology would now be shining in all its glory. And they will have the last laugh.

What a pretty picture, indeed. IF it turns out that way.

Now, let’s check out the other side of the fence. Nintendo’s next-gen console was supposedly never meant to compete with the PS3 in terms of its technology. It was some kind of a “back-to-basic” approach for the company. Instead of meeting head-on the rigorous demands of the hard-core gamers, they focused instead on expanding the market. Their target? The non-gamers. Focusing on the untapped side of the market, namely the female, the elders, and basically the family, the goal of Nintendo was to branch out and introduce the entertaining world of gaming to these folks.

Their battlecry? You don’t need to be a gamer to enjoy gaming. Hence, they cooked up games that would not only be appealing for those in the know as to gaming, but especially for those who would pretty much consider themselves in the marginalized group of techno-idiots.

Unlike Sony, who’s mecca is the cell processor boasting of innumerable capabilities, Nintendo’s mecca is the expanded market. According to them, there’s no point rejoicing as the top selling gaming company if it is within the realm of a shrinking market. Yes, they sure wanted to reach out. And that’s exactly what they did.

The games they developed generally could be described as family-friendly. And with the added appeal of the motion-sensing Wiimote, they were able to convince not only hardcore gaming fans to get their console, but even whole families. And of course, throwing in something ultimately familiar to the gamers also helped in raising its market value.

Banking on the long-running fame of The Legend of Zelda, they were able to gather the massive fanbase it already had spanning two decades, and then some more.

Now, because this is where Nintendo focused on, their launch clearly went smoothly than that of Sony’s. Because they were working on technology that, although definitely not superior to the PS3’s, was already familiar, it was precisely this familiarity that enabled them to ensure that there would be more than sufficient supply of their units when the need arises.

There wasn’t much else to do for them. They merely had to polish their existing technology, tweak it a bit and market it as something new, and ultimately, strategize in such a way that they will win over the populace not because of the high-tech capabilities of the Wii, but because it is more grounded than the others.

And grounding it to the extent that the grassroots level may access it is what makes Nintendo’s innovation worth applauding. It was not intimidating at all. It was hardly portrayed as this ultra-complex gadget that will traumatize you for eons to come if you press the wrong button. It was simplistic, yet fertile.

We are not giving any definitive conclusions as to who wins this battle of innovations. What we’ve just painted here is the often overlooked reality that maybe there is no such thing as a war going on. And that’s because the players are playing in entirely different fields.

Nintendo and Sony both are playing the technology-innovations game. But they are working out their muscles in entirely different spectrums. And essentially, you can hardly call that a head-to-head match.

We’re not here to take sides. In fact, we’re more than happy to have these companies lugging it out and wooing the market the best they can through their respective innovations. At the end of the day, you can never have enough of a healthy competition after all. Off-tangent as they may actually be.