PS3 Interview in EGM
Posted: February 8th, 2007, 12:30 pm
While definitely not as arrogant or unrelenting, Peter Moore spoke pretty similarly when he was hardballed by Dan Hsu. Granted, his answers were indeed more diplomatic, but I think any executive will face a hardball interview with confidence. Not defending Jack Tretton, not at all - but I'd expect to see the same thing from Reggie were he grilled about a subpar launch. In fact, all I saw from Reggie when he was asked, "What games make Gamecube worth playing in 2006?", all he kept repeating was Mario Strikers and something else I don't even remember. When I asked him during the Toys R Us Wii Launch in NYC at Times Square what games would tide us over before Metroid and Mario, he said, "Smooth Moves," something else, and then, "a whole bunch of other great properties." Nothing specific. So, it's abhorrent that Tretton is being so offensively arrogant, but he's also (sort of) doing what the others would/might do. I just hope that in the future all of them - Reggie, Tretton, Peter Moore - learn that people like you and me find the lack of brutal honesty annoying.
[QUOTE=The Video Game Critic]
On the negativity surrounding the launch:
"The problem we have... it's society in general. We're been the undisputed winner for over a decade now, and people keep waiting for us to slip up, and we haven't, so people try to create stories that aren't there"
[/QUOTE]
This is not nonsense, because a lot of people do sit there and try to find something negative to say about Sony. However, I do think it's nonsense that he uses this fact as an excuse. Some people hunted for negative things to say because Sony opened itself up to it. So, while half-true, it's ridiculous to say this openly as a defensive maneuver. That's horrible PR.
[QUOTE=The Video Game Critic]
On PS3's sitting on the shelf (early Jan):
"If you can find a PS3 anywhere in North America that's been on shelves for more than five minutes, I'll give you 1,200 bucks for it."
[/QUOTE]
I guess he gave EGM $1,200.
[QUOTE=The Video Game Critic]
On the price:
"If you want the ultimate gaming experience and you see value in all those other experiences, all of a sudden 599 bucks doesn't sound like a whole lot of money"
[/quote]
Typical spin. I find it nonsense, but I don't blame him for it. I thought $399 was already expensive for the 360, and Moore said the same thing - "it's a great value." Not to me. But I bought one for $350 anyway... -_-
[QUOTE=The Video Game Critic]
On the lack of HD cable with the system:
"The statistics I've read say that 38 percent of the TVs that were sold this year were high-def TVs. To me that says 62 percent were not high-def"
[/quote]
This is a very stupid statement when there was an easy answer to this question. First off, it contradicts the company's vision. Sony wants to push its machine as the 'True HD' machine. Yet, you can't experience 'True HD' with composite cables. Hell, by quoting research numbers that does the *opposite* of supporting the High-Def platform, Tretton is in effect shooting himself - and his company's vision of True HD - in the foot. Secondly, he could have just said, "You can find Playstation 2 component cables - which are compatible - for very cheap." Still not the perfect answer, but better than shooting yourself in the foot.
[QUOTE=The Video Game Critic]
On the lack of vibration in the PS3 controller:
"...it personally wasn't all that compelling to me. We feel that vibration is not part of our future"
[/QUOTE]
More spin, more shades of Phil Harrison.
[QUOTE=The Video Game Critic]
On the Wii:
"I think Nintendo is trying to find their place in the market"
[/QUOTE]
They sort of are - Nintendo is basically seeing new territory and we don't know yet how it will solidify. I know he meant it as an insult but I don't see it that way because there are shades of logic and truth to it. Then again, he does say...
[QUOTE=The Video Game Critic]
On attracting new consumers:
"I don't know if [the Wii] ultimately has the horses to do that"
[/QUOTE]
Again, this may be true - we've only seen just over ten weeks of success for the new machine. Who knows what will happen next year? But, again, he's in spin mode.
[QUOTE=The Video Game Critic]
On the ill-fated UMD movie:
"The mistake we made in UMD as a movie format was assuming the movie studios understood our consumers and their tastes... that they knew what they were doing"
[/QUOTE]
Again with the, "It's their fault, not ours." There's no way around this one - it's just a dumb statement, a dumb defensive maneuver for a stupid move in the first place.
[QUOTE=The Video Game Critic]
On his vision:
"To ultimately be successful, you have to believe that every consumer matters"
[/QUOTE]
This is slightly comical because I don't think his colleagues are doing the right things to make us believe that they care about this. However, it's the right thing to say, and it's true. It's just that they're not doing it yet. Wait until next year, though, when the big games come and a price drop possibly gets discussed. I don't think Sony is down and out for the long haul - I just think they've messed up in the short run.
[QUOTE=The Video Game Critic]
On the negativity surrounding the launch:
"The problem we have... it's society in general. We're been the undisputed winner for over a decade now, and people keep waiting for us to slip up, and we haven't, so people try to create stories that aren't there"
[/QUOTE]
This is not nonsense, because a lot of people do sit there and try to find something negative to say about Sony. However, I do think it's nonsense that he uses this fact as an excuse. Some people hunted for negative things to say because Sony opened itself up to it. So, while half-true, it's ridiculous to say this openly as a defensive maneuver. That's horrible PR.
[QUOTE=The Video Game Critic]
On PS3's sitting on the shelf (early Jan):
"If you can find a PS3 anywhere in North America that's been on shelves for more than five minutes, I'll give you 1,200 bucks for it."
[/QUOTE]
I guess he gave EGM $1,200.
[QUOTE=The Video Game Critic]
On the price:
"If you want the ultimate gaming experience and you see value in all those other experiences, all of a sudden 599 bucks doesn't sound like a whole lot of money"
[/quote]
Typical spin. I find it nonsense, but I don't blame him for it. I thought $399 was already expensive for the 360, and Moore said the same thing - "it's a great value." Not to me. But I bought one for $350 anyway... -_-
[QUOTE=The Video Game Critic]
On the lack of HD cable with the system:
"The statistics I've read say that 38 percent of the TVs that were sold this year were high-def TVs. To me that says 62 percent were not high-def"
[/quote]
This is a very stupid statement when there was an easy answer to this question. First off, it contradicts the company's vision. Sony wants to push its machine as the 'True HD' machine. Yet, you can't experience 'True HD' with composite cables. Hell, by quoting research numbers that does the *opposite* of supporting the High-Def platform, Tretton is in effect shooting himself - and his company's vision of True HD - in the foot. Secondly, he could have just said, "You can find Playstation 2 component cables - which are compatible - for very cheap." Still not the perfect answer, but better than shooting yourself in the foot.
[QUOTE=The Video Game Critic]
On the lack of vibration in the PS3 controller:
"...it personally wasn't all that compelling to me. We feel that vibration is not part of our future"
[/QUOTE]
More spin, more shades of Phil Harrison.
[QUOTE=The Video Game Critic]
On the Wii:
"I think Nintendo is trying to find their place in the market"
[/QUOTE]
They sort of are - Nintendo is basically seeing new territory and we don't know yet how it will solidify. I know he meant it as an insult but I don't see it that way because there are shades of logic and truth to it. Then again, he does say...
[QUOTE=The Video Game Critic]
On attracting new consumers:
"I don't know if [the Wii] ultimately has the horses to do that"
[/QUOTE]
Again, this may be true - we've only seen just over ten weeks of success for the new machine. Who knows what will happen next year? But, again, he's in spin mode.
[QUOTE=The Video Game Critic]
On the ill-fated UMD movie:
"The mistake we made in UMD as a movie format was assuming the movie studios understood our consumers and their tastes... that they knew what they were doing"
[/QUOTE]
Again with the, "It's their fault, not ours." There's no way around this one - it's just a dumb statement, a dumb defensive maneuver for a stupid move in the first place.
[QUOTE=The Video Game Critic]
On his vision:
"To ultimately be successful, you have to believe that every consumer matters"
[/QUOTE]
This is slightly comical because I don't think his colleagues are doing the right things to make us believe that they care about this. However, it's the right thing to say, and it's true. It's just that they're not doing it yet. Wait until next year, though, when the big games come and a price drop possibly gets discussed. I don't think Sony is down and out for the long haul - I just think they've messed up in the short run.