Kaz Hirai: 13 million PS3s will be sold this year

The boss of Sony Computer Entertainment, Kaz Hirai, is upbeat about the PS3's future. With sales up 70% over last year and PSN growing substantially by the day, according to him things will only get better.

Hirai told reporters in Japan that he's "confident the PS3 hardware sales will hit the 13 million mark in the fiscal year ending March 2010.

As of now, for the first two quarters of this fiscal year, global PS3 hardware sales stand at 4.3 million.

He also mentioned that the company's planned online cross format entertainment system will without a doubt launch next year.

According to Reuters, "the network will make available "movies, music, books, and other content to network-capable TVs, Blu-ray players, ebooks and others."

11/20/09 Ernice Gilbert

Sony Dev tried to make God of War III a FPS, wasn't successful

Yep, you read the headline right, SCEA Ken Fieldman has admitted to CGSociety that he "unsuccessfully" tried to lobby God of War III as a first person shooter to the game's director Stig Asmussen.

"I tried unsuccessfully to convince Stig to make 'God of War III' a first-person shooter," Ken Divulged.

"Kratos could have some truly bad*** weapons that rip gods to shreds. Unfortunately he didn't see the genius in the idea," he concluded.

Genius in the idea? you got to be kidding me, and they say Kotick's nuts; sorry, I'll stick to "God of War" not "God of Guns;" there are enough FPSs out to quench my first, (rolls eyes).

God of War III will be released on March 10th 2010 exclusively for the PS3.

Thanks vg247

10/02/09 Ernice Gilbert

Thanks Microsoft, you brought competition

Long gone are the days when one company dominated a Generation. That era seem so distant in light of what is occurring today. Exclusives were an easy grab, but now, it’s more a decision of positioning one’s self rather than console or brand loyalty. No more can they be overconfident, nor can they overlook the competition; it’s a fierce battle for dominance. But more and more with each passing day, week, and year, what I’m seeing is, there will be no runaway winner this time around, (exclude Nintendo). Why? Well you would have to rally back 4years into the past.

On November 4th 2005 Microsoft launched the then New Xbox360 and gave themselves a year’s head start on Sony, the industry’s leader at the time. Although the console was half baked, (RROD) it was the single most important decision the software giant made. One thing is sure, if Sony and Microsoft had launched their systems simultaneously there is no doubt in my mind, Sony would be in the lead. But that did not happen and a year can be very long, and over at Sony headquarters, I could only imagine how painstakingly long that year was. Microsoft gained massive momentum in the United States and even the UK. Then the PS3 came out swinging, the price tag was so high that only the hardcore Sony fans (there are literally millions of them) dented their wallets in 2006. And so it began. The race was on, Nintendo also released in 2006 but it was and still is in a class of it’s own.

You know the history, so you don’t need classes on it. The doom and gloom Sony articles started rolling in and still flourish even today. Once ‘King of the Ring,’ Sony was left fighting for dear life. Wow! The seasons are so unpredictable; today you rule, tomorrow you’re in jail? Yeah, things change that fast. As you may know, I recently wrote an editorial asking the question “Is Microsoft dipping in too much?” I also listed some of the many fronts that the company is waging war on. One of them was the Xbox360, a battle I hope they continue. Not because I want Sony to suffer, on the contrary I want them to succeed, but I also want innovation. Microsoft is changing the rules hence, forcing Sony to get its act together (which in many ways they have) and raw back like the lion it is. The pressure only mounted from then forward and today we’re in an all out war with the giants flinging mud all over each other. Fanboys have also joined the fray. It’s silly, guys pitching war against each other all in the name of their favorite company. Sony on one side, Microsoft on the other, Nintendo is no where to be found; they’re making way too much money to jump in this dirty fight. Backroom deals are being forged, long time exclusives to one console suddenly lands on the competition’s brand first. Gamers are left wandering WTH? (what the hec). DLC is now the norm with one system receiving the goodies before the other, or one does not receive any at all. The competition is so stiff you wander sometimes have these companies lost their way? No, they’ve not lost it, actually it’s the opposite. I think finally they get it. If you want to reign you must fight vehemently for it. You want the top spot, well get dirty and prove yourself to us, the gamers. Create the best experiences possible, give us the best you have to offer in every department. If you don’t the other company will, it’s a win-win situation for gamers. And in my humble opinion, it should never cease.

If Microsoft fails to get better, then Sony will take over, and if Sony fails in its efforts to revamp its strategies, Microsoft will win this time around. The way I see it is, if you have no competition then there’s not a way to test your endurance. How can I know my speed if I never get challenged by someone as fast or faster than I am? Because of this brawl, the two giants are doing their best to woo us. Sony is pulling out all the stops with games like, Killzone 2, Uncharted 2: Among Thieves, God of War 3, GT5, Heavy Rain, the list is long. PSN is a free service, where as, with the competition you have to pay. Microsoft on the other hand has Alan Wake, Halo ODST, Forza 3, Gears of War 2, and XBLA which is just one step above the PSN. Again the list is long. The titles I just listed are some examples of how far we’ve come in the gaming business, a testament to the results competition can yield. Don’t forget, in this case, we the consumers never lose. Sony and Microsoft are fighting over us while we sit and make judgments on which bandwagon to join.

So whether you’re on Sony or Microsoft’s side, you win. Because at the end of the day, they’re fighting for you.

08/04/09 Ernice Gilbert

Editorial: Seriously Sony, where’s the advertising?

Sony has made a name for itself in the gaming industry. A good name minus all the negative press the company has been fielding recently. It is respected worldwide as paramount to the success of the gaming industry. Can you picture the future without Sony in the arena? Sure you can but your view won’t be that optimistic if you live in the real world. Millions of gamers worldwide remain loyal to the company, come what may it seems. And with good reason, Sony has led the industry for over 15yrs, with major 1st and 3rd party exclusives pumped out successively. It has been this way from since PS1 days, the best exclusives were home to the then white machine. I won’t even begin to list the games, time will ultimately run out. Next it was the PS2’s turn to shine and shine it did, with consoles being sold by the millions even into 2009, in fact, the company actually sold more PS2s than PS3s this past quarter. What a raving success the PS2 was, or still is. Matter of fact it has sold over 150million units worldwide; and that my made Sony extremely cocky. The company became careless, thinking no one would ever top them and some how managed to lose ground to the likes of Microsoft and Nintendo. Today they’re in 3rd place. Don’t be mistaken though, I would not be surprised at all if Sony made it to the top again. But even today after they’ve learned many lessons, some attitudes of the PS2 years still lingers. One of them, the lack of advertising.

Back when the PS2 was in full bloom, the giant did not have much advertising to do. Everybody knew about the console, every home had one in it's living room, and as I stated before people are up until now purchasing the system. Advertising was not an area Sony needed to push hard because, c’mon, the thing was ubiquitous. Most games sold very well on the system paying even more dividends to the company. Well it seems Sony forgot that those days are no more. You got a lot more Xbox 360s around, Nintendo Wii is omnipresent, and you Sony, is for now in 3rd place. Even President Obama gave ironic props to the Xbox360 while telling parents to turn off gaming and read with their children. The fact is Microsoft’s console has become a household name in the US. Yes PS3 is still raging strong. Believe me, Sony is here to stay but at the same time, they’ve got to up the ante and be way more aggressive, especially in the advertising department. The company has made great progress but much more is needed. And the price point does not help either.

Why do I hardly get to see ads for my favorite PS3 games before they hit the shelves? Gamers who are not as informed as some of us get there info from advertising. Duh. Seriously, before killzone 2 was launched the hype train was continuously breaking the speed limit online; but it was a no show on my TV. Most games I see ads for are multi-plat yet still I’m left with the feeling that they’re only on Xbox360. Yes I know they’re on both consoles, (they’re multi-plat) but some kid who’s not informed will most likely pick up the Xbox 360 version. My 360 on the other hand gets all the love, and I‘m glad. I just wish Sony could do a better job. Infamous is now out, yes the game is selling well as it should. It’s the best game out this summer. But don’t you think it could have done a whole lot better had Sony upped the advertising? Yes it sure would and still can. Word of mouth can get you far, but how far? You’ve got to push your games. Uncharted 2 is upon us, a game that every true gamer should be playing come October. But will Sony be aggressive enough and make it a household name? We’ll have to wait and see.

One could argue it’s up to the 3rd party studios to do their own advertising, but I would beg to defer, this situation has been ongoing more so with 1st party devs. But even with 3rd party studios, Sony must play a heavy role in advertising. Both Sony and Naughty Dog are invested in the success of this game, (Uncharted 2: Among thieves) therefore both companies should advertise aggressively. Can one hand clap? No. Can one leg walk? of course not, the same goes for Sony and it’s affiliates, and for that matter Nintendo and Microsoft.

Let me make one thing plain, lots of game studios from around the world have only praise for Sony. Many developers have come forward and declared how great a working relationship they have with the company and why they would never leave. In a climate where pressure is being mounted everyday to make games for all three systems because of rising costs, and also because it’s common sense, the companies that remain loyal to Sony, remain loyal not because they have to, but because they want to.

But in order to win, you Sony got to step it up. Remember the main reason I bought my PS3 was to play games. If you fail to advertise to the masses and depend solely on word of mouth and the internet, it could mean one less consumer, which equals to one less game, and one less game will mean one less dollar. And for all those who think one less is nothing. Think again, if one drop of rain keep falling in your cup continuously, eventually it will overflow.

08/03/09 Ernice Gilbert

Shu Yoshida: “I almost feel like we’re in the launch year of the Playstation 3...”

In the September issue of Playstation: The Official Magazine, Sony’s President of Worldwide Studios made time to answer some questions, from the oft mentioned 10-year cycle, to the importance of Gran Turismo making it’s debut on the PSP.

PTOM: as we sit here three years into a 10-year cycle, what’s your overall feel of what’s been achieved so far, and are we where you envisioned we’d be at this point?

Yoshida: “From the content standpoint you can see from the games we’re releasing this year and next year that developers are getting much more comfortable with the hardware and taking more and more advantage of it.” “So I think we have come to the point that we’re now confident in saying that we meant what we said when we launched PS3 that we had more hardware power [than other systems].” “On the network side, we announced Playstation Network with PS3, and obviously day one we didn’t have too much and too many services, but every year we’re adding more and more content and our games are taking more and more advantage of the network capabiliteis.”

“So I almost feel like we’re in the launch year of the Playstation 3 in terms of how we can differentiate it from the last generation, we’re still at the starting point and we’re still adding to our install base as and we’re looking to expand our user base. And we just added the motion controller to help broaden our reach.”

Yoshida also said that the Japanese market clearly had problems adapting to the PS3’s technology in part because of the successful portable market in Japan, but that situation has long been laid to rest with Japanese devs bringing out games like, Grand Turismo, Final Fantasy and The last Guardian.

Mr. Yoshida had lots to say about the imminent PSPgo set to release on October 1st 2009. But his main source of happiness is to know that Grand Turismo will be coming to PSP.

Be sure to pick up the magazine when it hit store shelves in August.

07/31/09 Ernice Gilbert

Sony’s boss Kaz Hirai to deliver keynote address at TGS

And at the look of things it seems as if we should expect a few big announcements, (PS3 Slim? Maybe? No?). Ok whatever, we can still hope, so here’s to hoping we get:

PS3 Slim - $299
GT5 - This year
Ridge Racer - Enough said!
FFV -13 - Game play
Netflix - You know you want it
New ‘Agent’ footage - Can’t wait!

Over 194,000 people attended TGS last year and more than 200,000 will descend on Tokyo come September. The title of Kaz’s address is “New tactics for 2009.” Time will be allotted for a panel discussion dubbed “perspectives and strategies of the top manufacturers in the global age.” Now that should drain some minutes from Sony’s 2hour session. Some of the big wigs who’ll be part of the discussions are execs from Capcom, Sony, Namco Bandai, Square-Enix and other speakers yet to be confirmed.

TGS is the largest gaming expo anywhere, in fact the attendance at TGS dwarf’s E3 when compared, almost five times the crowd. So what do you expect to hear from Sony? Let your voices be heard and rest assured GamesThirst.com will bring you the updates as they come in.


07/24/09 Ernice Gilbert