It depends upon a lot of factors but perhaps the most important is the economy- obviously the sad state of affairs we currently find ourselves in is a major contributor to this past generation's unusually long life. Unless things take a massive upswing, it's likely the next one will be another decade-long run.

Interestingly it's believed the 6th generation would have lasted longer than it did as well but the advent of affordable high-definition televisions expideted the process of buying hardware capable to making the most of the new Plasmas, LCDs and LEDs that flooded the market.

It depends upon a lot of factors but perhaps the most important is the economy- obviously the sad state of affairs we currently find ourselves in is a major contributor to this past generation's unusually long life. Unless things take a massive upswing, it's likely the next one will be another decade-long run.

Random retro gaming thought: Sonic the Hedgehog on Sega Master System could turn anyone into the Angry Video Game Nerd.

These are interesting times for hardware for sure- between Ouya, this, Nvidia's hideous protoype, Nexus 7 selling like hotcakes. 2013 is shaping up with many avenues to part with quite a bit of cash! I should really cut up my credit card while there's still time!

There are some very legit concerns in this thread- I am astonished how many people are unclear on whether the Wii U is simply the newest bundle of the traditional Wii or just the designation of the tablet peripheral. You can sort of see how Nintendo is trying to follow suit with Sony and Microsoft by coming up with a core brand name and just popping a number or letter at the end to represent subsequent generations but the problem with Nintendo is that they've (successfully) targeted the younger and older markets; individuals who, generally speaking, aren't up on the incrimental changes of hardware updates and generation advancements.

I have heard that the "U" represents "you" in the way Wii was a play on the concept of "we". I've also heard that the U is short for Universe, as in the next logical progression from the Galaxy editions of games on the first Wii.

Either way, there is no denying that the general public is having a really hard time understanding that Wii U is in fact Nintendo's 8th Generation offering and not just a new bundle/ peripheral package for the 7th gen Wii.

I do that often actually. I sometimes wonder if I'm in the minority but I've long harbored the idea that spicing it up with some retro is really a great way to get the most of out modern games/ gaming. I keep my PS2 and Sega DreamCast around just to sample a simpler time a bit before returning to today's AAA titles. It really makes clear where have games have evolved for the better and where things have degenerated.

The shading is so unique- almost appearing hand colored. Although the gameplay and dynamics were pure Super Mario goodness. Interesting that Nintendo decided to move away from the game's unique visual style for the sequel, Nintendo 64's Yoshi's Story in favor of textures that resemble fabric.

Can't say I agree- there are systems so much worse. R-Zone, as pointed out above, is one great example. A strong argument could be made against Nintendo's own Virtual Boy if you really wanted to prove a point. Ever play the Game Wave? Or Hasbro's Net Jet? It's easy for sites to target these things as "the worst" but let's face it, since the onset of video games, there have been optomistic companies hoping to cash in on the pie by appealing to smaller demographics.

I'm one of those gamers who stood there at the store witha credit card burning in my back pocket and the decision to be made between the Playstation and the Saturn. At launch the Saturn was actually $100 more than the original PS One. By the time I scrounged up enough, Sega had dropped the Saturn's cost (no games included, one controller and the AV cable) to match the Playstation at $299.

Hindsight is always 20/20 but at the time the Saturn seemed like the safer bet. Electronics makers were having a terrible time cracking into the video game sector (Phillips CD-i, Panasonic 3DO anyone?) and Sega, despite some BS with the CD/ 32X detours, still had a MASSIVE following for the Genesis. Nintendo was showing absolutely no signs of releasing new hardware and even then rumors (that would eventually be proven correct) abounded that when they did, it would be cartridge based.

Long story short, it was a $400+ day after picking up a single game and another controller but I sipped the Saturn Kool-Aid. I was actually very happy with the console initially. Games like Bug!, Panzer Dragoon, Clockwork Knight, all great stuff. I think if 2D were going to previal, the Saturn would have mopped up the market. Of course what was really happening behind the scenes was that the move to 3D was in full swing (Nintendo would cememnt this once the N64/ Mario 64 would come out a couple years later) and the Saturn's hardware architecture proved difficult to develop for.

By the time 1997 rolled around, I parted ways with the Saturn to switch to the Playstation camp. The momentum had simply run out for the Saturn but not before many good titles were released. If you actually research the history of Sega, the major reason game companies dumped the Saturn was that behind the scene Bernie Stolar, then-CEO, had basically announced that Sega themselves was pulling the plug on the Saturn to put all their effort into their next console (whcih of course would be the ill-fated Dreamcast). A long line of bad decisions are what ultimately relegated Sega to a software-only developer.

One thing you're going to notice is it's hard to beat Nintendo on the first party action and Gamecube was they last major platform to go head to head with Sony, Microsoft and Sega traditionally (software rather than hardware gimicks). There's no doubt they gave it their all but ended up in last place of the generation anyway (second to last if you count Dreamcast in the hunt).