EA Boss Says PS Brand Still Best

Phew, gaming news is really slowing down now isn’t it? I think all the PR guys are closing down for the holidays and all the developers have switched off their supercomputers and gone to the pub.

Still, you can always rely on John Riccitiello for a bit of fun. He’s the current CEO of EA Games and well known for not hiding his opinion when it comes to… well, when it comes to just about anything he’s asked about. An admirable trait and one which often sees his name appear under quasi-shocking headlines (like the one above).

This time, Riccitiello has let MCV know what he thinks of the two big HD consoles and their brands. Riccitiello, in a refreshing burst of clear-sighted honesty, said:

the Xbox brand, the Microsoft brand, doesn’t carry anywhere near as much sway as the Sony and PlayStation brand do outside the United States.

I think the reality is the international marketplace is just so important and it’s a natural advantage that no matter how good Microsoft is at growing their business, Sony has an almost-impossible-to-supersede head start

Which might be seen as controversial by some and it might fly against the PR spin that both companies would like everyone to believe. He does also mention that PlayStation has got little competition for the connected experience offered by Microsoft’s Live service, even though Home is constantly improving.

It’s a series of well-reasoned points which seems, on the basis of all available evidence, to be the simple truth of the matter. Good eye, Mr Riccitiello.