Thursday, November 21, 2013

MARKING PERIOD 2 BLOG POSTS ALL CAPS ED. PART X: THE RETRIBUTION




Sony’s PlayStation sells 1 million units on launch day, but faces some problems



This article focuses entirely on the release day issues with the PS4. The Xbox One hadn't come out by the release of the article. The article tells of some specific incidents of people having huge issues with the console. These issues include problems with the HDMI port, being unable to turn the console on, games constantly stuck on loop, the console heating to incredibly high temperatures, and others. It points out that there are unfavorable online reviews of the console that take note of the problems with the console. Of course, it's not like the console release was a complete botch, as these were only a select few cases. Many people are currently enjoying a fully functional PS4 today, with only small glitches that are being worked out as we speak. Glitches in the system are a common thing of any console release since the 6th gen. Since these reports of these issues have got out, Sony has been working to come up with solutions for victims of faulty consoles.

Economically, this could mean a few things for the sales. Obviously someone seeing multiple negative reviews of a console online will be deterred from buying it. These problems may cost Sony more money as well. If these reports continue after a while, I wouldn't be surprised to see that they have more quality control checks for each console. Even with these reports though, I don't think it's nearly enough to halt sales of the console. I mean, it sold over a million copies on the release day alone. That is impressive in and of it itself, and while it is disappointing to see that there were defective consoles, overall the release was a huge success. As noted in the other article I posted, the release wasn't profitable however. Sony did this willingly however, looking for revenue from games and services. My only real concern is that they may have lost future customers who may be wary in buying another Sony product. I'm talking about those specifically who were victims of the faulty consoles.
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MARKING PERIOD 2 BLOGS ALL CAPS BRUH BRUH PART 3: THE SEQUEL

PS4 vs. Xbox One vs. Wii U Comparison Chart


This is a chart comparing the hardware of each of the 8th generation consoles. It covers numerous topics, including every hardware component in each console, online features, and purchasable bundles. All it contains is factual statistics for each console, not taking any particular side. The statistics come in the form of categories and data tables for each one. What this comparison chart is showing is that, in general, the Xbox One and the PS4 are are heavy on the power of the parts side while the Wii U is going for cheap accessibility as opposed to impressive hardware. For instance, the RAM section shows that the Wii U only has 2GB of DDR3 RAM while the Xbox One has 8GB of DDR5 RAM and the PS4 has 8GB DDR5 RAM. Overall, the console going for the most graphically intensive experience is the PS4, having overall more impressive internal components compared to the other consoles. 

That last statement really makes me wonder where the Xbox One's price point ($499) comes from. It's completely clear that overall, the PS4 has higher hardware capabilities than the Xbox One, so it really makes it seem like a cash grab. Anyway, the reason I chose this web page for a  blog post (even though it doesn't directly relate to economics like the others) is because it really correlates to the projected sales article from my earlier post. You can see just by looking at the console hardware who is projected to get the most sales and why. The Wii U's accessibility and casual-friendly hardware choices goes back to the alienation of the core gaming audience I mentioned in my earlier post. The previous article did say that the PS4 and Xbox One will have close sales, but it also but it also put the PS4 very slightly ahead. I also think this is evident in the hardware chart, as the PS4 has better hardware for a lower price point. Because of this, it's safe to assume that it would get increased sales due to the advantage it has over the Xbox One.
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THE MARKING PERIOD 2 BLOGS PART 2: SPAGHETTI

The first major PlayStation 4-Xbox One battle may end in a draw




With the PS4 selling over 1 million units in a day, it would seem to many that it has a big chance of outselling the Xbox One in the long run. Economists have studied the sales and past console sales, and the have projected Xbox One sales numbers. The numbers projected suggest that the sales will come very close to eachother in terms of console sales, and both will beat out the Wii U. The graphs on the article also suggest that the PS4 will have a negligible lead over the Xbox One and Wii U's sales. They also have statistics from past generations of consoles. In the past three generations, analysts suggest that no one in particular will take a huge lead in sales like the 6th and 7th generations. In the 6th generation, the PS2 outsold both the Gamecube and the Xbox combined by a long shot. In the 7th generation, the Wii outsold the other consoles by a fairly large margin.

These sales statistics make a lot of sense to me. Both the PS4 and the Xbox One have been ravenously marketed throughout 2013. The Wii U has already had a year to accumulate sales and they're obviously much lower than its predecessor. There are a multitude of reasons for this. For one, the "core" gaming audience (people who play games for several/multiple hours a week" were mostly disappointed with the Wii as a console. It catered much more to a casual crowd and used a gimmick (motion sensing) to attract sales. While it was successful, I believe that it alienated many core gamers and influenced their decision on what console to buy for the next gen. Hence, the Wii U's sales. As far as the Xbox One and the PS4 go, the fact that they are projected to be in a deadlock of sales is not surprising to me. The amount of marketing and news coverage for the both of them have been huge, and hype is high for both. To be honest, earlier this year I had assumed the PS4 was going to outright destroy both of them. My reasoning was that the PS4 had more player friendly options, like no DRM (Digital Rights Management) needed to play games and a lower price point for the console (both of these are things the Xbox One initially didn't have). Since then, Microsoft has remedied these setbacks and, overall, the consoles are on very equal footing.
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MARKING PERIOD 2 BLOGS ALL CAPS EDITION PART 1: THE RECKONING

Sony Nears Breakeven Point on PlayStation 4 Hardware Costs


This article explains the Playstation 4's quality and economic balance. Currently, the PS4 is losing money per console sold. This is because of the expensive BOM, or Bill of Materials. The BOM is basically a pricelist for each component that goes in a PS4. The author compared the PS3's BOM and noted that comparatively, the PS3's BOM was higher much higher compared to the retail price of it as opposed to the much closer BOM and retail price of the PS4. Much of the PS4's BOM comes from the core processor and the RAM. The PS3's RAM and processor only came to around 29% of the BOM cost, while the PS4's is about 50%. Sony is hoping to make money from the software for the console in the long term as opposed to direct hardware sales.

I'm not entirely sure if other companies have had the same mentality when it comes to game consoles, but I believe it's a good one. Attempting to make money off of consoles by either making them very expensive (look up the PS3's launch price) or by having inferior products in them is bad business. It makes sense that the money made would come from game sales. Certainly, console sales can go into the millions, but there are thousands of games that have the potential to sell as many copies as consoles. The larger revenue will come from this. Sony is currently at a loss, but like the article stated, the breakeven point and eventually profit will come from this long term decision.
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