Wii U Not a Threat to PS3, Says Sony Boss

[Logan Westbrook]

Wii U Not a Threat to PS3, Says Sony Boss

Sony thinks its current hardware will do just fine against Nintendo's new console.

Now that Nintendo has officially revealed the successor to the Wii, speculation has turned to the other console manufacturers, and when they will be releasing new hardware. You shouldn't expect to see a new PlayStation any time soon however, as Sony's Jack Tretton says that he hasn't seen anything about the Wii U that the PS3 can't handle.

"PlayStation 3 is really just hitting its stride," he said. "I wouldn't look for any discussion of a next generation PlayStation for quite some time." He said that the power that Sony had built into the PS3 meant that it had a long lifespan, and that while it had made for some difficult times during the PS3's launch period, it was paying dividends now. "Technologically," he said. "I don't think it's possible to provide any advancement beyond what we have."

He said that Sony's competitors were now trying to add features to their consoles that existed in the PS3 already, and that high-definition gaming and multimedia features were features that the PS3 had in 2006. Not that Nintendo is actually adding much in the way of multimedia capabilities, of course, having decided not to include DVD and Blu-Ray playback on the Wii U's feature list.

While Tretton is bullish now, he may change his tune when the Wii U gets a little closer to release. With roughly a year to go before the console comes out, we're not seeing the Wii U at its best. Once there are some actual games for the Wii U - rather than footage taken from other platforms as an indication of what it can do - Sony will have a better idea of what it's really competing with, and that PS4 might look a little more appealing. Assuming, of course, that Sony hasn't starting working on it already.

Source: Forbes [http://blogs.forbes.com/davidewalt/2011/06/17/playstation-chief-jack-tretton-how-to-sell-vita-navigate-clouds-and-debut-the-ps4/] via CVG [http://www.computerandvideogames.com/308044/news/wii-u-not-a-threat-that-requires-ps4-says-sony/?cid=OTC-RSS&attr=CVG-News-RSS]



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[RA92]

"Technologically," he said. "I don't think it's possible to provide any advancement beyond what we have."

Back in 2006? Sure.

 

[BabyRaptor]

At this point, not much COULD be a threat to Sony. The customer trust is pretty low after the hacking fiasco, and people are still iffy on their new handheld. Their biggest enemy seems to be themselves.

Captcha: pass ciamint. I don't know what a ciamint is, but it sounds kinda good...

 

[starwarsgeek]

"Technologically," he said. "I don't think it's possible to provide any advancement beyond what we have."

...
Okay, there's a difference between being confident enough to keep investors happy, and....that

 

[Hobohodo]

I gotta be honest, I don't see much coming from the Wii U. Everyone was looking forward to the Wii, and it turned out to be a gimmick with hardly any decent games, whilst, the PS3 has had allot of good games. I think the Wii U is going to suffer the same fate, it doesn't really seem that amazing of a concept to me.

Not surprising. No one would ever say otherwise.

Altrought there is a significant thing he didn't mentioned, which is understandable being an adversary. Wii U does 60 fps and 1080p. Ps3 hardly does that.

Also, Anoni Mus, hasn't the PS3 got the power to run at 120 fps? Can't it also go into 1080p?

 

[JediMB]

He said that Sony's competitors were now trying to add features to their consoles that existed in the PS3 already, and that high-definition gaming and multimedia features were features that the PS3 had in 2006.

And yet, the PlayStation Move.

 

[inglioti]

Audiences differ so much it's not even really comparable. It would be interesting to graph the number of consoles sold versus the average number of games sold per platform.

For example, I know thousands of people who have Wiis, but most only have one or two games. On the other side, I know less people who have Playstations and xboxs, but know that they consistently buy games for them.

 

[RA92]

Also, Anoni Mus, hasn't the PS3 got the power to run at 120 fps? Can't it also go into 1080p?

Well, WipeOut HD can run at 1080p and 60FPS. But newer engines like CryEngine 3 and Frostbite 2.0 are a little more resource intensive, and has to lock down to 720p and 30FPS. One of the reasons why the CoD titles run so well on the consoles - they're still using a modified version of the CoD 4 engine.

 

[Myrph]

Whilst I disagree that the WiiU isn't a threat to the PS3, I'd say it was more accurate to suggest that it would be a greater threat to Xbox 360, although that could just be an opinion I hold as an owner of a Wii and a PS3 and not an Xbox. Certainly the way the WiiU looks to be heading, I can quite happily see the PS3 and WiiU coexisting on my gaming shelf!

 

[Kennian]

the only reason the original wii sold like gangbusters is the amazing amount of shovelware and it's low price point. any bottom feeding retard could pick it up and play.

the wii U is going to cost 300 bucks and lose it's entire casual market in the process...why pay full price when the PS3 and the xbox will drop to 250/199? the new wii 1.5 just doesn't justify the cost of entry

 

[fgdfgdgd]

Of course they're developing the PS4 as we speak, they're not the kind of company that releases a console slapdash when things aren't looking good, as sure that there is a new Xbox on the way, there is a new Sony on the way too, but like any poker player, Sony wants to see everyones hand first.

 

[Outright Villainy]

Well this is good news really; I actually want my consoles to last a long ass time. It saves money, and it means new consoles can be more powerful down the line for cheaper.

And yeah, I don't think the WiiU is really going to be much of a threat, its focus is scattershot, and outside of a specific niche i don't see it appealing to many. Perhaps this is why Nintendo is being pretty conservative with its specs (for 2012 it's pretty damn conservative)

 

[asacatman]

Audiences differ so much it's not even really comparable. It would be interesting to graph the number of consoles sold versus the average number of games sold per platform.

For example, I know thousands of people who have Wiis, but most only have one or two games. On the other side, I know less people who have Playstations and xboxs, but know that they consistently buy games for them.

The figures are on Vgchartz. Not entirely accurate but give you a rough idea. The ratios are like this:

Wii:7.78

Ps3: 7.82

X360:9.05

Thats in games per console sold. So people who buy wiis buy the same amount of games as Ps3 owners. Unfortunately a bigger proportion are causual titles, but there's still a lot of good stuff on the wii. Check the facts next time you make some assumption about the wii.

 

[BrotherRool]

It's interesting how they think they know. No-one has been told the specs yet, although I guess some people in the industry must know.

But saying that, Sony seem to be right, certainly Nintendo haven't promised or fake demoed or tech demoed anything even slightly better than what the 360 and PS3 could do 2 years ago. The PS3 still had a disc format with 40GB more storage than Nintendo's unreleased console and has better processing power than the 360, which itself doesn't seem to be too threatened by the Wii U.

I don't want to call anything yet, but if the Wii U can't match the 720 or PS4 in power, it will be released against better consoles, consoles that have easy local multiplayer, with controllers far better at the sort of games available (it's still better to play games like Mario Kart, of Smash Bros with a wheel or classic controller), with far greater libraries, established bases, experienced internet provides and with a much better track record at 3rd part support.

 

[starwarsgeek]

the only reason the original wii sold like gangbusters is the amazing amount of shovelware and it's low price point. any bottom feeding retard could pick it up and play.

the wii U is going to cost 300 bucks and lose it's entire casual market in the process...why pay full price when the PS3 and the xbox will drop to 250/199? the new wii 1.5 just doesn't justify the cost of entry

Wow...just, wow.

Did you seriously just claim bad games sold the console? And you called casual newcomers..."bottom feeding retards"?

By the way, some of those "bottom feeding retards" might be interested in a new way to play games--no existing system can use all three main control types (well...I guess the 3DS's gyroscope could count...), so we're going to see some really interesting games that combine multiple control types, and considering that the Wii started at $300, I have a a feeling that wouldn't be high enough to kill sales.

 

[Hobohodo]

Well, WipeOut HD can run at 1080p and 60FPS. But newer engines like CryEngine 3 and Frostbite 2.0 are a little more resource intensive, and has to lock down to 720p and 30FPS. One of the reasons why the CoD titles run so well on the consoles - they're still using a modified version of the CoD 4 engine.

Oh well, I had no idea, sorry about that.

I'm pretty sure though, in an article I read before, wasn't it that the PS3 could do it, but they would need a TV capable enough? I guess, if they released one with such high specs, not many people would be able to play it, and realistically, make the game fail. Yup

Nintendo probably will succumb to the same, its all very good that the console can do it, but it doesn't mean they will.