Xbox 360's third-party support may suffer, says analyst
by Vladimir Cole 
{ May 9th 2006 at 9:55AM }
In his morning research report, Michael Pachter of Wedbush Morgan Securities backs up our own conjecture that Sony's PS3 controller (dubbed "dual shake" by bloggers) is going to make Microsoft's life difficult.
He writes, "The Xbox 360 controller is a conventional controller with no motion sensors built in. Ultimately, we think that many developers will opt to make games for the PS3 and the Wii, and will not make the same game for the Xbox 360, giving Sony and Nintendo a content advantage over Microsoft."
We agree that Microsoft's reaction to this announcement is critically important. Will the company be able to speak to this issue at all today?
(Update: added image to the post.)
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 2)
Casey Weston @ May 9th 2006 9:59AM
That is assuming any PS3 developers will support the PS3 motion features and ignoring the fact that there are features STANDARD on the Wii-mote that cannot be replicated on the DualShake.
I say bogus.
Dave @ May 9th 2006 10:00AM
Sony's strategy is pretty obvious. By including motion sensors in their pad they'll gain third party support from developers who were otherwise commited to Wii, while at the same time putting Microsoft at a big disadvantage as the only console without motion sensors. Very cunning Sony...
Exo @ May 9th 2006 10:00AM
Well Nintendo did say they wanted it to be an industry standerd, but I dont think they had sony's half assed atempt in mind.
If MS makes a controller update, then I can see sony and MS having a controller war in addition to a graphics war.
soco @ May 9th 2006 10:00AM
this seems a bit premature to make this conjecture. especially since the 360 could easy add a similar controller, or an add-on function to the old one (the headset connector has some connectors that aren`t used by the headset.
guess we`ll see if MS makes an announcement about this today.
Will K @ May 9th 2006 10:00AM
I dunno...for the Wii I see motion sensing as being the core of the experience. For the PS3, it looks a lot like a gimmick. Also, I think that controller vibration is pretty much a must-have feature, despite the patent disputes going on. So, I guess I disagree with the analyst.
Lovey Dovey @ May 9th 2006 10:02AM
The PS3 motion sensening features are tottally different from nintendos. I can't see it being as sucessful as the eyetoy. Lastly What companies really respect is green. If there is a market they will come.
Braynbasher @ May 9th 2006 10:03AM
I don't think that this will make life diffcult for Microsoft at best It makes all the systems different which to me is a good thing. I think it will be a while before software companys really adapt to the Playstations Controller I mean they just heard about this about 2 weeks ago right. This why I hate Anaylst because they make statements before Microsoft has there Press Conference. Come ON they don't even know what they have in store yet. It might not be Stolen Tech but It might just be good.
FooAtari @ May 9th 2006 10:03AM
I think the two control methods between wii and ps3 are to different that both can equally be supported and used to the maximum. Ps3 will get dumbed down ports, or Wii will not be used to the maximum in multiformat games.
Anyway how many games will need sole use of movement controls and not work with a analoge sticks?
I think this is bit premature too though...
David @ May 9th 2006 10:04AM
Makes perfect sense for Sony AND Nintendo. Sony know Nintendo is not going anywhere and that they can live simultaneous in the same market. Why not make it easier for developers to make games for both systems? I do not see why Nintendo Fanboys are at arms over the controler. It can only help Nintendo get better, or at least more, games for their console.
I cannot wait to have shoulder fakes in Madden :D
Andrew Nick @ May 9th 2006 10:05AM
Well think about this-
Microsoft has had this technology down for ages in the sidewinder line.
How hard would it be for them to just slap one together.
>Winces in pain at the thought as he realizes he already owns 4 wireless 360 controller
The1 @ May 9th 2006 10:05AM
Simple fact ANALYST are not gamers.
bandit @ May 9th 2006 10:06AM
At this point developers are screwed no matter who they develop for. In my personal opinion, unless Nintendo and Microsoft can pull out some incredible content Sony will have won this years E3. HOWEVER. This is important. Can Sony deliver as they have a nasty habit of over promising and under delivering. The reality is that neither Ninty nor MS is particularly worried because if they reacted to every comment and press conference by Sony they would be broke as they rarely follow through with their more grandiose claims. So in my opinion. I think both will ignore the hype and simple let their games. Not their gimmicks do the talking. Whether those games are any good remains to be seen. Anyway this announcement by Sony only succeeding in driving developers closer to the edge then they already were. Bad Sony. Bad.
Will K @ May 9th 2006 10:07AM
That's a good point #4
M$ could always have a strap-on (hehe) motion sensor to plug in to the controller.
Jason W @ May 9th 2006 10:13AM
Yea MS has never redesigned a controller in the past (S Controller anyone). Nor have any other conpanies, I has a ps1 controller, the ps1 one with dual analog, the dual shock and then a wireless one. I dont think MS will make this an issue. They have a patent already and with USB support on the 360 its not that big of a deal. Everyone went out and bought the dual analog controller when it came out on the ps1. Im sure it will be the same with the 360.
Acco @ May 9th 2006 10:14AM
Surely the processor power that the Xbox 360 and PS3 have in common will make them better port buddies than a PS3-Wii combination as control schemes are more easily adapted than processor requirements. It seems the Wiimote is better suited to waving around in the air anyhow. Perhaps Nintendo could consider producing a 3rd party controller for other machines...
mountain_rage @ May 9th 2006 10:15AM
I think sony may have lost alot of the female gamer market... if you know what I mean, just look around the internet and you will get a clear picture.
Dave @ May 9th 2006 10:17AM
I think we are all assuming that developers will make a game for Wii and it will be easier to port to the ps3 cause of the motion sensor thingy (even as rudimentary as it may be). The problem is that we probably think with our hearts, rather than a business point of view. Sure, now that sony has the tilk thing we could see developers making games with some small use to it, and then get a port of that game to the Wii making minimal use of the Wii controller (since it probably still has the use of regular controller or some atachment will come out). It could work either way is what I am saying.
Nick Spacek @ May 9th 2006 10:17AM
From http://features.teamxbox.com/xbox/1573/E3-2006-Microsoft-Reaction-to-Sony-Press-Briefing/p1 :
"Two areas where Sony demonstrated forward thinking was in the EyeToy card demonstration and the 6-axis controller, but we still question how mainstream these will become. Does Microsoft feel in pressure in being the only next-generation system to not feature a motion-sensing controller?
"We actually had a very similar product on the market for the PC - the (Sidewinder) Freestyle Pro.", Kim recollected. "It was a great controller for a very specific set of games, but wasn't accepted as an overall controller. We considered the technology when developing the Xbox 360, but felt it wasn't the way to go."
Satchell mentioned, "I view Sony's motion-sensing controller more as an attempt to address what Nintendo is doing with the Wii. While I thought the EyeToy demo was cool, I do question if the masses will play a game that way.""
Blue Spotted Frog @ May 9th 2006 10:17AM
Microsoft does have a patent filed for some type of motion sensing technology : http://www.gamespot.com/news/6145348.html. So I think it's premature to say that they are at odds with Sony and Nintendo. Really this helps Nintendo since it makes them appear as the leader and Sony as a follower. Imitation is the best form of flattery. This is what Nintendo had in mind when they conceived the idea of a "Disruptive" marketing strategy.
Eyecandy @ May 9th 2006 10:18AM
The Wii controller lends itself to swinging like a bat, sword, lightsaber, golf club or tennis racket. It also could be aimed like a gun.
How are you going to do that with a controller shaped like the Dual Shake????
Also since the Dual shake has eliminated the vibration option (that I like), I think the 360 and the Wii have an advantage over the $ony rippoff controller.
logikil @ May 9th 2006 10:19AM
I'm not understanding how this analyst sees the two control schemes as similar. The only thing on the Wii controller that matches the PS3 controller would be the sensors in the "Nunchuku" add-on. The Remote portion has motion tracking using the sensor strip that will be placed near a television.
I don't think that this necessarily translates to "ease of porting" acrossthe Wii and PS3. My take is that this whole movement gaming, at the very least in the PS3, is gimmick. I can see myself using the wii-mote as a sword or fishiing pole or what have you, but i dont see tilting my PS3 controller to hell and high water just to steer a plane or car. Anyway, the reality is adding something like this isnt likely all that tough, as mentioned above just add a stupid adaptor if you really want to do it, but the fact of the matter is i don't think it's even remotely necessary.
Ahms @ May 9th 2006 10:20AM
I forgot that exzct quote, but the maker of Katamari Damacy said something about folks putting too much emphasis on the controller over the games itself
That's what I see happening here. It's akin to a graphics system. "We can pump out some incredible graphics blah blah blah." "Our controller can do blah blah blah"
That's great. But now, are your games actually fun?
Not to say the controller won't have any impact in the console wars, but unless it adds to game experience in a way that actually impacts and improves it, then it's just a novelty. The articles I see here seem to hint that unless your controller has this new functionality, your game experience won't be quite what it should be
Well, I've played quite a few games that were fun using old school methods :) Sort of like, everything up until now :)
EYgamer @ May 9th 2006 10:22AM
Unless the Big N screws up big time in this morning's conference, I think it's hard to say they haven't succeeded in their plan to disrupt the industry. I'll echo the comments as well about Ninty coming out looking like the leader in this bout at least initially. Ultimately it will be decided by whoever can pull off the execution with MS being severely disadvantaged and Sony moderately disadvantaged. Cheers to Nintendo.
FooAtari @ May 9th 2006 10:25AM
Also, as always developer support comes to who shifts the most consoles. MS has a head start there and at that price for the PS3, combined with a 360 price cut come Novemember I wouldnt be surprised to see MS pull away.
Nintendo will be cheap from the get go and if done right the Wii could go the way of the DS. Onto great things.
jaemz @ May 9th 2006 10:26AM
I really don't care for motion detecting controllers.
I would rather spend the extra money on a good flight stick for flying games, or a steering wheel for racing games.
If motion controller are your game, than awesome enjoy it... but it's not for me, am I the only one??
sdf @ May 9th 2006 10:27AM
11. Simple fact ANALYST are not gamers.
Posted at 10:05AM on May 9th 2006 by The1
THey did almost hit the price right on the head.
Kai Cherry @ May 9th 2006 10:28AM
Sony have already won with a $600 console, eh? Its just like with the PSP; Sony is trying to tye every division in the company to the thing (they just will NOT let Connect die die die) and trying to create some uberbox....
Instead of making a game machine.
$600 is an awful lot...for a machine that was supposed to have *launched already* in a market where one of your competitors is "beloved" and the other is "behomoth"...and has a head start on you.
It soooo reminds me of the PSP; Nintendo announces their new upcoming portable; Sony follows up with their portable Plus (insert hooks for other Sony divisions here)
The PS3 is like a bizarro platform thats a giaint "tie-fest"...
We got a feeble new video format that a LOT of people have said "No Thanks!" to...let's tie it to Game Box!
We got a feeble new portable "game machine" that plays more movies than games...let's tie to the Game Box!
We got a feeble music download service that can't make a dent with 3 revs and a world of our portable music players...let's tie it to the Game Box!
We got a DRM'd flash memory device that no one really uses but ourselves...let's tie it to the Game Box!
One of our competitors has built a massive well integrated pay online gaming experience, and the other has rolled out a free one that took off like wildfire...let's do a half-baked amalgam of the two and...tie it to the Game Box!
One of our competitors is making waves and gaining serious mindshare by introducing a retro gaming aspect and motion immersive gameplay...let's half-ass one too!
Oh, and we'll price it above the rest and market as More Than A Game System (psp redux)
I won't even get into 1080p-ness (rolleyes)
Sony has faaaaaar from won *anything* at this point...it's hard to even tell what they are *playing* :)
AZBORICUA @ May 9th 2006 10:30AM
I COULDNT AGREE WITH YOU MORE #10. THERE IS NO WAY THIS IS GONNA BE MICROSOFT'S WEAK POINT. AND #24 NO, YOU'RE NOT THE ONLY ONE. I WOULD MUCH RATHER SPEND THE MONEY ON SOMETHING MORE USEFUL. TRY AGAIN SONY.
graf1k @ May 9th 2006 10:30AM
Saying a developer will make a game for PS3 and Wii but not for the 360 just because of the controllers is ridiculous. That's like saying "we are going to port a N64 game to 360 because they both have rumble". PS3 and Xbox 360 will share more games because they both have similar processing power. To put it simply, a port from a PS3 to Wii would take much more effort than just simply removing the gyro capabilities and porting it to Xbox 360, and a port from Wii would require new HD textures, making the game widescreen in most cases, and recoding it to work with the PS3s complex CPU. In other words, it's not likely.
If anything there will be a couple multiplatform games that use the gyro abilities of the Wii and PS3 and the 360 version just won't have those abilities.
Beano @ May 9th 2006 10:30AM
I think that Nintendo could not have wished for better free promotion of its Wiimote-concept than to have Sony steal a bit of it. Sony's version of motion-sensing is just a nice 'teaser' for Nintendo's. They can now point towards Sony's implementation of the technology and show how much better Nintendo's implementation is. FINALLY Sony has fallen into it's own idea-copying trap.
Joe @ May 9th 2006 10:32AM
this guy doesnt know anything, if he even had a clue about the industry he's anayzling then he know that xbox 360 is the most developer friendly next gen console, period. it lowers costs and makes it easy to port you games to PC, which will be the only viable market after MS mops up the next gen consoles.
if anything PS3 gimmmick will hurt them, you can't make a WII like game for PS3 different market and the Wii remote is nothing like the PS3 controller it has a gryo and motion sensor, and two sony committed to this, MS only has to add a cheap $20 part in between the headset and 2.5mm jack, or expand the battery pack with a gyro if this unlikely trend takes off.
either way sony is isolating themselves from developer making games for both if the developer doesnt figure out a way to incorprate the tilt sensor then it will seem like they dont know what there doing.
think about it, its senses tilt, how many times are you screwing around on the couch while playing madden or a exciting game of halo how oftened do you leave your control perfect x-axis, you move it and it will screw up the game. if anything it annoying and will be come a novelty for stupid itoy games.
Sony should should just sell its SCEA dvision to MS and be done with it, they could just import there game libary and run in emulation. and then just compete agianst PC market or aleast get some intergration. MMO for everyone.
Alex @ May 9th 2006 10:33AM
#26... you hit the nail on the head. Thank you for doing the typing for me. :)
shogan @ May 9th 2006 10:33AM
The Wii and PS3 motion sensing technology are very different. Developers would have to limit games functionality on one system to make it work on the other. Sony and Microsoft are more similar and more likely to share 3rd party dev ports.
ascended being @ May 9th 2006 10:34AM
Sony will have too much to stew over due to malfunctioning Blu-ray drives. People seem to think because it can hold more data it's superior to HD-DVD.
Well i can tell you some home truths-
1)Complexity of the drives to manufacture, and aperature focus is a lot smaller than DVD+HD-DVD dust will cause read error problems.
2)Muti-layered disks- due to the nature of BD disks being so thin 0.1mm, disc malfunction becomes a reality.
3)DVD is a well proven tech, and HD-DVD is the official sanctioned replacement,which would reduce compatability issues with DVD collections.
4) I have seen HD-DVD in action, and i must say other than afew issues with the new D/digital plus on old amps, and pausing some dvd,s for long periods of time the format is pretty much perfect.
p.s Toshiba is countering these issues with a firmware update, as each machine acts more like a computer.
4) Price- well you only need to check that at half the price you could buy 1 and 20 HD-DVD's films, and still have a bit of change before you could even buy the cheapest Blu-ray playe.
5)ps3= player only, so if you wanted to record on BD discs you would need a seperate machine or a PC version, and the quality of playback and sound would not come close to a stand alone player.
isuma @ May 9th 2006 10:35AM
Yea, the MS controller now seems dated. Rumble was a nice feature and too bad its gone, but, it just provided feedback and wasn't an input method.
Games starting out as multiplatform (Madden, CoD, etc) will incorporate the motion as an afterthought in the PS3 version. Tilt sensor is a non-issue.
Games built with motion sensor from the get-go (super monkey ball?) would be adapted for use on xbox360 using analog controls. No tilt sensor affects gameplay, but, games can still be ported easily. Again, its a non-ssue.
And it doesnt matter if MS invented this. They didnt make it standard like Sony is doing. It probably costs Sony pennies to implement the tilt sensors in each controller. What it does do is add to the perception that 360 is not next-gen (along with lack of HD-DVD drive).
Austin @ May 9th 2006 10:37AM
How can any of you say that sony or nintendo or MS has come out in front or won E3? Sony is the only one to present yet! thats just f'ng stupid. Ofcourse they have to present something great if they dont want to look like the special ed kid in the lunch line but come on people the contest is for your dollars not an E3 trophy.
hmmmm an e3 trophy between the big 3 would be cool though.
nick @ May 9th 2006 10:37AM
It's premature to make such a statement, and I question how many games for the Sony will utilize such a feature, when it was clearly and afterthought.
Even if Microsoft doesn't offer such an option, although clearly they could if they wanted, I don't see all developers suddenly abandoning Microsoft because of this. Developers will only abandon you if they cannot make enough money in your market. Now if the entire market suddenly shifts because of such a control, and that's all people want for their interface, well, then Microsoft would be in trouble.
Gareth @ May 9th 2006 10:37AM
What a stupid news story. If this motion sensing was so '1337' that developers were willing to abandon machines that didn't support it, please tell me why the motion sensing joypads that were released 7 years ago received absolutely f-all 3rd pary support.
Joystiq, in the few months that I've been reading your blogs, I have noticed a marked nose-dive in the quality of your news. Next to no thought is put into these imaginary scenarios that you create in your quest to supply sensationalist bullshit.
Disappointing.
Kamalot @ May 9th 2006 10:38AM
#26 - Kai Cherry:
That post really puts things into perspective. Sony really is scamming off of everyone else's hard work and making half-ass versions of them.
It really is funny, reading your post it seems like Sony isn't a market leader at all, they are a follower. They take everyone else's well thought-out ideas and marginalize them into the mainstream.
If this is what Mainstream gaming is all about, half-ass ideas shoved into a bloated, over-priced DVD box, I'll pass.
I'm a gamer.
Lestrade @ May 9th 2006 10:40AM
Yeah, that's a premature declaration. The two controllers (Wii and PS3) look to function completely differently. Using a Wii remote as, say, an FPS weapon is a completely different exercise than doing barrel-rolls in Warhawk. And like other have said, there is only one game currently at E3 that makes any use of the PS3's motion sensitivity. It will likely be a while before developers even bother.
DeRock @ May 9th 2006 10:41AM
If developers only use the wii as a tilt sensing device, it will suck as much as the PS3. That is why i'm worried.
Sense @ May 9th 2006 10:53AM
This may have been covered, but I didn't want to read every comment.
This analyst makes the assumption that games developed for the Wii will translate to the PS3's much more limited motion control. Frankly, this speaks to a lack of understanding of the subject. The PS3 control won't work with the fluidity of the Wii-mote, merely by virtue of how it's held. Trying to use the PS3 control like a "wand" simply won't work.
True, this *might* hurt Microsoft's support, but I doubt it. Companies will still want to make money, and the escalating cost of development will necessitate the need to make cross-platform games. To me, if anything, this means that PS3 versions of games might see some tacked on motion control gimmicks (minigames, etc.) I may be wrong, but I don't see developers putting lots of extra effort into PS3 games if they don't have to, whereas it's a necessity for the Wii.
lyricale @ May 9th 2006 10:55AM
Am I the only one who doesn't even care about motion sensitivity in a controller, I actually don't want it at all. It for some reason reminds me of the many mothers who have attempted to play my video game systems along the years, they're always moving the controller around the air as if that was going to do something, just give me a solid controller like that of the 360, give me some damn good games, and I'll be happy forever. Microsoft tried the motion thing 7 years ago, and boy o boy was that successful.
Mitun @ May 9th 2006 10:57AM
I think the most interesting thing behind these controllers (PS3 and Wii) is the concept behind them. In the recent Time magazine interview with Miyamoto, he's states that in this day and age he thinks game controls are too hard and thats whats repelling nongamers. So they simplified the interface down to the most basic human functions to bring in nongamers. And I'm sure noone is going to have trouble controlling their Wii (such a bad name!).
Now look at what Sony have done, they took the standard 6 button controller and added 2 more buttons. And then on top of that they've added this 6 degrees of freedom. How many nongamers are going to be able to attain that level of co-ordination without getting frustrated when they're finding it difficult to control their body movements. IMO Sony just made gaming that much harder (similiar to what #29 said, thankyou #29!).
In the long run I think Sony's move indirectly benefits Nintendo because now developers just cant ignore this feature. Before Sony's conference I'm sure there were a lot of developers who just werent going to bother with this whole motion sensing malarkey. But now (because of how big Sony is) they cant really afford to forget it.
It'll be interesting to see how all of this turns out.
Danno @ May 9th 2006 11:03AM
I think that Sony isn't trying to copy Nintendo's motion sensing functionality, but rather, I think they're trying to cripple developer support for motion sensing.
Think about it this way: I'm a developer, I can develop a motion sensing game for the Revolution and support all of the axes of movement it is capable of. OR, I can develop for the PS3 and Revolution and support just the axes that the PS3 supports and port it to the Revolution.
By doing this, I believe Sony is proactively attempting to make the Revolution controller a fad.
I still think that the controller issue is irrelevant compared to the online gaming stuff, personally. Mark my words, Online is where this generation will see the winner emerge.
Mal F4cti0n @ May 9th 2006 11:03AM
I think he has that wrong. The control scheme and tech specs of the 360 and PS3 make them obvious choices for similar development. The Wii-mote is so unique and the system specs will cause it to be the black sheep this generation.
ANd what, is this guy nuts, the PS3 controller will only lend itself to controlling vehicles. How would you use the single controller to say, swing a sword? Using both hands? Just holding the controller and swinging, but that would cause you to lose the ability to move. Suddenly your character becomes rooted to the spot as you try to swing the one controller in your hand?
Besides the fact that, all the "backwards" compatible games the PS3 can play will lose the "feed-back" rumble feature, Sony is ostricizing their fans now. WTF?
Jordan @ May 9th 2006 11:08AM
it's a gimmick!, give me a break, Microsoft is fine! hahaha, they won't include it b/c too many people want to make ports for both systems, so Sony included a feature nobody wants to use! a kirby tilt and tumble is all this is, wow, so great! and this just in from GAMEINDUSTRY.BIZ
Console to come with less ports than planned
Consumers who purchase the 20GB version of the PlayStation 3 will find themselves with less options than those who buy the 60GB model when it comes to data storage and Wi-Fi functionality.
According to Sony's latest spec sheet, the 20GB PS3 will not feature inputs for memory sticks, SD or compact flash cards. Nor will it offer any Wi-Fi options or any HDMI output.
The 60GB PS3 will come with a single HDMI port - and not two, as the prototype shown at last year's E3 suggested. The prototype also featured three Ethernet ports and six USB ports, but the console unveiled yesterday has just one Ethernet and four USB ports.
The 20GB model will retail for EURO 100 less than the 60GB version, at EURO 499. The PlayStation 3 is set to go on sale in Japan on November 11th, with US and European launches to follow on November 17th.
Jason W @ May 9th 2006 11:10AM
Doesnt the GBA have this function with a free add on that came with Wario Ware Twisted? Man I hope the people at MS know that.... like they dont. Now the idea is a cool one and I look forward to checking it out. Ive decided thogh the next PS console is way to expensive for my taste and therefore will be adding a (WIII) Revolution to my 360's shelf and call it a day for a few years. No way in hell in paying that much for a console. I thought they were BSing us about the prince like they did the PSP, but no... Thats way to expensive. Anyone say, NEO GEO, Jaguar, 3DO, Tubo Graphix or even god say PSP. It will be a nice system, but most likely will not live up to its potential due to high initial price and low adoption rate. We will see.
Captain X @ May 9th 2006 11:19AM
I dont see the same type of function coming out of the PS3 controller as the Wii controller. The Wii controller is more like an analog controller/mouse type of control that is tied more directly into onscreen movement. The PS3 gyroscopic style movement is more indicitive of the old Logitech controllers that were made for flight sims and FPS games. The concept of moving the controller to control onscreen action instead of relying on direct button input is slightly different so I really dont see someone using the PS3 controller to slash a sword or swing a baseball bat mainly because it is a two-handed control. The more freestyle movement of the Wii control gives it an advantage in function. As far as MS losing third party support because of not having the function built it, who is to say that they cant make a controller that has Wii like function later in its life. Perhaps they are willing to see if the gamble that Nintendo is taking will garner the support of the gaming community. They already have a head start. It is not unheard of for special controls to come out to support certain games. Right now Wii is based around the technology, PS3 is using it as a available feature. We all know how well all those available features on the PSP are being fully utilized "he says with a hint of sarcasm". Only time will tell. Speculate all you want.
Shaymus22 @ May 9th 2006 11:20AM
I think of it this way: Microsoft is now the one taking the different path, while Nintendo and Sony will appear to be going in similar directions. Sony is being about as innovative as a piece of string, and by itself the name of Nintendo's console is a huge turn-off. I'm not seeing Sony revealing that it has no better ideas than a ripoff and a boomerang bad for Microsoft.