Looking at the statistics for the lattest madden game

Madden 09

the XBOX 360 sold 0.9 Million

the PS2 0.35+ PS3 0.57 Sold 0.9 Million

Madden 08

XBOX 360 Sold 2.3 Million

PS3 0.8 M + PS2 2.2 Mil = 3 Mill.

Between 08 and 09 it's apparent that some of the PS2 fanbase has move to the 360 and Wii ( i'm guessing more 360 than Wii) but a larger percentage of next gen adopters have stayed with the Playstation brand (not neccaserily exclusivley). Between 08 and 09 we see a shift of sales , the PS3 accounting for more overall sales than the last madden.

It apears the success of the PS2 is both a saving graces for Sony ( in terms of profitability) and a limiting factor of the PS3 , the PS2 is just too good to die at this moment in time meaning that the adoption of the PS3 is slower than it otherwise would have been if the PS2 flopped following the releases of the PS3.

edit: fixed some stats.

Actually, the PS3 version is doing great. According to VGC, it's abot 350,000 unit sales below the X360 version, despite the X360 having more than twice the instal base.

So the PS2 isn't holding the PS3 back. The PS3 is holding the PS3 back. After all, why didn't the PS1 hold the PS2 back for anything? Consumers made the transition quickly, and effortlessly....Maybe it's because the PS3 is an inferior product to the X360/Wii comparison as opposed to the GC/XB comparison last gen, and users are having a harder time jumping onto a sinking ship?

Madden 09

the XBOX 360 sold 0.9 Million

the PS3 0.57+ PS2 0.35 Sold 0.9 Million

Now it's Fixed,your 2's and 3's were wrong   :)

Hmmmm Interesting. I've never been a Madden guy, but thats interesting. NBA 2k series has has sold more and had better reviews on the 360. It seems like sports fans have moved to the 360. The Sony controller was much better than the original Xbox controller and the S-controller for sports. The new 360 controller is worlds apart from PS3 controller for sports. Everything is in the palm of your hands.

 Of course because everyone knows that the PS3 is sinking and sinking fast.....

With the recent performance of the PS3 your sinking ship analogy is some what invalid. I believe that the Wii/360 are intense competition for the PS3 but that still doesn't eliminate brand loyalty (brand loyalty which enabled the PS3 to sell in europe last year without any games and the loyalty which enables the PS3 to sell in japan with lackluster support)

people seem to believe that the Wii's success kills any chance of the PS2 owners wanting to jump to PS3 but I disagree , I think Nintendo's strategy of targeting every gaming audience makes it very difficult for them to apeal to a core gaming audiences in the same way the PS3 & 360 is able to.

I think the 360 struggles to differentiate itself as console and fails to completley offer itself as an alternative to the playstation brand , the only time the 360 has been able to outsell the PS3 recently is through price cuts .(yes the PS3 has had more price cuts but let's keep price point in mind ).

My main point is that despite the success of the Wii and the XBOX brands new found dominance , the playstation brand still has something unique and different to offer to the PS2 userbase , if any other current gen console had software support as bad as the PS3's or a price point as high as the PS3's i'm sure 100% that console would have failed to succeed. It's brand loyalty that helped the PS3 survive but it's the PS2 that limits the continued growth of the PS3, it's still a very viable option for gaming even against what this gen has to offer.

It's quite apparent that more of the ps2 owners are going to the wii than the 360.  If you're using madden sales as a comparison obviously it's going to be very biased toward the 360.

No i disagree it's not quite apparent , the Wii's install base may create that illusion but I believe that the Wii userbase is that large because of new demographics not because Nintendo stole existing ones it's really a combination of both consisting largley of the newer demographic. Unless you have evidence to the contrary I think i'll stay in my opinion.

Can't prove it completely, though you certainly don't have any good evidence.  NPD survey says PS2 owners are choosing the wii, Japan sales show clearly people are choosing the wii, with wii sales 3 to 1 over PS3 there is no way there is that many new gamers.

 Before you jump on him, check out the multiplat sports games differentials on the 360 and PS3. The PS2 is a thorn in the PS3's side, even though it gives Sony extra money. If they want the PS3 to get more support from the PS2 installed base, then they need to end the PS2 and allow the next gen systems to expand.