Kutaragi gets demoted

[Himu]

By Pavel AlpeyevSony Replaces PlayStation Chief Kutaragi After Delays (Update7)


Nov. 30 (Bloomberg) -- Ken Kutaragi, the developer of Sony Corp.'s PlayStation game console, stepped aside from day-to-day management of the unit after production delays forced the company to slash shipment targets.

Kaz Hirai, head of the U.S. game division, will take over as president of Sony Computer Entertainment, the Tokyo-based company said in a statement today. Kutaragi, 56, will become chairman of the unit. Jack Tretton, now co-chief operating officer of the U.S. division, will replace Hirai.

Sony Chief Executive Officer Howard Stringer is counting on the PlayStation 3 to revive a company that has lost almost half its market value in the past six years. Kutaragi, a 30-year Sony veteran, cut 2006 shipment targets by half in September because of parts shortages.

Analysts said that Mr Hirai?s promotion to a global role at SCE could mark a critical shift in management thinking, with Sony changing its emphasis so that the current generation of games console will be its last as a hardware manufacturer.

?The appointment of Hirai could be the start of a shift from hardware to software,? said Yuta Sakurai, an analyst at Nomura. ?I cannot now imagine a PlayStation4.?

Mr Sakurai said that Mr Hirai?s new global portfolio puts a predominantly software-focused manager in charge of the company, adding that SCE?s future would be shaped by Mr Hirai?s relationship with Phil Harrison, the president of SCE?s worldwide studios.

Analysts argue that while Mr Kutaragi, a brilliant engineer, was the right man to run SCE as a hardware powerhouse, Sony may now see better opportunities as a pure maker of games.

http://www.ft.com/cms/s/f6728ed8-8095-11db-9096-0000779e2340.html

I don't know..now I'm kinda worried. Kaz is known for his ruthless policies over here in America and I wonder if that'll effect Sony as a whole. SOA is known for their war against non-3d games. These days, in order for a 2d game to get passed for release on the ps2, it normally has to be in a compilation set. Another wierd policy are their psp rules: in order to get a psp game to be released here that's a port of a playstation game, it has to have a decent amount of extra content, no matter how rare these games are. The exception to this rule has been Valkyrie Profile: Lenneth, because of Square Enix's strong fist and influence.

I know of a few other examples where Kaz and other Sony of America execs bully developers because they're not what they think of next gen or whatever. There's been a rumor that Sony of America originally did not want Castlevania: Symphony of the Night to be released in North America because it was 1997, a pretty big year for Sony, and since the game was 2d it would probably make the system look bad. Konami told them that they would not release Metal Gear Solid in North America unless SotN would be able to be released.

Kaz and many other SOA execs make a lot of wierd rules and things to appeal to what they feel games should be like. I hope this attitude does not effect Sony as a whole.

Personally speaking, I'm a little worried about the future of playstation after this. The father of playstation, Kutaragi, demoted. That spells trouble to me.

[Phoenix Dark]

And Ken isn't a bully? Dude, he's the original bully

I like how the idiots on GAF are pretending like this is no big deal. Oh, Ken was going to retire anyway, oh he's 50 or whatever, ohh...

[Himu]

Sonybots in denial.

Ken's a bully but..idk. I just don't like Kaz at all.

[Phoenix Dark]

Ken is far more of a bully, and all you have to do is look at the current PS3 situation. Developers are complaining about the launch, the lack of information, and even dev costs. They aren't happy with Sony right now, period. And Ken is far to arrogant to listen to their complaints. This is the same man who convinced many of these people to jump ship from the arrogant Nintendo of the 90's and join his little gamble. Now Ken has become what he sought to destroy

[shedt]

hahahahah this is gold, just gold.

[shedt]

Ken is far more of a bully, and all you have to do is look at the current PS3 situation. Developers are complaining about the launch, the lack of information, and even dev costs. They aren't happy with Sony right now, period. And Ken is far to arrogant to listen to their complaints. This is the same man who convinced many of these people to jump ship from the arrogant Nintendo of the 90's and join his little gamble. Now Ken has become what he sought to destroy

very true, he held a grudge because of the snes cd drive or some shit

[Diablos]

hahahahah this is gold, just gold.

Especially since Sony will still kick MS's ass this gen, lolz

[shedt]

another shitty joke hahahahaha

[Diablos]

another shitty joke hahahahaha

  Keep thinking that.

[Himu]

hahahahah this is gold, just gold.

Especially since Sony will still kick MS's ass this gen, lolz

 

You know it's funny when I say that MS has the biggest amount of rpg support right now?

PS3 = lol

[Diablos]

Right NOW.

And what do they have? Blue Dragon? Meh. Trusty Bell? I was pretty excited about it at first, but I'm not so sure now. Some upcoming thing from tri-Ace? More info plz.

PS3 will get more RPG's soon, don't worry.

[Himu]

 

Trusty Bell is the game from Tri-Ace.

[Tigerriot]

After this most recent launch, he should be demoted.

[Diablos]

Trusty Bell is the game from Tri-Ace.

Nono Himucake, there's another tri-Ace one. The battle system is like Valkyrie Profile.

[Phoenix Dark]

Sony just suffered a terrible launch due to shortages, but the shortages weren't the only problem. In Japan the PS3 simply is not grabbing gamers. The software sells are non-existant; usually launch software sells like hotcakes to gamers who just want to play anything on their new system. Not the case on the PS3. Ridge Racer 7 has totally bombed, and Japanese gamers don't seem to care about Gundam/Genji/whatever. This is what happens when you launch with pathetic software and highpriced hardware.

And before Diablos pulls the "oh but the PS3 does so much more than play games, so the software sales aren't a problem." Dude, no one gives a fuck about Blu Ray, here or across the pond. As it stands Blu Ray sales are behind HD-DVD sales, and it's not like those are doing great either. The PSP offered similar non-gaming incentives (UMD, music, etc) yet its launch software sold very well.

Japan is Nintendo territory right now, like it or not. The DS is going to continue dominating sales, and the Wii should really take off once that Pokemon game comes out. Sony is fucked in Japan, period.

In the US, I expect the 360 to outsell the PS3 for most of 2007. The PS3 is going to suffer from the same drought issues the 360 faced last year, and I expect it to be longer due to the price. 

[Diablos]

And before Diablos pulls the "oh but the PS3 does so much more than play games, so the software sales aren't a problem." Dude, no one gives a fuck about Blu Ray, here or across the pond. As it stands Blu Ray sales are behind HD-DVD sales, and it's not like those are doing great either. The PSP offered similar non-gaming incentives (UMD, music, etc) yet its launch software sold very well.

You're a stupid twat for even thinking that's what I would have said. For me personally, the only thing I like BR-ROM for is the extra storage capacity. I don't give a shit about hi-def movies. In fact, I have said many times in the past that I wish Sony would've stopped being so stubborn about Blu-Ray and used perhaps HD-DVD instead. It's not as expensive as Blu-Ray, so it would've likely brought down the cost of the console.

And stop talking like this is some doomsday scenario. If Sony is in the same position this time next year then yes, they are in some hot water. But it's too early to tell; stop getting so goddamn cocky. Enjoy your slightly upgraded GameCube and waggle bullshit for $250. PS3 and 360 are expensive, but at least there's some new technology that justifies their pricetags.

Sony is fucked in Japan, period.

No they're not. Your bias is CLEARLY exposed.

[Phoenix Dark]

You're a stupid twat for even thinking that's what I would have said.

Well I'm proud of you

And stop talking like this is some doomsday scenario. If Sony is in the same position this time next year then yes, they are in some hot water. But it's too early to tell; stop getting so goddamn cocky. Enjoy your slightly upgraded GameCube and waggle bullshit for $250. PS3 and 360 are expensive, but at least there's some new technology that justifies their pricetags.

It's not too early to look at the PS3 and declare it's already going through problems. The launch was poorly executed and poorly supported; but, the same could be said of the PS2 launch and we know how that little system turned out. Yet the PS3 didn't have nearly as much positive hype as the PS2 did; the PS2's hype basically killed an entire company and forced them into third party disgrace. PS3? I can honestly say Microsoft isn't scared at all this gen; they smell blood, and they've been smelling it since well before last E3.

It reminds me of Microsoft's disasterous MTV premier awhile back and how they were blasted for weeks. On the contrary, the PS3 has been blasted for well over a year now. Many of those negative stories about the PS3 - you know, the ones that were locked whenever posted on GAF last year - have come true.

In short, Sony is in trouble. The PS3 is a make or break product for them, and considering the system is already millions of dollars in the red due to the Cell, and software sales are already off to a sluggish start...yeah


And Nintendo and the Wii? Fuck them. I used to be a HUGE supporter of the "Revolution". Hell, I spent an entire week hyping up Nintendo's E3 with fake predictions lol. With Zelda on the Gamecube, there is absolutely no reason to buy a Wii right now.

[Diablos]

I hope evilbore is still around at the end of this generation, so I can bump this thread and laugh at you.