Competition, especially in the gaming industry amongst the three platform holders, is like a rivalry amongst buddies. Whether it’s the recent motion controller wars and other hardware to even the network services, the big three are always taking friendly jabs at one another. The release of new hardware is always a time where the corporations will draw comparisons and predictions and the announcement of the PlayStation Vita is no stranger to the subject.
While Microsoft currently does not sport a portable gaming device in its gaming arsenal, it did not stop a top-tier Xbox executive from critiquing the PS Vita. In an interview with the chief operating officer of Xbox, Dennis Durkin, the COO expressed his doubts on the PSP’s successor. According to Durkin:
I’m not sure I would want to be launching a dedicated portable device right now into that market. I think the DS – if you look at the 3DS, certainly versus people’s expectation’s it’s not been as successful as people would have thought. So that’s a very crowded market and a very, very red ocean right now with a lot of change happening. So I’m not sure it’s [a good idea].
The Microsoft official went on to comment on the differences in strategy between Sony and Microsoft and where he thought each respective company was headed, stating that the current market venue is not in a safe position to put risk into a portable gaming atmosphere. As for Sony’s competition, the COO had this to say about the Xbox 360:
So it’s been very, very consistent and I think it speaks to the trends that you’re seeing in terms of sales and velocity over the last 2 years… So I feel very good about our relative position relative to both of our competitors. I certainly wouldn’t want to trade hands with either of them.
All in all, it appears the main point of the interview aims its sights at Sony’s strategy and the potentially dangerous risks involved in the direction they are going. While we do have to agree with him in regards to that point, we still believe that Sony has their bases covered with the PS Vita in the areas where it matters the most: the price, the games, and the release date. What are your thoughts on the subject of where Sony is standing in the gaming industry? Tell us your thoughts, concerns, and opinions in the comments section below.
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