Lines for the PS3 are all over the place...have you seen new York?!?!??!? The line there is huge!!! For a PS3 nonetheless...:#
Last night as I was driving to get some dinner, I passed a Circuit City and Best Buy; there were about 10 people camped out in front of each store, some had actually erected tents! A lot of people seem to think that most of these early buyers are either Sony fanboys who must have the PS3 no matter what or speculators who hope to make a quick buck by selling it at vastly inflated prices on Ebay. So far, the attach rate for the PS3 (ratio of hardware to software purchases) has been a paltry .98; that means that many people are buying the console but no games; further evidence that they're hoping to cash in by selling it on the secondary market. It's pretty much a foregone conclusion that this initial allottment of PS3's will sell out. It remains to be seen if the console will have a real mass market appeal after the initial frenzy.
Personally, all the technical glitches and gotchas that have surfaced over the past week have really soured me on the console. There seem to be a lot of issues with the hardware and the initial iteration of the operating system. According to a review at CNN, the first thing the PS3 tries to do when first powered up is get onto the internet and download a bunch of patches and updates. I won't even entertain the prospect of buying one until next summer at the earliest. Hopefully by then, the manufacturing process will be smoother, the OS will be more stable, all the reported bugs will be addressed, and most importantly, there will be more games actually worth buying.
RogueAgentSpeeding in the Tumbler...Posts: 3,676MI6 Agent
I saw a bunch of PS3 fans camping out last night at Circuit City as I came back from the grocery store.
Going to work this morning, I glanced over and the small crowd had swelled considerably. Wow.
Mrs. Man Face: "You wouldn't hit a lady? Would you?"
Batman: "The Hammer Of Justice isUNISEX!"
-Batman: The Brave & The Bold -
I got to try out a PS3 at Target today. Frankly, I was not impressed. The "dashboard" is pretty much a carbon copy of the PSP's cross-based layout, which I never cared much for.
There was also a playable demo to the Motorstorm game. It looked good, though honestly not as good as some 360 games, and I found the control to be a bit on the clunky and unresponsive side. It certainly didn't look much like the Motorstorm tech demo that was shown last year.
This also has to be the ugliest console I've ever seen; in person it looks like a cross between a miniature grand piano and the Fleetcenter in Boston. Butt ugly if you ask me.
I'm more convinced than ever that I was right to wait on the PS3; I'll check it out again next summer to see if any real worthwhile software is available but until then it's hands off for me.
In my opinion, I don't thnk its a good idea to get a console on it release date. The best idea is... to wait a few months. Getting a console on it release date has malfunctions. The PS2 had probs when it first came out.
Here's an interesting article on the PS3 and Sony's decision to include a Blu-Ray drive. Seems a lot of players aren't too happy about having to fork over an additional $150-$200 for a capability many of them don't even want.
In my opinion, I don't thnk its a good idea to get a console on it release date. The best idea is... to wait a few months. Getting a console on it release date has malfunctions. The PS2 had probs when it first came out.
I agree. People tend to get overly-excited as if there are rations on these as if the fate of the world depends on a purchase.
Although I do have to give kudos to the fifteen year old kid in NYC that was reported to have sold his spot in line for $1500.00 to someone further back. Can't argue with that...
Mrs. Man Face: "You wouldn't hit a lady? Would you?"
Batman: "The Hammer Of Justice isUNISEX!"
-Batman: The Brave & The Bold -
Here's an interesting article that quotes a Sony VP who strongly hints at a PS3 price cut in the near future. Looks like Sony has lost a ton of money on their games division and is looking at all options to stop the hemmoraging.
I'd welcome a price cut; it would definitely get me to take a second look at the PS3. But from Sony's perspective, a price cut so early after launch looks to be a lose-lose situation. They lose more money per console since they cost so much to make and, possibly even more importantly, they run the risk of being perceived as desperate since they've changed their strategy so soon after the console's launch.
Still, it's looking more and more like Sony really miscalculated the PS3's launch and the high price and lack of exclusive games has really bit them hard.
And 0064, here's an article on Mercenaries 2 just for you. Of interest, the informational blurb on the right lists it as coming out for the 360 as well. Looks like EA has signed on to distribute the game and they're very console agnostic. Given the PS3's ongoing sales problems I'm sure they're pushing hard for a multi-console release.
Tony, if you read the Official Press Release they say it is PS3 exclusive. IGN is the ONLY site/magazine/news source that says that it is coming to the 360...and yesterday's announcement stated PS3 exclusvie. Plus, they signed a co-publishing deal, which means EA isnt calling the shots...
As for the PS3's drop of price, it warrants a second look for me too...
Tony, if you read the Official Press Release they say it is PS3 exclusive. IGN is the ONLY site/magazine/news source that says that it is coming to the 360...and yesterday's announcement stated PS3 exclusvie. Plus, they signed a co-publishing deal, which means EA isnt calling the shots...
As for the PS3's drop of price, it warrants a second look for me too...
I just knew those two articles would get you back on the fence. :v {:)
Here's an interesting article that quotes a Sony VP who strongly hints at a PS3 price cut in the near future. Looks like Sony has lost a ton of money on their games division and is looking at all options to stop the hemmoraging.
I'd welcome a price cut; it would definitely get me to take a second look at the PS3. But from Sony's perspective, a price cut so early after launch looks to be a lose-lose situation. They lose more money per console since they cost so much to make and, possibly even more importantly, they run the risk of being perceived as desperate since they've changed their strategy so soon after the console's launch.
Still, it's looking more and more like Sony really miscalculated the PS3's launch and the high price and lack of exclusive games has really bit them hard.
So soon, Sony? But you were so sure there wouldn't be a price cut when GameInformer interviewed you... I have the February '07 issue right here. Jack Tretton, President of SCEA, commenting about the eBay scalpers said "Our goal is to make sure that every consumer that wants one of our products is able to get one." Basically, he said that by not forcing people and retailers to buy bundled sets of peripherals and whatnot, it's making it easier on the consumer... While also allowing scalpers into the array. But he said that with people wanting to buy them even at grossly inflated prices, it's only a "testament to the value of the PS3." Although I don't see how "every consumer" can possibly get one at such ridiculous prices, anyway...
More importantly though, he also cites value for your money. He said that the development on the PS1 paled in comparison to the PS2, which in turn pales in comparison to the PS3. To quote him,
"We've invested much greater in the PS3 over our initial investment in PS2. There's a heck of a lot more under the hood and it costs us more money to make it. I think it's going to be a lot more difficult to cost-reduce this. I think the consumers that get their hands on a PS3 will clearly see the value and not only want one for $599, in some instances they're willing to pay ridiculous prices to buy one off of eBay. I don't think that price as compared to the value and the technology we're giving consumers is something we need to be concerned about any time soon."
The interviewer went on to ask Tretton: "So, we shouldn't expect the price drops to be as soon or as drastic as they were for the PS2?" His answer was simply "No." In a final note, he said "I think it's meaningless to say 'You guys are in third place in America now' on a platform that is thirty-one days old."
I'd say it looks like you're already eating your own words, Mr. Tretton.
I'd read somewhere that Sony's game division lost something like $1.6 billion for their last fiscal year. Obviously a lot of that is due to R&D, manufacturing, and selling the PS3 at such a high loss. Still when the losses are that bad they have to do something.
Sony also hasn't helped the situation by once again failing to release any software once the system has debuted. You'd think they'd learn after all the backlash about no new games for months after the PS1, PS2 and PSP launches. But since December 12 there has only been one new game - the utterly lackluster Sonic The Hedgehog 3, which is also readily available for just about every other console - and the next PS3 game isn't scheduled to be released until February 20 (assuming it isn't delayed). What that does is essentially turn the PS3 into a fulltime BluRay player; too bad most people who bought a PS3 don't even have an HDTV that takes advantage of the high def format.
In yet another sleazy marketing move, the BluRay DVD group (led by Sony of course) is claiming that BluRay DVD sales are outpacing HD-DVD by a 2-1 margin. What they conveniently forget to mention is that the margin quoted includes the Talladega Nights pack-in DVD which is included for free with every PS3 console. Take that out of the equation and all of a sudden BluRay's sales lead has magically evaporated.
NightshooterIn bed with SolitairePosts: 2,917MI6 Agent
I'd read somewhere that Sony's game division lost something like $1.6 billion for their last fiscal year. Obviously a lot of that is due to R&D, manufacturing, and selling the PS3 at such a high loss. Still when the losses are that bad they have to do something.
Sony also hasn't helped the situation by once again failing to release any software once the system has debuted. You'd think they'd learn after all the backlash about no new games for months after the PS1, PS2 and PSP launches. But since December 12 there has only been one new game - the utterly lackluster Sonic The Hedgehog 3, which is also readily available for just about every other console - and the next PS3 game isn't scheduled to be released until February 20 (assuming it isn't delayed). What that does is essentially turn the PS3 into a fulltime BluRay player; too bad most people who bought a PS3 don't even have an HDTV that takes advantage of the high def format.
Thanks for the welcome back, Tony! Good to be back, mate! B-)
Yes, they do have to do something... The question is what? I mean, charging a ludicrous price for something, mostly for extra technology that few can take advantage of (which cost you loads more to make it, by the way) and not even giving it some decent software at launch is little short of insane (either that or their ego far too inflated).
Obviously, this was extremely risky on Sony's part. The result (no surprise), they're now beginning to lose profits. Just what do you do to fix that? I'm sure it did cost Sony an arm and a leg to make the PS3, but the only way they're going to be able to sell it to the masses is to lower the price to something more reasonable; a scenario in which they may only break even--or possibly even lose money--on every PS3 they sell... A situation they were asking for, IMO.
In yet another sleazy marketing move, the BluRay DVD group (led by Sony of course) is claiming that BluRay DVD sales are outpacing HD-DVD by a 2-1 margin. What they conveniently forget to mention is that the margin quoted includes the Talladega Nights pack-in DVD which is included for free with every PS3 console. Take that out of the equation and all of a sudden BluRay's sales lead has magically evaporated.
Almost all the advertising done by Sony lately has been sleazy. Look at the "PSP White" ads... Apparently they learned their lesson, but have only learned to be more sly about it. Using dodgy sales information to market their products is only serving to draw attention to what's going on.
Honestly, I really liked the old Sony. For Christmas '06, I got a PS2 ($129 was a good deal) and about a dozen great games for it (stuff like Final Fantasy XII and Gran Turismo 4 ). It's quite a fantastic console. It's just that Sony still had most of its sanity when the PS2 was being marketed... It's not the same company anymore. I think Sony's biggest problem is that they trust the fanboys to buy anything and everything they churn out, regardless of price. So unless the fanboys rush in to save the day, I see another Atari meltdown on the horizon...
Does anyone know anything about the ps3's version of xbox live?
I don't have a PS3 but this is what I do know based on what I've read:
- Playing online is free
- Sony has an online store for downloading demos and games (some are free, some cost money).
- There is a rudimentary friends list, though it's not as advanced as what's available on Xbox Live.
- How you connect online and interact with other players is game dependent. In other words, there is no common interface that I'm aware of for inviting friends to play; it has to be coded on a game by game basis and as such will probably vary from game to game.
Overall, I think Xbox Live's online strategy is more well thought out and consistent from game to game at this point in time.
NightshooterIn bed with SolitairePosts: 2,917MI6 Agent
Wouldn't make any difference to me. It's hardly as if You won't be able to buy it seperately. Can't be arsed waiting for it and the price sounds like it's going to be ridiculous, as is everything in this country but this more so.
NightshooterIn bed with SolitairePosts: 2,917MI6 Agent
Good point, isn't the PS3 supposed to cost $800 USD in Europe? Ridiculous.
Considering you can pick up dvd players for £9 now. I'm sure the prices of the Blu-Ray/HD-DVD players will drop dramatically not long after their release.
NightshooterIn bed with SolitairePosts: 2,917MI6 Agent
Perhaps, but right now the cheapest one is something like $500.
Eh, the PS3 will be out of trouble by the end of march if not sooner. aid is coming via Virtua Fighter (and its cult following) as well as the excellent NBA Street 07 which was a big suprise. Plus, by the end of March Oblivion and F.E.A.R. will be here. Plus, I dont think it started off so bad (in the games) so I have a bit of faith in good ol' sony.
Eh, the PS3 will be out of trouble by the end of march if not sooner. aid is coming via Virtua Fighter (and its cult following) as well as the excellent NBA Street 07 which was a big suprise. Plus, by the end of March Oblivion and F.E.A.R. will be here. Plus, I dont think it started off so bad (in the games) so I have a bit of faith in good ol' sony.
Virtua Fighter is going to be on 360 as well. And all those other games you've listed HAVE been on the 360 for months. Sony needs some Resistance like exclusives, and FAST.
Eh, the PS3 will be out of trouble by the end of march if not sooner. aid is coming via Virtua Fighter (and its cult following) as well as the excellent NBA Street 07 which was a big suprise. Plus, by the end of March Oblivion and F.E.A.R. will be here. Plus, I dont think it started off so bad (in the games) so I have a bit of faith in good ol' sony.
Virtua Fighter is going to be on 360 as well. And all those other games you've listed HAVE been on the 360 for months. Sony needs some Resistance like exclusives, and FAST.
What Nightshooter said. Sorry 0064, but Sony is very late to the party with a lot of those titles. Oblivion was available for the 360 back in March of 2006 and Fear since the late fall. As for VF5, it's big in Japan but has always been something of a niche title here in America. Still very little precious exclusive content, though I admit that I am very curious about Sony's Formula 1 game for the PS3; that's one exclusive that does have my attention.
BTW, I was reading that due to memory constraints, the PS3 version of Oblivion won't be able to hold all the add-on quests and other content in memory at the same time as the 360 can. So, you'll be forced to pick and choose which parts of the world you want to explore, rather than having it all open at once.
Comments
Last night as I was driving to get some dinner, I passed a Circuit City and Best Buy; there were about 10 people camped out in front of each store, some had actually erected tents! A lot of people seem to think that most of these early buyers are either Sony fanboys who must have the PS3 no matter what or speculators who hope to make a quick buck by selling it at vastly inflated prices on Ebay. So far, the attach rate for the PS3 (ratio of hardware to software purchases) has been a paltry .98; that means that many people are buying the console but no games; further evidence that they're hoping to cash in by selling it on the secondary market. It's pretty much a foregone conclusion that this initial allottment of PS3's will sell out. It remains to be seen if the console will have a real mass market appeal after the initial frenzy.
Personally, all the technical glitches and gotchas that have surfaced over the past week have really soured me on the console. There seem to be a lot of issues with the hardware and the initial iteration of the operating system. According to a review at CNN, the first thing the PS3 tries to do when first powered up is get onto the internet and download a bunch of patches and updates. I won't even entertain the prospect of buying one until next summer at the earliest. Hopefully by then, the manufacturing process will be smoother, the OS will be more stable, all the reported bugs will be addressed, and most importantly, there will be more games actually worth buying.
Going to work this morning, I glanced over and the small crowd had swelled considerably. Wow.
Batman: "The Hammer Of Justice is UNISEX!"
-Batman: The Brave & The Bold -
There was also a playable demo to the Motorstorm game. It looked good, though honestly not as good as some 360 games, and I found the control to be a bit on the clunky and unresponsive side. It certainly didn't look much like the Motorstorm tech demo that was shown last year.
This also has to be the ugliest console I've ever seen; in person it looks like a cross between a miniature grand piano and the Fleetcenter in Boston. Butt ugly if you ask me.
I'm more convinced than ever that I was right to wait on the PS3; I'll check it out again next summer to see if any real worthwhile software is available but until then it's hands off for me.
http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20061208/tc_nm/sony_ps3_bluray_dc
I agree. People tend to get overly-excited as if there are rations on these as if the fate of the world depends on a purchase.
Although I do have to give kudos to the fifteen year old kid in NYC that was reported to have sold his spot in line for $1500.00 to someone further back. Can't argue with that...
Batman: "The Hammer Of Justice is UNISEX!"
-Batman: The Brave & The Bold -
I'd welcome a price cut; it would definitely get me to take a second look at the PS3. But from Sony's perspective, a price cut so early after launch looks to be a lose-lose situation. They lose more money per console since they cost so much to make and, possibly even more importantly, they run the risk of being perceived as desperate since they've changed their strategy so soon after the console's launch.
Still, it's looking more and more like Sony really miscalculated the PS3's launch and the high price and lack of exclusive games has really bit them hard.
http://www.gamasutra.com/php-bin/news_index.php?story=12622
And 0064, here's an article on Mercenaries 2 just for you. Of interest, the informational blurb on the right lists it as coming out for the 360 as well. Looks like EA has signed on to distribute the game and they're very console agnostic. Given the PS3's ongoing sales problems I'm sure they're pushing hard for a multi-console release.
http://ps3.ign.com/articles/760/760718p1.html
As for the PS3's drop of price, it warrants a second look for me too...
I just knew those two articles would get you back on the fence. :v {:)
So soon, Sony? But you were so sure there wouldn't be a price cut when GameInformer interviewed you... I have the February '07 issue right here. Jack Tretton, President of SCEA, commenting about the eBay scalpers said "Our goal is to make sure that every consumer that wants one of our products is able to get one." Basically, he said that by not forcing people and retailers to buy bundled sets of peripherals and whatnot, it's making it easier on the consumer... While also allowing scalpers into the array. But he said that with people wanting to buy them even at grossly inflated prices, it's only a "testament to the value of the PS3." Although I don't see how "every consumer" can possibly get one at such ridiculous prices, anyway...
More importantly though, he also cites value for your money. He said that the development on the PS1 paled in comparison to the PS2, which in turn pales in comparison to the PS3. To quote him,
The interviewer went on to ask Tretton: "So, we shouldn't expect the price drops to be as soon or as drastic as they were for the PS2?" His answer was simply "No." In a final note, he said "I think it's meaningless to say 'You guys are in third place in America now' on a platform that is thirty-one days old."
I'd say it looks like you're already eating your own words, Mr. Tretton.
I'd read somewhere that Sony's game division lost something like $1.6 billion for their last fiscal year. Obviously a lot of that is due to R&D, manufacturing, and selling the PS3 at such a high loss. Still when the losses are that bad they have to do something.
Sony also hasn't helped the situation by once again failing to release any software once the system has debuted. You'd think they'd learn after all the backlash about no new games for months after the PS1, PS2 and PSP launches. But since December 12 there has only been one new game - the utterly lackluster Sonic The Hedgehog 3, which is also readily available for just about every other console - and the next PS3 game isn't scheduled to be released until February 20 (assuming it isn't delayed). What that does is essentially turn the PS3 into a fulltime BluRay player; too bad most people who bought a PS3 don't even have an HDTV that takes advantage of the high def format.
In yet another sleazy marketing move, the BluRay DVD group (led by Sony of course) is claiming that BluRay DVD sales are outpacing HD-DVD by a 2-1 margin. What they conveniently forget to mention is that the margin quoted includes the Talladega Nights pack-in DVD which is included for free with every PS3 console. Take that out of the equation and all of a sudden BluRay's sales lead has magically evaporated.
Thanks for the welcome back, Tony! Good to be back, mate! B-)
Yes, they do have to do something... The question is what? I mean, charging a ludicrous price for something, mostly for extra technology that few can take advantage of (which cost you loads more to make it, by the way) and not even giving it some decent software at launch is little short of insane (either that or their ego far too inflated).
Obviously, this was extremely risky on Sony's part. The result (no surprise), they're now beginning to lose profits. Just what do you do to fix that? I'm sure it did cost Sony an arm and a leg to make the PS3, but the only way they're going to be able to sell it to the masses is to lower the price to something more reasonable; a scenario in which they may only break even--or possibly even lose money--on every PS3 they sell... A situation they were asking for, IMO.
Almost all the advertising done by Sony lately has been sleazy. Look at the "PSP White" ads... Apparently they learned their lesson, but have only learned to be more sly about it. Using dodgy sales information to market their products is only serving to draw attention to what's going on.
Honestly, I really liked the old Sony. For Christmas '06, I got a PS2 ($129 was a good deal) and about a dozen great games for it (stuff like Final Fantasy XII and Gran Turismo 4
www.scottacademymartialarts.co.uk
I don't have a PS3 but this is what I do know based on what I've read:
- Playing online is free
- Sony has an online store for downloading demos and games (some are free, some cost money).
- There is a rudimentary friends list, though it's not as advanced as what's available on Xbox Live.
- How you connect online and interact with other players is game dependent. In other words, there is no common interface that I'm aware of for inviting friends to play; it has to be coded on a game by game basis and as such will probably vary from game to game.
Overall, I think Xbox Live's online strategy is more well thought out and consistent from game to game at this point in time.
http://commanderbond.net/components/quicknews/index.php?action=item&item=39317
Why must you be so tempting?
If Blu Ray ends up winning the format war, perhaps that would be the time to get a PS3.
Virtua Fighter is going to be on 360 as well. And all those other games you've listed HAVE been on the 360 for months. Sony needs some Resistance like exclusives, and FAST.
What Nightshooter said. Sorry 0064, but Sony is very late to the party with a lot of those titles. Oblivion was available for the 360 back in March of 2006 and Fear since the late fall. As for VF5, it's big in Japan but has always been something of a niche title here in America. Still very little precious exclusive content, though I admit that I am very curious about Sony's Formula 1 game for the PS3; that's one exclusive that does have my attention.
BTW, I was reading that due to memory constraints, the PS3 version of Oblivion won't be able to hold all the add-on quests and other content in memory at the same time as the 360 can. So, you'll be forced to pick and choose which parts of the world you want to explore, rather than having it all open at once.