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Kim Nguyen -- PS3 sales have increased by 192% in 2 weeks (Op Updated)
Bamelin
Registered User regular
Registered User regular
Update Nov. 19th
http://www.ps3fanboy.com/2007/11/19/sceas-kim-nguyen-looks-at-the-ps3s-first-year/
Update Nov. 17th
Saw this over at fanboy which linked to gameindustry.biz . Perhaps the most interesting part of the article, is what is not being said ... specifically that there is so many quality titles coming out on the 360 that some companies (like EA) are considering putting exclusives on the PS3 instead. The reasoning being that titles on the PS3 won't have the same competition for the buyer's dollar as the 360.
I thought about it and you know he's kinda right. I mean there are alot of titles I've had to pass up on (on the 360) because of multiple releases vying for my dollars.
This is not to say PS3 releases are crappy, but it is to say that the lack of numerous releases means any good game that comes out on the PS3 has a good chance of being bought. No other games to compete against.
Anyways I thought this was an interesting viewpoint coming from a major third party publisher.
http://www.gamesindustry.biz/content_page.php?aid=30645
Update Nov. 15th
http://biz.yahoo.com/ap/071114/sony_...ales.html?.v=1
I found this interview over at Next (linked at PS3Fanboy) interesting mainly because it further confirmed the direction that Sony seems to be going (less focus on backward compat for instance).
Some highlights of the interview --
On Backward Compat:
"If we’d have thought about this six months ago, at launch, when there were very few games in the marketplace, I think that would’ve been an issue, and in fact it was sufficient enough of an issue for us to invest the money in the software-based backwards compatibility,†says Sony Computer Entertainment Europe managing director Ray Maguire.
“We have to decide how we allocate things within the Cell chip. And there is a big cost involved with doing software emulation.â€â€œI think now we have to make a very firm decision on which way we go: do we keep investing money in supporting backward compatibility so that people can play PlayStation 2 games without actually firing up their PS2? Or do we put the money into developing new games? I think the investment has to go in looking forward at new games, new experiences, new services, rather than looking backwards, at satisfying a technology that we superseded.
The Cell chip keeps on moving. Obviously, because that’s a large cost in terms of the manufacturing of the PlayStation 3, as we keep on putting R&D and more advances in the Cell chip – to make it smaller, to make it lighter, to reduce the power consumption – some of the decisions that we have to make include: how do we allocate things within the Cell chip? And there is a big cost involved with doing the software emulation. So it’s a cost issue, and – as we always do – we want to bring the price of the hardware down.â€
The reasons why no 20gig for the UK at launch:
"If we go back to the launch of PlayStation 3 in the UK, previously in the States we’d launched with a 60GB and a 20GB machine, and the 20GB machine had no WI-FI, no memory slots, and clearly it had the smaller hard disc – we chose not to go with that strategy in the UK. The UK is one of the most successful territories in the world in terms of people’s propensity to [play videogames], and we felt right at the launch that what we wanted to do was give the real early adopters of technology the very best package, and just focus on that, so that’s what we did – we went out with the 60GB console with all of the features included, and it was the biggest launch we’ve ever had. If you compare PlayStation 2 at £299 and PlayStation 3 at £425, we still had more people come into the PlayStation 3 offering simply because the value of the machine was still extraordinary.
I think sometimes in consumers’ minds, if you’ve got PlayStation 1 at £299 and PlayStation 2 at £299, the logical thing to think is £299 for PlayStation 3, but clearly in terms of technology and what you’re getting from PlayStation 3 versus PlayStation 2, that was never going to happen at launch. Now we’re obviously into the situation of getting further price downs, etc, and being able to produce a product which is at the same launch price as PlayStation 2. So I expect that for many people sub-£300 is the point that they would like to come in to have access to all of the features that we offer consumersâ€
On the 360 superior multiplatform games and the general lack of of PS3 exclusives:
"Yes, and it’s an area that’s starting to change. Because the 360 installed base was generated some time ago, in terms of development third parties were developing for that alone, then out comes the PlayStation 3 and the natural thing to do then is to use the existing IP – which is expensive to create – and bring it out on PlayStation 3. So basically it was 360-led development which was coming over to PlayStation 3.
Over about the last six months what we’re seeing is that in the creation of new games there’s a different decision that has to be made. Because of the Cell chip, and because it’s got a hard disc in every device, the way of generating games if you start with PlayStation 3 is you can create the optimal, ultimate game, and then you can knock out functionality to put it on to other platforms. And it’s easier to do it that way than the other way, which is try and squeeze a little bit more out of [the game] to utilize the Cell chip and hard disc on PS3. But clearly it takes time, because these games are 18 months, two years in development. So we’re in the period of crossover now, where people will start to develop on PlayStation 3 as the lead SKU if they’re multiformat.
It’s why, in many cases, you see that games like Resistance and MotorStorm were so much better than a lot of the products in the marketplace, because they were developed specifically for PlayStation 3, and the same will be true for Drake’s Fortune and Killzone 2 and GT5,†says Maguire. “In Ratchet & Clank this Christmas you can just see the awesome clarity – it just brings the personality to life in our gaming experience. And for us that’s the key to it: just to see another sequel, is not good enough.â€
“Well, clearly there’s really strong third-party support, so we’re going to see a lot of product in the marketplace between now and Christmas – more choice for consumers than they would probably expect at this time in a console’s lifecycle. From a first-party perspective we’ve got a couple of great games in Ratchet & Clank: Tools Of Destruction (pictured) and Drake’s Fortune. For me, I just love the whole idea of a new IP in Drake’s – it’s quite brave to do a new IP this early in a console’s life, but it’s looking like it’s going to be a great game, and again starts to move the PlayStation 3 software into a new area. And looking at the plans for after Christmas as well we just keep on going forward on new IPs and new services and other areas that I think will make a point of difference between us and our competition.â€
Just as an aside, speaking from my own experience I am definately finding that exclusive PS3 titles made specifically for the PS3 are really good. They just need more of them.
On third party publishers:
"They’re demanding that we give them more people to sell to, because at the end of the day, [creating games] is a huge investment. We’ve listened to that; that’s why we’re investing ourselves. So I would say that they know that we have a long lifespan in front of us with PlayStation 3; they know we invested huge amounts of money to make sure that we could have that long lifecycle by ensuring that we had the technology in there from day one that people could start to tap.
It’s basically releasing the power of the PlayStation 3, which is the journey that most developers are on right now. Everything’s about experimentation now, and I think the next wave of this is to actually understand how gaming might change in terms of the experience. How people relate to media right now is changing on a monthly basis – with things like time shifting on broadcast, people using their TVs in different ways – and there’s such a moveable feast on just about every single front that we had to build in technology to make sure that we could go in whatever general direction that consumers wanted to go.â€
On the PS3's Longevity versus "other consoles":
"From where we sit at Sony we have a vision of what we’re trying to create, and where we’re trying to go. We have a look at trends and try and forecast where consumers go, but we also have to be fleet of foot to make sure that we can adapt and twist if there are any changes in customer behavior. I like to think that Ken Kutaragi was visionary, and what he specced in PlayStation 3 has enabled us to be able to do that. I think we’re alone in that philosophy.
I think there are other platforms out there which have a shorter lifecycle and will need more reinvestment and maybe new iterations, and I think that then destabilizes, and I think what we’ve got is a platform which we can grow, and there’s so much latent power that we’ve got the ability for people to be a bit more strategic in their planning and their route to market for some different and innovative types of gaming experience. And I think that’s going to be what’s most exciting. I don’t care about my competition in as much as I think we’re on different paths. And I think some of those paths are great right now for our competition, and I think some aren’t so good, but nevertheless we will all play out in our own space."
http://www.next-gen.biz/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=7792&Itemid=2&limit=1&limitstart=0
Interesting interview. Even looking past market speak, it sort of does seem that backward compat is taking a back seat now to the drive to cut costs.
I will say that one thing I do agree with is that the PS3 is finally getting some really good exclusive titles ... games that will move systems. Is it too late though?
PS3Fanboy wrote:Happy Birthday PS3! One year down, nine more to go. Sony's first year in the new video game generation has been a rough one. But, what does Sony have to say about it? We chatted with SCEA's Kim Nguyen, Marketing Manager of the PS3, to find out more.
PS3 has struggled quite a bit during its first year of release. Why do you think the games media has bashed the PS3 so much?
Looking back on year one, we're proud at how far the PS3 has come and are sure that the future will only be brighter. There were some bumps in the road but that's to be expected during the first year of a platform's lifecycle. Regardless, we are very confident in the future of PS3 given our new hardware and pricing, along with the strong line up of upcoming software titles that will place PS3 in a very strong position this holiday and for years to come.
What has Sony done to turn things around?
We recently launched new PS3 hardware and pricing and are already seeing strong sales momentum at retail--PS3 sales have increased by 192% over the past 2 weeks at major retailers in North America . We have more than 160 games coming to the platform including 19 exclusives. We also recently launched a new ad campaign, our biggest marketing effort to date, that conveys the overall benefits of PS3 including Blu-ray and PLAYSTATION Network. Again we feel PS3 is in a very strong position this holiday and for years to come.
How would you compare the first year performance of PS3 to that of PS2?
Within the first year of launch from a retail revenue perspective both platforms are tracking very closely. In fact, PS3 has achieved 86% of the revenue as PS2 in its first year. Of course the landscape has changed considerably since 2000, but we're very confident with PS3's first year and very excited about what's around the corner in 2008! We have great games, an exciting new ad campaign, lower hardware pricing, and, most importantly, we have a very strong 2008 planned.
Sony says developers are going to work on PS3 games first, and then port over to Xbox, but only cites one example: Haze. Are other development studios also actively following this procedure?
The best examples of third party product that show-off the real capabilities of the PS3 are Burnout from EA, Call of Duty 4 from Activision, and finally Unreal Tournament 3, which will be exclusive this holiday season, from Midway, developed by Epic. The power of the Unreal Tournament 3 product, is that Epic licenses it engine, so there will be an additional 20 titles coming in '08 that will benefit from the PS3-led Unreal Tournament code base.
Will third party support continue to expand next year? Will other third party exclusives be unveiled in 2008?
Currently we have more than 23 third party publishers creating PS3 titles so we expect more third-party exclusives next year and beyond. We also have a strong line-up of first party exclusives from our own WW studios coming in 2008, titles like Killzone 2, Grand Turismo 5 Prologue and Little Big Planet, so we feel very confident about our software line-up moving forward. And of course, another title that people are really clamoring for and we expect big things from is Konami's Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of the Patriots.
Is overtaking the competition's hardware sales a big focus right now?
If you look at our history, we've never looked over our shoulder and we've proven our success with previous console generations. An advantage that we have that our competitors don't is that we have hundreds of millions of loyal PlayStation fans, that combined with our strong hardware and software line-up, as well as our new online service, positions us well for long-term success.
What's the focus for year two of PS3? How will it differ from the first year?
We of course are focused on expanding our software line-up even further and bringing gameplay that can only be experienced on PS3. Additionally, with the recent advertising campaign, we really want to communicate to consumers that PS3 is an all encompassing high-def computer entertainment system with the built-in Blu-ray Disc functionality and robust online capabilities via PLAYSTATION Network. Services like video-on-demand and the widely anticipated PLAYSTATION Home are just two of the big pushes next year that will help differentiate PS3's online experience.
http://www.ps3fanboy.com/2007/11/19/sceas-kim-nguyen-looks-at-the-ps3s-first-year/
Update Nov. 17th
Saw this over at fanboy which linked to gameindustry.biz . Perhaps the most interesting part of the article, is what is not being said ... specifically that there is so many quality titles coming out on the 360 that some companies (like EA) are considering putting exclusives on the PS3 instead. The reasoning being that titles on the PS3 won't have the same competition for the buyer's dollar as the 360.
I thought about it and you know he's kinda right. I mean there are alot of titles I've had to pass up on (on the 360) because of multiple releases vying for my dollars.
This is not to say PS3 releases are crappy, but it is to say that the lack of numerous releases means any good game that comes out on the PS3 has a good chance of being bought. No other games to compete against.
Anyways I thought this was an interesting viewpoint coming from a major third party publisher.
PS3 consumers waiting for quality games, says Ramsdale
Phil Elliott 08:00 (BST) 15/11/2007
EA's VP for UK and Ireland is convinced of a strong future for Sony's console.
Keith Ramsdale, EA's VP and general manager for UK and Ireland, has told GamesIndustry.biz he believes that the future of the PlayStation 3 is strong - but consumers are waiting for quality software titles to arrive.
"If you look at FIFA 08, on its first weekend the PS3 numbers were 75 per cent of the Xbox 360 numbers, despite the 360 having a massively higher install base. That's not that the 360 has underperformed, not for a moment. That's because the appetite for a quality game on the PS3 is there and maybe FIFA is the first game to come and show where the quality is. I think PS3 consumers are waiting for the right game and they want to see the quality."
He also pointed to the console's price cut as a positive move for publishers as well as consumers.
"Of course the hardware sales increased dramatically when the price cut happened and that's absolutely part of it. Ray Maguire said himself that they were planning that, it was part of their strategy and I absolutely understand that. But what I would say is that the software sales against a hardware install base on a good game like FIFA - the PS3 outpunches its weight in attachment to the hardware. So now the price drop has happened, the hardware is going to grow, and we're in for a great time."
Ramsdale spoke to GamesIndustry.biz in his capacity as chairman of the London Games Festival as well as his EA role, and was pleased that the event had gathered a lot of attention this year.
"The difference year on year is pretty much broad industry support and really good mainstream media attention - ITV, BBC, broadsheets and red tops. I'm really pleased with that."
The full interview with Keith Ramsdale is available now.
http://www.gamesindustry.biz/content_page.php?aid=30645
Update Nov. 15th
http://biz.yahoo.com/ap/071114/sony_...ales.html?.v=1
Price Cut Boosts PlayStation 3 Sales
Wednesday November 14, 8:08 pm ET
By Gary Gentile, AP Business Writer
PlayStation3 Sales Zoom in Weeks After Price Cut and Introduction of 40 GB Model
LOS ANGELES (AP) -- Sony Corp. said sales of its PlayStation 3 gaming consoles have risen fast in the United States since it cut the price of its 80 gigabyte model by $100 and launched a 40 gigabyte model.
In the week ending Nov. 11, Sony said it sold more than 100,000 consoles of all types.
The price cuts makes the PS3 more competitive against Nintendo Co.'s Wii and Microsoft Corp.'s Xbox 360 as the holiday season opens, Sony chairman and chief executive Howard Stringer said.
"It's the breakthrough we've been anticipating," Stringer told The Associated Press Wednesday. "We've been holding our breath."
Sony said it had been selling between 30,000 and 40,000 consoles per week before the Oct. 18 price cut.
Sales rose to 75,000 in the week of Oct. 29, reflecting both the lower price of the high-end model and the introduction of a 40 gigabyte model for $399 on Nov. 2, the company said.
Sales rose again to more than 100,000 the following week, Sony said.
Lagging sales of the PlayStation 3, compared to sales of the Wii and XBox 360, prompted Sony to cut the price in the U.S. as it had in Japan and Europe.
"Obviously, we've taken so much heat over the year on PS3," Stringer said from his office in Tokyo. "Finally, the turning point has been passed."
Stringer said Sony is poised to benefit from the difficulty Nintendo has had producing Wii consoles fast enough to keep up with demand.
"It's a little fortuitous that the Wii is running out of hardware," Stringer said.
By October, Nintendo had shipped 9.3 million units worldwide of the Wii, which went on sale late last year. By the end of this fiscal year in March 2008, total global Wii shipments are expected to reach 22.3 million.
Sony had sold 5 million PS3s worldwide by October. The game console went on sale late last year in Japan and the U.S. and in March in Europe.
Microsoft had sold 11.6 million Xbox 360 machines in two years.
Sony executives said the rising sales also will boost the Blu-ray high definition DVD format. A Blu-ray drive comes with the PS3.
"It puts us vastly ahead of where the other format is going to be in terms of an installed base in people's homes by the end of this holiday season," Andrew House, Sony's chief marketing officer, said.
Toshiba Corp. has been selling players for its rival DVD format for high-definition as low as $200 and prices are expected to drop further.
I found this interview over at Next (linked at PS3Fanboy) interesting mainly because it further confirmed the direction that Sony seems to be going (less focus on backward compat for instance).
Some highlights of the interview --
On Backward Compat:
"If we’d have thought about this six months ago, at launch, when there were very few games in the marketplace, I think that would’ve been an issue, and in fact it was sufficient enough of an issue for us to invest the money in the software-based backwards compatibility,†says Sony Computer Entertainment Europe managing director Ray Maguire.
“We have to decide how we allocate things within the Cell chip. And there is a big cost involved with doing software emulation.â€â€œI think now we have to make a very firm decision on which way we go: do we keep investing money in supporting backward compatibility so that people can play PlayStation 2 games without actually firing up their PS2? Or do we put the money into developing new games? I think the investment has to go in looking forward at new games, new experiences, new services, rather than looking backwards, at satisfying a technology that we superseded.
The Cell chip keeps on moving. Obviously, because that’s a large cost in terms of the manufacturing of the PlayStation 3, as we keep on putting R&D and more advances in the Cell chip – to make it smaller, to make it lighter, to reduce the power consumption – some of the decisions that we have to make include: how do we allocate things within the Cell chip? And there is a big cost involved with doing the software emulation. So it’s a cost issue, and – as we always do – we want to bring the price of the hardware down.â€
The reasons why no 20gig for the UK at launch:
"If we go back to the launch of PlayStation 3 in the UK, previously in the States we’d launched with a 60GB and a 20GB machine, and the 20GB machine had no WI-FI, no memory slots, and clearly it had the smaller hard disc – we chose not to go with that strategy in the UK. The UK is one of the most successful territories in the world in terms of people’s propensity to [play videogames], and we felt right at the launch that what we wanted to do was give the real early adopters of technology the very best package, and just focus on that, so that’s what we did – we went out with the 60GB console with all of the features included, and it was the biggest launch we’ve ever had. If you compare PlayStation 2 at £299 and PlayStation 3 at £425, we still had more people come into the PlayStation 3 offering simply because the value of the machine was still extraordinary.
I think sometimes in consumers’ minds, if you’ve got PlayStation 1 at £299 and PlayStation 2 at £299, the logical thing to think is £299 for PlayStation 3, but clearly in terms of technology and what you’re getting from PlayStation 3 versus PlayStation 2, that was never going to happen at launch. Now we’re obviously into the situation of getting further price downs, etc, and being able to produce a product which is at the same launch price as PlayStation 2. So I expect that for many people sub-£300 is the point that they would like to come in to have access to all of the features that we offer consumersâ€
On the 360 superior multiplatform games and the general lack of of PS3 exclusives:
"Yes, and it’s an area that’s starting to change. Because the 360 installed base was generated some time ago, in terms of development third parties were developing for that alone, then out comes the PlayStation 3 and the natural thing to do then is to use the existing IP – which is expensive to create – and bring it out on PlayStation 3. So basically it was 360-led development which was coming over to PlayStation 3.
Over about the last six months what we’re seeing is that in the creation of new games there’s a different decision that has to be made. Because of the Cell chip, and because it’s got a hard disc in every device, the way of generating games if you start with PlayStation 3 is you can create the optimal, ultimate game, and then you can knock out functionality to put it on to other platforms. And it’s easier to do it that way than the other way, which is try and squeeze a little bit more out of [the game] to utilize the Cell chip and hard disc on PS3. But clearly it takes time, because these games are 18 months, two years in development. So we’re in the period of crossover now, where people will start to develop on PlayStation 3 as the lead SKU if they’re multiformat.
It’s why, in many cases, you see that games like Resistance and MotorStorm were so much better than a lot of the products in the marketplace, because they were developed specifically for PlayStation 3, and the same will be true for Drake’s Fortune and Killzone 2 and GT5,†says Maguire. “In Ratchet & Clank this Christmas you can just see the awesome clarity – it just brings the personality to life in our gaming experience. And for us that’s the key to it: just to see another sequel, is not good enough.â€
“Well, clearly there’s really strong third-party support, so we’re going to see a lot of product in the marketplace between now and Christmas – more choice for consumers than they would probably expect at this time in a console’s lifecycle. From a first-party perspective we’ve got a couple of great games in Ratchet & Clank: Tools Of Destruction (pictured) and Drake’s Fortune. For me, I just love the whole idea of a new IP in Drake’s – it’s quite brave to do a new IP this early in a console’s life, but it’s looking like it’s going to be a great game, and again starts to move the PlayStation 3 software into a new area. And looking at the plans for after Christmas as well we just keep on going forward on new IPs and new services and other areas that I think will make a point of difference between us and our competition.â€
Just as an aside, speaking from my own experience I am definately finding that exclusive PS3 titles made specifically for the PS3 are really good. They just need more of them.
On third party publishers:
"They’re demanding that we give them more people to sell to, because at the end of the day, [creating games] is a huge investment. We’ve listened to that; that’s why we’re investing ourselves. So I would say that they know that we have a long lifespan in front of us with PlayStation 3; they know we invested huge amounts of money to make sure that we could have that long lifecycle by ensuring that we had the technology in there from day one that people could start to tap.
It’s basically releasing the power of the PlayStation 3, which is the journey that most developers are on right now. Everything’s about experimentation now, and I think the next wave of this is to actually understand how gaming might change in terms of the experience. How people relate to media right now is changing on a monthly basis – with things like time shifting on broadcast, people using their TVs in different ways – and there’s such a moveable feast on just about every single front that we had to build in technology to make sure that we could go in whatever general direction that consumers wanted to go.â€
On the PS3's Longevity versus "other consoles":
"From where we sit at Sony we have a vision of what we’re trying to create, and where we’re trying to go. We have a look at trends and try and forecast where consumers go, but we also have to be fleet of foot to make sure that we can adapt and twist if there are any changes in customer behavior. I like to think that Ken Kutaragi was visionary, and what he specced in PlayStation 3 has enabled us to be able to do that. I think we’re alone in that philosophy.
I think there are other platforms out there which have a shorter lifecycle and will need more reinvestment and maybe new iterations, and I think that then destabilizes, and I think what we’ve got is a platform which we can grow, and there’s so much latent power that we’ve got the ability for people to be a bit more strategic in their planning and their route to market for some different and innovative types of gaming experience. And I think that’s going to be what’s most exciting. I don’t care about my competition in as much as I think we’re on different paths. And I think some of those paths are great right now for our competition, and I think some aren’t so good, but nevertheless we will all play out in our own space."
http://www.next-gen.biz/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=7792&Itemid=2&limit=1&limitstart=0
Interesting interview. Even looking past market speak, it sort of does seem that backward compat is taking a back seat now to the drive to cut costs.
I will say that one thing I do agree with is that the PS3 is finally getting some really good exclusive titles ... games that will move systems. Is it too late though?
Bamelin on
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This discussion has been closed.
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I don't think it costs very much to be honest ... however when you're selling your console at a huge loss I guess even a few bucks per unit matters. I suspect that they are losing even more money on the 40 gig model than they were on the 60/80 gig ... but when it boils down to it the comments Ray made at the end of the interview tell all.
They are desperate to prove to their 3rd party publishers that there is still a reason (ie. customers) to develop on the PS3. They need to get more consoles out into the wild.
edit: btw Kirin are you grabbing Uncharted?
Ya know, cutting out an entire back catalog, especially a back catalog that was available to previous purchasers of your console isn't exactly a great selling point, especially to actual informed gamers that were simply waiting for a price drop to pick up your system, and just telling them they're SOL and to go pick up yet another system to play those old games isn't exactly going to sit well with them either.
And no, probably not. Rent definitely, but I'm picking up a new TV, and Rock Band (for the 360)within two weeks of purchasing a 60 GB PS3, and then finishing up on christmas presents. For the next month and a half, Gamefly is my best friend. I MAY pick up EOJ, but that's about it as far as personal purchases for a while.
LOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOL!
Our games are better because they're on our system does not a solid argument make.
I think he was referring to games available on the PS3 marketplace.
Way to be a douche though.
That's not the way he's using the word "marketplace" in the rest of the article. He's saying that exclusive games are (somehow) intrinsically better than cross-platform games.
Yeah but in two - three years, when my PS2 dies, how will I play my PS1/2 games? I don't understand that reasoning. It can't be enough money to completely remove the BC, only to save a few dollars. This makes them look like the bad guys AGAIN... Sigh..
MotorStorm? Well, it certainly looked nice.
Why, you buy a new PS2, of course. I'd suggest saving up the money to do so now. Take it out of the PS3 fund.
Bullshit. I bought FF7 for $50 back in the day, I'm not paying another $20 to play it again!!
PS1 games still work just fine with the 40 GB PS3. They didn't remove that functionality, just the PS2.
I would come back against what you just said, but I remembered that Sony was indeed coming out with a new, NEW PS2. Sad really.
Wait, are you serious? I... Bah. Fuck it, I don't want to start anything else. Glad to know that they still work though.
Luckilly, the PS4 will have BC for PS2 games, just not PS3 games.
I read it differently .... I read the article as him saying that exclusive games are better than cross platform games (on the PS3) because exclusive games actually take advantage of the PS3's power. In some ways I'd have to agree ....
I own both consoles, multiplatform are usually the same or better on the 360, but PS3 exclusive titles are VERY impressive technically and do things I haven't seen on my 360. This is not to say the PS3 is better than the 360, but I do believe that there is alot of power in the PS3 that you really only see on games made specifically for it.
Isn't that part of the next firmware update?
(Please do not gift. My game bank is already full.)
Though his thought that people will start using the PS3 as the lead SKU is an... interesting theory. The 360 is vastly easier to program for and has a much bigger install base, so unless things manage to completely reverse that's unlikely to happen.
And the ole "the PS3 will outlast the other consoles" argument. That's not how the market has worked up to this point, but okay.
Glad to see he's playing up Ratchet and Drake, though. Those really are some awesome games, and Sony needs to let more people know about them.
Edit: Bamelin, a Sony exec flat-out told the Wall Street Journal last month that cutting BC was purely a marketing decision and didn't save them any money.
I don't mean the store. THe PS3 marketplace is the games that are available on the system. Its stupid to think or even try to argue that a multi-platform game can be technically as good as an exclusive title.
Do I have to say it again? The PS2 is STILL going, wheres the Xbox and the GC which both came later?
QFT
This is probably true but it puts Sony firmly behind the 8-ball. They just don't have the market share they would need to attract developer's to make exclusives especially give the hight cost of makeing games that would push the PS3. Multiplatform games are if anything better on the 360 yet the 360 is cheaper and because it was out a year earlier naturally has more exclusives. It just adds up to a tough row to hoe for the PS3.
(Please do not gift. My game bank is already full.)
Only because Sony's losing money on the PS3, and gaining money on the PS2. This is their way of balancing out the world of finances. Has nothing to do with the fact that the PS2 is a powerful system (which is what Sony's trying to say... The PS3 will last longer because it's the more powerful system). If the PS3 was actually making money, I can guarantee you that the PS2 would be out of production like the X-Box and GC.
But that has nothing to do with the technology in the PS2 and everything to do with the install base.
I think that the reason they think devs will start using the PS3 as a lead SKU is precisely because it's harder to develop for ... create a game first on the harder platform then it will be easier to port over to the "easy to program on" platform.
I'm not sure how well that logic holds up :P
PS3 Outlasting other consoles ... to be fair the PS2 is still around right now ... the same can't be said for the original Xbox ... although the PS2 is a money winner whereas the Origingal Xbox was a money loser, so I know this argument has it's holes. Gaping holes.
I didn't see the Wall Street Article thing but I believe you .... I don't really understand the logic behind the decision though. Sometimes I wonder who makes these decisions. The only thing I can see is the idea that by taking out PS2 compatibility it will drive more PS3 software sales. So yes technically it doesn't cost anything hardware wise to put backward compat in, but software wise it means lost PS3 game sales.
I think this is a stupid/silly argument mind you but I think that's where they went with the decision.
Ummmmm, so are you saying that the technical superiority of the PS2 over the Xbox and the GC let to it's outlasting the competition. Or are you saying that the huge install base of the PS3 will entice developers to make games for it for years to come?
(Please do not gift. My game bank is already full.)
You guys can quote that and also force me to eat cocks etc etc if i'm wrong.
See, I personally don't give a rats ass about the harder to program for comments. If you think back, the exact same thing was being said by developers at the introduction of the PS2. Devs stating that it was so much harder to program for than the Dreamcast or even the PS1, and that because of it we would never see the system used to its full potential. People in general, even devs, simply like to whine, especially when they have a platform they're used to. I really really doubt that in the end this will make any more of a dent in who works with what in the long run than it did with the PS2.
The point is that the market conditions for that to occur are unlikely to frequently exist.
Sony's still going to have to release a PS4 when everyone else introduces new consoles.
Not to mention the PS2 is still going because of a huge install base, the stupid manufacturing decisions that caused the Xbox's plug to be pulled early, and the weakness of the Cube.
No, it could actually be a problem this time.
Yes, the PS2 was a pain in the ass to program for. But it was the market leader, by far. So devs sucked it up and powered on through.
The PS3 is, by all accounts, an even bigger pain in the ass to program for. But it's now number 3 by a big margin, and it costs money to power on through. Developers don't work for free, after all. So you might see more and more developers say it's not worth the effort, since they expect lower sales. A few bits of shovelware (like the new Looney Tunes game) have already done this.
It's not bitching, it's economics.
Edit: Bamelin, that's exactly what the Sony exec said in the WSJ interview.
The way I see it both systems have strengths. So far with the PS3 the two main things I've noticed that have impressed me in exlusive titles:
Cutscenes -- I think that blu ray gives them the space on the disc to make some massive cutscenes...
Music -- Heavenly Sword had gigs and gigs of music. Folklore has the most hauntingly beautiful soundtrack I've heard in awhile.
Details -- It feels like some PS3 exclusive titles just have more details in them (in terms of "stuff" happening in the background)
The first level of Rachet and Clank is a pretty good example of things on the PS3 that made me go WOW. The amount of cinematic things happening in the background was pretty amazing. Uncharted also looks to be another title that will take advantage of some of the abilities the PS3 has over the 360.
With that said, the 360 has got some pretty amazing things happening on it as well. Mass Effect anyone?
I think the biggest reason that the PS2 lasted as long as it did was because of the userbase, and because of the PS3's backwards compatibility. Developers didn't have to worry about whether or not their new game was going to work on the next generation platform. Whereas with the 360, and their necessary change of hardware which made BC a pain in the ass. When you have a good portion of your marketshare moving on to the next generation of console that doesn't support the previous platform, and the developer of that previous platform has pretty much written it off, putting a game out for that previous platform probably isn't the greatest idea ever. Since MS owns the hardware this time around, it's likely not going to be an issue with the next generation when it comes, so they actually can make it last longer. Last generation, MS just got screwed in their hardware deals, and they wanted it all over with as quickly as possible.
Bleh, sorry if that doesn't completely make sense, two calls while writing something like that can make the thoughts kind of scattershot.
Devs were calling the PS2 a pain to work on before it ever launched, and kept saying it before it was ever a market leader. I'm not saying you're wrong, but I am saying that there has been a lot of history repeating itself this generation with the PS3, and that people are just seem to be ignoring everything that happened before.
Unfortunately for Sony, none of those are out yet. The interview isn't really telling me anything new (when has an European director of any console company ever announced something worthwhile?). The PS3 will be a success for me based on those 3 games alone (2 of which we don't know much about, I agree, but it does look promising).
Something Sony can really surprise people with is becoming a bit more open about their services. The Linux deal was a good start, but I hope they will be as forthcoming with Home and their new centralized online service. If they are really crazy, they open up the RSX chip on Linux and offer some Arcade/Steam like services around that, but that will probably never happen.