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PS3 price drop?
GoodOmens
Registered User regular
Registered User regular
I'm finding myself more and more drawn toward getting a PS3 for the Valkyria/SF4/Metal Gear trifecta. But I can't begin to justify buying it at current prices. I was wondering if anyone had any knowledge/rumors/wild-ass guesses about a price drop. If it gets down to $250 or so I might be able to convince myself it's not a terrible waste of money.
IOS Game Center ID: Isotope-X
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Alternatively, you could get a used PS3 20GB (No wireless, but it has backwards compatibility) off of ebay for around $250.
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There is a case for them doing this but it would cost them a billion or so dollars to do it. I'm not sure their investors would be pleased.
Sony is really stuck between the need to cut the price to something closer to their competition and the combo of the high specs and Yen/dollar exchange making that a very hard thing to do.
(Please do not gift. My game bank is already full.)
The investors aren't please anyway right now. Increased software sales should make up for some of the cost.
Let me tell you about Demon's Souls....
But you know what Sony? I'm willing to wait a very long time....
Too late for me to take advantage of. I bought the last 80GB fully BC enabled used PS3 in town back in January. It was great how I had to make a choice of not supporting Sony's terrible console handling or supporting Gamestop by giving them the full $450 for the console.
They basically did this already, and Sony isn't retarded enough to do it again. I said the same thing about dropping the price on one console and then discontinuing it in order to introduce yet another model.
The PS3 will continue to have backwards compatibility with the PS1 simply because it isn't costing them anything.
IOS Game Center ID: Isotope-X
I guess the anime / manga could fill the Valkyria void?
If you're looking for one on the cheap you can always sign up for a Sony Credit Card and cash back for it.
http://www.sonyrewards.com/en/gateway/?offerlink=srnowps3
Meh.
Or:
http://forums.slickdeals.net/showthread.php?sduid=0&t=1266263
http://forums.slickdeals.net/showthread.php?sduid=0&t=1265913
Just pick up a ps3 in 7 years when its in the $100 range. Valkyria will still be awesome. (though might be hard to find)
Also be aware the the xbox might not be as cheap as you think it is. You may need a Hard drive ($50-$125), wifi adapter ($70-$90) and live card ($30-$50 per year).
Let me tell you about Demon's Souls....
I may not need any of that and I mayI just want a video game console so I can play a video game once in a while!
FUCK! WHY IS IT SO HARD TO GET A VIDEO GAME CONSOLE NOWADAYS?!
Um, it isn't?
I have two of them they were so easy to get.
God I wish that were true.
Also, how does having PS2 software emulation cost more (as it pertains to new models)? Are the newer PS3s less powerful than the old 80GB models?
You have two media systems.
A video game console plays games and nothing else.
A media system does a shit load of other pointless things, and play games.
A NDS is a video game console.
A PS3 is a media system.
Point is, I dont need another cd/dvd/bluray/sdcard/sonycameradock/whateverelsethey'reforcingyoutobuywiththesystem.
I just want a console that plays PS3 games without the added fat.
There has newer been software only emulation of PS2 on PS3. Early models had both PS2 CPU and GPU hardware, later models had PS2 GPU and emulated CPU. Calling that software emulation was confusing by Sony.
I want a toaster, but I don't want them to force that stupid bread slot on me.
Well that makes more sense. You're right, "software" emulation is a misnomer.
Electronic composer for hire.
IOS Game Center ID: Isotope-X
Anyway, the end of March came and went with no price drop and Sony execs still claiming the $400 price is the best thing ever. Just so you know.
High five man! I owned all 3 last gen and it was awesome. I'll be a 3 console owner this one too once the wii finally gets a price cut. (yeah it could be awhile)
Let me tell you about Demon's Souls....
A price drop is plausible, but not likely. They're still losing money on every PS3, but the lineup as of late has meant decent sales...so until a reason for sales to skyrocket materializes, why would they drop the price?
So the best bet is to get your discout from the retailer. Dell's deals are hard to beat. I've also found it's pretty easy to find people who got a PS3 (or Wii, for that matter) as a gift and don't want it, so that's another approach you can try if you're comfortable with it.
Salmon'd for lies. The PS3 is selling well behind the 360, and has been for most months it's been released. Because of this, both retailers and developers have started bitching loudly about the price, which they feel (rightly) is holding back its sales and causing stores to get stuck with slow-moving stock and developers to have less of an audience to sell to.
THAT is why they should drop the price... at least from the perspective of everyone but Sony.
Unfortunately Sony is just barely breaking even on each PS3 sold, and dropping the price would return them to losing money with each sale. Though a lower price may gain software sales and money in the long term, we're in a recession and none of Sony's divisions are doing really well at this point. Because of this, doing something that would cause them to lose money is a lot less attractive, even though it means giving up the opportunity to build their sales, stop losing momentum and have a better chance for a fresh start next generation.
It would but the coupon has been removed. Even though they extended it till the end of April.
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VOICE-OVER: It's September 24th, I'm Liz Parker and five days ago I died. But then the really amazing thing happened. I came to life.
PSN: TheScrublet
Really?
So EA is losing tons, Activision is probably only making money because of the WoW cash cow, Eidos just collapsed and were bought out, THQ is losing money, etc., etc., but yet Sony can make money selling games with super high production values (read super high budgets) to the smallest existing install base?
I like your sense of humor.
There won't be a price cut but that's because the PS3 is still stupidly expensive to make and the Yen is just too high.
Also, the recent PS3's sales could count as "decent" and actually look good compared to 2007 sales which were terrible. Outside of Europe it's selling about as well as the GameCube. However it costs a lot more to make a PS3 game than a GC game so the PS3 really needs a bigger install base so maybe "decent" is pushing it.
Luckily 3rd parties have enforced a shotgun wedding between the 360 and PS3 and the combined userbase should ensure a decent amount of support for both.
(Please do not gift. My game bank is already full.)
Go to this link, sort by Developer, and see if you can figure out all on your own why EA might be losing money. Then lets consider some Activision games that are cash cows besides WOW: the Call of Duty franchise, the Guitar Hero franchise, the Tony Hawk and Quake franchises (though not so much anymore)...I mean do you realize how many game studios publish their games under Activision? Eidos pinned their hopes on Tomb Raider and Age of Conan...whoops. THQ is the only developer you mentioned that could really be relevant here. Plenty of developers can afford to make successful games for the PS3 if they don't suck.
However, as you noted, most have figured out that it is more profitable to produce a game for both consoles rather than stick to one or the other. Considering that the PS2 is still going, I think Sony is very comfortable betting on the longterm with their system, and isn't too concerned with the price drop. Especially given the massive hardware failures their chief competitor (Wii doesn't really count here) incurred going the cheap route.
Edit: What's really sad here is that the Wii Fit is going to eclipse the PS3. I find the direction that system took to be more depressing than if the PS3 went the way of the Dreamcast or something.
PSN: TheScrublet
Half the price for half of what the PS3 is. No wireless out of the box, no replacable HDD, the 360 really doesn't have much more games than PS3 anymore, Red Ring fucking sucks, discs are much more prone to scratches, you'd have to keep buying batteries for the controllers unless you buy rechargable ones, you have to pay for XboxLive.
Stop being a cheap ass.
I do think that given the cheap prices of hard drives they should get rid of the 80GB one and sell the 160GB with Uncharted for $400. That's fucking stupid.
PSN: TheScrublet
Besides, the true motivation for not dropping the price is abundantly clear already. 1) The system is very expensive to manufacture, and the manufacturing price has only very recently equaled the sales price. 2) Sony executives have, in response to questions on why they don't drop the price already, have said over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over that their goal for the PS3 is to make a profit on each system sold. (Also, as you said, dropping the price and taking a financial hit doesn't guarantee they'll make it up on software sales, though I'd argue making the system more viable and more attractive to buyers, retailers and developers now will make it easier for Sony to do better in the next generation.)
That's not to say it's not a good system once you've already bought it, but let's call a spade a spade here.