A thread about Sheep, Boys, Men, the PS3 and whether or not you have balls.

[Dodece]

@Ender

I am not so certain it is silly as you so aptly put it. The financial situation at Sony most definitely has made things that previously seemed impossible seem to actually have a chance of occurring. I recently made a post where I extrapolated out the potential sales of the PS3 early next year, and the picture was simply grim. What surprised me is that nobody actually contested the numbers. Apparently a great many members of this community think the PS3 can very well sell under fifty thousand units weekly in North America come the spring.

I know consoles have survived on less, but those consoles were at the least profitable for all involved, but there is a real question as to whether the PS3 can survive on those margins especially with Sony in the financial bind it finds itself in. Those sales levels would strangle the console to death. They would also incentive Sony to discontinue production. Would Sony do that. I could not say. However a real possibility does exist. I think it all rests on whether Sony can sustain the fight.

I try to see things from other perspectives in a dispassionate way. Sony is only losing money in gaming. Sony got its format war victory. Sony is in bad financial straights. Finally Sony is facing off against two juggernauts. David and Goliath makes for a great story, but it just doesn't happen all that much in real life. Were sales to plummet over fifty percent year over year. Yes I could see Sony pulling the plug not just on the console, but on gaming hardware in general. I think its just a question of whether they can afford to play the game now.

I ask you where do you put a realistic line in the sand. Where do you think Sony would just give up. There has to be a point somewhere at which Sony can no longer afford the losses. All I read on these forums are plans for Sony to lose billions more annually, and all I can ask is why would you think a company would commit to just doing this year after year. It makes no sense, and it sure as hell makes no sense to make merely fifty million in a quarter with risks this high.