Happy birthday, Sony PlayStation 3!

November is the “spawning season” of big game-related items, so to speak with top-caliber games, game consoles and big services making their debuts in and around this month every year to cash in on the season of giving. Just the other day, the gaming industry celebrated the second birthday of Microsoft‘s Xbox Live with “Live is 5ive.” Today, we’re having another bash with the Sony PlayStation 3’s first birthday! More at the full article!

November is the “spawning season” of big game-related items, so to speak with top-caliber games, game consoles and big services making their debuts in and around this month every year to cash in on the season of giving. Just the other day, the gaming industry celebrated the second birthday of Microsoft‘s Xbox Live with “Live is 5ive.” Today, we’re having another bash with the Sony PlayStation 3’s first birthday!

Sony first unveiled a non-functional version of the Sony PS3 in May 16, 2005 during the E3 press conference, effectively sending shockwaves across the gaming world. Even though a demonstration of just what the new console can do was not readily available at the time, fans were riled up knowing that Sony would once again deliver the goods after dominating two consecutive game generations with the Sony PSX and the Sony PS2.

Later that year, the Tokyo Game Show would herald the introduction of projected specifications for the Sony PlayStation 3, wowing the industry with hardware chops that included a Blu-ray drive, a Cell Processor, WI-fi connectivity and HDMI support. Devkits and comparable PC hardware also showed people trailers of Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of the Patriots and and video footage of a new MS Gundam title.

The excitement for Sony’s PS3 would hit fever pitch as November 17, 2006 drew closer. The high-end console had sold over 81,000 units on its first day in Japan months earlier, and the same was expected to happen in the United States. On launch date, stores sold out their stocks quickly as the Sony faithful camped to be the first to own what they believe is the gaming rig to rule all others. Business was similarly good in eBay, where even overpriced units found willing takers.

The relatively successful launch, however, did not go without a hitch. Reports of violence related to the console were noted:  A shot customer, campers held at gunpoint and buyers facing off in skirmishes were documented, marring what should have been a happy and historic day in gaming history.

The PS3 launched with a dozen titles readily available, with Insomniac’s Resistance: Fall of Man and Revolution Studios’ Motorstorm being the most prominent. Both offerings enjoyed warm critical and commercial reception, effectively keeping fans happy for a time. This however, may be thought of as the calm before a storm of criticisms to come.

A few months after the Sony PS3’s launch, pundits and fans alike started a clamor for more releases and big exclusives for the platform. The perceived lack of compelling titles and the high price point of the PS3 was believed to be causing slow sales, leaving it to lag behind rivals Microsoft Xbox 360 and Nintendo Wii in monthly statistics.

The issue came to a head when game magazine Electronic Gaming Monthly  published an issue with a main story called “Battlestation.” The article highlighted criticisms towards the Sony PS3 from the perspectives of analysts, gamers and developers. In response, Sony Computer Entertainment boss Jack Tretton said some were just “waiting for (the PS3) to slip up, and we haven’t, so people try to create stories that aren’t there.”

“If you can find a PS3 anywhere in North America that’s been on shelves for more than five minutes, I’ll give you 1,200 bucks for it,” declared Tretton in a quote that would echo across the Internet for weeks.

Amidst all the bad publicity surrounding the PS3, one positive fact remains: The console’s sales have stabilized and risen notably in the past few months, closing in on monthly leader Nintendo Wii in Japan with sales ratios hitting the two to one benchmark as of last month from a high of 6.5 to one in June. Big games such as Ratchet & Clank Future: Tools of Destruction, Heavenly Sword, and Uncharted: Drake’s Fortune have also come out to keep fans busy while awaiting more reinforcements. Cross-platform sensations Assassin’s Creed and Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare are also adding more firepower to a console thought of to be starved of worthy buys.

Recent price drops and the growing familiarity towards the PS3’s architecture have made the console friendlier to both consumers and developers lately. The introduction of the new 80GB and 40GB PS3 SKUs are making a stronger bid to find their ways to homes worldwide, and the reduction of component costs have dramatically dropped
production costs, enabling Sony to save up and put a lid on ballooning losses. Tretton said previously over press wire:

When we designed PS3 our goal was to introduce a system so technically advanced that it could stand the test of time and could take the industry in a whole new direction, which for PS3 was high-definition entertainment.

While we’re excited by the progress we’ve made this first year, we know that like our other platforms,the best is still yet to come, especially given our new hardware and software line-up, and that PS3 will continue to take the industry to new heights for years to come.

Judging by the way things are going, Tretton just may be right. The year 2008 marks the projected release dates of a lot of big titles and with further price cuts still very possible, we just might see the PS3’s coming of age. Cheers to your first year, PS3, and may you give us more great games to come!