The Kraziness of Ken Kutaragi

[bobbler]

Shacknews has an interesting (read: entertaining) bit on Ken Kutaragi (http://www.shacknews.com/extras/kutaragi/070705_kutaragi_01.x), packed full of his zany comments.

Although much of his notoriety comes from his accomplishments, including his trailblazing work on LCD projectors and digital cameras, lately the venerable leader has been garnering press for his off-the-wall remarks. His image has been slowly turning from a videogame luminary to a boisterous loudmouth. What's happened? Why, suddenly, has everything that Kutaragi says immediately undergoes scrutiny and then ridicule on gaming forums across the ‘net? Let's take a look at the history of Ken Kutaragi's remarks and try to pinpoint where things go wrong.

[Bushido]

When a Gaijen was promoted to CEO over Ken Kutaragi, he started losing his mind. Damn those foreign devils, damn them to the lowest abyss of shinto buddishm.

[bapenguin]

my favorite is still the quote about "aging videos in cell storage"

[Kelegacy]

I dont hate him as much as I do J. Allard, though. I take Ken with a grain of salt, secretly hoping that his idioms are being lost in translation. J. Allard freaks me out because he tries to be hip. Ken tries to be smart. Both fail. I get over it.

[Dirty Harry]

'Tis better to have a blowhard than some fag looking pirate like allard.

[Last of the Red Hot Mamas]

'Tis better to have a blowhard than some fag looking pirate like allard.

Oh for god's sake people.

[Genital Eclipse]

I like robots

[B_Money]

I like monkeys

[Cha-Ka]

'Tis better to have a blowhard than some fag looking pirate like allard.

My console's dad could beat up your console's dad!!

[The Radical Cleric]

'Tis better to have a blowhard than some fag looking pirate like allard.

How old are you? Have some respect. Gamers have a bad enough image as it is without spewing homophobic nonsense.

[Offworlder]

Not that it's of any relevance whatsoever, but I much prefer Allard's cocky intelligence to Kutaraki's badly articulated hyperbole.

[Royal Fool]

Why even bring Mr. Allard into this? He's not the insane one.

[Heretic Machine]

'Tis better to have a blowhard than some fag looking pirate like allard.

Every post you've made lately has been this homophobic gay-bashing bullshit. STFU, your opinion is invalidated.

[Reanimated]

I suck large dicks.



Wow man, thanks for sharing!

[KNOTE]

Don't forget good ol' Reggie Fils-Alme. Mr "check out gameboy micro! It fits in my pocket!" is the answer to every Revolution question. I think all 3 consoles have wonderful bullshit-spewing frontmen.

Oh and homophobia is SOOO 1988. Give it up jr. dice clay. your shit is outdated and dull.

[Chiggs]

This article is awful. It's sensational and poorly written. Yep, it's video game "journalism" alright!

[if76]

How can you compare Kutaraki to Allard? Sure Allard is way too excited about faceplates and inhales but he hasn't outright lied like Kutaraki's comments on Killzone. Nor has he made downright crazy comments like Kutaraki's video aging. It's really not a fair comparison.

[Red Cloak]

Kutaragi is a pompous ass. Here is a good compilation of his crazy quotes:

Nikkei Business reported that, to date, .6 percent of the 800,000 shipped units have been returned to Sony for repair. Kutaragi was unapologetic about the issue: "This is the design that we came up with. There may be people that complain about its usability, but that's something which users and game software developers will have to adapt to. I didn't want the PSP's LCD screen to become any smaller than this, nor did I want its machine body to become any larger.

Heres Another

The button's location is [architectured] on purpose," Kutaragi added. "It's according to specifications. This is something that we've created, and this is our specification. There was a clear purpose to it, and it wasn't a mistake."


"I believe we made the most beautiful thing in the world. Nobody would criticize a renowned architect's blueprint that the position of a gate is wrong. It's the same as that."

According to ITmedia, Kutaragi surprised the reporters present by making several cryptic comments after the conference had ended. ITmedia quoted Kutaragi as saying that the PSP "is expected to be used inside the house. No one would walk around while playing games."


"We have other [DVD] recorders in our house, but my family just uses the PSX."



"The PlayStation [3] is not a game machine. We've never once called it a game machine,"


"We haven't been creating our [past] PlayStations for the sake of games."

"The PS3 isn't designed to lean towards games. It's not a computer for children. In the sense that our goal has been [to create] a computer that's meant for entertainment, you could say that the original PlayStation and PlayStation 2 had existed as steps towards the PlayStation 3."


"We're not going to equip [the PS3 with] a HDD by default, because no matter how much [capacity] we put in it, it won't be enough"


"We've added a 2.5-inch HDD bay so that users can equip HDDs, such as 80GB and 120GB, even though that's still not enough [capacity].


I believe its wrong that, while we've been calling PlayStations "computers," Nintendo, which is in our same business, keeps telling the world their consoles are "toys." So even though we're making something that has the capability to be recognized as a supercomputer and requires paperwork when exporting or importing, the government sees it as a "toy." The PlayStation 2 has something as great as the Emotion Engine, and it can even run Linux, but it's still considered a gaming machine.

Whether consumers think a product is expensive or cheap all depends on the balance between its appeal and price," he said. "Our ideal [for the PS3] is for consumers to think to themselves, 'OK, I'll work more hours and buy it.' We want people to feel that they want it, no matter what."

[Reanimated]

Where is the quote about PS3 aging your media like a fine wine?

[Kelegacy]

How can you compare Kutaraki to Allard? Sure Allard is way too excited about faceplates and inhales but he hasn't outright lied like Kutaraki's comments on Killzone. Nor has he made downright crazy comments like Kutaraki's video aging. It's really not a fair comparison.

He lies everyday when he puts on his clothes. Underneath that colorful urban cotton lies the emanciated body of a reanimated corpse.

Gates bought the power to raise the dead for 2 billion dollars. Michael Jackson had to sell it to pay for his trial.

"Thrillah...in the night..."

[Morrolan]

Meh, I've got no problem with Allard. He's a little too 'totally excited and stoked' for me, but so is every person in his position. At least he's genuinely intelligent and articulate, and seems to genuinely care about making a great gaming system, rather than simply making the most successful one.
Let the guy dress as he wants. If anyone else decided to dial down their raging nerdiness, I doubt you'd care. But because the guy speaks to cameras every now and then, he's a sellout/faker/liar/whatever. Don't be so childish.

[51|RandoM]

I get the feeling Kutaragi believes what he is saying. I can give him the benefit of the doubt that stuff is getting lost in translation, so to speak.

I get the feeling that Allard wants me to believe what he is saying, then secretly is laughing his ass off if he thinks I am a believer. Oooh, I'm hip cause I have an xbox360.

I'm with Dirtyharry on this one, if I saw J. Allard in a Chelsea starbucks sipping chai after his pilates workout, I would not be a bit shocked. Him and a close friend going, "Arrr! Matey, I luv your bandana. Make sure you get the trendy xbox360 faceplate that matches it and your hip lifestyle."

[Kelegacy]

You dont think his main concern is making the most successful console? Yeah, that's it.

I AM being critical when I make fun of the way he dresses...but I am allowed to be that way, right? I do it only because he TRIES to be hip to appeal to the MTV crowd. Did you see him at E3? He was wearing a business coat, but underneath he had a hoodie and a bright shirt underneath that. Was he trying to appeal to the business world AND gamers at the same time? I only nitpick because he is obviously trying to fit in, and it's just a marketing ploy.

Picture: http://img.gamespot.com/gamespot/images/2005/features/freeplay/0617/greg_embed003.jpg

Also, here (http://www.gamespot.com/features/freeplay/index.html?story=6127965) is a great article by Greg Kasavin at Gamespot.

If you dont want to read it, here is a snippit from his article. I found it interesting

The other part of my concern is that the game business is no longer focused on satisfying me and you, judging by the messaging coming from some of its major players. Look at Microsoft trotting out the 360 like it's a fashion accessory and not a game system. How is it that a platform launch can be so focused on everything other than the games? Have you ever in your life bought a game system for any reason other than the games you could be playing on it?

I haven't, and I've bought practically every game system ever made--some more than once. The idea that gaming is now a lifestyle and not a hobby seems utterly misguided to me. Suddenly, games aren't for trench coat-wearing sociopaths living in their mother's basement; they're for hip, beautiful young people who might as well be in Gap ads! Yeah!

To hell with that. That's completely absurd and everyone knows it. If games are supposed to be mainstream, then marketers shouldn't be trying so hard to pigeonhole game players. Game players are basically normal people with jobs, problems, fear, and all that. They're not snowboarders.

I dont mean to switch focus from Ken to Allard, but if you can make fun of one, why not the other? In my opinion, they are both major tools. Ken's dumb, Allard is a walking advertisement, and I don't like either.

[Heretic Machine]

I can give him the benefit of the doubt that stuff is getting lost in translation, so to speak.

Ya... I tried to think that way too. But there is a certin point where SOMETHING that he says should make sense, and it just doesn't happen. Besides, a lot of his quotes just don't seem to be mistakes in translation, if anything a better translation might make it more offensive/hateful/stupid.

I dont mean to switch focus from Ken to Allard, but if you can make fun of one, why not the other? In my opinion, they are both major tools. Ken's dumb, Allard is a walking advertisement, and I don't like either.

Allard is likely made to dress and say the things he does by the company. I doubt Ken is being fed lines. Which would be a good thing if he wasn't bat-shit crazy.

[Dirty Harry]

Wow man, thanks for sharing!
For bus fare even....


I'm going to not even bother with this since we all know this is the microsoft annual circlejerk.

I'd bet it would kill some of you fanboys to compliment sony or ken for once.



Sillynes asides, I honestly think some of what Ken says does get lost in translation. I think the translator working for sony needs a new thesaurus to replace words like phenomenome.


Pergion:
I have no problems with gay or homosexuals, infact one of my best friends is gay. Maybe I just need some new fancy insults ya damn drama queen.

[mister_slim]

This is the Kutaragi 'fine wine' quote:
"In the future, we imagine something like a Cell-based Cell Home Server being placed in the home, and this server automatically performing maintenance on the contents in Cell Storage. Using the Cell security functionality, you'll even be able to rip copy protected videos, from DVD and such, place them in storage, and have them age to make high quality video."
Yeah, nothing about wine. Oh, well. We're gamers, not journalists.

I don't think Sony bothers with PR handling to the extent that MS does. At this point, it appears that Gates' job is to put a good face on the company. I've noticed both Sony and Nintendo execs tend to be pretty blunt.

[Racknahm]

The fine wine quote was from Tycho. Sides, I think saying something looks gay isn't necessarily a homophobic comment. Now if one were to say use gay as an insult like those wonderful wonderful 12 year olds I encounter in online first person shooters saying that a particular tactic is derivative of a man who enjoys anal intercourse with another man. Then that would be homophobic.

[Kelegacy]

The fine wine quote was from Tycho. Sides, I think saying something looks gay isn't necessarily a homophobic comment. Now if one were to say use gay as an insult like those wonderful wonderful 12 year olds I encounter in online first person shooters saying that a particular tactic is derivative of a man who enjoys anal intercourse with another man. Then that would be homophobic.

I find it extremely funny that this thread contains slamming of two different company figureheads and another subplot about erroneous use of homophobia and hatred/love for hot man on man sex.

Sorry, bobbler. I think this thread has been tainted.

[bobbler]

I pretty much agree with mister_slim and Kelegacy.

Neither sides are saints, both are marketing to their fullest and believe in their consoles (they damn well better after putting a few billion into them).

I think MS' PR department is a fair bit better than Sony's -- that is part of why MS is successful as a company.

Allard may as well be a PR robot at this point -- I'm sure hes a very smart guy, but that guy that originally got the job at MS has shriveled up into something that is unrecognizable today.

Kutaragi says a lot of out-there things -- Sony probably doesn't feed him lines so much, so he gets to spew whatever he wants. We get the crazy comments and the occasional attack. Some of the weird comments probably does have to do with translation type problems (not all of them, of course).

If the console has good games, who gives a shit whether the PR face of the company is a nutcase? Do people actually purchase their console based on what the PR face says? (isn't that marketing at its best...?)

[Dirty Harry]

I find it extremely funny that this thread contains slamming of two different company figureheads and another subplot about erroneous use of homophobia and hatred/love for hot man on man sex.

Sorry, bobbler. I think this thread has been tainted.
This thread has everything expect wifi access :*(

[Zeal]

They have both turned into laughably stupid PR figureheads. They're almost likes satires.

[Achilles]

I do it only because he (Allard) TRIES to be hip to appeal to the MTV crowd. Did you see him at E3? He was wearing a business coat, but underneath he had a hoodie and a bright shirt underneath that. I’ve met him in a work environment, the hoodie is him, the buisiness coat isn’t. The man races sports cars, plays video games, he isn’t some kind of suit pretending to do those things. When presenting, his 'hip' comes off as phoney because he’s got to recite the dialogue marketing has given him most of the time, but when he riffs he’s really good and that's him.

Ken’s a nut, but I must say I really do like the design of the PSP. Sure it’s fragile but games on it look amazing and all the controls work very well, even the new type of analog stick they have on the thing.

[bobbler]

Sorry, bobbler. I think this thread has been tainted.

I figured the thread would be damned to begin with, but I posted it anyways because I got a chuckle out of it. Someone probably would have posted it had I not...

[Dirty Harry]

I’ve met him in a work environment, the hoodie is him, the buisiness coat isn’t. The man races sports cars, plays video games, he isn’t some kind of suit pretending to do those things. When presenting, his 'hip' comes off as phoney because he’s got to recite the dialogue marketing has given him most of the time, but when he riffs he’s really good and that's him.

Ken’s a nut, but I must say I really do like the design of the PSP. Sure it’s fragile but games on it look amazing and all the controls work very well, even the new type of analog stick they have on the thing.
When i got the ps2 i thought it would die after being dropped once, one time i dropped my ps2 on its corner from 5 feet up onto a concrete floor. All it did was dent the case.

[Achilles]

When i got the ps2 i thought it would die after being dropped once, one time i dropped my ps2 on its corner from 5 feet up onto a concrete floor. All it did was dent the case.Hmm, I guess I should say that the PSP looks fragile then. Lord knows I'm not going to drop one on a concrete floor and find out if I'm right :P

[Dirty Harry]

Hmm, I guess I should say that the PSP looks fragile then. Lord knows I'm not going to drop one on a concrete floor and find out if I'm right :P
Oh it was human error, i had it on my dresser in the basement and i had the power cord across the doorway and the lights were off and crouching tiger hidden dragon was playing in it, tripped over the cord, cut up my toes and dented my ps2, best movie EVER.

[Heretic Machine]

I think saying something looks gay isn't necessarily a homophobic comment. Now if one were to say use gay as an insult

I don't remember ever hearing someone saying somthing along the lines of "That's gay" in a positive way. Just because it isn't directed as a person doesn't make it any better, it's useing the name of a group of people as an insult.

[Redline]

I like robot monkeys.

[Wonka]

I don't know, I can see why some of you guys might think that Jay is a tool, but its also quite possible that he is a just slightly hyper nerd who also enjoys some trendy things.

For Ken Kutaragi I fear that it doesn't look as good. In his case the choices seem to be that he is a complete tool OR that he is actually completely insane.

Not that any of this actually matters to anyone reading THIS thread (you all seem to KNOW what console you prefer), but it can't be good for Sonys image to have Ken spouting off like this. I fear that the "Father of the Playstation" may be retired early if he keeps this pattern of behavoir up.

[TrackZero]

I dont hate him as much as I do J. Allard, though. I take Ken with a grain of salt, secretly hoping that his idioms are being lost in translation. J. Allard freaks me out because he tries to be hip. Ken tries to be smart. Both fail. I get over it.

Allard trying to be hip is weird, though what he actually talks about (and was long before anyone else was catching on) is quite sound. He's got a great understanding of the industry and he's stuck by the Xbox's "vision" for some time now. Weird he may be, but he's much more intelligent than Ken "looney-tunes" Kutaragi.

[Cyrano]

I really look forward to the crazy things Uncle Ken says -- very entertaining. There just aren't enough completely insane people in important positions. Life could be so much more fun.

[splatstick]

I don't remember ever hearing someone saying somthing along the lines of "That's gay" in a positive way. Just because it isn't directed as a person doesn't make it any better, it's useing the name of a group of people as an insult.

What's funny is how saying something is gay is a bad thing but saying someone sucks large dicks isn't a bad thing.
If you are going to be a dick, it's cool as long as it's funny. The second you get hypocritical, you become a tool.

[bobbler]

but he's much more intelligent than Ken "looney-tunes" Kutaragi.

That is sort of a silly remark. Obviously Ken didn't get his job because hes a PR whiz -- he got it because he was one of the most intelligent people around. His understanding of the hardware that hes selling is probably greater than Allards (Kutaragi is an electrical engineer and was very hands on, even with the Cell -- I bet you can't say that much with Allard). Allard has more charisma than Kutaragi it seems, but that is only one form of intelligence.

[president_fred]

In a world gone mad only the truly insane are crazy.

[TrackZero]

That is sort of a silly remark. Obviously Ken didn't get his job because hes a PR whiz -- he got it because he was one of the most intelligent people around. His understanding of the hardware that hes selling is probably greater than Allards (Kutaragi is an electrical engineer and was very hands on, even with the Cell -- I bet you can't say that much with Allard). Allard has more charisma than Kutaragi it seems, but that is only one form of intelligence.

Allards no fool himself:

http://www.microsoft.com/presspass/exec/jallard/default.mspx

However book smarts are one thing, actually being intelligent is another. Ken may very well be a bright man, but he's certainly not thinking straight with his comments of late.

[Goronmon]

I'm sorry, but why is this a newspost again? Its a poorly written article about a handful of quotes from a guy that knows more about consoles than pretty much anyone. No new information, just a bunch of useless stuff mashed together and called an article.

I mean, look at this thread, its about why calling people "gay" is bad and why J Allard isn't really "hip."

[Cpt.Justice]

I like good ol' Ken. Just pretend he's drunk all the time and everything he says is comedy gold. The game industry needs more laughs, and he can bring 'em.

[51|RandoM]

Could be a culture thing---with both of them, lol.

[koobz]

Allard seems like a typical high level executive to me and ken seems a little loopy but the one thing to remember, hype is a powerfiul but dangerous tool.

[riposte101]

That is sort of a silly remark. Obviously Ken didn't get his job because hes a PR whiz -- he got it because he was one of the most intelligent people around. His understanding of the hardware that hes selling is probably greater than Allards (Kutaragi is an electrical engineer and was very hands on, even with the Cell -- I bet you can't say that much with Allard). Allard has more charisma than Kutaragi it seems, but that is only one form of intelligence.

I'm going to come to Allard's defense. That guy is brilliant. He's one of the fundamental people behind .NET and the chief architect of XNA. What kutaragi did for the playstation, Allard did for Windows' adoption of the internet. Before Allard came onto the scene at Microsoft, the company's plan to support the internet was nearly non-existent. Bill Gates himself stated that before Allard's memo the internet was #6 on Window's radar and afterwards it became #1.

[bobbler]

I'm going to come to Allard's defense. That guy is brilliant. He's one of the fundamental people behind .NET and the chief architect of XNA. What kutaragi did for the playstation, Allard did for Windows' adoption of the internet. Before Allard came onto the scene at Microsoft, the company's plan to support the internet was nearly non-existent. Bill Gates himself stated that before Allard's memo the internet was #6 on Window's radar and afterwards it became #1.

I know, I read about both of them before I made my post. What I was trying to get across was saying one was patently "much smarter" than the other is completely absurd.