NewsSpots: Ubisoft on PS3, SOE Fan Faire, Namco Museum Wii, BioWare talent search

Sony needs to be more developer friendly. They really need to go out of their way to help them develop on their console. After that its very plausible that we'll see some exciting games come out for the ps3. I agree that a price cut is in order, people are shying away after seeing that price tag. Following that its all about the games. Want to happen but never will! : Shenmue 3 for ps3 --> chapters 1-12 the complete saga

>>icarus212001 its pretty hard for sony to lower the price right now. they already lose over $200 on each console actually SOLD, imagine how much they'd lose with a lower price. its madness (and dont anybody say “this is spardaâ€

Why do they issue old old stuff on the "downloadable content" areas of the "new current gen" dconsoles? This is beyond my grasp... On another note, BioWare mod contest - oh oh!

"Ubisoft CEO says PS3 price must come down:---- Gee whiz, did it take a genius to figure that one out???? That is one of the most obvious statements I have read in a very long time. And I love the PS3. Sony would sell way more if it came down even $100.

it feels to me that sony released the game too early. They had a subpar launch line up, on top of the price, making the launch very unsuccessful. Then months after nothing came in the news about any game hype on the ps3. They don't need to slash the price on their guns, they just need to load up better ammo to boost the fire power, instead of all these blanks and fakes like resistance (played it, and it doesn't even come close to the shooters you can get by buying a 360). The best game i seen on the ps3 is tiger woods, but i am not a golf fan, pass. o and I also just want to comment to the god of wars 2 guy. LOL, you're funny, but reality check please....

Actually Sony Games is not look to be profitable. Their first quarter results were abyssmal, my guess is that the first price drop will take place at FanFaire. That way the drop is close enough to launch to increase units sold but not so close that it looks like a fire sale. Marketing will probably say its to celebrate the con.

ebonyflame, you full of it. "God of War and its sequel both looked outstanding on the PS2 hardware, easily equal to any Xbox 360 game in terms of looks and superior on many fronts in terms of gameplay and story." No PS2 game looks even close to any 360 game period.(PS2 games graphics cant even compare to a PS3's let alone a 360's) That statement is just nonsense. And God of war is a great game with a great story but it's not better then half of the 360's games stories either.

To the person who actually said GOW2 was equal to any 360 game... WOW the bias (either intentionally blind or just plain naive) is sad. No ps2 games look as good as a 360 game and that's a fact. No ps2 games looks as good as a ps3 game (yes I have both, sorry all 3). So please don't make yourself look silly by posting complete nonsense. As for having a price break, yes it is needed. The only question is will Sony has to yield profitability as a whole by cutting the price at retail for the ps3 as they are already looking to be profitable this fiscal year (a price cut will change that forecast. Question is by how much?). What they need are 2 things, 1 a big price break of at least $150 and second a larger selection of AA- AAA titles and more casual friendly games that will help a average consumer overlook the higher price point.

The thought of removing Blu-Ray to lower cost is stupid. Because Sony, unlike Microsoft, is actually using Blu-Ray for games. Take away Blue-Ray and we have no PS3 games. I do agree that the price should be slashed by at least $200. In Canada, we're looking at like $700+ before taxes simply for the system and one game. That is ridiculous. The one thing that has always made console games more appealing than PC games is not having to shell out $700 per month on a video card, RAM, etc. Those who have the money to buy it as is, will not complain because they either have it already or they could just as easily get it. Besides that, they'll complain because they'll feel like they should have waited. The only problem with waiting is online gaming. If you wait too long the online component may be canceled by the time you decide to buy the system. As far as console wars, well it's pointless. All three companies have made mistakes. From Sony's pricing, to Microsoft's no mod rule and the Elite (which in my opinion should've been the core version), to the Wii possibly too different and technological not "next-gen enough". They've made mistakes. And as someone who doesn't breeze through my games or bored easy (as long as they're decent to great games) I plan on owning all three systems, price drop or not.

Samiii the ps3 is not 20 dollars more, that version was scrapped by sony, they are only making the 600 dollar version.

Here's an idea, drop the price of the games down, oh lets say $10, and lets see if that don't help pick up the hardware sales pace. Seriously, asking $600 for a console is a bit steep, but reasonable considering what the technology is but asking people to also pay more per game is outrageous. The HD era will be mired on all sides based on increasing price and lackluster demand. Standard definition DVD movies already look outstanding to the average TV watcher. This is the reason the new formats are doing poorly because nobody will go spend lots of money on a technology that is not leaps and bounds better the way DVD was to VHS. The same is true for gaming. God of War and its sequel both looked outstanding on the PS2 hardware, easily equal to any Xbox 360 game in terms of looks and superior on many fronts in terms of gameplay and story. There are very few games on either next gen system that look leaps and bounds better than what is currently available. Not only that, games on the 360 still are produced on standard DVD and the price per Blu Ray disk is just outrageous.

Why should sony drop prices they offer loads more than tht xbox elite thing that will come out in the future and for an extra $20. Also, I spent the money so they shouldn't drop till next year.(I did get sent some free bees off SONY too- Thanks for Casino Royale)

Sony's not going to lower the price for a while because they are still holding tight to their "$600 is a bargain if you look at all you're getting!" It really doesn't matter if the thing is $600 of $450 or whatever, if the games were there, people would buy it. Right now the really lackluster software lineup is killing the PS3 and making the price seem so astronomical.

The low sales of PS3 aren't just down to price though. Having not bothered playing through the Megadrive and SNES area I got back into gaming through the PS1 and then PS2... but the number of generic rubbish that started to appear on the PS2 started to put me off... too many companies were making the same type of stuff and innovation got squeezed out, apart from ICO and Disaster Report there just wasn't enough NEW stuff that I could get interested so I wandered off into Dreamcast and Xbox stuff and found way more stuff to interest me. Looking at the PS3 games and the stuff thats supposedly coming it looks, to me anyway, more of the same but with shinier graphics, some stuff looks like it would be at home on a Nintendo console there are so many "cuddly" characters and bright colours. A price cut would help but some new ideas on the software front would help just as much (I don't count thrashing my arms around to utilise motion sensing as innovation) and so far I can't see too much of that, Little Big Planet is as far away from a system seller as i could possibly imagine.

Dear Menduco, Well I'm neither naive or young (31 years old, 25 years of gaming experience)... and although I believe you're right about the PS3 being a vehicle for Sony's Blu-Ray format (and agree with all the wrongs that come with it), I don't agree with you about the impact of an eventual PS3 price drop. I say this based on my experience and conversations with friends. Some had a PS1, all of them have a PS2 and have become "loyal" to the Playstation brand. They're used to the Playstation joypad, have a considerable collection of old games (some of them still with considerable playability), and most of them have wives and no way of putting more than 1 videogame console in the living room! That's why they think the PS3 is the best solution for them. Yes, they may be choosing wrong: the X360 may have a better software collection, the Wii may be "funnier" to play... But ask them and the PS3 is what they want. They are all waiting for 2 things: a price drop and the release of Pro Evolution Soccer / Winning Eleven. There's no alternative for them (except for a couple of wealther ones who want a PS3 AND a Wii, just for fun). Myself, I already bought a PS3 - I'm a little more hardcore gamer than them and couldn't wait more. I confess that I respect the X360 and the job Microsoft has been doing (at least until now) and I feel that the Wii is a wonderful "party machine", excellent to play with your friends. But, nevertheless, I bought the PS3. And all my friends have played with it and said... "I'm just waiting for the price drop". Cumprimentos, Nuno

to be honest guys the PS3 is going to get a price drop thing is the new PS3's that are being developed have NOT got an emotion engine thing. Thing is the Korean release of the PS3 is in June and they don't have the emotion engine (European PS3's NO emotion engine) which basically means a price drop. and by the way they have the 80GB HDD's am telling you the price is going to come down this year probably with the release of the fall games but Sony know how to reduce productions cots, i mean they will still be loosing money but it will probably be the same amount as now: Korean PS3 website: << LINK REMOVED >> some forum: << LINK REMOVED >>

I think we need to get back to understanding what the PS3 is all about The PS and PS2 were about games, and squarely aimed at gamers. But Sony has said that the PS3 is a multimedia centre, so it's not wholly accurate to (a) describe it as a console, or to say that (b) people will mostly buy it for games. The market that the PS3 is aimed at is much more general than before, really it's shifted in favour of casual gamers, who also want a Blu-Ray player for their home movie entertainment. To achieve home entertainment dominance, Sony wants Blu-Ray to succeed, and that is a key stone of their philosophy this time. That is also why the price of the PS3 is high. However Sony seem prepared to gamble that and lose sales to the Wii and 360, and the handhelds particularly the DS. Therefore they may be prepared to lose a slice of their gamer fan base to gain a larger slice of the general multimedia and home entertainment market. As a gamer mostly, I'm not yet interested in Blu-Ray vs HDD, so any price premium at the moment is not appealing to me. Currently we have PS3 priced in the UK at equivalent $840 US dollars, whereas X360 is $550 US and the Wii is $350 US. So for just $60 more, I can have both X360 and Wii, instead of a PS3. Well that's just my pennyworth. Sony needed to decide on it's market target and get an effective price point. I think it has done that, but it's by no means aimed at gamers ;-) Personally $840 is too high. I'm still with my PS2 and Xbox, and waiting to get my next-gen when the price is right. I just need to decide between X360 and PS3.

you guys are getting ridiculous with this whole lower the price deal. It doesnt matter if they lowered the price because there are no games right now. So people would still not buy the PS3 like crazy. People buy consoles for the games mostly, no games not buying. Simple as that. The price is right where it should be. 360 with the HD attach cost up to if not $700, if not more. Thats a clean 100 bucks more than the PS3. And dont gimmie that bull, "you dont have to get it", you will have to get it if you wanna play the GOOD games. I havent forgotten about the Elite, the most expensive periph ever made, the first to ever double as a console. Dude its stupid and sounds like a scam to me. You pay 4 or 5 for the 360 and now you have to scrap it to pay another 5 to get some features that should have been there in the first. You spend almost twice a PS3, yet you are still complaining about the price. The only reason 360 is ahead right now is because it been out for almost a year and it has games (it still hasnt beat PS2 or PSP in sales) also it only sold so many at launch because it was the only nextgen system available. Tell me would people be complaining this much if PS3 launched in Mar WITH its Xmas lineup. I dont think so. Dude, for 600, i got a system that i can remotely access almost anywhere with my psp, i can browse the internet, it plays bluray, dvd, cd and more, free online comunity (that will be off the chain in Sept), and more to come. How much do you pay a month for XBL, add it up for one year and i bet it make the 360 cost more than a PS3. So i can put it like this, i paid 500 for a videogame system (same as 360 when released) and i paid a one time fee of 100bucks for infinite hours of online play. I think that is fair. And motion control is dope, kudos to Nintendo and Sony. PS3 has been out for about 4 months, be patient you babies and wait for the storm in Xmas. But if you have to have a cheap PS3 get it from Japan for 501bucks, non region coded games is the joint, i'd pay an extra hundred for that.

in actuality, it wont make a difference if sony lowers the price of the PS3. The reason is simple. Microsoft is CLEARLY waiting for Sony to lower the price of their console to counteract with their own slashing of prices. AS soon as Sony anounces a price cut, Microsoft will follow suit. If Forza, Bioshock, Mass Effect, and Halo 3 all turn out to be AAA titles with graphics that are as good or better than anything on the PS3, people will still opt for the xbox, because it will STILL be cheaper than the PS3 and in terms of gaming, which is REALLY why we buy consoles, the xbox will have proved to be just as good as the PS3. So no matter what Sony does with their prices, it wont make a difference. That is one of the reasons why Sony wont lower their prices just yet. Because they know it would not help as much as they would like, and they are already loosing lots of money per console sold. So they have to milk the PS3 for as much as they can at its current price point before doing anything about it. For that reason alone, Sony has dug itself in a big hole. All so they can win the format war. They have hurt their gaming console so that blu ray can take off. But you know what? Maybe thats a calculated risk they took and maybe they are ok with that. Maybe they prefer to push blu ray...after all, thats the real reason why they put it in the PS3. Anyone who says otherwise is increadibly naive, or just too young to understand. So im glad this is happening to them.

A) Sony is hurting developers and consumers and themselves by not lowering the price of the PS3. B)It's nice to know that they're throwing a Fan Fair to show more than 1500 people the games they will never be able to play because the damn PS3 costs so damn much. C)The only games we've heard of are Pac- man and Galaga. And when you say "revamped with Wii-mote controls", do you mean like Spiderman 3? D)Actually, I like the fact that Bioware is looking for new talent! I wish other third party companies would...cough EA cough!!!

I agree with the Ubisoft guy; Sony does need to drastically lower the price. That's the only reason I'm not buying it (and yes, I do have a job but I also have BILLS). $600 is not a deal right now. I don't care if it is a "cheap" Blu-ray player. I don't even own an HDTV yet either so that whole subject is moot. Also, the fact there are literally NO killer games that scream "must-own" right now. So what I'm am paying the exorbitant price for? To watch $30 Blu-ray movies on an SDTV? No thanks.So until Sony gets off its high horse with their laughable price tag I'll be quite content to wait.

I'm on disability, because well, i'm disabled, but even I couldn't get that much. I get like 630 a month, and after my bills and stuff, I have maybe 100 left over to spend or save. Yeah...whatever government assistance those people are getting, give my disabled butt some. Anyways, I don't know. If Sony can feasibly lower the price, then they should damn well do it. But I swear I read they are already losing like a couple hundred on the machines with the price it is now. I mean, unless they can somehow make up the loss with massive sales, or just take the loss so they can stay in the top runnings, I dunno. Personally, none of those cons look at all interesting. Blizzcon maybe for SC2 info, but i'm sick of WoW (played it for 2 years, its good, but you just get sick of it after awhile, at least for me, not trying to bash anyone who still does). Quakecon..meh, SOE Faire...Meh. Oh my, if I only I had the NWN1 game still, and knew how to actually make anything worth a damn on it, I bet I could come up with something pretty damn good. I'm a great writer (minus errors in not so important stuff like this, so shoosh) but I know next to diddly squat in that regard. Would be cool to see a community member with real talent get hired, or at least be able to have some say on whatever projects Bioware would allow. Anywho, Peace.

-Barom- I think its a much larger possibility that he is on Government assistance and we in essence paid for his PS3. My father works with a guy who did the same thing. Five kids, wife doesn't have a job, pays zero income tax because of earned income credit but gets a refund of $6500 which he spends at best buy in one day. Some peoples priorities are seriously messed up. He should have at least gotten a 360!!!!

sure, the ps3 is amazing, I like the specs alot. However, comparing it to the values of the other consoles, its totally not worth it. The price drop ubi asked for is not because ubi thinks that more people will be able to afford it , THIS IS ABSOLUTELY THE WRONG THINKING. Its just that compared to other consoles, u can get the same fun or more fun for less buck (ps3 has a horrid line up of games imo, but improvements are coming I heard). What I am saying is, the 360 already have very good looking graphics, and games like oblivion and gears of war pumps the system to its potential (and with great results), can the ps3 justify its specs with any games? Not so far, and it now costs 200 more than a 360 (120 more than the elite). with the wii, people get fun and more family oriented games that require you to be more involved in the game, very innovative, and CHEAP. At less than half the price, you can also get lot of funs out of it. in conclusion, ps3 absolutely dazzles me in specs, and its potential, but for the price, I can't really get as much fun out of it as I can a 360 or a wii imo. However, I feel that ps3 can and will compete after heavenly sword and the new shooter (uncharted or something? Can't remember guys) come out. Besides that, ps3 is totally not worth the price imo.

kbrownxyz1 sorry guys but making only $9.00 an hrs. that is $1,440 a month with taxes that about $ 1,000 a month. A ps3 is $599.99 with taxes plus games and controller with rent plus wife and four kids plus a car that needs gas come on i,m not a fool please tell me something i can believe Not saying that he's speakin the truth but it's a big possibility that his wife works too.

Sony shouldnt have to drop the price...yet....maybe around the holidays. as for the others who are complaining about the price then u shouldnt even be spending money in next gen if its such a drag for you people

PacoL250, I agree with you. I strongly believe Sony is going to drop the price of the PS3 this holiday season and with games such as GTA IV, MGS 4, Uncharted, Ratchet & Clank, Stranglehold, Folklore, FFXIII, SOCOM, Heavenly Sword, LittleBigPlanet, and Home, the PS3 will be a very attractive console!

its pretty hard for sony to lower the price right now. they already lose over $200 on each console actually SOLD, imagine how much they'd lose with a lower price. its madness (and dont anybody say “this is sparda”...that movie was trash and its getting old)

ubisoft has been slacking off lately this generation capcom has been the major good games developer

UBI needs to move their lazy asses and make better games.

price drop would be nice but hey if sony doesnt want to then hey i didnt lose 2 billion dollars so hey their call.and yes i know microsoft lost money on xbox so shut up, there is a difference between a company that Has money and one that doesnt.

It boils down to this: the PS3 is a technical marvel, but until it is economically feasible (heck a $100 drop in price would be golden cause I'd buy it then in a heartbeat and I know I'm not the only one), no matter if you have a job or not, it's not worth it. It's exactly what ANUBIS209 said: Ubisoft has no faith in Sony's product at the moment. The last console generation, Ubisoft was simply given a better monetary deal to release on the Xbox previously and on top of that, the system was able to do more of what they wanted at the time with Splinter Cell (e.g. lighting effects) (granted, Splinter Cell: Chaos Theory got a director's cut on the PS2, so not all was lost for the PS2 in that regard). Based off of the last generation of consoles, Ubisoft seemingly prefers to work with technically-powerful consoles. Last generation it was the Xbox, whereas right now it's the PS3. However, unlike right now, the Xbox was able to gain a foothold and gain a great market share. At the moment, the PS3 doesn't have that and Ubisoft's CEO calling out Sony about their price could be paraphrased as: "more developers will develop for your console if you gain a greater market share." I for one would prefer since that would force developers and the console manufacturers to stop giving us crappy games/services. (On a side note, my previous comment apparently offended some PS3 fanboy so much that GameSpot had to give me my first warning ever for "trolling." I'm amused actually. Hey, I'm sorry the truth hurt, but that's how said person's post came off as. So I responded. I wonder if I'll get another warning for this... :) ;) )

Hey honey, got some bad news,......................................................................... we can't afford rent this month, the car payment will have to wait and your gonna have to make Jr's clothes out of 2 teabags and a piece of waxpaper...........but the good news?!?!...........I just entered the Motostorm tournament..........now that's some wacked priorities

The point of the rating system is to let you know whether your filled with hot air or not. Most people think their opinions are gold, when in reality they are not worth the time it takes to read them, including myself.Now I know I am filled with 73% crap. Up until the rating system I thought I was filled with only 25% crap.

sorry guys but making only $9.00 an hrs. that is $1,440 a month with taxes that about $ 1,000 a month. A ps3 is $599.99 with taxes plus games and controller with rent plus wife and four kids plus a car that needs gas come on i,m not a fool please tell me something i can believe

that wii game sounds dumb

When did they introduce this new comment rating system? I dont see what the point is!

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$600 is nothing but that doesn't mean people will buy it

personally I don't think the PS3 needs a price drop.Sony already taking losses on it. I only make 9 dollars an hour and support a wife and 4 kids on my wage.I own a PS3. People just have to stop being so afraid to spend some money.If you buy the PS3 and don't like it then sell it. No big deal.I think the PS3 is an amazing console and is well worth the money.So stop crying about this price crap.Take a chance and take the skirts off people.If there is no games out for the PS3 that you don't like then wait to get it.The PS3 has great games for it.Some suck and some are great.So just take a chance.Stop asking people on the forums if the PS3 is worth it. Yes it is.Now go get one.Stop being so scared to buy a PS3.In the long run you won't regret it.

Hmm. The bioware news intrigues me the most. The only problem is, I'd love to join that, but because I have no scripting experience, all my module attempts have failed miserably. hehe

I dont know what you pay for computers, but $600US I could have a fairly crancking system

north arrow you cant by a 600 dollar computer and make it run a game like resistance... a 600 dollar computer can run... starcraft...1.... ok maybe not that bad but you get the point

Yeah, whatever you say JumpOff718, that's why all the PS3 exclusive games are going to 360 as well. So, you're saying Capcom is like Ubisoft and can only develop for Sony? I don't think so, considering one of their most famous series is now heading to 360. They realize that with the PS3's low sales (no matter how many are selling where you live lol) they need to broaden their horizons to earn more money. Talking about how going to 360 is downgrading is stupid. PS3 might be really advanced, but barely anybody is buying one.

As much as everyone hates hearing it, UBI's CEO is right on. The PS3 may be an awesome piece of hardware but it certainly isn't worth Sony's asking price. For that kind of money you could be buying a computer which can do more and do it better.

This place is full of fanboys/fangirls. On the flip side, great news for all 3 systems.

jumpoff718 what are you doing? if you want to write a bio, write a book

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What the F!!! Namco Museum For WII!! With no great games in this collection, I think this museum will stay in the museum!!