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Long read: The beauty and drama of video games and their clouds

"It's a little bit hard to work out without knowing the altitude of that dragon..."

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Sony's Andrew House

Vita, PS3, 3D, Move and, of course, the PSN hack.

Eurogamer What battery life are we looking at for Vita?
Andrew House

I haven't seen specifics on battery life. But I would say the absence of a disc-playing mechanism is very helpful in terms of conserving battery life. And then an OLED screen. Beyond the beauty of the screen itself, one of its prime attractions is it's extremely energy efficient.

Eurogamer We're five years into the PlayStation 3's life cycle, and it's sold 50 million units globally. Is that good enough?
Andrew House

It's tracking very well. It's particularly a strong performance if you look at the relative price points at which those units have been sold, and certainly in comparison to PlayStation 2, where we sold significantly fewer units at similar higher price points.

So overall it's tracking extremely well. The goal with PS3 was to build a very powerful device for the long term. We've done a good job not only of things like cost reduction and passing those benefits onto consumers, but adding new services and different features into the device through the life cycle to improve the value.

Eurogamer During your E3 press conference you showcased a number of PS3 exclusive games. How important are exclusives to Sony and the PS3?

"The goal with PS3 was to build a very powerful device for the long term."

Andrew House

They're very important, but it's less about exclusivity per se. It's about unique experiences that are only possible with a particular console. For those people that have bought into PS3, for which we are very grateful, it validates that purchase for them, keeps them interested and keeps them engaged.

For new users it's an opportunity to differentiate our console based on being able to do things that are just not possible elsewhere, whether that's around Blu-ray, or increasingly whether that's around 3D. Those are all key.

But I don't think it's so much about, this game only exists on this console. It's about, this experience is only possible with this console. That, to me, is what's really meaningful for gamers.

Eurogamer What about exclusive downloadable content, map packs and extras?
Andrew House

It's all great. Anything that helps us to better differentiate the console is clearly a positive thing. Though, for me, I'd lay more emphasis on the fundamentals of the entertainment we're offering, whether it's Blu-ray movies or 3D experiences, those are what we point to as being core to the offering.

Eurogamer Now we've had a few 3D-enabled games launch for the PS3, what's your honest assessment of 3D gaming? Has it met your expectations?
Andrew House

You have to put it in context. 3D gaming on PS3 exists in a broader context of 3D adoption in general. In past discussions we've had I've always been frank in saying we think 3D is a long-term proposition. It won't be accomplished overnight.

I think our step of announcing the PlayStation-branded 3D monitor is a bold move in the right direction. It allows us to lower the barrier to entry with what is a very aggressively-priced product.

At the same time it demonstrates tangibly what we believe, which is gaming and interactive entertainment can be a huge driver for 3D adoption in general, coupled with good, aggressive price points and good value for money for the consumer.

Eurogamer Having to wear glasses is a barrier to entry. Will it take glasses-free 3D TVs before 3D gaming reaches the broad audience you hope for?
Andrew House

From my understanding of the technology there are significant challenges in delivering glasses-free, full 3D experiences in the near future. We'd have to say time will tell.

Perhaps as a counter to a perceived challenge around glasses, the dual play mechanism we showcased is potentially a key driver. It goes back to that point of uniqueness – that almost magical idea of having your own view on screen and being able to dispense with split-screen is something that will lead people to overcome any resistance to glasses. There's a clear gaming benefit to be had there.