Sony Must Do Something!

[noname2200]

First off, welcome to the forums.

As to your topic, I think your worry level is dispropotionate to the actual problem. Inspite of all the factors you've listed, Microsoft still hasn't "put Sony away" so to speak, and the PS3 is doing fine relative to the 360 in Japan and Europe.

Furthermore, Microsoft seems unwilling to spend its way to victory in the gaming market. Most of the exclusives we've heard being purchased were targeted towards Japan, and were secured in the earliest days of this generation. That well seems to be drying up, even if there's still the odd exception. The timed exclusivity doesn't seem to help Microsoft that much in the long run, and considering how much money it's costing them I'm skeptical that it will be all that common in the future.

That said, Sony does seem strangely lethargic this generation. Their Western developers have been productive, but their Japanese companies have been mostly silent so far. This problem is compounded by the fact that Sony Corp. isn't going to be chucking money into the gaming market either (profits are declining rapidly, and with the upcoming recession demand for high-end electronics probably won't be so hot). So don't count on Sony moneyhatting a whole lot either...

So in conclusion, Sony isn't as deep in the hole as you seem to feel, and isn't as vulnerable to Microsoft as you seem to think. If their goal is to match Microsoft, they're doing alright. If their goal is to dominate the market and push Blu-Ray, that ship has long since sailed, and profitability should be the new goal.

I will add though that new JRPG's aren't the end all and be all that many make them out to be. Microsoft has the most so far, and it doesn't seem to have done them extraordinary good. Sure, Final Fantasy XIII will raise Sony's boat in Japan, but I don't expect it to be a tidal wave that Sony will ride to Console War Victory. It'd be better instead for Sony to read the current market, decipher what folks really want, and give it to them. They have someone giving them clues...