Has PlayStation lost its luster?

One analyst discusses the problems that Sony faces with the PlayStation brand.

There was a time when Sony and the PlayStation brand were synonymous with gaming. The PlayStation was the biggest video game brand on the planet, offering core gamers experiences that they couldn't find anywhere else. Sony's current generation home console, the PlayStation 3, offers this same experience as its predecessors. A wealth of first party content that can't be found elsewhere, a powerful system, capable of incredible gaming experiences. However, "not all consumers have gotten the word," says gaming analyst David Cole in a recent interview with Industry Gamers.

"The PS3 is an incredibly robust system with a great content library," Cole said. Unfortunately for Sony, not all consumers semm to have gotten the word," concluding his thoughts on the PlayStation 3. It's not just the PlayStation 3 that is giving Sony fits these days. The recently released PlayStation Vita has gotten off to a controversial start, with sales dropping week after week since release in December.

The Vita could be having the same early issues that the PS3 had. The exorbitant price just isn't easily justifiable to gamers, especially when there are comprable, and in some cases better alternatives on the market. Cole also believes that "it will take a while for Sony to build momentum around the Vita."

Most importantly, the analyst thinks that Sony's Resolution for 2012 should be to "bring back consumer excitement around the Sony and PlayStation Brand."

By Al McCarthy on January 6, 2012

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Cool dude
I know how great a Ps3 system can be Just like everyone else in this website.
But its just not as big as it was a decade ago.
The Fan
Correct me if I’m wrong but you actually have to have luster to lose it. In my opinion its been about 10 years since the PlayStation brand was relevant in video games. They missed the boat big time in this generation in so many areas.
- Jeff
  What is this I don’t even. I just don’t understand how anybody could say that about any of the consoles. All 3 consoles have done their part in elevating what gaming is in the past few years. Evolving the meaning of gaming. Especially Playstation. It hasn’t sold as many systems as Xbox, but who cares? Great for Microsoft and what they’ve done! It doesn’t mean it doesn’t kick as much ass as everybody else. Playstation’s exclusive games are fantastic and have brought gamers together from all different genres. They’ve turned their system into something much more than just a video game console and have continued to make it a better value. They keep their fans happy. I don’t know what they could have done better in the past decade. I’m sorry you can’t quite enjoy it like the rest of us.
- SimonHssss
  LOL, what an idiot. You have no idea the games you are missing out on.
  The press are to blame. Far too eager to take Microsoft’s bags of money. They spend over $5bn in advertising and press sweeteners and everyone wants some of that pie.
  We call it bribery, they call it advertising.
- Cool dude
  Ahem… so you call TV commercials bribery?
Allen
Here, let’s say some put of no where $hit about Playstation in hopes of starting another fight!
@ The Fan – 10 years ago PS2 was kicking the biggest ass the gaming world has ever seen. You don’t get to 150 Million consoles sold without that.
To anyone worried about PS losing it’s Luster. It is still by far the highest selling console series in the world and is holding it’s own this gen despite a million things against it. I say with everything Sony had against it it’s a beautiful thing to see well over 50 Million sold already.
People blow everything out of proportion and for the love of god, don’t call Vita a failure when it hasn’t even released world wide yet.
- Paul
  Uh oh Allen, ur sexbox just got dissed on.
- Allen
  Paul even I’m sick of making gay jokes about you. Seriously, stop saying you want to suck my man meat you freaking stalker
- Paul
  Hahaha, the fact that you got any homosexual thoughts about what I said shows that you think about gays all the time hahaha. You dissed yourself hahahaha!
bozmanbeyond
So wait, 61 million units is considered “lost luster”? and “not all consumers have gotten the word”? I think thats a good damm dent of consumers. The system that has lost it luster is the Wii if any.
SpazticAssassin
i just hope ps4 isn’t overpriced right out of the gate again. But probly will be. I’ve enjoyed my ps3 for years now and if they’re gonna release ps4 early then I’ll buy it.
- MJAB Brad
  Really I had my PS3 for not even a month and it broke on me had that problem were the light flashes green yelloe green then turns off.
- MJAB Brad
  Really I had my PS3 for not even a month and it broke on me had that problem were the light flashes green yellow green then turns off.
Frank
Lost it’s luster? No. The problem is the Internet. It has created a much larger domain for fanboys, who can now easily persuade one another to buy anything. Sony bombed the ps3 at the beginning of this generation. Nothing can hang change that(I’m a former 360 owner from ’06-’09), but to say they’ve luster? No. They’ve pumped out the best exclusives this gen, most which were new ips only showing they’ve still got it. They need to release the ps4 before the nexbox. and cheaper than it as well. I think Sony can handle that.
- Cool dude
  We’ll just wait and see then. After this gen’s major events.
  I cant guarantee that either MS or Sony can do everything smartly.
  Xbox 360= RROD (rushed production) , poor exclusive launch 2011-2012, poor 1st party line-up.
  Ps3= Late launch, over priced lauch hardware, poor online stability and security, alienated chip design, poor RAM management.
Raven
By the end of this generation ms will probably triple their user base and sony will barely get half of what they had with ps2.
Lost its luster might not be the best phrase, but they definitely lost a lot of their previous gains.
I blame sonys initial high cost and slow online development.
BIGRED15
U both need to stfu. If u wanna debate, do it like men not 12 year old boys. Both ms and ps are extremely relevant. Wii is the only one loosing steam. Again people are quick to discredit Sony which is easy when the media and Xbox fanboys jump at every opportunity. On the surface yes the ps3 looks like it can’t hang with Xbox. Why. Media like xplay discredit Sony by showing a great deal of bias in favor of xbox. Why else would games like gears and cod get better reviews than titles like uncharted. Look, bash ps3 all you want, discrediting such a prolific brand like Sony is completely useless in fact your taking a stand against one of the best gaming experience gurus of all time which just foolish when you actually think about it rationally (not like a fanboy). They prove there mettle time and time again and if I got to explain why then you aren’t educated enough to debay
- Cool dude
  Really? Cuz as far as I know. UC3 was one of the best reviewed this year. If you dont want bias comments. Dont say
  “It was all Xbox fanboys this….”
  “or Gears was higher than that…”
  The fact remains that your comment was biased at the first place.
BIGRED15
*debate
Ralph
So all these articles this year about weak sales with there TVs, phones, exclusives, and now vita have just been organized by xbots? You’ve got to be kidding me.
The facts are sony is in trouble, they’re hopping in the toilet right along with blockbuster and blackberry.
Frank
Ralph, how so? Again, like I said in the Vita article, it is being aimed at the western audience. Sony is fine. Ps3 is behind Xbox 360 like 3′million consoles you think about it, that’s pathetic. Ps3 is in this position because of its initial release price and lack of games the first 9 months it was out. Xbox hasn’t outsold the Ps3 since 2009! If any console has lost its luster, it’s the 360. When I bought one, there were a bevy of exclusives. Gears, crackdown, Perfect dark zero, mass effect, halo, bioshock, etc. Now what? Gears 3, forza and a bunch of Kinect games lol Sony took the most chances this generation, without a doubt. Releasing new ips such as Uncharted, Resistance, and bringing back Killzone from the grave and infamous as well.
Anyone with half a brain knows when it comes to GAMES, you know, that little reason why you bought a console, Sony has DOMINATED. PSN=Live, don’t see how you can disagree. OMG I CAN DOOZ PARTY CHATZ! If I can talk to my friends while I play cod, it’s okay. If I can call a friend using my new invention called a cellphone, I’m okay. Party chat is like boasting about having a DVD player. You have so many in your house with your PC, your living room, your room, what’s the point of bragging about it?
- Cool dude
  Financially, I wouldnt call ps3 a success. I mean, PS dominated 5th and 6th gens and now?
  Wii 94.6m
  Xbox 360 63.9m
  Ps3 60.1m
  I wouldnt call that success now it only has a market share of 27.4%. And about 55-45 Xbox to Ps3 ratio. And what was it last gen? 1-6 Xbox to Ps2.
  Okay so Sony took more chances this gen? Wow, well, why didnt they take a risk of going controller-free? Why did they release Move? It is now perceived as a copy of wii and it is very unpopular. Specially when you compare it Kinect. And you know how popular and successful kinect is. I wouldnt call that a loss of luster.
  What about the 50 Entertainment partners added to Xbox Live? People in the internet even say that it is the “Step forward” (Im not even kidding). I wouldnt call that a loss of luster…
  Do you even have any idea how important Cross game chat is? It means that you can talk freely with your friends without the need of having the same game. Or being in the same lobby. Its called Easy Socializing. Specially with the new Beacon feature added to Xbox Live. It tells you what your friends are up to and what they want to play when the go online.
Ralph
Good point, sony has done a great job at keeping up and beating xbox slightly. But last gen they sold 6 to 1 compared to their competitors, so keeping up is kind of sad for a company that pretty much owned the industry, so I kind of see the point of this article
Ralph
As far as the vita goes, I do think it might take off when it hits the US, but I do not think all current negative articles on it are being organized by xbox fans
Titan
It stopped just being all about the games when xbox added netflix first.
reality
Comparing the PS3 to the PS2 it lost damn near all of its luster. Sans graphics, and a more advanced online network, the PS2 was better, it had more games, and better games at the same stage in its release. Hate all you want, you know it’s true.
- abc
  ps2 still had better games than xbox 360. you know its true. xbox had the year headstart and the affordable price tag. it should have dominated this gen. despite that mistakes sony has made they are pretty much in a good position just behind by 3 million units.
  if both ms and sony release consoles at the same time with the same price tag ill bet that it will be a close fight and the games that each console will provide at launch will decide which console is going to sell more.
  one thing is for sure, if ms keeps pushing the kinect and lean towards the casual crowd then i would definitely not buy it. they used to have a lot of exclusives but they sold out to the casual market as the casual market will bring in the money. now they only have gears, halo, and forza.
  sony just need to improve its online network. i would prefer it to be free but if improvement of security and network stability means we have to pay for online then so be it. as long as they put out those exclusives my loyalty will be towards sony.
Titan
Reality is right, when you compare what they had with ps2, this article is dead on.
BIGRED15
Ralph:
Sony has NEVER been in the tanker. It would seem they are if you look at the fact that they aren’t talked about as much or heralded like Wii and Xbox. It seemed Sony got most media attention due to the hack in April. Fact of the matter is ur kidding urself. Neither Sony or Microsoft are going anywhere and given the price and time in which ps3 was released, Sony would be topping Xbox hands down if they released at the same time around the same price. Consider as well the gap they had to close to come within 3 million of Xbox. That indicates Xbox had to loose steam for ps3 to gain
Ralph
I’m sorry, doing okay in their gaming division is not enough to keep sony going. Google sony and see all the great articles out there, the stock is worthless, divisions closing left and right, ceo’s taking off, prices being slashed on phones, vita, tablets, and even that 24 inch 3dtv. They’re following the same path as blockbuster, blackberry, and even Sega.
This article really isn’t about xbox vs playstation, it’s about sony losing it’s brand recognition. Ps3 has no where near the same power that the ps2 had.
AKA Zzz
I don’t think it’s lost it’s status but Sony has definitely lost a huge market share in the past 6 or so years in the Western market. There seems to have been a culture shift. Playstation and Sony has always been synonymous with gaming. But XBOX seems to have really stamped it’s mark down on the gaming community and became that major name that the West associates with gaming. Many would consider me an XBOX fanboy but I just play up to that stereotype because it’s hilarious. Regardless, the 360 is seen as the go-to gaming machine in this day and age which is quite sad because everyone knows games are most powerful when played on a PC. The 360 vs. PS3 debate is accentuated in the media because it helps sell consoles and a lot of people will base their purchases solely on that fictitious debate. Meanwhile, Sony and Microsoft sit back laughing and collecting our money.
Why they gladly enjoy this debate is because it forces consumers into a 50/50 choice. The question in itself proposes that the 360 and the PS3 are the pinnacle of gaming, and the only difference is simply your choice. Why do you think they do this all the time? 50 Cent vs Kanye West album release, same thing. iPhone vs. Android, same thing. Coke vs Pepsi, same thing. it’s been going on for years and will continue to go on unless people start making wise choices and not pre-defined choices such as 360 vs. PS3.
With that said, I hope the PS4 and Infinity raise the bar for gaming and make themselves a system worth paying for.
- Cool dude
  ^This
  BTW. Congrats for the new console. Ive also worked pretty hard to get a 360 and a Ps3 back then. But now their cheap. Lol.
Frank
Cool Dude, saying the move is a wii copy is saying Kinect copied the Playstation eye. Neither were magically thought up of, they both built and added innovation to something that already existed. The point that you even brought it up shows that you can’t make a proper argument because neither move nor Kinect have good games. Both, IMO are cash grabs. Especially they Kinect. I’m asking you to compare GAMES. That’s all it comes down to. If you bought a 360 over ps3 because the 360 has party chat, you seriously need to have your head checked. Yes, Live and PSN are the same. How are thy any different? You add your friends, they invite you, and you play. OMG live is so much better? I enjoy PSN more because it’s free and because Live was flooded with advertisements. No, PS3 doesn’t have the sales that the ps/ps2 had, but that’s because ps1 was amazing, last gen Nintendo really messed up and Xbox was new. This gen ms was much smarter when it came to advertising(which for ps3 is virtually non-existent). Who did they use to advertise the Kinect? Ellen and Justin beiber. Thats freaking genius on their part. That helped rake in the casuals. But again, the PS brand like last gen and the gen before has released the highest quality exclusives on the market, so they is why they haven’t lost their luster. If you see anyone bashing on ps3, they aren’t hordcore gamers. Theyre casuals because most of the time, their arguments are just “PSN was hacked” or “ps3 has no gam3zz!”
- Cool dude
  If you think XBL and PSN are identical. YOU need a head check. There is so much that XBL that has and Sony dont. Bro. Google it.
  And your not getting it. This person on the article was talking about PS as a BRAND. Not just about one Console the Ps3.
  PsX 100m
  Ps2 150m
  Ps3 61m
  The Ps brand declined by about 60% in just 5 years. I think thats why this person said that “It lost its luster”. No denying the facts.
  Here. Top games released (required games)
  Move:
  Echochrome 2: 80
  Sports Champions: 76
  Get Fit with Mel B: 75
  The House of the Dead: Overkill: Extended cut: 75
  Tumble: 73
  Kinect
  Puss in Boots: 87
  Dance Central 2: 86
  Dance Central: 82
  Sesame Street: Once upon a Monster: 80
  Gunstringer: 80
  You tell me who has better motion games…
Frank
And yeah, xplay is anti Sony. They gave WWE 12 A perfect score and not uncharted. I repeat, WWE 12!!!! And read the resistance 3 review where Morgan Webb constantly bashes ps3 and PSN through out it. Don’t be blind. Most western media hates that the ps3 is doing good.
reality
Frank, everyone knows G4 is worthless, no need to talk about them.
Xsniper
dont make crap, price it high at the start and put snake face on it
Mgs is the best game ever its why a got a ps3
- Xsniper
  ive got a ps3