Kinect vs. Move - Sony's Last Stand?

Microsoft is getting ready to release their Kinect peripheral add-on for the Xbox 360 console shortly (as in less than 2 days shortly) and attempt to re-revolutionize the gaming industry while using a similar platform to Nintendo, as used in the Wii - only minus the controller. Sony, on the other hand, is using a very similar architecture to Nintendo's Wii platform with the PlayStation Move. The move, using "wand" controllers, captures users' motion and actions using the Eye Tool and sensors within the "wands". Who will prevail in this battle? The answer might surprise you. Read on.

While Nintendo has no plans to cut the price of their Wii console anytime soon, Microsoft has both cut prices and released an updated iteration of their console to the mass markets. Sony, on the other hand, had previously released an updated version of their console in the PS3 "Slim" (which is a pretty misleading title, since there's really nothing slim about it..). However, Sony has no price cut in line for the PS3. Would it be necessary? My answer is yes. With Microsoft offering a lot more with their Xbox 360 - if nothing else were to be mentioned, just the fact that Xbox Live has over 5 million users worldwide with the membership being $49.99/year should be sufficient enough - Sony is already having a tough time clawing back the market share that Microsoft captured back in 2005-2006, prior to the PlayStation 3's launch. Basically put, Sony has been playing catch-up in a one-legged race and has not had much ground to stand on over the last several years. Microsoft's Kinect takes the innovation of wireless controlling to a whole new level - YOU are the controller. Sony felt it necessary to pseudo-borrow from Nintendo's approach and use almost the same algorithm they use, only make it wireless where the secondary controller does not have to be attached to the first controller. What is the end result? The same experience. Sony needed this time to shine and take brilliant ideas and turn them into solid platinum. What they ended up with is, at best, silver - a "move" they cannot afford in this losing battle (pun intended).

So, there you have it, folks. It looks as though Sony is singing its last hurrah. With the only games that fueled sales for a while (Uncharted and God of War) now fizzled away in popularity, the fates are twisting their heads in Microsoft's direction. Where Microsoft is becoming less relevant in the PC and mobile worlds, they are sitting pretty in a Julius Caesar-like position in the gaming realm. Sony's only hope now would be if they joined forces with the juggernaut of the mobile world - Apple, Inc. To tell you the truth, it doesn't seem too far-fetched of an idea and would benefit both companies. But, that's for another entry...