James Delahunty
30 May 2006 8:16
According to a survey by Famitsu magazine, Japanese consumers are anticipating Nintendo's Wii console much more than Sony's PlayStation 3 (PS3). Readers voted the PS3 release date and pricing information as the biggest news to come out of this years E3, but 88.4% believe the price is far too high for a gaming console. Only 10.9% believe the price is about right and a mere 0.7% actually believe the PS3 price tag is too low.
A huge 68% of respondents revealed they are most interested in the Nintendo Wii console. The support for PS3 is crawling behind at 21% and Xbox 360 received support from 7% of the respondents. The remainder expressed most interest in the Nintendo DS handheld console. The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess was the most popular game to be shown at E3, followed by Final Fantasy XIII, Metal Gear Solid 4 and Super Smash Bros.
The launch and price details of the PS3 revealed at E3 sparked a worldwide debate of whether the cost was just too much for a gaming console. Over and over again, Sony and PlayStation fanboys have argued that the cost is acceptable mostly because of the included Blu-ray disc drive. The argument is understandable; a stand-alone Blu-ray player would set you back $1,000+ in the United States.
However, being that the PS3 is a gaming console, it is obvious it is being eagerly awaited simply for its gaming capabilities and not because it includes a Blu-ray player. Many gamers are unhappy with how the console war and the next generation DVD format war have been forced together. The debate over the PS3 price will continue right up to launch, but considering the source of fans the "PlayStation" brand has - it shouldn't have a negative effect on initial sales.
Many have claimed that Nintendo stole the show at E3 this year however, proving that advancements in graphics can take a back seat to innovation. The Wii controller generated so much interest at E3 the waiting time to try it out ran into several hours quickly. Of course, the Wii console will also cost much less than the PS3.
Source:
GamesIndustry.biz