"Redmond, We Have a Problem"

Redmond,">http://ncroal.talk.newsweek.com/default.asp?item=533168'>... We Have a Problem, Or, What's Wrong With the Xbox 360

Tokyo,">http://ncroal.talk.newsweek.com/default.asp?item=531474'>... We Have a Problem, Or, What's Wrong With the Playstation 3

worth a read...

Edited by ThreeOutsideDown at 15:58:51 22-03-2007

I stopped reading after it failed to get to the point by the third paragraph. Sum it up plz.

Introspectre wrote:
I stopped reading after it failed to get to the point by the third paragraph. Sum it up plz.

I think it's trying to say that Xbox 360 has sold less over the same period than the original Xbox.

I do wonder just how many people have held off purchasing either a 360 or a PS3 until they see how they turn out in the longer run.

Me! That's one. ;)

/waiting for major hardware revision/stabilisation
/and halo3

I know I'm not alone in not buying a 360 until they're quieter and proven to be more reliable. Oh, and cheaper. And bundled with a night out with Alicia Silverstone. Actually a night in would be better.

I think it's trying to say that Xbox 360 has sold less over the same period than the original Xbox.

BTW that is wrong... but never mind.

Blerk wrote:
I do wonder just how many people have held off purchasing either a 360 or a PS3 until they see how they turn out in the longer run.

Is that what you are doing Blerk?

I am just waiting for prices to drop below the 200BP.

Plus I just got a PS2, between it and the Wii, I guess I am covered for the next couple of years.

Blerk wrote:
I do wonder just how many people have held off purchasing either a 360 or a PS3 until they see how they turn out in the longer run.

Me makes two (or three if you include yourself). Admittedly though I'm also waiting for the time when I have disposable income - currently penciled in for June 2010!

I bought a PC

Now that I think about it, the handheld scene is actually affecting my gaming habbits; my DS has had more games purchased for it in the last year+ that I own it, than I have bought for each of my consoles yet. And I have had quite a few consoles!

Surely this must be happening to many others?

For some reason I just cant read that. Is it worded badly or something?

rock27gr wrote:
Now that I think about it, the handheld scene is actually affecting my gaming habbits; my DS has had more games purchased for it in the last year+ that I own it, than I have bought for each of my consoles yet. And I have had quite a few consoles!

Surely this must be happening to many others?

I had two games for my GBA and about 8 for my DS. A good bit more on my ps2 though. And about 8 on GC.

Hmm. Could be something to do with this.

For those who can't be bothered to read, the 360 article is basically saying that the 360 has sold quite well but not nearly as well as it should have given the lack of competition and the relatively low price point.

After the initial sales burst, sales have been steady but unspectacular. Given the 'much lower than PS3' price point and the stronger base of games, they wonder why it isn't outselling the PS3 in much larger numbers.

rock27gr wrote:
Now that I think about it, the handheld scene is actually affecting my gaming habbits; my DS has had more games purchased for it in the last year+ that I own it, than I have bought for each of my consoles yet. And I have had quite a few consoles!

Surely this must be happening to many others?

Yep, this has happened to me. I have more games for my DS than any other console I've ever owned and I'd say that in the 2 and a bit years I've had the DS, I've played it more than my home consoles.

Think it's partly down to lifestyle (having less leisure time) and getting a tad bored of games in general (quirky DS games like Elektroplankton and Animal Crossing have totally won me over).

Blerk wrote:
After the initial sales burst, sales have been steady but unspectacular. Given the 'much lower than PS3' price point and the stronger base of games, they wonder why it isn't outselling the PS3 in much larger numbers.

erm...ps2?

@JVM60

That's exactly my point.

I have had around 15-20 games for each of my consoles since the SNES. This is during ALL their lifetime.

For my GBA I propably had 10+-.

But my DS is near the 20 in just a year and half. Arguably this has to do with games being much cheaper and online bargains, but even then, I still have a list of 7-8 already released games I want, let alone new releases.

There is only so much time one can spend playing games.

Very good couple of articles there. Will watch that site in future.

Spanky wrote:
Me! That's one. ;)

/waiting for major hardware revision/stabilisation
/and halo3

Yep, plus the usual hefty price cut.

Edited by Load "$" at 16:19:02 22-03-2007

malteaserhead wrote:
erm...ps2?

Well, precisely. For a last-gen console to still be regularly outselling the next-gen leader a year and a half after its release is slightly unexpected, no?

rock27gr wrote:
@JVM60

That's exactly my point.

I have had around 15-20 games for each of my consoles since the SNES. This is during ALL their lifetime.

For my GBA I propably had 10+-.

But my DS is near the 20 in just a year and half. Arguably this has to do with games being much cheaper and online bargains, but even then, I still have a list of 7-8 already released games I want, let alone new releases.

There is only so much time one can spend playing games.

"There is only so much time one can spend playing games."

That sums it up perfectly in my opinion.

Load "$" wrote:
Yep, plus the usual hefty price cut.

Hmm sort of but that'll happen over time anyway. I'd happily pay full whack for a 360 that i could rely on to not generate harrier levels of heat and break down on a weekly basis. A console *should* last a lifetime, not 2 months.

terrible analogy time

b&w tv < colour tv < hdtv

ps1 < ps2 < 360

but most people are happy in the middle though and don't really see the point in moving on despite seeing a large improvement from the first to second versions

/again makes no sense

Blerk wrote:

malteaserhead wrote:
erm...ps2?

Well, precisely. For a last-gen console to still be regularly outselling the next-gen leader a year and a half after its release is slightly unexpected, no?

Well it can't be considered the leader if it was running alone now, can it?

The Wii has been ouselling the PS2 in the last few months though, hasn't it?

And of course there is the price difference...
And the reliability issues too

Edited by rock27gr at 16:25:25 22-03-2007

Here's a few key quotes for those who can't be arsed reading the whole thing-

From the Microsoft article-

'The final reason why we don't expect to crown Xbox 360 the champ when all is said and done is somewhat tautological: until we see the evidence that it's capable of reaching the true mass market the way that the PS1 and PS2 did, we won't believe that it can. What the original Xbox proved, and the Xbox 360 is proving even moreso, is that Microsoft has learned how to strip-mine the hardcore gamer. '

-and from the Sony article-

'Sony officials, for their part, will no doubt say that it's just five months after launch; that this a marathon, not a sprint, and they would be right. Meanwhile, Sony's rivals are no doubt gloating at this turn of events--seriously, we have no doubts; their gleeful emails are nestled in our inbox--and they've certainly got just cause to do so. But for better or for worse, the vast majority of Sony's problems strike us as entirely self-inflicted. That's bad news for Microsoft and Nintendo if and when Sony starts firing on all cylinders. Yet we're left wondering, why are so many cylinders still stuck? When is the bleeding going to stop? Why is there so much free-floating hostility toward Playstation among developers and publishers, both big and small? (It's the arrogance, stupid. And we'll get back to that in a subsequent post.) In short, why has Sony seemed so unprepared for the scope of the massive undertaking that is the Playstation 3?'

I think the article makes a good point when it says that Microsoft's strength is that it has learned how to strip-mine the hardcore gamer. What do people make of that? Please, Viva Pinata is not an answer.

dirigiblebill wrote:
From the Microsoft article-

'The final reason why we don't expect to crown Xbox 360 the champ when all is said and done is somewhat tautological: until we see the evidence that it's capable of reaching the true mass market the way that the PS1 and PS2 did, we won't believe that it can. What the original Xbox proved, and the Xbox 360 is proving even moreso, is that Microsoft has learned how to strip-mine the hardcore gamer. '

That is utterly, 100% true. Especially the last sentence.

Ultimately I think Microsoft has a problem targetting the mass market. It knows full well how to push the buttons of a particular demographic, but aside from a few token gestures it hasn't really managed to get its products over to the majority of more casual gamers.

Sony traditionally does very well in this market, but it's rather stupidly priced itself out of the mass market's acceptable price range.

The winner out of all this is, of course, the Wii. Affordable and more palatable to the mass market. The trouble is, it's a bit of a slouch tech-wise. Once people start wishing for something more, where do they go?

I guess that'll depend on who sorts their house out first. In the short term the Wii will win out. In a couple of years... who knows?

Thanks for the quotes - I'll read the articles later.

Microsoft and Nintendo only need to do better than they did with their last console and they'll have earned a 'win'. Getting anywhere near parity of sales with the PS3 would be an 'outstanding win'. Microsoft only expected to do better with the 360 - they certainly didn't expect it to be on a par with the PS3, whatever their fanboys may claim.