Context Sensitive: Who Is the PS3 For?

mrx19869

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ThisNewGuy said:
Susan Arendt said:
mrx19869 said:
does anybody know if this "Susan Arendt" the author of this post owns a PS3, and if so what model?
Yes, I do, an original launch model. Ah, sweet, sweet BC....

Also, I don't quite understand why people think I am confused about a PS3's capabilities. I also state quite clearly that I think the PS3 is a great machine, and simply wish that Sony would do it justice by crafting a clear message for it.
The thing is, "it only does everything" is a pretty clear message. I mean, I've never been turned off by the Iphone or the PC or the Microwave because they had too many settings. I mean, I can't speak for you, but personally, 5 to 10 functions on a machine isn't confusing to me especially when they are all under the umbrella of "entertainment." It's like getting confused at "movies" because it plays both sound AND video at the same time.
THANK YOU THANK YOU THANK YOU
for being a sensible person who understands the word everything...
 

shadow skill

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mrx19869 said:
ThisNewGuy said:
Susan Arendt said:
mrx19869 said:
does anybody know if this "Susan Arendt" the author of this post owns a PS3, and if so what model?
Yes, I do, an original launch model. Ah, sweet, sweet BC....

Also, I don't quite understand why people think I am confused about a PS3's capabilities. I also state quite clearly that I think the PS3 is a great machine, and simply wish that Sony would do it justice by crafting a clear message for it.
The thing is, "it only does everything" is a pretty clear message. I mean, I've never been turned off by the Iphone or the PC or the Microwave because they had too many settings. I mean, I can't speak for you, but personally, 5 to 10 functions on a machine isn't confusing to me especially when they are all under the umbrella of "entertainment." It's like getting confused at "movies" because it plays both sound AND video at the same time.
THANK YOU THANK YOU THANK YOU
for being a sensible person who understands the word everything...
The question should then be "is this the best method of advertising the product?" Some people are intimidated by having a bajillion options, I personally would love to see Sony just friggin list everything the PS3 does that the competition doesn't. However I know that doing that might not make a good commercial even if it is informative. Maybe something like the Motorolla Droid commercials would work. By the same token I would like to see Microsoft talk more about the 360's functionality in commercials.
 

rddj623

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Sep 28, 2009
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Your tagline for this one amused me :)

On another note I agree. It seems it's had a serious case of disassociative identity disorder. Each of it's new identities are separate and not very easily combined to focus in on what the machine truly is: the centerpiece for your entertainment. I have a friend who's job is to program special features on Blu-ray discs, he says the PS3 is still the top Blu-ray player on the market and one of the cheapest. The games I've played on another buddies are phenominal. Sure it won't play PS2 games anymore (darn you Sony!) but it does play dvd's and Blu-ray's which helps you not need to rebuy the sizable movie collection you already have. You can go online, and Netflix streams directly to the device for instant play of 10,000's of films and television shows. Let it find it's identity and prove itself on those merits!
 

mrx19869

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shadow skill said:
mrx19869 said:
ThisNewGuy said:
Susan Arendt said:
mrx19869 said:
does anybody know if this "Susan Arendt" the author of this post owns a PS3, and if so what model?
Yes, I do, an original launch model. Ah, sweet, sweet BC....

Also, I don't quite understand why people think I am confused about a PS3's capabilities. I also state quite clearly that I think the PS3 is a great machine, and simply wish that Sony would do it justice by crafting a clear message for it.
The thing is, "it only does everything" is a pretty clear message. I mean, I've never been turned off by the Iphone or the PC or the Microwave because they had too many settings. I mean, I can't speak for you, but personally, 5 to 10 functions on a machine isn't confusing to me especially when they are all under the umbrella of "entertainment." It's like getting confused at "movies" because it plays both sound AND video at the same time.
THANK YOU THANK YOU THANK YOU
for being a sensible person who understands the word everything...
The question should then be "is this the best method of advertising the product?" Some people are intimidated by having a bajillion options, I personally would love to see Sony just friggin list everything the PS3 does that the competition doesn't. However I know that doing that might not make a good commercial even if it is informative. Maybe something like the Motorolla Droid commercials would work. By the same token I would like to see Microsoft talk more about the 360's functionality in commercials.
yeah but at what point is it the consumers responsibility to do some independent research?
 

ThisNewGuy

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shadow skill said:
The question should then be "is this the best method of advertising the product?" Some people are intimidated by having a bajillion options, I personally would love to see Sony just friggin list everything the PS3 does that the competition doesn't. However I know that doing that might not make a good commercial even if it is informative. Maybe something like the Motorolla Droid commercials would work. By the same token I would like to see Microsoft talk more about the 360's functionality in commercials.
I don't know. I've yet to see people criticize a product for being too flexible. I mean, when digital cameras started to take video, there was no backlash for it, and it didn't have a mass epidemic of world confusion. The point I'm trying to make is that motion control addition will only confuse people and muddle the message as much as a guitar hero controller did. I seriously don't think adding 1 peripheral controller would suddenly make everyone confused about the functionality of the PS3.

As far as "marketing," I'm not a marketing expert, and I'm sure neither is the author or most people in this forum, but in my opinion, showing multiple users easily using each functionality of the PS3 followed by the tagline of its function and followed by the interest of "it only does everything," doesn't sound confusing. Maybe if the author or people in the forum could cite a specific problematic ad where Sony was not exactly on message as to a specific functionality, then I could better understand exactly what is being criticized here as far as marketing goes.
 

mrx19869

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rddj623 said:
Your tagline for this one amused me :)

On another note I agree. It seems it's had a serious case of disassociative identity disorder. Each of it's new identities are separate and not very easily combined to focus in on what the machine truly is: the centerpiece for your entertainment. I have a friend who's job is to program special features on Blu-ray discs, he says the PS3 is still the top Blu-ray player on the market and one of the cheapest. The games I've played on another buddies are phenominal. Sure it won't play PS2 games anymore (darn you Sony!) but it does play dvd's and Blu-ray's which helps you not need to rebuy the sizable movie collection you already have. You can go online, and Netflix streams directly to the device for instant play of 10,000's of films and television shows. Let it find it's identity and prove itself on those merits!
ans sony has said they are working on a software fix to that problem...
 

DRD 1812

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what sensible things can the PS3 not do?
It's not really up to me, the potential consumer, to find out. Marketing is supposed to tell people what something does. What "sensible" means is up to individuals, but for the sake of this argument: Outside of browsing the internet, the PS3 cannot do a host of things that personal computers or cell phones can do. If you say that the PS3 doesn't need to or shouldn't do some of those things, then I'd refer you to their marketing. "It only does everything."

do you buy a ford just by listing to the marketing? no you do independent research
again
I would argue that anyone who does independent research falls outside of the "Joe Average" persona. At any rate independent research will nullify any advertising you've seen because you'll be looking at the facts rather than the packaging.

marketing is only meant to push people in a direction. after that it is the consumers responsibility to find out what the product can or can not do

this article shifts the blame to sony when the blame is on the consumer.
How much sway "marketing" has is up for debate, but I believe it's just as true that people make snap purchases based on glitz and glamor as they are to be nudged toward making an informed decision.

Your claim that the consumer is somehow to blame is rather baffling to me. If the Sony (or MS or Nintendo) jargon is confusing then it isn't someone's fault when they become confused. "Let the buyer beware," has never been a great excuse for a corporation.
 

Orcus The Ultimate

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from what i see, the Sony is trying to experiment on it's own console for the first half of it's lifespan... then they might use the full capacity of it's system.
 

mrx19869

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DRD 1812 said:
what sensible things can the PS3 not do?
It's not really up to me, the potential consumer, to find out. Marketing is supposed to tell people what something does. What "sensible" means is up to individuals, but for the sake of this argument: Outside of browsing the internet, the PS3 cannot do a host of things that personal computers or cell phones can do. If you say that the PS3 doesn't need to or shouldn't do some of those things, then I'd refer you to their marketing. "It only does everything."

do you buy a ford just by listing to the marketing? no you do independent research
again
I would argue that anyone who does independent research falls outside of the "Joe Average" persona. At any rate independent research will nullify any advertising you've seen because you'll be looking at the facts rather than the packaging.

marketing is only meant to push people in a direction. after that it is the consumers responsibility to find out what the product can or can not do

this article shifts the blame to sony when the blame is on the consumer.
How much sway "marketing" has is up for debate, but I believe it's just as true that people make snap purchases based on glitz and glamor as they are to be nudged toward making an informed decision.

Your claim that the consumer is somehow to blame is rather baffling to me. If the Sony (or MS or Nintendo) jargon is confusing then it isn't someone's fault when they become confused. "Let the buyer beware," has never been a great excuse for a corporation.
Its a shame that you think the average person is not going to want to do independent research. The average person would do research because he or she is buying something that they normal do not. Also what kind of person just spends 300ish dollars on a item without doing research. There is nothing confusing about sony's current marketing, the comercials show you what it does, the box tells you what it does, they have a website detailing everything.

when you watch a car commercial the give you the basic features, what it looks like, and the price, sounds just like PS3 commercials, when the commercial is over the average person who is interested is going to looking into it. for at least for a while.

i think people here think the average person is stupid or something...
 

OneBig Man

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I don't know, the Playstation never caught my fancy, ever since I got the first one for Christmas one year. I realy think it might have been their controllers. I like having the joystick above the D-pad, like on the Xbox and Gamecube. I will excuse the N64 for this flaw because the only game I had that used the D-pad was Pokemin Stadium.

Also they didn't have a trigger until the PS3, which still used R1 to shoot when I played my friends COD. I mean even the N64 had somewhat of a trigger with the Z button (thats probably why I shoot lefty when I paintball or hunt). If they had changed their controller, I might have puchased a PS2/3 instead of a gamecube and Xbox/360.
 

StriderShinryu

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bismarck55 said:
Susan's article is great, but this thread is embarrassing compared to usual standard here on the escapist.

Reading comprehension is key, people.
Indeed. I too really thought the Escapist Community was above this.
 

mrx19869

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StriderShinryu said:
bismarck55 said:
Susan's article is great, but this thread is embarrassing compared to usual standard here on the escapist.

Reading comprehension is key, people.
Indeed. I too really thought the Escapist Community was above this.
this article is not great...
 

rees263

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Jun 4, 2009
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Deviluk said:
Thats probably the case in the states, but no-one buys a 360 in Japan, and here in the UK all my friends have PS3s. And I don't think their target market is any different to the 360, they practically have the same base of games, and are now doing the same thing with the motion control thing.
I wish I was in your position. I'm a PS3 owner (okay, maybe fanboy :S) but all my friends own 360s.
I think the market is fairly even here in the UK (still slightly in 360's favour perhaps?) I have to say that neither adverts for Sony or M$ are particularly interesting to me. They never say anything I don't already know. Nintendos are just as useless for information but they do seem more likely to appeal to the average person (which is no doubt a factor in why they are outstripping the others so much in terms of sales).
 

Susan Arendt

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Jan 9, 2007
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ThisNewGuy said:
Susan Arendt said:
mrx19869 said:
does anybody know if this "Susan Arendt" the author of this post owns a PS3, and if so what model?
Yes, I do, an original launch model. Ah, sweet, sweet BC....

Also, I don't quite understand why people think I am confused about a PS3's capabilities. I also state quite clearly that I think the PS3 is a great machine, and simply wish that Sony would do it justice by crafting a clear message for it.
The thing is, "it only does everything" is a pretty clear message. I mean, I've never been turned off by the Iphone or the PC or the Microwave because they had too many settings. I mean, I can't speak for you, but personally, 5 to 10 functions on a machine isn't confusing to me especially when they are all under the umbrella of "entertainment." It's like getting confused at "movies" because it plays both sound AND video at the same time.
Ok, let me take this opportunity to clear up a few misconceptions.

The first is that I find fault with the "It does everything" branding. I don't. I think that's brilliant and succinct -- which I thought I made clear when I called the Kevin Butler ads a "stroke of genius," but if not, ok. But I personally find the new Move ad to be at odds with that, because it's so clearly mimicking the Wii ads. To me, that says that Sony doesn't want you to think of the PS3 as something different from the Wii, but rather something that does what the Wii does, too. Now, your mileage on that particular interpretation may vary.

Ok, second misconception is to whom I'm referring when I talk about "confusing." So let me clear up a few definitions. When I say "gamer," I mean folks like you, me, and everyone else who inhabits this site. People who are invested in gaming to the point of educating themselves about it. When I say "average consumer," I do not mean average gamer. I mean average person who doesn't read gaming magazines, or browse gaming websites, I mean someone who wants to maybe play God of War because they saw a commercial on TV, or who occasionally browses the videogame section at Best Buy. You, my friends, are most definitely not the average videogame consumer, even if you are the average gamer. You are far more educated than you probably even realize you are. You know so much about this medium, you perhaps don't realize how little the rest of the public knows.

It is the average consumer that I'm concerned may be left puzzled by Sony's mixed messages. Not the average gamer.

mrx19869 said:
The message has to change because the people buying the ps3 are different now than they were 4 years ago. The people who purchased the ps3 the day it came out like me (waited 3 days in a tent with my friends for it) we knew everything about it, they did not have to market it, they didnt even have to put a picture on the box for me.

now skip to today, the best way sony saw to market the PS3 was to simply state " it does everything" also they have a great website that is easy to use, and explains all the features ,
i guess my question is now what does your statement "marketing is so scattereshot" refer to.. am i correct to assume you are talking about commercials?
Yes, I am referring to commercials, which is how the typical person learns about new products. And no, the average consumer is not stupid, but is also not nearly as savvy as you seem to think. Ask the average IT guy how smart the people for whom he has to provide support are. When it comes to purchases like cars, yes, absolutely, most folks will do research, but cars are something with which they've been familiar all their lives, so they know the kind of information to look for. The average consumer, believe it or not, quite likely couldn't even tell you what company makes what console. They don't know that Nintendo makes Mario games, they just know they like Mario. Many of them have no idea that there are games you can play on one console that you can't play on others. This doesn't make them stupid, just not as well informed as people who are really into games.
 

StriderShinryu

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mrx19869 said:
StriderShinryu said:
bismarck55 said:
Susan's article is great, but this thread is embarrassing compared to usual standard here on the escapist.

Reading comprehension is key, people.
Indeed. I too really thought the Escapist Community was above this.
this article is not great...
Whether the article is great or not is besides the point (though I do wonder what particular factors you're using in making that judgement). What I do find, to be honest, rather shocking is the level of blatant fanboyism on show. You can certainly disagree with the column's viewpoint, and this would be a boring place if everyone always agreed with everything, but it would be nice if everyone at least read and comprehended what has been written.
 

ThisNewGuy

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Susan Arendt said:
Ok, let me take this opportunity to clear up a few misconceptions.

The first is that I find fault with the "It does everything" branding. I don't. I think that's brilliant and succinct -- which I thought I made clear when I called the Kevin Butler ads a "stroke of genius," but if not, ok. But I personally find the new Move ad to be at odds with that, because it's so clearly mimicking the Wii ads. To me, that says that Sony doesn't want you to think of the PS3 as something different from the Wii, but rather something that does what the Wii does, too. Now, your mileage on that particular interpretation may vary.

Ok, second misconception is to whom I'm referring when I talk about "confusing." So let me clear up a few definitions. When I say "gamer," I mean folks like you, me, and everyone else who inhabits this site. People who are invested in gaming to the point of educating themselves about it. When I say "average consumer," I do not mean average gamer. I mean average person who doesn't read gaming magazines, or browse gaming websites, I mean someone who wants to maybe play God of War because they saw a commercial on TV, or who occasionally browses the videogame section at Best Buy. You, my friends, are most definitely not the average videogame consumer, even if you are the average gamer. You are far more educated than you probably even realize you are. You know so much about this medium, you perhaps don't realize how little the rest of the public knows.

It is the average consumer that I'm concerned may be left puzzled by Sony's mixed messages. Not the average gamer.
But Sony's message isn't that PS3 is different than the Wii. It's saying that the PS3 can do what the Wii can do, but more "hardcore." So I think "does what the Wii does too" follow under "it only does everything." I don't really get how you made the jump from "it only does everything" to "it only does everything except Wii stuff." So the Move is definitely not at odds with the ads because "it only does everything" could include (and does include) motion control. At least, that's how I interpret it.

And as far as "average consumer" goes. My 55 year old dad could understand what the PS3 is for and what it does. Anybody who has ever touched a controller or who has ever operated any machine can understand what the PS3 is. I think it's presumptuous for you or anybody else here to assume that the "average consumer" is the equivalent to "idiots who can't aim their piss directly into the bowls." I mean, people are dumb, but if they could understand how to operate the Wii, then they're not THAT dumb. I really don't think people will watch the ads that show Uncharted 2 and Bluray movies and Little Big Planet, and say "it plays games AND movies? I don't understand how anything could do that." Let's put it this way: any "average consumer" who's interested in games via ads or whatnot will be just as confused about the PS3's functions as they are with the Wii, 360, PSP, DS, IPhone, PC, and Mac. Every gaming platform does more than just games. This article would've worked a couple years ago before the PS3 launched when Sony featured baby doll ads that confused everyone. But today, Sony is very clear with its messages, and the PS3 is just like every other gaming platform, but with Bluray. Really? That's too hard to understand?

Edit: now that I think about it, if anything, the Iphone/PC/Mac should be much much more confusing than the PS3/360/Wii. And as far as I can tell, none of those things have an "identity crisis."
 

Slycne

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Feb 19, 2006
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mrx19869 said:
DRD 1812 said:
what sensible things can the PS3 not do?
It's not really up to me, the potential consumer, to find out. Marketing is supposed to tell people what something does. What "sensible" means is up to individuals, but for the sake of this argument: Outside of browsing the internet, the PS3 cannot do a host of things that personal computers or cell phones can do. If you say that the PS3 doesn't need to or shouldn't do some of those things, then I'd refer you to their marketing. "It only does everything."

do you buy a ford just by listing to the marketing? no you do independent research
again
I would argue that anyone who does independent research falls outside of the "Joe Average" persona. At any rate independent research will nullify any advertising you've seen because you'll be looking at the facts rather than the packaging.

marketing is only meant to push people in a direction. after that it is the consumers responsibility to find out what the product can or can not do

this article shifts the blame to sony when the blame is on the consumer.
How much sway "marketing" has is up for debate, but I believe it's just as true that people make snap purchases based on glitz and glamor as they are to be nudged toward making an informed decision.

Your claim that the consumer is somehow to blame is rather baffling to me. If the Sony (or MS or Nintendo) jargon is confusing then it isn't someone's fault when they become confused. "Let the buyer beware," has never been a great excuse for a corporation.
Its a shame that you think the average person is not going to want to do independent research. The average person would do research because he or she is buying something that they normal do not. Also what kind of person just spends 300ish dollars on a item without doing research. There is nothing confusing about sony's current marketing, the comercials show you what it does, the box tells you what it does, they have a website detailing everything.

when you watch a car commercial the give you the basic features, what it looks like, and the price, sounds just like PS3 commercials, when the commercial is over the average person who is interested is going to looking into it. for at least for a while.

i think people here think the average person is stupid or something...
Have you ever worked in retail before? I can tell you from first hand experience that the average consumer is very much compelled by the latest pretty lights and will have little knowledge of the product other than what a commercial has told them. If the average consumer really did do research there would be no need for marketing. This doesn't even take into account people buying systems as gifts and thus knowing even less then the average consumer. I'm not a marketing guru but past experience have shown that changing your brand image is usually not a good idea, and constantly changing your image is just going to confuse them more. That's all this article is stating, and if people weren't so blinded by their opinions they might see that it's actually trying to address an issue to so that Sony can sell more PS3s.
 

mrsketchy

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The ps3 is for people with large excesses of money to rub in peoples faces before throwing it behind the couch in embarassment when everyone owns one and swatting away their noobish taunts with "I was into it before it was cool" while waiting for the next game sequels that are exclusively releaased onto the next generation console in a diobolical marketing scheme.
 

mrx19869

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StriderShinryu said:
mrx19869 said:
StriderShinryu said:
bismarck55 said:
Susan's article is great, but this thread is embarrassing compared to usual standard here on the escapist.

Reading comprehension is key, people.
Indeed. I too really thought the Escapist Community was above this.
this article is not great...
Whether the article is great or not is besides the point (though I do wonder what particular factors you're using in making that judgement). What I do find, to be honest, rather shocking is the level of blatant fanboyism on show. You can certainly disagree with the column's viewpoint, and this would be a boring place if everyone always agreed with everything, but it would be nice if everyone at least read and comprehended what has been written.
did read it did comprehend it and if you read all the post in this thread i have given my reasoning why i think this a bad article...

so congrats..