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PS3 Problems Parried
Via Joystiq, an article on Gaming Horizon defending the PS3 from its detractors. The article looks at a number of the biggest concerns about the system (price, HD, rumble, blu-ray), and attempts to explain why most of these problems are nothing to worry about. From the article: "As Sony is a company that manufactures HD-TVs, it's in their interest to add that compatibility to give consumers another reason to upgrade. There's various numbers about how long it'll take for HD to 'replace' standard-feed televisions (just as broadband has all but eliminated dial-up), but it's conceivable that HD televisions will become affordable during the PS3's lifecycle, and for those of us that have been blessed by the high-def gods, it's another reason to take advantage of the highest-quality visual equipment available."
Yawn!!! 500,000 units should be more than enough for the PS/3 launch. This time last year most of my gamer friends where debating pre-orders of the Xbox360 versus standing in line for the initial release. Fast forward to now--only one of my friends is contemplating picking up a PS/3--and he has no plans to pre-order. Personally, I'll be waiting until the PS/3 has proven to be a must have.
Blu-Ray is a non starter $600 is absurd, I don't care about inflation, they could choose their feature set and try and keep the price down, instead they decided to leverage their interests and build their tech base and launch at a price that doesn't appeal to consumers.
I'm actually expecting the worst PS3 news is on the way; the cost of games because of Next-Generation graphics and the priemium on Blu-Ray discs. Much like Microsoft, Sony will cave under pressure from third party developers (like EA) when they demand $10 more (per copy) to cover the expense of all of the content that >Next-Generation graphics require. Also, Blu-Ray discs (Like DVDs in 1997 and CDs in the late 80's) will have a manufactuing priemium (of about $10) to cover the cost of creating factories to produce these discs.
All in all, I expect Sony to be releasing games at $70-$75 ($80-$90 Canadian).
*Note, I'm not a Nintendo Fanboy, but I do have a bias towards the Wii*
Dude 1: Look at your game shelf, odds are you have 10-12 mediocre games there which total up to as much a PS3. Which would you rather have?
Me: A bit of misdirection since it doesn't factor in the extra 10-12 mediocre titles I'm eventually gonna end up with for the PS3
Dude 2: The 360 is only $400, but the PS3 is better with stuff like WiFi plus it's cheaper than any other BluRay player and then there's the cost of Xbox Live.
Me: I'll partly concede. The PS3 is a cheap BluRay drive, but I'm not sure I want a BR drive. I also don't feel that the PS3 will provide a $200 better gaming experience.
Dude 3: Consumer Electronics are getting more expensive, people are used to paying more for advanced technology such as the latest HiDef video camera.
Me: Ya, but that doesn't excuse Sony from having to justify costing more than its two competitors.
Me: This point and resulting counterpoints are lame, I'm skipping it.
Me: Another semi-lame point. It is true that High Def is not an important feature for many people without the sets for it. I also believe that gameplay is always better than graphics. But I do not think that it is bad to start pushing HD on consoles. I think that HD saturation will become more common as the console's lifetime progresses. It's not like Regular Def TVs are left out (Unless you want to read the text in Dead Rising).
Them: Not really in their control due to patent issues, tilt sensing is a shameless Wii rip off but it could be half decent, and Force Feedback is gimmicky anyways.
Me: I see them both as minor features, I don't think this is a huge issue. That said, the Wii gets movement sensing AND rumble.
Them: Console launches have never had 'enough' units. Plus, it's the units shipped by end of year that really matters. Also, supply shortages have been over dramatized before to create demand
Me: Fair point. Although I fo think that Sony might face a problem if supply is too short and people go in to pick up a Christmas present and end up walking out with a shiny new Wii since the 5 PS3's the store recieved have already been sold.
Them: People said this about the PS2 and DVDs
Me: I'm not getting into a HD-DVD vs BluRay vs Good Old DVD debate.
Dude 1: They said this about the PS2 Emotion Engine. Game developers should get used to the Cell and later PS3 games should look really good.
Me: Well, duh, they're going to get better at it if they use it a lot, but I don't see that doesn't mean its a good architecture.
Dude 2: Launch titles are gonna suck anyways, they'll get better at it, and programmers are whiny.
No comment
Dude 3: Off the record, I have heard of problems from developers. However, a hard architecture means great exclusives, buggy ports.
Me: Great exclusives are always nice, but I don't see Madden 0X running with less bugs on the XBox as a PS3 bonus.
Dude 4: On the flip side the XBox development kit could be to simple or "ametuer" plus the guys working on Full Auto 2 really like
If this signature is witty enough, maybe somebody will like me.
Those are some flawed arguments. I cant even convine my brother in law to get high speed internet even thought the price difference is only about $5 a month. I would think most concider vastly improved access to information far more valuable than the ability to see the pimples on Jessica Simpsons forehead. If you cant convince over 1/3rd of the country to go to something that is actually more than just visually improved in over 10 years or so how long do you really think its going to take for true penetration of HDTV by the majority. One big difference is the upfront costs, Internet accounts are paid for monthly and as a recurring expense it easier to move about when desired. HDTV is a large upfront expense that doesnt make alot of sense to joe sixpack who's TV is working fine already. You can of course make the same argument about both Blu-Ray and HDDVD but only one of them is being forced on you. But then I guess im just surrounded by bumpkins and hillbillies since the "majority" gladly spend a grand upgrading their entertainment center all the time and I dont know anyone who does.
I have a feeling the PS3 is going to be remembered as the NeoGeo of the current generation consoles. I remember when I was a teenager drooling over the Neogeo, I wanted one sooo bad but it was too expensive for my parents to be willing to buy it and all my attempts to save enough ended up in me spending it on something that I found I wanted more. Moms and Dads at christmas with more money than sense will buy junior a ps3 but I will bet the majority will be looking hard at the Wii. Regardless of your view of nintendo their price point is going to make it hard for parents shopping for a new console to reason the cost of the PS3 and probably even the Xbox 360.
"Ryan (TUS): Consumer electronics today have begun to cost more and more, and considering what comes included with the $599 PS3 super-package, I'm honestly surprised that it isn't more expensive." The cost appropriateness of the PS3 aside, does anyone believe the first part of this statement to be true? It seems to me, that by their very nature consumer electronics go down in price over time. Currently even high end PCs are considerably less expensive than low end PCs a decade ago. Even "new" entries into the market are less expensive than similar forrunners. When DVRs started to emerge they were less expensive than the original VCRs and the cost of even moderately sized HDTVs are less than the very first (black & white) consumer televisions. I know that people believe that prices increase over time, and that is true for many things, but I can think of very few cases where this is true in the consumer electronics market, especially for already existing markets.