The Console War Has Changed

The console war has changed. It’s no longer about fanboys, blast processing, and stolen exclusives. It’s an endless series of proxy battles fought by gamers and publishers. The console war – and its consumption of used games– has become a well-oiled machine. The console war has changed. ID-tagged gamers carry ID-tagged discs, use ID-tagged consoles. Mandatory online check-ins and used-game DRM inside consoles limit and regulate game playing abilities. Used-game control.  Game-lending control. Game-selling control.  Offline play control. Everything is monitored and kept under control. The console war has changed. The age of next-gen console experiences has become the age of game console control…all in the name of averting piracy and publishers missing out on used-game sales. And he who controls the game console controls the game industry. The console war has changed. When the game console is under total control, the console war becomes routine.