£425 for the UK version of the PS3, says the wonderfully-named Conrad Quilty-Harper. No, that does not include ten free games. It doesn't seem to include any free games. Or the extra controller, no doubt. That's the official price.
Four hundred and twenty-five pounds. There is just no way the kids will be getting one of those next Xmas. I'd eat my socks. Two years later off eBay ... maybe. By which point the family will surely own either the 360 or the Wii already, and find it even harder to justify the purchase of Yet Another Console.
It's madness.
IGN have a good article up on Sony's PS3 gamble:
http://uk.gear.ign.com/articles/709/709082p1.html
A PS3 will retail for about the same amount as an HD-DVD player and they intend to leverage the Cell chip throughout their consumer electronics range, so for Sony this is about more than competing with X-Box 360 and Wii, it's about winning the format war before it's barely begun and getting massive economies of scale for production of these processors for their other goods.
A strategy which falls apart if the PS3 isn't a success.
But at that price? With HD still far from being mainstream? And, biggest one for me, without the likes of GTA4 debuting exclusively?
Posted by: Vincent | May 18, 2006 at 19:35
I already want one, but I don't know why. I haven't played my ps2 in a month.
What I do want is something to play on my HDTV and with Sky HD being prohibitively expensive, then the next option is a console. But with the price point of the ps3 being so high, the 360 is looking a lot more attractive today.
Posted by: Cooper | May 18, 2006 at 20:03
Oh FFS, do you not remember last Xmas with the Xbox launch? Just how much were they retailing for on Ebay and other channels?
The PS3 will sell out instantly on launch, guaranteed. All this recent chatter just shows how similar most web journo's and bloggers are to the mainstream press. A high profile figure shows any possible chink in it's armour and you're all over them like rabid dogs.
Posted by: Shard | May 18, 2006 at 20:28
What better way to spend your rent money? 'Course, you'd still have to buy games and... Food and stuff.
Posted by: Brinstar | May 18, 2006 at 21:13
I don't buy the whole xbox-at-launch thing. There were a number of xboxen on eBay for a small fortune, but only a number! Most people had to wait, and shelled out the market price for them, I'm sure.
Fact of the matter is, £425 before accessories and games is a lot of money, more, I think, than most families will be comfortable with, given the uptake of things like Freeview over Sky.
Posted by: Alice | May 18, 2006 at 21:43
The thing is, the PS2 was pricey, and it also snuck a DVD player into your living room. But the difference is that on an average home tv, the difference from DVD is obvious.
By contrast, on an average home TV, any hi-def advantage is harder to see. Maybe not in games - the extra processing power is obvious - but in films, sure. And that's the kicker. The PS2, despite the hype, and despite the Dreamcast being much closer in power than everyone realised, was probably £150 "better" than the PSone. I'm honestly not convinced that the PS3 is £300 "better" than my PS2; God of War and MGS3, both games I'm currently playing, are pretty impressive, and they certainly fill me with more excitement than Motorstorm.
A lot of the "ordinary members of the public" interviewed about 360 said they'd wait for PS3. I honestly believe that when they find out how much it is, they really will consider a 360 stronger. This time round, the hype-bandwagon won't work to sink the competitor; unlike the DC, there's way more cross-platform stuff hitting 360 and PS3.
I'm going to be interested to see how accurate those remarks are, but I think Christmas is going to be *very* interesting; a £425 PS3 against a £220-odd Premium 360? And against a £200-odd Wii?
There has to be no contest, right?
Posted by: tom | May 18, 2006 at 23:00
I disagree with Alice's shock - the fact is, you need an HDTV to really appreciate the graphics power of the 360 or PS3. And if you've seen an HD movie, it is mindblowingly beautiful.
I think it is a lot to pay for a next gen console - but not a lot to spend on an NG console + BR hidef DVD player. It just aint.
Personally, Im buying one for the movies AND games. Im less likely to buy a 360 because it doesnt do dual duty for me, and the HDDVD version of the 360 will be similar in pricing.
Posted by: Bernie | May 19, 2006 at 02:37
Anyone who thinks Sony will have the PS3 out by the end of this year is smoking the same stuff as Sony.
Posted by: DeadMertz | May 19, 2006 at 07:05
I suppose there is this point that everyone needs to *at some point* ship out the home TV, upgrade to hi-def, upgrade to a hi-def DVD player and a hi-def console.
World Cup fever tends to help this along a bit. At least - there's a target market that will want to upgrade.
Freeview caught Sky up in literally a few years in terms of customer base, because there are folk out there who can't afford the Sky installation fees.
Sky Plus has barely made a dent because of its installation fees. Again, cost.
Fundamentally, the customer base that can afford the super-flash home setup is not as large as the customer base that can afford the Wii...
It's amazingly risky :)
Posted by: Alice | May 19, 2006 at 08:32
I honestly believe that Sony have been swept up in their on marketing, yes they had a strong base with the PS2, but as anyone who has watched the industry can see this is not everything, Dreamcast, anyone?
I agree with Alice, this is a very risky strategy, and one (for Europe, at least) might actually turn the tide towards the innovative Ninty or the established online 360.
And IMAO I'd quite like to see Sony eat some humble pie, for allowing the games market to be saturated with some utter rubbish.
GO Wii
GO Live Marketplace
or sod the lot and go back to WOW ;)
Posted by: Mark | May 19, 2006 at 10:19
The PS3 is a massive gamble in the UK. The market just doesn't exist yet to sustain HDTV devices at any price-point. If the PS3 was to be delayed in the UK by a year, then I suspect it would be a different story entirely as Sky and the BBC push HDTV content and audiences begin to switch over. Broadcasters have been so involved in the switchover to digital in the UK that the HDTV revolution has taken a back seat.
In the US and Japan however it's an entirely different story. TV has been broadcast in HD formats in America for years, and their viewing habits support a larger proportion of the audience already having HDTV. Not such a big gamble, and a very high chance of the PS3 being sold out long before it launches.
Anyone who has seen Xbox360 games on a HDTV will appreciate the enormous leap in visual quality. Of course, anyone who has picked up a DS for more than 5 minutes will work out that visual quality isn't the only thing that makes a games platform successful...
Posted by: Seb Potter | May 19, 2006 at 10:23
I'm a PS2 beta tester - but I will state right now that I will not be buying a PS3.
I have a decent PC, I have a 360 - the 'wackiness of the Wii' doesn't push my buttons.
I was a huge PS2 'fanboi' - then PS2 online appeared - what a disaster - every game requiring new registrations, no consistent friends list etc... Live got everything right.
I still despise the behemoth that is M'softs intrusions but so far the Ps3 is offering nothing on top of the 360. Woot - Bluray... umm.. ok - let's talk about UMD shall we? I have a large widescreen TV that's not about to get replaced by an HD counterpart (the bank wouldn't like it).
Games for the PS3 - nothing to inspire, graphics for the PS3 - even the fanbois admit you can't tell the difference between the 2 next gens... but wait - people are saying that long term devs will get far more out of the PS3... ok - in that case I'll wait a couple of years and pick one up for £99.
I know a lot of current PS2 hardcore fans who are indifferent to the PS3. And when it's costing you that much cash - indifference isn't going to get your wallet out.
Posted by: WandringSoul | May 19, 2006 at 10:29
I agree - total madness. Sony's making a massive bet on Blu-Ray.
BTW, thanks for the compliment! :-)
Posted by: Conrad Quilty-Harper | May 19, 2006 at 11:01
I remember how much iPods used to cost, and still cost. Like £400 for the top model.
Being expensive causes a certain amount of exclusivity and whether you care or not, says something about the owner to others. Kids, Teens and 20 something guys are easily impressed.
"Wow, you've got the *expensive* next gen console with the HD TV. Oooooh"
And you have to remember there are a load of Chavs out there that equate "most expensive" to "best" and"most desirable"
It reminds me of the Nissan Skyline. The Japanese creator/CEO/Whatever, the guy in charge of the Skyline, said that in Japan, the car was expensive, but people aspired to it, they would say "if i work a little harder i can afford that PS3 rather than that 360".
Okay, so i crossed my metaphors there lol.
I will agree it's damn risky, and this ain't Japan. I think the price will turn some people on though. Go Figure. I can see both arguements lol
I still want one.
Posted by: Cris | May 19, 2006 at 11:51
The other thing I don't get about the HD hype: I, along with no doubt lots of other people, have been running my PC at HD resolution for years and yet I still have no problem watching my fuzzy old TV.
Posted by: Vincent | May 19, 2006 at 16:03
Vincent, have you watched 24, or Battlestar Galatica, or the damn animal planet show in HD?
It's mesmerizing.
And then, the killer app: televised sports (as someone noted with WC)
Posted by: Bernie | May 19, 2006 at 19:41
I was mesmerised by the difference between DVD and videotape at first, but I can't say I enjoyed watching Grosse Pointe Blank on DVD any more than I did when I watched it on video or at the cinema. Outside of the first five minutes, I'd be surprised if HD substantially improves my appreciation of what I'm watching, but in five years time when I think about getting a new TV, I'd be happy to be proved wrong.
Posted by: Vincent | May 19, 2006 at 20:05
I'll still get a PS3.
Granted I'll get a Wii first, out of all 3, from this luanch period (The 360 is still 'Launching' according to MSoft), because I want one and can actually afford one (I mean, not much more than a DS package deal FFS!).
The price is blown way out of proportion. It's what, 145 squids more than a premium 360, THEN you have to get an extra drive because MSoft rushed their console out without a nextgen drive like excitable school children, thats what, another 150/200 quid? THEN we have Live! Subs, Sony have said they won't start out with online subs. Already the PS3 is now MUCH better value than the 360 for those that want a top package because it's all there already.
Posted by: The_Predator | May 20, 2006 at 01:33
sure, upgrading a 360 to the same functionality is probably going to end up costing the same (or more; I got a core 360, so I've paid through the nose for extras).
on the other hand, i already *have* a 360. To go HD, I'd much rather pay £150 (say) than £450 -- and I won't be doing that any time soon, 'cos I have a normal TV and no real desire to buy my entire DVD library over again.
as for Live subs, £5 a month isn't so bad, though of course free would be better. I don't think that's much of a killer, though.
Of course, I don't think it entirely fair the way the press is jumping all over this one point and labouring it so much; but I don't think charging UK consumers a dollop more than US consumers is fair either. :(
Posted by: Jez | May 20, 2006 at 02:02
Yeah, but I remember the first time I watched Batman or Blade Runner on DVD. Or Brazil.
I still get weak-kneed but I am a film nerd as well as a computer geek, I guess.
I can say the 360 was all ho-hum to me until I went to my friend's apt - he's an EP @ EA, and he brought home a debug and we played NFS:MW on his Bravia, and I was sold.
Posted by: Bernie | May 20, 2006 at 02:55
Since I got my new 24" monitor, I've been playing all my PC games at 1920 x 1200, which none of the next-gen consoles can match, but I must admit I don't watch DVDs on it, because their low-res is so much more apparent on that than on my TV.
I think it'll ultimately be the big exclusive franchises or lack of that do it for PS3.
Posted by: Vincent | May 20, 2006 at 21:01