The Los Angeles Times is comparing Sony’s game division to the New York Yankees. “Both have high-paid talent and great offenses but are straining to win this year,” says today’s article by LA Times staff writers Alex Pham and Bruce Wallace. Analysts claim that while Nintendo’s Wii and Microsoft’s Xbox 360 were designed for immediate market impact, Sony’s PlayStation 3 is ahead of the market and as a result won’t see sales take off until 2008.
Of course by then it could be too late for the PlayStation brand. With titles including the next Grand Theft Auto arriving on the Xbox 360 this could hurt Sony, which counted on those exclusives to help increase demand for the PlayStation 2. And that’s not the worst of it for Sony says the LA Times story, which says that “Kyoshi Shin of the International Game Developers Assn. in Japan said many creators there were shifting their focus to the Wii.”
In consoles, the game isn’t going Sony’s way [LA Times]
*sigh* I’m not really sure how I feel about this. I have the Wii and 360, and I enjoy each unit for what it has to offer. I try to avoid any kind of console bashing because I beleive every system has its own share of pros and cons, but I think it’s safe to say that the ps3 is technologically the most advanced console available at this time. I wish the ps3 was more affordable, but I understand why it’s priced as it is.
Anyway, what I’m getting at is that I will always root for the success of the superior technology. I would rather not root for a technology simply because of a brand name. For the sake of the gaming industry I want the PS3 to succeed so that better games and better consoles will be available sooner than later. This is the exact same reason why I root for BluRay. Although BluRay comes at a higher cost, it is the superior product and I want it to succeed so that I can have the best products available.
I love my Wii, but I don’t like the thought of a superior technology being held back by the likes of the mob (aka consumers) who are choosing the wii as a PS3 replacement. I will buy a PS3 once the majority of the bugs have been dealt with and there is even the slightest price drop. I can only wish that others are on the same page with me and have not chosen a Wii instead of a PS3, rather…are just postponing their purchase till a later time.
I applaud Johnal, he’s hit the nail on the head. I’ve bought none of the ‘next-gen’ consoles, but the only one I do want is the PS3. Not because I’m a Sony ‘fanboy’, but because I think it’s got the most potential to advance technology. What can the Wii give technology? About a 4-5 year trip back into the past. The PS3 (even the 360) is a step forward.
What’s the point in this article?
The only problem is the lack of games for the PS3, and the people who think they can’t afford it. X360 is a safe option for most people. Wii is for the rest. That said, we knew that already.