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WiiU

E3 2011 Roundtable: Sony and Microsoft's Effect

by Andy Goergen - June 13, 2011, 2:30 pm EDT
Total comments: 7

Join us in our discussion of whether the PS Vita and Kinect are a threat to the Wii U.

Do you enjoy our podcast discussions? We can type about things, too! In this edition of our informal E3 2011 Roundtables, we focus not only on Nintendo content, but the Microsoft and Sony announcements as well, and how it affects the our little corner of the GamingVerse.

Andy: What do we make of the price point for PS Vita?  Pretty crazy that they're getting it that low. Does it threaten the 3DS more or less than iOS devices? How about all the Kinect titles by Microsoft?  Kind of love this little comic that my wife found on reddit. Is there anything to really get all that excited about on Xbox right now?

Nick B.: PS Vita pricing is interesting, if they can launch with a killer app I think they could give Nintendo a greater run for their money than the PSP ever did. Although, I can see Nintendo dropping the 3DS by $50 or at least bundling Mario Kart for Christmas. 3DS is going to have a strong end of year with Mario Kart, Super Mario and Kid Icarus, not to mention some of the 3rd party stuff, as well as the eShop maturing even more. 

To me, Nintendo's 3DS library by the end of the year is going to be pretty compelling, and it will take more than price matching for Sony to really draw in hardware sales.

Josh: I mean, there's always a solid stream of good games coming out on Xbox. Just nothing good exclusively for Xbox. Oh, and that comic is totally true. 

Aaron: I think the PS Vita price point could even threaten the Wii U. Coupled with the PS3, you've got something that could simulate the Wii U screen streaming concept pretty well. With the low price point and the fact that it can run independently of the home console, you begin to wonder if there is any significant advantage to the Wii U setup, especially for PS3 owners. Sony would look like a copycat again, but that's never stopped them before. Of course, like the PSP, it will come down to the games.

Danny: You know, I think I might buy a Kinect. Kind of because of the Star Wars game and kind of because I think the menu navigation controller-free is cool. I think Kinect is a cool idea, but so far, there just hasn't been a killer app that makes me NEED one. Microsoft's showing at E3 this year showed some interesting ideas with Kinect, but nothing that screamed, "day one purchase" to me. 

The Vita looks pretty cool. Like Aaron said, that kind of technology at that low price point is something that Nintendo will definitely have to look out for. The Vita can more or less do everything that the Wii U controller can do, and even if it can't initially, Sony could get it up and working shortly thereafter. 

One thing that nobody has really said anything about that struck me as neat from Sony's show was the cheap Playstation 3D TV. For $499, you get a 24" 3D TV, HDMI cable, pair of 3D glasses, and a copy of the new Resistance game. Honestly, if they had a 32" version, I would be all over it (I'm kind of in the market for a new TV). Sony wants to push 3D gaming on their own terms, and I think that this is a damn good way for them to do it. Does anybody else have any thoughts on this?  Btw, here's a video showcasing the features of the 3D Playstation TV.

Zach: The Vita is definitely the surprise for me. $250 will probably mean I'll buy one. Look, as much as I hate on the PSP, I do like the games I have for it. It's just the system's OS is terrible. I've always felt like the PSP was half-baked when it came out, and it's a shame that Sony never actually did anything to fix it with all the PSP iterations. But the Vita looks much better, with better support and I love the idea of transferring saves from it to my PS3 and back. The Vita looks like a true companion piece to the PS3, something I always felt like the PSP should've been but never got to be. As for anything else on Sony's system, I really didn't care. I'm kind of Ratchet & Clank'd out, I don't play the Resistance games (even though I own them both), and Uncharted 3 is still away's off. 

I have an Xbox, but I didn't give two craps about one thing at their press conference. Kinect is not something I'll ever be interested in after playing it at my friend's house. It's not responsive enough and I can't imagine playing a game on it instead of an actual controller--like Mass Effect 3. Just give me a controller. Don't make me wave my arms around.

Jonny: PlayStation Vita's price tag is shocking and could spell some trouble for Nintendo. It's a more important threat than phones or tablets, because Vita is now extremely competitive for those players who are looking for a dedicated gaming device. There's nothing wrong with the 3DS hardware, but Nintendo will have to work extra hard to launch desirable software exclusives and attract support for the same from third-parties. Comparatively lower development costs will help with that, but the third-party 3DS lineup at this E3 was not impressive in terms of breadth or originality. Sony is still struggling with how to establish their handhelds as distinct gaming experiences from PS3. Until they learn the craft of handheld gaming, Vita will follow a similar trajectory as PSP did, which may be good enough for Sony. As for PS3, the upcoming exclusives are mostly sequels, with Uncharted 3 being the only one I care about. Sony desperately needs a splashy original title like The Last Guardian, which is stuck in Delay Hell. Yet another Ratchet & Clank will do little to turn around their monthly thrashing in the NPD sales charts.

I don't think Kinect and Wii U are direct competitors; their approaches to hardware and controls are so completely different. It's a matter of two platform holders taking aggressive approaches to capture a market dominated by the other, yet they don't seem to have much contested territory in the middle. Microsoft doesn't need much help in driving hardware sales; 360 continues to increase its presence even after more than five years on the market, and I don't really understand why. Kinect alone can't account for the past 12 months of Xbox sales. In any case, the new Kinect software shown at E3 either expands what's already been done for the device (sequels and clones) or adds optional, thin-looking features for games played mostly with a controller. Kinect support in games like Mass Effect 3 could make some Kinect owners feel better about their purchase, but it's not going to drive sales of the device. Star Wars might be a killer app in terms of marketing, but it doesn't look like a great game to me, and I don't think the Halo crowd will be fooled by it. Microsoft's greatest asset is Halo 4, which was barely announced but is by default the biggest gaming event of 2012, new hardware or not.

Pedro: Both Microsoft and Sony played it very safe, and were basically extensions of their 2010 presentations. MS was all about the Kinect, and Sony's happy over 3D. The PS Vita, however, is an interesting piece of hardware and so far it looks like a nice upgrade of the PSP. The price is indeed inviting.

Nintendo by default "wins" E3 since they announced the most exciting stuff, for me at least. The strong first party 3DS presentation, while typical of Nintendo, convinced me of getting a 3DS as soon as possible. I admit that the Wii U hasn't fully blown me away, mainly because too little of it was show. Sure, the IDEAS look great and fun, but I want solid titles in order for me to come up with a solid opinion on the system.

Overall, I felt this E3 was very "safe". With every company mainly focusing on what it worked along with some mild surprises this E3 didn't seem as captivating as previous ones.

Zach: I realize I didn't say two things about Nintendo. So here we go... 

The Wii U looks promising, to say the least. The fact that it will be technologically on-par with the current generation of consoles means that developers may actually start paying attention to it. Furthermore, the "New Controller" adds actual incentive for developers to view the Wii U as the primary unit. The idea of using it as your motion detector in Aliens: Colonial Marines, for example, is an excellent example of how the Wii U could "outperform" the same game on other consoles, though ultimately this kind of thing will be on the developer.  

I don't know how I feel about keeping all my Wii accessories. My "controllers" drawer is already very full.  

As I said on the Homecast, the 3DS lineup is disappointing to me. Except for Luigi's Mansion 2, which I have virtually no interest in, all of the announced games had already been announced. Don't get me wrong, I'm excited about Mario Kart 3DS, Super Mario 3D, and Resident Evil: Revelations, but none of these games are coming out in the next few months, and there were no big surprises for me. My hope is that 3DSWare and the Virtual Handheld blow my mind, but almost nothing was said for either service.

Join us in the discussion in Talkback below.

Talkback

Lady MushroomJune 13, 2011

I think Nintendo is definitely going to have to drop the price of 3DS in the first part of next year to ward off competition from Vita.


They'll probably try to make as many sales as possible at the current price this holiday season. A bundle would be wise.

BlackNMild2k1June 13, 2011

The beauty of a Nintendo 3DS price drop would be that they are still making a (hefty) profit while Vita will certainly be taking a (notable) loss.

broodwarsJune 13, 2011

Quote from: BlackNMild2k1

The beauty of a Nintendo 3DS price drop would be that they are still making a (hefty) profit while Vita will certainly be taking a (notable) loss.

It's a double-edged sword, though, because then Nintendo looks weak for discounting their handheld in its first year.

BlackNMild2k1June 13, 2011

I don't think they will drop the price, but a price drop would still net them a good profit per system sold.

I actually think they will bundle something in to improve the value over a PSVita.
Maybe a 3DS/SMK3D bundle with a $5 eShop giftcard for the same price.

EnnerJune 13, 2011

Quote from: broodwars

Quote from: BlackNMild2k1

The beauty of a Nintendo 3DS price drop would be that they are still making a (hefty) profit while Vita will certainly be taking a (notable) loss.

It's a double-edged sword, though, because then Nintendo looks weak for discounting their handheld in its first year.

Who cares when it will be cheaper :p
They had the hit coming when they priced the 3DS so high. Sony's Playstation Vita pricing just made it hurt more.


One thing I'm wondering is if we will hear substantial things about the Xbox 3 next year. Given the Xbox 360's and Kinect's current success, we can safely say 'no'. Still, I do wonder when Microsoft and Sony plan to release their next consoles. Will Microsoft really have 360 stick around for the next Halo trilogy? Will it even stick around for Halo 5? Sony doesn't seem to be in a position to have a new home console anytime soon. How long will Microsoft and Sony allow Nintendo to have a home console with equal power to theirs? Two years? Three? It would be wild and seemingly improbable if it would be close to four.

It's interesting though; if 3DS had come out lower, do you think Vita would have been priced higher since there would be no way to price match?

ShyGuyJune 13, 2011

Remember the Nintendo DS dropped the price from $150 to $130 in its first year. If they follow that pattern they could drop the 3DS price to $220 for holiday 2011.

What they really need though is some killer apps the equivalent of  Nintendogs or Brain Training.

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