Get Ready for the Game Console Wars

Elizabeth Millard, newsfactor.com

So far, it appears that Nintendo will have the edge with its new Wii system, which will be shipping in November. Major games retailer GameStop noted that preorders of the Wii system exhausted its limited quota in just a few hours. Nintendo intends to ship at least four million units worldwide, the company noted, compared to the two million PlayStation 3 units that will be available from Sony.

However, Sony is expected to make major announcements soon about which games will launch with its system, and, more notably, about the features of an online service that will compete with Microsoft's
Xbox Live gaming service.

Shipping Lane

As the holiday season looms, it is possible that Sony will have trouble competing with Microsoft and Nintendo because of the lower number of available units, said Forrester analyst Paul Jackson.

Even if consumers want a PlayStation 3, seeing only a Wii or an Xbox on the shelves might make them rethink their decision, he said.

"There could be lots of little Johnnies horribly disappointed on Christmas morning if they don't get a PlayStation 3," he said. "But that's where Nintendo can do quite well because parents will buy a Wii just to have something for the kids."

Tech Time

Past the holidays, Sony might still have a hard time catching up, Jackson added. The difficulty for Sony is that the PlayStation 3 has advanced components, such as a Blu-ray drive, that could create production delays for Sony.

The advanced technology has also boosted the PlayStation 3's price above that of its competitors, Jackson noted, and that could have a definite impact on sales.

"You have a multicore processor in there that can calculate landing projections on the sun," said Jackson. "That component, and a few others, are in short supply, and they all have to come together to make that unit. Sony is actually stretching the boundaries of today's production standards."

Nintendo and Microsoft, on the other hand, have been using off-the-shelf components that are abundant, Jackson noted.

"The Xbox 360 and Wii aren't the most cutting-edge because there isn't the complexity that PlayStation 3 has," he said. "But they'll be on the shelves."

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