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Join Date: Mar 2007
Location: Miami,FL
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10 Reasons Why Sony Needs To Retire The PlayStation 2 Now
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For the good of the PlayStation 3…
The decision to keep PlayStation 2 alive is largely a commercial one. It still has the highest user base and game developers are still making money from it. Plus, many of the marketing highlights that were touted at its initial launch still apply: it’s backwards compatible and it’s a cheap DVD player (something the Wii can’t do and which the Xbox 360 requires an add-on to progress beyond).
Hardcore gamers who have high definition televisions and have already signed up for next-generation gaming have tacitly accepted the commercial reasoning behind the PlayStation 2, but only because they accept that there are companies still making money from it. But where is the line drawn? When will the PlayStation 2 be ‘not good enough’? Is it destined to become the Amiga 500 of the console industry, or will it take the realisation that it might be hurting the industry’s progress into next-gen gaming for something to happen? Here are the top ten reasons we believe the PlayStation 2 should be retired.
1. Most PlayStation 2 games look terrible on our HDTVs.
Let’s not kid ourselves: the PlayStation 2 hardware is getting pretty damned old. No matter how much a developer can squeeze out of the PlayStation 2’s decade-old hardware, no matter how impressed we are (academically) by the new visual effects they manage to squeeze in, it just pales in comparison to the high-definition graphics pumped out by PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360.
High definition televisions are cheap and getting cheaper, particularly the sub-1080p models; and the uptake of said televisions is equally impressive. Sony isn’t doing any favours to its brand by continuing to peddle low-resolution graphics to an audience that, by and large, is aware of its inferiority.
2. PlayStation 2’s online play sucks pretty badly.
SOCOM didn’t really impress anyone. We’re all better off just sweeping this one under the rug.
3. PlayStation 2 isn’t the only Party-Starter in the market anymore.
While the core gaming market can’t get enough of titles like God of War II, it’s actually franchises like Singstar and Buzz that are the real breadwinners. Enamoured with today’s reality television pop culture, the broader mainstream market can’t seem to get enough of these ‘Party Starters.’ With tens of thousands of Australians having already invested in the Singstar and Buzz controllers, they represent an audience that can be directly engaged and marketed to.
This is a joyride that can’t last forever. Nintendo’s Wii already provides consumers with a compelling set of alternative ‘party starters’ through titles like Wii Sports, Warioware: Smooth Moves and Mario Party 8 – none of which require the purchase of a new controller. Adding to the competition is Activision’s upcoming Guitar Hero 3 and EA’s Rock Band, all of which are appearing on the flashier next-generation machines; as well as copycat products on Xbox 360 like the Live Camera and the Scene It buzzer.
This is further complicated by the fact that Sony will soon be releasing its first Singstar game for PlayStation 3. Boasting high-definition graphics and a host of online functions, the question that’s obviously left begging is whether Sony will strangle user migration to the PS3 by continuing to engage the PS2 market, or cannibalise its sizeable PS2 fan base. Since it’s unlikely for the core-gaming early adopters of PS3 to suddenly develop a liking for singing, we think the former is more likely. Either way, Sony needs to bite the bullet before Nintendo or Microsoft does it for them.
4. The PlayStation 2 isn’t the best source of budget titles anymore.
One of the benefits for consumers who don’t necessarily play games much, who don’t have a huge budget to blow on games, and are still stuck with the last generation is that cheaper games are in greater abundance. Retailers often cut the price on different titles every week to clear a little floor space for new ones, and they seem to get cheaper the older they are. With full-priced games sometimes going for as little as a quarter of the original retail price, it’s certainly a cost-effective means of casual gaming.
That isn’t the case anymore. For mere pocket-change, consumers can download 8-bit and 16-bit classics via Xbox Live or the Wii’s Virtual Arcade, as well as originally conceived titles like Calling All Cars and Super Stardust HD on the PlayStation Network. There are dozens of must-have titles on offer, all of them readily and reliably available for download. The ease and convenience of this form of delivery is preferable to skulking about the manky bargain bins of suburban retailers for a random gem… unless of course you don’t have broadband.
5. The PS3’s software lineup is actually pretty damned good.
Perhaps Sony is holding back on retiring the PS2 because they want the PS3 to have a better library of games first? We’d say the PS3’s software library is plenty good right now. Games like Motorstorm, Virtua Fighter 5 and Resistance: Fall of Man look absolutely brilliant, the awesome Heavenly Sword is just around the corner, as is the multiplayer shenanigans of Warhawk; and every decent-looking third party title from Assassin’s Creed to Call of Duty 4 will also be on PlayStation 3. Come Christmas 07, if PlayStation 2 is out of the picture, consumers won’t be judging the consoles on their software line-up – they’re going to buy the console with the best image and the coolest features. That said, as far as software goes, Sony should have little to worry about.
6. The PlayStation 2 doesn’t connect to anything, which is kind of confusing in today’s environment.
The Xbox 360 has an integrated network for chatting, playing and downloading games. The Wii lets you browse the web, download games and find out today’s weather. The DS lets you play against anyone in the world. The PS3 and PSP even have slots for inputting multimedia cards of various shapes and sizes to view photos and videos. And what does the PlayStation 2 connect to? A couple of control pads. Okay, that’s a bit flippant on our part as it does connect to the Internet (see #2). At any rate, in an age where four wireless controllers and multimedia functionality is considered the norm, PlayStation 2 is fast becoming a technological dinosaur.
7. PlayStation 3 owners are sick of not being able to play.
God of War II, Final Fantasy XII, Okami, Tomb Raider Anniversary… these are just a few of the excellent games we’d gladly pay our hard-earned for on PlayStation 3, except we can’t: we can only play them on PlayStation 2. This madness needs to stop.
8. PlayStation 2 is robbing PlayStation 3 of sales.
In the second quarter of 2007, Australians snapped up over 50,000 PlayStation 3 consoles. According to Gfk figures, in that same period, over 45,000 PlayStation 2 consoles were sold. That’s 45,000 people who, in spite of the PS2’s age, opted for the PlayStation brand over the slightly more expensive Wii
For argument’s sake, if we were to assume one PlayStation 3 owner is worth five PlayStation 2 owners, it means PlayStation 3 has potentially missed out on as much as 9,000 additional units sold over the period – 10 per cent of the total for that period.
To be fair, an extra 9,000 units isn’t going to give Sony any new flashy headlines to broadcast – the Wii pipped the 50,000 mark in three weeks – but an extra 9,000 units definitely won’t hurt the user-base.
It’s more interesting if this thinking is applied to the international market. According to NPD figures, 98,500 PlayStation 3 consoles were sold in the US in June as compared to 270,760 PlayStation 2s. If the PlayStation 2 wasn’t in the equation, the PlayStation 3 could’ve had far healthier numbers to crow about, though it would likely have still been behind Xbox 360’s 198,400 mark.
And even if the PlayStation 2 is retired, we can’t assume everyone who was thinking of buying a console or upgrading from the PlayStation 2 is going to go straight to the PlayStation 3, hence our next point.
9. PlayStation 2 is still being used as a basis of comparison for next-generation gaming, and that’s hurting the PlayStation 3’s sales.
The longer Sony keeps PlayStation 2 in active service, the more likely it is for consumers to jump from PlayStation 2 to Wii or Xbox 360. Why? Because they ‘look’ like they offer a sufficient improvement over PlayStation 2. The Wii is perceived as a more cost-effective entry-point to a generation of gaming that offers a whole new dimension of interactivity. Nintendo wouldn’t otherwise be hoeing in its userbase at such a rapid rate.
Microsoft, meanwhile, has recently dropped the price of the Xbox 360. The Core System, at $399.95, is as cheap as a Wii. Even though no respectable gamer would consider buying a Core unit, it’s a marketing call-to-arms that Microsoft will surely bleed dry. Why settle for a whimsical low-res magic wand when the wonders of online gaming and shit-hot high-definition graphics can be yours for the same price? And the Premium (recently renamed to Pro) Xbox 360 model? A mere $180 more; and if reports are to be believed, it’ll soon have HDMI too.
Despite a few minor shifts in the pricing and availability of different SKUs (none of which has been confirmed for Australia) and a Starter Pack promotional campaign that will end in a little over a week, the PlayStation 3 remains, at $999.95, the dearest gaming console on the market. From a consumer’s perspective, it would be difficult to justify spending so much for Sony’s next-generation experience when it can be had elsewhere for less than half as much.
Sony has a few options to consider. Sony could put forward the argument that Wii and Xbox 360 aren’t next-gen enough. Then again, that’s a line they’ve been arguing since day one and it seems to have fallen on deaf ears. They could drop the price of the PlayStation 3, but thus far they’ve chosen not to do so.
That leaves Sony with one final option: eliminate the perception of a ‘stepping stone’ from PlayStation 2 to PlayStation 3 – ie. retire the PlayStation 2. There will be no more middle ground. The PlayStation 2 would no longer be used as a yardstick, and the PlayStation 3 and its competitors will be able compete on a level playing field over which product is perceived as superior and inferior.
And when it comes to marketing a better image, history is on Sony’s side.
10. What applied to PSone doesn’t apply to PS2.
Sony is often quoted as saying that they retired the PSone too soon; that people were still buying it in spite of the PlayStation 2 having already been released. But back then, PlayStation 2 was the first-to-market in its generation (unless you want to count Dreamcast, not that it put up much of a fight). Back then it was the market leader.
Today, PlayStation 3 is a distant third and the PSP continues to struggle against the DS. The ‘HD Era’ of gaming has been with us since late 2005, and the market has already had nearly two years to adjust. That’s nearly two years of being told PlayStation 2 is a technologically inferior product. And besides, anyone still buying a PlayStation 2 now is probably too cheap to invest in a Wii or Xbox 360 anyway.
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