Planet Gadgets Gadget Blog

PlayStation 3 delayed in Europe until Spring 2007

by Administrator

Ouch. Before we’ve even taken in the news that the PlayStation 3 will not ship with a vital high-definition cable, a very matter-of-fact article has appeared on BBC News with the harsh revelation that the PlayStation 3 won’t be hitting Europe until March 2007.

Although the console is still planned to launch during November in the US and Japan, this is yet another nail in Sony’s coffin that I believe is going to irreparably damage its reputation in Europe. As a European myself, I can tell you first hand that the overall climate around Sony is fairly poor, with the fact that the console will cost the equivalent of $800 and the games well over $100 due to inflation already seriously ticking people off — and it’s not even out.

So, to summarise, Europeans will be paying over $1000 for a PlayStation 3 and several games, the PlayStation 3 is going to completely miss the critical Christmas period, and of course the PlayStation 3 won’t be hitting stores until next spring. There’s also the non-consumer side of things, with actually developing the games for the PlayStation 3 reportedly being quite difficult in comparison to Microsoft’s Xbox 360 and Nintendo’s Wii — and what’s a console without games?

Although I don’t like to place bets on the success of consoles that haven’t been released yet, my money isn’t on the PlayStation 3 right now. Hopefully the early adopters in the US and Japan will be enough to keep Sony’s new toy afloat and developers interested; otherwise, they’re going to risk sinking and never coming back up. Just like SEGA, Sony isn’t immune to the catastrophic effects of majority rejection. They’d do well to remember that.

Be sure to check out BBC News’ original article for an explanation of the manufacturing issue that’s caused the delays. Do you thi