14 DAY TRIAL // Via FiringSquad we learn more about the recent Playstation 3 bomb, as Sony pushed back the European release date to March 2007. In the great triangle war for the console market, the response from Sony's major competitors was quick to surface the online gaming community. Japanese and US fans are being hit just as hard by the shortage of PS3 units, since the announced number of consoles being shipped this year dropped to 2 millions.
Nintendo's response did not directly address Sony's inability to meet their previous standards. Instead, it focuses on the upcoming Wii release, that now roughly features the same timetable as the European PS3 launch:
"Wii is on track to ship in Q4, Nintendo plans to ship 6 million systems to retailers around the world between its launch in the fourth quarter of 2006 and the end of its fiscal year on March 31, 2007."
In light of issues Microsoft had with the Xbox 360 launch, PR representatives showed a sympathetic reaction, and at the same time reminded the disillusioned fans that Xbox still has a strong focus on the European market:
"We know how challenging it is to pull off a global launch, particularly with unproven technology, so it's not surprising that Sony has backed away from their previously announced launch plans. Europe remains a priority for us and that is why gamers have been able to experience Xbox 360 from day 1 and why we're confident we're going to have a great holiday, regardless of what competitors are or are not in the market. Xbox 360 will have over 160 high-definition games including Viva Pi?ata from Rare, Gears of War from Epic, Pro Evolution Soccer 6 from Konami and FIFA 2007 from EA, a robust and continuously growing online gaming community in Xbox Live, fantastic entertainment capabilities, optional HD-DVD movie playback capability and a great-value price."