This is painful...truly painful. I can't lie to you...I'm a Sony fanboy. Sure, I own an Xbox, and, as I've said before, I plan to buy an Xbox 360. I'll most likely be buying a Wii at some point, too. But in deep down inside, I'm pulling for Sony all the way. Sure, I'll probably have to slip the Game Stop clerk $50 to make sure I get my name at the top of the PS3 reservation list, but I still plan to get a PS3 on the day it launches. And I'll stand by my decision, just like I did for the Sega Dreamcast...not that my support for Sega's best console made much difference in the end. It's too bad...the Dreamcast was a worthy console.
Aside from the fact that there will only be 400,000 PS3s (projected) in the US, Sony has decided to scrap their plans for a worldwide launch. For the initial launch, only the US and Japan will be receiving units. And Japan will only be getting 100,000 PS3s (projected). Ouch. The rest of the world will have to wait until March 2007. Ouch again. Either that, or wait to buy a PS3 for $5000 on EBAY. That goes way beyond "ouch".
The problem is this: Sony, at least publicly, is trying to say that this drastic cut in their PS3 launch numbers are no big deal. They're saying that this'll be the same as the PS2 launch, and better than the Xbox 360 launch. Sure, when the PS2 launched, they had about the same amount of hardware. But, they also didn't have any real competition when they launched. If you wanted to play on the newest console, and you missed out at launch, then tough...you just had to suffer through the PS2 shortage. This time around, there are two other new consoles out there -- one of which will be brand new (the Wii, of course). As for the faults of the Xbox 360 launch...well, they did it the same way Sony did with the PS2. They launched when there were no other new consoles due out for months. They launched when there was no competition, and now they have a foothold. At least in the US and Europe. They are still sucking pretty hard in Japan.
In closing, this PS3 hardware shortage may be good for the short-term profits of the EBAYers out there, but I'm not so sure it bodes well for the future of Sony's PS3. Either way, I'll still have my PS3 on the day it launches. And I'll stand by my decision, just like I did for the Sega Dreamcast.
I just hope the PS3 has a brighter future than the Dreamcast.
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