Strategy Analytics are suggesting that all three of the next-generation home consoles won\’t be printing as much money as the current generation of machines, the Wii, PlayStation 3, and Xbox 360, reports MCV.

Not only are they predicting a 15% decline year-on-year for console hardware sales in 2013, they\’re also calculating that the expected surge in 2016 will only embody a 33% decline over the industry’s record year in 2008.

David Watkins: \”While Wii U, Xbox One, and PS4 hold the promise and technological prowess to transform gaming in the living room, this may only benefit core gamers.\” He continued \”Casual gamers are sufficiently happy with cheaper gaming options on more ubiquitous devices like smartphones, tablets, smart TVs, and Digital Media Adapters, which will naturally depress the highs the industry achieved with the Nintendo Wii.\”

Unsurprisingly to most gaming hobbyists, strategy analytics are predicting that the PS4 will launch stronger than it’s rival, the Xbox One, “due to several unforced PR errors with the gaming community on the part of Xbox One” though “in the long run, however, we expect Xbox One to make up some lost ground against PS4 as consumers begin to realize the full range of multimedia capabilities the device has to offer”.

They, in fact, expect the Xbox One to pick up to a point of dominance in the US while the PlayStation 4 will lead in the UK, a title currently held by the Xbox 360.

I cannot say that I disagree with the thought of this generation being less big than the preceding generation, as, while I remain hopefully, it is true that mobile gaming has taken a considerable chunk of the gaming market. Both Nintendo and Sony will have to continue to find ways to remedy this issue for the sake of their handheld lines and all three of the home console hardware manufacturers will have to do the same for their gaming line.

Do you agree with idea explored in this report? How does it make you feel? Let us all know in the comment section below.