Red Alert 3 skipping PS3 due to 'exotic and tough' development
by Ludwig Kietzmann 
{ Jul 29th 2008 at 9:00PM }
"We actually announced a PS3 version early on but that was when we were still doing a lot of technical exploration of the architecture," explained Ajami. "PS3 is a very powerful system but as you guys know it's very exotic and tough to develop for and our engine really at the time wasn't designed for PS3." Couch commanders need not give up all hope, though, as Ajami notes EA "might go back and do something with the PS3 later on." Also just like that time we pushed a wheelbarrow full of lovely, scantily clad ladies up and down the beach.*
*We went back to apologize.
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 2)
Negativecool @ Jul 29th 2008 9:06PM
...Still with the difficulties?...
Gonna have to learn it some time fellas, it'll be around for another "10 years."
Envoy @ Jul 29th 2008 9:11PM
True, your comment should apply to Valve also.
NoHitHair @ Jul 29th 2008 9:15PM
It's a nice way of saying "Development for the PS3 is an enormous waste of time and money. We can spend much less time finalizing what we know rather than wasting months on something that will likely end up plagued with bugs and, given that it's an RTS on a console, lose enough cash to cripple a small country."
Co @ Jul 29th 2008 9:58PM
Just bring it to Wii, they will spend less making it and make more selling it.
4MyFriends @ Jul 29th 2008 10:15PM
At the rate the PS3 is going, I doubt it will survive long after 5 years, much less a full decade.
Averna @ Jul 29th 2008 10:20PM
... and cripple game while they're at it.
Mind you an RTS on the wii is a very cool concept.
Pointer > Mouse > Controller
Poisoned Al @ Jul 29th 2008 10:51PM
@Averna
If you think the wiimote is better then a mouse, you must have a broken mouse. But yeah, still better then a controller tho.
Killjebus @ Jul 29th 2008 11:19PM
@4mymakeshituptosoundcool
Yeah, you are spot on Sherlock. By the way...here are numbers for you on the sales of the PS3 compared to the PS2 and others.
At the end of May 1st quarter for SCE, the PS3 has SOLD 14.47m units. How did the best selling console of ALL TIME fair in the SAME time frame?
The Wii has hit 30M after 87 weeks on the market.
The DS had sold 22M after 87 weeks.
The Ps2 had sold 16M.
The GameCube had sold 8.5M.
The PS3 12.47M. (took the 360 9 more months than the PS3)
It took DS roughly 105 weeks to hit 30M.
It took Ps2 roughly 130 weeks to hit 30M.
What will it take for the PS3?
If you STILL think the PS3 is doomed, then so be it*, (no hope 4u) just like the Earth is 6K years old right?
Killjebus @ Jul 29th 2008 11:22PM
EDIT
14.47M not 12.47
So, the mighty PS2 sold barley 1.5M MORE than the DOA PS3 At TWICE the cost. Yeah, Sony fails.
j.howlett @ Jul 30th 2008 7:53AM
i wasn't looking forward to this game but the its to hard excuse was a let down. then i read the ps3 made EA the most money and this news is funny and sad at the same time. and its an rts, not coming to the console i can plug a k/b and mouse into. the only time since snes i've plugged a mouse into a console.
browntown @ Jul 29th 2008 9:06PM
jonathan mack or watever can dev for it, and thats just one guy, its a shame a giant company can't code for it. Also insomniac greater than all.
phinnvr6 @ Jul 29th 2008 9:18PM
Hah he did Everyday Shooter right? Good call. That game is awesome.
deaftly @ Jul 30th 2008 11:54AM
Yeah Everyday Shooter is such a great stoned/drunk game.
Cabal @ Jul 29th 2008 9:11PM
Not in the least surprising. RA3 is based on the SAGE engine which EA has been using since around 2003. Its easy to port to Xbox 360 due it using DirectX like the PCs it was designed for. Porting the aging engine to PS3 would probably be more work than creating a whole new engine.
Chase @ Jul 29th 2008 9:41PM
Work --and-- money. I don't think it would be wise to waste the time and effort in porting out Red Alert 3 to the PS3, and apparently, neither did EA.
phinnvr6 @ Jul 29th 2008 9:17PM
Lol what a joke. PS3 has had as many or more awesome games come out lately than anything. EA can keep it, I'm waiting for StarCraft II anyway.
dustandechoes91 @ Jul 30th 2008 12:19AM
EA just keeps shitting on the ps3, and the wii for that matter.
Like a lot of people on here have said before, clearly as they have said many times EA wishes for there to be just one console, and clearly they have already chosen the 360.
Even still, I would never buy an rts for a console. Even if they didnt cancel the ps3 version i still will buy it for pc
phinnvr6 @ Jul 30th 2008 12:27AM
Agreed. At least they admitted their lack of Wii support, not that it helps. RTS are even more suited for PCs than FPSs. Like I said, they can keep it. I want StarCraft II anyway. Until then I'll play all the other good games out or coming out for PS3.
bobartig @ Jul 30th 2008 4:00PM
@dustandechoes91: Don't forget, EA bet BIG on PS3, having developed and published 1/3 of the available launch titles for the PS3. The emphasis and resources poured into PS3 development were huge.
People keep whining "ooh lazy developers, they just have to work harder and get their development process to support the PS3's architecture."
NO THEY DON'T! They can simply avoid the PS3 and make plenty of great games and gobs of money without it. For Sony, it was not a concern that their hardware was going to be extremely inconvenient to develop for. They were the console leaders so, they figured "we do what we want, bitches!". Well, at least with the RA series, it might be biting them in the ass.
EliteBeatsAgent08 @ Jul 29th 2008 9:22PM
NoHitHair has got it right....
There's just no point to wasting all that money to learn about the supposed power of the cell when most games if not all games can look just as beautiful to the average gamer on the 360.
Then factor in the revenues that one would get even if they did spend that money to create a ps3 version I doubt the revenue would exceed expenditure in the majority of cases. Especially if it's not a huge game from a big series.
Hence why FFXIII is coming the 360 which I've predicted all along for over a year now.
Versus is probably a timed exclusive (hopefully). Meanwhile the 360 will continue to enjoy a nice lil load of exclusive titles that are sure to be major hits.
Henry @ Jul 29th 2008 9:30PM
Exotic eh?
That sounds like nice conditions to work under!
Jacksons @ Jul 29th 2008 9:31PM
I've got to rent this for the 360 just to see how it plays, and buy it for the PC of course.
Eh @ Jul 29th 2008 9:31PM
People actually play strategy games on consoles?
na2ru1 @ Jul 29th 2008 9:36PM
Many if not all PS3 exclusives are the most visually impressive games.
Burnout paradise ps3 being the lead platform just shows these guy are...
Poisoned Al @ Jul 29th 2008 10:53PM
... Shows what? Burnout paradise is on the 360 and is pretty much identical to the PS3 version. I'll you've shown is that you're a spaz.
xGeneral DEATHx @ Jul 30th 2008 8:14AM
Al's right...I played the Paradise demo on both of the consoles and they're practically identical. The only thing that swayed me to get it on the 360 is the fact that most of my friends own 360's instead of PS3's...also the fact that I bought a racing wheel for the 360 ages ago and needed to get some more use out of it. :-)
Maya Butreeks @ Jul 30th 2008 10:44AM
Hows that latest Burnout update working out on the 360? oh wait...
deaftly @ Jul 30th 2008 11:37AM
Your avatar is retarded.
na2ru1 @ Jul 30th 2008 3:55PM
Not saying Burnpout looks better! Im saying if you make it for the ps3 1st, then it helps
horngreen @ Jul 29th 2008 9:43PM
LOL "The PS3 is a very powerful system". Whatever. So far it's like a drag car with no fuel. I have yet to see this alleged power but then again we never saw it with the PS2 either. Keep swallowing fanboys!
Ass Masterson @ Jul 29th 2008 9:44PM
Right, the PS2 was still pushing games that competed with the Xbox 1 - right up until MS abandoned that system. Keep dreaming, fanboy.
Autopsy15 @ Jul 30th 2008 4:49AM
"never saw it with the PS2"
Ha! I'm thinking MGS3, Shadow of the Collosus, and God of War 2. All of those games are better than anything the Xbox ever offered. Don't say "Teh Haloz!!!". The only reason that game was a success is because it's so easy a blind kid could play it.
LaughingTarget @ Jul 30th 2008 6:25AM
Autopsy never saw Gun Valkyrie apparently. First year Xbox game, better than anything the PS2 ever put out on a technical level. The PS2 never came close to it's real time Toy Story claims.
Ass Masterson @ Jul 29th 2008 9:43PM
They should just say what they mean: "We're stupid. Please don't give us any more development contracts."
Jouten @ Jul 29th 2008 9:58PM
Amen to that brutha
liam @ Jul 29th 2008 9:45PM
So basically he's saying we aren't as good as other game developers and can't do it.
No problem EALA.
Jouten @ Jul 29th 2008 9:58PM
Exactly! Testify my brutha! Tes-ti-fy!!
Jouten @ Jul 29th 2008 9:48PM
I haven't posted in a while. But what I have to say about this topic is...
Bastards...
Killjebus @ Jul 29th 2008 9:57PM
In otherwords...try as they might, they just could not fit a square peg into a round hole.
There are still a few devs out there that keep trying to port old aging engines into a new machine.
I am glad they canned the PS3 vesion, as someone else above me said it would have been full of bugs.
Round peg....meet square hole.
Kayrappy archaic ignorant developers...go to GG or Insomniacs how to develop for Cell pages, you just might learn something.
Jouten @ Jul 29th 2008 10:00PM
Couldn't of said it better myself! Spot on!
We are a society that tries so hard to be 'culturally diverse'. Why can't we try to be 'technologically diverse' as well?
Sheesh!
LaughingTarget @ Jul 30th 2008 3:46PM
-1 for faulty logic.
Insomniac has absolutely no choice in the matter as to what they program on being financially reliant on Sony. Of course they'll put a ton of effort learning the PS3, that is their only source of income.
EA doesn't have that restriction. EA needs to look at long term, meaning post PS3, when making decisions about what to train employees in. Remember, this is a whole new language, you can't just up and learn German or Mandarin in a few weeks and learn a new language every 4 years. The team that makes Red Alert is more familiar with DirectX because it's been around almost as long as the Playstation brand has, DirectX 1.0 released three weeks after the Playstation 1 launched in the US.
Learning on DirectX or OpenGL makes sense because the programmers don't have to completely change thinking patterns just to get used to a new revision or advancement. DirectX is DirectX, it just gets built on year after year.
There isn't a correlation between PS2 development and PS3 development, let alone between the DirectX environment that's been around for 13 years or OpenGL which has been around for 16 years.
Learning the tricks of the trade on the PS3 are going to be rendered irrelevant in 4-6 years when the PS4 is released. Cell has absolutely no application apart from the Playstation 3 in the marketplace. There simply is little financial impetus for EA to utilize resources hiring PS3 specific teams or training them to use a niche product.
The skills developed in making PS3 games will be useless in a decade from now but the skills used in DirectX based games will still be useful since that API isn't going anywhere.
Summary: Insomniac is good at PS3 development because they don't have a choice in the matter. EA does and is clearly not going to put a lot of effort into a skill that has zero long-term applications.
bobartig @ Jul 30th 2008 4:18PM
There is nothing wrong with using an old game engine for new games. REPEAT: There is nothing wrong with using an old game engine for new games.
It gives you familiar tools and frameworks to develop with, dramatically reduces development time, and does not mean that you will end up with a substandard game.
You can start with a game engine that was basically developed for the SNES, add a UT graphics engine, HAVOC physics, additional sound engine, animation engine, and end with something completely next gen, revolutionary, and capable of things that no predecessor has done before, but developed faster and with fewer bugs with an older underlying engine.
Jcarpio @ Jul 29th 2008 10:00PM
in all honesty, they had good sales on the 360 with the previous release of C&C. so just stay with what they know and cut that cost.
as far as console strategy games go, anyone play CivRev? any good?
WiNG [Life in a Game] @ Jul 29th 2008 10:08PM
Two words:
Sega Saturn.
I rest my case.
Jouten @ Jul 29th 2008 10:19PM
One word:
Troll.
I rest my case.
Ninjakamster (PS360 FTW!) @ Jul 29th 2008 11:01PM
Sega Saturn was and still is loved by many hardcore gamers, so a compliment?
mj @ Jul 30th 2008 11:09AM
My thoughts exactly, only Sony has more money and better franchises to prop up the PS3. And more inept competition.
Maverick Saturn @ Jul 29th 2008 10:21PM
Anyone else smell garbage? Who is doing Tiberium? Might as well can that too :S
When are devs going to realise that ports just don't work, to get the most out of 360, you need to remain exclusive, to get the most out of PS3, you need to remain exclusive, exclusivity gives you games like Gears and MGS, ports can just about give you COD4 'IF' you know how to use both technologies properly.
Maverick Saturn @ Jul 29th 2008 10:23PM
The best games on 360 have been exclusives, the best games on PS3 have been exclusives, wake up call maybe?
Maverick Saturn @ Jul 29th 2008 10:21PM
Sigh....I rest my case