Damn, that is exactly what I need.

Thanks a lot, Neon.

Or how some people will yell and scream that PS3 IS TEH GREATEST!! AND HAS THE MOST HORSEPOWER AND SONY RULEZ AND THE WII SUCKS BUTT AND SO DOES THE 360!!!!!!!11!!ONE!!

Where most of us just want to play great games.

Well, except for the fact that it's not quite *that* straightforward. Especially, as MBBF pointed out, among a certain crowd. Really, there are three things you're trying to accomplish here, if you're EA/MTV. Three groups you're trying to cater to, if you will.

1) Retailers. You want to make sure that GHWT isn't getting the lions' share of the shelf space just because it's new and your product is older. So you release Rock Band 2 in reaction to GHWT so that you have significant shelf space for *a* Rock Band product.

2) Kids. The "nag factor" is as powerful as it ever was, and kids are going to see a few different things. One is, yeah, "the drums are way better!" Not a lot you can do about that except release the cymbal expansion after the fact if you haven't materially changed the way the game is played. Another, though, is going to be the music. DLC is definitely a trump card for Harmonix and MTV, but there are a LOT of parents out there who are worried about "that internet thing." They don't want to even hook the machine up to the network for Xbox Live Silver, for fear that the pedophiles will somehow get to their kids. Reasonable? Maybe, maybe not. Not gonna judge. But I bring that up to point out that if a kid has been playing Rock Band at a friend's house for the last year, and here comes GHWT, and NOW Mom is ready to buy one for Junior...which one is he going to ask for? The new one he hasn't played yet, or the one he's spent the last year on?

3) Stockholders. Gotta keep them happy, and "we're going to combat our primary competition by continuing to promote last year's game" probably isn't going to do that.


Might be. But remember that RB1 doesn't have the ability to expand the drums for cymbals, which...and I know this sounds kinda facile, but there you are...is going to matter to the young kids. They like to bang on stuff, and the more stuff on which there is to bang, the happier they are.

It's not an A+B=C equation.

In the olden days, RB2 would have been an expansion + patch on the PC for RB1 rather than a full sequel. Not as easy to do on the console.

Certainly you have the right to make those kinds of claims, but the industry trends tend to show right now that pricing of hardware and word of mouth in software are the two most powerful ways to make sales at this point. Even quality takes a secondary back seat for both hardware and software. It's a factor, but for the majority of the purchasing public, quality is not the primary deciding factor.

I do think that the people in this discussion probably use quality as a primary decision point, but the public doesn't follow that trend.

Sounds like my house.

It took probably the hardest game related lobbying effort I've ever done to swing my son to RB2 instead of GH:WT as his primary game for Christmas.

Intellectually he knows he's ultimately better off with RB2 as their DLC makes up for the less appealing initial song list. Intellectually he knows that there are even more issues with the GH:WT hardware than with the RB2. But emotionally ... the extra pads go to eleven.

In the rest of the world, it's all about the hype and nothing about quality. I work in the video game industry and get tons of non-traditional gamers so intrigued with the Wii. They don't want to hear about anything else.

So at that point I wish them the best, have fun with Wii Sports for 2 weeks until the console gets turned off and becomes a dust collector.

I know tons of people with Wii's and nearly all of them go unused for long periods of time. All my friends with 360's put them through fairly regular use.

I dunno, my Wii and 360 both get tons of use. Right now MLB Power Pros 2008 is getting a ton of playing time from me.

I go in phases, mostly based on what games are coming out. Last year I played my Wii way more through the January-April months, but since then it's been mostly 360. I plan on getting Animal Crossing at some point in the next little while, so that will likely get the Wii more prominently involved again, with the bonus of having the wife playing as well.

Arstechnica puts out a 'Biggest Disappointments of 2008' list. Nintendo, Home, Star Wars: The Force Unleashed, Mirror's Edge, and Spore make the top list. Honorable mention goes to Sonic Unleashed and Little Big Planet.......

http://arstechnica.com/news.ars/post...s-of-2008.html

Is Mirror's Edge a crap game, or is it a disappointment because of bad sales? I may rent it some time, perhaps over the holidays. From the promos it looks decent.

I haven't played it yet, but it sounds like it's one of those 'love it or hate it' games. You either really like the new concept of gameplay or you get bored by it. Rental sounds like a good option, especially with the shorter length of the single player game.

The demo of Mirror's Edge was alright, but I haven't played it since trying it out initially. Other games (mainly FM2009) have been sucking up all my gaming time.

Yeah, Nintendo was such a disappointment in 2008. All they could manage after the November 2007 release of Super Mario Galaxy was Mario Kart, Wii Fit, Smash Bros., and WiiWare. You really have to wonder what the 25M people who purchased one in 2008 were smoking.

I posted about a couple of gaming studios closing due to the recession in the recession thread. Anyway, EA is now joining in by consolidating a studio and laying off 10% of their worldwide work force (over 1,000 people losing jobs.) They state they will narrow their product portfolio as well:

EA layoffs hit 1,000, Black Box 'consolidated' - News at GameSpot

Free Radical (Timesplitters series, Haze) are shutting down apparently. kotaku.com link

I think some of them are on the list in terms of 'disappointment to the player' and some are 'disappointment to the studio.'

LittleBIGPlanet is fantastic. It has also sold like shit warmed over.

Spore was cool for a while, but I put it away after a couple weeks, and haven't touched it since. That would be a disappointment to the player.

:( I love the Timesplitters series.

Ummmm, I'm guessing you didn't read the article. There's no question that the sales were good, but that doesn't have much to do with the point made in the article.

Actually I did read the article. The article stated that there wasn't much released by Nintendo in 2008 and I listed four things from Nintendo that were all really good and a fifth that was right before the cutoff. I didn't even include games like Animal Crossing that are huge for some people, but not for me. How many good games did Microsoft or Sony publish in 2008?

Obviously, both Sony and Microsoft had very good years related to software releases. Sony likely had the best of the three, but does it matter if no one notices because the system is so expensive?

Including WiiWare as a good release is a huge stretch. It's a download/development platform, not a game. And it really doesn't have a mass market appeal to the casual gamer.

I don't think that there's any question that the Wii had a down year from the perspective of game releases. The article was spot-on in that regard. With that said, the people who bought the console do have other options from past years to catch up on at a discount price. Many Wii owners are hoping that the lull in games in 2008 means a big uptick in games next year. Hopefully that's the case.

You need to rephrase this.

There is no question that the Wii had a down year from the perspecitve of game releases that appeal TO YOU.

Smash Bros Brawl, Mario Kart, Wii Fit - all huge successes. Most console owners buy 4 or less games per year, right? Wii owners may even tend tend to buy less. They are not going to be disappointed at all that there weren't 20+ quality 3rd party games released for the system. They are going to buy Smash Bros, GH/RB, Mario Kart, Wii Fit (if they can find them, 6 and 7 months post release - definitely a bad year for games on that system) maybe a Boom Blox or some other smaller title (and there are a few good ones). They are not going to feel that this was a down year for releases, instead they are going to feel like they are playing great games and continue to love their system.

Its amazing that you want people to take you seriously, yet you continue to paint huge successes by Nintendo in the darkest possible terms, compared to the shining light of the dismal failures of the other two platforms. We get it, the Wii does not appeal to you. We get it, its not the right system for a "serious" gamer like yourself.

Why is it so important to you to convince the rest of the world they are flat out wrong for liking it?

Three big games over the course of a year is a disappointment to any system. I'd even give the nod that the Wii is somewhat a victim of its own success in that regard. They blew out all their big games early in the console life and it paid off in spades in regards to console sales.

The Mario creator admitted in an interview earlier this year that Wii Music was the final big title that he had envisioned for the console and that they weren't even sure what was next. Thanks to the success of the 1st person titles, a whole lot of sequels is the likely next step. Another Zelda is already in the works along with a 3rd party sequel of Boom Blox.

As for the backlog of good games, I pointed that out in my previous post as a positive for the Wii. I'm assuming you're agreeing with my point in that regard.


I stated that the good games on the PS3 don't do a whiff of good if the console remains at a high price. That's certainly not a 'shining light' assessment. I've been very forthright in how disappointing Sony's handling of the price structure has been.

You responded before I finished my edit, but I thing you're wrong on this point.

With attach rates being what they are, three great releases per year seems to satisfy 2/3 (or more) of console owners. And I don't think Nintendo minds at all that all of them are their titles.

I'd actually agree with that with one caviat. I think your statement is true of Nintendo, but not the other consoles. Nintendo fans generally have a relatively narrow focus in regards to games. If Nintendo releases 3 big games, I'd agree that most of the user base will like those games because Nintendo is know for putting out great quality games and something that caters to their fans (Wii Music being the exception thus far).

On the 360, 3 great games won't be enough. The only possible way that might work is 3 great shooters since the 360 base tends to gravitate to those games.

There's absolutely no way that 3 good PS3 games of different genres will cut it. There's far too many variances in what their owner base likes. Price aside, the lack of focus on any genre has hurt Sony IMO. PR has been a nightmare as well.

If Nintendo is considered to have had a bad year, then can I have some of that pain please?

Agreed. It's a good situation for them when they can put out a small number of quality titles and still sell tons of hardware.

Compared to what they have released up to that point, Nintendo's fall/Christmas 2008 lineup for Wii (Mario Super Sluggers, Wario Land: Shake It, Animal Crossing, and Wii Music) isn't up there with Aug 2007 to May 2008 where they came out with a ton of good to great games (Mario Strikers Charged, Metroid Prime 3, Battalion Wars 2, Fire Emblem, Super Mario Galaxy, Link's Crossbow Training, Super Smash Bros., Mario Kart Wii, Wii Fit).

Since standard practice in the video games industry has been to release your best stuff in the fall, the gaming media looks back at the last few months and calls 2008 a disappointment. If Wii Music and Animal Crossing had swapped release dates with Mario Kart Wii and SSB:B I bet Nintendo's 2008 would be viewed in a more positive light despite all the games coming out in 2008 either way. How many great games is one company expected to produce per year anyway? Even Nintendo can't maintain their late 2007-early 2008 pace all the time.

As far as whatis coming from Nintendo on the Wii for 2009 and the future, here's what I know of:

The New Play Control series (GameCube ports with added features or IR/motion controls):

Pikmin - March 09
Mario Tennis - March 09
Pikmin 2, Metroid Prime 1 and 2, Donkey Kong: Jungle Beat, Chibi-Robo! - dates TBA

Wii games confirmed for North America in 2009

Wii Sports Resort - Spring 2009 (includes Wii Motion Plus)
Punch Out Wii
Sin and Punishment 2

Wii games released elsewhere in 2008, waiting for NA announcements in '09:

Disaster: Day of Crisis
Fatal Frame IV
Captain Rainbow (likely not coming over)

Wii games announced for 2009 release in Japan, still waiting for NA info, some but not all will be coming probably:


* Start w/ 100 Conversations! English Conversation (probably not coming over obviously)
* Another Code: R, Gateway of Memory
* Kensax
* Cosmic Walker
* Spawn Smasher
* Dynamic Slash
* Tact of Magic
* Forever Blue 2: Beautiful Ocean
* Everyone's the Star on the NHK Red-and-White Quiz Battle
* Line Attack Heroes

Games it's known Nintendo is working on, release dates unknown anywhere:

Kirby
next Mario platformer
next Legend of Zelda
Pikmin 3

Judging from the reviews on the 360 version, they probably should have cited development problems on the 360 as well and not released it at all. They obviously have development problems on all platforms, not just the PS3. Following review is pretty similar to other reviews of the game.............

Review: Destroy All Humans! Path of the Furon - Loot Ninja

The sole reason I'm hoping I get a PS3 for Christmas:

ESPN - MLB 09 The Show: Exclusive first look - Videogames

They are releasing it in Europe still, though, so maybe they'll solve the problems and then the PS3 will get to go 'nanny nanny boo boo' with a region-free release that doesn't suck?

Wow. Just wow. You're definitely right that it's the biggest and best reason to own a PS3.

Well, one month in and my PS3 is essentially collecting dust. Too many good games on the 360 right now for me to be bothered to buy any for the PS3. I'm going to shop for Bluray movies so that the PS3 can get some exercise.

Punch Out Wii? Color me excited.

Yeah, that's definitely one to be excited about. Motion controls should work well for that one.

A few articles of interest. First, it looks like 3D game development will be available as an option in 2009. Probably a pie in the sky thought, but it's worth watching as this is expected to be the next big home entertainment thing.

http://www.gameinformer.com/News/Sto...1622.44781.htm

PS3 build price has come down to $448. That's a vast improvement, but it demonstrates why Sony is in the predicament they are in. They can't drop prices at this point and make any profit.

Teardown of Sony's PlayStation 3 - BusinessWeek

Gaming has been demonstrated to improve brain function for people who are 60+ years of age.

http://www.reuters.com/article/techn...4BI63O20081219

The 60 GB PS3 cost $840 to make at launch :eek:

Sony should have present-proofed it in addition to making it future-proof.

Oh yeah. That was widely reported before release. Obviously a very expensive lesson for Sony.

They can't leave prices where they are and make any profit, either.

Why not drop prices to spur the install base and hope like hell that the new buyers get in on blu-ray as well as a result, since that's supposed to be the second pillar of Sony's profit base?

Speaking of PS3 prices, anyone know who has the best bundle deal out there presently (or possibly in another week or so?)

Welcome to the thoughts of the entire industry in June 2008. :D

Gotta be honest. I've played more PS2 games on my PS3 than PS3 games so far. Doesn't help that most games that I might do multiplayer on are bought for the 360 due to the large contingent from FOFC. Mostly, mine has been a DVD/Blu Ray player so far.

Here's a quick question that I'm certain has been asked hundreds of times:
after years of both consoles being out, which system is better--xbox 360 or PS3? Is the red ring of death a killer for most 360s? I may upgrade my system and am wondering which one to get.

I think if you want to play multiplayer, go with the 360. If you plan to play by yourself most of the time, go with the PS3.

The community definitely has something to do with it. I'm a regular over at CAG and they have Warhawk game nights on the PS3 with 200-300 people in multiple rooms. Gears and Halo are obviously the big ones on the 360. Warhawk, Metal Gear Online, and SOCOM: Confrontation have big followings on the PS3. COD4 is also still huge on both systems. Really just depends on preference more than anything else.

Depends on what you want. If you are someone who has a HDTV and expects to get a Blu-ray player, the PS3 is the clear choice at this point. It's a great value as a gaming and home entertainment platform. If you don't expect to be a Blu-ray user, the 360 is the better option at this point assuming you purchase the cheaper model. There's some inherent risk of failure, but the cheaper price of the base system probably justifies the risk.

So true. I still have very few friends who have/play a PS3, but most of my friends who I game with have a 360. Even if I get a PS3 tomorrow, I'm sure I'll be buying most of my sports games on the 360 to play with guys from here in MP leagues/online games.

In a way, it's a shame, because the dual shock is my favorite controller, but all my sports games get bought on the 360. It pretty much has to be an exclusive or an offline game for me to buy it on the PS3.

This is only true these days if you buy a used launch model. From all reports out there, starting with the Falcon design, the failure rates of the 360 have fallen dramatically, and are no better or worse than the failure rates for the PS3 or Wii.

The Wii and PS3 failure rates are between .2 and .3%, which is extremely good for an electronics product. Even the Falcon model still has a failure rate well in excess of that number. They've done a pretty good job of compiling numbers over in the RROD NeoGaf thread. Interestingly enough, the reduction in failure from the 30% pre-Falcon to sub 10% post-Falcon has been offset by the fact that Microsoft is replacing the pre-Falcon models with the Xenon which was returned in record number and sending them out as replacements. The return rates of the refurbished units are off the charts.

It's silly to even engage in this discussion at this point. Anyone who tries to say that the 360 failure rate is in the same ballpark as the other two systems is merely whistling through the graveyard. The evidence is overwhelmingly against the 360 on that front.

My brother owns both a PS3 and 360. When his 360 went tits up a few weeks ago and wasn't covered under warranty (wasn't an RROD), he went out and bought another one to replace it, which pretty much went against every fiber in his being because he was so angry at MS for their crappy hardware. His reason? All of his friends play online with their 360's, and the PS3 just can't fill that void. I suspect this is true of most gamers at this point.

Such compelling arguments they bring up. I had not thought about the cons of having to plug it into the TV.

I think you are going to find this isn't true by this time next year. It took time for the RROD data to come out and there is enough anecdotal evidence to suggest that both the PS3 and Wii rates of failure are much higher than has been reported.

Interesting. Any articles or even threads on message boards confirming this anecdotal evidence? My feet would be held to the fire in this thread for that kind of a statement if I didn't back it up. :D

Sure, go to OS or any of the major gaming boards and look at the various threads about people's PS3's dying. There are many threads on gaming boards about it. There was also a recent thread on Gamespot where an editor wrote about his PS3 dying. There have been quite a few people here who have reported having their PS3's already having to be sent in for repairs as well.

In the smallest of sample sizes I have sent back 1 of both systems for repairs.

Link would be great. Thanks.

I hear very few stories about people's Wiis needing repair, and I hang out at a lot of Wii-centric places.

My PS3 turned on one morning to report that it had to "rebuild the hard drive," and spent the next day and a half so doing. Or attempting. That's the only issue I've seen reported with any regularity.

I've read much less than the PS3. I just hear about a fair number of disc read errors (I've had several myself, particularly with Smash Brothers.)

MBBF, I'll get you some links after I'm done work and at home. Of course, I'm sure you'll discount them ;)

I bought a 360 within 6 months after it came out, and still have the same one. I would say I got somewhat lucky there just from what others always say. Still, always have loved the system. (I did need to have the dvd drive replaced earlier this year)

Just got a PS3, uh...er, a couple months ago now I guess. Anyways, I love it. I think it's the complete package with built in wireless internet connection, BR, my favorite controller, free Playstation Network.

With that said, I echo what others say. If you want online play with people you know then 360 is probably the way to go. I don't know people and don't care about who I play with (yes, I fondle strangers), so playing on PSN is just fine for me and I am having a blast playing COD: World at War on there when I can. I have never even hooked up my 360 online, but I am sure it is better for that as everyone says.

PS3 best system to me, just not enough people with one to win the MP battle.

Ah, a fair point. I remember when Brawl was released there was a mini-flurry of people reporting their machines couldn't read the disc because it was in a new kind of format that required the lens to be cleaner or something like that. Don't remember the exact reason, but there was something like that now that you mention it.

My last patient is a no show, so I just did a quick search on OS. Here is a thread in which much more than 0.3% of the respondents note a problem (specifically the Blu Ray Drive dies.) The thread quickly veers off topic, but it is useful info as it points out that users are getting charged by Sony if it isn't within the 1 year warranty or they haven't purchased the extended warranty. There are multiple similar threads on OS and other places that can easily be found.

Anyone buying any of these consoles (except maybe the Wii) should invest in an extended warranty. Give it another year and I'm willing to bet money that the PS3 failure rate will be much higher than what was initially reported:




Operation Sports Forums

I disagree with ever purchasing an extended warranty on any electronics. The 360 is the only product I would even consider it on, and even then, I'd take my chances. Extended warranties are a great way to throw away your money.

I posted something about my experiences dealing with Sony in another thread, but my PS3 died about a month or so ago and I when I looked at the Playstation forums for info on the problem there was certainly quite a few with the exact same problem I was experiencing (PS3 wasn't reading any disks).

Their customer support was absolutely horrible as well.

Microsoft and Nintendo will usually do their repairs without a receipt (at least from what I read on their forums). Sony will not; not under any circumstances I tried to work around it because after a move I couldn't find the receipt and the manufacture date was less than a year from when I was calling them about it breaking (seemed pretty simple to me). The person I spoke told me that sounded reasonable and that they would push the issue up the chain and for me to call back to check on the status of my issue. I call back a week and a half later and the customer service rep I spoke to then told me there weren't any notes on my account to show something was being worked on or that I had even called them. So my options were to either pay $150 to repair a PS3 that was under warranty or see if Best Buy could find my receipt in their records. Luckily, after speaking with a Best Buy manager they were able to find my receipt after about 10 minutes of searching purchases made with my bank card.

I also asked Sony why they wouldn't repair my PS3 under warranty even though the manufacture date was under a year and I was told that a receipt isn't actually to prove the date of purchase, its to prove that I didn't steal my PS3.

On the bright side, they are incredibly fast in getting your PS3 back to you. Took about a week for me to get it back from the day I sent it to them.

The RROD stuff was just starting to hit the radar 25 months into the 360's lifecycle and the shit didn't really hit the fan until a few months after that. The PS3 is just now in its 25th month.

I don't think anyone expects the PS3 to ultimately come near the 360's failure rate. At the same time, two years in is too early for the failure numbers to mean much.

That is all I was saying.

Of course I will, because your assertion is ludicrous. You produced a thread with barely 50 posts. The RROD thread on this board alone is larger than that. The RROD/DVD drive error thread on NeoGaf now is over 9500 posts and growing daily. There's little question that anyone even comparing the two situations got the gift of laughing gas from Santa yesterday. The 360 has been a QA nightmare.

It should be noted that I know you to be a very smart person. I get the distinct impression that you'd rather yank my chain in this thread more than anything else. :D

Wow. Year Over Year Sales DOWN nearly 20% in November (any good games released Nov 07 compared to Nov 08?) and they expect that sales will either be flat or down this month.

Really looks like Sony gambled that people wanted their video game systems to be and do MORE, and with the recession in full swing, lost big time.

PS3 Sags in Battle Again Xbox 360, Wii - WSJ.com

If Sony doesn't close the gap with its rivals, it could risk making the PS3 an afterthought to game publishers, who focus most of their resources on the machines with the most users. At the end of September, the Wii had a wide lead with nearly 35 million units sold since its launch in 2006 compared with about 22 million Xbox 360 consoles and 17 million PS3 machines. Nintendo last month sold 2 million Wii machines in the U.S., while Microsoft sold 836,000 Xbox 360s and Sony sold 378,000 PS3s, according to NPD.

There's a few silly statements in the article, but there's absolutely no new info. It's basically another author looking for page views by stirring the fanboy pot. Little has changed since the discussion in last month's thread. Until the PS3 price drops, there's really not much of a sales race to discuss.

The real news story that you should have been posting if you wanted to post something new was that Sony's Stringer made the statement that he didn't think they'd have a price drop until Summer 2009. Previous stories noted that a price drop was likely in Feb./March 2009. My guess is that they believe that sales in the interim won't improve enough with a price drop given the economy. I'm not sure I follow that logic as a couple of months won't make that big of a difference..

It is looking more and more likely that this generation may hang around longer than previous consoles given the global financial situation. Both Microsoft and Sony are suggesting that it doesn't make sense to release a console in 2010-2011. We may see the companies stick with the status quo, trying to increase the profitible end game of the console and wait to release a new console until the economic climate improves.

I don't think Sony will start losing a ton of games. The PS3 still sells well enough for it to get versions of 360 games.

It's the opposite regarding software. PS3 makes more profit for the major publishers than the 360 software despite the smaller number of units sold. Hardware is the real issue for Sony. It's just too damn expensive.

Why? Is Microsoft taking a huge fee for licensing?

Because, you know the Wall Street Journal needs the page views and has to resort to "Stirring the fanboy pot".

Do you even believe half the shit you write?

I hope this generation of systems stick around longer then normal. Heck, it seems like it just started in many ways. I mean the PS2 still sells, there really is no point in moving too far ahead of what is needed.

It happens whether you choose to accept that or not. The media isn't getting richer writing stories about a guy helping an old lady across the street. Articles on the console war get posted to message boards everywhere and help increase advertising revenue. They know that stories like this drive page views and revenue. Your assumption that the Wall Street Journal doesn't need page views is highly flawed and without much merit. If anything, they need them now more than ever.

Agreed. I think a longer than normal generation would help the industry quite a bit. The HD graphics in this generation are a pretty good step forward and the developers are really starting to put out some good work at this point.

There is a good-sized licensing fee involved, but I'm pretty sure that's not the whole reason for the difference in profits.

Interestingly enough, the PS2 is still raking in great profit numbers in companies like EA. The development costs are very low and the installed base is large. They can make a lot of money with very little effort on that console.

Do you have facts to back this up? I can't imagine that companies make more on PS3 sales than 360 sales when the 360 sells twice as many games.

If its true, it must be creative accounting. My guess is that because the 360 is used as the primary development platform the bulk of development costs get counted as expenses on the 360 side and only the relatively minor costs of porting get counted as expenses on the PS3 side.

That is exactly the reason and it has been posted in several articles which I'm sure MBBF has read.

Easy thing to do is to look up some of the major multiplatform developers for any FY2009 quarter. EA is a prime example. Their biggest profit source on the 3 major consoles has been the PS3 thus far this year.

Here's a link for the investor's reports for EA....

http://investor.ea.com

Income numbers for Q1 of FY2008 and FY2009 (April-June) are below:

Anyone else getting a 404?

SI

Just use the generic site name, which has links that should allow you to access the report.....

Electronic Arts Inc. - Investor Relations

Obviously I haven't or I would have posted that information. I know it's fun to poke the monkey in the cage, but would it be too much to ask that you provide the information first to counter my point rather than assuming that I'm ignoring articles that I haven't read? If I was the Oracle and knew all, I wouldn't bother engaging in conversations to learn more about different topics.

I read these articles months ago and don't remember where to find a link to them and google is not helping me right now. However, it is why developers cancel the PS3 version of games that they are having difficulty getting ported such as the recent release of the Destroy all Aliens game, or whatever it is called. It is a fact that many companies develop on the 360 because it is easier to develop for (and easier to port to the PC) and then port to the PS3. Therefore, development costs are primarily attributed to the 360 version.

No, but you do like to make smartass leading questions posts that you think you already know the answer to.

SI

And as I've already mentioned in this thread, using the Destroy All Aliens game as an example is one of the worst arguments you can make. The reviews and feedback on that game for the 360 show that development group didn't know how to make a 360 game either and should have cancelled both versions of the game. It's a blessing that game wasn't released on the PS3 because it was a poor excuse for a game.

I'd also like to see those articles to determine why the accountant didn't spread those costs across all platforms on the multiplatform games if what you say is true. I'm trying to think back to my accounting classes to determine a situation where that would be adventageous to the company. May have to drag out the text books when I get home.

Yes, well we all know that no one else engages in that practice on this board. Not a smart ass in this group outside of me.

For the record, it's Destroy All Humans. :)

You would know ;)

SI

Should have been named 'Destroy the Developers'.

I'm just going to use Yellowstone to accomplish that goal.

Interesting read for those who haven't heard this story before. In summary, Microsoft worked with IBM to build the 360 chip based on the development being done on the Cell processor in the exact same building. It certainly follows previous Microsoft trends of taking the ideas or innovations of another product and building on that idea rather than recreating the wheel........

Playing the Fool - WSJ.com

You make that sound like a bad thing.

On the contrary, it's worked extremely well for them from a profitability standpoint, especially in the PC market.

Someone needs to make a line from the Gamecube controller to the original XBox controller as well. The 4 buttons are not configured the same but they are in the same place as are the two analog sticks and the control panel. So let's not pretend Microsoft doesn't do the exact same thing.

SI