Blandy vs Terrorism
04-12-2006, 11:09 AM
PS3 WITH HARD DRIVE/FREE ONLINE IN NOVEMBER
Up until this point, Sony has let the public formulate speculation and rumors about the PlayStation 3to make up for the lack of hard information about the system. But for the first time since last year's E3 in May, Ken Kutaragi has taken the stage and shed more light on the much-anticipated system. Speaking recently at the 2006 PlayStation Business Briefing in Tokyo, Kutaragi confirmed what many of us have believed all along - the PlayStation 3 will come out worldwide in early November. But Kutaragi wasn't just on hand to deliver some bad news about the PS3's delayed launch, as he also fleshed out some concrete details on the system.
Sony says that one million units will be available each month, with the goal being to ship six million worldwide by March 7. Kutaragi didn't specify if the first million PS3s would be allocated across all territories, but the company's worldwide goal of spring 2007 seems to be an indication that U.S. gamers will have to split each monthly shipment with the Japanese and European markets. Because of this and the likely high demand, it seems clear we can expect shortages similar to those that befell Microsoft's Xbox 360.
Kutaragi explained that the reason behind the launch delay was that Sony was waiting for the finalization of the specs for Blu-ray - the next-gen DVD format discs contain enough space (50GB dual layered) to hold high-definition content. Games for the PlayStation 3 will only use Blu-ray discs (and will be free from region encoding), because DVDs are too easy to copy. However, the PS3 will still play all DVDs, CDs, and be backwards compatible with PS2 and PSone games. In fact, games for Sony's old consoles played on the PS3 will actually be upscaled into HD-video formats. Sony also laid other incompatibility rumors to rest by saying that the platform would work on all regular and HDTVs, and ould support the current and "next generation" of HDMI.
The PlayStation 3 will debut with online functionality out of the box throught its online service dubbed the PlayStation Network PlatformSony says that a basic, free version of the service will be available to all, and every game will offer player matching, voice/video chat, messaging, ranking, commerce opportunities, and game uploads/downloads. A Sony spokesperson told us that it has not been decided yet if gamers will be able to play games online with tthe free basic service, although, they did point out the company's history of not charging for online play. Once again, Sony is putting most of the control for game content and management into the hands of its third parties. Rumor is that Sony will offer downloads of PSone and PS2 games, and GamesIndustry.bix has reported that Sony is already in talks with companies such as EA for the rights to digitally distribute the publisher's back catalog.
The PS3 is supporting a 60 GB hard drive (HDD) to handle such possibly large downloads. Sony sys that all games will require the hard drive. A Sony spokesperson confirmed with us that the PS3 will ship with the 60GB hard drive included, so the public will not have to purchase one separately. The HDD will come with the Linux operating system pre-installed and be able to connect to the Internet. PS3 owners will also be able to swap it out for a larger drive. It could also serve as a home server that would store MP3s or pictures for access from other devices such as the PSP.
Although those who were banking on a spring PS3 release may be disappointed bye the system's fall date, developers are already saying that they welcome the delay in order to put more work into their games. At the Game Developer's Conference, Sony showed off gameplay clips of MotorStorm, WarHawk, and Insomniac's Resistance: Fall of Man to mixed reviews. However, a video of a new PS3 Ratchet & Clank excited the audience. Itwill be interesting to see how much progress developers have made at E3, and also when the final dev kits go out this summer..
Up until this point, Sony has let the public formulate speculation and rumors about the PlayStation 3to make up for the lack of hard information about the system. But for the first time since last year's E3 in May, Ken Kutaragi has taken the stage and shed more light on the much-anticipated system. Speaking recently at the 2006 PlayStation Business Briefing in Tokyo, Kutaragi confirmed what many of us have believed all along - the PlayStation 3 will come out worldwide in early November. But Kutaragi wasn't just on hand to deliver some bad news about the PS3's delayed launch, as he also fleshed out some concrete details on the system.
Sony says that one million units will be available each month, with the goal being to ship six million worldwide by March 7. Kutaragi didn't specify if the first million PS3s would be allocated across all territories, but the company's worldwide goal of spring 2007 seems to be an indication that U.S. gamers will have to split each monthly shipment with the Japanese and European markets. Because of this and the likely high demand, it seems clear we can expect shortages similar to those that befell Microsoft's Xbox 360.
Kutaragi explained that the reason behind the launch delay was that Sony was waiting for the finalization of the specs for Blu-ray - the next-gen DVD format discs contain enough space (50GB dual layered) to hold high-definition content. Games for the PlayStation 3 will only use Blu-ray discs (and will be free from region encoding), because DVDs are too easy to copy. However, the PS3 will still play all DVDs, CDs, and be backwards compatible with PS2 and PSone games. In fact, games for Sony's old consoles played on the PS3 will actually be upscaled into HD-video formats. Sony also laid other incompatibility rumors to rest by saying that the platform would work on all regular and HDTVs, and ould support the current and "next generation" of HDMI.
The PlayStation 3 will debut with online functionality out of the box throught its online service dubbed the PlayStation Network PlatformSony says that a basic, free version of the service will be available to all, and every game will offer player matching, voice/video chat, messaging, ranking, commerce opportunities, and game uploads/downloads. A Sony spokesperson told us that it has not been decided yet if gamers will be able to play games online with tthe free basic service, although, they did point out the company's history of not charging for online play. Once again, Sony is putting most of the control for game content and management into the hands of its third parties. Rumor is that Sony will offer downloads of PSone and PS2 games, and GamesIndustry.bix has reported that Sony is already in talks with companies such as EA for the rights to digitally distribute the publisher's back catalog.
The PS3 is supporting a 60 GB hard drive (HDD) to handle such possibly large downloads. Sony sys that all games will require the hard drive. A Sony spokesperson confirmed with us that the PS3 will ship with the 60GB hard drive included, so the public will not have to purchase one separately. The HDD will come with the Linux operating system pre-installed and be able to connect to the Internet. PS3 owners will also be able to swap it out for a larger drive. It could also serve as a home server that would store MP3s or pictures for access from other devices such as the PSP.
Although those who were banking on a spring PS3 release may be disappointed bye the system's fall date, developers are already saying that they welcome the delay in order to put more work into their games. At the Game Developer's Conference, Sony showed off gameplay clips of MotorStorm, WarHawk, and Insomniac's Resistance: Fall of Man to mixed reviews. However, a video of a new PS3 Ratchet & Clank excited the audience. Itwill be interesting to see how much progress developers have made at E3, and also when the final dev kits go out this summer..