PS3 Lacks Popular Titles?

Peter G. 14 Nov, 2006 at 1:15pm ET Article published in Tech

After announcing the PS3’s launch titles, three games have been delayed and one canned. With many popular PS1 and PS2 titles having issues with playing in the PS3, some question whether Sony will beat rival Nintendo in the console wars.

Elder Scrolls: Oblivion, Sonic the Hedgehog, and F.E.A.R. have all been delayed until after the system launches and NBA ’07 will not be a PS3 title according to gamesarefun.com.

Of the 16,000 title library of Playstaion 1 and PS2 games, 200 have been found so far to have compatability issues if played in a PS3. Titles include Gran Turismo 4, Tekken 5, Devil May Cry and titles from the popular Final Fantasy line. The Japanese Playstation website allows individuals to search for games with playback issues.

Titles including the Gran Turismo and Final Fantasy series sold for the PlayStation and PlayStation 2 can’t display menus properly and graphics sometimes freeze, Sony Computer Entertainment Inc., the company’s gaming unit, said on its Japanese Web site. Software updates to the console will be provided to fix the problems, the statement said.

The software problem is another setback for Sony, which is banking on the PlayStation 3 to beat rival consoles from Microsoft Corp. and Nintendo Co. and to help revive earnings growth. A shortage of components for the high-definition Blu-ray DVD player in the machine caused Sony to delay sales in Europe by four months and halve shipments to 2 million for 2006.

“Some customers will refrain from buying the PlayStation,” said Yuuki Sakurai, who helps manage $5.9 billion at Fukoku Mutual Life Insurance Co. in Tokyo. “There’s a chance Sony will lose its lead to Nintendo’s Wii.”

So what if you can’t play the games you want yet! At least you can get inside and upgrade to a bigger hard drive.

Source: Bloomberg.com

Comments

14 Nov 2006 ~ 1:55pm Sledgehammer70 So baisclly it is 1.5% of old games will not play on the PS3 yet? Maybe 5% tops? I think Sony will fix it sooner than later
14 Nov 2006 ~ 2:02pm Garg Word is that Sony's working on a patch. Hopefully they fix it soon. Although I haven't heard which of the FF series isn't playing on the PS3, at least we know FFXII works (released just a couple weeks ago).

Overall it doesn't sound quite as bad as the compatibility issues the 360 had (has? I haven't heard if these were fixed) with XBox games.

Edit: the only info on Final Fantasy I could get from the Japanese site was that FFXI doesn't recognize the PS3 hard drive (future patch), and that the FFI & FFII set for PS1 seems to work. Not sure about the rest of the titles.
14 Nov 2006 ~ 2:46pm BuddyJ You're right Sledge. It still is a small number compared to the grand scheme of things. But when popular, common titles like FF XI, GT 4 and DMC won't work, it doen't help the product's image. Hopefully the patches will come quickly and by the time most people get their system, they won't have any issues playing their old favorites.
14 Nov 2006 ~ 3:15pm Sledgehammer70

Buddy Jesus wrote:

You're right Sledge. It still is a small number compared to the grand scheme of things. But when popular, common titles like FF XI, GT 4 and DMC won't work, it doen't help the product's image. Hopefully the patches will come quickly and by the time most people get their system, they won't have any issues playing their old favorites.

Very much agreed...
14 Nov 2006 ~ 3:18pm Sledgehammer70 Also to note PS3 titles that are for sale don't seem to be selling to well. Out of the 2 titles that we sold in Japan, they sold 88,000+ consoles with only 66,000+ PS3 games roughly 30K plus per game... Not even 1 game per console... I guess people are waiting for more popular titles.
14 Nov 2006 ~ 3:20pm Thrax

Sledgehammer70 wrote:

Also to note PS3 titles that are for sale don't seem to be selling to well. Out of the 2 titles that we sold in Japan, they sold 88,000+ consoles with only 66,000+ PS3 games roughly 30K plus per game... Not even 1 game per console... I guess people are waiting for more popular titles.

Somewhat true.
14 Nov 2006 ~ 3:32pm Garg

Thrax wrote:

Somewhat true.

Awesome link, Thrax! I had heard about the people paid to stand in line, but didn't really understand it from an in-the-country perspective.
14 Nov 2006 ~ 7:01pm Tim I think it's kind of dumb to rush out and buy the first PS3 that hits your neighborhood Wal-Mart, because surely most people with a brain know there will be initial problems. It happens in new cars, it happened with the Xbox 360, and it will happen with the PS3.

I'd wait at least 3-6 months to get a PS3 that has the bugs fixed.

But I have no need for a PS3, because the only video games I play are World of Warcraft (PC), and Halo 2 (Xbox). I got my Xbox just so I could play Halo 2 at home instead of at someone else's house.

But I will need to get an Xbox 360 when Halo 3 comes out, because it won't run on the original Xbox.

I'd like to go buy a PS3 just so I can sell it for double or triple the money on eBay, but with my luck it wouldn't work out that way.
15 Nov 2006 ~ 7:59am mtrox

Buddy Jesus wrote:

Hopefully the patches will come quickly...

I'm not sure patches are coming for all the problems. According to an Associated Press story in today's NY Times, a Sony spokesman, Satoshi Fukuoka, says; "Online upgrades of the PlayStation 3 software will be offered, but it is unlikely that all the problems will ever get fixed..."

That company can't do anything right these days. From their little rootkit spyware thing to their expensive battery problem to the delays on PS3 and now this.
15 Nov 2006 ~ 8:08am Thrax Sony is an everlasting string of problems. Memory stick, mini-disc, betamax, telling customers that they're stupid enough to buy a PS3 even if it had no games, pulling price comparisons for the 360 vs. ps3 that give the 360 almost $300 in accessories it doesn't have, etc.

They're an arrogant company with out-of-touch jerks for management.
15 Nov 2006 ~ 10:05am Sledgehammer70 The basic issue's are always going to be there no matter what. The problem I see today is most people will still buy a non perfect product. For example EA Games... Oh yeah I am going there....

EA is the world's largest Game Developer. But yet almost 75% of their new games have a Patch on release day, same with companies like THQ, and Activision. But users like me are willing to over look these small issues for the pure joy of playing a well anticipated game.

Why we do this? Well we have to! If we want the game, we are going to buy it with all of it issues. Companies like Sony need to get on the ball and really tests these monsters out... Crap I would rather wait an extra few month if that meant 99% of the bugs were resolved, but we all know that won't happen as extra waiting equals loss of money and loss of money doesn't look good on the bottom line or to the investors in these companies.

So until we the consumers stand up and say NO! We will not buy a half ass product; they will keep rolling them out as they know we will buy them.
15 Nov 2006 ~ 11:42am Garg I'm a little frustrated with the method Sony employed to achieve backwards compatibility - stick a PS2 inside. The whole chipset is in there. That uncreative solution is a missed opportunity and could be contributing to the cost of the console and to the compatibility problems.

They've got a bitchin' fast 3d™ processor in there, and they decide to add in more hardware to run old games. That's just a waste. If they would have came up with a software solution, the emulator probably could have enhanced the older games. Upscaling? FSAA? We'll never know.

It also probably would have been easier to fix these bugs they're having with backwards compatibility. How many of these bugs will be unfixable until a new hardware version comes out?
16 Nov 2006 ~ 8:50pm NiGHTS

Sledgehammer70 wrote:

...but we all know that won't happen as extra waiting equals loss of money and loss of money doesn't look good on the bottom line or to the investors in these companies.

So until we the consumers stand up and say NO! We will not buy a half ass product; they will keep rolling them out as they know we will buy them.

Blizzard seems to do just fine making everyone wait. Look at what has become of EA, the "bottom line-hungry company." They make you pay two, three, four times for a game you've already bought. The community has (somewhat) turned on them. This is exactly the same reason why I want to see PS3 fail miserably and the Wii succeed. It's going to be a strong wakeup call that most gamers are tired of eyecandy in a game that lasts 4 hours and would rather play something with more gameplay/innovative value.

$2 for instructional videos on Madden? Those should be standard, especially if the information they offer is blatantly obvious/over your head (depending on how much you play the game and know football.) Unlock content with a code (your credit card number) on Tiger Woods? Content already on the disc? No thanks.
17 Nov 2006 ~ 2:19pm profdlp Must be a heckuva game package.

Maybe the "Customer's Choice" should be to have their head examined.
17 Nov 2006 ~ 5:16pm PirateNinja

Thrax wrote:

Sony is an everlasting string of problems. Memory stick, mini-disc, betamax, telling customers that they're stupid enough to buy a PS3 even if it had no games, pulling price comparisons for the 360 vs. ps3 that give the 360 almost $300 in accessories it doesn't have, etc.

They're an arrogant company with out-of-touch jerks for management.

Exactly, Sony administrative personal listen to their lawyers not their potential customers.