Sony's PlayStation 3 is Down, But Not Out

The console war is far from over according to the Washington Post

Although the PlayStation 3 has been outsold by its competitors these past few months, Matt Peckham argues via the Washington Post that the situation is not as grim as may seem. The Washington Post article refutes a story from CNN Money that completely writes off the PlayStation 3 as a failure.

Compared to November 2007, PS3 sales are down this year from 466,000 units sold to 378,000 units sold. In contrast, Microsoft and Nintendo products sold very well in November. Twice as many Xbox 360s were sold and five times as many Nintendo Wiis were sold.

Despite comparatively poor sales numbers, Peckham points out overall PS3 sales grew by 60% year-to-date. For much of 2008 the PS3 had been catching up to the Xbox 360 due to momentum gained from events such as the end of the high definition disc war.

Peckham also discusses how the combined sales of the PS3, the PS2, and the PSP exceeded one million units. This number tops the 836,000 Xbox 360s that were sold. He states if the profit margins on the PS2 and PSP are assumed to be much better than the PS3 it becomes less clear which company made more money off of hardware sales.

The CNN article states the differences between Blu-ray and DVD are hard to see on a TV less than 50" minimizing the benefit of having a Blu-Ray player included in the PS3. Peckham refutes this claim stating “Blu-ray at even 720p (1280 x 720) with all its other commensurate upticks in sample rates and color quality is shockingly better than the visuals output of the average DVD”.

Finally, the CNN articles mentions a lack of quality exclusive titles on the PS3 to which Peckham lists off a variety of PS3 exclusives such as Metal Gear Solid 4, Uncharted: Drake's Fortune, Ratchet & Clank Future, Wipeout HD, Valkyria Chronicles, the original Resistance: Fall of Man, and MLB 08: The Show.

Source : http://www.dailytech.com/

Sony names international PR exec

Nigel Clark has been named senior exec VP of international marketing at Sony Pictures Entertainment.

Clark, who rejoins the Culver City studio after leaving in 2003, will oversee implementation of marketing and publicity strategies for Sony's foreign theatrical launches, including acquisitions and local productions.

Before returning to Sony, Clark had been working closely with his former marketing colleagues at the studio on the launch of "Quantum of Solace" in his capacity as a marketing consultant for EON Prods.

Clark first joined Sony in 1990 in the studio's London offices, where he served as European marketing supervisor. He was promoted to VP of marketing for Europe, the Middle East and Africa and eventually rose to an exec VP for the studio.

In 2005, he joined UIP as exec VP of international marketing.

Source : http://www.variety.com/

Nintendo's 'Wii Music' Waits for Fans to Find It

 After years of explosive growth, Nintendo Co. is under pressure to keep up its momentum. That puts the company's creative chief, Shigeru Miyamoto, in the hot seat again.

The legendary game guru, who was the brains behind Nintendo's Wii console and the creator of Donkey Kong, Mario and Zelda, is facing a disappointment this holiday season.

His new "Wii Music" game, in which players shake the Wii's controller the way an instrument would be played, has been greeted with skepticism, even from loyal fans.

"It could be Nintendo's first flop for Wii," said Benjamin Schachter, an analyst with UBS Investment Research.

In an interview, the famously private Miyamoto said he isn't bothered by how Wii Music is performing so far.

"I don't expect Wii Music to be an immediate hit," said the boyish-looking 56-year-old, who joined Nintendo in 1977 and now runs its game development. "It will be a steady long-running seller that will spread gradually by word-of-mouth."

Unlike the blockbuster music games "Guitar Hero" and "Rock Band," which have sold millions of copies, letting players act like rock stars, Miyamoto made Wii Music an improvisation game that doesn't keep track of scores.

Miyamoto said his goal is to make games more than just a form of entertainment. "Wii Music," he said, has educational value as a tool to teach music theory. In the game, players choose from 60 instruments to improvise and record songs like "Yankee Doodle" and "La Cucaracha."

Source : http://www.foxnews.com/

New 'Animal Crossing' finds fun in the day-to-day

Nintendo's latest installment in its "Animal Crossing" series boasts a charm similar to that of the television sitcom "Seinfeld."

Much like the quintessential "show about nothing" draws its humor from mundane tasks, situations and dialogue, "Animal Crossing: City Folk" ($49.99, Wii) revels in the simple day-to-day activities and decisions of life.

Spend the afternoon fishing, digging for fossils or visiting friends. Buy and sell items at the local shop, or head into the city to browse a more upscale selection of stores.

There are no levels to finish, checkpoints to reach or objectives to complete — do what you want, when you want. It's an approach that's surprisingly addictive.

This latest installment is the popular series' first venture onto the Wii console, and it's clearly geared to those who might have missed out on "Animal Crossing" for the GameCube or "Animal Crossing: Wild World" for the Nintendo DS.

Sure, "Animal Crossing: City Folk" adds the ability to visit friends' towns over the Internet or ride the bus into the city, but its formula strays little from the original premise and players of the previous titles might be left wanting more.

The first order of business upon arriving in your new home town is to meet up with local entrepreneur Tom Nook.

Nook, a raccoon, will set you up with your first house and help you start paying your mortgage by putting you to work in his shop, Nook's Cranny.

The repeated errands he assigns grow tedious, but once he runs out of odd jobs he'll cut you loose so you can explore the town on your own timetable, which is the lure of this game.

You'll encounter plenty of animal residents and each has their own look and personality. Dialogue exchanges can be fun, and you're free to befriend or ignore anyone.

Those in need of a sense of purpose can drop by the museum, which is rich with exhibit space yet void of a single tangible display item.

You can help its embarrassed curator, Blathers the owl, by donating some of the numerous fish, bugs and fossils you collect during your journeys. Blathers is always happy to accept donations, and you can always visit your pet squid in the aquarium section or catch another to set up a tank in your house.

And if you need some extra bells — the game's form of currency — drop by Tom Nook's to sell your fruit, fish, shells and other gathered items.

I typically enjoy playing video games in large time chunks rather than a little each day, but the slow-and-steady approach works best with "Animal Crossing: City Folk."

The game runs on a real-time clock, so weather, available items and species all adjust to the date and seasons.

A trip to Nook's Cranny shortly after Thanksgiving offered a Christmas tree, which I bought and put in my house's tiny living room. My walk through town the other day was greeted by light snowfall, and flakes dropped on trees decked out with lights.

Most of the fish I've been catching are on the small side, but I can look forward to reeling in some larger species once the weather begins to warm up. Or, if I know another player's Friend Code, I can that town and cast into their lakes and beaches to expand my collection.

"Animal Crossing: City Folk" also offers occasional fishing tournaments and special holiday events that appear on the calendar.

It's easy to get cooped up during a cold winter, so a trip to the city might be just the thing to get you out of the doldrums.

Items and services in the city are ridiculously expensive (how's that for realism?), so you'll burn through bells much quicker than you would in town. But where else can you hire an interior designer or buy a 300,000-bell luxury bed?

Those looking to change their appearance can visit Shampoodle and have Harriet give you a haircut or a Mii makeover, so you can use your customized character.

You can also take in a movie (800 bells) or drop by the auction house to get rid of or bid on items.

The game is the first to work with Nintendo's Wii Speak accessory, a set-top room microphone which can be bought separately for $29.99 or bundled with the game for $69.99. If your friend across the country has the same setup, you can chat with each other while fishing.

"Animal Crossing: City Folk" might seem too familiar to players of the previous series titles, but this latest installment offers plenty of depth for newcomers.

It takes time and patience to reveal its depth, but that's the fun.

Three out of four stars.

[via AP]

Holiday Videogame Sales Meltdown Part 2: Microsoft Reaches for the Masses

On last Thursday, the NPD Group divulged its report chronicling retail U.S. videogame hardware and software sales during the month of November 2008. Considering the nation's overwhelmingly bleak financial landscape of late, the fact that total game sales managed a 10 percent year-over-year gain during this crucial holiday shopping month seems encouraging, but closer inspection of the figures reveals that not every publisher has reason to celebrate. In this second of three parts we look at how Microsoft fared. [Part 1: Nintendo | Part 3: Sony (coming Friday)]

Microsoft reaches for the masses
Nintendo's Wii handily trounced the Xbox 360, yet Microsoft's box still made a strong showing with 836,000 consoles sold during the four-week period. This represents a year-on-year increase of 8.6 percent. The new, cheaper-than-Wii $199 Arcade hardware bundle, aggressive holiday freebie incentives (Arcade units come with Sega Superstar Tennis while the pricier Pro and Elite models ship alongside Kung Fun Panda and Lego Indiana Jones), and a massive advertising campaign focusing on casual, family-focused entertainment all likely helped spur the increase. It's clear that the recent move to a sub-$200 price point has had an impact: Wedbush Morgan Securities analyst Michael Pachter commented that the Xbox 360's average sale price (ASP) during November was $270, which is lower than the previous months' figure, indicating the increasing ratio of the less expensive Arcade sku to the total number of 360s sold.

Despite Microsoft's strong push to market the 360 to a broader audience, the console's best-selling software remains firmly in the hardcore camp. Microsoft's phenomenal Epic Games-developed shooter Gears of War 2 edged out Activision's Call of Duty: World at War for the top spot on the charts, selling an impressive 1.56 million copies in 22 days. (If you factor in CoD World at War's PlayStation 3 sales, however, it could be viewed as the best-selling title for the month.) Valve's multiplayer zombie shooter Left 4 Dead (published by EA) also managed to sneak into the top 10 with 410,000 copies sold. It's a strong debut for an original intellectual property, seemingly fueled by passionate critical praise and strong word of mouth. After debuting to impressive sales on the October chart with only a few days on store shelves during the reporting period, Bethesda's Fallout 3 and Microsoft's Fable II hung on to remain in the top 20 for November. While these hardcore shooters and role-playing offerings continue to find a healthy audience, Microsoft's casual-focused first-party titles for the fall -- Lips, You're in the Movies, and Scene It? Box Office Smash -- failed to register.

Microsoft's risky decision to wage its battle on two fronts appears to be working somewhat though. At its new price point, the entry-level console costs roughly half that of what Sony's PlayStation 3 sells for, making it far more appealing to cash-strapped consumers feeling the economic crunch. The fact that Xbox 360 sales more than doubled the PS3's tally during November proves that Sony's prohibitively high pricing continues to stand in the way of mass-market adoption. At the same time, it's wise for Microsoft to go after the seemingly limitless Wii audience by broadening its stable of casual, kid-friendly fare. But unless Microsoft can create more compelling family software (Rare's recent Viva Pinata: Trouble in Paradise and Banjo-Kazooie: Nuts & Bolts failed to make the top 20 chart), it's doubtful that the Xbox 360 will woo many consumers seeking Wiis. Also, one must consider the fact that both the Wii and PS3 have greater potential for future price cuts, while the 360 has already sliced its asking price down to the "magical" $199.99 number. With Wiis still fetching a premium on eBay during the holidays, Nintendo has little incentive to consider a lower asking price for the foreseeable future.

The post-NPD spin from Microsoft's Senior VP Dan Mattrick wisely focused on the sizable gap between the Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3, pointing out that the 360 outsold the PS3 and PS2 combined for the month of November. But he was careful to also brandish the all-important family buzzword in order to keep the fight against Wii alive. "We've created the optimal line-up of experiences this holiday season for families seeking lasting entertainment value, particularly during rough economic times in the U.S. and abroad," said Mattrick. "We have the largest library of games, TV and movie content and the most expansive and rewarding social experiences. We're confident Xbox 360 will continue to drive record sales around the world this holiday and beyond."

Source : http://www.1up.com/