Once upon a time, readers, you didn't say, "I play video games", you said, "I play Atari". Then Atari's hardware fell by the wayside and people started to say, "I play Nintendo". The Nintendo's hardware fell away (yes, it did, casual readers), and people said, "I play PlayStation". These were almost generic terms such as "I Hoover" or "I use Viagra".
Nowadays, of course, the voices of fanboys drown out the generic (well, the voices of fanboys drown out anything less high-pitched than themselves) and we have a huge, massive, vast wide range of choice provided by Nintendo, Sony and Microsoft.
These three platform holders will soon also be able to control even more thoroughly than they do now the way in which video games are distributed. This is because digital delivery is going to get rid of bricks'n'mortar retailers.
In turn, this means that if you are going to get a game developed and then released to the public, that game will be piped straight from Xbox Live, PlayStation Store or a Wii channel.
At the moment, both Sony and Microsoft can say, "We are not allowing that game on our platform" - in fact, this is what both did in June last year when Manhunt 2 was given an Adults Only rating in the USA.
This form of censorship is also reinforced by those mainstream retailers - Walmart in the USA, for example, refuses to stock adult rated games.
So, how does all this bring us to Electronic Arts? Well according to blogger, Chris Remo, "EA wants to sell you a PC".
This relates to a conversation Chris had at the recent Comic Con in which, according to Remo, "an EA rep mentioned that the company plans to market pre-built PCs in conjunction with the release of Crytek’s upcoming PC-exclusive shooter Crysis Warhead.
"(the) likely price range being $600-$800 (£300-£400)... and they will probably be named accordingly–the Crysis Warhead Performance PC, and so on."
We understand, of course, that branding PCs for a PC-only release is not exactly an economic or game platform revolution. However, EA is not known for its hardware releases.
However, again, it was only in October last year that Gerhard Florin, EA's head of international publishing pointed out that, "An open, standard platform which is much easier than having five which are not compatible…We're platform agnostic and we definitely don't want to have one platform which is a walled garden."
This was supported at the time by respected game analyst Nick Parker, who told SPOnG, "You don't need an Xbox 360, PS3 or Wii - the consumer won't even realise the platform it is being played on… Games will be provided over the net. There might not be a need for a PS4 or dedicated consoles".
So, could EA's branding be a toe in the water for wider support for a more open platform based on off-the-shelf components? Would you really notice the difference between a slick looking PC with Blu-ray drive, gaming portals and the ability for developers to gain sway over publishers and platform holders?
In ten years time, will anybody remember Xbox, PlayStation or Wii with anything other than warm nostalgia?
Nowadays, of course, the voices of fanboys drown out the generic (well, the voices of fanboys drown out anything less high-pitched than themselves) and we have a huge, massive, vast wide range of choice provided by Nintendo, Sony and Microsoft.
These three platform holders will soon also be able to control even more thoroughly than they do now the way in which video games are distributed. This is because digital delivery is going to get rid of bricks'n'mortar retailers.
In turn, this means that if you are going to get a game developed and then released to the public, that game will be piped straight from Xbox Live, PlayStation Store or a Wii channel.
At the moment, both Sony and Microsoft can say, "We are not allowing that game on our platform" - in fact, this is what both did in June last year when Manhunt 2 was given an Adults Only rating in the USA.
This form of censorship is also reinforced by those mainstream retailers - Walmart in the USA, for example, refuses to stock adult rated games.
So, how does all this bring us to Electronic Arts? Well according to blogger, Chris Remo, "EA wants to sell you a PC".
This relates to a conversation Chris had at the recent Comic Con in which, according to Remo, "an EA rep mentioned that the company plans to market pre-built PCs in conjunction with the release of Crytek’s upcoming PC-exclusive shooter Crysis Warhead.
"(the) likely price range being $600-$800 (£300-£400)... and they will probably be named accordingly–the Crysis Warhead Performance PC, and so on."
We understand, of course, that branding PCs for a PC-only release is not exactly an economic or game platform revolution. However, EA is not known for its hardware releases.
However, again, it was only in October last year that Gerhard Florin, EA's head of international publishing pointed out that, "An open, standard platform which is much easier than having five which are not compatible…We're platform agnostic and we definitely don't want to have one platform which is a walled garden."
This was supported at the time by respected game analyst Nick Parker, who told SPOnG, "You don't need an Xbox 360, PS3 or Wii - the consumer won't even realise the platform it is being played on… Games will be provided over the net. There might not be a need for a PS4 or dedicated consoles".
So, could EA's branding be a toe in the water for wider support for a more open platform based on off-the-shelf components? Would you really notice the difference between a slick looking PC with Blu-ray drive, gaming portals and the ability for developers to gain sway over publishers and platform holders?
In ten years time, will anybody remember Xbox, PlayStation or Wii with anything other than warm nostalgia?
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