• Hey, guest user. Hope you're enjoying NeoGAF! Have you considered registering for an account? Come join us and add your take to the daily discourse.

Sony says Wii is "more fun" (Australian News)

M

Mar

Member
http://www.smh.com.au/news/games/playstation-better-late-than-never/2006/12/04/1165080869332.html

PS3 better late than never

Sony has brushed aside concerns that, when the PlayStation 3 (PS3) eventually launches in Australia, it will be too late and expensive to compete with the Xbox 360 and Nintendo Wii.

The PS3 was originally slated to launch locally on November 17, but this date has since been pushed back to March next year. Sony cited a "delay in the mass production schedule of the blue laser diode" used in the console's Blu-ray disc drive.

The delay will allow the Nintendo Wii and Microsoft's Xbox 360 a significant head start in the next-generation console wars. Xbox 360 has been on sale for more than seven months now, while the Wii launches at midnight on Wednesday.

But Nic Foster, general manager for Sony Australia & New Zealand, doesn't believe this delay will have a significant impact on the PS3's position in the local market.

"The Wii-type functionality is more just a sub-element of what the PlayStation 3 offers," he said in an interview.

"Wii is a core gaming device. It's a more fun, intuitive sort of product to pick up, where the PS3 is a broader entertainment solution; so you can have your fun, enjoyable gaming ... but then you have a whole suite of other applications ... such as Blu-ray media playback, the ability to access your music, access your photos and the interoperability with the PlayStation Portable.

"Gamers are extremely aware of what they're after and what they want. So gamers will already have a very good understanding of what PlayStation 3 offers versus what Wii offers and many of them will probably have both devices."

Aside from causing production delays, the inclusion of a Blu-ray disc drive in every PS3 has also significantly pushed up the price of the console.

When it eventually launches locally, the PS3 will sell for either $829 or $999, depending on the bundle you choose. The Wii will retail for $399.95, while the Xbox 360 can now be bought for about $650.

Blu-ray is one of two next-generation disc formats competing to be the successor to DVD. HD DVD, the other format, is backed by Sony's chief console rival, Microsoft.

Unlike Sony, Microsoft decided against including a HD DVD drive in all Xbox 360 consoles, instead offering HD DVD as an optional add-on.

This allowed it to have the Xbox 360 on sale well before the Christmas shopping rush, and is also a contributing factor to the lower price of the console.

But Sony doesn't regret bundling Blu-ray by default. Mr Foster said it would "future-proof" the console, and would lead to higher quality games, as Blu-ray discs offered significantly higher capacities for game developers to work with than a standard DVD.

Paul Holman, vice-president of technology at Sony Computer Entertainment Europe, also defended the decision to offer Blu-ray by default.

In an interview in Sydney today he said offering Blu-ray as an add-on, as Microsoft had done with HD DVD and the Xbox 360, would have been dangerous because it meant games developers would not have a single architecture to cater for.

"It's just messy," said Mr Holman, adding that it would be difficult for developers to design games for the PS3 if they had to consider that some gamers wouldn't have purchased a Blu-ray upgrade.

Even if the PS3 is a retail success, it might still be a while before Sony received a decent return on its investment.

The Economist reported recently that Sony would lose money on each PS3 sold for the first few years, until production costs could be reduced.

Sony will instead make its money from fees on every game sold; however, overseas game sales have been lacklustre so far, as many have bought the PS3 as a cheaper alternative to a more expensive, dedicated, Blu-ray player, rather than using it as a games console.

Yet even this approach isn't fool-proof, as those buying the PS3 primarily for its Blu-ray capabilities still have to factor in the cost of the big screen, high-definition television that's required to take full advantage of the format's better quality images.

Fortunately for Sony, the next-generation console wars won't be decided purely based on sales this Christmas. Rather, it will take some time for consumers to embrace the new consoles and for clear leaders to emerge.

Both Mr Holman and Mr Foster were quick to point out that Sony is in it for the long haul, and the long-term benefits of including advanced technologies such as Blu-ray could easily outweigh the short-term price and timing trade-offs.
Click to expand...
 
X

X26

Banned
3bd8ca80.gif
 
B

Bad_Boy

time to take my meds
"Wii is a core gaming device. It's a more fun, intuitive sort of product to pick up, where the PS3 is a broader entertainment solution; so you can have your fun, enjoyable gaming ... but then you have a whole suite of other applications ... such as Blu-ray media playback, the ability to access your music, access your photos and the interoperability with the PlayStation Portable.
Click to expand...
ps3 is a mullet, business in the front, party in the back.
wii is more of an....afro?
 
V

VOOK

We don't know why he keeps buying PAL, either.
Damage Control am Total, Sony need to get there Ninja's onto there Australian staff they just keep making themselves look like fools.
 
A

Arsenal

Member
In other, completely unrelated news, Nic Foster has been "promoted" and no longer works for the game division.
 
P

PantherLotus

Professional Schmuck
Oh Sony.

You know, sometimes no public relations is better than bad PR that continually puts their foot in their mouth. They're even offering access to photos and "interoperablitiy" with the PSP as a selling point over the Wii, when its virtually identical to what the Wii will do with its Photo Channel and DS connectivity.

Sony, why?
 
karasu

karasu

Member
Why do people believe that a major hardware developer just because of one gen in 2nd or 3rd place? Has that ever even happened? :/
 
J

Juice

Member
In before someone claims that no one at Sony should be allowed to talk.

No one at Sony should be allowed to talk.

Edit: Beaten.
 
O

OokieSpookie

Banned
Aside from the really cute and nicely misquoted subject line of this post, I am not seeing where the big deal is in this story.

Sony is saying the same thing that most people have said so far and that is that Wii is a fun pick up and play system where the PS3 is more broad and hardcore.
I think some serious reading lessons are in store for some people in here.
 
T

terrene

Banned
OokieSpookie said:
Aside from the really cute and nicely misquoted subject line of this post, I am not seeing where the big deal is in this story.

Sony is saying the same thing that most people have said so far and that is that Wii is a fun pick up and play system where the PS3 is more broad and hardcore.
I think some serious reading lessons are in store for some people in here.
Click to expand...
Of course that's the intention, but you have to be an idiot to actually use the words "more fun" in succession when talking about the competitor's console.
 
K

krypt0nian

Banned
terrene said:
Of course that's the intention, but you have to be an idiot to actually use the words "more fun" in succession when talking about the competitor's console.
Click to expand...


Exactly. Hell Reggie wouldn't even endorse wii60 on the last ep of Game Head, even though they had a new clip from Peter Moore basically inviting him to do so.
 
B

Bearillusion

Banned
OokieSpookie said:
Aside from the really cute and nicely misquoted subject line of this post, I am not seeing where the big deal is in this story.
Click to expand...

Didn't you know that all casual gamers (read 90% of the market) take notice of these PR chaps? I suppose you thought people in the real world just played games and hadn't ever read a press release mentioning '4d' or 'lucid dreams'.
 
M

Mar

Member
OokieSpookie said:
Aside from the really cute and nicely misquoted subject line of this post, I am not seeing where the big deal is in this story.

Sony is saying the same thing that most people have said so far and that is that Wii is a fun pick up and play system where the PS3 is more broad and hardcore.
I think some serious reading lessons are in store for some people in here.
Click to expand...

Sure the title of the thread is put in a way to cause more sensationalism. But the fact remains, that a guy who is a big wig in Sony said this:

"Wii is a core gaming device. It's a more fun, intuitive sort of product".

No matter how you spin it, it says what it says.

I liken it to one of the EA guys saying on Gamespot that they were going to release more games on the DS than the PSP because "apparantly gamers like fun games". It's like... Well duh.
 
B

Bearillusion

Banned
Martoo said:
I liken it to one of the EA guys saying on Gamespot that they were going to release more games on the DS than the PSP because "apparantly gamers like fun games". It's like... Well duh.
Click to expand...

No it's not. You fail.
 
T

Terrell

Member
You know Sony's PR is going down the crapper when they can't use the word "fun" in context with their console but are easily able to for one of their top competitors who is currently smacking them silly in an equal release timeframe.
 
Haunted

Haunted

Member
That's definitely a sharp turn from the usual trash-talking of Sony execs. Sony's days of arrogance over?

I kid, those two australian Sony-guys are just a bit more level-headed than their US/JP counterparts, it's no big deal. But that thread title will get a good debate going anyway. :D

I predict 4 pages
 
D

DrForester

Kills Photobucket
Wow, next thing you know Sony will be telling us th DS outsells the PSP.

They say the first step is admitting the problem.
 
B

borghe

Loves the Greater Toronto Area
aside from N64 kid who just doesn't quite.... fit.. that photoshop is freaking awesome. will probably be used more frequently than whatever wiiprintsmoney.gif eventually becomes popular.
 
T

Tellaerin

Member
terrene said:
Of course that's the intention, but you have to be an idiot to actually use the words "more fun" in succession when talking about the competitor's console.
Click to expand...

It's pretty obvious that he's saying that the Wii is 'more of a fun, intuitive product to pick up and play with' as opposed to the PS3, not that it was more fun than the PS3. It's just something you pick up and mess around with, not this hardcore gaming/multimedia solution. He definitely could have phrased it better, but the meaning's still clear - at least to readers who aren't looking for fault in everything Sony reps say. :p
 
A

Arsenal

Member
Tellaerin said:
He definitely could have phrased it better, but the meaning's still clear - at least to readers who aren't looking for fault in everything Sony reps say. :p
Click to expand...

Those readers still exist?! *confused*
 
You must log in or register to reply here.

Similar threads

LTTP: Sony PlayStation 3
2
63
3K
Badlucktroll replied
  • Poll
SONY/SIE: The Balance Of Chasing Margins, Multiplat Expansion, And Maximizing The Console
Opinion Business Analysis 2
96
5K
Celcius replied
Rumor : CNBC: Sony to release a PS5 Pro this year
2 3 4 5 6
263
15K
Roronoa Zoro replied
  • Locked
Cyberpunk 2077: Ultimate Edition will not Phantom Liberty included on disc due to Sony's policy
Drama Platform
18
3K
Dr. Wilkinson replied
  • Poll
Why Xbox Abandoning The Traditional Console Business Model, Makes Business Sense
Business Analysis Platform 2
72
5K
WitchHunter replied
Top Bottom