Move/Kinect wont extend console cycle

The arrival of Kinect and Move this year does not mark the end of the traditional console hardware cycle, according to Ubisoft’s European MD Alain Corre.

Microsoft has previously stated that the arrival of Kinect is effectively a relaunch” of the Xbox 360. Indeed, its arrival on the market comes exactly five years after the console’s global debut – very much the time at which a machine would be superseded by its successor under previous console cycle conventions.

Other high-profile execs such as THQ boss Brian Farrell have predicted the death of the console cycle, and Nintendo boss Satoru Iwata claimed in 2007 that he was quite doubtful that such a notion of platform cycles can be applied in the future”.

And Microsoft’s Entertainment and Devices boss Robbie Bach claimed in January of this year that Xbox 360 has not yet arrived at middle age, meaning it could potentially live on until 2015.

However, when asked by GamesIndustry if the arrival of Move and Kinect can extend the life of PS3 and Xbox 360 beyond a further two years, Corre responded: I don’t think so, no.

Yes, it’s a good extension of the lifecycle for a certain length of time and it’s also a good way to capture some consumers they didn’t have on the casual side, because Microsoft’s 360 and Sony’s PlayStation 3 do not have the casual customers. So it will bring in a new category of customer for them.

Now, will it prevent them from releasing brand new technology in the next five years? I don’t think so.”