It seems the console maker who’s trailing in sales typically says how great competition is and how it’s great for the consumer. Sony’s not leading the console race, as of now, and Sony Computer Entertainment Europe president David Reeves stated in a recent interview:
The winner, he said, is the consumer. “That’s why we are not going to slag off Microsoft or Nintendo at all,” he said, “because again it’s rather like the trainer market: one year it’s Reebok, next year it’s Nike, and then suddenly it’s Adidas; it’s cyclical, but in the end everyone wins in five to ten years.”
Sony continues to speak towards their “10 year plan” and how they’re increasing momentum in the market. They’re not winning in sales but with a ten years to go, this is just the beginning. Had this statement come from Microsoft it would be a chance to worry, but Sony has proof to backup their statements.
The PlayStation 2 is going strong as a nine year-old and doesn’t seem to be letting up in game releases. Sony’s press conferences always cover the PlayStation 2 in their talks with the PSP and PlayStation 3 for three big reasons: it’s worth bragging about, it distracts from lower PS3 sales and it separates them from the competition.
Where is the GameCube or classic Xbox in Nintendo and Microsoft’s press conferences and number crunch reports? The fact is, the companies have given up on both products retiring them as “last generation” (translation: poor sales). What better reason to buy a PlayStation 3 than knowing the company is in the game for the long haul?
It might be bit cheaper to buy an Xbox 360 but who’s to say Microsoft isn’t going to announce their next generation console tomorrow and kill off the Xbox 360? Obviously, Microsoft will deny those claims but there will always be doubt without a proven track record.
On the other hand, Microsoft hasn’t seen the success in the classic Xbox and Nintendo hasn’t seen nearly the fervor over the GameCube as compared to their current generation consoles. So, that begs the question, why would they halt all that for new console announcements?
Until they’ve had more time in the market, we cannot be 100% certain what Nintendo and Microsoft are going to do when it comes to next-generation announcements while Sony’s been very clear in each press conference. As Kaz Hirai said to Eurogamer earlier:
“We certainly don’t do the consumer the disservice of basically saying that the consoles have gone by the wayside because we have a new one. Right now, a prime example? PS2 is nine years into it. Where’s the Xbox? Where’s the GameCube?”
If one console maker is looking for a way to stand out and explain their slow sales figures, Sony’s got the PS2 and its long history in their back pocket.
Now, if we could only get those game designers to continue to take it seriously and not put all their eggs into the PS3 basket.
@Nintendo in financial trouble
Hopefully this makes Nintendo change tactics. They can’t rely on the casual audience to continually support them. They need to earn loyal customers who will support them for as long as they make good games.
I have to say though, I’m now glad I got a 3DS at launch! 20 free games! Thanks Ninty!
Oh and by the way Jonah, Paul was right; the WiiU is scheduled to launch in 2012, not 2013. That’s what they’ve been saying up to now.
Stay strong Paul, your defence of Nintendo in the face of such ridicule is admirable 😛
@Diablo 3 requiring constant internet connection
I really don’t understand this. Angering fans and limiting non-internet users from playing just to try to stop piracy (which will happen anyway) doesn’t make sense to me. What about people (myself included) who have a dodgy internet connection that randomly cuts out? Bad move by Blizzard.
@QOTW
Usually I do. More games available and a cheaper console. The only console I’ve bought at launch is the 3DS. Being a Nintendo fan, I just couldn’t resist this time!
“Oh and by the way Jonah, Paul was right; the WiiU is scheduled to launch in 2012, not 2013.”
Still 18 months of nothing.
Nintendo Financial Trouble – Seems like this just came out of nowhere. They were doing so great with the sales of the Wii. Glad to see that they are taking pay cuts in order to keep the business healthy. Seems like they will have to wait until the WiiU comes out so that they can start making money, that’s assuming that it is a huge hit like the Wii was.
Diablo 3 Requires Constant Internet – I can’t see this being that big of a deal to most. Internet connections aren’t too hard to find regardless of where you are. People will complain about it until Diablo comes out and then realize that it doesn’t even matter.
Consoles Win – What exactly have they won against? There is no winning, just slowly losing.
Also, I would like to comment on the talk about what warrants a valid “retail” game. 1200 Microsoft Points is only 15 bucks, therefore a 15 dollar game would be worth upwards of 15 hours which is how long it took me to 100 percent Braid. Jonah, you make me feel dumb. When it came down to getting all of the pieces I got almost all of them in seven hours. It was the last six or seven that made me slowly build up twenty hours of game time. 🙂
One more thing, you guys asked the winner of Duke Nukem Forever to comment on the game, and although I’m not *pause* Max Dominic, I’m sure you would still like to hear my brief thoughts. Game was bad since it started. The lack of a gun for the first 45 minutes really made it boring and when I did finally get a gun, I realized that the game was bad regardless of the lack of guns.
QOTW – Usually don’t wait for a price cut, rather I wait to see if there are any games that I would enjoy. If not, then I probably wont get the console at all.
😛 hehe I have to say ,when I read the description about Paul going crazy about *snap*.. me ,I listened trough the first 45 minutes with a due sense of dread and anticipation:P When it came up it was extremely funny,especially the last little plug right at the end:P
My apologies for my somewhat dyslexic last response(Google spelling check and typing fast+ some beers makes max a dull typist)..
@Buying consoles after price-cut: I guess this will be somewhat a fitting description for me, although this generation it was more of a subconscious move on my part as I was in the army when the current generation launched and I wasnt thinking that much about gaming during that time ,thus it had fallen drastically in price (more then half) upon my return to “civvie street” and it was after that I got interested in gaming for real again after a long lull.
I bought my PC at first and then relatively recently a X-box Slim.
When the next generation finally arrives I do intend to buy it at launch if it has a solid base of “launch games”(e.g GTA IV for the PS3).
If I may mention something off-topic,have any of you seen the state of COD:”World at War” multiplayer on XBL..this was a game I have enjoyed very much previously on my PC and bought it off the gamer store when I saw it..it was fine until recently,when it has been ruined by modders/hackers(heres a youtube clip to demonstrate http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BlrxLoKiUuQ)..I hope Treyarch can fix this but my confidence in them as of late makes me pretty skeptic as to if this ever is going to be cleared up..I think its very poorly done by them and their parent Activsion to not support their product even if its a few years old.(sorry for that off topic rant,but I just had to vent the frustration)
@Diablo and internet connection,I see more and more SP games are trying to force online requirements down the throats of their customers wich in the end only seems to be a deterrent to their legit players and not to any eventual pirates..piracy have always been around in some shape or form and they seem to me to be one step ahead of any countermeasures taken always..e.g Assassins Creed II and the calamity that was the DRM on that game..
Ok,I wont rant on any longer from here..
Thanks for again including me,I do respect you guys and that is why I listen..and relax Paul,you wont find any hate mail from me in your inbox anytime soon:P
(To “Max D for Pez”to quote/paraphrase LBJ tho “I shall not seek, and I will not accept, the nomination of Paul for a term as your President”):P
Keep up the good work guys;)
Also abt VGA ports on HDTV’s..most also have HDMI as do many gfx cards,im using HDMI to HDMI from my PC to TV..
@Nintendo’s financial issues:
I think they made some mistakes with the pricing policy (3DS?), and they keep making the mistake of not making the life easy for developers targeting any of the Nintendo’s platforms. This does lead to a lack of IPs.
The platform with most products wins. That’s why PC gaming and XBox gaming dominate.
@Diablo III requires constant internet connection
Oh my … so Blizzard can’t learn from the mistakes other made. Even these kind of DRM schemes can be evaded: in case of Assassin Creed 2, they basically emulated the server on which the game connected to.
Paul, I don’t have constant Internet connection and Paul, you can’t kill piracy. You need to figure out how to engage the guys pirating the game and still earn some money. I for one like what Valve did with Team Fortress 2.
@ free-to-play on 360 is “inevitable”:
I agree with that. I see free-mium inevitable, and Microsoft would better change their system to allow it.
I guess the only way to force MSFT into it is by releasing some really really good free-miums.
@in-store purchases of Deus Ex: Human Revolution digital download
Jonah, I wouldn’t mind paying extra for the manual as well. Before resigning and buying games on Steam, I first look for the boxed version. Just for the manual.
@“consoles have won!”
Ha! Make that XBox won over the other consoles. As long as games are still developed for PC, I have a hard time seeing consoles winning.
Both statements (mine, a PC gamer, and one made by the XBox creator) are biased though 😛
@user comments:
Sorry, I had to do this. Jordan, you mentioned that 20 hours is a lot for an FPS, but light for an RPG. How would you rate 20 hours on any of the STALKER games? 😀
@QOTW: that’s an easy one. I don’t buy consoles :P.
Been far too long since I posted here, and I’m glad to hear that the show is still going, albeit in it’s new format.
Since Paul has been trying so hard to get hate mail, and failing, I thought I would finally send him something vaguely in line with what he is after. Paul, I hate that you are trying so badly to be hated. In fact, it is almost getting boring and predictable now.
@ QotW – I bought PS2 on launch day, and would have bought the PS3 on launch, if the ex didn’t spend my savings fund on a nursery for her baby. I did buy the Wii, but waited 2 years, until Sports Resort was included, with a Motion Plus, and £40 less than the retail value. In fact, I actually bought it at that offer price in an attempt to resell before christmas, but the market was saturated by then. My DS usage (and the Wii) proved to me that Nintendo is just not the way to go at the moment, as neither have been more than dust magnets for the last 6 months. I am, however, planning to buy a Vita, but will still wait a bit for initial prices to drop. The good thing about UK compared to US prices is that you don’t enjoy the crazy offer prices and 2nd hand sales prices we do.
Oh, and you should NOT be buying a 3DS now to enjoy the 20 free games, as they are only 20 year old games, which Paul already said he has a numerous versions of many. You should wait till later in August when they prices get slashed, and if you really want any of the offer games, you can buy them individually from the store with better value for money.