nVidia Lavished Praise on PlayStation 3. Delay now "Masterstroke"
Tech partner circle jerk as PR machine falters
Comments made by nVidia chief executive Jen-Hsun Huang have illustrated Sony's desperation to get its PlayStation 3 launch plans back on track, with the graphics card manufacturer lavishing praise on its one remaining home console partner.
Speaking to the San Jose Mercury News, Huang, an oft-outspoken executive, took an opportunity to outline nVidia's take on Sony's launch plans, hinting that the PlayStation 3 was indeed originally slated to hit retail many months earlier than the end of 2006 slot it now targets.
Speaking about the partnership with Sony and on nVidia's notoriously hostile shareholders' unease with the PlayStation 3 project, Huang said, "I don't think that working with Sony is wrong. There is no way that is going to be wrong. There are many wonderful things that Sony did. I'm excited that they made Blu-ray high-definition storage as a standard part of the PlayStation 3 platform."
He continued, "To postpone it by a few months so they could include Blu-ray was a master stroke. When that comes out, it's going to look so much more advanced than last-generation game consoles. I think that was a wonderful call on their part." Which is something of an interesting take, given the machine was always going to use Blu-ray, Sony launching its new home console sans disc drive wasn't ever going to happen. How not launching a console without a disc drive is seen as a 'master stroke' is somewhat beyond us.
Moving on, this is likely to be the first of many opportunities Sony will seek to take in the coming months to reinvigorate its somewhat battered PR machine. The PlayStation 3, although still the shit-hot topic in the games industry, has suffered endless rounds of bad press and seen lower than expected levels of anticipation amongst fans.
This would be all well and good. The problem being that the PlayStation 3 is likely going to be the best traditional games machine on the market in a year's time. The scope of the project, based on the promises of Sony executives made over the past five years, is massive. The PS3's potential to deliver a new level of high-definition gaming is simply staggering, far outstripping the comparatively modest plans of Microsoft's Xbox 360.
It's also worthy of note that the tone of the current environment for the PlayStation 3 launch is less than favourable, arguably for no reasons beyond the facts that Sony has under-delivered in the past, is faced with an American and European fan-base of 360 owners and has made a few ill-considered steps at and since E3. Aware of this, Sony will be stepping up its PR activities massively in the coming months, with the highest level becoming involved in the hard-sell element pre-launch. As SPOnG reported recently, Ken Kutaragi will be keynoting this year's Tokyo Game Show, replacing Nintendo president Satoru Iwata as headline act at what will be the last major international platform Sony will have to highlight its wares to an unnervingly sceptical market.
The good news is that Sony fans can confidently expect to be wowed at TGS and with teasers Sony is no doubt planning in the coming weeks. Keep all eyes pointed SPOnGwards for news, opinion and comment.
Speaking to the San Jose Mercury News, Huang, an oft-outspoken executive, took an opportunity to outline nVidia's take on Sony's launch plans, hinting that the PlayStation 3 was indeed originally slated to hit retail many months earlier than the end of 2006 slot it now targets.
Speaking about the partnership with Sony and on nVidia's notoriously hostile shareholders' unease with the PlayStation 3 project, Huang said, "I don't think that working with Sony is wrong. There is no way that is going to be wrong. There are many wonderful things that Sony did. I'm excited that they made Blu-ray high-definition storage as a standard part of the PlayStation 3 platform."
He continued, "To postpone it by a few months so they could include Blu-ray was a master stroke. When that comes out, it's going to look so much more advanced than last-generation game consoles. I think that was a wonderful call on their part." Which is something of an interesting take, given the machine was always going to use Blu-ray, Sony launching its new home console sans disc drive wasn't ever going to happen. How not launching a console without a disc drive is seen as a 'master stroke' is somewhat beyond us.
Moving on, this is likely to be the first of many opportunities Sony will seek to take in the coming months to reinvigorate its somewhat battered PR machine. The PlayStation 3, although still the shit-hot topic in the games industry, has suffered endless rounds of bad press and seen lower than expected levels of anticipation amongst fans.
This would be all well and good. The problem being that the PlayStation 3 is likely going to be the best traditional games machine on the market in a year's time. The scope of the project, based on the promises of Sony executives made over the past five years, is massive. The PS3's potential to deliver a new level of high-definition gaming is simply staggering, far outstripping the comparatively modest plans of Microsoft's Xbox 360.
It's also worthy of note that the tone of the current environment for the PlayStation 3 launch is less than favourable, arguably for no reasons beyond the facts that Sony has under-delivered in the past, is faced with an American and European fan-base of 360 owners and has made a few ill-considered steps at and since E3. Aware of this, Sony will be stepping up its PR activities massively in the coming months, with the highest level becoming involved in the hard-sell element pre-launch. As SPOnG reported recently, Ken Kutaragi will be keynoting this year's Tokyo Game Show, replacing Nintendo president Satoru Iwata as headline act at what will be the last major international platform Sony will have to highlight its wares to an unnervingly sceptical market.
The good news is that Sony fans can confidently expect to be wowed at TGS and with teasers Sony is no doubt planning in the coming weeks. Keep all eyes pointed SPOnGwards for news, opinion and comment.
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Comments
BlackSpy 26 Jul 2006 08:32
1/7
Did you guys get a beating from your Sony PR friends or something?
'PS3's potential to deliver a new level of high-definition gaming is simplystaggering, far outstripping the comparatively modest plans of Microsoft'
Where the hell did that come from? We've seen some huge claims, but I don't believe we've seen any potential.
'PS3's potential to deliver a new level of high-definition gaming is simplystaggering, far outstripping the comparatively modest plans of Microsoft'
Where the hell did that come from? We've seen some huge claims, but I don't believe we've seen any potential.
thane_jaw 26 Jul 2006 09:09
2/7
Ditto, the ps3 has lots of potential but I'm not sure that you can say that MS has modest plans and I wouldn't call the ps3 plans "staggering" in comparison.
A more detailed explanation of how this staggering potential compared to MS' modest plans may convince me further (perhaps you have a powerpoint lying around somewhere...).
A more detailed explanation of how this staggering potential compared to MS' modest plans may convince me further (perhaps you have a powerpoint lying around somewhere...).
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crs117 26 Jul 2006 14:39
3/7
thane_jaw wrote:
The problem being that the PlayStation 3 is likely going to be the best traditional games machine on the market in a year's time.
What are you guys smoking? Making crap claims like this? How do you expect the ps3 to be the best traditional game machine when some even question if it will be able to make its November launch date with current specs.
Speaking of potential...each time sony announces it, it seems to be minus another great potential feature, and then talk about how it is better for not having that feature, or a lower clocked chip, or one less activated spe because the yeilds are so low on that chip.
How do you call MS's plans modest? Have you guys even taken a gander at XBL? It is perhaps the one thing that provides x360 with the highest amount of potential. This is not including the free media extender you get when you purhcase an x360, which when windows vista launches you have a free media (picture, video, and music) player for your entertainment center that plays files from your windows computer. Sony does not and will not have that.
Please for the love of all things holy, report the news, not your fanboyism. I know not everybody as spong is a sony fanboy (and i have seen a decent amount of sony bashing from staff here), but please dont present the news through rose color lenses.
Andrew 26 Jul 2006 15:32
4/7
Christ Almighty, have you lot just received your brown envelopes from Sony or what? Since when was the XBOX 360 'modest'? Why is the PS3 suddenly capable of 'a whole new level..' etc? The last I heard, the PS3 and 360 were about level-pegging in the power stakes, so what has happened? Explain please!
PreciousRoi 26 Jul 2006 21:20
5/7
when I initially glanced at this and the first comment I assumed that the commentor was making a mistake by attributing the quoted hyperbole to spong. Had to read it twice to find that, in fact, the quote was not made by some Sony PR flunky... First you appear to mock nVidia for its self-serving praise of Sony, then you outdo them.
...This is FAR worse than some rag bashing the Wii to be cool. Spong just showed off its lack of a gag reflex by happily deepthroating Sony whilst gazing lovingly into their Blu Rays.
Congratulations.
...This is FAR worse than some rag bashing the Wii to be cool. Spong just showed off its lack of a gag reflex by happily deepthroating Sony whilst gazing lovingly into their Blu Rays.
Congratulations.
PreciousRoi 26 Jul 2006 22:12
6/7
see subject.
TwoADay 26 Jul 2006 22:38
7/7
While I won't go quite as far as PreciousRoi, I have lost some respect for Spong with its recent comments in news stories, and this is the latest.
What's going on over there? Is anyone proofreading there, and if so, how did something that suggests an unsubstaniated opinion (after all, I don't think anyone has seen a PS3 game that is vastly better graphically than a 360 game) as fact get through?
I hope this is just a case of laziness.
What's going on over there? Is anyone proofreading there, and if so, how did something that suggests an unsubstaniated opinion (after all, I don't think anyone has seen a PS3 game that is vastly better graphically than a 360 game) as fact get through?
I hope this is just a case of laziness.