Sony's Smackdown

I had an interesting news release from Sony waiting in my inbox this week.

Interesting is a word I use when I mean something more than interesting; this statement was more accurately an attempted smackdown.

The last paragraph of the press release sent Thursday pretty much sums it up: “So as PS3 continues to evolve without the need for additional parts or expenses, expect the competition to continue peddling add-ons in an effort to keep up with the Jones’.”

Sony has been criticized over and over for the cost of its console compared to the Xbox 360 and the Wii. Frankly, it’s hard to sell consumers a $399 video game system when the other guys are offering theirs for $199 and $279. It’s easy to see the price difference is starting to irk Sony, with their recent ad campaign calling the PS3 a movie downloading machine — in other words, selling it as a more than a gaming console.

This latest release is further proof the company is getting tired of being slammed for its higher cost and weary of the constant calls for a price cut.

On Thursday, Sony sent a news release criticizing Xbox over the extras that need to be purchased to get an enhanced game play experience. Sony’s argument is this: buy a PS3 you get free access to online play, WiFi, a big harddrive, and a blu-ray player — total cost $399. But if you buy a $199 360 you’ll end up paying another $270-$320 just to get online access, WiFi and a harddrive.

“The Xbox 360 requires additional money, multiple upgrades and additional external devices, putting a burden on the wallet and adds clutter to the entertainment centre,” said the release.

As for the Wii, well Sony didn’t have anything nice to say about Nintendo either.

“And the Wii’s lack of enhanced features comes at the expense of a comprehensive entertainment solution.”

Ouch.