Xbox 360 to lead the way, says analyst

There’s been a shift in power in the game console world this generation, that is according to one industry analyst.  Scott Steinberg of TechSavvy Global believes that Microsoft is the best positioned console maker, and has an advantage over both Sony and Nintendo because of the way that the company has chosen a broader entertainment focus with the Xbox 360.

“I would say that Microsoft has been the most forward looking of all three manufacturers,” Steinberg told Industry Gamers.

“I think Nintendo desperately needs to play catch-up on the online, connected, and streaming multimedia fronts,” Steinberg added. “Nintendo’s not unaware of the challenges it faces, but traditionally it’s been a company that in the past has been very profitable and has very cleverly straddled the line between game and technology toy. They’ve almost been operating in a different market entirely… I would never count them out of the race, as we’ve seen countless times before in history, but certainly at this point they’re going to have to give themselves a shot of adrenaline and really show why they’re going to rocket to the front of the pack.”

The analyst also believes that the next generation consoles will likely arrive in 2013 or 2014, outside of the Wii U.