Sony calls out Xbox and Wii as flea market peddlers

Finally, we're seeing a bit of a fight from the Sony PR team in response to the brutal lambasting the PlayStation 3 has been taking for its poor showing against Microsoft's Xbox and Nintendo's Wii, as well as the fact that it costs more to make than it sells for.

Edge Online reports on a Sony press release called "Keeping Gaming and Entertainment Simple," in which the Japanese consumer electronics giant emphasizes out-of-the-box features of the game console:

• Blu-ray functionality
• Built-in Wi-Fi
• Huge hard drives
• Free online gaming
• "Ten years of value with a future-proof system via firmware updates that offer new services and features."

It's good to see Sony finally saying something about the competition, but this is fairly weak stuff--not all that compelling. It's effectively saying, "don't forget about us" instead of showing why the PS3 is a great platform.

From the release:

"The Xbox 360 requires additional money, multiple upgrades, and additional external devices, putting a burden on the wallet, and (it) adds clutter to the entertainment center.

"And the Wii's lack of enhanced features comes at the expense of a comprehensive entertainment solution."

Wow. Harsh stuff! Seriously though, the PS3 is a really good gaming platform. It's pretty bizarre that Sony hasn't figured out a better marketing strategy over the last few months, including reducing the price to gain market momentum.

[erier2003]

Your article says, "after the brutal lambasting the PS3 has been taking for it's poor showing against the Xbox and Wii".

"It's" is a contraction of "it is", not the possessive pronoun you are trying to use.

[Zoe Slocum]

The grammar error has been edited. Thank you.

[SleeStaK911]

I'll just give you my take as a gamer - gave the Wii away, and retired the other consoles to the kid's rooms. Yes, I get the nice sports sedan, too.
When they kiddos can afford the Bravia and PS3, too, more power too them. Of course I want nice things for them. We love playing together as a family.
The PS3 is a masterpiece.

[plbyrd]

I'll just give you my take as a gamer - gave the NES, SNES, Sega Genesis, Atari Flashback and a PC to the kids for their rooms. Yes, I get the four-door pickup and EX version of the Accord, too. When the kiddos can afford their own Vizio and XBOX 360 too, more power too them. In the mean time we have tons of fun playing games as a family such as Assault Heroes, Heavy Weapon, Bomberman Live, Carcasonne, Boogie Bunnies, Viva Pinata Part Animals, Surf's Up, Kung Fu Panda, Lego Star Wars, Lego Indiana Jones, Forza 2 Motorsports, and others I cannot think of off the top of my head. We also love to sit and watch one of the thousands of movies available to view from Netflix, many of which are now available in HD. And of course, we can also rent first-run movies from Xbox Live Video Marketplace from one of the most comprehensive selections around.

Oh, and my XBOX 360 Pro cost $299 with a 60GB HD.

[gerrrg]

But the Wii is still more popular with the non-gamer, and that market is a lot larger than the hard-core gamer.

[sparrowhyperion]

I'm sure it's a masterpiece, but like most masterpieces, you need to be very well off to afford one. Which leaves a lot of folks (myself included) out of luck.

[ballssalty]

* Blu-ray functionality - Don't need it
* Built-in Wi-Fi - Don't need it
* Huge hard drives - Really? 80GB if I can recall is smaller than 120GB
* Free online gaming - I get that with my PC too!
* "Ten years of value with a future-proof system via firmware updates that offer new services and features." - 10 years??? HAHA please. No console has had 10 years as the top gen console and this won't either.

[ZetaZeta_]

PS2 is coming close.

[aka_tripleB]

The PS2 wasn't the top selling console for 10 years. The DS and Wii have already knocked the PS2 off that pedestal. That 140 million units sold is a different figure that both Nintendo systems will likely exceed in less time it took the PS2. Besides, you can't claim that the PS3 will have "ten years of value with a future-proof system via firmware updates that offer new services and features." You can't tell that based on two years, and there is no previous data that suggests that that will be true for the PS3.

[sting7k]

All of Sony's points are just trying to cling to anything that can help them.

-Blu-ray - Not everyone wants this yet, it's clear. Movies are still too expensive.
-Built in Wi-Fi - Not everyone wants this and it just drives up the minimum price. Any REAL gamer will tell you, gaming on Wi-Fi even if your sitting 2 inches from the router is never the best option. Why force this on people when I can get a 50 foot ethernet able for $15 and never have to worry about lag or dropping the signal.
-Huge HDD, Ok I will give it to them, you can put in any PC HDD into your PS3, but my 360 elite came with a 120GB HDD that I will say is plenty of room. I still have 80GB+ free space.
-Free online gaming, PSN is boring, no one has mics. Home is the most boring thing I have ever seen, it's just a glorified online version of "The Sims".
-10 years of value, if someone's PS3 doesn't break within 10 years I will be impressed.

[LeggoDiego]

10 years of value, if someone's PS3 doesn't break within 10 years I will be impressed.

If an Xbox 360 last over 1.5 years I'm impressed. I know I'm currently on my 4th one since it's launch. I could have bought 2 PS3's for the money I've rolled into microsoft. I wish I had waited to get the PS3. It's a much better piece of hardware for any HD user. But, like most things in life you get what you pay for. Buy crap, get crap.

I am saving for a PS3. I feel guilty selling the xbox 360 to my freinds with all the problems I've had so the kids can have it till it dies.

[eon-blue]

Blu-ray to expensive? They are six dollars more than a standard dvd for new movies. I use my wi-fi all the time with my ps3 and never lags. Who wants to run a cable through there house just to play online. It is a lot slower to download demos but for that I can take the extra thirty seconds to unplug my modem and hook it up to my ps3.
First you complain about Blu-ray being to expensive then you complain about something that is free? You need to get your thoughts straight and figure out what you are really complaining about. PS3 is said to have a .5% failure rate so I wouldn't be surprised if it did last ten years.

[mattumanu]

I still have and use my original PS2. Got it six months after launch (was on the waiting list that long).

[roachbrain]

To sting7k,

-Blu-ray- is flat out awesome, don't knock it if you can't afford it. I can't afford a personal jet, but that doesn't mean it's not awesome.
Built in wifi- not everyone wants it? And not everyone wants another cord running needlessly threw there living room. . Real gamer? I've been playing since Atari so has all my brothers, and we all have ps3 with no connection problems using our wi-fi. Again don't knock it because you can't afford it.
Huge HDD- it sure does and you don't have to get an elite version to get it.
Free online gaming- does exactly what live does (allow you to play other players) without having to pay $50 bucks.
10 year of value- if someone's Xbox doesn't break within the first 3 months I would be impressed.

When it comes down to it Xbox, pro, elite, whatever will never add up to the value and just plane quality ps3 offers.

[goliath3021]

I wouldn't go so far as to call it a "masterpiece" but then again Im not a ps3 fanboy either...it's a nice system if you like it. My brother in law got one this past Christmas, and I went over to check it out. I didn't get a chance to check out the blue ray aspect of it...but then again...I dont use gaming consoles to watch movies...i play games...so gaming wise...for me it's about the same as the xbox...grafix are nice..no big difference...I guess what we checked out the most was the new HOME network, and here is where my dislike came in. The "free" network is not necessarily a good thing, after a couple of minutes of walking around the Far Cry 2 bar that you can download as a "socializing" place some random kid ( i'd imagine ) for no apperant reason started sending messages for him to leave the bar or he was going ...and I quote "brick his S%@T....im a hacker. ) he went ranting on for a couple of messages that he claimed to know how to get his IP address and could essentially leave his PS3 unusable. Know I dont know all the validity in that statement, but just the fact that he just got the PS3 he was a bit upset that for no apperent reason this little troll was making threats. The Sony network is not managed from what I understand. There is no accountability and though there is a function to report abuse...all someone has to do is delete that account and create a new one using a different email address. There in lies the problem. Yes there are plenty of little trolls on the LIVE network..but being that it's a managed network, that type of threat would be quickly resolved with a report and the LIVE network has the ability of BANNING that console's MAC address from connecting to the LIVE network. Additionally LIVE has "ZONES' which is basically a rating system for the type of gamer you are...which puts even more control on this sort of behaviour. Harsh language and verbal abuse is more accepted in, lets say the Underground or Hardcore zone, than it would be in the Family zone. So any report of abusive language in the Family zone is supposed to be reacted on more quickly and harshly than lets say the Underground zone, though any type of abusive language is not supposed to be tolerated in any of the zones, where instead of getting banned perminently , you might lose your priviliges for a day or a week.

I personally think this was a poor strategy on Sony's part, this late in the race, using playground tactics to try to boost their image. Im sure the PS3 has plenty of good qualities they could have used to boost their sales. I'm glad that Sony is a Japanese owned though...because with all the money they are losing with each one they make...they'd be next in line at Congress' door asking for a bailout.

Happy New Year everyone.

[goliath3021]

One last thing....a 12 month subscription is $49.99....that comes out to $4.16 a month, i really dont think that is a burden on the wallet.

[zackphan]

Amazon and Buy.com often sells 13 month subscriptions of live for $39.99. I know I recently bought one. That's even then the retail price making it only $3.07 a month. =)

[zackphan]

I meant to say " that is even BETTER THAN retail price."

[goliath3021]

Thanks Zack...i did not know this.

[TravisOwens]

As far as the needs of console gamers, I'd hardly call the 360's 60GB hard drive small. And how many PS3 owners actually play on a HDTV? The serious ones do, but I wouldn't be surprised if 1/3rd of them don't own a HDTV today and I'm betting 3/4 of them didn't at lunch, the Blu-Ray drive isn't a bragging point by Sony, it was a market take-over attempt over HD-DVD and the consumers had to foot the bill (assume at least $100 of the price tag is because of the Blu-Ray drive).

[celticbrewer]

I had my HDTV maybe a year or so before my PS3. Then I waited until the format was was over and BR won until I got a PS3. I love watching BR movies on it and yes, my xbox friends are jealous. They say Netflix has no selection and their HD is mediocre at best. (I'm a netflix user myself for 3+ years and have yet to stream anything because hardly anything _good_ is available on demand).

[Magallanes]

xbox360 :funny (mainly because the live features, videos, game online, achievement and such).
wii with the innovative control :funny.
ps3... unfunny, ps3 users played a couple of blu-disk, then motorstorm, then metal gear, then little big planet and that's it!

the quality of a console is proportional to the quality (amusement level) of the games for such console, ps3 in this aspect is losing the battle.

[Sgr76]

I find it amusing how Sony accuses Microsoft of "putting a burden on the wallet and adding clutter to the entertainment center"

This coming from a company that killed backwards compatibility and left all of those PS2 users who want to play PS3 stuck with 2 systems. Now these people have to either scramble to find someone willing to part with a BC system or filling up their entertainment center with multiple consoles (Yeah thanks Sony).

I like all the systems but i think they all have their place and unfortunately, Sony has not been doing everything they can to make the PS3 appeal to the consumers. There is one monster of a thread growing everyday at the Sony forums about backwards compatibility and Sony continues to pretend it isn't there. The consumers have spoken Sony, if you want your console to reach it's potential you might wanna start listening.

[ndm72]

And XBOX360 is backwards compatible? Good point. Who killed what again?

[JimCorbin]

It's like in every high school movie ever, when the guy decides he'd rather go for the smart/funny slightly nerdy and less attractive chick over the dumb blond prom queen. And then the prom queen starts freaking out and screaming "WHAT ABOUT ME?! I HAVE BIG BOOBS!!!"

[roachbrain]

Only the Xbox would have to be the toothless hooker with and ethernet wire coming out her butt and a $100 HDD shoved in her mouth. Then her eyes flash red and she will leave you for a few weeks until you pay her to come back.

[bootchmagoo]

The big boob comment is pretty funny.

As a gamer who has experience with both systems, here's my take.

The 360 has a number of great games and the LIVE network is great as well. However, the PS3 is getting more exclusive titles, and some that have been exclusive to the 360 will not be much longer (e.g. Halo, Bioshock). If you look at what's available now, there are more choices for the 360 but I think the PS3 is catching up. As for PSN vs. LIVE, LIVE is currently better, however they have begun to implement an achievement with many PS3 games and as I understand it, this is to become a standard feature on all game very soon.

As for gaming on HDTVs... Everyone I know with a PS3 plays on an HDTV. Everyone. No exceptions. They all also have dolby digital speaker systems connected as well. This includes me. I am very happy with the BluRay drive as well. It made it easier to sell my wife on buying the system.

I game on WIFi and never experience problems. It's a good thing... my wife would not let me have a 50 ft ethernet cable laying on the floor.

I bought an 80GB model a few months ago and wish I had held out for the 160. I use my machine to hold music and movies as well and that can take up space. I guess I can connect an external drive to the PS3 if I need to.

Technically, the PS3 is a far superior machine and it has the capability to do things the Wii and 360 cannot do. Unfortunately, this comes with a slightly higher price tag. As someone said above, every system has its place. Some will never need all the features the machine offers and others will use them all. I think the initial price tag is high but for those who pay for it, you find that it is worth it.

[celticbrewer]

These days "Exclusive" means that a game will come out on one system for maybe 3 months, and then you'll see it come out for the other two systems. Neither PS3 nor XBox are immune to that, but Sony seems to hold on to exclusives a tiny bit better than MS.

Bootch, why use an external drive when it's so easy to replace the internal drive? I only have a 40gig and I still have a lot of space left, but I thought about popping in a 200 gig just for the hell of it.

[Bobboman_2000]

I want to point out that Halo is a Microsoft Owned Franchise(not bungie) and will never show up on the playstation 3

[Inconnux]

PS3 is just too expensive. That's why they are losing badly in this generation of consoles.
I consider myself a 'hardcore' gamer (and have been since pong!) and I love the Wii. Not a day goes
by without it being fired up in the house. I have also considered an Xbox360 but the RROD issue needs to be solved first. I don't need (or want) bluray until the price of movies comes down to DVD levels. The Wii controller is also amazing, one of the main reasons I don't use other consoles is the poorly designed controller. Sony has lost this generation console 'wars'... kinda reminds me of Sega.

[goliath3021]

I think for the most part the RROD has been solved with the new consoles...but then there is always those couple that still might get it, in which case M$ has extended the warranty for 3 years on systems from date of purchase. I was one of the unfortunates that got one of the first models and had to send in my system 3 times, but fortunately I never had to pay to get it sent or repaired/replaced. I got the Elite model last year and have never had a problem with it...and its much quieter than the original model.

[NITEPERSON333]

I love to see how much the ps3 hatters leave there comments ...its pretty sad to see xbox fans cry about how good there console is..I own a ps3 and a Wii and find myself playing the ps3 way more than anything else....so hate on xboxfans or should I say ,hatters!!!!!!!

[roachbrain]

Xbox owners hate what they can?t afford and support what they have to settle with.

[superdynamite]

XBox360 has been a financial burdon within the gaming comunity. With all it's overhauls, reissues and functionality issues, XBox360 has cost the consumer much more than 1 single PS3 purchase. It is nothing more than a bargan basement console with decade old technology. Now Microsoft is running a fire-sale to make room for yet another model of XBox (Full HD XBox720 Q4 2009).

Fanyboys will argue the 360 point until they're blue in the face but they are only trying to justify their purchase.

I took this picture at a Best Buy in New York a few days before Christmas:
http://www.thebombband.com/images/bestbuyod.jpg

Enough said!

[goliath3021]

Let me guess Super...ur a PS3 fanboy???
I'm not going to critisize you if you perfer the PS3...hey...it's your choice...but can you tell me that not one PS3 console has had a problem? I dont know about anyone else, but other than paying for the console, games and the LIVE service, I dont feel it has been a financial burden to me. Yeah...when my console red ringed on me ...i got angry and cursed the M$ gods...but I got it replaced at no charge, that same day after getting off the phone to get the box sent out to me, I called again for the LIVE service and informed them that my system had red ringed and would not be able to use LIVE until I got it replaced. The person gave me a refrence number and they ended up crediting me two weeks to my LIVE service after I got my console back...so...I cant realy agree with you that it has been a burdon.

[baytesebs]

The picture you posted is a video cable problem, not a RROD, the RROD has three red lights!!!

[superdynamiteblowsdonkeys]

What a retard.... I mean fanboy, this guy has been posting on multiple sites for the past two weeks on how he has pictures of rrod 360's, then he posts a picture of this supposed rrod... and its one of an xbox with a cable unhooked, you think with all the time he spend s on the internet he could research what rrod is, but instead he shows the world how much of an ill informed garbage spouting fanboy he really is

Enough said!

[tkspyder]

It is interesting to read all the comments people leave about their likes/dislikes on each console (i.e. "I don't need blu-ray", or "my console has better exclusive games, etc). It's obvious that if a console could be made to meet EVERYONE'S desires, that console would win the "war". Fortunately, we are all unique individuals with different opinions.
Wii/PS3/Xbox360 all have their pros & cons. My suggestion is buy the one that fits your lifestyle best. You may be OK with simple games/activities the Wii provide; you may be into Hi-Def state-of-art gaming, or downloading new content the Xbox360 & PS3 can give.
I wanted to get the most out of my HDTV, so my choice was the PS3. I could get the most out of eye-popping clarity and selection of movies that only Blu-ray currently provides, combined with the ability to interact online (wireless and for free) and enjoy intense action gaming on my TV. Do I wish that the price were cheaper? Of course!! But I find the things I enjoy on the PS3 justify the price. I doubt Sony is keeping the high price to screw us. I hear they are losing money on every console they sell. And yes, I also considered the Wii & Xbox360, which have good features, but PS3 seemed more fitting TO ME. Maybe if I knew I could afford all three consoles I would.
So, if you are interested in giving one of the consoles a try, just go with the one that seems you'll get the most enjoyment out of within your budget.

[matarchy]

I own all three systems and they all have there advantages. But since there is so much xbox bashing I would like to point out a few weak point of the ps3. First of all every time I put in a new game I am stuck for at least ten minutes downloading updates for that game when all i want is to play. At least the xbox when it has to update take at most a minute. Second I like the blu-ray for action movies, but it is slow when loading games, sometimes forcing you to install the game to the hdd. Third if this system is really going to last ten years then they should have included more ram and cache, can you say bottle neck. Finally the ps3 has cost me more money, I do not need wifi as my home has ethernet plug ins right next to the cable jack.

[clsmithj]

It's kinda funny seeing Sony on the receiving in of losing a console race.

They sort of remind me of Sega.

[MUYDURO]

xbox 360... play every day ... XBOX LIVE .. awesome gears of war 2
wii (about 2 month ago it was turn on due to an update )
ps3 boring ( lucky it was given to me i would be upset if i would of pay for it ) home is stupid ...

[Tal_tos]

Similar to you - though I disagree with the boring - depends on game - the store though is not exactly the most interesting - or easy to navigate - even looking at the US store as opposed to the EMEA store - the US one is organised a bit better. EMEA store is just confusing and not structured in a manner that is really scalable.
360 - play depends on current game.
Wii - have not played for 2 mts now
PS3 - play depends on game - though I really do like being able to go straight online with games without having to worry about Silver/Gold membership nonsense - plus love all the other features - BluRay.

Home though - uninstalled this after 10 minutes of looking at it - talk about underwhelming. Might give it another look in a few months.

[mattumanu]

I've got three words that would make the PS3 instantly into THE machine that everyone wants: Twisted Metal Online.

Problem is, Sony forgot their own history. Here's a list of Game titles Sony should be working on.

Twisted Metal online
Destruction Derby Extreme
Wipeout World Tour

Each of these would be unbeatable as both online games as well as face to face competition. But for some reason Sony has been dropping the ball on this. I don't get their problems with making simple and crazy games. Gimme Crunching metal, bombs and death matches!

Why Sony? Why have you fallen from the faith?

[roachbrain]

Twisted Metal - i just got instant blueballs.

I would love to see Crash Bandicoot, nightmare creatures, syphon filter, onimusha, and this titla was on dream cast but would love to see another part on the ps3) soul reaver.

[Tal_tos]

What about the Legacy of Kain games - still have all the ones from PS1 to PS2 - briliant and ahead of its time.
Not to mention Jak and Daxter - excellent humour.

[roachbrain]

Oh your right Tal-tos, total brain fart on my part. Still i would love a come back with todays graphics for Raziel.

[Jtthegame316]

The 360 has nearly all the best ps 3 games plus its own games that won't go on ps 3. the 360 is cheaper and is all about games. ps 3 seems to be more about movies than gaming.