PS3 Euro Launch Confirmed – Full Details Here
As SPOnG predicted… now officially confirmed
1 Million of these on 23rd March
OK, get your Motorstorm’s running, the long-awaited, long-rumoured details of the Playstation 3’s European launch have finally been confirmed by Sony. And there are no surprises - as we predicted Sony’s 60Gb PlayStation 3 next-gen console will be available across Europe from March 23rd for £425 – the 20Gb version will follow ‘later in the year dependent on demand’.
Aside from the price, Sony’s official announcement uses another big number: One-Million PS3s An expected one million PS3 units, “…will be made available during the initial launch period to all SCEE territories.”
How these figures break down by specific country is, at this time, still unconfirmed. What will be available for every new European PS3 will be, “a new System Update to further enhance the entertainment potential of PS3”
Confirmed launch titles – a full list of which is available here- include:
Resistance: Fall of Man
MotorStorm
Genji: Days of the Blade – read SPOnG’s interview with Genji top-man, Yoshiki Okamoto,right here.
Formula One Championship Edition
Ridge Racer 7
Downloadable Content
In addition to games on disc, an exciting range of fully-featured downloadable games will debut on the PlayStation Network. These will include gaming icons such as:
Tekken: Dark Resurrection
Gran Turismo HD Concept (in 1080p)
Go! Sudoku
Go! Puzzle
Blast Factor
flOw
Pre-Orders
As this story goes live there is no official confirmation of the pre-order system. SPOnG is confident, however, that rather than centralising pre-orders as was the case with the PS2 launch, these will continue to be on a per-retailer basis. This means that if you pre-ordered back in – for example, June 2006 – these orders should come top of the list.
Launch Peripherals
Also confirmed in this morning’s release from Sony are the peripherals and prices that we’re promised will be available in numbers at launch. The full list comprises:
SIXAXIS™ Wireless Controller £34.99
Blu-ray Disc Remote Control £17.99
HDMI Cable £17.99
AV cable £12.99
Component AV cable £17.99
S Video cable £12.99
Aside from the price, Sony’s official announcement uses another big number: One-Million PS3s An expected one million PS3 units, “…will be made available during the initial launch period to all SCEE territories.”
How these figures break down by specific country is, at this time, still unconfirmed. What will be available for every new European PS3 will be, “a new System Update to further enhance the entertainment potential of PS3”
Confirmed launch titles – a full list of which is available here- include:
Resistance: Fall of Man
MotorStorm
Genji: Days of the Blade – read SPOnG’s interview with Genji top-man, Yoshiki Okamoto,right here.
Formula One Championship Edition
Ridge Racer 7
Downloadable Content
In addition to games on disc, an exciting range of fully-featured downloadable games will debut on the PlayStation Network. These will include gaming icons such as:
Tekken: Dark Resurrection
Gran Turismo HD Concept (in 1080p)
Go! Sudoku
Go! Puzzle
Blast Factor
flOw
Pre-Orders
As this story goes live there is no official confirmation of the pre-order system. SPOnG is confident, however, that rather than centralising pre-orders as was the case with the PS2 launch, these will continue to be on a per-retailer basis. This means that if you pre-ordered back in – for example, June 2006 – these orders should come top of the list.
Launch Peripherals
Also confirmed in this morning’s release from Sony are the peripherals and prices that we’re promised will be available in numbers at launch. The full list comprises:
SIXAXIS™ Wireless Controller £34.99
Blu-ray Disc Remote Control £17.99
HDMI Cable £17.99
AV cable £12.99
Component AV cable £17.99
S Video cable £12.99
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Comments
realvictory 25 Jan 2007 02:03
1/14
I predict one of two situations: (a) they'll be impossible to get hold of for ages, or (b) no one will want one.
To be honest, although I'm skeptical about PS3 launch, it will be fun to see what happens to the XBox 360 once the PS3 is fully launched. The dilemma XB360 has is, PS3 is newer and more powerful, and Playstation is a bigger brand (than XBox), but if the XBox 360 price is cut, it will suddenly look inferior.
Sony seems to have a long way to go to 'catch up' - but it's possible that it might not seem as difficult to them as it does to everybody else. Still, I probably won't get either of the two until I get an HDTV (not for ages, I think) and the price drops a lot.
High Definition movies (i.e. Bluray vs. HDDVD), though - what a load of rubbish.
To be honest, although I'm skeptical about PS3 launch, it will be fun to see what happens to the XBox 360 once the PS3 is fully launched. The dilemma XB360 has is, PS3 is newer and more powerful, and Playstation is a bigger brand (than XBox), but if the XBox 360 price is cut, it will suddenly look inferior.
Sony seems to have a long way to go to 'catch up' - but it's possible that it might not seem as difficult to them as it does to everybody else. Still, I probably won't get either of the two until I get an HDTV (not for ages, I think) and the price drops a lot.
High Definition movies (i.e. Bluray vs. HDDVD), though - what a load of rubbish.
Coxy 25 Jan 2007 09:39
2/14
I'm betting on the "no one will want one" option.
I wonder if there will be a similar situation here as in America, wherein the hardcore Sony fans will camp out for it and fulfil their pre-orders, then the remaining consoles will collect in shops, I mean no sane person is going to pay £425 for a console, at least not during the launch period.
I can’t really see a majority of fellow European gamers flocking to buy this thing after multiple delays and a relatively unimpressive launch line-up, and let’s not forget the more affordable Xbox360 the Wii’s current popularity.
Sony have their work cut out for them if they want to do well in Europe.
I wonder if there will be a similar situation here as in America, wherein the hardcore Sony fans will camp out for it and fulfil their pre-orders, then the remaining consoles will collect in shops, I mean no sane person is going to pay £425 for a console, at least not during the launch period.
I can’t really see a majority of fellow European gamers flocking to buy this thing after multiple delays and a relatively unimpressive launch line-up, and let’s not forget the more affordable Xbox360 the Wii’s current popularity.
Sony have their work cut out for them if they want to do well in Europe.
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Ruin3d 25 Jan 2007 10:05
3/14
So average package
PS3 - £425
2 x games (£60 est) - £120
Decent cable - £18
Second pad - £35
£598 OUCH!
PS3 - £425
2 x games (£60 est) - £120
Decent cable - £18
Second pad - £35
£598 OUCH!
sneakyduck 25 Jan 2007 10:09
4/14
High Definition movies (i.e. Bluray vs. HDDVD), though - what a load of rubbish.
Couldn't agree with you more on that one realvictory - I've only just gotten onto DVD's in the last few years and now they want us to change and buy a £2000 TV? STFU.
Coming from a devout Nintendo fanboy perspective, I cannot see a lot of people rushing out to spend the better part of £500 for the PS3 after the initial rush. I'm sorry, it looks great - but I could buy a 360 and a s**t load of games for that price and that's the one thing I think matters the most when you invest in a new console.
I would have opted to buy a Wii and a s**t load of games in the previous example but I still can't f**king find one. Damn you Nintendo. Don't you want my money anymore?
sneakyduck 25 Jan 2007 10:11
5/14
Thanks Ruin3d, I was waiting for someone to do the maths for me.
£600?!?! 3 words: W.T.F.
£600?!?! 3 words: W.T.F.
king skins 25 Jan 2007 10:38
6/14
sneakyduck wrote:
Couldn't agree with you more on that one realvictory - I've only just gotten onto DVD's in the last few years and now they want us to change and buy a £2000 TV? STFU.
You can pick up a good HDTV for around £600-800 for a 32" screen and cheaper again if you want a 28". You are only going to be spending anywhere near £2000 if you want a top of the range 47"+ Plasma.
Anyway the PS3 will sell out went launched. But I still think that its to expensive. It will be interesting to see how it sells from launch to Xmas.
The only games that are interesting me are Motorstorm and MGS4. Oh and I'd be very interested to see what Killzone 2 is looking like...
sneakyduck 25 Jan 2007 10:48
7/14
That's the problem king skins, if I spend any money on an HDTV it would have to be a sodding great big one like 50" or something.
I never saw the point of spending all that money on one and coming away with something that isn't top of the range when it only costs a few hundred quid more.
That makes me sound like a prick doesn't it? The kind of person sales people love?
I never saw the point of spending all that money on one and coming away with something that isn't top of the range when it only costs a few hundred quid more.
That makes me sound like a prick doesn't it? The kind of person sales people love?
king skins 25 Jan 2007 11:11
8/14
sneakyduck wrote:
That's the problem king skins, if I spend any money on an HDTV it would have to be a sodding great big one like 50" or something.
I never saw the point of spending all that money on one and coming away with something that isn't top of the range when it only costs a few hundred quid more.
That makes me sound like a prick doesn't it? The kind of person sales people love?
I never saw the point of spending all that money on one and coming away with something that isn't top of the range when it only costs a few hundred quid more.
That makes me sound like a prick doesn't it? The kind of person sales people love?
No, I do the same thing :)
Its always better to spend a bit more money for something really good than save a bit of money and get something your not going to be completely happy with.
tyrion 25 Jan 2007 13:22
9/14
sneakyduck wrote:
I never saw the point of spending all that money on one and coming away with something that isn't top of the range when it only costs a few hundred quid more.
Maybe it's my turn to sound like a prick, but have you ever considered a projector? You can't get a 100" HD-Ready TV, but I've got a projector that can do it easily and it only cost me £830.
I can vouch for the fact that Burnout Revenge is a whole different experience with a projector than it is on an LCD or plasma TV. Just the feeling of immersion is incredible.
Of course, projectors aren't for everyone, you need to get new bulbs every so often and they can be pricey. Also you may not have a large room to install it in. My lounge is just under 4m wide and I can only just fit the projector in, because the picture is so large!
Master Chef 25 Jan 2007 13:49
10/14
Woah.
Sony in "releases info sombody on the inside leaked weeks ago" shocker
IMO this is too late by a week at least. Easter is 8th April, so they only given themselves 2 weeks of the crazy pre-Easter buying
Sony in "releases info sombody on the inside leaked weeks ago" shocker
IMO this is too late by a week at least. Easter is 8th April, so they only given themselves 2 weeks of the crazy pre-Easter buying
Joji 25 Jan 2007 14:44
11/14
I agree its too close to easter. Also damn expensive. I think I'll save that £425-600 for my Ibiza holiday in July instead.
Anyways I'm sure I'll be overdosing on my 360 with Ghost Recon AWF 2, Gears and Crackdown. £300 for a 360 seems ever so reasonable now. Sony have so much to learn.
I totally agree you on the dvd bit, Real. I'm happy with all the joys of the current format, multi region players and access to all the anime and flicks I like on import. I'm not gonna ditch that yet because Sony and Toshiba wanna measure cocks, and if I do, I'll be upgrading to a multi region dvd recorder with built in hard drive first. All that messing with the regions for these new formats is a big tripe turnoff too.
When I do buy a PS3, it will be when the price drops to a reasonable level, and for me it will be a games console and nothing else.
Anyways I'm sure I'll be overdosing on my 360 with Ghost Recon AWF 2, Gears and Crackdown. £300 for a 360 seems ever so reasonable now. Sony have so much to learn.
I totally agree you on the dvd bit, Real. I'm happy with all the joys of the current format, multi region players and access to all the anime and flicks I like on import. I'm not gonna ditch that yet because Sony and Toshiba wanna measure cocks, and if I do, I'll be upgrading to a multi region dvd recorder with built in hard drive first. All that messing with the regions for these new formats is a big tripe turnoff too.
When I do buy a PS3, it will be when the price drops to a reasonable level, and for me it will be a games console and nothing else.
SCiARA 25 Jan 2007 15:02
12/14
I got the hd dvd add on for the 360 and i gotta say the difference between standard stuff and hd is massive, I only bought the hd as it was £130 and I have an hd set but now I buy hd dvd's only (all region free)
tyrion 25 Jan 2007 18:50
13/14
SCiARA wrote:
I got the hd dvd add on for the 360 and i gotta say the difference between standard stuff and hd is massive, I only bought the hd as it was £130 and I have an hd set but now I buy hd dvd's only (all region free)
I took the office HD-DVD add-on home to fully test my new projector (have I mentioned that I have a projector!! :-) and I was impressed at the quality, even at "only" 720p, compared to DVDs.
With Blu-ray and HD-DVD players capable of using the same CODECS, there should be very little difference in the quality of the visuals and audio tracks between them.
It's just a matter of the content you want being available. I'm more inclined towards Blu-ray due to the large amount of support it has, but Universal being an HD-DVD only house makes me sad since I want Serenity in HD, gorammit!
Moschops 25 Jan 2007 19:44
14/14
tyrion wrote:
I'm more inclined towards Blu-ray due to the large amount of support it has, but Universal being an HD-DVD only house makes me sad since I want Serenity in HD, gorammit!
Heh. Mebe you could just download the f**ker and play if back all HD through your PC's DVI
