Sony: Xbox & Wii looking dated – PS3 not going after casual market
There’s no getting away from the fact that the PS3 and Xbox 360 are way above the Wii in terms of graphical prowess and long-term prospects. But does that mean games on the Xbox 360 and Wii are looking dated compared to games on the Playstation 3? Sony’s Scott Steinberg thinks so.
SCEA executive Scott Steinberg recently spoke to GamesIndustry.biz, and gave his thoughts on the current state of the console market, and where the industry is heading. His most interesting comments came when he was asked about Nintendo’s intuitive control system and how the Wii and DS appeal even to a group of people who are traditionally non-gamers.
I think that we’re seeing, graphically, PS3 games starting to create some distance and some of the other competitors are going to feel that they’re getting long in the tooth, looking quite dated, because they haven’t created that ten-year vision from a horsepower standpoint.
I think he’s mainly referring to the Wii rather than the Xbox 360 with that statement, but by not naming any console in particular and leaving it open to “other competitors”, he has left himself open to abuse from Xbox 360 owners. He has a point with the Wii: the graphics are poor compared to the PS3 (and Xbox 360), so however good the control system is, the console doesn’t have many prospects beyond the next few years. The PS3 on the other hand has been built with a 10 year life cycle in mind.
He also touched more specifically on the Wii’s control method, and those persistent rumours that Sony has been looking at mimicking the Wii Remote in a bid to capture the casual gaming market.
I think the notion of that controller is a non-trivial point that you’ve brought up, that control and that familiarity is like comfort food – from my perspective, we lead, we don’t follow. And as a brand, Nintendo’s got their thing, and we’re not trying to get the senior citizen group to get into gaming, we’re looking to convert the PS2 owners and the tens of millions of installed base that were playing DVDs and playing games on their PS2, to now play Blu-ray movies and Blu-ray games with their PS3.
That’s a clear indication that Sony is motoring ahead with its own vision rather than trying to cut in to the obviously successful strategy that Nintendo is currently carving out for itself. The thing to remember though is that while the PS2 wasn’t really regarded as a console for anyone, certainly to the same degree as the Wii is, it was a very mainstream console. So for Sony to capture former PS2 owners and persuade them to upgrade to a PS3 over either an Xbox 360 or Wii means the current gen console will have to become more mainstream as well.
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26 Responses to “Sony: Xbox & Wii looking dated – PS3 not going after casual market”
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August 4th, 2008
Flame bait DAVE PARRACK.
And you wonder why the flame wars rage in comments?
August 4th, 2008
I wish they’d do that in real life. I mean sure we have Blu-ray and a very large powerful processor, but nothing original has really been implimented YET. Idea’s like Home and play tv are slightly innovative but can be linked to other ideas already used in other consoles.
August 4th, 2008
i just think it’s funny the only one’s hyping the ps3 graphics abilities is sony. interesting…
August 4th, 2008
Well Microsoft and Nintendo aren’t going to do it for them.
August 4th, 2008
royzy – true. and neither are the developers… well at least those not paid by sony, ie; guerrilla, dp, etc…
August 4th, 2008
Kev,
I don’t know, Criterion seems pretty sold on the PS3’s potential…
-Arvis
August 4th, 2008
“because they haven’t created that ten-year vision from a horsepower standpoint.” – this is hilarious. can ANYONE decode this mumbo jumbo?
August 4th, 2008
arvis – why has the word “potential” become such a buzz word surrounding the ps3?
it has NEVER been uttered in console marketing before this. maybe it’s because the ps3 is failing to live up to it’s graphical hype and “potential” is all they can promise.. just one more broken promise….
it’s odd they claim to not be going after the casual market when the casual market is what made the ps2 the sales powerhouse that it was….
do you really fall for this double speak of sony’s, arvis? i’m actually suprised….
watch; soon sony will make a statement about pledging to support casuals or going after the casual market…
August 4th, 2008
Kev,
If that happens, if they seriously go “Wii” on me, then you can count me out of the Sony camp.
However, “potential” is a word that is used in reference to the PS3 simply because there is no graphical parity among its games. Sometimes they look phenomenal (MGS4, Uncharted, Burnout Paradise), and then other times they look like garbage. So it’s those good games that show what all the PS3 titles COULD look like, hence it’s “potential.”
-Arvis
August 4th, 2008
You need to post at least 20 or more post or your ass gets fire. Dave Parrack keep writing lol…
August 4th, 2008
Well, first of all, its good to know that Sony is not a follower with its controller. I mean, they never adopted shoulder buttons or analog sticks after Nintendo lead with them, right?
@kev
“i just think it’s funny the only one’s hyping the ps3 graphics abilities is sony. interesting…”
More interesting still is that the PS was very weak compared to the N64 and Dreamcast, and the PS2 was very weak compared to the Xbox and GC. Now not only are they the only one hyping their graphics, but they are sadly turning away from what made them a success, foolishly thinking the market was their’s, no doubt.
They’ve turned away from, as you said, the same casual market that make the PS2 so strong.
As for the mumbo jumbo, it means nothing. The PS3 is already outdated. Consoles are outdated by the time the first people buy them! So its meaningless PR-speak to try to make the less educated believe that in a few years when Nintendo has a new console out, and likely MS too, that the PS3 will be the strongest system, still.
It’s either a lie meant to confuse people with big words, or he’s not too bright seriously thinking that in 2015, the PS3 will still be the strongest player in the market. Heck, at this rate, the PS3 may not be on the market in 2015!
August 4th, 2008
Dave, you and Sony wish the PS3 had better graphics. There are two games one is Splinter Cell and the other I cannot remember but it was in the news a few weeks back where the developers said that these games cannot be developed on the
August 4th, 2008
i love this quote CAD
“The PS3 is already outdated”
I’d like to know your logic/thought process you went through before you blurted this out.
August 4th, 2008
Dave, you and Sony wish the PS3 had better graphics. There are two games one is Splinter Cell and the other I cannot remember but it was in the news a few weeks back where the developers said that these games cannot be developed on the PS3 because it was not technically possible and that they could do more working alone on the 360 then had it been developed for two consoles. Sony has made these same claims but there is no game yet to come to PS3 to say it cannot be done on the 360. They claim Metal Gear Solid is not possible but that is based on it not fitting on one disk. That still does not mean that MGS4 is not possible on the 360 because it is possible, it just might be on two disk. Like Kev said potential is all PS3 has because graphically it mostly falls behind when compared to most games that are multi platform. Only a hand full look slightly better and a few on par. The graphical results are out there I just don’t know why you choose to deny the facts Dave.
August 4th, 2008
Bourne
Why would you make a quote that you cannot find in my paragraph. Don’t put words in my mouth.
August 4th, 2008
I apologize CAD, it was actually Matt who said that.
Matt – the question i asked CAD above applies to you.
August 4th, 2008
FLAMEBAIT ARTICLE!!!!
Why is DAVE PARRACK wanting the fanboy wars to stop, and then post something like this?
August 5th, 2008
Cad- why do you 360 boys bring up which multi-plat games have looked better on what system. It’s well known that most of those games were ported from the 360 version and didn’t look as good. Usually ported versions don’t! So you can’t use that as proof of what system is graphically better. Maybe the 360 is, I’m not going to argue one way or the other, just bring something better to the table if you want to make a point!
August 5th, 2008
wylie – the hype sony spewed made it sound like “teh cell” and “blooray” would enable huge gorgeous worlds not possible on the 360. Multiplats proved them wrong. if the ps3 was so powerful, multiplats would show this.
August 5th, 2008
Kev- you know that’s not necessarily true. Don’t give me that crap. They are totally different setups for how they run and read information. If your dribble was true than why is it that when a game is made for PS3 and then ported to 360 the PS3 version doesn’t look like crap? Besides, we weren’t talking about what Sony said, we were talking about Cad and his asinine proof of who has better graphics!
Cad- I know I’ll regret bringing this back up, but if you think that MSG4 would fit on two disks, keep dreaming!
August 5th, 2008
Wylie
I don’t care if it’s a port or not a game should look good period. Blam Sony for ignoring the developers. There was a confrence prior to this generation of consoles where MS asked the developers what they wanted for game development. Microsoft listened. Sony forgot they were making a game console because all they were seeing was Bluray. The reason I bring it up is because it’s true and it’s one up for the 360 over the PS3 in terms of graphics. Don’t come boasting about your cell processor and how it will do thing no console can do and today were still waiting for those coments to come true. Yet 360 never made such a claim and the developers and saying that Splinter Cell and I think Red Alert cannot be done on the PS3. Your console is a joke. Where is the 1080P games Sony? Wylie I’m sure if there was something positive about the PS3 (whatever that is) you would boast about it too. Oh here is one for you, you got a Bluray Player Yaaaaa!!!!!
August 5th, 2008
@Bourne
I can only reply to your question with a question. I will assume, for you, that the PS3 had finished development in November 2006, and I will also assume, for you, at that time, the PS3 was made up totally of the best parts that could be made.
Now, assuming that, can you tell me you believe in nearly 2 years there has been nothing changed in computers that would make it better, if newer parts were used?
Heck, you don’t have to like it, but technology is nearly always ancient by the time people can get it. I won’t say the 360 or Wii are cutting edge either, but it would be foolish to think that nothing has happened with computers in nearly 2 years.
If a new system were to come along now, and the company was willing to charge $600 and take a loss like Sony did, the power of the PS3 would look bad.
You really think nothing has happened in 2 years?
August 5th, 2008
OK then the argument isn’t about the ps3 then as the PS3, by your logic, is the most cutting edge of all 3 “next gen consoles”. The problem is then that the x360 is a dinosaur in comparison and because its so old we see that devs are slowly turning away form the x360 as the power has been weaned out of it.
As we see from the games launched at the PS3 they looked crap, lets be honest, and now they’re beginning to show why the ps3 is such a worthwhile investment. If you reckon the PS3 is outdated then you really shouldn’t be here, as you should be looking forward to the next gen of console, developing your own or just stay out of gaming altogether as your too cutting edge.
August 6th, 2008
“If you reckon the PS3 is outdated then you really shouldn’t be here, as you should be looking forward to the next gen of console, developing your own or just stay out of gaming altogether as your too cutting edge.”
Or maybe just get a PC that can play games at 1080p?
August 6th, 2008
“The thing to remember though is that while the PS2 wasn’t really regarded as a console for anyone” – really, dave? do you really believe there are over 100 million “hardcore gamers” that bought the ps2?
good gawd..i’m just about done with this site….
we’ll use it for other forum discussions when we need an example of what ignorant gamer and “journalists” sound like…
August 6th, 2008
Cad- Sorry, but my console does almost everything I want it to do. Sure, it can be improved, not denying it, but it serves my purpose. You can try to put it down with your pathetic rhetoric, but fact is, I don’t want your 360 console and you won’t change my mind. I would rather pay the $500 bucks I payed then get a 360 for free. And that is the truth! The 360 doesn’t and cant offer what I want, the PS3 can and does!