These are just my predictions about what's gong to happen to systems in the next couple years. I'm going year by year starting with 2011.
2011-
The 3DS is released and sells big, giving Nintendo attention it needs to make the Wii HD announcement big. The Wii is losing traction very quickly and Nintendo needs to garner interest in the console. However, the system is built to compete with the current gen of motion controls (360 and PS3), which will hurt it down the line. The system is not released until late 2012.
Sony announces PSP2 and releases it at the end of the year, but it doesn't do too well in the face because of the 3DS and the already hugely popular iPhone. PS3 is gaining tons of traction on the 360 because of a huge number of exclusives, but some are pushed to early 2012 releases. PS Move is losing traction to Kinect, but its core gamer audience is growing.
Xbox is still strong in sales because of Kinect, but its audience becomes more casual as more family games are released and not enough core games. The core gamers start to see their system become more family oriented and some will probably start playing PS3. Only a few will wait for the Wii HD because they worry about how family oriented the system will be, just like the current gen Wii.A better Kinect is released late in the year, but this doesn't boost sales too staggeringly.
2012-
People start to lose interest in the 3DS as the Iphone market is growing, but the PSP2 is not as big of an issue. The Wii HD is released and has great sales among casual gamers, but its competition with Kinect and lack of a reputation among core gamers hold it back from being something huge. It is built to compete with the current generation of systems.
Both the Move and PSP2 are failing, so Sony focuses on the core PS3 audience. More hardcore exlusives are announced and released, most with Move support. However, this doesn't boost Move sales much. PS3 slowly becomes the core gamer system of choice.
Kinect has turned xbox into a family oriented system and more core gamers are moving over to the PS3. Xbox sales drop because of the Wii HD.
2013-
Handheld consoles have become obsolete in the face of Iphone and facebook games. Wii HD sales are still good and in direct competition with Kinect. Games are hard to develop that work on both motion control schemes, resulting in a lot of exclusives. Wii starts gaining ground and slowly overtakes xbox because Nintendo doesn't repeat their same mistakes as they did with Wii.
Sony coasts through this year, but start running out of exclusives to release for the current gen.Gran Turismo 6 is released and is most likely the last hurrah for the system.Sony announces the PS4, but it isn't released until 2014.
Xbox and Kinect sales are dropping greatly, but Microsoft sees this coming and announces the Xbox 720 (or whatever its called). It is rushed to market that year because Microsoft wants to repeat the success they had with the early release of the Xbox 360. The system is released too early and its games try to appeal to too many different audiences (casual and core), but sales are great and many core gamers playing primarily PS3 buy it.
2014-
Nintendo realizes they moved too early with the release of the Wii HD and sales are dropping because of the 720. They possibly start putting time into developing a new system or they try to make the current gen work by spreading out exclusive game releases, but this would result in more drop in public interest.
PS4 sales are fantastic among core gamers, but almost nonexistent among casual gamers. The PSP2 is dead and so is Move, but this doesn't bother the core audience too much.
Xbox 720 sales surge ahead, but Microsoft is spread too thin as it tries to satisfy both the core and casual audiences. Casual gamers are more patient, but core begin to gamers lose interest and go back to the PS3.
2015-
Either Nintendo does something drastic to recapture attention in their system or they fade into obscurity. Either way, its probably still to early to release the next generation after Wii HD.
The next generation of Sony exclusive games start to appear from developers like Naughty Dog, Sucker Punch, etc.
Microsoft is losing its core audience but the casual audience is still there. Microsoft either starts to become core gamer focused again, but doesn't forget its casual gamer audience. In the end, the system manages to support both audiences. A new Halo game developed by 343 Industries may be released in order to boost sales.
Out of left field: Sega seizes the moment and releases a new console, the first one in 15 years. They hope to replace the failing Wii HD, or capture some of Sony's core audience.
So there you have it, my console predictions for the next five years.
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