PlayStation 3 To Launch with 15 Games

Sony's Kaz Hirai told Bloomberg that PlayStation 3 will launch with as many as 15 games this November 17. The statement was made amidst complaints by publishers like THQ and Sega that Sony has not provided development kits and information in a timely enough matter. The 15 games will likely include a launch window that could extend through the end of this year, or even into next year (as Microsoft's Xbox 360 did last year). THQ said they decided not to bring "The Sopranos" to PS3 because of lack of information. (The game will release on Xbox 360 and reach the much larger PS2 audience.) Sega said their PS3 games won't make full use of the Cell processor that runs the PS3. Electronic Arts, which usually gets development kits first among the game publisher, and Activision, both said they are happy with Sony's PS3 development.

After taking E3 by storm last year with an amazing press conference that stole a lot of wind from Microsoft's Xbox 360 sail, this year was quite a contrasting story for Sony. PS3 "underwhelmed" the majority of journalists at the show this year. While there were plenty of great-looking games like "Grun Turismo HD" and "Resistance: Fall of Man," there wasn't anything that created a graphical gap between Xbox 360 titles on display. (Microsoft developers do have the advantage of having worked with the Xbox 360 for a couple of years now.) The one game that wowed the show floor, Ubisoft's "Assassin's Creed," will likely also appear on Xbox 360 and PC. (Sony's PS3 audience will be too small to bring such a powerful new IP exclusively to that platform at this stage in the game and Ubi already has sequels planned.)

Beyond the lack of killer apps, Sony's sticker shock sent reverberations throughout the industry. $600 is a lot of money to dish out for a console (before buying another controller and $60 games). While Blu-Ray Disc is a great technology under the hood, most consumers haven't been complaining about current DVD movie quality. (The $500 PS3 doesn't support HDMI.) The fact that there's a Betamax-type war between Blu-Ray Disc and HD-DVD (Microsoft will release an HD-DVD player this fall for Xbox 360), doesn't help things. The early adopters will likely buy PS3, which will be in short supply this fall anyway. But Sony's going to have to drop its price fast for next year and introduce some games that make the consumer "need" to buy this hardware. More Hollywood movies on Blu-Ray Disc will also help. HD-DVD recently launched with a total of three movies at retail--and none of them were really worth buying to begin with. Sony has a lot more Hollywood support in its camp with five of the six studios committed to Blu-Ray Disc.

Sony has been a leader in the games industry since it shocked Nintendo and Sega with its original PlayStation. PS3 incorporates too many "me too" elements that makes Sony look like a copycat rather than an innovator. The game giant can certaily right its ship, but it needs to fix the price situation, reveal some innovative games (launch titles, in general, are rarely very good for any console), and push its free online gaming initiative. Before E3, a lot of experts said this next battle was Sony's to lose. Microsoft has been forging ahead after its own disastrous launch and is clearly distancing itself in this race. Nintendo blew out of the gate with Wii at this year's E3 show and should make a big splash with its lower-priced next gen console and games this fall and beyond. It's still early in this new round of battle, but Sony is clearly no longer in the driver's seat.