Poor explanation on my part, I meant that they didn't give devs the option do release DVD and HD DVD versions of games. But the HD DVD drive being an add-on only enforces my point that MS wasn't about to pull as bold a move as Sony in the HD media war. They made it clear that they were backing HD DVDs but wouldn't put everything behind it. It would have made their console to expensive. They made a good business move on that since they weren't heavily invested in any HD media. As for the PS3, yes it needs the Bluray drive with it's hardware set up, but the console specs would have been different if they had chosen to go with a DVD drive. |
It's all good, I got ya now. I think that it's a little different though and the two really can't be compared. Sony was a major force behind the creation of Blu Ray (not the only one, but definitely one of the bigger if not the biggest), so they really had a vested interest on multiple levels to make Blu Ray mandatory in the PS3, it not only allowed devs as much space as possible to work with the newer architecture of the PS3 (which turns out to be a good move) while also allowing PS3 owners immediate entry into Blu Ray (yes the TV is awefully expensive, but soooo worth it).
MS on the other hand simply backed HD-DVD's existence, they weren't financially invested in it's survival (Toshiba and NEC were the primary developers of HD-DVD). Microsoft has been far more interested in promoting and pushing sales digitally, that's been their song and dance since day 1, even while they had an HD-DVD option. They never really pushed HD-DVD in any way if you think about it. It was more of a shoehorn approach than a real adoption of the format.
The important factor here is though, current PS3 games are still not maxxing out the capacity of the disc they're on. Which makes it possible for devs to make monstrous games without really worrying about space restrictions. That'll be a continuing benefit for the PS3 in the long run. Whereas, the 360's already hitting 3-disc games. Not hugely important for gamers, maybe, but printing out discs on a 3:1 ratio could get hairy if it's a hugely popular IP, not to mention starting to cost more and more money. Sure, not a big issue right now that's been proven to be an issue yet, but the 360 supposedly has what, 4 more years left in it? Long story short (ok, maybe long story long), while it made it more expensive up front, it actually makes the PS3 much more capable of running the final leg than it's competition, imo.
