What features would you like to see in the PS4, Xbox 720 and Nintendo Whatever?

*Optical disc drives with three terabyte discs. Okay, that tech may still be a long way from commercialization, but we're going to need something similar. While everyone talks about the day when games will be delivered purely online, that simply doesn't seem feasible without some massive increase in the amount of bandwidth available to home Internet users. Mark Cuban has talked about this issue at length as it relates to high-definition video, but clearly the same problem applies to games. Games are getting bigger and bigger because consumers want HD-resolution, 7.1 surround sound, etc., and DSL and cable modem speeds just don't seem likely to keep pace. Do you want to wait two or three days for a 50 or 100 gig game to download to your console's hard drive? Me neither. Ideally, game companies would make all their new titles available as both digital downloads and traditional discs, kind of like Valve did with Half-Life 2 and Steam.

*Flash-based internal memory, rather than hard drives, for storing game saves, downloads and other items. Samsung introduced a 32-gigabyte Flash drive this year for $500. Last year, the company's 16-gigabyte Flash drive cost $900. Capacity is booming and prices are plummeting for this storage technology. It shouldn't be long before most laptops use Flash rather than hard disks, and game consoles should, too. Quieter, cooler, faster and less expensive.

*Physics processors. Whether it's Ageia's PhysX add-on card or some other manufacturer's technology, clearly we need a better way to handle the increasingly complex interactions between in-game characters and objects. We're starting to see some movement in this direction -- check out the demo of the software being used in the new Indiana Jones game -- and we need more of that. I'm tired of seeing fists sticking through stomaches, characters walking through steel posts, cars going through walls and so forth.

*Wireless everything. The PS3 with its Bluetooth technology is a good start. But it should be standard that no game console require any wires, other than a power plug. Take the Xbox Live Vision camera for the Xbox 360. This thing plugs into the console via USB, but wireless USB technology is coming, and game console makers should embrace it. Fewer cables to trip over is always good.

*Video recognition. Speaking of the Vision camera, I want every game to include the ability to map a picture of my face in high-definition onto the body of my in-game character. If Master Chief ever takes off his helmet for the camera, I want to see my own grizzled visage staring back at me, not some random artist's design. Or I can map in any face that I want. If I want Master Chief to look like Jabba the Hut -- or Pizza the Hut, for that matter -- it should be my call.

*Multimedia. This might be a little controversial to some gamers who prefer their systems to be games-only machines, but this is my list. I want to be able to buy and download any movie, TV show, song ever made to my console, and I want to be able to buy and download all previous-gen games to my next-gen console. All Xbox and Xbox 360 games should be available as downloads for the Xbox 720, for example. This may not be feasible with massive, multi-disc games, but most games should work. Nintendo is getting this concept right with the Wii. Besides, this is found money for the game makers who assumed their old titles were dead and buried.

*Mods. Amateurs need to be able to create new maps, levels and weapons for their games, and release them to other players. For example, PC owners of the game Oblivion have access to some pretty cool user-created mods, but console owners are out of luck. That needs to change.

Anyway, I've got some other ideas, but I've already rambled on. Any better suggestions?

Doug Note:

Burn your own discs / full game downloads: No more waiting for UPS to deliver a game to your local mall. Get it the second it's released and burn a copy to save.

Cheaper games: The production cost to retail cost ratio still doesn't match Hollywood. Games should be as much as DVD movies.

Satellite clients: Wouldn't it be great to have ONE game system in your living room, but be able to play it on any TV in your home? Satellite boxes would wirelessly link to your main system and allow you to play a game and control your system on your bedroom tv or wherever you are. Place-shifting boxes (similar to SlingBox) could also let you play your games at remote locations like work.