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[macewank]

One of the two used to be the second biggest console manufacturer in the world, and is responsible for some of console gamings most iconic and enduring series.

The other is responsible for some of console gamings other most iconic and enduring franchises.

And? What does 1995 have to do with 2015? Nobody is going to dispute the history of these two companies. What's up for debate, and what I'm pointing out, is that neither of them have had much of a stake in console gaming for, what, 5-10 years? Their exit at this point is a formality. We've all known it was coming. Konami has been knee deep in slot machines and video poker for forever. Sega.. I don't know what Sega does anymore, save for really bad Sonic titles.

Don't play this off like Konami and Sega are some no-name companies that nobody should care about, wake up and smell the coffee that console gaming isn't a healthy market and hasn't been for quite some time.

For every chart that shows an unhealthy trend, there's a chart that shows a healthy one. (edit: you needn't look any further than the chart posted here. with handhelds, downward trend. without, upward trend) Economists and companies will skew it whatever way fits their narrative. Here's what we know as fact: Gen 8 consoles are selling like gangbusters right now. Sony recently announced that the PS4 has sold through over 20 million systems in 2 years. That's the fastest Sony has ever sold a console. The PS2 didn't even sell at that clip.

I'm not going to sit here and tell you that it's going to continue to sell at this pace, because it won't. But that kind of doesn't matter in the here and now. Right now, it's selling. It's selling a lot. And that is pretty much the exact opposite of an unhealthy market.

 

[jmdajr]

Nah.

Just less AAA games.

 

[Moneal]

what? lol

Couldn't tell if it was a joke post or "PS4 has no gamez".

 

[Mac the KNife]

Short answer yes with an if, long answer no with a but.

 

[DSix]

I could see myself defecting to PC gaming to essentially play the same games. But to people consoles will always have a place and a use, it's not going away.

 

[Arion]

are you implying the wii's market wasn't somehow apart of the console market, despite it being a console? how is the wii's or rather nintendo's loss of marketshare not relevant? I am being holistic about this, the whole console market is contracting. I would agree that the ps4 and xbox one are outpacing their respective predecessors, for now, but their growth is not comparable to the respective console market position's when aligned, the ps4 has failed to pass the wii's shipment numbers in the same time, you may argue that it is irrelevant because of their "different" markets they aim for, but that's a fact. the xbox one is however outpacing the 2nd position of market leader, i think. the wii u is well flopping compared to the ps3; I'm quite certain, I don't even need to look for a graph for confirmation on that

if you are indeed implying that the casual market console of the wii isn't relevant to gaming well, I'm not sure why you would say that

and yeah ouya is a failure too, it's in the console market too, I think

Spoiler

I apologize if my reasoning and train of thought is erratic

You can't really fault people for considering the Wii's casual market to be different from the rest of console gaming. Pure speculation here but I think most people who bought into the Wii are not the ones who are interested in buying games like GTA, CoD, Skyrim ie traditional console gaming. I also think those people did not buy into previous console generations and are not interested in future console generations. Wii, for the most part, was a fitness/party fad that came and went and was never a part of console gaming in general. That is not to discount the myriad of core console games that did come to the Wii but the casual wii market did not buy into those.

If you actually consider the core Nintendo console fan base, I think there is roughly 20-30 million of them looking at how the GameCube sold and how the Wiiu is selling. Additionally the big Nintendo franchises (Zelda, Smash, Mario and Kart) sold around 20-30 million mostly to the core Nintendo fans. The other 70-80 million Wii owners did not care for those games.

 

[AgeEighty]

It does feel a lot like the best days of every one of the major publishers are behind them. Not just Konami but Capcom, Sega, Ubisoft, Square-Enix, Activision, 2K, and even EA... all of them seem to be either be putting out fewer games, or putting out fewer great games, or at least taking fewer risks. Nintendo takes more risks and has been putting out some of their best stuff in years, but in return they're being greeted with lousy sales.

It's like the gaming industry has swelled beyond the limits of a sustainable business model.

And I agree with someone else's earlier comment: it seems like the medium-tier games have gone away. Everything is either AAA or indie with precious little in between.

 

[old manatee]

I've been a console/PC gamer since the early 80's and this is the first generation since where I have no interest in any of the consoles. They just seem like underpowered, overpriced PCs where everything is locked down and restricted.

 

[dead souls]

Coming to a close is overstating it a little bit, but it's hard to look at the libraries of the home consoles and not be a little worried.

With how few releases there are, and the fact that so many of them are homogenized AAA games in genres I don't like, middling indies I could play on my laptop, or remasters of things I've already played, I'll struggle to end up purchasing even 1/3 the number of games I bought last gen.

Don't even get me started about portables. My DS/PSP library vs my 3DS library is a ridiculously lopsided thing. Vita doesn't even have enough games I'm interested in to warrant purchasing one.

 

[hatchx]

I think dedicated gaming handheld consoles are coming to a close.

Consoles maybe in a generation or two.

Computers are getting more powerful and accessible, I don't see why I can't plug one box into my TV in the future and had Microsoft, Nintendo, and Sony gaming OS running. Screw buying new hardware every 5-6 years that's outdated in 1-2 years, buying all new controllers, etc.

 

[Clefargle]

It doesn't matter how many units the PS4 has sold when only a handful of games have been made for it since launch.
Sure there are the remasters & indies - many you can find on PC - but I doubt the majority bought a next gen console for them (no matter how much you may like them).
As it looks to me now, the big AAA game is dead and no publisher is rushing to resurrect them; Without them the console will die.

Christ, how big are your hands?? Wikipedia says there are 45 exclusives. Can you hold 45 games in one hand?

 

[……forgetit]

Nintendo might have foreseen this considering their rumored 'NX' system is a hybrid mobile-console deevice.

Tales from your ass? This was totally made up and directly contradicts everything Nintendo has said about the console.

 

[Melchiah]

There has been a severe lack of variety of games produced for current console systems compare to 3 generations ago. Also, the amount of games produced for current gen has been very disappointing and it seems to be on a downward trend. Not to mention, the lack of new IP's and too many remakes, series and ports.

Huh? It doesn't look like that to me, when I glance upon the trophy list of what I've played so far...

Horror: Alien: Isolation, Resident Evil HD, White Night
Racing: Driveclub
Action RPG: Bloodborne
WRPG: Dragon Age: Inquisition
Open world action: Infamous: Second Son & First Light, Shadow of Mordor
Shoot 'em up: Resogun, Nano Assault NEO-X
FPS: Killzone: Shadow Fall, Wolfenstein: The New Order, Destiny
TPS: The Order: 1886
Other: Entwined

Nine of those are new IPs. The only thing missing are JRPGs and platformers, but I don't really miss either of them.

 

[DNAbro]

I've been a console/PC gamer since the early 80's and this is the first generation since where I have no interest in any of the consoles. They just seem like underpowered, overpriced PCs where everything is locked down and restricted.

 

[Sephzilla]

Konami and Sega chasing a technological gold rush doesn't mean console gaming is coming to a close. It just means Konami and Sega are pulling a Veruca Salt and wanting money with minimal effort.

 

[old manatee]

What's your point?

 

[Kamina]

Doesn't matter when publishers can make good money on mobile platforms with less $ and time invested. 22 million is by no means a small number, but the audience on mobile platforms is much much bigger.

But people cant play Witcher 3 or MGSV on Mobile devices and not everyone wants to use ~1k for PC + Equipment.
(not as in 1k PC equals PS4 power but 1k in terms of completly outperforming what consoles offer)

 

[dragonfart28]

Fixed it for you!

Spoiler

I wish this was entirely a joke

Handhelds should be removed for sure, but there's no reason that Wii should not be considered a home console, regardless of what people think about the nature of its success.

The reality is that it grew the market, and that market is now contracting.

 

[Trago]

We should take software sales into consideration. Yeah the PS4 is selling great, but how are game sales compared to previous generation?

 

[watership]

I've been a console/PC gamer since the early 80's and this is the first generation since where I have no interest in any of the consoles. They just seem like underpowered, overpriced PCs where everything is locked down and restricted.

Other than the 360, n64 and maybe the early neogeo launches did I ever think that the console had a power leg up on the PC. That's not why they exist, or why they flourished. At all. They were big because they were simple, cheaper and had the games.

 

[jonno394]

We are talking about console gaming as a whole right? Not specific companies.

Even if we take out the Wii out of every year, they are still more or less better than 2014.

2014 was the first proper year on the market for the two new consoles. 2008 was the second or third for ps3/360 so there are more gamers with the respective consoles buying games. Comparing figures at end of 2015 to 2008 is a much fairer comparison

The take home from this is the casual market Nintendo managed to grab hold of have shifted to mobile devices. The other console numbers have stayed at pretty similar levels over the years.

 

[Clefargle]

What's your point?

Youre not evil, you just don't understand people

 

[RS4-]

Until I can play something like Witcher 3 on my mobile and mirror it to my monitor or tv, consoles can stay.

 

[Cow Goes Moo]

You can't really fault people for considering the Wii's casual market to be different from the rest of console gaming. Pure speculation

I know why people are bringing it up that the Wii was an anomaly for it's "nontraditional" console market, to prove that however is entirely speculative, which is why I focused predominately on console market contraction. but yes that is somewhat true, if one were to take the wii out of nintendo's line of consoles sold the wii u wouldn't look as disastrously surprising, and it would look like a normal, terrible downward trend, but the wii still happened, which is why I choose not to.

 

[old manatee]

Other than the 360, n64 and maybe the early neogeo launches did I ever think that the console had a power leg up on the PC. That's not why they exist, or why they flourished. At all. They were big because they were simple, cheaper and had the games.

That's the problem, PCs have gotten easier to use, and there is a flood of games because it is an open platform. Consoles have become more expensive, complicated, and there are just fewer games because there are so many platforms now.

 

[MrNyarlathotep]

there's no reason that Wii should not be considered a home console

I don't disagree, my "fixed" was sarcastic.
Excluding the Wii is a textbook example of "if the data doesn't support the hypothesis, change the data" - ie pisspoor scientific method.

 

[silvermember]

A lot of game developers are going to start shrinking because the barrier of entry keeps getting higher and higher.

Over time the bigger publishers will be releasing few and fewer games, this also applies to PCs as well.

Right now a lot of the income in PC gaming in the world is generated by a handful of PC games mainly MMO and MOBA, other genres are will simply vanish if this trend keeps progressing.

I don't believe PC gaming on its own will be enough to sustain the current level of growth on its own, It might but it will be only in the hands of very few games and genres.

 

[redcrayon]

You can't really fault people for considering the Wii's casual market to be different from the rest of console gaming. Pure speculation here but I think most people who bought into the Wii are not the ones who are interested in buying games like GTA, CoD, Skyrim ie traditional console gaming. I also think those people did not buy into previous console generations and are not interested in future console generations. Wii, for the most part, was a fitness/party fad that came and went and was never a part of console gaming in general. That is not to discount the myriad of core console games that did come to the Wii but the casual wii market did not buy into those.

If you actually consider the core Nintendo console fan base, I think there is roughly 20-30 million of them looking at how the GameCube sold and how the Wiiu is selling. Additionally the big Nintendo franchises (Zelda, Smash, Mario and Kart) sold around 20-30 million mostly to the core Nintendo fans. The other 70-80 million Wii owners did not care for those games.

Zelda isn't on the same level as the others, I doubt Skyward Sword reached 5m let alone 20. Many gamers assume that it is because it is very visable, is one of the most consistently highly-rated series over 25 years, forumites love it and it's iconography is memorable, but it really isn't the sales powerhouse that Kart is.

 

[autoduelist]

There will always be a market for high polish, large scale games like Uncharted, Halo, CoD, GTA, etc. that play on devices that are 'plug and play'. Until we get to the point that network infrastructure can support streaming super high quality gaming reliably and consistently, that most likely means consoles in our living rooms.

I don't disagree, my "fixed" was sarcastic.
Excluding the Wii is a textbook example of "if the data doesn't support the hypothesis, change the data" - ie pisspoor scientific method.

Except it's important to also realize the wii was a bit of an anomaly and that it was famously selling to demographics like moms and retirement homes that do not normally embrace consoles. It reached the level of 'fad', which means the expansion in demographic is not easily replicable [lightning in a bottle].

 

[hipbabboom]

It's probably fair to say that people get too emotional when this question is raised and that people on both sides of the argument are too eager to push their viewpoint to properly address opposing viewpoints. It makes the discussion painful every single time.

That said, I'm don't think the traditional Japanese game companies are doing too well and I mean traditional as in companies from last gen. Sure you can point out mobile being a viable market there but that brings us back to OP's original question: Is console gaming coming to a close? I would have to answer yes as far as Japan is concerned. If we are going to play with semantics however and say mobile platforms are consoles too then perhaps not.

 

[Glendemonium]

Not really dead, but I can see consoles going to more of a niche thing. There will probably be far less AAA games now but that's not going to stop the B market digital downloads and indies. In fact, I've seen more B list games popping up and been more privy to downloadable smaller games. Plus there is always the MMO market but that caters to PC mostly.

As long as there is a market for that, and there usually is, consoles won't "die" but we won't see them as hyped like before. PC gaming will always continue to thrive because people can do more on a PC than just game anyway. As long as Steam, Desura, GoG, etc exists there will always be games.

Smartphones are similar, people use them for other things and it's a handy little gadget that does more than just games, yet people who aren't familiar with gaming love little time wasters and have no issues paying $1, $5, $20a month for digital trinkets, and when millions of people do it, it adds up far greater than what a 60 dollar game could do with laughably sparse DLC.

I think Nintendo kind of sees it and they're shifting focus to Amiibos and merchandising (Theme park anyone?) to enhance hardware/software capabilities. It worked big time, and I have a feeling their new console will focus more on Amiibos, as well as using smartphones and digital platforms as a way to keep as steady revenue coming in. What would be nice if the next console was able to play 3DS and Wii U titles and what ever new format they're using, yet give you an option to play games on your television if you choose so, but I'm getting way too ahead of myself there.

 

[Cavalier]

I'm of the opinion mobile is the single largest threat to traditional console gaming, japan being a perfect example regarding the reality of todays situation. Mobile will continue to grow and further encroach into the console market. I'm not very optimistic that console gaming as we know it today will continue in 6-7 years time.

I feel the natural order of things will leave PC and mobile standing at the end of this console generation. Today's PC gaming market offers a very "console enough" experience, with added hardware flexibility, essentially all digital games (market direction anyways), and the ability to have backwards compatabililty with many older titles. Meanwhile mobile is shaping up to gobble up anyone who's a casual gamer, leaving only the core gamers to support consoles in years time, which may not be enough to warrant another go at it for the console manufactures. Options will be to become a service like Live which already appears to be geared in many ways for the PC market in Windows 10, so take that for what it's worth.

We're already seeing the early signs of things to come, many large publishers are shifting gears to mobile, that fact cannot be ignorned. We're also seeing a lot of devs self publishing to PC, and that is something I feel will continue which in turn will spare PC of the console fate. I don't want consoles to go away, and my opinion may come off very "the world is ending", but games will go where the money goes, and that appears to be mobile for larger publishers. If consoles are to survive into another generation they will need to become more open like PC, which in a way is already happening with systems like Steam Machines. Essentially consolified PC's, those are the only consoles I feel will exist beyond this generation, the closed systems simply can't survive. Smaller publishers will probably pop up in place of the big boys who went mobile chasing huge cash to appease share holders, but these smaller publishers will probably focus on PC type machines due to cost, furthering my suspicions.

Now I could be completely off base here, but regardless things are about to get very interesting in the coming years.

Thanks for this well-thought out reply. It is interesting how this industry is evolving and I consider myself very lucky to be witnessing it. Considering the fact that mobile devices are already running console-level games (KOTOR, Bioshock, etc...), do you think this trend will continue?

If so, I think a hybrid mobile-console system is the future. A system where you place your mobile device on a dock and you're able to play all of your console games on your big screen tv with a controller. This all-in-one approach excites me greatly.

http://www.statista.com/statistics/276768/global-unit-sales-of-video-game-consoles/

Ye it is really growing man. look at that growth.

Wow.

 

[Wyndstryker]

The current market is going through major shifts as mobile is rapidly growing and should overtake the console market. Coupled with the rapid rise of pc and indie the market is gonna look very different. It's too early to say it's dead but it's definitely going to look way different at the end of the gen.

 

[Spiritwalker]

No, but it is shrinking. I truly believe there will still be a large market for dedicated gaming devices 10-15 years from now.

 

[Auto-Reply]

It was probably mentioned already but at the beginning of last gen, what was the state of mobile gaming? I'm completely oblivious to that market so I really don't know but when the 360 released, the iPhone wasn't even out yet, right? There was no touchscreen gaming before that and games looked embarrasing compared to games on PC and consoles, and it feels like mobile tech is on some form of steroid development now and games nearly looking the same as last gen games on a small screen.

 

[Cavalier]

It was probably mentioned already but at the beginning of last gen, what was the state of mobile gaming? I'm completely oblivious to that market so I really don't know but when the 360 released, the iPhone wasn't even out yet, right? There was no touchscreen gaming before that and games looked embarrasing compared to games on PC and consoles, and it feels like mobile tech is on some form of steroid development now and games nearly looking the same as last gen games on a small screen.

Beginning of last-gen, there was mobile gaming but it wasn't very good. iPhone wasn't out when PS3 and 360 came out. Color screen flip-phones, Motorola Razr, LG Chocolate were the hot mobile devices. Handhelds were still the thing back then.

 

[kinggroin]

No, but it is shrinking. I truly believe there will still be a large market for dedicated gaming devices 10-15 years from now.

Absolutely.

Folks hyperbolic on both sides of this argument.

Console gaming market as a whole has shrunk, and may shrink further, but die off completely? Eh, IF it does, not for many years.

 

[MrNyarlathotep]

Except it's important to also realize the wii was a bit of an anomaly and that it was famously selling to demographics like moms and retirement homes that do not normally embrace consoles. It reached the level of 'fad', which means the expansion in demographic is not easily replicable [lightning in a bottle].

Which - if that's the hypothesis you want to go with - you would need to calculate specifically what percentage of the Wii userbase that consisted of. Because it wasn't 100%.

You would then also need to calculate what percentage of the PS3 userbase bought a PS3 solely as a media player, and what percentage of the Xbox 360 userbase only bought titles like Just Dance, because lets not forget Kinect sold around 25 million units.
You would then need to go back to previous generations and reduce previous userbases by the amount of people who only bought things like SingStar or EyeToy.

Basically you would need to do a substantial amount of research work to make a point that ultimately doesn't matter, because large userbases sell large amounts of games and always have done, and nobody in the industry actually gives a shit who they sell to as long as they sell.

What you shouldn't do is just take all of last gens sales and then subtract the Wii because waggle lol

 

[Muzicfreq]

I've been a console/PC gamer since the early 80's and this is the first generation since where I have no interest in any of the consoles. They just seem like underpowered, overpriced PCs where everything is locked down and restricted.

That's kinda how it has been for a while

 

[dragonfart28]

Except it's important to also realize the wii was a bit of an anomaly and that it was famously selling to demographics like moms and retirement homes that do not normally embrace consoles. It reached the level of 'fad', which means the expansion in demographic is not easily replicable [lightning in a bottle].

True, but that only highlights that the other consoles haven't grown the market, which is not a good thing when you consider the ballooning costs of AAA development.

This is why most companies are looking to recoup the costs by producing low budget indie games or remasters.

Or, as is the new trend, start shifting their focus to mobile development.

 

[Celine]

http://www.statista.com/statistics/276768/global-unit-sales-of-video-game-consoles/

Ye it is really growing man. look at that growth.

Where did you got Vita shipment?

Zelda isn't on the same level as the others, I doubt Skyward Sword reached 5m let alone 20. Many gamers assume that it is because it is very visable, is one of the most consistently highly-rated series over 25 years, forumites love it and it's iconography is memorable, but it really isn't the sales powerhouse that Kart is.

http://www.neogaf.com/forum/showthread.php?t=963700

 

[Mr. Nice_Guy]

http://www.statista.com/statistics/276768/global-unit-sales-of-video-game-consoles/

Ye it is really growing man. look at that growth.

I'll help you out here, see how the new consoles keep selling more and more? Yeah, that's going to keep happening, as it does with every generation. Sales grow more and more as the install base does.

I'd love to say mobile is a phase, but I'm sure it's here to stay. I'd love to see mobile as a gateway for lots of people, and that as those people take an interest in the medium they move to consoles and PC where they aren't asked to pay to continue playing every 15 minutes. But I honestly don't know enough casual game players to make that assessment.

If most gaming moves to PC, so be it, but I hope console gaming continues to grow, and companies can have healthy mobile and console gaming productions. As long as console sales continue to improve, I hope companies interest in that market stays as well.

Sadly most of that depends on investors as well.

 

[Storm Kyleis]

They were big because they were simple, cheaper and had the games.

"Had the games" is more of a consequence than a cause. Publishers just flock to whatever platform is popular at the moment (see: Sega, Konami on mobile).

I say this as someone who plays mostly on consoles: do consumers really need two separate expensive hardwares with similar architectures to play different games made with the same engine?

 

[petran79]

That's kinda how it has been for a while

yes, now consoles in order to boost sales try to encompass genres from all platforms, even the ones that would be contrary to their philosophy (except AO games).

Same thing happens with PCs, including games that would be deemed console exclusives few years ago. But unlike consoles, computers are much more able to adapt to digital content distribution. Now handheld consoles include mobile games too.

Borderlines are blurred. Dedicated console gaming is certainly coming to a close.

 

[Superkamikazee]

Konami and Sega chasing a technological gold rush doesn't mean console gaming is coming to a close. It just means Konami and Sega are pulling a Veruca Salt and wanting money with minimal effort.

You forgot to mention Nintendo. If Nintendo is dipping their toes in the mobile market, it's time to sit back and think about what the ramifications could be. When one of the industries largest console manufacturers considers dabbling in mobile, it's clear where the market may be headed.

Thanks for this well-thought out reply. It is interesting how this industry is evolving and I consider myself very lucky to be witnessing it. Considering the fact that mobile devices are already running console-level games (KOTOR, Bioshock, etc...), do you think this trend will continue?

If so, I think a hybrid mobile-console system is the future. A system where you place your mobile device on a dock and you're able to play all of your console games on your big screen tv with a controller. This all-in-one approach excites me greatly.

Wow.

I could see hybrid devices become a thing, we already have hardware like the Shield, so I don't see why similar tech wouldn't be applied to a Galaxy phone or whatever. I'd actually be surprised if it didn't happen sooner rather than later, and I have a feeling Nintendo may be mulling over a hybrid type system for their next piece of hardware (they've mentioned things abour shared game devolpment across platforms, so either hybrid or shared architecture). Those hybrid machines could very well remain closed systems though, which leaves PC as really the only open competetive market (gaming services wise), which may help keep it a viable alternative.

 

[Insane Metal]

No, but it seems the era of big, innovative, high budget games are becoming less and less popular. I'm talking about new IPs. PS2 had a huge list, the PS3 had less, and the PS4 is getting even less (and a lof of indie games).

 

[Obliterator]

On a global scale? Not even close.

In Japan? Yes

 

[boyshine]

The challenge is in how the systems are going to be sold once games no longer will be found at retail. Consoles never were a margin driver for stores, but games and accessories were. In the last couple of years it's become practically impossible to make money on games, and accessories as well. Stores that had huge game sections just a year or two ago, have practically removed everything, only a few half empty shelves remain. Stores that relied on games to stay in business close their doors or switch focus to more toys and used/retro games, vinyl music, etc.

So, why should stores keep selling consoles at a loss, when there's no money to be made on games or controllers? When customers only chase special offers on hardware, and download or buy everything else online?

The game industry haven't had it's "napster/itunes/spotify" transition yet. Once physical sales comes to a halt (retail and online), the industry needs to stay visible somehow, or the big crash will happen.. and working with game retail for the past 8 years, witnessing the change from "this is the most important sector to get customers to our store" to "why do we have to sell this at all?" .. it's very naive to just look at quantity sales and think everything is OK. There's a reason why the push for quantity is so heavy to begin with, and it's not bringing the results.

If a large enough share of game sales go digital, there's no longer any reason for stores to sell consoles. Retail won't keep selling them "just to be nice". There needs to be good business behind it, and the current "toys2life" and guitar hero/rock band revival seem like a desperate last attempt. Once they stop selling as well, I think the end will be very near, unfortunately.

 

[MrNyarlathotep]

The game industry haven't had it's "napster/itunes/spotify" transition yet.

Well I think there's a pretty strong case to be made that it has on the PC outside of bastions of PC gaming like Germany.

 

[NeonBlack]

I would say no. The sales projections from this generation prove this and show that people still want console gaming. The shift to handhelds in Japan may just mean less Japanese games down the pipeline as they try to follow their audience but doesn't necessary mean so. Right now we have more indie games showing up and in time they may be able to give us that diversity thats longed for as we see games like No Man's Sky getting assistance from Sony.

The mobile market seems a lot more unstable, there's no way of knowing if your game or if the clone someone made a week later with sky rocket to the top.