Just look at this headline to a recent WIRED magazine article and tell me it isn't at least a little surprising:
Can the PS3 Save Sony?
The company that created the transistor radio and the Walkman is at the precipice. If Sony's new $600 console doesn't blow gamers away, it may be time to say sayonara.
by Frank Rose
Now I know that the video game industry has been considering the possibility that the PS3 could be a flop for quite a while now(the timeline varies greatly depending on who you talk to, but for my money it's since they announced the price), but I don't think too many people really thought it could sink Sony. However I suggest anyone who thinks that possibility is very slim should go ahead and read the fascinating article Frank Rose has written for WIRED because it makes a very convincing argument.
My own opinion? Well despite some severe bashing by the hardcore gaming community, I still think this machine has a decent chance. Some huge mistakes have been made by Sony, but there is still a lot to be revealed. I know $600 is a lot of money but you must also realize children, that there are people every day spending that much for graphics cards alone in their gaming PC's. And if you still think it's insane well then I direct your attention to an eye-opening little study by the fine folks at Curmudgeon Gamer. It lists the absolute and relative prices of pretty much every console system of worth to come out in the last 30 years. Check it out.
It's been really amazing though to see Sony go from a company that everyone thought was crazy to challenge Sega and Nintendo in '95, to whomping the competition with both the PS1 and PS2, to now standing in front of possibly their most crucial hour, and all their hopes rest on this one game system. Viewing Sony as a whole, and not just a video game company, I must say I hope this isn't it. Despite some recent mis-steps, they are still responsible for some of the finest home electronics around.
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