John Romero Predicts the Fall of the Console

According to John Romero, all this next-gen hardware we love so much is doomed to failure; we're destined to ditch our 360s and PS3s and game on PCs instead. The Wii, on the other hand, will survive because, much like the Galactica, it stayed behind the technological curve:

Next-gen console is big but its future isn’t too bright with the emergence of cheap PC multi-core processors and the big change the PC industry will go through during the next 5 years to accommodate the new multi-core-centric hardware designs. My prediction is that the game console in the vein of the PS3
and XBOX 360 is going to either undergo a massive rethink or go away altogether. The Wii has the perfect design for a console that doesn’t pretend to be a PC and is geared more toward casual gamers than hardcore gamers. The hardcore gamers are going to either be playing on their PCs or a new PC-like platform that sits in the living room but still serves the whole house over wifi, even the video signal.

A new PC-like platform? Ok, I'm confused. The Wii will survive because it's not like a PC, which implies that he thinks the 360 and the PS3 *are *like PCs...but they'll fail in favor of something that's PC-like? Ok, I'm being deliberately ornery, but I think you see my point.

Anyway, I hate to argue with the Greatest Hair in Gaming, but I think he's a bit off the mark here. I think the "hardcore" sect will always gravitate towards the Next Big Thing, but as consoles become part game unit/part media center, the more casual gamers will appreciate their entertainment options (like downloading movies or listening to music) and relative simplicity when compared to a PC. My mom might not be able to download songs off her computer, but she knows how to push the A button on a controller. But, heck, maybe I'm wrong. What do you folks think?

Interview With John Romero [Adrenaline Vault, via Gamasutra]