hardcastlemccormick
Banned
Don't think I support Sony here, I don't support any of the big three pulling shit like this and I don't appreciate that they are using accessories or bundles to keep the price high. 6 years into the PS2 life cycle, it was down to $99 I think and similar for the Gamecube. This gen has just been full of what I consider to be anti-consumer BS.
It's interesting to watch this generation because the prices started out so much higher, even when the companies were taking losses. I think they intended to sweep the market like the PS2 did, but even with Sony's early PS3 mistakes, that didn't happen. This resulted in a lot of conservatism when it came to the price. If Sony can throw in a piece of software they already made a profit on, they'll do it to avoid dropping the price.
It's also notable that nobody really knows where the ceiling is for the HD consoles - the Xbox 360 is doing fantastically, and the PS3 trucking along better than it ever did. Dropping too fast could lose them sales.
I agree that it is largely anti-consumer behavior, but considering the losses Microsoft and Sony incurred from this generation, it's pretty reasonable from their perspective and almost necessary to fund another round.