First of all, I want to commend you on the good posting. It was very well thought out, and went without any outrageous namecalling etc. You deserve kudos for that one! But, I still have a few issues...
The fact that there are hundreds of games in development, 10,000 shipped development kits (which are purchased from Sony) and a plethora of AAA titles arriving in 2007 (in comparison to the 360, which still had AAA titles, but not quite as many). There is no logical way to think Sony will "fail" or that being in 3rd place will effect them in any way shape or form. Especially the software selection. Companies have bought the kits, and they will ship multiplatform games to both the 360 and PS3, since their power is similar, and it's only extra money to be made on both platforms, regardless of place.
Heres the thing though; Having 10,000 dev kits on the market doesn't mean anything, it just signifies that there are people who want to make games for the PS3. Maybe 3K of those went EA, maybe 2K to Ubisoft, etc and that may even include dev kits that went to Sony's companies themselves.
Beyond that, even if that meant that there are several hundred games in the works, that doesn't make them good in any way either. I would dare to say that atleast 35% of the titles that were on the PS2 were indeed sub-par, many companies looking to cash-in a licence or just to make a quick buck. Big Motha Truckas? Starsky and Hutch? NHRA Drag Racing? Yeah...
As for the AAA title selection, everyone mentions it, but I have failed to see what is going to be really great beyond Resistance at launch. Most of the other title's arrivals have yet to be announced offically, but most rational people could see them comming no earlier than the spring of 2007 or the later fall gaming season in time for the one-year anniversary of the PS3.
Granted, I'm not going to deny titles like MGS4, RE5, and Tekken 6... But the rest of the PS3 lineup looks a bit like the 360s, as most of them are indeed third-party multi-platform titles...
The Xbox was in 3rd place in Japan, and BARELY 2nd in the US and Europe, yet it still got outstanding support.
Yes, completely true. Money speaks louder than words of course, and I'm sure that Microsoft was smart enough to work out some deals for some great titles. That said, many people moved to the Microsoft camp due to the predicted "impossibility" of programing on a PS3, the ease of use with programs like XNA for programing, and the fact that it was launched first.
...But, I'm not from any of these companies, so I can't be completely sure...
Or how about the fact that the PS2 outsold the 360 6 out of it's first 7 months on the market? THat fact alone brings in a lot of profit for Sony, and they only stand to make more as a rumored $30 price cut is on the way for Sony, dropping the PS2 to $99. That will give them PLENTY of financial "play room" to work with, as will large 1st party sales of titles like Socom 4 and God of War 2.
In another ha-ha moment, I believe the DS was outselling the PS2 at the same time, no? Part of it is Microsoft's doing, as there weren't enough 360s to meet demand, much less enough backing of the console on behalf of multiple titles worth having.
The PS2 sales will probably remain fairly "stong" into the life of the PS3, but games will be the big sellers, as I can't think of many people who are going to skip titles like God of War 2. Of course as you say, that equals more money for Sony... But it still isn't enough...
Sony posted a loss I belive over the past two quarters now, mostly due to development of the PS3, the lack of UMD support, and now the whole laptop battery situation that has caused a few problems as well. Granted Sony will eventually make money on the PS3, but I belive that given the current situation with low Cell Processor Yeilds, poor laser reader yeilds, and the 500K launch setup... Sony can probably expect another quarter, maybe even 2006 as a whole, to come at a loss to the company.
With that kind of money, Sony will be able to keep the PS3 afloat very easily, and the exclusive games like Tekken, Virtua Fighter, Metal Gear, Devil May Cry, Socom, and Gran Turismo will *ensure* that consoles will sell at the release of each new title to some fan who was waiting to buy the console for "that" game.
Certainly so, but the majority of those titles there aren't due untill 2007... The early life of the PS3 may have the same probelm as the 360, a barren wasteland of "so-so" titles with a few good ones sprinkled here and there. Their flagship titles will sell units later on down the road, there isn't any questioning that, but even then, Microsoft and Nintendo have their flagship titles on the horizon as well...
So, yes, crying over who is best is still ridiculous. Fact is, it's not going to effect anything this generation. Sony and MS will be very close, and Nintendo is in a completely different market this go 'round.
It is silly to argue over whos number one per-se, but one cannot argue against the importance of being number one. In this race, Sony has everything to lose, Microsoft and Nintendo having everything to gain. The cards have been dealt, and it will only be a matter of time (probably 5-6 years down the road) that a winner can be declared.
Will it be the over-teched LS460 (PS3)? The Cadillac STS that can suit multiple tastes (360)? Or will it be the entry-level RL/Legend (Wii)?
) is not really something you could compare with triple core power HD Xbox360...
