Once the PS3 reaches $299

[MikeB]

Bodhesatva said:

largedarryl said:

blazinhead89 said:
$299 and games like GT5 , FFXIII, LBP, and Release of home would see a huge increase in hardware sales esp Japan, Price is a really important factor for god sake if PS3 launched at $199 it would of sold like crazy

And Sony would have also declared bankruptcy.

 

I also don't think Japan is a very price sensitive market, imo. They do tend to spend large amounts of money on new trendy technology, but they are really size, image and power conscientious (again entirely my opinion on Japanese culture).

Exactly. People seem to like the fact that the PS3 is technologically advanced; this advancement is the exact reason the price is so high.

You can't have it both ways simultaneously, folks. Asking for a 199.99 PS3 is either asking for 1) Sony to go bankrupt or 2) the PS3 to be much more like the Wii than it is the 360. Since many of the most ardent PS3 fans seems to dislike the Wii's tech specs, I assume none of these solutions are palatable to you.

Next week: Corvette sells all their cars for 1,000 dollars a piece. Their market share would reach 90%+ in less than a month! What could possibly go wrong!

 

Agreed, the PS3 is a "steal" so to say in terms of technology right now for the provided technology considering pricing. Although there already are more powerful cell systems available (although lacking a game library).

Two reasons why I think it was the right choice to make the PS3 such high spec:

1) The move to high definition TVs. People will want to be able to take advantage of the better resolution and better audio equipment. This is an ongoing process, becoming an increasingly important factor as time moves on.

2) The emphasis on console gaming (nearly all PC games go multi-platform, nearly all exclusive games are exclusive to consoles). Commerical developers are nearly all focussing and styling their games specifically for consoles specifications, high end gaming PCs will only distinguish themselves by a few extras. Maybe only more resolution options, potentially higher framerates on well specced systems, etc. So better specced consoles will help to deliver us more impressive games in general.

The most highly priced consoles like the impressively specced 3DO or Neo Geo faced mass appeal difficulties, one problem was that around the time consoles were much more exclusively seen as strictly toys. And an expensive toy just usually sells less in volume, there aren't enough rich kids in the world.

Luckily the market has changed, especially Sony released many games not specifically targeted at kids or early teens for the PS2 (many mature rated games released by 3rd parties as well), changing the general viewpoint considerably over the years, gamers stuck with gaming as they turned older. Consoles have now become far more suitable for other general uses as multi-media devices as well (the extra thus, justify much better the consumer investment). Other reasons why the PS3 does this well is because of Sony's reputation of competence with regard to gaming and entertainment in general, they have a proven track record in multi-media (music and movies) as well as in gaming (Playstation 1, Playstation 2 and Playstation Portable).

Considering market developments and that the PS3 is to last at least a decade, IMO the high specs and thus higher launch price is well justified. It sets a standard for many years to come, every year in general more appealing due to more content like HD movies and better games, every year more appealing due to wider HDTV penetration and more people being able to afford the console due to cheaper entry pricing.

I think Nintendo would have failed with introducing an expensive high end console, Microsoft could easily do it but has limited general appeal due to its horrible business / support reputation and lack of expertise in key areas.