The Gaming Intelligentsia #2: The Gamer's Appetite

As we approach the dawn of a new generation in the console gaming industry, I'm forced to sit back and ponder a newly-discovered statistic: it takes, on average, 4 years to get a game from its planning stages to completion. I heard this fact when someone referenced the Xbox and its upcoming successor, out after only 4 years on the market. 

That means, if this statistic is true (and I don't doubt that the number could have been distorted by the chain of hearsay that always occurs), then those games that were planned in the initial year of the Xbox's existence have just seen the light of day. The same goes for the GameCube, while the PS2 has had a year's head start on its competition.

This statistic gains more relevance when one considers that games on the current generation are reaching dizzying heights of quality and enjoyment, as one would expect with a maturing console. When one looks at the highs from last year, like Resident Evil 4 and Paper Mario, one cannot help but appreciate how different they are from games like Luigi's Mansion, which appeared at the beginning of the GameCube's development cycle. 

This difference at this time just begs the question: if companies weren't racing to get to the next console and instead gave this current generation another 4 years worth of games, what wonders could we expect? Is the gaming industry disregarding the possibility of higher quality games that can only really come about with closer familiarity with the hardware, a familiarity that many would argue has only recently borne fruits, just to move to the next high-powered console and capitalize on the potential income from the "next best thing?"

I absolutely believe this is the case. Regardless of whether or not the quoted statistic is true, one must admit that these consoles are advancing rather quickly. Though gaming consoles seem to hold a lifetime of around 4-5 years, at least in the last two generations, one would expect that the greater complexity and power promised during this generation would extend each consoles' lifetime.