Xbox One & PS4 can grow games market by 30%, predicts Microsoft

Microsoft Europe's VP of interactive entertainment Chris Lewis has predicted that the next wave of consoles can help the industry grow by 30% moving forward, and that while gamers seem to have enjoyed the length of the current generation, it is time to move on.

Speaking with GI.biz, Lewis said, "This generation 7 that we're in right now, it's 50 per cent bigger than generation 6 and I think double the size of generation 5. Our anticipation is that generation 8 will be at least 30 per cent bigger still".

Shedding light on the length of the current generation - which has seen many commentators and gamers asking if it's been too long - Lewis added, "There is a strong trajectory there. I think people liked the length of the generation.

"Our partners certainly did. Retail loved the length of the generation, at least in terms of the attach and the additional services and content they can attach. Our developers like the longevity of the platform because they get better at bringing and optimising content for that platform."

That said, Lewis stressed that it's not yet curtains for Xbox 360, which will continue for a few years yet, "Xbox 360 will continue for another multiple-year time frame. We've already got meaningful marketing plans for the next 12 months for Xbox 360 and beyond. Our third-party publishers will bring more content to it, because the installed base is so high".

So that's effectively the end of first-party Microsoft games. What do you think about the length of the current generation, and the hopes for more sales going into the next generation? Let us know below.