As the article states, I think the biggest factor is just the slowing of Moore’s Law. Not only is new tech improving at a slower pace, old tech just isn’t getting cheaper to manufacture.
Though I think one more factor the article fails to account for is that console generations themselves are lasting much longer, and even bleeding into each other as last-gen games continue to get released well into the new generation. The steepest price cuts on the graph came at the end of a system’s lifespan, those are just fire sale prices to clear out old stock. Comparing those numbers feels a bit misleading, because five years into an old console meant it was ready to be phased out, while five years now means we’re only halfway through the generation.
I know there’s a lot wrong with the industry, a lot that’s worth circlejerking about, but the fact that we’re seeing price increases isn’t just some greedy CEO trying to pocket a few bucks, it’s a sign of some serious extenuating circumstances. Whole damn economy’s fucked, it’s a problem bigger than gaming.
They could just not have new consoles. We’re 5 years into this console generation and still don’t have a compelling reason to bother. They could admit that Moore’s Law is dead, and stop worrying about games being giant photorealistic open worlds full of fetch quests.
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As the article states, I think the biggest factor is just the slowing of Moore’s Law. Not only is new tech improving at a slower pace, old tech just isn’t getting cheaper to manufacture.
Though I think one more factor the article fails to account for is that console generations themselves are lasting much longer, and even bleeding into each other as last-gen games continue to get released well into the new generation. The steepest price cuts on the graph came at the end of a system’s lifespan, those are just fire sale prices to clear out old stock. Comparing those numbers feels a bit misleading, because five years into an old console meant it was ready to be phased out, while five years now means we’re only halfway through the generation.
I know there’s a lot wrong with the industry, a lot that’s worth circlejerking about, but the fact that we’re seeing price increases isn’t just some greedy CEO trying to pocket a few bucks, it’s a sign of some serious extenuating circumstances. Whole damn economy’s fucked, it’s a problem bigger than gaming.
They could just not have new consoles. We’re 5 years into this console generation and still don’t have a compelling reason to bother. They could admit that Moore’s Law is dead, and stop worrying about games being giant photorealistic open worlds full of fetch quests.