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Analysts Predict Next Generation Marketshare
Posted by Christopher Sasaki Categories: PlayStation 3, Wii, Xbox 360,
In a 188-page report from securities firm Wedbush Morgan Securities, analysts lay out what they believe to be the state of the market over the next few years. Their projections indicate that Microsoft will hold onto their market lead for around two years, and then, as HD viewing and media formats take over the market, eventually the lead will be ceded to Sony. Not surprisingly, the analysts pick Nintendo to take third in marketshare. US and European market share for the first two years is projected to be roughly 42 percent Xbox 360, 39 percent PS3, with Nintendo following at 19 percent, giving Microsoft a scant lead over Sony. Sony’s decision to integrate HD media into their console will drive sales further after this, pushing them to a 45 percent to 35 percent lead over Microsoft. It is interesting to see the analysts’ positions on the future console war, and its hard to argue with the numbers as is, but projecting leadership out to such a large degree rests on assumptions whose accuracy could be challenged. At any rate, it looks like Microsoft will cut into Sony’s massive lead in the marketplace, surely good news for Microsoft. Knowing that Microsoft is making a large investment now to gain market share, should Microsoft fail to add to its user base after the launch of the PS3, Microsoft’s losses could be disastrous. Of course, the same could be said about Sony’s upcoming PS3 launch. The next year will be critical for all platforms’ future success.
Read More 
| Next Generation
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New Ridger Racer 7 PS3 Screenshots
Posted by Christopher Sasaki Categories: Driving, E3, PlayStation 3, Screenshots,
Impress Watch Japan has a quick preview of the upcoming Ridge Racer 7 for the Playstation 3. The new Ridge Racer is scheduled to be a launch title for the PS3, and promises to allow up to 14 simultaneous racers. Previously, Namco let slip that features from previous game releases for the PSP and Xbox 360 would be included. From appearances, it looks like some of the new screens could be from a scheduled E3 promo video or some kind of looping demonstration, so it remains to be seen if the game in motion will be able to sustain such detailed imagery.
Read More | Impress Watch Japan
PS3, Xbox 360 GPUs Compared
Posted by Christopher Sasaki Categories: Hardware, PlayStation 3, Xbox 360,
Impress Watch Japan has just published the latest in a series of articles comparing the PS3 and the Xbox 360. This time, the technical specifications of the GPUs go under the microscope, along with a comparison to the current GPU offerings from nVidia and ATI. Since Google’s translation tools often leave much to be desired when trying to understand the details of an article, a forum member at Beyond 3D has offered their translation. Most interesting are the comments from various anonymous developers; there’s a lot more feedback on the Xbox 360, since it has been on the market longer. One developer says that to work around some of the memory restrictions, developers can render to an internal frame buffer of either 960x540 or 880x540 and then upscale the output for 720p using the built in Display Controller—so gamers may not be getting “true” HD resolutions. In both the PS3 and Xbox 360’s design, though, it looks like memory bandwidth is going to be the killer. Trying to mix high resolution textures with enough of a frame buffer to render HD resolutions is difficult for these machines at 720p, and 1080p for the PS3 is going to be difficult when mixed with multi-sample anti-aliasing; the trade-off will be high resolutions with fewer effects, or lower resolutions with more effects and MSAA implemented. So far, most developers appear to be taking the second approach.
Read More | Original Impress Watch Article
Read More | Beyond3D Translation
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Playstation HUB, PS3 Backwards Compatibility Progressing
Posted by Christopher Sasaki Categories: PlayStation 3, Rumors,
According to a report on Gamesindustry.biz, certain areas of the PS3 technologies are being built in Sony’s UK development arm. The Playstation Network Platform is currently under development with the code name “Playstation HUB.” Other teams are working on PS3 backward compatibility — this will apparently be achieved through software emulation, rather than including the core PS2 hardware. The PS2’s high level of compatibility with the original Playstation was achieved by including the original Playstation hardware as a support chip. Gamers have seen the difficulties Microsoft has had in providing backwards compatibility through an emulation layer on the Xbox 360, so this could be a challenge for Sony, but Gamesindustry’s source indicates that the software is already working well, and that a number of original PS2 titles are already supported on the preliminary PS3 hardware.
Read More | Gamesindustry.biz
Sony, Nintendo, Then Microsoft: Pre-E3 Schedule Set
Posted by Christopher Sasaki Categories: Corporate News, E3, PlayStation 3, Wii, Xbox 360,
If all goes as scheduled, Sony, then Nintendo, and finally Microsoft will let the gaming world know their plans for the upcoming year. It looks like Sony will lead the pack on Monday, May 8th. At 2:00 PM in the Sony Picture Studios in Culver City, California. Sony should be playing up the PS3, possibly playing up themes like realistic gaming experiences and convergence. The day after Sony’s announcements brings Nintendo to the plate.
May 9, 2006, at 9:30 AM in the Kodak Theater in Hollywood will hopefully bring all Nintendo devotees the answers they are looking for in the Revolution. Nintendo will most likely be stumping for its unique game line-up, and continue to drill into the concept of games for everyone. The Revolution will take center stage, but also expect to hear about the DS Lite, and Nintendo will tout the success of their non-traditional content like Brain Age.
The last of the major pre-E3 conferences will be Microsoft’s. Microsoft will hold court at 11:30 AM at Grauman’s Chinese Theatre. Microsoft will certainly claim their successes in the Xbox 360 launch, and talk about Xbox Live adoption numbers. It should be expected that Microsoft will hammer home the fact that they have their console on the market now, and that there is strong content available now, and there will be great content in the future. It is possible that the HD-DVD add-on will be announced, but this certainly will not be the focus. Microsoft’s story in the upcoming year should be community, content, and availability.
It will be interesting to see how the announcements play out, especially in how each company addresses the others.
Read More | Gamasutra
Digitimes is reporting that the IC testing company that currently tests the GPUs for the PSP and the southbridge chipsets for the Xbox 360 may also recently have started testing on the PS3 chipsets. Digitimes is basing this information on reports from analysts within the IC community and other industry players. The King Yuan Electronics Company, or KYEC, had no direct comment other than to say that game console chip testing is not a significant portion of its regular business. While KYEC doesn’t confirm the information directly, it would seem that with only seven months before Sony’s worldwide launch of the PS3, testing should either already have started or be starting soon for Sony to meet their goals.
Read More | Digitimes.com
Will Nintendo Steal Sony’s Thunder At E3?
Posted by John Goulden Categories: E3, Editorial, Hardware, Nintendo, PlayStation 3, Rumors, Wii, Xbox 360,
There’s no doubt that the PlayStation 3 will be in high demand at this year’s E3, but rumor has it that there will be limited hands-on access to the new console. In an effort to soothe concerns, Ryan Bowling of Sony Computer Entertainment America explained that they “. . . are expecting big queues to see the PlayStation 3 and so will be taking great care to manage the crowds in the best way possible. All press will certainly have no problems seeing everything we are showing. This year is going to be huge for us. Not just in terms of what we’re showing, but in the major announcements we have planned.” I think the biggest announcement that most gamers are likely to want at this juncture is a firm ship date of the PS3, as well as list prices that are palatable.
Bearing that in mind and with Nintendo planning a large production at E3 in regards to the Revolution, is there a chance they’ll steal Sony’s thunder? They’ve already admitted that their hardware will be underpowered in relation to the Xbox 360 and PS3, yet it doesn’t seem to concern Nintendo execs in the slightest. That seems a bit strange when you consider how much marketing muscle has been flexed in the past by Sony (and Microsoft), in regards to hardware specs, speed, and sheer power. Nintendo is taking a different approach and has been for some time. By all appearances they blend quietly into the background, yet they’re obviously doing something and doing it right. To get an idea of how right, we’ll do a quick comparison of Sony and Nintendo’s bottom lines (as of March 2005) after the jump.
Read More | SPOnG (rumor)
Click to continue reading Will Nintendo Steal Sony’s Thunder At E3?
YouTube is rapidly becoming the most popular place on the Internet to get your viral video fix, but recently somebody leaked a video shot at the recent GDC of some behind closed door footage of the PS3 in action. Video cameras were explicitly prohibited in this preview session, but thanks to someone who broke the rules, and the power of YouTube, there is now a grainy video of secret PS3 footage for everyone to see. The graininess and relatively poor angle make the video only a little less interesting. Shots of some interactive demos titled “Getaway,” “Heavenly Sword” and “Lair” feature insanely realistically rendered backgrounds, tons of objects on screen, and hyper-realistic damage on an innocent automobile. The last section features on apparently on rails tour through a futuristic city. While game play demos and rail-based touring are interesting, this is still quite a ways away from a production video game, so the anticipation for E3 is mounting…
Xbox Feels Neglected
Posted by John Goulden Categories: Corporate News, PlayStation 2, PlayStation 3, Xbox, Xbox 360,
With it’s faster and more powerful sibling taking all the glory, the original Xbox is starting to feel a bit neglected. With an established base of millions of units, Microsoft has all but shunned the original system and seems to be focusing solely on the Xbox 360. Sony, by way of contrast, has just this month stopped producing the original PlayStation console that was released over a decade ago (December 1994). Rumors from earlier this year indicated that once the existing stock of Xbox systems was depleted, there would be no more.
Particularly upset by Microsoft’s unvoiced neglect is Adam Roberts, the Executive VP of Vivendi Europe. Quoted as saying that the Xbox “probably needs help at the moment”, he laments the loss of retailer support for the console. Roberts believes that Microsoft needs to do whatever is necessary to reaffirm the trust and loyalty of the retail segment. Once again, Sony is pointed to as having a clear concept of the life-cycle of the PS2 and that it’s far from over. In fact, God of War 2 will be released not on the PS3, but on the PS2.
Of course, it should be noted that it’s difficult to release a game for a non-existent platform, and when an aging platform is the only one in your arsenal, you have no choice but to support it if you want to maintain market share. Considering the delayed launch of the PlayStation 3, by supporting the PS2, Sony is doing what is required. Microsoft, plagued by hardware shortages, may be doing exactly what is necessary to firm up their grasp on the market prior to the PS3’s release.
Read More | IGN
Well, it seems that crazy boomerang controller that Sony showcased alongside the PS3 will be getting thrown out the door. Sony’s president of the Computer Entertainment Worldwide Studios division, Phil Harrison, has announced that the current design is being shelved for an updated look that will be revealed later this year at E3. Hopefully, Sony makes an appealing controller that doesn’t have an extra 3-inches on the bottom of each side grip.
Read More | CNN
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