Sony Focusing On Functionality And First-Party Titles For PS3
See Full ImageAs most industry followers are well aware, the third-party exclusive is dying out at a rapid rate, which means console manufacturers can no longer rely on them as "system sellers." In a recent Here New Brunswick interview with Sony Marketing and Public Relations Manager Mark Levitan, it's clear that Sony is focusing on other aspects to push their PlayStation 3.
Levitan starts off by saying "it's important to have balance, and we've always done that effectively." But at the same time, he said Sony couldn't turn towards blockbuster third-party exclusives to make the PS3 stand out in the crowd. Therefore, it's not a bad idea to remind gamers and consumers that Sony's first-party titles and franchises are second-to-none, and Blu-Ray remains a big deal in the market. Said Levitan:
"You have to have good internal development teams. We look at some of the franchises we have now like Gran Turismo, God of War, and Resistance - those are some amazing franchises that are among, in my opinion, the best in the industry. I think we have enough product that we develop ourselves that sets us apart."
Sony has been forced to cut their financial projections down to size in light of recent economic struggles, which is why we won't be seeing a PS3 price cut any time soon. However, Levitan believes the $399 price tag is still a great deal, and "certainly affordable." It's more about what the PS3 can offer you as an entire entertainment machine, which is a philosophy Sony has adopted since the launch of their next-gen console. Levitan added:
"Functionality is kind of hand in hand with price - you have to say to yourself, if you've bought an HDTV, 1080p resolution is important to you so maybe you want a Blu-ray player. If that's something you're considering, then obviously you're going to pick a PS3. You can go to any chain store and pick up a Blu-ray player but for an extra 100 bucks, you can get a PS3. You get something that not only plays the best games but you can surf the Internet with it, download all your pictures to it, or listen to music. I think that functionality will separate us from our competition."
And returning to exclusives for a moment, while much was made of Sony losing Final Fantasy XIII as a third-party exclusive earlier this year, the PS3's exclusive lineup, in our opinion, remains vastly superior to that of the Xbox 360. The PS3 already has Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of the Patriots, Warhawk, Heavenly Sword, Ratchet & Clank Future: Tools of Destruction, Gran Turismo 5: Prologue, Wipeout HD, SOCOM: U.S. Navy SEALs Confrontation, and LittleBigPlanet, and it will soon have Resistance 2, MotorStorm: Pacific Rift, and Killzone 2. Down the road, there's Final Fantasy Versus XIII, Heavy Rain, Gran Turismo 5, Quantum Theory, God of War III, and more. Not bad, we say. But it's clear the third-party exclusive is falling by the wayside for everyone.
10/23/2008 Ben Dutka
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Comments (60 posts)
FLYING_APE
Thursday, October 23, 2008 @ 2:42:14 PM
The Xbox is a better machine and i hate it because everyone likes it (online overpopulated like ENgland)and all the games are overrated. But im going to buy it when it really realy cheap.
ATTENTION ATTENTION ATTENTION ATTENTION!!!!
I LOVE CAKE, that is all.
Last edited by FLYING_APE on 10/23/2008 2:44:03 PM
0 up, 9 down
Aftab
Thursday, October 23, 2008 @ 3:10:31 PM
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Aftab
Thursday, October 23, 2008 @ 3:22:26 PM
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SarahPalinMILF
Thursday, October 23, 2008 @ 3:32:56 PM
WTF do you mean that BigBoss is a fanboy...
Look at your comments, your a fanboy too but for the shitbox 360...if thats what your gonna preach either leave this playstation dedicated site or keep your comments to yourself...
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robinhood2010
Thursday, October 23, 2008 @ 4:27:15 PM
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LightShow
Thursday, October 23, 2008 @ 8:18:08 PM
Your one of those guys who just likes to be disruptive, aren't you?
10 bucks says your 12 years old.
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BigBoss4ever
Thursday, October 23, 2008 @ 9:02:04 PM
Last edited by BigBoss4ever on 10/23/2008 9:07:43 PM
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FLYING_APE
Friday, October 24, 2008 @ 10:46:34 AM
The xbox has better exclusives. better online, better quality multiplats games etc...
the xbox has overcrowded online, lacks future exclusives, multiplat game we be worse in the future(u see the negatives and positives).
BIGBOSS4EVA was saying the PS3 is THE BEST when it not. IM A SONYFANBOY. i stole a XBOX360 so i didn't have to pay for the piece of s**t. But i can admit the crapbox IS BETTER than the ps3. PS don't delete my post.
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FLYING_APE
Friday, October 24, 2008 @ 10:50:00 AM
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Orvisman
Saturday, October 25, 2008 @ 12:21:13 PM
@ Flying_Ape
Go home to whatever Xbox site you came from, we hear your mommy calling. It's time for mommy to give you your sponge bath.
Seriously, in one post you write "The Xbox is a better machine and i hate it because everyone likes it (online overpopulated like ENgland)and all the games are overrated. But im going to buy it when it really realy cheap."
In another post, you admit to "stealing a 360."
So, which is it, do you have a 360 or not? I think so. I don't think you have a PS3 though, even if you claim to be a Sony fanboy. You do nothing but bash the PS3 and boast about the 360. Seems to me the evidence points to you being a 360 fanboy, contrary to your claims.
Most of us here have both systems, and we don't bash either system. Notice I write "most" because there are exceptions. You know who you are.
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Tim Speed24
Thursday, October 23, 2008 @ 1:50:18 PM
Reply
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Mystearica
Thursday, October 23, 2008 @ 1:54:24 PM
Reply
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AbCdEfG
Thursday, October 23, 2008 @ 2:00:04 PM
Reply
Last edited by AbCdEfG on 10/23/2008 2:02:31 PM
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AbCdEfG
Thursday, October 23, 2008 @ 2:04:08 PM
http://videogames.yahoo.com/events/playback/playback-18/1257113
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crapreviews
Thursday, October 23, 2008 @ 2:21:22 PM
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crapreviews
Thursday, October 23, 2008 @ 2:22:41 PM
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lets see what the future holds. :D
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AbCdEfG
Thursday, October 23, 2008 @ 2:25:15 PM
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LightShow
Thursday, October 23, 2008 @ 8:21:29 PM
M$ wouldn't isolate the current install base by releasing in blu ray. the massive majority or 360 owners won't even buy the attachment. It'll only be used for movies, guarantee it.
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JPBooch
Thursday, October 23, 2008 @ 2:39:55 PM
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WorldEndsWithMe
Thursday, October 23, 2008 @ 2:42:42 PM
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karneli lll
Thursday, October 23, 2008 @ 2:42:46 PM
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JoshBall
Thursday, October 23, 2008 @ 2:43:53 PM
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Aftab
Thursday, October 23, 2008 @ 3:17:59 PM
Reply
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aaronisbla
Friday, October 24, 2008 @ 12:27:17 AM
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www
Friday, October 24, 2008 @ 4:53:09 AM
Am sure u were even masturbatin writing dat comment,B@#$
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Deleted User
Friday, October 24, 2008 @ 8:10:33 PM
and ghana write a full coherent word first you dumb@ss
Last edited by n/a on 10/24/2008 8:14:29 PM
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Ben Dutka PSXE [Administrator]
Thursday, October 23, 2008 @ 3:24:33 PM
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Everyone else: the Blu-Ray add-on for the 360 is a long-running rumor that Microsoft continues to shoot down. That's all it is.
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shaydey77
Thursday, October 23, 2008 @ 3:32:08 PM
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ok well it was good up to the CELL part!!
As for third party exclusives..People are greedy and want more money.Its a natural thing sadly.
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www
Thursday, October 23, 2008 @ 3:42:17 PM
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Those by-the-way gamers are the ones who are sooo stingy.
Am a true gamer i did every thang possible to get ma hands on a PS3 after it's release in the UK on March 2007,had mine in August,07.
I don't rob,steal,fraud,slang or do any other vice just to get dat money,i do a clean legit grind to make ma paper.
Ya! okay with the exclusives,am really counting on Quantum Theory,Heavy Rain,vXII,GoW3.
Resistance n the rest are good but we already seen the first n know wat to expect,but with the first 3 mentioned,i think they got sumn new to offer.
Last edited by www on 10/23/2008 3:44:00 PM
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phade2blaq
Thursday, October 23, 2008 @ 4:48:39 PM
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Sony designed the PS3 ahead of it's time ! You never design and market a game machine with high components and that's what Sony did. the blu-ray drives were still expensive at the time sony launched the PS3 which drove the price up.
In the gaming world, the magical price point is between $199-$299. You also need great 3rd party support which so far the PS3 hasn't had.
Games come out on xbox then the PS3 and usually the ps3 version pales in comparison to the xbox 360.
Nintendo designed and marketed the Wii for mass appeal opting not to use a blu-ray dvd drive or any other fancy bells and whistles, and they sit atop the console wars. They proved you do not need all the fancy bells and whistles to sell a game console and sadly Sony missed the boat on that idea.
I believe Sony should have saved blu-ray for the PS4. By then the blu-ray price would have been reasonable enough to market a console at an affordable price for most people.
Sony alienated their core PS2 supporters because people just aren't willing or maybe can't afford $400 or $500 for a console. Not including BC hasn't helped either as many PS2 gamers still play their PS2 games. BC made playing your PS2 games a lot easier than switching between systems.
I think what helped Nintendo is the fact they remembered the mistakes they made with the N64 and they learned from it.
The NES and SNES were atop the video game world and Nintendo casHed in with their iron clad CART BASED licensing fees and when the N64 debuted, Nintendo tried to keep the cart based business model alive and they failed miserably.
The PS1 and the Sega Saturn debuted with cd based systems and Nintendo had been until the Wii debuted, playing catch up.
It took Nintendo more than a decade but they finally seen the light.
Sony needs to see the light by studying what made the PS2 the awesome console it was/is and stick with that tried and true formula.
I'm a Playstation console fan but Sony has dropped the ball on the PS3 by making so many bone head mistakes in terms of marketing and pricing and game library.
Last edited by phade2blaq on 10/23/2008 4:50:43 PM
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www
Thursday, October 23, 2008 @ 5:11:17 PM
So u woulda preferred ps2 using ONLY compact discs for games, like ps1,NO! but instead the DVD drive was ready built-in to cater for future advancements.That's the same with PS3,blu-ray was built-in for the future(10 year cycle).
I sometimes feel MAYBE ps3 games coulda been on DVD's for now n later on blu-ray when devs need a whole lotta space,just like ps2 when we had the blue-cd's b4 games on dvd's.
Last edited by www on 10/23/2008 5:15:18 PM
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WorldEndsWithMe
Thursday, October 23, 2008 @ 5:15:56 PM
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www
Thursday, October 23, 2008 @ 5:20:44 PM
Last edited by www on 10/23/2008 5:21:15 PM
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bamf
Thursday, October 23, 2008 @ 6:17:25 PM
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For me Sony has had the best and more exclusives on the last 2 consoles and its going to be and is the same for PS3. Sony's has more development studios under its belt than the competition and thats why you see more big exclusives on Sony's machines than anywhere else. Just think of all the games thats been in development for a couple of years that have yet to be announced, games that come out when the console is in its 4th year. We have yet to be blown away.
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www
Thursday, October 23, 2008 @ 7:59:24 PM
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AceTatsujin
Thursday, October 23, 2008 @ 7:27:05 PM
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Honestly I am disappointed with how PS3 went, it is picking up and hope to see things go well. But they can't screw up with the PS4 for sure. Aside from that, I'm happy with the games that are currently coming out. Sony NEEDS first party developers for RPG! I insist on having a team that can actually compete to the level of Square Enix and Level 5! Seriously, it would be soooo-kick ass.
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www
Thursday, October 23, 2008 @ 7:57:49 PM
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LightShow
Thursday, October 23, 2008 @ 8:24:35 PM
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Deleted User
Friday, October 24, 2008 @ 8:12:37 PM
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LightShow
Friday, October 24, 2008 @ 9:04:13 PM
at least thats what they say. maybe they aren't smart enough to ask for m$ for a shipping sticker or something.
Last edited by LightShow on 10/24/2008 9:05:51 PM
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Deleted User
Friday, October 24, 2008 @ 10:04:59 PM
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Joe_III
Thursday, October 23, 2008 @ 8:47:30 PM
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I hope to hell that doesn't happen, because then things are goign to get ridiculous, and gaming will have its own ISO or something.
I can understand why dev's want to multi-plat everything (and thereforehave a single console standard) because the numbers for making a AAA title are amazing.
However, this could be very bad for console makers -- particularly Sony/Microsoft. I know I wouldn't have bought both the PS3 and the 360 if they were the same platform and the only difference would be features.
All that said, there seems to be a good number of PS3 exclusives out and coming up (which ben loves to mention every couple of days) that I am really psyched about, but I'm too busy playing Still Alive right now to worry about which console is better at the moment.
@ Bigboss, sarahpalin, flying ape, and ghana
Fanboy much?
@ light
double fanboy much? M$ gives you a 3 year warranty on the RROD with free shipping both ways.
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End of line
Thursday, October 23, 2008 @ 11:00:13 PM
Enough fanboy pointing already, this isnt IGN.
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Ben Dutka PSXE [Administrator]
Friday, October 24, 2008 @ 12:52:11 AM
Don't call people fanboys because they like their PS3. I won't condone system bashing of any kind, but I don't care if people love their console.
Last edited by Ben Dutka PSXE on 10/24/2008 12:52:24 AM
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www
Friday, October 24, 2008 @ 4:55:44 AM
F ur city n ur town i STATE facts.
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Deleted User
Friday, October 24, 2008 @ 8:13:27 PM
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Wage SLAVES
Friday, October 24, 2008 @ 1:16:14 AM
Reply
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AntDC
Friday, October 24, 2008 @ 4:55:36 AM
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O and as for that link you gave for the 360 getting a Blu-ray add-on, it said this:
"Microsoft and TSST did not comment on the news-story." - Because it's BS.
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AbCdEfG
Friday, October 24, 2008 @ 3:32:44 PM
Last edited by AbCdEfG on 10/24/2008 3:33:48 PM
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AntDC
Friday, October 24, 2008 @ 11:45:22 PM
Last edited by AntDC on 10/24/2008 11:47:20 PM
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AbCdEfG
Saturday, October 25, 2008 @ 2:08:08 AM
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LightShow
Friday, October 24, 2008 @ 9:13:06 PM
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guess what happens when there's only one console? no competition.
guess what happens when there's no competition? no innovation. no shelling out stacks of cash to develop a cell processor, no investing in a really good online-gaming service, nada.
wanna know why? right now each company is constantly one-upping each other to try to get you to spend your money on them. what happens when your stuck with one console, no matter what? You get an underpowered standard console for a ton of cash, because the companies know your stuck with them. its why apple doesn't lower it's price, and why Fast Food isn't better for you.
in short, its all about cash. More cash for them, less for you, and you get a worse experience for it.
Last edited by LightShow on 10/24/2008 9:13:59 PM
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AntDC
Friday, October 24, 2008 @ 11:48:42 PM
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Wage SLAVES
Saturday, October 25, 2008 @ 2:27:29 AM
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Tha teacha speaks!
I've always thought that, but nicely put! Thats why the Ps3 is underpriced and WE win!
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BigBoss4ever
Reply
Thursday, October 23, 2008 @ 1:26:32 PM
Last edited by BigBoss4ever on 10/23/2008 1:27:47 PM