LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - Microsoft Corp. (MSFT.O) sided with rival Nintendo Co. Ltd. (7974.OS) on Wednesday in the fight to unseat video game leader Sony Corp.(6758.T), saying many consumers will choose to buy both of their machines for the price of one PlayStation 3.
The bad blood between Sony and Microsoft in the fight for dominance in the nearly $30 billion video game industry has escalated over the last few days, with both sides trading barbs at the E3 Expo, the video game industry's annual trade show.
Microsoft entered the next-generation game console market first with its Xbox 360 last November.
Sony aims to extend its market leadership with its upcoming PS3, while Nintendo plans to offer a new game machine called Wii in the fourth quarter.
"Tell me why you would buy a $600 PS3?" Peter Moore, a Microsoft vice president, said in an interview. "People are going to buy two (machines.) They're going to buy an Xbox and they're going to buy a Wii ... for the price of one PS3."
Microsoft predicted on Tuesday it will have 10 million Xbox 360 consoles in the market before Sony launches the PS3. The high-end Xbox 360 sells for $399, but it does not include a built-in high-definition DVD video player that comes with Sony's PS3.
Sony plans to sell a premium PS3 model for $599 when it debuts in North America on November 17, and Nintendo has not yet disclosed pricing for Wii.
Wii comes equipped with motion sensitive controllers to allow users to mimic the motion of wielding a sword or swinging a tennis racket.
Moore then turned pitchman for Nintendo's Wii, the latest offering from the Japanese company that once dominated the video game industry.
"People will always gravitate toward a competitively priced product -- like what I believe Wii will be -- with innovative new designs and great intellectual property like Mario, Zelda and Metroid," Moore told Reuters.
Sony currently dominates the worldwide video game market with a 66 percent share, while Microsoft and Nintendo each hold 17 percent, according to Strategy Analytics.
"We have 100 percent market share of the next-generation, and their job is to take that from us," said Moore.
"When I think on everything that we've got going right now that is real versus what Sony promises to do six, seven months from now, obviously we feel very good about where we stand."
LOST IN TRANSLATION
Despite Microsoft's head start with the Xbox 360, the software giant still faces an uphill climb in Sony and Nintendo's home turf.
Microsoft received a tepid response to its Xbox 360 debut in Japan and demand fell short of expectations during last year's holiday season when it sold about 100,000 machines.
The company introduced a competitively priced console in Japan, but some of its game titles did not appeal to Japanese gamers. Moore expects upcoming role-playing games like "Lost Odyssey" and "Blue Dragon" from the creator of the popular "Final Fantasy" series to do well in Japan.
"Quite frankly," said Moore, "if we're sitting here a year from now and things continue to fall flat, then we might say 'we don't know what to do anymore."'
The... fuck?
Brotherhood of the Bear | HAB | Mess | SDnet archivist |
It's a sensible move. Microsoft aren't really competing with Nintendo (the 360 will massively outsell the Wii, and has a better online thingy and different games) but they want to kill the PS3 as quick as they can.
I don't think they need to go after Nintendo. They don't play to the same crowd like the Playstation does.
"The rest of the poem plays upon that pun. On the contrary, says Catullus, although my verses are soft (molliculi ac parum pudici in line 8, reversing the play on words), they can arouse even limp old men. Should Furius and Aurelius have any remaining doubts about Catullus' virility, he offers to fuck them anally and orally to prove otherwise." - Catullus 16, Wikipedia
Pick wrote:I don't think they need to go after Nintendo. They don't play to the same crowd like the Playstation does.
No, but if Nintendo's gamble on getting "everyone" playing a Wii works out well, they'll be in shape to compete with Microsoft on a much more dangerous level. Microsoft does take the long view - and they haven't even hit Version 3 of the Xbox yet.
Pick wrote:I don't think they need to go after Nintendo. They don't play to the same crowd like the Playstation does.
No, but if Nintendo's gamble on getting "everyone" playing a Wii works out well, they'll be in shape to compete with Microsoft on a much more dangerous level. Microsoft does take the long view - and they haven't even hit Version 3 of the Xbox yet.
As it is, Nintendo's secure in its Japanese market anyways, at the very least. It's one area they don't have to worry about competition from the XBox at all.
"It's you Americans. There's something about nipples you hate. If this were Germany, we'd be romping around naked on the stage here."
On the other hand, if Nintendo gets new people to play video games who normally wouldn't, Nintendo has just opened up a new market of game playing people for Microsoft to sell to.
Pick wrote:I don't think they need to go after Nintendo. They don't play to the same crowd like the Playstation does.
No, but if Nintendo's gamble on getting "everyone" playing a Wii works out well, they'll be in shape to compete with Microsoft on a much more dangerous level. Microsoft does take the long view - and they haven't even hit Version 3 of the Xbox yet.
As it is, Nintendo's secure in its Japanese market anyways, at the very least. It's one area they don't have to worry about competition from the XBox at all.
Mostly because the Xbox is larger than most Japanese apartments, being hueg and all
Does it follow that I reject all authority? Perish the thought. In the matter of boots, I defer to the authority of the boot-maker - Mikhail Bakunin Capital is reckless of the health or length of life of the laborer, unless under compulsion from society - Karl Marx Pollution is nothing but the resources we are not harvesting. We allow them to disperse because we've been ignorant of their value - R. Buckminster Fuller The important thing is not to be human but to be humane - Eliezer S. Yudkowsky
Nova Mundi, my laughable attempt at an original worldbuilding/gameplay project
phongn wrote:
No, but if Nintendo's gamble on getting "everyone" playing a Wii works out well, they'll be in shape to compete with Microsoft on a much more dangerous level. Microsoft does take the long view - and they haven't even hit Version 3 of the Xbox yet.
As it is, Nintendo's secure in its Japanese market anyways, at the very least. It's one area they don't have to worry about competition from the XBox at all.
Mostly because the Xbox is larger than most Japanese apartments, being hueg and all
Not until the PS3 comes out. It's bigger than both the XBox and 360!
"There are times I'd like to get my hands on God." - Frank Castle
Makes perfect sense to me. Japan won't buy Microsoft, no matter what, so they've probably written it off. With a six hundred dollar PS3 that's not much better than a four hundred dollar 360, not to mention a likely price drop when the PS3 arrives, they've got a good lead in that too.
Wii isn't the same thing, and not everyone is interested in flailing based control schemes. There's still that annoying part about PS3 having some very anticipated software, with many of the best franchises and developers.
Honestly, what were they thinking? Running the PS2 and 3 concurrently for another 2-4 years? Ugh. Anyway, go MS.
Wii does have the classic controller, though I doubt it'll be included with the price of purchase. As for Japan not liking Microsoft - we'll see. Version 3.0 might be what gets Japan to buy MS, especially if Redmond does their research.
phongn wrote:Wii does have the classic controller, though I doubt it'll be included with the price of purchase. As for Japan not liking Microsoft - we'll see. Version 3.0 might be what gets Japan to buy MS, especially if Redmond does their research.
...or if the usual alternative brand dies this generation. As it is, the signs of NeoGeoism are starting to manifest in poor PS3. FF13 and MGS4 or not...
phongn wrote:Wii does have the classic controller, though I doubt it'll be included with the price of purchase. As for Japan not liking Microsoft - we'll see. Version 3.0 might be what gets Japan to buy MS, especially if Redmond does their research.
...or if the usual alternative brand dies this generation. As it is, the signs of NeoGeoism are starting to manifest in poor PS3. FF13 and MGS4 or not...
Neo Geo? I was thinking more along these lines:
"There are times I'd like to get my hands on God." - Frank Castle
Lets just say that I will preorder it when it is possible.
Cheap console, old games for free and uberfuckingcool new games!
[img=right]http://hem.bredband.net/b217293/warsaban.gif[/img] "Either God wants to abolish evil, and cannot; or he can, but does not want to. ... If he wants to, but cannot, he is impotent. If he can, but does not want to, he is wicked. ... If, as they say, God can abolish evil, and God really wants to do it, why is there evil in the world?" -Epicurus
Fear is the mother of all gods.
Nature does all things spontaneously, by herself, without the meddling of the gods. -Lucretius
It's just like Moore said, "we have 100% of the market share of the next generation of gaming. It's their job to take it from us". He is encouraging people to buy both a 360 and a Wii. That way, he hopes, people won't feel the need to buy a PS3. It's a great plan, and Microsoft did a hell of a job by getting the 360 out a year before the PS3. Sony will do well in the next generation, but I think Microsoft's won this one. I don't see how Sony can compete - not with a 500-600 dollar machine. Do any of you think you'll really see $300 worth of improvement over the 360? Check out Mass Effect's gameplay vids, and then come talk to me - it's amazing.
"Religion is regarded by the common people as true, by the wise as false, and by the rulers as useful." (Seneca the Younger, 5 BC - 65 AD)
Sony had better hope Blu-Ray is a big success, because it looks like they'll need Blu-Ray to sell the PS3's high price, rather than using the PS3 to sell Blu-Ray.
"It's not evil for God to do it. Or for someone to do it at God's command."- Jonathan Boyd on baby-killing
"you guys are fascinated with the use of those "rules of logic" to the extent that you don't really want to discussus anything."- GC
"I do not believe Russian Roulette is a stupid act" - Embracer of Darkness
"Viagra commercials appear to save lives" - tharkûn on US health care.
Darth Wong wrote:Sony had better hope Blu-Ray is a big success, because it looks like they'll need Blu-Ray to sell the PS3's high price, rather than using the PS3 to sell Blu-Ray.
Blue-Ray's 50GB capacity allows game designers to do two things: make huge and wonderful enviornments, or to write sloppy code. I hope they make enviornments that will make RPG gamers fall in love, but I don't know if it's going to happen.
On the movie side of things, Microsoft is offering an HD-DVD player for only $199 as on add on via USB to the 360. We'll have to see how that plays out.
"Religion is regarded by the common people as true, by the wise as false, and by the rulers as useful." (Seneca the Younger, 5 BC - 65 AD)
Darth Wong wrote:Sony had better hope Blu-Ray is a big success, because it looks like they'll need Blu-Ray to sell the PS3's high price, rather than using the PS3 to sell Blu-Ray.
Blue-Ray's 50GB capacity allows game designers to do two things: make huge and wonderful enviornments, or to write sloppy code. I hope they make enviornments that will make RPG gamers fall in love, but I don't know if it's going to happen.
And if you want them to create enviorments that use up 50GB you better be prepared to pay for that. Art assets are currently the most expensive aspect of large game development and that won't change. Infact, requiring more assets will just make the problem worse.
Brotherhood of the Bear | HAB | Mess | SDnet archivist |
Ace Pace wrote:And if you want them to create enviorments that use up 50GB you better be prepared to pay for that. Art assets are currently the most expensive aspect of large game development and that won't change. Infact, requiring more assets will just make the problem worse.
I didn't even think about that. I couldn't even imagine what level design would be like - especially for an RPG where the entire game is just one giant level (Oblivion style - I love that game ).
"Religion is regarded by the common people as true, by the wise as false, and by the rulers as useful." (Seneca the Younger, 5 BC - 65 AD)
Count Dooku wrote:
I didn't even think about that. I couldn't even imagine what level design would be like - especially for an RPG where the entire game is just one giant level (Oblivion style - I love that game ).
Oblivion infact had to go away from individualised design for levels since it was just too huge. Morrowind had stuff like individually designed forests, Oblivion had to move to procedural generation.
The problem today is balooning team sizes and budgets and prices are rising in response.
Brotherhood of the Bear | HAB | Mess | SDnet archivist |
fuck?
).