Simple, arrogance; Sony, following the overwhelming successful of the Playstation 2, believed themselves invincible and for all standing purposes, they were well within their right to believe precisely that. They released a console devoid of any worthwhile game for an astonishing three years, which from an outside marketing position is absolute bewildering and it proved to be a disatrious situation for Sony as they were continuously outsold by Microsoft and subsequently hammered by Nintendo, who had at one point been believed to go the route of Sega considering the overall failure of the Gamecube. In addition Blu-ray compatibility was not as highly coveted as Sony had believed it to be. A large amount of people were genuinely content with basic HD, which for all intended purposes, was not inferior enough to garner interest in the more expensive Blu-ray. With no games, no selling point and an ludicrous $600 price tag, people deviated from Sony, therefore to earn a profit, game companies had to appeal to Microsoft, the more successful console.
Another qualm is the price of gaming today. When you consider Final Fantasy X cost a astronomical $32.5 million, if not slightly more, to develop, games companies could no longer afford to produce exclusives without a sizable contract from either Microsoft or Sony to outset the current gen costs. Once again Sony's arrogance reared it's ugly head and they blew aside the necessity of having exclusive games, allowing Microsoft to latch on to some of the most prominent titles in existence. GTA was a blow however nothing devastated Sony in the North America market more than Final Fantasy XIII being released on the 360. That series is widely cited as a console seller and now 360 gamers can simply purchase it for their current console instead.
Sony ironically played this generation in mirror similarity to Nintendo in the early 90s. Just as Nintendo created their own worst nightmare, Sony did precisely the same. History has an amusing way of repeating itself.
Another qualm is the price of gaming today. When you consider Final Fantasy X cost a astronomical $32.5 million, if not slightly more, to develop, games companies could no longer afford to produce exclusives without a sizable contract from either Microsoft or Sony to outset the current gen costs. Once again Sony's arrogance reared it's ugly head and they blew aside the necessity of having exclusive games, allowing Microsoft to latch on to some of the most prominent titles in existence. GTA was a blow however nothing devastated Sony in the North America market more than Final Fantasy XIII being released on the 360. That series is widely cited as a console seller and now 360 gamers can simply purchase it for their current console instead.
Sony ironically played this generation in mirror similarity to Nintendo in the early 90s. Just as Nintendo created their own worst nightmare, Sony did precisely the same. History has an amusing way of repeating itself.
