Hahahahahaha *breathes* hahahahaha! Oh c'mon!!!! Keeping SONY at bay? Lets just wait a couple of months and see the NPD results. Don't get me wrong, I like my Xbox but I am not a freak or a moron who just stays in denial!

"Microsoft keeps Sony at bay"

how is that with the ps3 and the 360 is selling nick to nick ??

Now that they are both 300, the average consumer is gonna ask 2 things:

Which is more reliable
Which justifies my purchase more

Cheaper consoles are good for ALL gamers.

Money saved for more games in my book and that goes for both consoles. I dont include the WII because it smells.

like a fish

its very important that you pay attention to what the man with the suit says to the man with the army coat.

Ps3 is like the man with the suit on. His name is Cutty.
Xbox360 is the poor man with the green coat.

How exactly is M$ keeping sony at bay in this analgy.
Theres a word called Respect. Learn it.

http://www.youtube.com/watc...

I Agree I am a little baffled, if you go to gamestop they seem to promote 360 same with bestbuy, its like some secret deal they make or something, weird!

What is so different even if there is 299 option?

i mean its clear is his writing that he is

first of all hes clearly try to underplay the PS3 in this part

"Microsoft has sold 30m Xbox 360s since 2005, while Sony has sold slightly less than 24m PlayStation 3 consoles, which were launched a year later. Both trail the Nintendo Wii, which has sold more than 50m globally."

slightly ???
year after year the PS3 and the 360 is selling nick to nick
and yes he mentioned the year late start
but he didn't bother to explain that the gab between the PS3 and the 360 is due the late year start

"With many third-party game developers no longer willing to make games exclusive to PlayStation, Sony has also suffered from a lack of hits by its in-house games division compared to Microsoft’s success with its Halo franchise, Mr Baker said."

and this part is the most funny part
underplaying the PS3 again
and praising halo as its the ultimate game
sony is keep bumping original IP's one after another
and most of them are hits
and thier still 3rd party exclusives on the ps3
alot of them too
but this guy as i said bias
lest go on with what he said

and last but not least in this part
" The Japanese company has been unable to repeat the advantage it enjoyed with the PS2, when it had access to far more compelling games than Microsoft, analysts said."
underplaying sony again
by comparing it to its last success

one word
this article is just BS

thats funny

Keeping at bay = Barely outselling it even though its cheaper.

for so long that Sony had to go on a diet to catch up.

defend all you want ladies, just jump in already. great news.

Did you not read my post or click my link.
everything is explained in 1 scene.

Holiday season going be interesting to see with both consoles having a sku that cost the same.

I live in the UK, I was an early convert from Playstation to Xbox when the xbox came out many moons ago, and instantly became hooked to the Xbox live network and soon abandoned my PS2, after that, the 360 was a day of release 300 mile round trip to get one.

I;'ve enjoyed my gaming with the 360 right up till today. I feel ripped off, I already have a 360 premium so it doesnt affect me about the price increase on the Arcade model, but wtf?? PRICE INCREASE??

Some rubbish about the strength of the pound, £160 for an ARCADE? Microsoft just handed the UK to Sony, just when it looked like Microsoft was making progress here (360 best selling console so far in 2009, beating even the DS)

I'm seriously feeling like 'what's next for us in the UK>' shafted by Activision on MW2, Sony ripping us off for £249 for a PS3 slim, which is around $400, WHY??

I should quit gaming!! Or just get a gaming PC!!

Why Microsoft, why? It was Sony that treated us so bad (delayed PS3 euro launch and £425 launch price) but now they've taken on the role of ripping us off here in the UK. disgusting!!

And up till now I was pretty much an MS fanboy.

by re branding the x360 and stealing Sony's idea again. This fall they will use the official slogan "It can do EVERYTHING!!" for their fall marketing campaign.

It can be use as a heater for winter.
It can be used as a oven.
It can be use as a toaster.
and it can be used as a bomb.

in real life this is your argument.
sheesh, xbots are dumb.

http://www.youtube.com/watc...

Thats you! ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^ ^

the xbox 360 is a gaming console the ps3 is a grill http://www.youtube.com/watc...

3rd place > 2nd place

sony fanatics need to calm down..

we all know the ps3 is only good for movies, a clunky web browser and folding and thats about it...

and omg the desperation, a new design and a price drop on a console that sony still loses money on. lol and not just that but all within like 3 years, sony dropped the price like every year since launch! cant get more desperate then that..

Thanks for the link cory.

but my link is better!

wow, air1? 2006 jokes?

xbox360 must emits a trance that puts you in a coma.

Microsoft has had a $299 Xbox 360 for the past 12 months. Even a $199 console. Sony's cheapest PS3 was $399 up until last week. Sony still has room to drop in the future, while 360 is probably stuck at $199 due to cost of components (no slimline version in sight).

Microsoft's response won't have any real effect.

detective 1;hmmm one white console, one halo dvd, one glowing red ring
detective 2; whats his id say
detective 1; says ehhh x b o x three six zero
detective 2; oh sh1t its a suicide. 54.2 i repeat we have a 54.2 suicide xbox 360 red ring send backup immediately
elderly lady; oh that poor boy he was so young!

example like why buy a car with no music system when the other does.

You dont care about us getting screwed in this way? Im not affected thats right, but I am if I want MW2, I am if I wanted to buy another console for whatever reason.

My point is that Microsoft is screwing us because they can, Sony have done it for years and this is a bad sign that our consoles are having a price INCREASE!! I think Microsoft have become arrogant, putting up a price for a console that you can get (if you look around hard enough) for £110 new at the moment.

I also think Sony suck for hitting us for £249 for the PS3 slim, but to increase a consoles price when it's what over 3 years old? Madness.

i see out this deal is maybe the isze of the hard drive and a few exclusives which duel mainly in prefferences if you ask me.

slimps3 vs black pro isnt exactly the same deal here.

sure some here might not care for bluray, but the games excuse can be now used both ways, friends on live? sure thatsplausable to a certain degree and so its personal prefferncess ofcourse.

but to solely use the word library of games of which is/are now appearing on the ps3 with extras? its just a poor excuse altogether.

i mean there's ninja gaiden 2 and then there is ninja gaiden sigma 2?

stranglehold then strangle hold with free bluray movie of hardboild?

there is godfather then there is god father don's edition? lol see where im going with this?

i can keep on going with this all night long.

again its supposed to be about choices yet, you guys dont even get half of the stuff that we get in the box for the same asking price? if its not choices i call them options baby.

both consoles dont come aith any HD cables, and the canada thing is just that a limited thing so that will go the way of the dodo bird.

now for 299 this is what you get in the box.

360elite vs -ps3slim
120gbHDD -120gbHDD
dvd playback -dvd playback
N/A -bluray playback
1 controller -1 controller
1 power brick -1 power cord
2 usb ports -2 usb ports
1 HdMi port -1 HdMi port
1 ethernet port -1 ethernet port
1 ethernet cable -1 ethernet cable
1 N/I($99 acess) -1 built in wifi
Failurerate/54% -Failurerate 10%
network live -network psn/free
gold/50 annually
silver free/cannot
access facebook?

versus

ps3slim
120gbHDD
dvd playback
bluray playback
1 controller
1 power cord
2 usb ports
1 HdMi port
1 ethernet port
1 ethernet cable
1 built in wifi
Failurerate10% network psn/free

games to look for this fall on the 360?

call of duty modern warefare 2
Batman arkham asylum
mass effect 2
forza 3
left for dead 2
Halo odst

games to look for this fall on the ps3?

Call of duty modern warefare 2
Batman arkham asylum/joker exclusive
Ninja gaiden sigma 2
Demon souls
Ratchet and clank: a crack in time
Uncharted 2: among thieves
Grandturismo 5(possibly late december)

Other small things to note?

360 has the upper hand in the online, this is mainly do to a well built community infrastructure, features like cross voice chat, voice messaging, universal game invites and 8-way party systems gives it a better sense of community and thus resulting in overall better gaming experince.

however the ps3 where it lacks in software features it makes up with hardware and some other notable software features, such the ability to acess netflix or facebook or even sites like hulu without having to fork an annual fee for live via the ps3's web browser. not to mention psone classics are hard to ignore if youre a true gamer.

also the ps3's psn offers a video store which offers standard buyers keep and hd rentals and shows something simarly also found on the 360 as well.

as of right now? in my personal opinion.. the only thing seperating these 2 platforms are a spare of exclusive ips and a few features.

to my conclusion it all comes down to prefference nothing more, however if you ask me which is the better deal in terms of value for your buck?

the obvious answer is simple: the ps3 is the better value, why?

if anyone cares enough they will notice that its alot easier to add and delete software features which by the way costs less than it is to redo hardware changes to a current product.

at any given moment from watching how sony has manage make subpar upgrades to its psn service its easy to see what im talking about, even if the changes and upgrades are just that subpar, they are upgrades that cant be ignore or overlooked.

had the 360 had all the bells and whistles the ps3 has in the hardware department added and fused with its software and os? the 360 would have legitamitly become the ultimate gaming console for many years.

but of course the same exact can be said of the ps3 had sony had the expertise ms has with os and software.

look at the end of the day, and eventually the ps3 will get the features its missing one way of another its only a matter of time rather than if. in which case the debate will than shift course and be about exclusive ips instead.

but this is all just my opinion i guess.

That should be the title of the article.

Haha, the ONLY place the 360 will continue to sell is NA. It'll be dead in Europe and Japan where the x360 has long been the poor man's PS3. Here in NA (even though I live here) I've notice people are more.. stupid. They'll buy anything that's cheap and that they see on advertisements. The 360's imaginary "price cut" won't help.

360 owners want a ps3. Price was the issue, now its not...
so now that sony drop'd the price what the big deal?

I bought the 360 at launch. And bought a ps3 when mgs4 came out.
$499.
I waited for the price to go down from $600-$500.
Now its $299.... O.O
If your a 360 owner, and your telling me that you dont want a pas3 after it cost half of what it cost at launch then your either lieing to yourself, or you honestly just became addicted to a microsoft product, and its become crack for you... O.o
Go out there and buy one.
There's goos games on both consoles, but if you only have 1 then you miss out.
Cmon people.... $299!!!!
I got mine at $499... This is a good deal!

MS want to maintain the one year head start.

Facebook and Twitter will not sale consoles

but what, exactly, is going to be pushing hardware sales?

Halo: ODST?
Left4Dead 2?
Forza 3?

games that have ALREADY sold people an Xbox 360 when Halo 3, Left4Dead, and Forza 2 released on the 360. my point is that anyone who has wanted an Xbox 360 for those franchises bought one before, either when the Pro was $299, or the Arcade was $199. Likewise, next year, Mass Effect 2, Fable 3, and Splinter Cell: Conviction won't move as much hardware as Mass Effect, Fable 2, and even Splinter Cell: Double Agent did, because of the same reason. Alan Wake is the only new IP to release on the 360 sometime next year that MAY move consoles, but it IS a new IP, which hardly do much to shift consoles in ANY generation.

Uncharted 2: Among Thieves is a sequel, as is Ratchet and Clank Future: A Crack in Time, but nobody bought PS3's in droves at $599 in 2007 for those games (mostly due to the wave of PS3 hate across EVERY US media outlet that covered games).

HOWEVER, add in Demon Souls, Ninja Gaiden Sigma 2 (the definitive version of Ninja Gaiden 2), Uncharted 2, Ratchet and Clank Future: ACIT, Final Fantasy XIII in Japan, and probably Gran Turismo 5 in December, not to mention the prospects of God of War 3, Heavy Rain, White Knight Chronicles, FF Versus XIII, FFXIV Online, The Last Guardian, Mod Nation Racers, and more hitting next year, and you have more reason to pick up a PS3 at $299 than a 360 Elite at $299.

not to mention the built in Blu Ray drive, Wi Fi adaptor, free online gaming, and lack of overpriced peripherals. and the hardware is reliable.

now it's all about software and value proposition, and no matter the amount of spin, the PS3 is just a better value.

we've seen earlier how Sony is starting to aggressively market the PS3 with it's "It Can Do Everything" campaign, what can the 360 adverts do to counter a system that, literally, has nearly everything but the kitchen sink thrown in, and for the same price as the competition?

Microsoft will no doubt leverage Halo: ODST, Left4Dead 2, and Forza 3, but the former 2 are hardcore gamers that have already attracted their fanbase with the first parts in the series. Forza 3 is great, and more casual, but lets face it, it's no Gran Turismo, a franchise that is the most revered by racing enthusiasts WORLDWIDE.

EVERYBODY has been waiting for the PS3 to drop to $299 (or were all those stories from journalists whining about the price of the PS3 just bluster?), whereas the 360 has ALREADY been at a $299 price point. the PS3 has NEVER BEEN $299 until now.

Microsoft can't do anything to keep Sony at bay, but they can definitely try and push more units with this $299 price. i just don't see why a consumer would pay the same price for LESS features and more prone to defective hardware.

ultimately, however, it's about the games, and Sony has always had the advantage when it comes to first and second party exclusives. 30 first and second party studios will do that for you, while MS is barely pushing 6 or 7 first and second party studios.

this is the part in the generation where Sony begins to leverage that studio advantage, as we've seen by them announcing game after game after game year round, at every major games convention this year.

the same thing happened with the PS1 and the PS2. GAMES SELL HARDWARE.

in 2005, 2006, and 2007, the 360 had the games (at least the games most everybody was talking about). 2008, 2009, and it looks like 2010 all are about PS3 games (again, at least the games most everybody is talking about).

a handful of exclusives from MS (Mass Effect 2, Splinter Cell: Conviction, Alan Wake), as awesome as those titles will no doubt be, simply can't compare to the number and quality of exclusives hitting the PS3 in the next 6-12 months.

you can't get mad at Sony for having more first and second party developers. they just do. Microsoft should have been investing in more in house studios, instead of throwing out cash to snag exclusive DLC and multi-platform status for "Playstation franchises" (ie, GTAIV, DMC4, Resident Evil, etc).

corey my friend he let me teabag him in halo all the time

Now that Jim Ryan is gone just need to remove Herman Hulst from his position! And maybe give Shuhei the position he deserved.

This gen hasn't been the best for games, last gen consoles are still out there and now there's been talk of the PS6 and Xbox Two for a year or so. Many games this gen will be ported to next gen and the cycle will continue. The re-release of the Neo Geo AES+, games on cartridge for £70 ($95), gaming is going back in time. Gaming has gone pricing mad with the high cost of games, consoles and controllers. The men and women at the top are clueless.

It’s always interesting to hear behind-the-scenes stories like this, especially involving veterans like Shuhei Yoshida and leadership figures like Jim Ryan. That said, there are usually multiple sides to decisions at that level. It could be less about not “listening” and more about differences in long-term vision for PlayStation. Yoshida played a huge role in shaping the brand, so whatever the reason, his impact is undeniable.

If true, and I'm inclined to believe it is, it goes to show that Sony lost their way when they became more western/didn't respect the PlayStation origin story. Andrew House and Jack Tretton did great work, but they also didn't try to fundamentally change the PlayStation DNA. Ryan oversaw the death of Japan Studio and a live service direction.

I already figured this, good lord imagine if Shuhei took over instead, would've been a platinum era 😩

I miss the first three generations of PlayStation. The way they turned PS3 around, we knew they meant business. We were all worried for a bit there around launch. Eventually from 2008 they started shifting slowly. But since Yoshida was fired, it's never been the same. Still enjoy my PS5 daily. I got a backlog dating back to PS2 lol So I'm fine but new games aren't as appealing anymore.

It seems like we were thrown on to the worst timeline possible where everything is too expensive and the wrong people were put in positions that makes the world a shitty place. We could have had Shu as the head of PS but we got the shitty alternative. Same goes for everyone in power around the world. Doesn’t matter the company or country the majority of us got the shitty picks and the world is declining like never before. I do think PS can come out of this because of their studios, talent and IP but they need someone more in touch with gamers leading things like Shu was. They’re still the best place for console gaming imo but it could be much better than it is especially without the massive live service failures. The rest of the world I have a lot less hope for right now. Hopefully the pendulum swings back towards the good ole days but I’m preparing for the worst.

There goes illuminati distraction story

So now there's certifiable proof that Ryan was in fact "fired", as opposed to when it was first announced that he "retired", in order to save face.

There's another guy who recently "retired" as CEO of another large gaming company, after doing a dismantling job as lead for well over a decade.

seems legit, the business man, fires the one who has ideas to move the business forward.

Jim Ryan is the reason why we are entering year 6 since the PS5 launch and many of us don't feel like the PS5 has gotten started as yet.

I hope going forward, we will see a return to form.