Short of Bill Gates coming out and saying the Xbox 360 will tank, is there anyone out there who could serve up a more scathing criticism of the 360 than Peter Moore? Moore was, until August 2007, a vice president at Microsoft's entertainment and devices division. He is now head of EA's Sports label and he reckons the Wii is going to leave Microsoft and Sony fighting over the scraps from its table.

Speaking to the Financial Times, Moore (now the head of EA Sports) said, "It looks to me as if the Wii is going to have at least half the installed base of the overall industry and the Xbox 360 and PS3 are going to fight over the balance, based on the run-rates we're seeing".

Looks like Peter has done some re-analysis of the situation since 2006 when, still at Microsoft, he said: "In a lot of instances, it [Wii] will be a number two box because it's priced accordingly. The fear I would have is that people will buy the box and only play a few games. I think you'll pull it out at parties. It's fun for a few minutes, but I'm not sure [how long that will last]."

That has to sting for Microsoft. Moore has been as intimate with the business of selling Xboxes as anyone alive - if he thinks the Wii is going to wipe the floor with the 360 (and, of course, the PS3) so thoroughly, it doesn't bode well for the platform.

It is, of course, difficult to argue with those figures Moore mentions. The Wii just overtook the 360 in North America, despite Microsoft's console having been around a year longer. Worldwide, the Wii had sold 24.45 million as of March 31st. That compares to the 360 topping 19 million sales in April. The PS3, meanwhile, had sold 12.85 million units as of March 31st.

You have to question what period Moore is looking at, of course. It's doubted by some that the Wii has much staying power, while Sony at least hopes to have the PS3 around for a decade (if not necessarily as its primary console). Sony even just said that it hopes to top the 140 million sales of the PS2 over the PS3's lifespan. While the Wii looks set to dominate the next few years, we may see it disappear from view ahead of the PS3 and 360.

In any case, Nintendo fanboys should probably find the nearest Microsoft follower and hit them with a churlish cry of 'burn!!!' Then, of course, they should feel completely ashamed of themselves...

^{Source: Financial Times}