Okay, so by now I’m sure we’ve all heard the news about the delay of the PS3 in Europe until 2007. If not, now you know. Of course this has led to the usual commentary, as well as editors pulling out the best of cliches. I want to talk about something else in this space, namely how much longer Europe will keep Sony on its golden thrown. There’s no question that the company has absolutely dominated the European market, thanks to some slick marketing and a curious sense of loyalty (or something).
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But how long can this last? With the PSP, the console was delayed for quite some time (compared to the Japanese and U.S. launches), sold for a good chunk of change (over $300 in most regions), and still managed to do incredibly well. They also slammed down on certain online retailers for selling import PSPs long before it was released locally (some gamers over there have even resorted to buying the majority of their games as imports so as to avoid high prices and release dates way down the road). It is almost as if they enjoy Sony screwing around with them. Now with a delay until next year for their new console, I’m curious to see if Europe makes it a success, or if, after all the shit, they’ll vote with their wallets and support the other two consoles.
Its one thing to so strongly support a company that delivers (and in the case of the last two Playstations, one can certainly argue this). But if I were living across the pond, I’m not sure how happy I’d be with them right about now