After an entire generation spent chasing the shadows of its competitors, you could forgive Sony for being a little smug about the success of the PlayStation 4 – but the fact that it’s opting to stay laser focused on the future rather than celebrate its achievements says more about the change of attitude within the corporation than any of its comments over the past 12 months.
Speaking during organisation overlord Kaz Hirai’s keynote at CES this week, group president Andrew House announced that the company has already sold 4.2 million next generation consoles to consumers – a figure significantly higher than the three million tally currently attached to the Xbox One. But how much does that advantage really matter? Not at all, according to the platform holder.
“We look at it really just introspectively,” SCEA marketing vice president John Koller told CVG. “The '4.2 million' number is important because it gets us further towards our goal. And that goal is the largest install base that we can possibly get – to encourage publishers and developers to continue to make great game experiences for the PS4.”
The executive continued that it wants to make its system “economically viable” for third-party publishers and developers, with larger sales meaning that more content is likely to come to the console. “[We want firms to say], 'You know what, I want to be on the PS4 either first, exclusively' or whatever it is, utilise the feature set that the PS4 has, and really encourage that as a business.”
With a product as compelling as Mark Cerny’s super machine, Koller doesn’t foresee that being a problem. “I mean, sure, we all look at the competition and see where people are, but for us we've got to keep growing, getting bigger and bigger,” he continued. “I think that we've got a great opportunity specifically because we've got a great product.”
The suit makes a pertinent point. While the early sales aren’t overly important in competitive terms, publishers planning future products now know that their wares will have to be on the PS4. That’s not only imperative for ongoing support, but also the longevity of the system’s success. After all, you only need compare the PlayStation Vita’s launch slate to its current release schedule to see what impact a slow start can have.
[source computerandvideogames.com]
Comments 5
MS will not go away (which is a good thing) they will just keep coming, but Sony doesn't look like it's resting on its laurels which is great. Releasing PS Now is huge news and it still sounds like have more tech and games up their sleeve. The race is just beginning.
They're already close to their goal, why wouldn't they keep selling as hotly
I predicted that Japan would be the one to hit the 5Mil mark, but it looks like the US and EU will handle that themselves. I expect Japan to push sales to at least 7.2Mil within the PS4's first month on shelves.
All that aside, Sony is smart to keep the momentum going. If they take their foot off the gas for even a second, they may regret it.
Honestly, next gen can't come fast enough. I want a next gen prince of persia which has to happen within the next year or two.
I like the attitude at Sony so far this gen. Just stay focused on the big picture and keeping consumers happy. If this attitude keeps up, things will hopefully play out well for PS4.
Tap here to load 5 comments
Leave A Comment
Hold on there, you need to login to post a comment...