End of the Road for Sony?

Sai-kun · Posted: Tue Mar 27, 2007 3:26 pm Post subject: End of the Road for Sony?

Hm. Interesting topic ahoy!

Anyways, we all know that Sony over has been a bit down in the dumps. What with the bad PR [*coughPhilHarrisonneedstostfucough*] and seemingly lackluster line of games [save Resistance! :O], and the loss of exclusives [DMC4], I'm just wondering what other people think:

Is Sony really headed towards Sega-land? Or will Snake save them?

Also, what about exclusives? A lot of people *I* know think that MGS4 and FFXIII will save Sony, assuming that FFXIII stays exclusive to the PS3. I don't disagree with that at all. In fact, I would consider getting a PS3 for MGS4. However, the one problem is further down the road: 2008 and beyond.

Sony claims that the PS3 is "future-proof" meaning further iterations wouldn't be necessary, due to patching and whatnot.

Well.."future-proof" or not, if Sony runs out of ammo after MGS4, they're screwed no matter what, IMO. o.o While the Wii will have all sorts of "crap" coming out for years, and the 360 will continue to feed off of Oblivion, Forza, Halo, Gears, and PGR/Burnout, the PS3 will be all by its lonesome. D: It's terribly quiet, black, and dust-absorbing lonesome.

Soo...yeah. Discuss! D:

Oh and ibmindlesssonybashingforfivehundredninetynineusdollarsprice.
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CFZero.Exe · Posted: Tue Mar 27, 2007 5:02 pm Post subject:

Sony may have crashed and burned t the moment with the bombing that was the PS3 (If any of you say they are impossible to find, you may want to call a few best buys in New York because they have them) but I doubt Sony is done, they have numerous franchises that have been theirs alone. Final Fantasy (Square-Enix seems to be taking over to Nintendo) Kingdom Hearts (Many in the fanbase want ports of 1 & 2 on Wii and 3 to be on Wii) plus stuff like grand theft auto and above mentioned DMC and MGS. If Sony falls out of the consoles wars, they wont become Sega yet, they will go for the handheld wars. The PSP is a decent piece of hardware so Im sur ethey will improove on it. Do I hear maybe a PSP2?

Unknown Neo · Posted: Tue Mar 27, 2007 5:24 pm Post subject:

I doubt they can win the handheld but they're not gone yet. They just need to get MS back. Get their exclusives. Whatever they are.

Sai-kun · Posted: Tue Mar 27, 2007 5:46 pm Post subject:

Rock Miyabi · Posted: Tue Mar 27, 2007 7:14 pm Post subject:

Ah, Sai, you wacky servant of Bill Gates...

So you're saying that after, let's see...5 months or so after PS3 released in the US...that Sony, which technically is still the console leader, is about to disappear from the gaming industry? Since when is the first year of a system filled with the most outstanding must have titles!?

Well, to counter your statement about Sony being really in the dumps, PS3 has actually helped put Blu Ray ahead of HD in terms of sales according to results last month. And that is one battle they desperately want to win. Yes, DMC losing it's exclusivity is a blow, but in many ways, you could have seen it coming. After all, Capcom's relationship with Microsoft has been pretty good recently. Is it a major blow when it's still on PS3? To me, not that major. But yes, it is a blow.

FFXIII has two versions for sure (I think there's a handheld or something too), no doubt that will be the biggest seller for the system for sure. MG4 probably will do well, but not to the extent of FF that it "saves" the system. We all know that KHIII is probably the "mystery Disney project" that will be officially announced soon, plus God of War III was somewhat leaked already too. Eh, we're in a different era. Exclusive titles are slowly becoming a thing of the past. Not that they'll totally disappear, that would be too much of a blow to the competition. It's better for gamers that there aren't as many exclusives, just not as good for the big three themselves, necessarily.

And it depends on the gamer, too. There are always people who are devoted to a single system. And not everyone likes FF, MGS, GoW, etc. You give your list of the X-Box hits and I have no interest in playing a single one of them. Me personally, I'd call those titles lackluster. So to think that Sony is done right now, after this short of time and with how different they are as a corporation compared to Sega, I'd doubt it. They obviously need an earlier-than-normal price drop to get a lot of the younger gamers and most parents in their favor, more than they need to worry about future titles right now. But then again, most parents would be more likely to get their kids a Wii than an X-Box. Wink

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AngelfanA16 · Posted: Tue Mar 27, 2007 7:55 pm Post subject:

I think Sony is done in terms of games. They are done, unless MGS 4 and KH3 come out within the next year. I don't see KH3 coming out that soon though. I don't see Sony making a recovery. They should just stick with the ps2.
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HeatShadow · Posted: Tue Mar 27, 2007 7:57 pm Post subject:

Well, since we've had someone from the Microsoft camp and someone from the Sony camp (er, sort of) throw their two cents into the ring, how about someone from the Wii camp?

Would it be awesome if Sony bombed? Why, yes, it would. Is it going to happen soon, if at all? Probably not. Sony's been around for quite awhile, and has its hands in a dozen markets, from gaming to gadgets to home electronics to movies. It uses all those markets to keep itself afloat through a crisis; if it gets its ass handed to it in the gaming market like with the PS3, it still has the income from those other markets to keep it alive and kicking. They've already shown that they place a high value on the gaming market, and they're not going to let themselves be booted out with a fight. Wait until you see Sony bombing with gadgets and Blu-ray movies too, then we can talk about Sony's funeral.

Oh yeah, and don't even consider the handheld market a factor. The PSP had some nice "oo wow" stuff going for it at first, but for quite a long time now, the DS has just flat-out been better. Maybe if the PSP2 ends up being better than the PSP1 by a factor of ten thousand then they'll have a fighting chance. But Sony's definitely learned what so many other competitors have learned before; you don't mess with Nintendo over handhelds. They've got that down to a science.
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NetOperator Wibby · Posted: Tue Mar 27, 2007 8:09 pm Post subject:

**Izumi** · Posted: Tue Mar 27, 2007 8:22 pm Post subject:

Anyone who thinks that a minor loss like the PS3 could sink Sony, is seriously kidding themselves. They don't just "have their hands" in many markets, they MADE the markets. They evolve with the product demand and it's going to keep them going.

Do I wish they'd get out of the console race? Very much yes. It's not very likely, though. And will they take any serious damage if the PS3 goes the way of the Dreamcast? Probably not.
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Rock Miyabi · Posted: Tue Mar 27, 2007 11:26 pm Post subject:

**Sol** · Posted: Wed Mar 28, 2007 12:18 am Post subject:

The problem here is that Sony made a very large oversight in how far gamers are willing to go to buy consoles. Games do make the system, but what if that system is too expensive?

I think developers are going multiplatform because of the large amounts of money they have to pour into making games, or more specifically, the graphics. With an engine like the PS3's, of course it's going to cost big bucks just to develop the games, and that comes back as a high price tag for the consumer.

I see developers not going exclusive because they see the PS3 as a bad investment for their company. Not just because of console sales, but because of the ludicrous price they have to pay and not make as much profit if it was on other systems.

From a business perspective, the companies are making the right choice. Who wants to invest money on a console with an uncertain future?

And yes, what Izu said. Even if they pull out of the console business, Sony is still a very strong business. The whole console thing is only a small part of their whole company.

(And from the rumors flying about, it is possible that FFXIII might not be exclusive either, the same with MGS4. Only time will tell, though.)
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XHunter17 · Posted: Wed Mar 28, 2007 12:28 pm Post subject:

Sai-kun · Posted: Wed Mar 28, 2007 6:51 pm Post subject:

XHunter17 · Posted: Wed Mar 28, 2007 7:32 pm Post subject:

Well just to throw my two cents in about the variety of games on the new gen consoles. I hear a lot people say that the XBox360 has a larger selection of quality games on it while the Wii and the PS3 don't.

Well this is one of those "no duh" kind of things because the 360 has been out since November, 2005 and the Wii and PS3 only recently have hit the market back in November of 2006. So with the 360 having a full years head start on the other two consoles, it only makes sense that both the Wii and the PS3 won't have as many games on it as the 360.

Now currently many of us Wii owners are waiting for games like "Super Paper Mario", "Super Smash Bros. Brawl", "Mario Party 8", "Metroid Prime 3 Corruption" and some others.

As a Wii owner right now I understand that the system just came out so as the system gets older the more games we'll have available. So a lot of people need to understand that games will be made for these systems, but they just need to wait because both the PS3 and the Wii are just starting out so their variety games won't be as large as the 360.

Also from my own personal experience with the Wii, I haven't really seen much of a drought when it comes to the games. Just recently I bought Sonic and the Secret Rings and I'm enjoying it along with my other Wii titles. But that of course is based upon my own likes and dislikes in a game, so with every system while some gamers really don't have a interest in the current games coming out for that system, other gamers do.
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Unknown Neo · Posted: Fri Mar 30, 2007 11:10 am Post subject:

X is right. I wouldn't have that problem with the Wii. There is all the games on the VC too.

Rock Miyabi · Posted: Fri Mar 30, 2007 1:50 pm Post subject:

Just messin' with ya, Sai, since you seem to be the resident XBox fan here.

I can't find the article from my paper anymore, since it expired online and the paper itself was recycled a while ago. But here are a couple of recent online articles that sorta illustrate my point about Blu-Ray sales being helped by PS3. (The number in the first article looks more like a total draw. Since this is just sales from 1 week, not a month. If I had that other article, it was a little more impressive than a 1.3% difference over a monthly period.) But like any online news, it's probably just as much filled with biased ideas by people who have to defend their products. Numbers don't lie, but people analyzing them do Laughing

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HeatShadow · Posted: Fri Mar 30, 2007 10:13 pm Post subject:

I'm not going to try to get into the Blu-ray/HD DVD format war, since I have yet to hear anything conclusive either way. In fact, the main format news I hear says that both formats are still trying to find an audience, so it's far too early to call any sort of winner there.

However, I had some interesting thoughts about the two articles that I'd like to share.

The first article makes mention that the number 1 selling movie for either format is Batman Begins, which is only on HD DVD, and the number 2 is available on both formats, but has sold more HD DVD copies. This brings to mind the fact that Soul Calibur II, a game avaliable on all three consoles of the time, sold the most copies for the Gamecube, yet the sequel was a PS2 exclusive. One might argue that in both cases, consumers favored the console that sold the most copies. But with the case of the Soul Calibur series in mind, one can only wonder if the movie formats will follow suit and start leaning more towards the "less favorable" format.

The second article claims that the 360 Elite is proof that Blu-ray will win, and thus that the PS3 will gain new life in response, yet it seems to forget the REAL reason behind Microsoft's decision. Microsoft wants the 360 to be a consumer's multi-media entertainment device. Thus, they're offering multiple add-ons to accommodate the various preferences that consumers might have. The entire reason that the PS3 is failing is that Sony isn't giving consumers a choice at all; buy our $600 Blu-ray using monster...or else. One of the biggest complaints I hear people have for the PS3 is that they wish it didn't use Blu-ray so that it wouldn't cost so much.

Maybe a few years down the road, incredibly massive games that require multiple disks EXCEPT for the versions that use Blu-ray disks will come out, and then people will be interested in the Blu-ray's capabilities. But not right now. Right now, Sony decided to jump the gun and shove Blu-ray down peoples' throats. And right now, they're paying for it.

Oh yes, and I know someone's is going to argue that one of the reasons the Gamecube version of SC II sold more is because of Link. I'm not even going to attempt to handle that arguement, since I have no way of knowing either way how accurate that is.
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R_Forte · Net Savior Joined: 16 Mar 2005 Posts: 148 Location: Home

this whole point of console wars is moot...it is all nintendo's fault...they went to sony way back when to develop and add on to the snes to rival sega cd when sony came back with the cd drive...some idiot president reason we dont need cd we going back to make a 64...sony turned that cd drive into the playstation. The rest is history.

I own a wii and a 360 one reason is that my girl friend complains i play video games too much buy with the wii we can both play something cause i cant get her to play Gears..sad really. But yeah 600 was to much to pay at the time for one piece of hardware with no really good games, I dont have a 1080p so the graphics aint going to be much different that the 360 1080i and I rather play Halo and Smash bros than MGS...DMC coming to 360 is a godsend cause now I really dont have to go get one.

Unknown Neo · Posted: Sun Apr 01, 2007 11:53 am Post subject:

The reason it sold the most on cube is because link fits in better in the cast.
And they have to make a SC3 port for the Wii. Mortal Kombat did it.

HeatShadow · Posted: Mon Apr 02, 2007 10:21 am Post subject:

Well, I'm not gonna say that Sony's dead, but the PS3 was certainly a bust. European launch, anyone?

Article 1
Article 2
Article 3

If the Sony execs are still trash-talking after this and the lack of sales here, than it's hopeless for them.
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