Atari CEO: No PS3 games before 2007

by Joystiq Staff { Aug 2nd 2006 at 8:25PM }

In an interview with Gamesindustry.biz, Atari CEO Bruno Bonnell confirms that there will not be any Atari PlayStation 3 games before 2007. However, Bonnell assures us that the publisher will be there for the Wii and 360 this year.

Perhaps because Atari is in a bit of financial trouble, Bonnell wants to wait to see if the PS3 will actually be a platform worth developing for. He tells the site:

"It's just that we're lacking information about the PS3 at this stage, because we have basically a rough release date and a high retail price point. As far as the Wii and the Xbox 360 go, we'll be there for this season; for PS3, we'll probably have to wait a little later in the year before we release some new titles."

"I think that by deciding to put the PS3 at this price, Sony has chosen to really differentiate itself from the other consoles. The fact that you have Blu-ray, and the fact that it's HD compatible -- all this is driving me to think that Sony is picking up the high-end of the market, the hardcore, passionate fans. There will be a time they can reduce the price and access more people, but clearly that's a technical choice that Sony has made to be selective on the field at stage one."

Tags: Atari, Bruno Bonnell, BrunoBonnell

Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)

Enigma @ Aug 2nd 2006 8:30PM

Not knowing whether the PS3 will be a "platform to develope for" tells me why they have financial trouble with such conscience decisions like that!

Zozart @ Aug 2nd 2006 8:37PM

That's the second time I've heard that today, the first being SNK.

I suppose these are "small fry" in the world of third party PS3 titles, but it's still not a great trend!

Still, I couldn't care less about what goes on with Atari after how they screwed over Europe with that ridiculous double pricing for Test Drive Unlimited (yeah, I'm still bitter!)

anakenobi @ Aug 2nd 2006 8:48PM

See? there is a trend here.

Game developing is becoming too expensive. Starting with those expensive PS3 tool kits. Nintendo was on to something when they created a developer friendly console with the Wii.

The3rdNuisance @ Aug 2nd 2006 8:49PM

"because we have basically a rough release date"

And they will be supporting the Wii, which has a release date of sometime. Yeah, that reason makes sense...

Playstation 3 is gonna bomb.

James Sorensen @ Aug 2nd 2006 8:50PM

well coming from atari ,there biggest game this holiday season is test drive @ 40 bux (we know what $40 game means, its more like financial woes more than anything.

James Sorensen @ Aug 2nd 2006 8:52PM

"because we have basically a rough release date"

apparently their financial woes are extremely bad, since this guy wasn't even flown out to E3. :) (let alone doesn't even have internet to read the release date)

November 17th, 2006, if no one has told him yet.

Mike @ Aug 2nd 2006 9:08PM

Mr Bonnel lays out the situation, but doesn't connect the dots:

"Sony is picking up the high-end of the market, the hardcore, passionate fans. There will be a time they can reduce the price and access more people, but clearly that's a technical choice that Sony has made to be selective on the field at stage one."

What he's missing is the 100 Million pound elephant in the room known as Playstation 2.

Sony execs have said in many interviews that they made a mistake dropping PSone too early and that they don't want to just let go of their 100 Million+ install base.

PS3 is expensive, but first adopters will see the value in the package. By the time PS2 is really petering out, PS3 will be more affordable.

Exo @ Aug 2nd 2006 9:21PM

"What he's missing is the 100 Million pound elephant in the room known as Playstation 2."

what your missing out on is that most of those 100 million arnt hardcore gamers, so they arnt spending 600 dollars for a game system.

hardcore gamers are the smallest part of the market, and right now thats all sony is going to reach with ps3

Siraris @ Aug 2nd 2006 9:24PM

Um, this article is a bit flawed. Atari's only game that was supposed to come out on PS3 was Alone in the Dark, which was pushed back on 360 and PC to '07 as well. The only game coming out for 360 this year is Test Drive Unlimited, and the only game for Wii is some DBZ game, and I wouldn't be surprised if these were delayed as well.

Personally, this doesn't seem very doom and gloom. If EA said they weren't releasing any games until '07 for PS3, I'd say there's a problem, but a company that hasn't released a good game in quite some time, who is also bleeding cash like crazy, and releasing only 1 title on the other 2 next gen systems, doesn't strike me as a driving force right now.

Mike @ Aug 2nd 2006 9:26PM

RE: Exo

Right, and the "non-hardcore" people you're talking about aren't first adopters.

And they will be playing their PS2s until PS3 is more affordable.

Pathie @ Aug 2nd 2006 9:28PM

If they are in finanical trouble, then I wouldn't blame them for taking caution against what would probably be the most expensive system to develop for.

Game development on the PS3 is quite likely to be a hefty investment compared to the other systems. If your triple-A game on the PS3 tanks, it'd break the business if you don't have the resources to cover the resulting loss. Also, if the audience of PS3 owners proves to be consistently small, then the return on that investment might not be justifiable in face of how much it may cost to make the product.

If what Bruno says is accurate, then Sony is intentionally constricting its demographic to the hardcore crowd (at a very high extreme, in my opinion.) That might just serve only to drastically reduce their audience, which isn't a good thing if the audience ends up too small to cover the expenses.

Feel free to correct me on the economics if it's not quite correct. I'm no expert, I'm just sharing an opinion.

GSI @ Aug 2nd 2006 9:34PM

"And they will be supporting the Wii, which has a release date of sometime. Yeah, that reason makes sense..."

You are forgetting that it will be quite expensive to develop for the PS3 (and 360)...and A LOT cheaper to develop for the Wii (which is getting far better press then the PS3.)

"Atari's only game"

Correction: Atari's only "announced" game...

Just b/c a game hasn't been announced doesn't mean it isn't being worked on.

Greg @ Aug 2nd 2006 9:41PM

Im with No.8 what are ps fans missing from atari NOTHING!!!Another corny ass matrix game!!...but on the other hand being that im riding with 360 this time IN YO FACE SONY FANBOYS IN YOUR FACE DO YA TASTE THAT....ITS BITTER AINT IT....ahem sorry for that but yeah is there and GOOD news about ps3 expect for that fact that fansboys want it? :-P

jay cee @ Aug 2nd 2006 9:42PM

the ps3 comes out in nov 2007 is only a month and half away from that so six or seven then they will put some game on the ps3 and can any think of a must have game from atari anyways

J.Goodwin @ Aug 2nd 2006 9:43PM

I find it very interesting just how much the various developers seem to want to avoid just coming out and saying, "the PS3 costs too fucking much, and we're having problems programming a game for the hardware."

They all want to be diplomatic, and it's a staggering display of ballwashing.

No doubt most of them will continue developing for a console that has a very large install base. Those titles will increasingly be debuting at $30 or less. Then, when there is a console with higher margins per unit, and a sufficient opportunity to sell enough units to make your entire profit bigger than on the previous consoles, that is when they will release their retail games.

That's just smart business. I think it's a good question whether they will ever release a PS3 game though. Particularly as it sounds like they're saying that the customers aren't going to adopt it as fast as Sony has been saying they will.

If they were really going to have millions of units in houses by March or June, then developers would be standing in line to be out at or near launch, because their games are going to have that entire first year up to the 2nd holiday on shelves with little competition. The market is wide open for a PS3 version of CoD2 on the 360.

And they're not. That's interesting.

carg0 @ Aug 2nd 2006 9:43PM

That's a bullsh*t excuse by Bonnell and anyone with a brain can easily decipher his real opinion. The only thing "lacking" is his faith in the PS3's ability to convince enough people to spend $600 on it. The only 3rd party companies that can afford the development costs and risks (for now) are heavy hitters like EA, Sega, Ubisoft and Activision.

For the most part who can blame him, though. With his company in dire straights as of late, Atari can ill afford (at least for now) to take a chance on such a dangerously expensive console. Not while there's a safer investment already available in the 360 and a brand new, cheaper console riding on some incredibly positive word of mouth (Wii).

Although Atari has lost some of it's luster, it's still troubling if you're Sony. To have a major third-party developer of Atari's size and name recognition abandon your console for at least 2 years isn't something to look lightly upon. Especially if other developers, who aren't so confident in the PS3, feel they too can follow the same strategy to help out their bottom lines. SNK just announced similar plans.

epobirs @ Aug 2nd 2006 9:45PM

Not cause for excitement. Far more publishers will have their first PS3 title after some of the launch dust settles. It was no different on the PS2.

Even given financial stability, plenty of publishers would rather the devs take their time than beat themselves to death to make the launch. If your game isn't going to be a sales leader the launch period can be a tossup. On one hand, you get to be a big fish in a small pond but you're also selling into a very small installed base. Being a launch title gave a boost to Luigi's Mansion but the same game without the big franchise tie-in would have been better held back until a few million machines had been sold and the post-launch drought had begun.

A console launch needs one outstanding game with good replay value to give people a reason to feel they made the right choice as early adopters during the long wait for the library to fill in. Super Mario World did that job wonderfully. If you got your brand new SNES home and then heard on the news that Nintendo and all of its international office had disappeared mysteriously, meaning no more SNES games, the $200 for the SNES wouldn't feel like a complete waste because it could be viewed as a dedicated Super Mario World machine. A very expensive game but a great one. That sort of launch title satisfaction was missing for the GameCube. It isn't clear yet what, if anything, will fill that role for the PS3.

The3rdNuisance @ Aug 2nd 2006 9:47PM

GSI, all I was saying was that the logic doesn't make sense in that one point, they can't afford it is a very legitimate reason, but saying that the PS3's release date is rough?

And of course my mentioning of the thought the PS3 is going to bomb has to do with more games already out for the XBox 360 making it a better system for the non-hardcore audience, and the thought that developers and publishers being a little bit more cautious about how they spend the money for PS3 exclusive development.

hey alex @ Aug 2nd 2006 10:12PM

I think the reason why they're concerned about the release date, was the possibility either Blu-Ray or the Cell or the complexity could conceivably delay the PS3. Not that any of that is definate. As far as well all know everything is on track for this year. But if you're Atari, and you're a small developer, and you're not the most financially solvent right now, spending money on resources that may not necessary offer a profitable return this year could be a problem. The price point of the PS3 certainly doesn't help. A console that expensive has never done well in the past. But if there's anyone that can possibly do expensive and make it work, it would be Sony.

Josh @ Aug 2nd 2006 10:14PM

"12. the ps3 comes out in nov 2007 is only a month and half away from that so six or seven then they will put some game on the ps3 and can any think of a must have game from atari anyways

Posted at 9:42PM on Aug 2nd 2006 by jay cee 0 stars"

Why did I read this?

Anyway, it makes sense. The PS3 is too expensive to develop for right now for a suffering company like Atari. In any event, I am looking forward to DBZ: Budokai Tenkaichi 2. ^^

dolemite @ Aug 2nd 2006 10:25PM

Folks, 2007 is right around the corner. And I agree with most of you, they are waiting to see teh smoke clear and see how Sony does. If Sony can get 6 million consoles in homes by summer 07, then I guarantee we will see an Atari game for it. May be a 360 port, but we will see it. in the meantime, they will still make games for the PS2, which doesn't seem to be going away any time soon. That might be the best move SOny has made so far, not trying to kill the PS2 but milking it for at least one more Christmas. Too bad Microsoft did not do the same.

Darth Pixel @ Aug 2nd 2006 10:25PM

Someone people prefer 0% of big pie than 5% of a smaller pie.

As always, pigs get slaughtered.

clo1_2000 @ Aug 2nd 2006 10:38PM

This doesn't surprise me. Many smaller developers would be wise to take the wait and see approach with such an expensive console. In the meantime, make PS2 and Wii games until the install base of PS3 is where you want it. Its not about brand loyalty to these guys, its about the bottom line, which is making sure their investors are happy.

GSI @ Aug 2nd 2006 10:46PM

@ The3rdNuisance:

Yea I agree that him bitching about the "rough date" for the PS3 is a lame excuse. He must have overslept and missed E3 b/c it wasn't all that hard to miss the MASSIVE presentation announcements that Sony had. Hell even the video that was going around mocking Sony for their "gimmicks" had it on there.

I think Atari (or any other developer) doesn't want to outright say "The PS3 is too damn expensive to develop for" is b/c they don't want to shoot themselves in the foot. If the PS3 does actually pull themselves out of the hole they've dug with all the stupid statements, an expensive system and even more expensive SDK and test systems...those companies don't want to be screwed by Sony.

LaughingTarget @ Aug 2nd 2006 10:47PM

A lot of game sales are sucker sales. People picking up the game off the shelf because the cover looks cool, has great screenshots, and is hyped sufficiently on the back. Atari sells console games in this manner. A few of their PC titles, such as Pirates! and Neverwinter Nights are exceptions to this as they are genuinely good games.

For example, the Matrix or Dragonball Z games. They rely on mass identifyability to sell their games. The Matrix and DBZ have those in spades. What Sony is doing with the PS3 doesn't fit in their business models. Anyone going out to spend $600 on a game system is going to be highly discriminating about what software they purchase for it. Those gamers are hardcore, which means they research the titles before buying. Also, the $600 will seriously eat into the entertainment budget, reducing the off-chance purchase of some title off the shelf based on box art.

You can take out more birds with buckshot if there are 10,000 flying around in the sky as opposed to a dozen or so. Atari relies on mass audiences. They know their titles won't sell well, so they chose to produce for large install bases. This is how the majority of game developers/publishers work. They simply don't have the resoures to market the game and would rather not siphon off the already strapped development budgets.

This is a smart move for Atari. They weighed costs with probable sales and understood that the early PS3 adopters would have no interest in their games. The same can be said of many other developers as well.

While not having Atari onboard from the get-go isn't a huge deal, the fact they are shying away makes the viability of other small developers using the PS3 a question. Small developers and publishers who do get their hands on a quality title may not chose the PS3 either for the same reasons Atari is. Even a quality small development house title needs to sell through word-of-mouth and flashy box art. In that world, a small install base with high development costs won't cut it.

goosedude @ Aug 2nd 2006 11:14PM

Is anyone else really getting that PSP Feeling again with the PS3 ???

While the PSP is excellent hardware, SONY really tried to create another proprietary format in UMD and tooted the hardware itself instead of focusing on true game experiences to take advantage of that hardware. Having had my PSP since launch day.....I can truly say that the first TRUE example of PSP Potential was not released until last week in TEKKEN : DARK RESURRECTION. It's astounding how it performs.

I'm getting the same feeling from PS3. TRUE us Early Adopters/Mavens will pickup a PS3 come launch day....but I'm thinking we're gonna be playing with the multimedia functions of the PS3 and not truly get that EXCEPTIONAL AAA Game until Q4 2007 in MGS4.

Where are the exclusive launch lineup games SONY??? Resistance: The Fall of Man looks interesting but is another FPS but far from a HALO Killer, WARHAWK looks intriguing (solely that I loved the original), but other than that...everything else I can get a version for my 360 and not have to worry about whether the PS Online service will just be a prettied up version of the PS2 Online modes (Sponsored by GAMESPY).

MGS4, TEKKEN 6, and FF XIII....are a long long way off......

You have to believe if PS3 does not storm the gates and sell uber #s by launch.....that Developers aren't afraid to move their projects to another console.

Trivia Question: What is the ONLY System above the 500$ price point (in adjusted dollars) to be a success???

Answer: The Atari 2600 (I remember reading in adjusted dollars that its sale price = $586 today)......everything else failed. And thats when it had the market entirely to itself.

jay cee @ Aug 2nd 2006 11:28PM

they sold driver atari is in trouble do you think that atari is going to make or break sony no atari is not a factor nuff said

darryl @ Aug 2nd 2006 11:40PM

"...all this is driving me to think that Sony is picking up the high-end of the market, the hardcore, passionate fans. There will be a time they can reduce the price and access more people, but clearly that's a technical choice that Sony has made to be selective on the field at stage one."

Mr. Bonnell is absolutely correct. Yes Atari is not exactly doing that great... but, he is spot on about Sony's PS3 launch strategy.

GamerG @ Aug 3rd 2006 1:56AM

I am begining to think that the PS3 is going to be delayed again, I get the impression that the publishers at least are hinting at it.

For instance this years incarnaton of WWE has been cancelled on PS3 despite IGN playing it recently, other games have been put back on PS3, and now this publisher has mentioned that the release date is only "rough". EA made similar comments to atari recently as well.

I just find it difficult tp believe that Sony will be able to mass produce enough blue ray drives and crucially blue ray discs in time for the PS3 launch.

Pc @ Aug 3rd 2006 3:01AM

Why dont people just stop stating all of their dumb opinions, because they all suck and are most likely going to be wrong anyways !!! Just wait until the system comes out and see what happens.....The PS3 will sale out and there will be good games for it !!!
Just wait !!!

Brandon Konran @ Aug 3rd 2006 4:10AM

"The ps3 is too expensive to develop for" or saying Atari is going to wait and see if the ps3 hits its mark are just ignorant comments. Think about how long a game takes to make. If your going to wait to see if a console sells well your going to atleast wait 3-6 months AFTER launch to start any major development. Thats just idiotic and it would mean that any game for the ps3 made by them would come out at the END of 2007.

I think its a more likely statement that they just had enough money to buy a development kit and not enough money to start a project. The comments he made are probably just a cop out. They just dont have the money.

phipscube @ Aug 3rd 2006 5:00AM

Funny, I'm sure Sony have made a DEFINATE release date. 11th Nov in Jap and 17th in Europe/USA. High Prices didnt stop Xbox360 selling on Ebay. OK PS3 is OFFICIALLY expensive, but the average price for Xbox360 on ebay was $600 PLUS for a few months.

If anything Wii is the VAUGEST! no release date or price! only speculation!

In anycase, this season the PS2 is the one Wii and Xbox 360 need to go after. Sony are marketing their consoles in a totally different manner. And they can because their current gen machine is still holding its own (And kicking Xbox 360's ass even now).

Guitar Hero II
God Of War II
Okami
Yakuza
Bully

To me these games are gonna be hard to beat by any of the other consoles.

Any you Yanks will be getting Buzz and Singstar by the holiday season. If those sell as madly as they have in Europe (Millions) your looking at a mad surge of PS2 sales. Non gamers.... Potential Wii buyers.... $129 for PS2 compared to say $250 for Wii... lets see if that super hyped Eyetoy wand/DC Fishing Rod rip off lives up to it ;) *Stirring the pot*

PS3 is in its own dimension, yeah ok, maybe not the BEST place to be, but thats how it is. Sony don't want to kill PS2 with PS3 just yet. MS and Nintendo have no choice, they HAVE to push Wii and Xbox 360 NOW... Sony can still fight with PS2, and thats exactly what they are going to do. Wether it works is another thing. But many peoples perspectives on this whole "next gen" war are skewed beyond belief.

Dux @ Aug 3rd 2006 6:56AM

The biggest game for Atari coming out this yr is not Test Drive Unlimited but DBZ Budokai Tenckachi 2 for PS2. That game will out sell Test Drive considering the mass popularity of past Budokai games, and of the Anime, and bring in more revenue.

Gianni Gotti @ Aug 3rd 2006 7:58AM

#1 - Is Atari a major publisher or industry leader? i.e. Does their opinion matter = NO.

#2 - The Price Fallacy: The problem with the games "media" being populated largely by drop-outs is that they don't understand basic economic concepts like INFLATION and the fact that Cost & (Selling) Price are not related.
Factz:
>Millions of people bought the original PS2 for $400 and were happy to have it. Adjusting for inflation and feature set the PS3 is a steal.
>Gazillions of people have bought Ipods at $400 with a far more limited feature set. According to the nay-sayers the Ipod is a failure because of price too? People won't pay that much for a device that only does music? The fact is, Sony IS in touch with what consumers are willing to pay, the games "media" on their $15k per year salaries just wish it was cheaper for themselves. The mass consumers will be just fine.

John @ Aug 3rd 2006 9:12AM

The first second(?) of many if you ask me. EA also announced recently that Madden 07 wont be making a showing for the PS3. Developers have to be scared, not only at what they see for themselves, but at the truckloads of bad press that the PS3 is getting from the community and the media. Sony is an easy first when it comes to machine power, graphics and history of market dominance, but if no one buys it, all that and $5 will get them a cup of coffee.

MosquitoControl @ Aug 3rd 2006 9:56AM

">Millions of people bought the original PS2 for $400 and were happy to have it. Adjusting for inflation and feature set the PS3 is a steal."

Oh really? Inflation, you say? The PS3 is 100% more expensive than the PS2 (the PS2 launched at $300, not $400.) Has inflation really devalued money by that value in 6 years? Has minimum wage also gone up 100% in that same time?
NO!
According to online inflation calculators, $299 in 2000 is equivalent to $332 today. So... you're so far off base there it isn't even funny.

"Gazillions of people have bought Ipods at $400 with a far more limited feature set."

Yes. But the competition is priced the same, is it not?
So people look on the shelf and see a $400 iPod and a $360 iRiver and a $380 Creative Zen. And they assume that the product costs $400ish. There wasn't much premium.
With the PS3 they'll look at the shelf and see the 360 for $400 and the Wii for $250ish, and they'll know consoles certainly are not supposed to cost $600.

" High Prices didnt stop Xbox360 selling on Ebay. OK PS3 is OFFICIALLY expensive, but the average price for Xbox360 on ebay was $600 PLUS for a few months."

100% true. But there's a reason for this - ebay was the ONLY place to get a 360 for those months. So there were very few 360s to be had and a great deal of people desiring one. Supply and demand. The vast majority of consumers had 0 interest in a $600 360. But a few diehards did.
So, when the PS3 comes out, assuming the same holds true, either PS3s will sit on shelves with only diehards willing to cough up the money (unlikely) or PS3s will be in short supply and sell out instantly, with the average consumer entirely unable to find one and diehards buying them on ebay for a 50% markup, $900.
Does this mean Microsoft should release the 720 for $900, saying people were willing to spend that much for the PS3 on ebay?

Bottom line - the PS3 will sell out this holiday season. Guaranteed. Supplies will be extremely small, well under the amount of people willing to spend $600 (which could be strategic.) We'll see what happens come April 2007 when PS3s are readily available on shelves. Will Johnny Q Public spend that $600 for the system? Will parents that had been looking for one for Christmas still be willing to cough up that cash in the middle of the year for no real reason? Especially if they possibly bought the child the 360 readily available only a few months before? Will your college kid, having just blown all his money on Spring Break, be able to buy one? Will your average American family, making $70k before taxes, $50k after, be willing to spend that much money on entertainment when it's the equivalent of a vacation?

Remains to be seen. But I'd expect the price cuts on the PS3 to come quickly. It'll sell well, but it will be outpaced by its rivals until price cuts. Then it will soar.

J.Goodwin @ Aug 3rd 2006 10:03AM

Gianni Gotti.

The inflation argument makes sense here. But Japan has had deflation since the PS2 was launched. Prices there are lower now than they were five years ago, but the PS3 price is much higher than the PS2 price.

Also, it's kind of funny, because you always see people taking the Japanese launch price (which the PS2 NEVER sold for here in the US) paired with US inflation. It's an extremely sophisticated way of bullshitting you.