Source: Edge - Videogame Culture
You knew on Monday, of course, that Sony will be launching PlayStation 3 in Europe on March 23 at £425, a price that has caused some consternation among its potential user base, and not only because it is not a direct conversion of the hardware's Euro tag (€599, which in market terms translates as £395).
Certainly the £425 UK price compares unfavourably with rates in North America, where a PS3 can be purchased for the equivalent of £305. And those expecting a UK PS3 price reduction sooner rather than later will be disappointed, since the hardware is already being sold at a considerable loss, while cost reductions on components will be slow due to their complexity.
What of those hoping to buy into PS3 gaming via its stripped-down 20GB iteration, which officially retails in Japan at just ¥49,980 (£210)? This option simply will not be available to European consumers at launch, with SCEE stating that it will 'follow later in the year dependent on demand' – in other words, possibly not at all.
But the negative buzz surrounding PS3's European price is largely informed by Microsoft's decision to sell Xbox 360 at below £300. What you're not getting in a £280 Xbox 360, though, is a like-for-like feature set, something which Sony has, to date, appeared reluctant to communicate.
To bring an Xbox 360 more in line with a 60GB PS3, the shopping list reads thus:
Xbox 360................................................................................£280
HD DVD Player.....................................................................£130
Wirless Networking Adaptor................................................£_60
12 Months' Xbox Live Gold Memebership..........................£_40
Play & Charge Kit................................................................£_15
Total.......................................................................................£525
(Updated: Let's have some caveats before the comments section heats up unnecessarily: there's no suggestion that PS3's online gaming setup is currently as comprehensively featured as Xbox Live – or indeed that it ever will be – and don't forget that you'll want to purchase a better-than-composite AV lead for your PS3 (component and HDMI leads will cost £18 each); then add in a Bluetooth headset (£15) – plus two games (Amazon value: £76) and an additional joypad (£35) in order to match the content of Microsoft's £280 package deal – all of which gives an ultimate PS3 cost of £569 (bear in mind that we cannot add in the cost of an additional 40GB of hard drive space or card readers for Xbox 360, since such things do not exist.) However, take into consideration the newly mooted £500 PS3 bundle including game and additional joypad (are you keeping up?) and you’re facing £561.)
Ultimately, though, it isn't price that will hold back some from buying a PS3 at launch, but the shape of its game library at that point. Certainly PS3's debut line-up will better PS2's (whose day-one Euro range consisted of Ridge Racer V, Silent Scope, Smuggler's Run, FIFA 2001, Tekken Tag Tournament, SSX, TimeSplitters, ISS, Fantavision, Ready 2 Rumble Round 2 and Orphen), partly because it will make use of PlayStation Network to deliver games via digital download. How will it compare to Xbox 360's launch line-up? Have a look at the official game list and decide for yourself:
PS3 launch titles (retail):
Resistance: Fall Of Man, MotorStorm, Genji: Days Of The Blade, Formula One Championship Edition, Ridge Racer 7, Call Of Duty 3, Marvel: Ultimate Alliance, Tony Hawks Project 8, Gundam - Target in Sight, Full Auto 2: Battle Lines, Sonic The Hedgehog, Virtua Fighter 5, Virtua Tennis 3, World Snooker Championship 2007, NBA 2K7, NHL 2K7, Blazing Angels Squadrons of WWll , Enchanted Arms, Tom Clancy's Splinter Cell: Double Agent, The Elder Scrolls lV: Oblivion, Def Jam: Icon, Fight Night Round 3, NBA Street 4 Homecourt 2007, Need For Speed Carbon, The Godfather: The Don's Edition, Tiger Woods PGA Tour 2007, Untold Legends: Dark Kingdom, F.E.A.R.
PS3 launch titles (via PlayStation Network):
Tekken: Dark Resurrection, Lemmings, Go! Sudoku, Go! Puzzle, Blast Factor, Flow, Super Rub'A'Dub, Gripshift.
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