340°

A $0.05 Component Delayed the PS3

In this month's IGN Unfiltered interview, Phil Harrison revealed a big reason why the PlayStation 3 released a year after the Xbox 360.

FallenAngel19842293d ago

I’m glad Sony didn’t rush PlayStation 3’s launch. Microsoft did so for Xbox 360 just to get an advantage over the competition and their console had one of the worse hardware malfunctions in history. Scratched discs, overheating and RRoDs out the wazoo. Add that to the no HDMI out of the box on launch units, no WiFi & myriad of other cost cutting decisions showed Microsoft cheaped out on so many things just for that headstart.

Jin_Sakai2292d ago

And still lost to PS3 in the end.

Artemidorus2291d ago

In fairness right at the end. Didn't do the same impact as Playstation 4

darthv722291d ago

both lost to the wii... big whoop

Brave_Losers_Unite2292d ago

The 360 was so outdated tech. A wifi adapter and the HD DVD addon LOL

Minute Man 7212291d ago

Outdated tech that could run games made on the PS3 1st better that the PS3.

Good-Smurf2292d ago (Edited 2292d ago )

My 360 went out within a month after purchase it was a nightmare and a fight to find a store that will fix it took me almost two months to find the right guy that can fix E74 error.
I liked that console had many great racing games that never came out on PS3 but damn was it unreliable to anyone who bought it before 2009.

TFJWM2292d ago (Edited 2292d ago )

Did MS not honor the warranty?

2291d ago
Atticus_finch2292d ago

It had way too many problems. And worst of all is that 360 is still Xboxs best console. SMH

crazyCoconuts2292d ago

I thought OG Xbox was there best because it pushed the bar way past PS2 with built in Ethernet and XBL

JEECE2292d ago

Gosh I always forget they shipped that thing without HDMI. I'm sure we all have bad memories of being at friend's house and seeing that they had their Xbox 360 set up on an HDTV through composite cables, while they obliviously talked about how they couldn't believe how good the graphics in Gears of War were. My eyes hurt just thinking about it.

crazyCoconuts2292d ago

Their software was superior though imo. Dashboard updates and XBL functionality was way ahead of PS. Party chat for example...

kitano19472291d ago

as it should be from a software company. I also liked their simple blade set up and found the PS3 interface slow and too much like a dvd, bluray interface

UnSelf2291d ago

the Wii was a fraction of the price and geared towards old women.

Should we compare candy crush downloads now?

+ Show (4) more repliesLast reply 2291d ago
KeenBean3452292d ago

Another interesting reason for the delay was that the first batch of chips which Sony funded and ordered were defective, where as Microsoft bought backups from a 3rd party. So Microsoft got chips Sony funded even before Sony did, as Sony didn't consider the chance of Microsoft asking IBM for a chip, with IBM showing them what they were working on for Sony

Neither company had great luck during RnD last gen

Ripsta7th2291d ago

i love the disagrees
even when your talking sense , if it makes sony look bad youll get disagreed
this site is ran by Sony fanboys left and right
what a effin joke

Silly gameAr2291d ago

Why should the disagrees/agrees that someone else gets concern you? If this site bothers you so much, why are you still here?

KeenBean3452291d ago (Edited 2291d ago )

Yeah it's strange, there is loads of really interesting facts and stats about the 360s and PS3s development and I feel that not many people would know that. I never really worry about the agrees and disagrees, doesn't matter much :)

PhoenixUp2292d ago

- PS2 launches ahead of Xbox: PlayStation outsells it
- Xbox 360 launches ahead of PS3: PlayStation outsells it
- PS4 launches alongside Xbox One: PlayStation outsells it

Seems no matter what timeframe Microsoft releases their console they’ll still have less marketshare than Sony.

Even if PS5 were somehow delayed a year behind the next Xbox, I’m certain it’d still outsell it just like PS3 did to 360. Unfortunately for Microsoft the PS5 will release alongside the next Xbox.

Tross2292d ago (Edited 2292d ago )

There were holes in MS's strategy with the 360. They had a year head start, but they focused heavily on the short term. They paid off companies for exclusive DLC or timed exclusivity on games and DLC, but they didn't really focus a lot on securing studios, and the ones they had they didn't exactly put in the money to keep them firing on all cylinders.

That strategy paid off in the short term as for at least a few years the 360 was the system to have, but eventually that dried up while Sony first party studios kept turning out exclusives. That carried over into this gen where the XB1 had an alright launch lineup, but that dried up pretty quickly and that's why MS has recently had to go on a purchasing spree for studios to hopefully produce more games than their first party studios have been. Of course, the conclusion of their contract with Bungie didn't help either. Even if there was no DRM fiasco marring the XB1's launch I doubt it would have performed as well as the PS4 regardless.

SkatterBrain2292d ago

didnt microsoft close down alot of studios then now decided to go out and buy a few? i thought that was weird, im surprised some of Lionhead(Fable) went on to make media molecule( Little Big Planet, Tearaway, Dreams)

JEECE2292d ago

The problem for MS is they can't compete outside the United States. 360 absolutely dominated here, but got trounced everywhere else. I mean, Japan is not a huge market for home consoles anymore, but if the PlayStation basically gets basically an uncontested 10 million unit gap each generation, that matters a lot in the overall. Although MS does better in Europe than Japan, they still don't come close to PlayStation.

XONE is actually pretty competitive in the US. That's why you probably have friends who started really playing games on the 360 but don't follow the industry as a whole who have no idea that XONE got outsold so badly.

badz1492291d ago

nobody is big in Japan except for Nintendo now in the console space. it's been 6 years and the PS4 is yet to reach even 8mil let alone 10mil like you said.

DarkZane2291d ago

@badz149 8 millions for a home console is pretty good for Japan nowadays. As for the Switch, it's only doing so well in Japan because it's considered a portable console. If it was an actual home console like the PS4 and Xbox One (no portable mode), it wouldn't be doing nearly as well as it is right now and it would just sell at the same rate the PS4 did.

JEECE2291d ago (Edited 2291d ago )

@badz149

10 million was a reference to PS3 since that generation is done, and PS3 sold around that in Japan. PS4 is selling similarly there year by year, so it's a useful number.

Anyway, your comment illustrates my point: even if you assume 8 million, it's 8 million that are basically uncontested (XONE is under a million in Japan, maybe even under half a million). In a close gen like last one was (obviously this one isn't, but just as a hypothetical) a free 7 million unit advantage could be the difference between outselling your competitor or not.

XtaZ2291d ago

All those sales and Xbox has still beaten them out each gen by having the superior platform. Crazy how sales don't actually matter at all in the end for us consumers, huh.

Ripsta7th2291d ago

ps pro comes
xbox one x outpowers it

JEECE2291d ago

And neither unit has had any impact on the trajectory of the overall race. It's almost like a new, more powerful console isn't as enticing if there are going to be literally zero games designed from the ground up for its specs, rather than designed for a much weaker system and just given graphical improvements.

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Thundercat772292d ago

And still against all odds the PS3 surpassed Xbox 360. Xbox has finished last in each of their console generations.

Immagaiden2292d ago

“Xbox has finished last in each of their console generations.“

Rewriting history much?

- Xbox outsold GameCube
- Xbox One outsold Wii U

badz1492291d ago

Wii U never existed. not even Nintendo wants to admit they released that one

Orionsangel2292d ago

PS3 launch was a fail. $599! Riiiidge Racer! Backlash!

Xbox One launch was a fail! The system will always be online. Backlash!

If these two consoles are taking turns on launch fails. PS5 launch will be a fail.

Oh no!

battletrax2291d ago

Playstation won't fail. They have proven talent with their games studios.

badz1492291d ago

@Orionsangel

that's like xbox fanboys biggest dream EVER!

Orionsangel2291d ago

I own both consoles. I have no stake in a console war or loyalty to a brand.

Dude Dutch2291d ago

After reading this I had to restart my brain

darthv722291d ago

PS3 was Sony's 3rd console, XBO was MS's 3rd console... if you look back throughout platforms where they released a 3rd console, it has historically been shown to not be as successful as their 2nd and sometimes 1st. Those that have gone on to release a 4th has fared better but not always.

Some call it a 3rd console curse.

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130°

Xbox CEO Asha Sharma — "This team has brought it back before, and I'm here to help us do it again."

Windows Central: "We caught up with incoming CEO Asha Sharma and newly promoted CCO Matt Booty to learn about what the future holds for Microsoft's gaming operation."

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windowscentral.com
2d ago
Christopher2d ago

Technically, they've never brought it back. It's been downhill since Xbox One, which was its zenith. It hasn't 'gone back' since nor did it decline in such a fashion before.. We're dealing with a single peak company here, not multiple.

2d ago Replies(3)
darthv721d 12h ago

What about after they dropped the kinect and added in BC, and then later the One X? That was definitely better than when it launched. That gen had many peaks and valleys for XB. This gen... not so much.

Christopher1d 10h ago (Edited 1d 10h ago )

Those all happened at the same time. Kinect and BC was all at the introduction of Xbox One. They were still working upward from there, just not competing as well as they liked with PS4. But removing Kinect continued upward gain after that. It was truly the end of Xbox One and this generation where they've seen decline. It's been a very crash and burn situation.

Both Sony and Microsoft are just ruining their rep this generation. Microsoft with subscriptions over hardware, Sony with the focus on Live Service over what made them great.

S2Killinit1d 7h ago

They dropped kinect then dropped xbox one

fr0sty1d 10h ago

Technically, they've lost every generation they've participated in. Only the Xbox 360 brought them close, but they still ended up in last place behind PS3 and Wii by the time it was all said and done.

Reaper22_1d 9h ago

If youre talking selling scnsoles, selling the most doesnt mean you win a generation.Thats just means you sold more consoles. Microsoft sold more xbox 360s than they did the original xbox. Sony sold less ps3s than they did ps2s and they sold them at a loss for almost the entire generation. They narrowly outsold the 360.Microsoft regressed with the xbox one and did even worse with the series x. But all that doesnt mean as much anymore because you dont need eother one to play the games. It a different industry now and its not so much about the hardware anymore.

thorstein1d 3h ago

That's what I was thinking. Even with the red ring of death, the Xbox 360 was relatively their top console.

Wii was a behemoth and PS3 flew off the shelves. 3rd sucks if it's a bad console generation, but that generation was pretty solid. I loved my phat PS3.

From 3rd place, it certainly looked like they were still headed in the right direction.

Then they fumbled.

Lightning771d 7h ago (Edited 1d 7h ago )

The decline was simply not promising the AAA games. Not buying studios to deliver great games. The kinect, tv, price stuff could and was all walked back but it was the lack of games. No games exclusive mascot and identity first party games means no reason to buy said console.

Halo and Gears were reaching the later year's and getting stale. They needed new AAA something that they'd failed to do. Sure you can say they have games now. Right, that's like saying someone Went to war finally coming back after years of promises that you'll return only to finally return with a missing, hand, leg different person. Same with Xbox, MS forced them to go multiplat, not the same brand anymore cool you have games but at what cost?

IMO I dont think Asha and Matt are planning for this gen. No point what's done is done this gen but are planning for the next console, whatever that looks like. (again assuming she and Matt have actual say)

S2Killinit1d 7h ago

They always start each gen by showing the pearly gates to heaven.

Profchaos1d 6h ago

The 360 came back from the rrod but that's honestly about it

darthv721d 6h ago

Chris, MS introduced BC for XBO in 2015, two years after it launched. There was a positive uptick for it. And while they reversed course on requiring kinect at launch, they fully removed it in 2017 which was the same year they introduced the One X. I remember that year saw an uptick as well.

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-Foxtrot2d ago

When? Xbox to Xbox 360?

They’ve been pretty much on a windy slope since the Xbox One reveal but even then s*** started to hit the fan with TV, Sports and Kinect at the end of the 360 days.

Yi-Long1d 13h ago (Edited 1d 13h ago )

I’d argue Xbox completely lost their major advantages over the competition halfway through the 360 era. They came out of the gates, swinging and winning, with 360 being a HUGE success, especially in the West. Then, Nintendo had a hit with Wii & motion-controls, and Microsoft looked at that and said; “Hey, we’d like a piece of that pie as well!”. That’s when they changed course and started shifting towards Kinect. Which obviously was a huge flop.

That decision/change in direction pretty much was the exact same moment when Sony course-corrected their many errors with the PS3, so suddenly Sony made a bunch of good decisions to take advantage of Xbox dropping the ball. Lower console-price, free online MP, and PS+ which was offering 6 (or more) ‘free games’ each month.

By the time that generation ended, PS3 had won back a huge amount of gamers, plus they had the momentum.

Then, obviously, XBO was announced, and I think we all know how that went. They never recovered, and they keep making just absolutely terrible decisions.

Stopac1d 9h ago

I agree, the 360 was only ahead during the first half of that generation. The PS3 had a rough start especially with their console price and various models. But halfway through with price reductions and games like infamous and the last of us they were pulling ahead.

Xbox during the 360 and beyond have been nothing but a plague on console gaming with the practice of buying their way into multiplatform and exclusives which made Sony eventually do the same thing. Now they're both just buying studios and then shutting them down. And I say this as a SEGA fanboy who went through sega bowing out of the console market due to Sony's success.

2d ago Replies(2)
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60°

What an Xbox founder thinks of the new Xbox CEO | Seamus Blackley interview

Gamesbeat caught up with Blackley to extract some wisdom about Microsoft’s journey in games, what he thinks Sharma should do, and where gaming can go next. Part of his message is hopeful, but Blackley sees a lot of peril on the road that Microsoft is following. And it makes him worry about the future of gaming.

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gamesbeat.com
4d ago
piroh3d ago

"I expect that the new CEO, Asha Sharma, her job is going to be as a palliative care doctor who slides Xbox gently into the night."

LOL

Anyway, let's wait and see maybe Mia Khalifa will surprise us.

rlow13d ago

I’m on the fence about her. I’ll give her chance, but if she is there to finish things off. Well what can you do.

Abnor_Mal3d ago (Edited 3d ago )

After seeing the article of the possible sunsetting of Xbox as said by Seamus Blackley I believe, I went onto X because of a post I saw. It was a gif of Vegeta powering up, the poster commented as Vegeta yelling “Don’t take my fiercest competitor away from me.” Standing there in his blue Sayian/Freiza corps outfit. So it got me to thinking, so let me ask a question to N4G.

If Vegeta is PlayStation, who would Xbox and Nintendo be in the Dragon Ball universe?

Who would be Master Roshi?

I have my own opinion of course, I just want to see what others think.

40°

Patrick Soderlund named executive chairman of Nexon

The industry veteran has been tasked with leading the next phase of growth after overseeing the successful launch of Arc Raiders.

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gamedeveloper.com
WICKED_Wildcard4d ago

Isn't he the guy who greenlit Anthem?