Game Console Center

Author: Andre Garcia

That’s a really good question. It’s also a question that, not so long ago, seemed like it would never be raised. But things have changed in the video game industry. Sony, once an industry leader, is now trailing behind both competitors Nintendo and Microsoft. But why is that? Have they really done anything wrong? That’s actually a really difficult question to answer - and even after in-depth market analysis, coming to a final conclusion just doesn’t seem possible. There are so many factors - albeit, some obvious ones as well.

First things first - I think one of the mistakes Sony made was rely too heavily on their own brand name. They probably assumed, you know, “let’s put out this powerful system, hype it up, back it up with our name, and it will sell in droves.” You know, considering how large and popular a company like Sony is, that doesn’t actually sound so bad - and also sounds quite reasonable to a certain degree. Unfortunately though, that just wasn’t the case. This should also help to prove a point that even if you
are such a recognizable and established company like Sony, people in general ultimately don’t buy products just because of the name that backs it.

I think another problem that Sony faced was that they became too “self-absorbed.” In other words, because they were so successful in the video game market, they almost naturally assumed that no
matter what they did, they would be successful regardless of the circumstances. Now, in some ways, I can almost prove this assumption. I remember that when Sony publicly announced their PSP (PlayStation Portable), they automatically assumed that all competitors (they didn’t mention any in particular, but it was quite obvious who they were referring to. In this case, Nintendo.) would be blown out of the water. Sony instantly assumed that their PSP was going to be the must-have video game
portable console to own.

If you look at the market now, it’s quite easy to tell that Nintendo’s own DS is the most popular and best-selling portable console. The PSP is actually selling pretty well, but for the wrong reasons. Sales of software just aren’t that great for the system, as consumers are buying the portable for other reasons than playing games. Also, if you were to ask almost any PSP owner, you might get a response along the lines of “the library of games just aren’t that great.” Moving on…

If that wasn’t bad enough, there’s another console that Sony has on the market which unfortunately, at the time of this writing, is in third-place in terms of system sales. That console is the PlayStation 3 (PS3 for short). There were high expectations for this system, but unfortunately for Sony, those expectations simply weren’t met. Technically speaking (literally), the PS3 is a monster. It can pump out incredible graphics, and I would argue that it’s the most powerful of the three consoles. But, that alone just didn’t cut it this time around.

I think the main problem lied in the fact that the PS3 was too similar to the Xbox 360 in both function and software. But Microsoft had one clear edge that Sony didn’t - that edge being online games. Sony still had a lot to prove in this department, thus lagging being Microsoft’s continually growing online
user-base. Another factor may be that the system was/is too expensive. The price range, at launch, being over the six-hundred dollar mark. Even with a price-cut though, things really haven’t changed much. So what does this spell for Sony? Are they going to drop out of the console race? Or do they still have a fighting chance? Personally, I think they’ll be fine. If they can launch a consistent batch of quality software for their PS3, they should do fine.

It’s a hard call though. There’s so much diversity between the three major consoles on the market. In some ways, there’s almost too much which makes it more difficult for consumers to make a final decision. Again though, one thing that’s always remained consistent with the video game industry is that it’s all about the games. If you can come out with great software, which in turn pleases the consumers, then the obvious result is that consumers will keep coming back for more. Personally, I think the PS3 is a great system - and thus far, I’ve been having a blast with it. If you haven’t given the PS3 a try yet, I say go for it. You just might find yourself having a blast too. Good luck!

About the author:
Andre Garcia is an avid gamer. You can also learn if it’s actually possible to become a video game tester and make money doing it. Check out Andre’s website for more information, including a recent Contra review for Nintendo DS

Tags: video game review, gamecube, online gaming, sony psp