I'm not really into games like I used to be. I think that part of me largely died when I bought a PS3 and then realised that I'd never get to see Kingdom Hearts 3 on it. However, even though I feel like I'm mostly past my game-playing stage of life, the new consoles - or at least the promise of new games - still has me really interested.
Everything Microsoft has done with the Xbox One in the last year or less has really been quite entertaining. I remember thinking, as loyal to Sony as I am, I would have bought the next gen Xbox had I decided to buy one of the consoles. Now I would have absolutely no qualms buying the PS4 instead (if games still gave me that level of satisfaction, anyway). It's not that I see the PS4 as being greatly superior, but more that Microsoft have made it so there's no reason for me to depart from the Sony brand.
I'd be lying if I said there are no next-gen games that have me excited: Child of Light (even though it's available on the current gen machines) and Dragon Age: Inquisition are definitely making me think twice about some of my life decisions (not to mention news of Kingdom Hearts 3). Furthermore, there's comfort in familiarity when it comes to the controls. I've heard the arguments for the Xbox controller being more intuitive than the PS controller, but 10+ years of playing the PS2 and later PS3 mean that I couldn't care less.
That debate aside, Nintendo really intrigues me. Everyone argues about PS vs Xbox, but Nintendo has managed to separate its consoles into a niche, post-gamecube (though I'm still wondering how successful you'd call the Wii in hindsight). It's not even so much that they seem to try going in a different direction in terms of hardware (though the WiiU concept is neat, I admit), but more that they've been able to hold onto Nintendo exclusives. Had Final Fantasy remained a PS exclusive, I can imagine there'd be a lot of Xbox converts still feeling the hurt. Regardless of the technology, Nintendo has a culture ingrained in it that both the Xbox and PS seem to lack. People may associate Halo, Gears of War and Fable with Xbox, whilst others will associate Crash Bandicoot, Spyro and Tomb Raider with Playstation, but the relationship just isn't as strong as Mario and Luigi, Pokemon and the Legend of Zelda are with Nintendo. I don't see Nintendo as having wronged its loyalists at all. Heck, even if you own a PS4 or Xbox One, there's a good chance that you'll still be playing your 3DS or whatever portable Nintendo device it is you have.
Okay, I don't understand this industry anymore. Good night.