PSP Shipments drop 72%; PS3, PS2 lower as well.

[bapenguin]

Sony recently released their 3Q Financial report. In it was disclosed shipping numbers for Sony's Playstation 3, Playstation 2 and PSP. While the PS3 didn't quite reach it's 2 million shipped goal, and the PS2 sales were down overall 23% from last year, the real shocker is PSP sales which were down an astounding 72% over last year. The PSP shipped 1.76 million units, down by 72% from last year's 6.22 million units.
Source: IGN (http://psp.ign.com/articles/759/759618p1.html).

Ouch. What's surprising is there are a ton of titles available for the PSP now. What do you guys think Sony can do to improve sales?

[Kamalot]

I'm sure they'll make a comeback, especially the PSP. I mean, it does movies and music. It is like an iPod killer! besides, I hear it is going to take handheld gaming out of the gutter.

[Kamalot]

Oh, I almost forgot...

*you guys are Sony bashing*

*Why is this news?*

Whew. All bases covered. :D

[Gorvi]

Not really all that surprising, it's comparing the system's launch year to the year afterward. The PSP hasn't exactly been the runaway success the DS has been.

Also, this is pretty good news for them :
The company expects to stop taking losses on PS3 hardware in the next term, Sony CFO (chief financial officer) Nobuyuki Oneda announced at the financial briefing. One means of doing this will be through smaller chip sizes. The company has already started manufacturing CELL chips using a 65 nanometer process, Japan's IT Media reports.

[kid cabelgo]

Hehe, well I think Kamalot has this covered, but I did want to add the obligatory DS comparison.

I feel bad for the PSP. On its own, it really is a very cool system with a pretty good library, but unfortunately it runs against the DS, which I would venture to say is one of the greatest consoles I've ever owned, handheld or not.

[AntB]

Microsoft could just buy Sony.

[TrackZero]

Oh, I almost forgot...

*you guys are Sony bashing*

*Why is this news?*

Whew. All bases covered. :D

What's great is I predicted the response from you before I even saw the comments. ;)

[TrackZero]

Microsoft could just buy Sony.

They can afford to wait until they drive their value down, buy them on the cheap. ;)

[Heretic Machine]

The PSP had a crappy launch, and that still haunts it to this day. It launched after a Christmas when it's main competition was launched (successfully), so not only did it miss the prime shopping season, it was also late to the game (and was significantly more expensive). It didn't have any particularly strong titles at launch (but then again, neither did it's competitoin), and had absolutely no games announced that seemed like more than cheap, unpolished ports. Because of the initially poor sales and games list, people have assumed that it is a failure with no games. That sort of effect worsens over time.

If they want to salvage the brand they need to have a price drop ($150), and they need to bundle it with a solid title (GTA). Of course, that was something they should of done in November, it is a little late to do that shit now. Sony still doesn't understand that it built it's house on three month old $20 Playstation games at a time when a two year old N64 game would set you back $50. They won that generation because they were cheaper, and now they do nothing but put out products that are too expensive for their original fan base.

[Goronmon]

IMO, Sony killed the PSP at launch by refusing to sell it without the super-overpriced bundle and by making UMDs so damn expensive. Not to mention they were trying to compete with Nintendo in a market where they are less popular and have the device with the higher price.

[Skyelan]

Holy shit. I mean, I knew it wasn't selling up to expectations, but I figured it was at least cruising along the way the GC or Xbox did under the shadow of the PS2...

I mean, sweet momma stringbean, that's an ABYSMAL drop, especially now that they've ditched the laughable movie format and started coming out with good games.

[agentgray]

Ouch. What's surprising there is there are a ton of titles available for the PSP now. What do you guys think Sony can do to improve sales?

PSP Sales:

Lower prices to the $30-$35 range (maybe $40 for AAA titles)
Lower the price of the unit
Make some AAA titles
Stop trying to block emulation
Open the UMD format
Sell UMD movies with DVDs with little to no cost
Get rid of the insulting ads
Go after the casual gamer
Kick Square Enix in the butt and get some games going. Two years in and no good FF of any type yet. Oh, wait, we got a movie...a port of FFVII alone would have an attach rate of 1:1
Easy to use PC software interface like itunes

[Kamalot]

The PSP had a crappy launch, and that still haunts it to this day. It launched after a Christmas when it's main competition was launched (successfully), so not only did it miss the prime shopping season, it was also late to the game (and was significantly more expensive). It didn't have any particularly strong titles at launch (but then again, neither did it's competitoin), and had absolutely no games announced that seemed like more than cheap, unpolished ports. Because of the initially poor sales and games list, people have assumed that it is a failure with no games. That sort of effect worsens over time.

If they want to salvage the brand they need to have a price drop ($150), and they need to bundle it with a solid title (GTA). Of course, that was something they should of done in November, it is a little late to do that shit now.
The situation sounds a lot like another game system that recently launched.

Also, I noticed you said, "salvage the brand" and not 'Salvage the PSP'.

[Returner]

Ouch. What's surprising there is there are a ton of titles available for the PSP now. What do you guys think Sony can do to improve sales?

Come out with better games most the games on the PSP are complete ass.

[Kamalot]

What's great is I predicted the response from you before I even saw the comments. ;)
That's funny, cause this is probably the first time I've said those two things. :D

[Worldcrafter]

Ouch. What's surprising there is there are a ton of titles available for the PSP now. What do you guys think Sony can do to improve sales?
Drop their prices. Plain and simple. Now, if that's going to help increase their profits is a whole other question.

[Kamalot]

Drop their prices. Plain and simple. Now, if that's going to help increase their profits is a whole other question.
Too true.

As far as I know, the PSP has never undergone a price drop. It did undergo an 'unbundling' that removed $50 of fluff from the system at one point. But, AFAIK, the system is still $200.

Everything around the PSP has either dropped in price, or gained features. For example, perhaps the PSP was compriable to an iPod, years ago when it launched (as some would argue). The problem is that today, you can get a whole lot more iPod for your $. The PSP hasn't kept up.

[hideouslywrinkled]

PSP Sales:

Lower prices to the $30-$35 range (maybe $40 for AAA titles)
Lower the price of the unit


I definitely agree with you and Worldcrafter that a price drop is the key. If games are $35 and the system is $150, Sony would move a lot more hardware.

The PSP isn't a back machine, the price-quality trade off just doesn't match up.

[sprankton]

I saved someone from buying a PSP when I gave mine away to my girlfriends brother. The Thing just collected dust, because I couldnt find 1 game that really interested me. Kind of a shame because I was pulling for the PSP more so than the DS.

[Gorvi]

PSP Sales:
Lower prices to the $30-$35 range (maybe $40 for AAA titles)
This is already happening, a lot of games are now launching in the $20-$30 range.
Lower the price of the unit
Yeah, this would definately be a good idea. Drop it down to $150 and pack it with a memory stick that's big enough for game saves, and it'll sell much better.
Make some AAA titles
These have already been coming now.
Stop trying to block emulation
And in doing so they'd lose any publisher support they have. They don't just try to block emulation to be dicks, there's a reason for it.
Open the UMD format
Eh, it's dead for anything other than games now anyway.
Sell UMD movies with DVDs with little to no cost
I think there was an article some time earlier this month that said Sony was considering allowing transfer of BluRay movies over to a memory stick for playback on the PSP. This was only in the planning stages, though, as far as I remember.
Get rid of the insulting ads
Agreed.
Go after the casual gamer
Agreed.
Kick Square Enix in the butt and get some games going. Two years in and no good FF of any type yet. Oh, wait, we got a movie...a port of FFVII alone would have an attach rate of 1:1
These seem to be on the way for this year, thankfully.
Easy to use PC software interface like itunes
There is one. Unfortunately, you have to pay for it. It should come free with the console.

[Deadend]

PSP games are overpriced. There are games that cost $50 for PSP. That is just insane as hardly any PS2 games cost that much anymore.

The system is overpriced. It just does not look like it's worth $200.

[rein]

I saved someone from buying a PSP when I gave mine away to my girlfriends brother. The Thing just collected dust, because I couldnt find 1 game that really interested me. Kind of a shame because I was pulling for the PSP more so than the DS.

If you cannot find a game for the PSP these days then you do not like games. It has plenty of good titles out now. I do not think the problem is about game availability anymore. I think agentgray is dead on. They need to lower the price of the unit and the games. Especially the games.

I didn't hesistate to buy Pirates at $20 from EB. If they would release games in the $20-$35 price range, I would buy several more and be much happier with the PSP.

[Gorvi]

PSP games are overpriced. There are games that cost $50 for PSP. That is just insane as hardly any PS2 games cost that much anymore.

The system is overpriced. It just does not look like it's worth $200.

The only games on the PSP (that I can recall) launching at $50 were the GTA games. I haven't seen a $50 PSP game in quite a long time.

[Heretic Machine]

PSP games are overpriced. There are games that cost $50 for PSP. That is just insane as hardly any PS2 games cost that much anymore.

The system is overpriced. It just does not look like it's worth $200.

Exactly. I mean, I want a PSP, it has some games on it that look really cool to me, and they have more on the way. But I'm not going to pay $200 for it, and then shell out $40-$50 per game, when I could buy a AAA release on the DS for $35.

[Kamalot]

The only games on the PSP (that I can recall) launching at $50 were the GTA games. I haven't seen a $50 PSP game in quite a long time.
And the GTA games eventually end up on the PS2 at a budget price with better controls and sound.

[Gorvi]

And the GTA games eventually end up on the PS2 at a budget price with better controls and sound.

And thus you lose the portability of the games, so what's the point? I bought LCS for $20 (when it became a GH title) and VCS is now $30. Hardly a bad deal if you ask me.

[Zacharai]

The PSP had a crappy launch, and that still haunts it to this day.
I don't know that I would blame it on the launch. The DS's launch was equally weak, and the PSP played movies! I honestly believed that the GTA + Lumines combo punch was going to usher in the period of PSP dominance. Hah!

My ex is borrowing my PlayStation Paperweight, and I doubt I'll ask for it back... ever.

[dimsumx]

Oh, I almost forgot...

*you guys are Sony bashing*

*Why is this news?*

Whew. All bases covered. :D

Kamalot, that might as well be your sig.

[Siraris]

Ouch. What's surprising is there are a ton of titles available for the PSP now. What do you guys think Sony can do to improve sales?

Is this about sales or shipped? You posted about shipped units and the article is about shipped units, and then your tag is about improving sales. Pick one.

[JazGalaxy]

I went to my local pawn shop recently because they had a sign out advertising cheap videogames. They had so many PSPs stacked upside down in the cabinet that I thought they were old remote controls...

[Kamalot]

And thus you lose the portability of the games, so what's the point? I bought LCS for $20 (when it became a GH title) and VCS is now $30. Hardly a bad deal if you ask me.
Therein lies one of the major problems. People typically like console games on consoles, and handheld games on handhelds. Sure, there are some crossover issues, but you'll find that, for the most part, that's true.

If you are going for something simple, a handheld won't let you down. if you want to recreate that big, cinematic experience, you're gonna need a big screen, big sound and real controls, cause a handheld will only end up disappointing.

Sure, you can watch full-length films on your iPod, but really, why? Why not wait till you get home where you can watch them on your wall-sized screen with full surround sound?

I'd say that the PSP prety much proves that the handheld market is not the home console market, and that it requires special consideration when it comes to the design of games.

[Evil Avatar]

Ouch. What's surprising is there are a ton of titles available for the PSP now. What do you guys think Sony can do to improve sales?

Stop showing commercials with hip 20-something's using their memory stick to show pictures and start showing commercials showing off some of the best games.

[Siraris]

I'm sure they'll make a comeback, especially the PSP. I mean, it does movies and music. It is like an iPod killer! besides, I hear it is going to take handheld gaming out of the gutter.

You come onto this site, and you read a Sony thread and you make a post like this, do you honestly think you aren't trolling? I've given in to the fact that there are people on this site who don't like Sony, and who will say things like "Sony deserves what they are getting". Hell, I even kind of feel that way now, but you aren't even doing that. You just blatently troll and contribute absolutely nothing to the conversation, nothing whatsoever. I don't get how you can get away with it, especially for this long.

And the best part is, you make posts like:

Oh, I almost forgot...

*you guys are Sony bashing*

*Why is this news?*

Whew. All bases covered.

Which makes it seem like when there is legitimate Sony bashing going on, or idiotic news that isn't substantiated or true, the people who point it out have something wrong with them. It's mind boggling to me that you haven't been banned and are still allowed to get away with this stuff.

[Kamalot]

Is this about sales or shipped? You posted about shipped units and the article is about shipped units, and then your tag is about improving sales. Pick one.
Siraris: This isn't rocket science.

If sales increased, Sony would have to increase shipments.
If Sony increased shipments, while doing nothing to increase sales, the problem would still remain.

:rolleyes:

[MasterKwan]

Two things drove me away from buying a PSP.

1) UMD's are fragile. My Kid's had a PSP for awhile now. Every single game and movie, the UMD disks have come apart at the seams. I find pieces of UMD all over the house. You can't tape those POS back together again either. It's not like he's 6. He's 15 so, he's not chewing in them or anything. My DS carts seem nearly indestructable in comparison.

2) You don't get full res on memory stick video's. Make it difficult to read sub-tltles.

I wouldn't mind the PSP as a game machine, or as a portable media player but, it's not that great at either one.

[agentgray]

Let me make a correction:

Make more AAA titles: I love me some Roco, Daxter, and Lumines. However, these titles need to be more mainstream.

[Evil Avatar]

Oh, and I really think they need to bring back the UMD movie format. They sold millions of UMD movies when the system launched... why would you drop that format? Instead of dropping the format they should just drop the price. Why not make the movies $9.99 or even less?

[bapenguin]

Is this about sales or shipped? You posted about shipped units and the article is about shipped units, and then your tag is about improving sales. Pick one.

Obviously they aren't selling if they only shipped 3/4 of what they shipped the year before.

[NoName]

Oh, and I really think they need to bring back the UMD movie format. They sold millions of UMD movies when the system launched... why would you drop that format? Instead of dropping the format they should just drop the price. Why not make the movies $9.99 or even less?
What, selling movie related products at a reasonable price? I think the movie industry would have something to say about that...

[Kamalot]

Oh, and I really think they need to bring back the UMD movie format. They sold millions of UMD movies when the system launched... why would you drop that format? Instead of dropping the format they should just drop the price. Why not make the movies $9.99 or even less?
I agree. If movies were the price of a rental, $5-$8, people would be more likely to pick them up. Instead, movies were often more expensive than their DVD counterpart.

Lunacy!

[Siraris]

Obviously they aren't selling if they only shipped 3/4 of what they shipped the year before.

I thought it could have been shipping issues with the launch of the PS3 or something like that... There was nothing specific in your post, aside from shipments being lower.

[Heretic Machine]

I agree. If movies were the price of a rental, $5-$8, people would be more likely to pick them up. Instead, movies were often more expensive than their DVD counterpart.

Lunacy!

They could of had a fucking cash cow if they had put in UMD kiosks at airports and sold UMDs at a reasonable price.

[Mashidar]

I like the PSP, I bought one at a used game store for a good price. I think it was the pack that came with spiderman 2 and the extras, as well as some cheap hard case and a few other extras, my guess is the previous owner bought it with a best buy value pack and sold that with it, for the low price of $125.

My wife and I said we would of felt kinda stupid if we let that slip past us cause we both wanted one. But really there's only been a few games that I've played. Street Fighter Alpha game that was released was great, MGS: PO was fun for abit it kept me busy while the wife was in the hospital at least.

Right now it sits upon my computer tower holding my guild wars nightfall install CD. I wait for something new to jump out and grab me but there has not really been anything to do that yet. MGS:PO was the first title to do that.

My DS on the other hand is still played. The new castlevaina game is enjoyable and FF3 is rather fun if not lacking in some area's. I hope the PSP can have a few titles come out that make me excited for the system again.

[Zacharai]

Stop showing commercials with hip 20-something's using their memory stick to show pictures and start showing commercials showing off some of the best games.
They tried that, with the squirrels. I think one of the problems is that while games look great on the PSP's screen, it's hard to get good enticing shots that will sell it on the TV. I agree, though, the current strategy makes for cute commercials that won't sell a damn unit.

[Morangie]

What, selling movie related products at a reasonable price? I think the movie industry would have something to say about that...
Do you want movie executives to only be able to get one ferrari a year? DO YOU??

[Tentaro]

It's simple. Release more good games. Lower prices.
A coworker just bought a PSP because of the new Ratchet and Clank coming out soon. So that's a good example of part one. Part two, well, there's ALWAYS consumer demand for lower prices.

[Valkyrist]

Ouch. What's surprising is there are a ton of titles available for the PSP now. What do you guys think Sony can do to improve sales?

Stop people from reading Evil Avatar?

[BlackPete]

1) UMD's are fragile. My Kid's had a PSP for awhile now. Every single game and movie, the UMD disks have come apart at the seams. I find pieces of UMD all over the house. You can't tape those POS back together again either. It's not like he's 6. He's 15 so, he's not chewing in them or anything.

Not doubting you or anything but how the heck does that happen? I always figured that UMDs were nothing more than mini-CDs (but with a proprietary data format). I've never seen a CD that frayed like that... maybe if you left it out in the sun or something causing the silver backing to flake off...

[BlackPete]

Oh, and count me in among the people who would like to buy a PSP but refuse to pay the current price for it.

If the price dropped to $150 or less, then I'd consider it. Even then it'd be a hard sell because the DS is even cheaper and has more of the type of games I like to play on a handheld.

Too little too late...

[Siraris]

Not doubting you or anything but how the heck does that happen? I always figured that UMDs were nothing more than mini-CDs (but with a proprietary data format). I've never seen a CD that frayed like that... maybe if you left it out in the sun or something causing the silver backing to flake off...

I think he means the cases around the discs.

[motor]

Abysmal battery life and load times because you are spinning a physical media. Fatal flaw in design. Failure. End of line.

[UnderHero5]

Stop people from reading Evil Avatar?
Hahaha. Zing!

Really though, I've regretted my PSP purchase for a long time. Until just recently when I put on a custom firmware and bought a larger memory stick. Homebrew/Emulation help to make it worth owning. Though I still mostly wish I had never bought it. I figure I'll keep holding on to it because there is bound to be at least one game I'll really want, one day... and I always regret getting rid of consoles, no matter how little I played them.

Don't get me wrong, there have been some decent games on the PSP, there just aren't ENOUGH that are A) Exclusive and B) Suited for a portable.
Most of the really good PSP games are dumbed down versions of console games which I'd rather just play on my PS2.

So yeah, to improve sales they need to (as others have said) lower the price of the system and games, and make more exclusive AAA titles that are made for the PSP and portable gaming from the ground up, not ports/spin-offs of console games. Except RPG's, I think RPG's work really well on handhelds and are even better suited for them in many cases.

[vivafletcher]

The sad part is, I wouldn't even buy one at $150. I'd rather have a DS and a cheap game.

[Headcase]

They could of had a fucking cash cow if they had put in UMD kiosks at airports and sold UMDs at a reasonable price.

Damn.

I mean... damn.

That's a good plan.

So up is down, short is long, and Perigon works as a marketer Sony.

[[VSK]BadCRC]

I think it's time they launched a massive viral marketing (http://youtube.com/watch?v=0G0LlXv-nyI) campaign... Oh wait, that didn't work either.

[BlackPete]

I think he means the cases around the discs.

Ah, I forgot that the UMD comes in a little caddy case aruond it. Even so, it's still surprising. All the little microvibrations causing the case to shake apart? :confused:

[Siraris]

Ah, I forgot that the UMD comes in a little caddy case aruond it. Even so, it's still surprising. All the little microvibrations causing the case to shake apart? :confused:

I think he's making it up. I've never ever ever heard of this in my entire life. I have friends who have PSP's and I had a PSP (until it was stolen) and I've never heard of the casing just coming apart on its own. If this was happening, you'd have heard about it by now online.

[Heretic Machine]

Damn.

I mean... damn.

That's a good plan.

So up is down, short is long, and Perigon works as a marketer Sony.

Wasn't my idea. Someone else came up with it when the format began to wane, but I can't remember who it was. Might of been Tycho or someone here at EvAv.

[UglyPimp]

They need to redesign this thing. Talk about ergonomics thrown out the window at the design phase. I can barely hold it for 15 minutes without hand cramping beginning to set in. Most painful system/controller I've had to hold, save for maybe the original NES controller.

[Kamalot]

I think he's making it up. I've never ever ever heard of this in my entire life. I have friends who have PSP's and I had a PSP (until it was stolen) and I've never heard of the casing just coming apart on its own. If this was happening, you'd have heard about it by now online.
I think we just DID hear of it online, here on Evil Avatar.

I love how you indiscriminately call people liars.

[bakes73]

my sig says is it all.

[bapenguin]

I thought it could have been shipping issues with the launch of the PS3 or something like that... There was nothing specific in your post, aside from shipments being lower.

Come on man, get serious. Have you heard anything about PSP shortages?

[lockwoodx]

The only thing that will save the PSP in my opinion is by sony eating a bullet and lowering the price DRASTICALLY!!! Say 100-150$ range. The unit is just too cumbersome to be considered portable by the general public and the games WAYYYY too much a PITA to carry around with you when there are much smaller eaiser alternatives.

Honestly sony needs to start over from scratch on alot of thier projects, especially the PSP.

[Dag-Sabot]

Hehe, well I think Kamalot has this covered, but I did want to add the obligatory DS comparison.

I feel bad for the PSP. On its own, it really is a very cool system with a pretty good library, but unfortunately it runs against the DS, which I would venture to say is one of the greatest consoles I've ever owned, handheld or not.Not only did I buy one for myself, about a week later I surprised my girl with a DS Lite as well. Together we have fun sharing the caseload in ace phoenix. The operand word is: "Fun". Wish I could say the same for the psp.

[rein]

Not only did I buy one for myself, about a week later I surprised my girl with a DS Lite as well. Together we have fun sharing the caseload in ace phoenix. The operand word is: "Fun". Wish I could say the same for the psp.
I have fun with them both. Actually, I play my PSP more than I do my DS Lite. That doesn't mean I do not like my DS Lite. I have an ability much like the characters on Heroes, only mine is the ability to like competing products at the same time. I doubt I can save a cheerleader with it but it has its uses.

[Siraris]

Come on man, get serious. Have you heard anything about PSP shortages?

Have I heard anything about PSP shortages? Not until you posted this today, no. Why?

[Kamalot]

The operand word is: "Fun". Wish I could say the same for the psp.

"...the consumers have proven that actually what they want is fun.." (http://www.joystiq.com/2006/08/11/ea-says-the-psp-is-no-fun/)

Come now. Back in August, EA executive VP and COO of worldwide studios David Gardner, was saying that the DS was more fun than the PSP and that EA would be putting more effort into DS games.

If high-profile developers are pulling support, or are skeptical of your product, then it will languish in the market.

[Kamalot]

Have I heard anything about PSP shortages? Not until you posted this today, no. Why?
There are no shortages of PSPs. They are readily available at every major retailer.

There IS, however, a shortage of PSP DEMAND.

[bapenguin]

Have I heard anything about PSP shortages? Not until you posted this today, no. Why?

Just....stop. You are making yourself look like an mindless drone.

[Siraris]

Just....stop. You are making yourself look like an mindless drone.

How in the world do I sound like a mindless drone? I ask for a clarification on what the hell your point is, and that makes me a mindless drone? How the fuck does that work?

[51|RandoM]

The only real problem with the PSP at this point in time are all of the impressions people formed about it early in its life.

A good bit of marketing to correct those now-mistaken impressions would go a long way towards breathing new life into the platform.

It is a great piece of hardware which has finally amassed a decent library of games.

Oh yeah, there is a downgrader for 3.03 now, so anybody with an american PSP can dowgrade and then switch to OE to open up some features, add homebrew support, run ps1 games, etc.

[Johan]

In the third quarter they only sold 10,000 PSPs in North America! That's like the 360 in Japan...totally anemic, and eight to ten times fewer than in Japan or Europe.

Wow...

[Skyelan]

How in the world do I sound like a mindless drone? I ask for a clarification on what the hell your point is, and that makes me a mindless drone? How the fuck does that work?

He was perfectly clear. There's a really effing big drop in PSP shipments. Now to state the fucking obvious, that means that they're not moving as they should be, so there's no reason to be shipping more out, meaning sales are low.

So you actually ask why he brought up the point of what people think could make the PSP pick up sales, he responds, and you suddenly claim he announced that there's a PSP SHORTAGE?

I mean, are you fucking kidding? Is this some elaborate joke? You're not that stupid, man.

[MasterKwan]

Yeah, I'm not making it up. I just walked to the kitchen and ran across the uncased game "Untold Legends". Pretty sure it's unplayable without a case. Who know, maybe Sony's improved it since the early runs but, seeing these things all over the place really gives in impression of fragility.

Maybe my kid is chewing on them.

I never make shit up. I sometimes wrong though.

[Serapth]

I am probrably the only person in the entire universe with this mindset, but I havent bought a PSP game since launch, because of one thing.

Gran Tourismo 4

Its listed as a fucking launch title, it was the single biggest reason I bought a PSP ( that game alone, done right would have justified my purchase ). Then time passed. Then more time passed. Then, its a year later and the two games I bought with it at launch are sitting beside my PSP collecting dust.

Then I read an interview in one of the various gaming magazines about the bike racing game that polyphony was just finishing up how the progress is coming on GT4 mobile. The answer was "we may consider *STARTING* on it after our GP game ships.

Ok, fuck that. Sony, you just lost a customer, period. I am used to Sonys deception with the PS2 and what it did to my beloved dreamcast. But promising a game that is a system seller to many... AT LAUNCH, and never actually shipping it. Im sorry, but fuck you. That is all.

So, since that day, I havent bought another PSP game and never will. Its a 1.5 ROMed unit, so ive used it for Mame and movie playing. Frankly, any game I want to play, I will pirate, which I hate to do as I hate people that pirate games. On the flipside, I hate the idea of Sony making licensing fees off me even more. Thankfully, I havent turned into much of a pirate, because even for free... there hasnt been much worth playing. Its basically my wifes Lumines portable unless im traveling. I will say, that screen does make for a wicked portable music player.


So, thats one mans story of why he will never buy another item PSP, and why he encouraged a half dozen friends not to buy one. Hey Sony... see how that works? Your lies fuck me over. Im the tech advisor to pretty much all my friends and family. You dont lose one sale from me, you lose easily a half a dozen. Hopefully those friends in turn parroted what I said to other people. Wonder why your PS3s arent selling? Its because enough consumers have become wary of your shit!

[Skyelan]

The only real problem with the PSP at this point in time are all of the impressions people formed about it early in its life.

Question.

When has a change in marketing EVER brought a system back? Ever?

And I don't just mean picked up sales a bit, I mean taken a system that was slouching absurdly and made it back into a champ.

The Genesis is a close example I suppose, but all that took was insulting the competitor and getting a mascot. Sony's been insulting the competitor for a long time and that hasn't seemed to change anything.

[Serapth]

Question.

When has a change in marketing EVER brought a system back? Ever?


Atari home computers. Between the Atari 400 and the rebranding and release as 800xl.

Bet you didnt expect an answer did you? ;)

[Skyelan]

Atari home computers. Between the Atari 400 and the rebranding and release as 800xl.

Bet you didnt expect an answer did you? ;)

Hey, if someone can give me an honest example like that, I'm plenty willing to eat my words. :p

[Kamalot]

Hey, if someone can give me an honest example like that, I'm plenty willing to eat my words. :p
Wow! Did the 800 really excel in the market? I know it didn't have the crummy 'membrane' keyboard of the 400.

Now, any game systems ever turn around due to a change?

[bapenguin]

How in the world do I sound like a mindless drone? I ask for a clarification on what the hell your point is, and that makes me a mindless drone? How the fuck does that work?

Skyelan pretty much nailed it a few posts down from your post. Basically you are either stupid or playing stupid with the whole situation.

[Telefrog]

Okay, to get back on track, there's really only one thing that's going to get the PSP back on track and that's to lower the damned price. Seriously, for $50 more, I can get a Wii. For about $50 less, I can get a DS Lite. Where is the motivation to get a PSP?

Sony - please take a basic economics course.

[Siraris]

Skyelan pretty much nailed it a few posts down from your post. Basically you are either stupid or playing stupid with the whole situation.

Someone has to keep things interesting. I mean every single post about Sony for the past 4 or 5 months is the exact same thing said over and over again. I thought I'd spice things up :D

[BlackPete]

Skyelan pretty much nailed it a few posts down from your post. Basically you are either stupid or playing stupid with the whole situation.

Don't you know that you're supposed to unlock his psyche-lock by stating the obvious by presenting clearly contradictory evidence??? :D

/man been playing Phoenix Wright too much lately...

[Fonz]

Its called 1st Quarter folks, the same reason that Microsoft suddenly decided to cut back on 360 production. Apparently a lot of those 10 million 360s are still sitting on store shelves.

[captainspankypants]

Yeah, I'm not making it up. I just walked to the kitchen and ran across the uncased game "Untold Legends". Pretty sure it's unplayable without a case. Who know, maybe Sony's improved it since the early runs but, seeing these things all over the place really gives in impression of fragility.

Maybe my kid is chewing on them.

I never make shit up. I sometimes wrong though.
That kind of makes me wonder about Untold Legends. I've got about 20 PSP games, and my copy of Untold Legends split apart at the seams just like you described. Any other games have that happen?

[Kamalot]

I thought Sony said that the holiday months showed a huge increase in PSP sales.

http://www.gamespot.com/news/6162395.html

The PSP fared even better, enjoying a week-over-week increase of 280.5 percent. First-party software sales for the PS2 and PSP increased 120.6 percent and 167.9 percent, respectively; third-party software sales percentages were not provided.

Perhaps the 280% increase in sales means that the sales pre-Thanksgiving were almost nil...

[Skyelan]

Its called 1st Quarter folks, the same reason that Microsoft suddenly decided to cut back on 360 production. Apparently a lot of those 10 million 360s are still sitting on store shelves.

Which in turn only goes to show you didn't bother to actually read the news itself.

This is not some everyday event, over the course of last year production has slowed down by 72%. This isn't a "Oh well they just stocked too much for the holidays so now they're cutting back production" thing.

[drakkarim]

What do you guys think Sony can do to improve sales?

last time i checked, price still mattered to the average consumer.

[nnanji]

I think he's making it up. I've never ever ever heard of this in my entire life. I have friends who have PSP's and I had a PSP (until it was stolen) and I've never heard of the casing just coming apart on its own. If this was happening, you'd have heard about it by now online.


He's not making it up. When I worked at Gamestop I had to train my staff to check the plastic shell on UMD trade ins. I don't know what causes it, short of inferior materials, but the glue or whatever just fails. Once the shell gets a little loose, the disc starts to wobble, leadingto disc read errors and compounding the problem.

[Kamalot]

I thought I'd spice things up :D
Sounds like someone was trawling for comments?

Success!

Anyways, glad to know that some of your comments are just to spice things up, otherwise, I may start taking them personally. :D

[Magnanimous Gnome]

I personally have no interest in the PSP. The DS is the only one of the current-gen (360, PS3, Wii, PSP, DS) systems that I own, and that doesn't look likely to change for the forseeable future. All of the other systems come with too much baggage and/or are too expensive for me to bother right now.

[Siraris]

Sounds like someone was trawling for comments?

Success!

"We are now brothers!"

- Magoichi Saiga

[Siraris]

He's not making it up. When I worked at Gamestop I had to train my staff to check the plastic shell on UMD trade ins. I don't know what causes it, short of inferior materials, but the glue or whatever just fails. Once the shell gets a little loose, the disc starts to wobble, leadingto disc read errors and compounding the problem.

I didn't know that. Interesting. Thanks for sharing. Hopefully they will either get rid of discs for the PSP2, or at least put that coating they have on BR discs on them.

[Skyelan]

last time i checked, price still mattered to the average consumer.

No no no, don't be stupid. The only problem with the PSP is that the consumer is WRONG and has lots of misconceived opinions!

In fact, nothing is wrong with the PSP. The consumers are to blame.

I wonder why more companies don't take this stance, it's perfectly logical... :rolleyes:

[rein]

No no no, don't be stupid. The only problem with the PSP is that the consumer is WRONG and has lots of misconceived opinions!

In fact, nothing is wrong with the PSP. The consumers are to blame.

I wonder why more companies don't take this stance, it's perfectly logical... :rolleyes:

This isn't wit or original. Try again. ;)



How many people in the thread would buy a PSP if the price was dropped to $99.00 and it included a 32mb memory card? What is the max price you would pay? We all think price is the culprit so I am curious.

[Kamalot]

How many people in the thread would buy a PSP if the price was dropped to $99.00 and it included a 32mb memory card? What is the max price you would pay? We all think price is the culprit so I am curious.
I would re-buy a PSP for $99 if it came with a memory stick to save my games.

[blackzc]

I cant handle the load times, ill buy one when they are 40$ on ebay for collection sake.

[Kamalot]

Actually, I went looking on eBay to see what they are going for. They are more than $99.

I'd rather spend my $99 on one of these...

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tapwave_Zodiac

It has a higher resolution screen than the PSP, a real analog joystick, is developer-friendly, includes built-in rumble, has a touch-screen and handwriting recognition, and takes industry-standard SD cards. I'd probably get more use out of it than I would a PSP.

[Rook34]

I think the biggest problem with the PSP is that the games are not quick play games. Look at the DS and Wario Ware or Cooking Mama, or NSMB and a SLEW of others - what do they have in common? Well besides being FUN in comparison the the PSP games, they can be picked up and played at any time with little loading time, and played for a few minutes and shut off just as quick.
The PSP games are more 'devote an hour or more at a time' to play. They are also pricier.
Pick up and play gameplay FTW.

[Skyelan]

This isn't wit or original. Try again. ;)

Doesn't stop the fact that it was an incredibly stupid point to try and make on 51's part. Sounded like something Krazy Ken would say.

How many people in the thread would buy a PSP if the price was dropped to $99.00 and it included a 32mb memory card? What is the max price you would pay? We all think price is the culprit so I am curious.

I would. I've got a good handful of games I really really wanna play.

Hell, I would buy one right now as I've got some money stockpiled if not for the fact that I desperately need to buy parts for and build my PC.

The problem is that I'm hardcore gamer man who keeps seeming to get lucky with money. Success with handhelds (Not to mention Sony's past success) hinges on the casual, which the PSP is just not geared towards in its pricing.

That, and I get the feeling lots of other people feel that because they need to shell out inherently more on each game, they feel less motivation, even if they can afford it. Other things seem to take priority when something is not priced in an impulse buy fashion (Which is what handhelds are fairly well known for).

I'd say the same thing about the Wii. The difference is is that the hardcore are eating up the Wii right now, it isn't getting a chance to even reach the casual market. Nintendo can and I can almost guarentee you will drop the price once it becomes more readily available into more impulse buy range.

The problem with the PSP is that this only makes it apparant that the hardcore have had their fill, and now Sony really needs to start dropping prices to appeal to their most prominant market, the casual gamers.

So yeah, I can't speak for everyone, but judging on past history, price drop seems to be what needs to happen. What else can they do? The good games were already starting to come a while ago.

[Metal Jesus]

Sony would sell a TON more PSPs, if they would just get an original Final Fantasy title on it.

Look at how well an original Metal Gear Solid title did? I know at least a few people who finally picked up the PSP over the holidays just cuz MGS came out for it.

[drakkarim]

How many people in the thread would buy a PSP if the price was dropped to $99.00 and it included a 32mb memory card? What is the max price you would pay? We all think price is the culprit so I am curious.

i sure as heck would jump on one at that price point.

[Kelegacy]

You come onto this site, and you read a Sony thread and you make a post like this, do you honestly think you aren't trolling? I've given in to the fact that there are people on this site who don't like Sony, and who will say things like "Sony deserves what they are getting". Hell, I even kind of feel that way now, but you aren't even doing that. You just blatently troll and contribute absolutely nothing to the conversation, nothing whatsoever. I don't get how you can get away with it, especially for this long.

And the best part is, you make posts like:



Which makes it seem like when there is legitimate Sony bashing going on, or idiotic news that isn't substantiated or true, the people who point it out have something wrong with them. It's mind boggling to me that you haven't been banned and are still allowed to get away with this stuff.

Don't bother, man. Kamalot is the biggest goddamn Sony troll on this site. He's not worth your time.

[rein]

Don't bother, man. Kamalot is the biggest goddamn Sony troll on this site. He's not worth your time.

...but he conceals his trolling with such clever sacrasm. How did you pick up in it when so many others have missed it? :)

[Tohoya]

That doesn't jive with me. I know that NPD's numbers showed surprising amounts of PSP sales in December, close to a million. I can't see how the PSP sold close to a milliuon in December and sold .65 million in the rest of the year.

[Kamalot]

That doesn't jive with me. I know that NPD's numbers showed surprising amounts of PSP sales in December, close to a million. I can't see how the PSP sold close to a milliuon in December and sold .65 million in the rest of the year.
Agreed. I remember a number of big press announcements about how well the PSP was doing over the holiday season. I even posted a story above. How can that be if their shipments are down a whopping 72%?

Perhaps sales occurred form units already in retail channels?

[Deathwave]

Actually, the only thing that made sense to me as far as the UMD format goes, would be music videos. You get the best of both worlds, music playback, and a portable video format. Everyone likes to listen to music on the run, and you wouldn't have to watch the video, thus using it as an Ipod, if you wanted to do such a thing. But, as far as I know, I haven't seen anything like that out in UMD format.

If I want to watch a movie, I'm not going to buy it on UMD, I'll buy a DVD. And, I'm sure as hell not going to waste my money and buy it twice just to watch it on a PSP.

The PSP does have some really great games for it...saying it doesn't is a total lie. It also has some great games coming down the road. The problem is the high price of the unit itself, and some games that are priced 10-15 bucks too high.

[laggerific]

quit being jerks and embrace homebrew...I stopped buying games because they kept breaking the functionality of the system. That and I barely find time to play my DS, but I would prolly look more favorable on the system otherwise.

[Pumped'Up]

Ouch. What's surprising is there are a ton of titles available for the PSP now. What do you guys think Sony can do to improve sales?
Sony must squash their firmware securities and allow/embrace the homebrew community. But if not, I'm sure sales will improve once there's a must have title on PS3 that utilizes the PSP i.e. GT5.

[Heretic Machine]

quit being jerks and embrace homebrew...I stopped buying games because they kept breaking the functionality of the system. That and I barely find time to play my DS, but I would prolly look more favorable on the system otherwise.

There are better options for homebrew apps than the PSP, so if you don't plan on buying PSP games, there is really no point in owning one.

[Serapth]

Nobody actually plays homebrew.

By saying that, what they actually mean is pirated games, or illegal roms.

Not a moral judgement, I just hate the abuse "homebrew" gets when applied to the psp.

[Gorvi]

Sony must squash their firmware securities and allow/embrace the homebrew community. But if not, I'm sure sales will improve once there's a must have title on PS3 that utilizes the PSP i.e. GT5.
Embracing homebrew will never happen. As long as homebrew opens the door for piracy, it would be impossible. They'd lose any and all publisher support if the just turned a blind eye to this kind of thing. Why people can't just understand this is completely beyond me.

[donkeydrop]

OK, for the reading challenged out there, these were QUARTERLY sales not yearly, and comparing back to the launch period in many countries (PSP didn't launch until September 2005 in a lot of places). Total PSP sales since launch are now 24.7 million. For reference this is more than the total lifetime sales of Gamecube or Xbox, so all those trying to make this into some kind of disaster story are completely wrong.

That's not to say that PSP isn't clearly in second place in the handheld market. Up to the end of November the DS had a slight lead with 27 million sold worldwide, but everything points towards Nintendo having had a massive December. I haven't been able to find the official sales figures for December, but it looks like sales of the DS in the US alone could have been 3 million, which could translate to 7 or 8 million worldwide (my estimate based on ratio of US sales). This would put the DS ahead by 10 million over PSP.

[Franjo]

I'd honestly rather play my atari jaguar on a 13inch black and white tv than fire up the PSP

[Gorvi]

I'd honestly rather play my atari jaguar on a 13inch black and white tv than fire up the PSP

Then you're either a moron or you have incredibly terrible tastes.

[jpublic]

I'd like to see the PSP redisgned.

1) No-built in lid with glossy finish - for cripes sake, didn't we learn this was a bad idea with *phones*? At least come out with non-crappy softcases. If Palm can do it for their phone/whatevers, why can't Sony.

2) Too damn big. The PSP should be about 2/3 its current size, so it can fit into a pocket comfortably. Ideally, I'd like to see it about 1/2.

[Retrievil]

It has to be the price thats killing the PSP.

It has some really good games out now. Granted, a lot are not what I would call portable games. Games like the GTA's and stuff are fantastic, but they do not work as 5-10 minute time wasters, which is what most people are looking for in handheld gaming. There are good short time games though, and it's a great PMP, better than any iPod imo.

But the price ...

It's not the $199 list thats so bad. It's the other stuff you need. To use all the awesome PMP functions, you are on the hook for another $100-200 for a 2 or 4 gb Pro Duo. A 32mb card is worthless. Thats 8 or so MP3s or less than 5 minutes of video. Oh and don't forget the PSP is not a clamshell design so you can't just close it and throw it in a pocket like the DS. So now you have to buy a case, the supplied soft case is shit and provides zero protection from impact and can actually cause scratches on the screen as you slide it in and out. So add $15-30 for that, and add whatever bulk the case adds as well.

So to actually have a PSP that you can carry around and use as a PMP, you are looking at $300+.

There is also the question of durability. The DS looks and feels very solid. You have the clamshell, sturdy (in comparision) buttons, and cartridges. With the PSP you have the face exposed, flimsy buttons and analog stick, and very questionable UMDs. I would like to know who designed the UMD so I can kick them in the balls. Why leave the 'door' on the UMDs open like that? All it does is allow dust and lint to get inside the UMD and screw up both the disc and your UMD drive. Why no metal slide like on floppys?

All that being said, I think its a good system. I have 3.02 OE-B on mine, which lets you do 'homebrew' and play PS1 games, and I love it. I don't love it more than my DS though. If I had to choose between a DS or a PSP, the DS would easily win simply because it costs half of what you will end up paying for a PSP. Until Sony can bring the total cost of PSP ownership closer to the DS, it has no chance.

[Johan]

The PSP needs waffles. And real maple syrup...not that cheapie fake stuff.

/hey...this is as good as half the posts in this one! ;)

[grimjoe]

Sony can't embrace homebrew since they would be sued for royalties. Nintendo, Sega, and even square would get them since these games are still sold on the VC (Wii) and the GBA ports

[Kamalot]

It has to be the price thats killing the PSP.

It has some really good games out now. Granted, a lot are not what I would call portable games. Games like the GTA's and stuff are fantastic, but they do not work as 5-10 minute time wasters, which is what most people are looking for in handheld gaming. There are good short time games though, and it's a great PMP, better than any iPod imo.

But the price ...

It's not the $199 list thats so bad. It's the other stuff you need. To use all the awesome PMP functions, you are on the hook for another $100-200 for a 2 or 4 gb Pro Duo. A 32mb card is worthless. Thats 8 or so MP3s or less than 5 minutes of video. Oh and don't forget the PSP is not a clamshell design so you can't just close it and throw it in a pocket like the DS. So now you have to buy a case, the supplied soft case is shit and provides zero protection from impact and can actually cause scratches on the screen as you slide it in and out. So add $15-30 for that, and add whatever bulk the case adds as well.

So to actually have a PSP that you can carry around and use as a PMP, you are looking at $300+.

There is also the question of durability. The DS looks and feels very solid. You have the clamshell, sturdy (in comparision) buttons, and cartridges. With the PSP you have the face exposed, flimsy buttons and analog stick, and very questionable UMDs. I would like to know who designed the UMD so I can kick them in the balls. Why leave the 'door' on the UMDs open like that? All it does is allow dust and lint to get inside the UMD and screw up both the disc and your UMD drive. Why no metal slide like on floppys?

All that being said, I think its a good system. I have 3.02 OE-B on mine, which lets you do 'homebrew' and play PS1 games, and I love it. I don't love it more than my DS though. If I had to choose between a DS or a PSP, the DS would easily win simply because it costs half of what you will end up paying for a PSP. Until Sony can bring the total cost of PSP ownership closer to the DS, it has no chance.
Welcome to Evil Avatar! :D

This was a great first post!

[Dracula-X]

Sony can't embrace homebrew since they would be sued for royalties. Nintendo, Sega, and even square would get them since these games are still sold on the VC (Wii) and the GBA ports
That would be like suing Dell because their computers allow for emulators and illegal roms to be played. Permitting homebrew is one thing and violating IP is another.

[WastelandDan]

Ouch. What's surprising is there are a ton of titles available for the PSP now. What do you guys think Sony can do to improve sales?

For starters, how about releasing desirable games that don't cost 40 to 50 dollars. I own a PSP and for me the biggest reason I've purchased virtually no games for it is that I feel it's not a worthwhile investment. The games are just too damn expensive.

[grimjoe]

That would be like suing Dell because their computers allow for emulators and illegal roms to be played. Permitting homebrew is one thing and violating IP is another.

By homebrew, i mean gaming roms. Most PSP's homebrew( if not all) is used for illegal activity.

[Dracula-X]

By homebrew, i mean gaming roms. Most PSP's homebrew( if not all) is used for illegal activity.
You're clearly out of touch not only with the definition of homebrew, but also with the kinds of software available that constitutes the idea. Browse pspupdates.qj.net and you can spend the next few days trying to catch up with benign programs and environments created for the PSP, everything from LUA to JAVA to text editors and simple games. Homebrew is a term used to describe a game or application crafted for noncommercial gain, often by people merely as a hobby, on a proprietary system (not openly programmable). This is not "illegal activity" and Homebrew does not mean "gaming roms". The fact that you'll find emulators being made is another story, but emulators themselves aren't illegal (provided the emulator stays clean by not including a bios which falls under copyright protection, should the emulated system require one).

There is a huge dedicated community providing a GCC based software development kit with robust libraries (being worked on everyday) that are astonishingly comparable to the official offering to allow the average person to program and debug the PSP over USB/Serial/Wifi (the DS has a comparable community with homebrew games/apps/tools as well) to his/her heart's desire. There's not much you can do commercially that you can't do with this stuff.

[51|RandoM]

For starters, how about releasing desirable games that don't cost 40 to 50 dollars. I own a PSP and for me the biggest reason I've purchased virtually no games for it is that I feel it's not a worthwhile investment. The games are just too damn expensive.

You must not have checked recently.

[Franjo]

Then you're either a moron or you have incredibly terrible tastes.

No I just know a failed system when I see one. Something you maybe didn't realize at the checkout

[Wolvie]

Two words: price drop.

[Gorvi]

No I just know a failed system when I see one. Something you maybe didn't realize at the checkout

I guess I didn't. Boy, I hope I don't notice how much of a failure it is when I'm playing all of those very promising RPG's on my PSP. It's funny that the PSP is called a failed system for being a very respectable 2nd place. I don't recall this being said about the Genesis back in the 16-bit days. Hell, the PSP is on pace to sell more units than the GC or the original XBOX did, but I guess it's still a failure.

[Lutheran]

The PSP is fine , they need a price drop..the games are now there and more are coming every few weeks. If it sold for the same price as a DS and also came with a packin memory card and a cheap movie or game it would sell in droves. The DS is better but not by much , its just that Nintendo has a kung fu grip on the handheld market and Sony came out with a product thats not small enough and priced to high.

[Lutheran]

Also the games are now almost always below 39.99 or even less. Plus there are a MOUNTAIN of used games at EB/GS to be had for way cheaper.

[KidCactus]

In the third quarter they only sold 10,000 PSPs in North America! That's like the 360 in Japan...totally anemic, and eight to ten times fewer than in Japan or Europe.

Wow...
I'm not sure this has been posted, but anyway:
The PSP shipped 1.76 million units worldwide in Q3, less than half the amount in Q2, with 860,000 shipped to Japan, 890,000 to Europe, and 10,000 to North America. It should be noted that in the previous quarter, Sony shipped 2 million PSPs to North America, and the industry-tracking NPD Group reported that more than 950,000 PSPs were sold in the US in December alone.

[Kamalot]

I don't recall this being said about the Genesis back in the 16-bit days.
That's cause the Genesis led sales for a long time. PSP hasn't.

[Gorvi]

That's cause the Genesis led sales for a long time. PSP hasn't.

Well, that's probably because the Genesis launched a full 2 years before the SNES. It was pretty easy to lead in sales when there wasn't any comparable competition.

The fact still remains that the PSP is a very good system by itself, and it's not nearly as bad as some on here make it out to be that it's 2nd place to the DS. The DS is a much more mass market friendly device that sells for 60% of the price. I love my DS for what it does well, just as I love my PSP for what it does well.

[Skyelan]

And Genesis and SNES ran almost dead even for most of their shared time.

Honestly, I don't seem to recall SNES outselling the Genesis by anywhere near the same number.

Mind you, I don't agree with him, in fact I think it's a bit o' a pathetic fanboy for arguing that, but I'm just explaining why people didn't say it about the Genesis.

[Kamalot]

Well, that's probably because the Genesis launched a full 2 years before the SNES. It was pretty easy to lead in sales when there wasn't any comparable competition.Timing is everything. It is no secret that the PS2 launched a year after the Dreamcast and a year before the Xbox and GameCube. This time alone ensured that the PS2 was the only kid on the block, stealing the limelight. Sony knows how important the timing of a product launch is to the overall life of the product.

Perhaps Sony should have launched at a better time and the world would have been more receptive to the system. For example, had the PS3 launched around the same time as the Xbox 360, things may be a very different story than they are today.