If you are a gamer regularly surfing the web you probably know about all the FUD spread with regard to PS3 technology in the past. We know the PS3 was expensive to make and set very high standards for a console (aiming at a 10+ year lifespan) with technology included like Wi-Fi, a default industry standard easily upgradeable harddrive, Bluetooth and the lastest HDMI specs all out of the box!

But seemingly the two (on forums at least) hated on technologies found in the PS3 must have been the Cell processor and its Blu-Ray drive.

Now in 2009 we have seen amazing games which already make great use of both technologies. Games such as Uncharted 2: Among thieves and Killzone 2 top this list.

Uncharted 2 makes great use Blu-Ray's constant streaming, allowing gamers to experience very diverse high quality gaming levels without going into loading screens when played in one go, nor requiring the user to install game data onto the harddrive. It also makes great use of its storage capacity by including the mentioned high quality diverse graphics assets and for example by including many alternative in-game spoken languages you can easily switch.

Despite Naughty Dog released a game which until now taps the most out of the Cell processor, they also state the Cell still feels like a bottom-less pit to them regarding its actual processing capabilities, hinting Uncharted 3 will probably push the PS3 hardware much further.

Killzone 2 is another much hailed game for its underlying technicals. Amazing graphics for which the Cell is heavily utilized (wow at the death sequences, pre/post-processing effects and lighting!) and the most awesome high quality 7.1 surround sound I have experienced in a game so far. And like Uncharted it does not require a harddrive install.

Guerilla games have made it no secret, they are still only tapping a small portion of the PS3 hardware capabilities at this point and they have learned many new tricks to advance Killzone 3 towards a much higher level from a technical perspectie.

I will hold this poll again in due time to see how the opinion here advance into the new decennium. For example I think, for instance God of War 3 will yet again turn heads and win rewards.

both of them has proven quite beneficial to ps3 the cell to proccesing quality and the blu-ray to storage happiness and perfect video and audio

How about an option called "I have yet to see what they can do"?

I agree with regard to experiencing the full extend of their potential, but for seeing clear technical benefits it shouldn't be hard at this point with for example all the praise Uncharted 2 has already received with regard to its technicals.

Everyone probably has an opinion at this point, I just ask people to vote honestly and forget about harsh words they may have written in the past for a moment.

Uncharted 2 without a doubt is amazing, but it's nothing more than a prelude to me at this point. I'm sure God of War III and GT5 will show something.

Both have been beneficial to the PS3, but only for less than a handful of games, unfortunately.


We know from Uncharted 2, MGS4, GT5, and FFXIII that Blu-Ray is beneficial, but many developers don't get the budget to stuff a game with a ton of different textures. We also know from Killzone 2, U2, and many upcoming games that the CELL processor's SPU's can accomplish much more than we originally anticipated, but it's disappointing that it took this long for us to really see the benefits of the CELL.

Blu-Ray has been beneficial as proven by 7.1 sound, multiple languages, and more. A faster Blu-Ray drive would be even better, but that would have just jacked prices higher during launch. Obviously it's downside of being slower (than needed) has caused devs to duplicate data, or install to HDD, but it's benefits have clearly outweighed the downsides.

As for the Cell, I feel it is a wash. They could have made a system just as powerful using a simpler architecture, which might have prevented some of the really sad ports and large number of complaints from developers. So while they have had some technically impressive games with the Cell, it wasn't necessary. Maybe in the future my opinion may change, but who knows.

I think the PS3 would not have been possible in it's current form without blu-ray and cell for gaming purposes. In terms of the design ideas of the PS3, they have been beneficial.

However, not having them would have caused another 5 - 10 million to be sold up until this point in my opinion as the price would have been much more in line with consumer expectations.

I'm loving mine right now, it's really come into it's own since the launch of the slimmer version. I'm glad Sony went for the Cell and included a blu-ray player!

There are a decent number of games that show the benefits. Like LBP and how BR helped with all of those tutorial videos. That game was 40GB because of the vid's.

Also, quite a few developers have commented on how much easier the cell makes things after figuring out how it works.