Microsoft will be staying with the existing Xbox 360 game console, at least for now. During the recession, the life cycle of game consoles is expected to last longer since consumer are not expected to have residual income to spend on new and improved consoles and games.Xbox 360 sold 3.3 million consoles in the first 11 months of 2008, while Sony’s PlayStation 3 sold 2.8 million. The sales of Wii topped the charts with sales of 8 million during the same period.

Part of this approach could also be ascribed to the growth of Xbox Live and the general trend toward multiplayer online games.

This decision is likely to satisfy most video game consumers and parents as well as keep development costs low at this point.