@Reasonable

"MS approach I believe stands a chance of backfiring in Japan.  Essentially, the approach outlined here translates to me as MS effectively hiring companies who were willing to become like temporary 2nd party developers - i.e. focus on us and give only us a game for 12 months.  The reason I could see this backfiring in Japan is that it was unlikely 360 would gain enough traction from this to then withstand the backlash as titles started to appear one after the other on PS3 with extra content.  I suspect in Japan many gamers are coming to the conclusion it's better to wait for the PS3 version."

U speak my language; "Common Sense"!

"In the end MS tried hard, I'd argue too hard using too aggresive a Western approach, to break into Japan.  In the end they probably made some short term gains in console sales and somewhat inconveniencing Sony, but I get the feeling that in the longer term this approach is going to have made more of a bad impression in Japan vs a good one."

I completely agree with u!

That's fine, but they still published an "article" based on a blog posting from a guy that had nothing to do with ToV.  In fact, the last game this blogger developed was Vampire Rain.  So how much insider knowledge do you think he really has.  I think I'll stand by my initial statement.

http://kotaku.com/5360375/japanese-developer-microsoft-making-ps3-development-easier-[update]

"Update: As a reader points out, the blogger is a former game developer, but did not work on ToV. He did work on Vampire Rain. Vampire Rain, however, was originally released on the Xbox 360 and then ported to the PS3 a year later..."

What M$ has done with this buying strategy has given them what they wanted, an early foot in the door in Japan. But, I totally agree with Resonable in regards to it backfiring. See, Japanese consumers never forget and they are exceptinally fickle. Once burnt they won't come back and all these "better versions" being ported to the PS3 has caused a lot of animosity towards the 360. I think we will see a tonne of 2nd hand 360's here in the not too far future.

I think this gen has proven to be very different and hard for Jap deves. They have finally supported a western plaform more, to only just start to realise that there best bet for the HD games in Japan was really the PS3 after all. Now that price is no longer an issue and PS3's are flying out the door and much better receptions for games like ToV, I think we will see a tonne of support in The Land Of The Rising Sun from this day forward. JRPG's are already starting to flow here on a more regular basis for the PS3.

If the article speaks the truth it's a really smart business IMO. Why would Sony try to outbid MS in order to get a game that will come later to their system anyway, it's not like the Xbox360 is that popular in Japan so they knew developpers would eventually have to port it to PS3.

There's also another reason, don't forget the PS3 was overpriced for the japanese market at the time, so even if these RPG would have appealed to the japanese gamers, the price of the console would have hindered sales for the games, yet Sony has a stake in proving to these 3rd parties developpers that the PS3 is their best chance at selling RPG for home console market than either the Wii or the 360.

Plus Sony probably used the money spared to secure the exclusivity deal of FF13 in Japan which is a lot more interesting for them, and to fund other exclusive projects like White Knight Chronicles, Demon's Souls or Valkyria Chronicles.

I believe the business model is such that the console manufacturer takes a small percentage off the sales which means that more sales equals more money.  A year of exclusivity is money in Microsoft's pocket.  Whether it's worth the price they may or may not have paid for it is debatable, but there's also the intrinsic value it brings by simply not being on the PS3's lineup for that period of time.

But...what if I want to play this game but don't want to buy a console for it, why would I complain about it coming to my console a year later?...(Which is actually the case I have agaisnt PS3 at the moment...But that Red and White Slim looks like it needs to be in my room :/ )

Why should you, as a 360 owner, pay $60 for the EXACT SAME game, when PS3 owners can buy it for half that ammount? Won't you feel that it is unfair?

Why would I?...Since I'm a 360 owner...and don't have a PS3..If I want the game....which will be released New on my console....I should have no problem paying it even if it's the same exact game with no extra content...Plain and Simple...you etheir buy the game twice(Being a dual Console owner) Or you buy the game once on your system of choice...Sony atleast was smart to force NamcoBandai for content...they now have something to tout about...But my point stands..if the case were reversed...360 owners interested would buy at full price even with out extra content...This fantasy world were game devs are lashed for charging for their work needs to be left behind...

You didn't justify anything at all, you merely stated the obvious facts. If anything you're just saying that you have to pay 60 dollars because you're stuck with it.

I'm asking why should you? Why didn't they just release it at the same time (reason: money hatting). Why did they release the later port with extra content (because the port is being sold at an higher price than an otherwise identical game)? And no one's obviously denying the RIGHT of devs to charge whatever they want. They can charge, I don't know, $70 for a game because they know it'll still well. However, we also have the right to criticize them, and not buy something we don't find worth the price.

Japanese Developer: Microsoft Making PS3 Development Easier [Update]

By Brian Ashcraft, 10:00 PM on Tue Sep 15 2009, 22,640 views (Edit, to draft, Slurp)

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Tales of Vesperia was originally announced for the Xbox 360. Microsoft touted it as an exclusive, but the game ended up on the PS3. How did this go down?

A blogger who was apparently a developer on the title explains why the game was originally developed for the Xbox 360. "For developers, it's way easier to develop for the 360," the blogger writes. Developers sign a one year contract, the blogger continues, with Microsoft that states the game will not come out on other platforms for one year. "Microsoft provides sufficient development funs," the dev writes. "Support is fast and all encompassing."

According to the apparent dev, "Sony Computer Entertainment doesn't really provide money (maybe no money). Support is a mess and unreliable. (At the time I was involved)"

"Developing for the 360 is easy. The cost is lower to an extent." So what developers like Namco do, the dev explains, is develop for the Xbox 360 first at a low cost. However, it's not possible to sell a lot of copies of the game, and thus difficult to recoup the development costs and turn a profit. So, the game was then ported to the PS3. "Then Sony says," the developer blogs, "'We won't approve the game if it's exactly the same as the Xbox 360 version. You must put in lots of extra content.'" Namco added new content such as a new pirate girl character.

While its easy to go from the Xbox 360 to the PS3, it's difficult and time consuming to go from the PS3 to the Xbox 360 — thus, don't expect to see that extra PS3 content turn up as DLC for the Xbox 360 version.

Namco was intending to make a complete game, the developer writes, that Xbox 360 owners would enjoy. The PS3 owners, it seems, will enjoy the game slightly more, though.

Update: As a reader points out, the blogger is a former game developer, but did not work on ToV. He did work on Vampire Rain. Vampire Rain, however, was originally released on the Xbox 360 and then ported to the PS3 a year later...