Please create an account to participate in the Slashdot moderation system

 


Forgot your password?
Close
typodupeerror
×

EU 'Happy' To Wait For PS3 69

Posted by Zonk from the boy-do-they-like-europe dept.
Eurogamer reports on comments by SCE Worldwide Europe VP Jamie MacDonald almost designed to irk anyone left frustrated by Sony's delay of the PS3 in Europe. According to Mr. MacDonald, Europe has always waited before, so why should this time be any different? From the article: "In Europe, it doesn't seem that the release of our platforms after the US and Japan - in the long run - affects how consumers feel ... If we were sitting here in five years' time, I don't think we'd really think about or notice that PlayStation 3 was four or five months later in Europe. I think in the long run, PlayStation 3 will succeed because of the great product it is and the great software we make for it."
This discussion has been archived. No new comments can be posted.

EU 'Happy' To Wait For PS3 More

EU 'Happy' To Wait For PS3

Comments Filter:

  • Waiting (Score:3, Funny)

    by wuie ( 884711 ) on Friday October 06, 2006 @01:00PM (#16338241)
    "In Europe, it doesn't seem that the release of our platforms after the US and Japan - in the long run - affects how consumers feel ..."

    Hell, I wouldn't mind waiting either. Wii aren't interested in the slightest....
  • It seems that no executive actually cares about their consumer.

  • Another empty/meaningless PR comment (Score:3, Interesting)

    by Yvan256 ( 722131 ) on Friday October 06, 2006 @01:01PM (#16338253) Homepage Journal
    It might not matter once it's released, but being 5 months late to the party just might help the Wii gain even more marketshare, combined with the fed up people who might just go out and buy an Xbox 360 instead.

    Instead, I'd try to explain why it's gonna take 5 months to release the PS3 in europe.
    • Well that's simple, they don't have enough built to send them to Europe.
      • Question is, wouldn't it have been better to lie about how many they were sending and release it in Europe anyway? No-body is planning on being able to get hold of one anyway and you avoid the animosity.

      • Re: (Score:2)

        by Yvan256 ( 722131 )
        How about sending less units to other parts of the world, if only to get a foothold in the european market? Only a few people will have one, but at least they'll be able to show their friends, who'll then be happy to wait for new units to arrive.

        • No one ever said it was smart, this is just how they choose to do it.

          Everyone knows Europeans are too smart to waste money on video games like the U.S. and Japan anyway.

          • Re: (Score:1)

            by KDR_11k ( 778916 )
            Correction: Everybody knows that console games are so overpriced in Europe that we prefer PC games instead.

            • Re: (Score:2)

              by tepples ( 727027 )
              Correction: Everybody knows that console games are so overpriced in Europe that we prefer PC games instead.

              So if you want some arcade-style four-players-in-a-room party action, what do you do? Buy four PCs and four copies of each game?

              • Re: (Score:1)

                by KDR_11k ( 778916 )
                Play Worms.

                • Re: (Score:2)

                  by tepples ( 727027 )

                  Play Worms.

                  Play as the team from Worms [wikipedia.org] in which multiplayer sport sim? If, as I suspect, you meant play one of the Worms turn-based shooters [wikipedia.org], then what do you do when you want to play a real-time multiplayer game on a PC? Why aren't there more PC games that allow four players to each use one USB joypad?

                  • Re: (Score:1)

                    by KDR_11k ( 778916 )
                    Most people simply accept that limitation. Doesn't matter to us that the PC can't play real-time party games, we aren't that demanding (never mind that I haven't found a console game yet that people are actually willing to play with four players, noone seems to like playing Smash Bros. or Mario Kart). And we've got good board games.

              • Re: (Score:1)

                by raxx7 ( 205260 )
                No, we drink alchool. ;-)
            • It's good that someone else does... I am tired of being looked down on by console fanboys who can't be bothered to come play with the big kids. I fear that in the fullness of time gameing PCs will become more like consoles and not the other way around... I better get my gameing in now.

  • Why are there quotation marks around 'Happy'? (Score:3, Informative)

    by Anonymous Coward on Friday October 06, 2006 @01:03PM (#16338303)

    I do not see the word anywhere in the article. If it is not in fact a quote, it should not be presented as one, should it?

    • Those are the poor man's [sarcasm] tags.
    • Welcome to Slashdot, home of completely totally uneditorialized news summaries.
    • The technical term for these is "Scare quotes." [susx.ac.uk]

      In case you don't feel like clicking the link:

      Scare quotes are quotation marks placed around a word or phrase from which you, the writer, wish to distance yourself because you consider that word or phrase to be odd or inappropriate for some reason. Possibly you regard it as too colloquial for formal writing; possibly you think it's unfamiliar or mysterious; possibly you consider it to be inaccurate or misleading; possibly you believe it's just plain wrong. Quit

    • There is a distinct difference between a double-quote (") and a single-quote ('). When something is placed in single-quotes, it is not a direct quotation, or should not be. That is improper punctuation, and punishable by being lambasted by your fellow man.

      In this case, I assume he used single-quotes to point out that he believes the word 'Happy' was an implication by the speaker, even if it's not specifically what he said.

  • how to annoy people 101 (Score:3, Funny)

    by cliffski ( 65094 ) on Friday October 06, 2006 @01:08PM (#16338375) Homepage
    its like sony are trying to make a documentary on how to ruin your products chances and annoy your customers. It keeps getting worse and worse. Youd have to be insane to be betting your business on the PS3 being a success.

    • Re: (Score:2)

      by joe 155 ( 937621 )
      I partly agree, this should be annoying people, but it's not really, we are used to getting screwed over. The real mistake that they made was announcing a date and then going back on it - pre-orders had been taken and when people get told "oh yeah, well, we'll keep your money and you'll just have to wait another 6 months" they get pissed off... and buy something else.

      Also remember that most people in Europe don't see things like this, they just hear about it when it's out. And after all, if you were actua
    • I have a lot of trouble believing that this delay will really hurt sales. Playstation is one of the biggest and most successful products ever. And we are all looking forward to see this new one which ought to be orders of magnitude more powerful. Yes, the wait is unfortunate, yes, it may be a couple years before the games live up to expectations. But in the long run, I am certain that this platform will be the most respected, most loved, most profitable. Sony has been putting its foot in its mouth sinc

  • Agreed... (Score:2, Funny)

    by tarun713 ( 782737 )
    ...they seem very happy indeed [thisiswaiting.com].
    • Well, if the price they pay then drops below the $406 Japanese customers will pay, instead of the $600 plus they pay in the EU, I can see how that would make them happy.

      Besides, think of all the fun they'll be getting from their new Wii's while they "wait".

      The only problem will be if they forget to buy the PS3's when they actually arrive in the EU.
  • Because those silly Europeans don't know what they want until you tell them.
  • So they have to wait '5 months'. Big deal. It's not like there is a handful of must play titles coming out with launch. It's not like within 1/2 a year or more, minor defects will be fixed and a newer and better model of the PS3 will be manufactured. It's not like that extra 5 months won't better show which console is more established to better choose from which system will meet their individual preference for titles and gaming habits. Consider it a blessing in diguise if you will Europe. If the money is b

    • And your point is... what?

      Of course, a delay in Europe advantages the alert consumer, for whom all the information on all three consoles will be available when the European PS3 ships. This is a double-edged sword for Sony, of course, because it means that if the PS3 doesn't live up to its expectations in Japan and North America, then the chance of success in Europe falls dramatically.

      In other words: the delay sucks for Sony and for the diehard european Sony fans, but not for the average savvy consumer.

      • Exactly. The average European gamer has everything to gain by having to wait in my opinion. It's bad for Sony obviously as you pointed out - meaning it's good news for Nintendo and Microsoft. One good thing for everyone I see about all of Sony's blundering with the PS3 launch and media handling thus far is that it's leveling the playing field more. More competition and a diverse base of console owners is going to step on some toes initially, but in the long run I think it will make the gaming world as a wh

    • Re: (Score:2, Interesting)

      by thebaron2 ( 1008833 )
      It IS a big deal - at least it should be to Sony.

      What they need to be worrying about is the market saturation potential over in Europe. I'm sure plenty of gamers that held off from the 360 and were planning to hold off on the Wii did so because they figured, "Hey, it'll be in November, no problem - I can wait."

      Now they hear, "Oops... it's gonna be another half year, sorry" - except that the Sorry wasn't even included! It was more like, "You've waited before, we know you'll wait again, deal with it."
      • Right on! I agree 100%. Myself I'm a big gaming fan as well and not a 100% loyalist to any one brand or console. I have owned the 2600, colecovision, SNES, PS, PS2, GBA, GCB, NDS, various gaming capable PC's blah vblah blah and such - but never an X-box. I'm actually considering a 360 purchase for the first time ever, and I've always sided with Playstation being better than the x-box as my system of preference being an avid PC gamer and all. I think Nintendo out of all the consoles needs every break it can
  • It costs more than US $600 in the UK right now.

    If they wait, maybe they'll get the Japanese price of US $406.
  • These companies don't put nearly as much effort into Europe as they do in the US and Japan because Europeans don't spend money on consoles. Europeans generally earn less than their Japanese and American counterparts and certainly are taxed far, far more heavily. So Europeans are less likely to spend their money frivlously; if they buy something they expect more value out of it. Hence the popularity of PC gaming. Although, there are certain countries there, like England, where console gaming does enjoy a con

    • Re: (Score:2)

      by sam0ht ( 46606 )
      Actually, I'm pretty sure (Europe as a whole) is a larger videogame market than either the USA or Japan, by revenue. Of course, the individual countries aren't so big, but to neglect a whole region is actually pretty significant, revenue-wise.

      • Actually, I'm pretty sure (Europe as a whole) is a larger videogame market than either the USA or Japan, by revenue. Of course, the individual countries aren't so big, but to neglect a whole region is actually pretty significant, revenue-wise.

        The problem is that nearly every country in Europe speaks a different language and thus requires redoing the screen text, the voice acting, and the signs on all the walls. You can't just bring over your English/French game from North America and expect to sell it out

    • Re: (Score:1)

      by BeShaMo ( 996745 )
      That's pretty ignorant, most of Europe (certainly comparable in numbers to the US) do have a high disposable income and console gaming is very popular, though the taste in games might differ from the American market.

      However Xbox (or Gamecube) never really hit it big on continental Europe and that might be why Sony feels less pressure to launch along with other markets. (PS2 has sold about the same numbers as in NA)

  • Competition (Score:4, Interesting)

    by Psychotext ( 262644 ) on Friday October 06, 2006 @01:28PM (#16338699)
    I'm interested, did the PS2 have this sort of competition when it was released in Europe? By my reckoning the last console releases for Sony in Europe went something like this:

    Playstation: September 1995.
    Competition: Sega Saturn (July 1995). The Nintendo 64 was not released for another 2 years.

    Playstation 2: November 2000.
    Competition: Sega Dreamcast (October 1999). The Nintendo GameCube was not released for another 12 months, the XBOX another 4 months after that.

    Playstation 3: March 2007.
    Competition: Nintendo Wii (November 2006), XBOX 360 (November 2005).

    Sony is walking into a whole world of hurt in Europe. By March 2006 there may not be much of a market left for them. They've faced nothing like this sort of competition in the past.
    • Assuming your analysis is true, it makes the decision an even wiser one.

      The PS3 is going to be facing the XBox360 and Wii at launch. The XBox360 is already established in the U.S.A. and Europe and is currently a failure in Japan. The Wii is aiming at a different market, and if you're right about European discretionary spending, is likely to be the big winner there. The main 'battlefield' between the XBox360 and PS3 is going to be the US (and japan is the PS3 truly sucks).

      Given all that, it make sense to
  • Since there is 0% probability that I will spend $600 for a gaming system... sorry, I mean home-entertainment-conversion-system-or-whatever- t hey-want-to-call... I will be getting the game system at about the same time as or later than my European brothers.

    Until the price drops significantly and until Sony actually makes due with the promises for a breadth of functionality, I won't have any interest in getting it.

    I bought the PSP thinking that Sony would support it with lots of features, such as GPS, etc, bu
  • Sony completely missed the opportunity to point out to Europeans that they now have an extra 5 months to work overtime and save up for the PS3.

  • I'd buy a PS3 if... (Score:4, Interesting)

    by xenoarch ( 817676 ) on Friday October 06, 2006 @01:54PM (#16339091)
    The division of Sony that makes em broke off and formed their own company. Its Corporate forcing the games division on what hardware must be put in. They are still living in the past trying to make money off the consoles on other technology what the PSO did for DVDs in Japan.

    Back in the 90's before the PSO came out DVDs were not very popular in japan. but they had a strong foothold in the states, with a lot of content already out in the format. They included a DVD player with the PSO. and soon after people in Japan started trying DVDs and DVD sale then went up in Japan. But since the format already took off in the US and there were plenty of content (although different region) The existing manufacturers could cheaply put stuff out for the different region.

    So when the Games division wanted do put a hard drive in the PSP, the higher ups wanted to promote the UMD format so they forced them to use that instead. And the UMD has failed, and there isn't much good content for the PSP.

    Now when they come out with PS3, the other divisions had Blu-Ray, and so corporate force the games folx to include that hardware.

    Sony forgot although they made DVD format popular in Japan with the PSO, there were large libraries of content already out for it in the rest of the world.
    • They included a DVD player with the PSO.

      I guess you're thinking about the PS2. The PSone only had a CD player.

  • That's right, Sony! (Score:1, Flamebait)

    by LKM ( 227954 )

    I'm European, and I just love to wait. In fact, I'll wait at least two or three more years until I'll get a PS3. If I ever get one. Because I'll wait until the price of your rich man's toy comes down to a more agreable level.

    I'll get a Wii the day it comes out, though.

  • Or at least I will be when I get my wii for Christmas.

    Seriously Sony, stop rubbing salt in the wounds. You are years late, with a machine that has been cut from having 4 9-core Cell chips to 1 7-core chip, and here in England we are still smarting from last Christmas when there were too few PSPs to go round and we were forced to buy up to 4 bundled junk games if we wanted one.

    If you don't put a foot wrong for the next few years, I'll eventually pick up a cheap secondhand PS3... but only if Gran Turismo 5 is
  • I can't understand why anyone would be "happy" to be subjected to a six month delay of their console, but I can understand that they might be grateful if the PS3 launch turns out to be an unmitigated disaster, or the PS3 is going to experience a price drop soon after.

    Having said that, I really don't know why anyone would want to own *any* console in its first few months of life. There no console in the world that justifies an instant purchase. Not one. Most even offer a level of backwards compatibility so

  • And we don't even get a mention.... I think they forgot us again! *Waits for the pissants at Sony Australia to tell us that Sony do care~~*

Slashdot Top Deals

Arithmetic is being able to count up to twenty without taking off your shoes. -- Mickey Mouse

Close