Microsoft Registers Microsoft-Sony.com, Sony-Microsoft.com

[Norris IV]

Sony and Microsoft cooperating is almost as unthinkable as Nintendo and Sega used to be.

It happened though, didn't it?

 

[similar.squirrel]

Oh no. The kind of people who argue about consoles might have to get jobs or something now.

 

[Deathfyre]

Microsoft Registers Microsoft-Sony.com, Sony-Microsoft.com

Ladies and gentlemen, let the conspiracy theories begin.

If you go to Microsoft-Sony.com [http://sony-microsoft.com/], you get (for some reason) a Bing search listing for Microsoft and Sony, not a website. Neither of these sites exist right now - but Microsoft owns them nonetheless.

Users on NeoGAF [http://www.neogaf.com/forum/showthread.php?t=437309] discovered that the two domains had been registered several days ago by none other than Microsoft itself. That's all the information we know, really - we don't know what this means, and we have no clue as to their use.

Gamers, of course, might see this as a bizarre case of universes colliding. Microsoft's Xbox 360 and Sony's PS3 are mortal enemies, and never the twain shall meet! Could this represent a strange and uncertain future where one console destroys the other - or the two combine like a miniature gaming Voltron? Would this just leave gamers with Nintendo's offerings and the XStationBox?

Well, probably not. Microsoft and Sony are very, very big corporations, after all, and they have their hands in many pies that aren't related to videogames. One theory making the rounds is that this could potentially be a Windows Phone 7 model made by Sony Ericsson, and if not that exactly, something along those lines would seem to be the most likely option.

Of course, this won't stop conspiracy theories from running rampant. You may all begin wildly speculating ... now.

(NeoGAF [http://www.neogaf.com/forum/showthread.php?t=437309])

Permalink

It could be a versus thing. Microsoft starting an ad campaign directly antagonizing sony. Or even trying to figure out which one's more popular. Go to Sony-microsoft to like sony more or vice-versa

 

[robert022614]

I think it is more than likely a smart phone as the article stated or a trash talk comparison website waiting to happen.

 

[Dracondis]

The S&M PlayStation X-Over....

 

[duchaked]

dun dun DUNNN

sounds like it'll be exciting (or not). but HM, I will say I do love the current console generation as it stands. it's lasted a good long while and still functioning strong (okay so the reason for its longevity is partly due to the economy...and for me because I can focus my budgeted cash on games and not having to buy new hardware lol)

 

[K V MAN]

Halo vs Resistance (FPS genre)?
PS3 vs xbox 360 (fighting genre)?

that is my prediction. a merger will destroy the two companies, buying out is too far fetched

 

[K V MAN]

Microsoft Registers Microsoft-Sony.com, Sony-Microsoft.com

Ladies and gentlemen, let the conspiracy theories begin.

If you go to Microsoft-Sony.com [http://sony-microsoft.com/], you get (for some reason) a Bing search listing for Microsoft and Sony, not a website. Neither of these sites exist right now - but Microsoft owns them nonetheless.

Users on NeoGAF [http://www.neogaf.com/forum/showthread.php?t=437309] discovered that the two domains had been registered several days ago by none other than Microsoft itself. That's all the information we know, really - we don't know what this means, and we have no clue as to their use.

Gamers, of course, might see this as a bizarre case of universes colliding. Microsoft's Xbox 360 and Sony's PS3 are mortal enemies, and never the twain shall meet! Could this represent a strange and uncertain future where one console destroys the other - or the two combine like a miniature gaming Voltron? Would this just leave gamers with Nintendo's offerings and the XStationBox?

Well, probably not. Microsoft and Sony are very, very big corporations, after all, and they have their hands in many pies that aren't related to videogames. One theory making the rounds is that this could potentially be a Windows Phone 7 model made by Sony Ericsson, and if not that exactly, something along those lines would seem to be the most likely option.

Of course, this won't stop conspiracy theories from running rampant. You may all begin wildly speculating ... now.

(NeoGAF [http://www.neogaf.com/forum/showthread.php?t=437309])

Permalink

It could be a versus thing. Microsoft starting an ad campaign directly antagonizing sony. Or even trying to figure out which one's more popular. Go to Sony-microsoft to like sony more or vice-versa

that is something EA marketing would do not these two companies

 

[Casual Shinji]

I doubt it'll be anything major.

It's probably just Microsoft buying up domian names so that Sony can't have them... or something. I'm not to experienced in the business world.

 

[Bobbity]

Oh dear god I hope they don't combine. A monopoly on the industry would be the worst thing that could possibly happen at this point in time.

Well, there's Nintendo, but nobody takes them seriously anymore.

 

[Sammaul]

I wouldn't mind if they start co-developing a Kinect-3D combination of hardware.

 

[Bobbity]

Let's say hypothetically this happens. On the plus side, being able to play uncharted and halo on the same console would be awesome. On the downside, if the two no longer have to compete with each other, there's nobody to try and outdo other than nintendo, who hasn't brought anything substantial to the table in a long time. Sony and Microsoft have been neck in neck constantly trying to outdo the other with what's essentially the same console and I honestly think both have turned out better for it.

Really? Microsoft rushing out their console in order to beat Sony to the punch, therefore creating years and years of RROD-related nightmares for both their PR department, and gamers in general... how is gaming better off for that?

Sony trying to outdo the Xbox Live service by offering their own Playstation Network for free... then losing the data of millions of their customers to hackers, creating one of the biggest catastro-fucks in online history... how is gaming better for that?

Every single gaming video on Youtube devolving into a shit-slinging fest between Xbox fanboys and PS3 fanboys, full of the sort of hatred and bile usually reserved for Nazi paedophiles... how is gaming better for that?

Maybe a couple of decades ago, when the future of consoles and gaming in general was still unclear, perhaps then you could understand having a couple of consoles on the market at the same time. Nowadays though, the form and nature of consoles is so clear in everyone's mind that there's no need to have several different consoles out at any one time. The only place there is left to go is better graphical fidelity, and that's something Sony and Microsoft could achieve just as well (if not even better) working together as they can competing agaisnt each other. You don't need someone else making a console to think "Hey, that's a really good graphics chap, and that's a really really good CPU."

Hell, with both their expertise in console making, Microsoft and Sony could probably achieve far more working together than they could working apart. If you're a doctor trying to find a cure for a disease, is it better to compete with the other doctor you find trying to cure the same disease? Fuck no. You get him on your team, work together, share your knowledge, and together come up with the cure that's eluded you both separately. Same here. Microsoft and Sony have the security of having to invest less money individually into development, marketing and production (about half of what they would pay, in fact), while benefitting from the techno-know-how of two gaming companies, as opposed to one.

Fuck it, I'm convinced. Why haven't they made the Sonysoft Playbox already?

Because competition is good. You strive to improve, to innovate, and to beat your competitor. Bad things happen, like rushed products and massive fanboy flamewars, but there's development. You improve, you develop, and you try new things. If MS and Sony get together, then there's really nothing to encourage them to keep pushing forward, except Nintendo, and quite honestly, it's been a long time since anyone's taken them seriously.

The industry is stagnant enough as it is; we really don't need this - however cool it might seem.

 

[Ghengis John]

The industry is stagnant enough as it is; we really don't need this - however cool it might seem.

On the other hand having only one console would lower production costs. That results in lower prices, less buggy games, more publishers, a boon to indie development and more experimentation.

You can't really say for certain what the results would be, you could act certain but that would only make you an ass. I think one thing we can bank on though is it's not going to be a console, but I think they could make a beautiful console together and I could see logical positives to that.

 

[Bobbity]

Because competition is good. You strive to improve, to innovate, and to beat your competitor. Bad things happen, like rushed products and massive fanboy flamewars, but there's development. You improve, you develop, and you try new things. If MS and Sony get together, then there's really nothing to encourage them to keep pushing forward, except Nintendo, and quite honestly, it's been a long time since anyone's taken them seriously.

The industry is stagnant enough as it is; we really don't need this - however cool it might seem.

I'm going to take a wild stab in the dark, and guess that you're American. Americans seem to love this "competition is good" mantra, even if it's in something as vital as healthcare.

As I mentioned in my post: the only place to innovate is graphical fidelity. Console designers have already worked out the best console/controller ergonomics, they've already integrated online services, they've all got internal hard-drives... what is there left to improve apart from pure graphical power?

You seem to have an idealistic view of competition. I have an alternate view: you strive to cut corners, reduce risk, and rush products out before your competitors. These are all things we've seen this generation. Sony and Microsoft have both sunk untold billions into the console race this generation. If you're sinking billions, why would you want to try something new and unproven? What did Sony and Microsoft even do that was new and unproven this generation?

If Sony and Microsoft were to get together, the very fact that each of them is individually putting less money at risk means they'd both be more likely to try something a little different. They wouldn't be rushing to beat each other out of the door, so would have no need to push out a console before its ready. And here's the main point: you stop the console war.

I honestly fail to see how the console war is in any way a good thing. Look at every other medium out there. Name me one where the status quo is a war among its own artists and fans over who's better, who's selling more, etc. Look at DVDs. Lacking any real competition, it managed to become the lingua franca for film watchers around the world. Would films have benefitted from two disc-based formats dividing up the film-fanbase and generally making the film industry a far nastier place to be? No. The fact that there was one universal format meant anyone interested in films could pick up a DVD player, their DVD of choice, and get stuck into the fun.

This war between Sony and Microsoft creates an industry, and indeed a medium, that is inherently unstable. And that's a bad thing. It deters people who may otherwise be interested in getting into games because there is no universal media like there is with film or literature. It means developers either have to hedge their bets on one platform, and hope they can sell enough to stay afloat, or they have to spend even more time developing their games across two platforms, therefore costing larger sums of money and requiring larger returns. Indeed, with the vast majority of games released multi-platform, what reason is there for even having two consoles? Are God of War and Halo so important that we have to keep the very medium in a constant state of conflict?

Nope, Aussie, and I was wrong, though not quite in the way that you're getting that - impressive rant aside. You're right about the consoles themselves not being where the innovation is. Nothing dramatically new - actually, do you suppose the Wii counts? It was rather innovative, even if we got drowned in shovelware - has been done with consoles in a long while. However - going off on a tangent here - that does not mean that comptetition is bad. Not that it's good, but rather in that it's the only alternative to a monopoly - which is bad. Telstra, here in Australia, Murdoch's media empire everywhere, and even Microsoft for so long. Without some sort of serious competition, most things will stagnate - at least without an incentive better than pure profit.

However, I'll admit that you were completely right on one count: this unification would be a good thing. An end to the console war, no more rushed products - you're absolutely right; that is good. However, that does not mean that there isn't competition: it's amongst the game developers themselves. It's late here, and I hope you'll forgive my stupiffy earlier. There is almost no innovation in console tech itself, and this joining could only benefit us. It's in the games themselves where innovation takes place, and where competition *is* a good thing.

Anyway, let me know what you think of my newest crazy theory.

 

[flaviok79]

Well, up unto a few years ago, Sega and Nintendo were mortal enemies,entangled in an insane console wars (Sonic and Mario would NEVER share a platform, unless we were playing bootleg games). Look how that turned out.

 

[Nomanslander]

Sony and Microsoft cooperating is almost as unthinkable as Nintendo and Sega used to be.

Competitive companies joining forces? To be truthful though, joint ventures like these happen in the business world all the time.

 

[Alkore]

And shortly after this they are defeated by a platoon of genetically engineered miniature bears the Canadians have been training for just such an occasion.

Dang it how did you find out abo.. I mean the canadian goverment is not at this current time nor has ever begun the training and or recruitment of miniture bears shoul sony and microsoft join forces to take over the world. That is all.

OT: most games are realesed on both systems anyways so this would make things simpler for publishers as well.

 

[Chiefmon]

I'm calling it now: Apocalypse