Move & 3D At PS3 Birth

The Telegraph has published an interview with Sony  Entertainment’s President and Group CEO, Kazuo Hirai which has revealed one or two interesting facts. He is first questioned about the PSP, specifically regarding the rumours that a PSP2 would have gyro sensors much like those found in Apple devices. Kaz debunks this idea:

I think that PlayStation DNA has always been about stability and not making changes midcourse. So any technology we do bring needs to be forwards and backwards compatible for the same platform. It doesn’t matter if it’s a gyro-sensor or anything else. It needs to be compatible with all of the platform’s forthcoming games as well as its catalogue. If the consumers who have already bought PSPs need new tech to play it which isn’t compatible with that platform, you’re sending them a bad message. You’re saying “if you want to play this great new game you’ve got to go out and buy a new PSP.”

He then goes on to explains that both motion control and 3D were factored in to the PlayStation 3 design at the very begining:

Those are things [motion control & 3D] we talked about internally before the launch. We knew that the PS3 needed to have a 10 year life cycle – much like the PlayStation and the PS2. Given how fast technology turns over now, we knew going in that we had to pack a lot of horsepower into the PS3.

Recently the head of Nintendo has said he would be ’embarrassed’ if he worked for Sony as he felt Move was just a copy of the Wii. Kaz took the time to have a sly dig at Nintendo bringing out the Motion Control Plus Wii upgrade:

We also we want to make sure the technologies that we offer are a complete package from day one. We don’t want to be in a position where we’re having to come out with something like ‘PlayStation Move Plus’ two years from now.

Another thinly veiled dig was aimed Microsoft who showed very little in the way of  ‘core’ games for Kinect during E3:

There are upwards of 36 million PS3 consoles sold worldwide right now – we are starting to tap into the casual and light gaming users. But we want to make sure that we have software that appeals those gamers without neglecting the hardcore gaming audience who have always been the real diehard supporters of PS3. That’s the balance we struck in our keynote press briefing, I think.

Finally he was asked if he was relieved that Gran Turismo 5 has a release date:

(Laughs) Couldn’t be happier! Especially because Kazunori Yamauchi took a lot of time tweaking the game – as he always does – but the fact that he took the time to make sure the game is 3D compatible is great. He put a lot of effort into it and it obviously shows! If you haven’t played it yet, you should – it looks absolutely fantastic!

With hindsight Sony’s plans for the PS3 do make a lot of sense. The console was regarded as very expensive at the beginning but at that point you did not know that you would get 3D, Vidzone, Home and the many other facilities Sony have tacked on for free since launch.

Sony built the console with these in mind so when the technology become affordable and popular it could easily be slotted in to the PS3 rather than bringing out a new design. Makes you wonder what they have got planned for the future, doesn’t it?

Source: The Telegraph