SEGA SATURN:
It was introduced on November 22, 1994 in Japan and was the first proper
gaming machine. The initial cost of this product was about
US$399.Approximately 170,000 machines were sold the first day the console
went on sale. The difficulties in programming for the system along with the
early release led to very few games being available at launch. The Saturn
was a powerful machine of the time but its design, with two CPUs and 6 other
processors, made harnessing its power extremely difficult. Some of the most
popular games of SEGA were Virtua Fighter 2, Capcom, Duke Nukem 3D, King of
fighters, etc. Eventually the Saturn saw its end in 1998 with about 250
games released on it. |
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PLAYSTATION:
It didn’t take a long time to wake up other companies to step into the
gaming market and just after a week of Saturn`s release Sony introduced
their first gaming machine “PlayStation” on December 3, 1994 in Japan. The
initial cost of the product was US$299. A memory card was used for saving
games. The look of the PlayStation was dramatically different than the
Saturn, which was bulky, and somewhat clumsy looking. In contrast, the
PlayStation was slim, sleek, and gray. To Sony's delight, the PlayStation
sold more than 300,000 units in the first 30 days. The PlayStation enjoyed
one of the longest productions in the video game industry which lasted over
11 years. On March 23, 2006 Sony announced the end of production. Thanks to
PlayStation, people were blessed with some of the most popular games like
Super Mario , Street fighter alpha, Gran Turismo, Tony Hawk Pro Skater ,
Tomb Raider, Tekken, etc. which ruled the gaming market for quite a long
time.
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NINTENDO 64:
It was June 23, 1996 when the Nintendo 64 often abbreviated as N64 was
released in Japan. Some of the very popular games of N64 were Super Mario
64, Tony Hawk`s pro skater, Resident evil 2, Quake 2, etc. the Fifth
Generation lasted approximately from 1993 to 2002 was dominated by these
three consoles. Although the N64 outdid the Sega Saturn but it couldn’t
dominate the gaming market as they were too late to step into the gaming
market and by the time the Nintendo was launched Sony had already
established their dominance and the Saturn was starting to struggle.
The 3DO, the AMIGA CD-32, and Atari Jaguar were also part of this era, but
their sales were poor and they failed to make a significant impact on the
market. |
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Sega Dreamcast:
This era began with the release of Sega Dreamcast on November 27th,
1998. It was the first console of the fifth generation and the last one too
from Sega. The initial cost of the product was 260$. It was the first gaming
machine to introduce the concept of online gaming through its built-in modem
and a web browser. It was designed to supersede the already dominant gaming
console Play Station. Sega Dreamcast enjoyed great sale in the first session
and was one of Sega's most successful hardware units. In the United States
alone, a record 300,000 units had been pre-ordered and Sega sold 500,000
consoles in just two weeks (including 225,000 sold on the first 24 hours
which became a video game record).Some of the very popular games of Sega
Dreamcast were Soul Calibur, Sonic Adventure, Power Stone and Hydro Thunder.
On January 31st, 2001, Sega announced that production of Dreamcast hardware
was to be discontinued by March of that year. With the company announcing no
plans to develop a next-generation successor to Dreamcast, this was Sega's
last foray into the home console business. |
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PlayStation 2:As a result of great success of PlayStation, Sony
introduced its second video game console popularly known as “PlayStation 2”.
Its development was announced in March 1999 and was released a year later in
Japan. The PlayStation 2 abbreviated as PS2 is the best selling console
having reached over 120 million units in sales in 2007. The PS2 also used a
memory card to store media as its older version. The PS2 was so popular
after its release that it was difficult to find units on retailer shelves.
The ability to play DVD movies was an added incentive for consumers to be
able to purchasing the PS2. The initial cost of this product was
299$. The PS2 has undergone many revisions, some only of internal
construction and others involving substantial external changes. The PS2 also
featured online gaming. Some of the most popular games of PS2 were Grand
Theft Auto: San Andreas, Air Blade, Final Fantasy IX, SSX Tricky, Tony
Hawk's Pro Skater 3, etc. |
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Game Cube:
Game Cube was introduced by Nintendo on September 14, 2001 in Japan.
Despite Nintendo's efforts, the GameCube failed to reclaim the market share
lost by its predecessor, the Nintendo64. The 1.5 gigabyte proprietary disc
format may also have been a limiting factor since the Xbox (released later)
and PS2 use the 4.7 gigabyte DVD. Nintendo also made little headway into
online gaming (in fact only releasing a small handful of online-capable
games).However, the Nintendo disc still has sufficient room for most games,
although a few games require two discs or tend to have less extra content
than other versions, and video compression for some games is slightly more
apparent. Due to sagging sales, Nintendo was forced to cut GameCube
production for a limited time in order to sell off surpluses. Some of the
famous games released on game cube are Madden NFL 2005, Tom Clancy`s
Splinter Cell: Pandora Tomorrow, The Sims, Spider Man, etc. |
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Xbox:
It was time for the big giant Microsoft to step into the gaming market.
Microsoft introduced their first gaming console called “XBOX” on November
15th, 2001 in North America. The initial cost of Xbox was 299$. It competed
directly with Sony`s PS2 AND Nintendo GameCube. Although the Xbox had the
formidable financial backing of Microsoft, it was unable to significantly
threaten the dominance of the PlayStation 2 as market leader; however, the
Xbox attracted a large fan base and strong third-party support in the United
States and Europe and became a recognizable brand amongst the mainstream. .
The Xbox Live online service with its centralized model proved particularly
successful, prompting Sony to boost the online capabilities of the
PlayStation 2. Xbox Live also gave the Xbox edge over the GameCube, which
had a near total lack of online games. The ability to rip music from CDs to
its hard drive, ability solely available for the Xbox, also assisted its
sales significantly. Xbox was the first console to incorporate a hard disk
drive, used primarily for storing game saves compressed in ZIP archives and
content downloaded from Xbox Live. Some of the most popular games on Xbox
were Halo, Project Gotham Racing, Dead or Alive 3, Tom Clancy's Ghost Recon,
Ninja Gaiden, etc. |
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Xbox 360:
The Xbox 360 was released on November 22, 2005, in the United States. At
launch, the Xbox 360 was available in two configurations: the "Xbox 360"
package, priced at US$399, and the "Xbox 360 Core", priced at US$299. The
Elite package was launched later at US$479, and the "Xbox 360 Arcade"
replaced the "Xbox 360 Core" in October 2007 at US$279. The Xbox360 is the
most expensive variation of the console with 120GB hard drive and a matte
black finish. Microsoft's Xbox 360 was the first "next-generation" game
console to hit the market beating the Nintendo Wii and PlayStation 3 by a
full year. Early versions of the console prone to "red ring of death" system
crash a fatal glitch that renders them unusable. It's been a huge
frustration for even the most forgiving 360 owner. Xbox Live was a large
success on the original Xbox, but this time around Xbox Live is completely
integrated into the Dashboard. The Xbox 360 has a Superior selection of
games, including several console-exclusive titles including some of the most
famous F.E.A.R, Ghost Recon Advanced Warfighter, and The Elder Scrolls IV:
Oblivion, Dead or Alive 4, Saints Row and Gears of War. |
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PlayStation 3:
The PlayStation 3 is the third home video game console produced by Sony
Computer Entertainment and successor to the PlayStation 2 as part of the
PlayStation series. The system was first released on November 11, 2006, in
Japan. It is the first console with next-gen primary storage media, Blu-ray
Disc, though it also supports DVDs, CDs. The system sold approximately
600,000 units in its first two days. The PS3 has basically three different
versions of 20 GB, 40 GB, 60 GB, and 80 GB included with some other major
differences as well. The price of PS3 is from $499- $599 varying with
different version. The goods of PS3 are its swanky design with quiet
operation, plays high-def Blu-ray movies in addition to up scaling standard
DVDs. The 60GB model of PS3 also features Wi-Fi. Like the Xbox 360 the
PlayStation 3 can stand vertically or lie horizontally. Some of the most
popular games released for PS3 till now are The Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion,
The Orange Box, Assassin's Creed, Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare, and Tom
Clancy's Rainbow Six Vegas. |
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Wii:
Nintendo entered this generation with a new approach embodied by its Wii
console released on November 19, 2006 in North America. The launch price of
the console is US $299. A distinguishing feature of the console is its
wireless controller, the Wii Remote, which can be used as a handheld
pointing device and can detect acceleration in three dimensions. The Wii
Remote is the primary controller for the console. It uses a combination of
built-in accelerometers and infrared detection to sense its position in 3D
space when pointed at the LEDs within the Sensor Bar. Nintendo spells "Wii"
with two lower-case "i" characters meant to resemble two people standing
side by side, representing players gathering together, as well as to
represent the console's controllers. Since its launch, the monthly sales
numbers of the console have been higher than its competitors across the
globe. The front of the console features an illuminated slot-loading optical
media drive that accepts both 12 cm Wii Optical Discs and Nintendo GameCube
Game Discs. The Wii supports a SD card used for uploading photos as well as
backing up saved game data and downloaded Virtual Console games. Some of the
most popular games released for Wii till now are Super Mario Galaxy,
Resident Evil 4, and WarioWare: Smooth Moves, and Mercury Meltdown
Revolution. |
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