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Sony's Phil Harrison To Give GDC Speech

Posted by Zonk on from the whatever-the-third-age-is dept.

Gamasutra reports that SCE's Worldwide Studios President Phil Harrison will be giving an important speech at the Game Developer's Conference in March. The speech is said to center around what Harrison is calling 'the third age of game development', which he claims is marked by the interconnectedness of gaming communities and developers. The speech will also detail what the concept of 'always on' can mean for gaming from Sony's unique perspective in the gaming market. Along with the Keynote from Shigeru Miyamoto, this year's GDC is sure to be an interesting one.

30 comments

  1. Whats that mean? by Creepy+Crawler · · Score: 2, Insightful

    For those who read this, all it is just an advertisement that this guy is going to give a speech.

    Now, whats with the "always on"? Arent most devices kept in a low-power standby in which they have instant on? Would you want to keep a game console 'always on'? I sure wouldnt, due to overheating and just plain wear n' tear.

    Unless instant-on means something else other than keeping the device in high-power mode, I fail to understand the point.

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    1. Re:Whats that mean? by Prysorra · · Score: 1

      A game is more than it's platform. The GAME is always on. Just like life. It's not like life is paused for you when you "turn off" go to sleep".

    2. Re:Whats that mean? by jcupitt65 · · Score: 1
      The Wii has an optional always-on mode, WiiConnect24. It does things in standby like pick up your wii messages, update the weather forecast channel, etc. etc.

      Don't know what the PS3 always-on means though. No doubt it'll use many more watts.

    3. Re:Whats that mean? by Creepy+Crawler · · Score: 1

      And I do like that OPTIONAL part.

      Optional goes back to ownership. I own it, I tell it what to do and what not to do. Nintendo is good in that respect. Like what you said, who knows what PS3 means by that, nor do I like it.

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    4. Re:Whats that mean? by PingSpike · · Score: 1

      So...I'm confused...do you mean WoW is coming out for the PS3?

    5. Re:Whats that mean? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Now, whats with the "always on"? Arent most devices kept in a low-power standby in which they have instant on? Would you want to keep a game console 'always on'? I sure wouldnt, due to overheating and just plain wear n' tear.
      I don't think that's what he meant. I could be mistaken, but "Always Connected" might have been a little closer to his intended meaning.

      What happens when instead of inserting disks, playing games, then shutting the game machine off, your gaming experience is more like entering a pool hall. You look for available games and gamers, strike up conversations, listen or watch entertainment and even watch the people as they come in and leave. Instead of "multiplayer" as a separate game style, having people and entertainment around you becomes as natural as leaving your house and experiencing the world.

      I think "always on" also refers to constantly, downloading entertainment like music, movie, TV programing and yes, even games. Would you ever dream of turning your Tivo off? But it also could mean listening to music, watching TV and maybe even having an eye into and out of your living room via webcam. Wouldn't you have your game console on much more often if you also used it for a great deal of your other entertainment?

      Will it all turn out that way? Maybe, maybe not. It's kind of a pie in the ski interactive environment. But with the new powers of the consoles we have in our living rooms, it just might. You might think this plays just to the PS3 and that's why the Sony guy is pushing it, but I think you'd be only partially right. Wii owners are getting increasingly excited about news, weather, downloadable games and the Opera web browser. Though multiplayer on the Wii pretty much means a bunch of people in the same room right now, everyone expects that to change in the near future. The little box has a lot going for it as far as always on/always connected is concerned. Naturally, the 360 is also quite the contender in these areas. "Gaming" equipment is increasingly becoming capable of being that hub of communication and entertainment that perhaps the personal computer should have been if more people had wanted to put one in the living room.

      Maybe that's what this guy intends to talk about. Or heck, maybe it is just the power button. But I think my idea is better :-)
  2. Sony.. by Dimentox · · Score: 1

    from Sony's unique perspective in the gaming market. Meaning he will preach leeching cash from users by doing thousands of bad expansions, buggy content and revamping the game in production to ruin it?

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  3. The Third Age of Video Games!? by Rycross · · Score: 1

    I guess Sony is forgetting all those systems that came before the Playstation.

    Remember when that Sony exec was interviewed and they claimed that they weren't arrogant? Yeah me too.

    1. Re:The Third Age of Video Games!? by drinkypoo · · Score: 1

      I guess Sony is forgetting all those systems that came before the Playstation.

      Now slow down thar, son.</foghorn_leghorn> He's not talking about the third generation of video game consoles. He's talking about some "third age" in gaming. Who knows what he means, he's probably full of shit, but it has nothing to do with number of generations in console gaming.

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      "You're right," Fisheye says. "I should have set it on 'whip' or 'chop.'"
    2. Re:The Third Age of Video Games!? by VanillaBabies · · Score: 1

      Maybe he means it differently than "third generation".

      Maybe he means:

      First Age: 2D, Blocky
      Second Age: 3D, Whatever
      Third Age: Whatever he makes up in his speech.

    3. Re:The Third Age of Video Games!? by MeanderingMind · · Score: 1

      He didn't say generation, he said age.

      The Stone Age didn't consist of one generation of people but many. The same is true here.

      I'm not sure where I'd divide the first and second ages of video games (perhaps pre and post polygonal?), but I don't doubt that we're entering a new age.

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      Thunderclone: ONE MAN ENTERS! TWO MEN LEAVE! ONE MAN ENTERS! TWO MEN LEAVE!
    4. Re:The Third Age of Video Games!? by Senjutsu · · Score: 1

      Maybe he meant to say Middle Earth.

  4. Public apology is long overdue... by __aaclcg7560 · · Score: 1

    For all the store demo booths being in a frozen state that made it impossible to evaluate the console performance.

    1. Re:Public apology is long overdue... by trdrstv · · Score: 1
      For all the store demo booths being in a frozen state that made it impossible to evaluate the console performance.

      No. It made it quite easy to evaluate it. The system / demo locked up frequently, and it got to the point where many stores simply turned off their demo machines.

      That made the choice of 'buy now, or wait' an easy one.

  5. Here's what I'm hoping... by Stormwatch · · Score: 1

    "Sorry, guys, the massive failure of the PS3 drove us bankrupt. We're shutting the company and selling our assets to pay our massive debts. Goodbye."

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    1. Re:Here's what I'm hoping... by Mr.+Hankey · · Score: 1

      I really don't get why one would want them to go bankrupt. There are many people who work for them who would be out of a job if Sony just went out of business. OTOH I'd rather have a few competing consoles on the market rather than one dominant player, I don't want to see a Sony-dominated console generation (or any vendor for that matter) again. I'm enjoying the Wii console's games now, but if Sony brings the price down by maybe 50% and releases some games I'd want to play I might add a PS3 to my collection.

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  6. I'm guessing it will be titled: by XaXXon · · Score: 3, Funny

    "What Not To Do"

    I mean, they can talk about how not to do portables, media formats, and high-end consoles. I just wonder if they'll be able to fit it all inside their allotted time period.

    Yep. Should be a good one.

    1. Re:I'm guessing it will be titled: by PhoenixOne · · Score: 1

      Other good titles would be: "Dr.Spin: What to do when your hype far exceeds your content", "Cost: How much is too much?", or "DRM: How to convince your users that it good for them."

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  7. Funny.. by Awod · · Score: 1

    At the bottom of the page I read: "Expect the worst, it's the least you can do". I'm sure we can all relate to that with the exploding batteries and whatnot.

  8. 'Always on' must be a function built into design. by trdrstv · · Score: 1
    Now, whats with the "always on"? Arent most devices kept in a low-power standby in which they have instant on? Would you want to keep a game console 'always on'? I sure wouldnt, due to overheating and just plain wear n' tear.

    There are many things that are 'Always on', and they are designed for that purpose. Your Refrigerator is 'Always on', My Cable modem, and Router are always on. Cisco Switches are always on. They are because they need to be, and are designed to be.

    My Wii has been 'Always on' as part of 'Wii connect' since November 19th. The Wii was designed for this purpose, so it can stay on 24/7 without kicking off cooling fans. I have no idea what Phil means by 'Always on' as the PS3 (or the 360 for that matter) were not design to do this.

  9. He means that John Sheridan will be a hero again. by Glytch · · Score: 1

    He'll make an alliance between the younger consoles (Wii and DS) and first systems (NES and Master System), and win a war against the ancient returning evil of Sony.

  10. Put em up! by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    I'd love it if they held Mr. Phil's keynote at the same time as St. Shigeru's one, just to see which one gets attended.

  11. Re:E-Peen ++ WTF? by trdrstv · · Score: 1
    What, are you passively bragging that you got your Wii at launch?

    Nope, not bragging. I was responding to the prior post about possible overheating issues of an 'always on console'. I felt that 2 solid months of being on 24/7 without any issues was relevant to that discussion.

    Relax.

  12. Always on... by CaseM · · Score: 1

    The speech will also detail what the concept of 'always on' can mean for gaming from Sony's unique perspective in the gaming market.

    Translated: "Every time I get home and flip on the news something negative about the PS3 is ALWAYS ON!"

  13. Like I said on Destructoid by nicolastheadept · · Score: 1

    I'd rather go to Miyamoto's keynote speech, even if he's speaking Japanese.

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  14. Re:'Always on' must be a function built into desig by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Why do you say the PS3 and 360 are not designed to be left on? If you're worried about the fans and hard drives, I can assure you that despite the fact that they can wear out, many people leave their Tivos and PCs on all the time. Many servers never shut down for years. If you have some info about these being designed for a less than 24 hour duty cycle, I'd love to see it, otherwise I'd have no problem considering them up to the task.

  15. Concession Speech by 7Prime · · Score: 1

    I'm thinking that it'll be along the lines of a presidential concession speech... before Miyamoto takes the stage.

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    Multiplayer Gaming (defined): Sitting around, discussing single-player games with my friends, at the bar.
  16. Re:E-Peen ++ by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    A bit of Wii envy, is it?