5. An "open" world: While this works somewhat in games like Oblivion, it usually just makes games more tedious. All the running/walking/driving around just seems like a chore.

4. Long, un-skippable cutscenes right before a really hard boss fight.

3. Box puzzles. Couldn't we think of some new kind of puzzle to completely overuse?

2. Two-weapon holding limit inFPS games. Apparently it's not unrealistic to have your character get shot in the face 100 times over the course of one level while his health just magically recharges, but god forbid you should be able to carry an Uzi, an shotgun, AND a 9 mm. That would be absurd.

1. Tutorial levels! They make instruction booklets for a reson. TO TEACH YOU HOW TO PLAY THE GAME!!!!! And why does every game have to explain how to jump/double jump? And I always like the "Okay (insert hero's name here), use the control stick to move around." Is that really necessary? Really?

First of all, unless you count the shooting scenes in Rayman, there's only one other rail shooter in development for the Wii. I happen to like rail shooters for their visceral, white-knuckle, twitch gameplay. And just because agame genre hit its apex in the mid 90s, that means it's not worth revisiting? Well, I guess nobody should make any more one-on-one fighting games anymore then, or RPGs, or side-scrolling action games, or FPS games for that matter.

If you want to play a good FPS, wait for MP3, or buy an Xbox. I'm getting tired of the whining

I agree!  Like you, I am a wholly-owned subsidiary of Sony Computer Entertainment America and was issued the same future-predicting crystal ball you were.  Y'know, the one that calls the war for Sony no matter how low the sales are, how skimpy the software selection is, how barren the new release calendar is, no matter how much better the 360 looks graphically etc. etc.  Nevermind that no system has ever started the race having its a** handed to it, then rose to the top of the ranks.  Facts are for Sheep!  Besides, it's not like the other systems could see a price drop, especially not sooner than the PS3 will.  Right on man, best post eva!

Nice post, however I think you're slightly off the mark.

1.  Nintendo was marketing to the "casual" demographic all the way back to the NES with the light gun and excercise pad.  Their intention was to make something that had a real family focus.  Moms and Dads basically personify the elusive "nongamer" market that's been getting so much buzz lately.

2.  Releasing early never worked out for Sega (who were doing it first), did it?

3.  Sony more or less had to rely on 3rd party support for the early part of the PSone's lifetime.  At the time, they had relatively little experience in game development and seemed only capable of making licensed games that were met with lukewarm receptions.  Secondly, while Nintendo have been known to bully 3rd party developers, that's really not what drove them to jump ship.  We all know that the N64's cartridges shut out a lot of 3rd party support, and the Gamecube's "kiddie" image combined with it's poor sales led developers to shy away from that system. 

I agree with you that, were it not for Sony there would be no Wii.  However, I think the direction Nintendo took was the result of their realization that they simply could not beat Sony at their own game (i.e. raw horsepower and multimedia functionality).  Also, the trend in Japanese gamers seems to be veering away from the epic, hardcore games we love so much here in the states.  I also agree with you in the sense that all the things you mentioned were crucial to Sony's success with their previous two consoles.  It's a shame that they haven't done even one of those things with the PS3.

1.  Apple computers weren't competing directly with the NES, the SMS was, and it got spanked from day one.

2.  The Genesis had a 2 year lead and lost, but you didn't say how well the two consoles sold directly against each other.  My guess is the SNES outsold the Genesis from month to month from the time it was released until they stopped making both consoles.

Usually, when it comes to the console wars, a dud stays a dud, and a hit stays a hit.  Sure the race doesn't always go to the quickest, nor the fight to the strongest, but that's the way to bet.

1. That will never happen

2. Failure rates for dual layer (50GB) blu-ray discs are so high they haven't used them for much of anything yet.

It's been worn out for me since Vice City.