A Million PS3s Sold in Japan 164
Reuters is reporting that the PlayStation 3 has reached 1 million units sold in Japan. The article notes that the eight months the console took to reach this mark is roughly four times slower than it took the Wii. Of course, the 360 has only managed to eek out 420,705 units sold in a much longer timespan. To put things in perspective, an aging news report suggests that the PlayStation 2 sold 1 million units the first weekend it was released in Japan. Even the Wii didn't hit that, though that may have been an issue of supply rather than demand. Do you think there is a specific reason the PS3 isn't selling as well as the PlayStation 2 did, or is the market just a different place than it was 7 years ago?
The numbers (Score:5, Informative)
That would mean in the past 10 days, at least 24,129 PS3s were sold. That is approximately 16,890 PS3s last week, and 7,239 so far this week.
For comparison, the Wii was at 2,949,774 units sold the week before last. Given that they've been consistantly selled 70k+ per week, the Wii probably surpassed 3 million consoles last week. The Xbox 360 has yet to break 400k units.
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Re:The numbers (Score:4, Informative)
DS did that long ago. Look again at the chart: eighteen million is the figure for 'DSL', while lower down the chart you'll see that something called 'NDS' has sold 6.5 million.
Between the DS and DS Lite, Nintendo have shifted nearly 26 million in Japan. That's about one in five of the entire Japanese population.
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Even more astonishing: The Wii is only constrained by production, not by demand. Nintendo could probably sell about twice as many if they managed to get production capacity up.
Re:The numbers (Score:5, Insightful)
I don't know that this is justifiable as an opinion, much less a "simple fact".
It may be true that the 360's Xenon CPU may be more familiar to developers than the PS3's Cell, but I'm not sure that translates into being "better suited for games". There's no reason that a game written to take advantage of the Cell architecture could not be better than one written to take advantage of the Xenon.
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Thats the problem right there. Sure there are going to be some developers that will write a game to take advantage (I am thinking good old dependable Square Enix), but will most common developers take the time to utilize it? The one thing Microsoft has some experience with is making software, and they know its hard, so they designed a console with quite a lot of power, but easy to develop for with a good toolset, therefore easier to utilise that
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For example, my PC is perfectly capable of running WoW in Outland at 30+ fps. However, if I also run Ventrilo and Skype, my framerate can drop (depending on how active the conversations are, or the number of Skype participants) to as low as 10FPS. Skype and Ventrilo are
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The Japanese have less space to work with in their living spaces and tend toward small slim and lightweight devices. The PS3 is none of the above. The DS which is selling well is portable and small. The Wii is also small.
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I think there are several other reasons:
-It is expensive (Very true in Europe, where the decided to bundle 2 last year games instead of dropping the price, but not that much in Japan).
-It is power ungry.
-It doesn't have many appealing games yet, it will be better for next christmas.
-You need an expensive TV set to really appreciate the graphic impr
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- The PS3 runs at approx 200W but talk to any hard core gamer and power is not even an issue.
- The PS3 standby mode is very much less than 1W.
- The current PS3 game offerings are not that great from my perspective but the other console games are equally unappealing from my perspective. Of course if you don't mind playing upscaled PS2 games and there are plenty of those the PS3 has the most games.
- You can get away using a SDTV with both the Xbox360 and PS3 but a HDTV
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That aside, people have had all their other electronic devices get smaller, not bigger, from micro stereo systems to thinner TVs to smaller notebooks and cell phones.
It took a minute to look up, but here are your comparison sizes:
The PS2 was 301 mm (W) x 182 mm (D) x 78 mm (H)
The PS3 is 325mm (W) x 274mm (D) x 98mm (H)
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No idea (Score:5, Funny)
This is all entirely new and interesting information. I'm sure we will have a lively and enlightening discussion where multiple new and logically sound theories based on solid economic and sociological data will be presented.
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Of course, none of the people making those posts had any clue about the Japanese market in the first place, and were just parroting something they'd heard on the internet.
Meanwhile, the Japanese were making fun of the price just as much as us westerners, if not more so. More hilariously, at least.
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Your mother!
Yes (Score:3, Informative)
Playstation 2 launch price: ¥39,800
Playstation 3 launch price: ¥49,980 (basic), ¥59,980 (premium)
That might have had something to do with it.
Re:Yes (Score:5, Funny)
Is ¥ anime for $?
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Shortage at launch (Score:2)
THe "worldwide launch aka u.s./japan" just meant retarded shortages at launch since they didn't make enough.
The ridiculous price.
The lack of good games at launch to justify the price
reasons? (Score:4, Insightful)
If this isn't a setup for a flame war, I don't know what is.
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That being said, although I really respect Nintendo for taking a different course and building a new, innovate gaming platform, I am frankly not very impressed with the end resul
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I'm a supporter! I think the Playstation 3 actually has wonderful potential to be the top notch gaming system in the next couple of years, once developers have learned to better utilize its hardware. It's price point is a turn off, sure, but that will come down...and developers will still be making games for it at that point.
But the thing is, if there are no killer games on the PS3, people won't buy it, so there's no incentive for developers to learn how to program it correctly. I think for the foreseeable future - and maybe for the entire lifetime of the system - most really good games will come out of Sony's own dev studios. The PS3 seems to become this generation's Gamecube.
I think its great that games developed for the Wii probably won't be ports from other systems (in the future), because the control scheme is simply too different...
Yeah, most probably won't be, but interestingly, some ports arrived with really great results - Godfather, for example.
I think its just going to take a while for developers to really make this new way of playing games work.
...as seen with the DS.
That being said, the activity involved isn't a real selling point for me. While I can't speak for anyone else on Slashdot, I suspect I'm not alone when I say I get enough physical activity on my own for said activity to be required when I want to sit down and game.
toolbox (Score:2)
Actually, you do not have to do that, but really, you want to do it.
You can play that way. But it makes you a fucking toolbox. [penny-arcade.com]
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Well I suppose you have a point. Afterall, there are actually people here that think Zonk caused Sony's bad PR.
Maybe... (Score:4, Funny)
shipped != sold (Score:3, Insightful)
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Nintendo may count console warranty activations (Score:2)
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This is counting units sold, not shipped. Sony can report whatever number it wants, but there are third party organizations and companies devoted to counting units sold at retail, and Enterbrain (where this number is coming from) is one of them.
All manufacturers, not just Sony, count units shipped and announce those numbers. MS does the same (they just announced 11.6 million Xbox 360's shipped, not sol
Re:shipped != sold (Score:5, Insightful)
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HD TV is a big reason (Score:2, Insightful)
If there were as many HDTVs now as there were SDTVs when the PS2 was released, the PS3 would probably have sold as well as the PS2.
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The PS2 had extra selling features that for those with a PS2 and a SDTV already, the PS3 just doesn't offer. The PS2 was the first DVD player for a LOT of people, and that worked with their SDTV as well.
Most people do NOT have HDTV's, so those people do not care about BluRay being a feature. People also tend to feel that they'd be missing out on the game experience if they were to pl
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It's the games, stupid (Score:2)
Perhaps I'll get one in 2008, but by then I bet I can pick up newer-generation XBox360 and a ton of used games for it. Viva Pinat
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It doesn't have a library for gamers, you mean. Many of the people buying Wiis are those that haven't owned consoles in the past. They don't play through a game in two days and need something else. They'll be happy playing the same two or three games in half hour stints for a couple months. Believe me, if you're a casual gamer, there are more than enough good Wii games out right now. Only "hardcore" gamers are complaining of a game drought
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I know quite a few people who thought their Nintendo GBA was a portable Tetris machine
Sony parallels nintendo (Score:2)
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Sony managed to design a great controller early on. Why change it if they can't improve on it?
In my opinion, it's the best controller design out there. It's comfortable to hold, none of the buttons are awkward to hit, and I can play it for hours without getting cramps or stiffness in my hands. I can't say that about any other controller (especially the 360 controller...something about it makes my left hand hurt after an hour or so of play).
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Cue Tom Waits... (Score:2)
"Big In Japan"
I got the style but not the grace
I got the clothes but not the face
I got the bread but not the butter
I got the winda but not the shutter
But I'm big in Japan I'm big in Japan But heh I'm big in Japan
I got the house but not the deed
I got the horn but not the reed
I got the cards but not the luck
I got the wheel but not the truck
But heh I'm big in Japan I'm big in Japan I'm big in Japan
I got the moon I got the cheese I got the whole damn nation
On its knees I got the rooster I got the crow
I
599 reasons (Score:5, Funny)
No, there isn't a single specific reason. It's a combination of 599 reasons.
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I need R&C on my PS3 .... (Score:2)
I have all the PS2 R&C and want another R&C for the PS3 before I upgrade to a 32in WQXGA monitor.
!HAVEFUN!
Ask and ye shall receive... (Score:2)
Re:THANKS, Ask and ye shall receive... (Score:2)
You are so 5W337 for giving me that link
Re:THANKS, I need R&C on my PS3 .... (Score:2)
at +55yo, I don't know why I (for sure) like the goofy R&C. I played all the DukeNukem, Wolfenstein, and DOOM on PC (well the last Wolf* was on PS2), but now the more realistic (DOOM, HalfLife,
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Price + DVD + no competition = more sales (Score:2)
My guess is the 2 biggest problems for Sony in Japan is
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Anyway, I think the two biggest problems really are #1 the lack of HDTVs, and #2 the lack of franchise titles.
I just bought... (Score:2)
I have $3000 I don't know what to do with but I've decided to hold off on a $400 purchase to go with a $100 purchase (Ps2 Craigslist, 1 wireless controller memory card, 40 games) I just didn't want to subsidize Microsoft and the other consoles haven't consolidated yet (:P).
The PS3 kicks ass for 1 reason, downloadable free content, tonnes of demos and previews. Once you get beyo
It's the lack of games. (Score:2)
Re: Question... (Score:2)
Ummm... PRICE? In 2000, the PS2 released with a price of 39,800 Yen (with an exchange rate of 106.31 Yen to US Dollar), which made it ~$375 US. The 60GB PS3 (the only one with full functionality) launched at a price of 62,800 Yen. So not quite double the launch price, but that is pretty high.
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Both currencies have dipped int he last several years so it's a bit of an unfair comparison. For the cash of value of a ps2 you would have spent on other stuff in 2000 you can get slightly more (20-30%) for the value of
Is there a SPECIFIC reason it took so long? (Score:2)
Let's see, only one good release game, tons of time wasted on graphics and close to zilch on game play, being stuck with Blu-Ray which means little if you are one of the two-thirds with 480i or lower TV reception,
Nope, can't think of anything.
Everyone has DVD players now (Score:2)
There's two big reasons (Score:2)
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How about every self respecting nerd who has the decency to ensure that their close family/friends have properly functioning computers and had to waste time cleaning up the mess sony made?
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The Slashdot Groupthink is strongly against arrogance
Is that supposed to be a brain-explodey kind of thing, like saying "I'm lying?"
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Look at Ford vs. Chevy, etc... Very easy to understand why people care about this sort of thing.
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Actually, it puzzles me even more why people care about such things...
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For about a year now Sony have been top of the Slashdot shitlist, displacing Microsoft, the RIAA, and France. This is because of the rootkits they put on music CDs.
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The reason the PS3 gets such bad press, here and elsewhere, is that Sony has managed to screw up every way possible whilst pretending that everything is hunky-dory.
If Sony had been less boneheaded, or at least more honest about things, then it wouldn't have received half as much bad publicity. But as it's made one stupid move after another, and compounded that stupidity with an unswerving ina
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1) Nintendo fanbois
2) Microsoft fanbois
These two groups have slagged the PS3 as an overly expensive piece of junk since it was announced. There hatred for anything that doesn't belong to their chosen company is nothing new.
3) Sony's bad behaviour
Sony's been a bad company recently, the copy protection software that hides itself on your computer is a prime example of a related area that has offended many more people that were actually affected by it. General
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Fun is subjective. Wario ware + wii sports + rayman all RPGS ever made for any system. However I have a thousand dollar game library and multiple systems she has a wii, wii sports a game cube and mario party 6. Time will tell which market is more profitable. I hope to Odin it's US because I can't stand wario ware.
Re: Even Sony thinks the Wii is more Fun... (Score:2)
It's hard to not come up when even Sony claims the Wii is more fun. [gizmodo.com]
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They kept at least half an eye open over the past year.
Re:People aren't making enough to spend enough.... (Score:5, Insightful)
By comparison, the Wii launched for 25% more than the Game Cube, which itself launched at the same exact price as all of Nintendo's previous console systems (NES, SNES, N64, GC: $199; Wii: $249). The XBox 360 launched for 33% more than the XBox (XBox: $299; XBox 360: $399).
Seriously, though, the PS3 launched for $200 more than the already overpriced console that had been out for a year. That's seriously dumb.
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By comparison, the Wii launched for 25% more than the Game Cube, which itself launched at the same exact price as all of Nintendo's previous console systems (NES, SNES, N64, GC: $199; Wii: $249). The XBox 360 launched for 33% more than the XBox (XBox: $299; XBox 360: $399).
Seriously, though, the PS3 launched for $200 more than the
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What has doubled in the US in the last seven years is gas prices. In 2000, I paid $1.50/gal. Today it is over $3/gal. Consumers don't have the $599 for a game console and the $300-$3000 for an HDTV to enjoy it on. The Wii has very l
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What has doubled in the US in the last seven years is gas prices. In 2000, I paid $1.50/gal. Today it is over $3/gal. Consumers don't have the $599 for a game console and the $300-$3000 for an HDTV to enjoy it on. The Wii has very limited
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Using advanced business analyzement systematics, nutshell42, principal analyst of the nutshell42 Group reached the conclusion that Sony Corp leverages a synergistic profit of $40 on every PLAYSTATION 3 sold. The costs break down as follows:
Cell: $85
RSX: $92
256MB GDR: $25
256MB sthDR: $28
Blu-Ray drive: $101
Mainboard and Cooling: $32
Harddrive: $18
I/O, Bluetooth, etc: $15
WiFi: $23
SIXAXIS, various: $11
Case, Assembly and Shipping: $30
Total: $459
The nutshell42 Group helps businesses
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http://www.gamasutra.com/php-bin/news_index.php?s
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Nintendo profits off of every Wii sold. Sony (apparently) looses money on each PS3 sold, as does Microsoft with the 360. So it looks to me that the only console that's in the green is the Wii.
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Nintendo profits off of every Wii sold. Sony (apparently) looses money on each PS3 sold, as does Microsoft with the 360. So it looks to me that the only console that's in the green is the Wii.
The Wii is undeniably profitable. The PS3 is "thought" to be sold at a loss but they said the same thing about the PS2 and they were wrong. According to several announcements, outside of the first month the PS2 was making money but "analysts" predicted a long long period of selling at a lo
Thus the solution (Score:2)