PlayStation 3 Unveiled

The PlayStation 3 was unveiled yesterday afternoon in a press conference at Sony Pictures Studio. The event was full of beautiful demonstrations, specifications, and talk of the games of tomorrow. The machine is certainly impressive, with backwards compatibility, support for up to seven Bluetooth controllers, multiple HD signals, and intimate interactions with the PSP. Coverage, screenshots, and specs available from 1up.com, Gamespot, Joystiq, NYT, Voodoo Extreme, Gamespy, BBC, GamesIndustry.biz, Engadget, Anandtech, Kotaku, Gamasutra, and CNN Money. The only downside I see so far? The controller. Update: 05/18 21:35 GMT by Z : Gamespot has up a comprehensive look at the console based on what is known so far.

Comments

Finally!

[Tibor the Hun]

Goodbye wintel,
Hello Playstation!

Re:But will anyone care?

[calibanDNS]

The only reason for releasing the PS3 is to try and boost sales through increased press exposure and slightly prettier explosions.

I disagree; Sony and Microsoft look to be making the next generation of consoles about controlling the living room. The PS2 was the first DVD player in a lot of homes, and the PS3 may follow that up by being the first HD-capable player in a lot of homes, giving the Sony-backed Blu-Ray an advantage in the coming Blu-Ray/HD-DVD war. Add the list of non-game related features that this console supports (like video conferencing) and you can see that Sony isn't just selling a game console, but is trying to get consumers to consolidate many of their activities (games, movies, chatting, internet access) into a single device (with a big Sony logo on it). Microsoft is trying the same thing by having the XBox 360 play with Windows Media Center Edition and Windows XP computers on the network. Sometimes, the next generation of consoles hardly seems to be about the games at all.