I’ve discussed this via the comment section with some Infendo readers in the past, but today I’m coming back at it because Wired’s Chris Kohler and EGM are reporting on the PS2 Wiimote-like controller *allegedly* due out at Christmas time.
As I said in the past, this kind of controller would be a colossal failure for Sony. The last minute addition of motion sensing to the PS3 controller was as big of a joke as I’ve seen come out of a gaming company in quite some time (a-hem, Virtual Boy), but this would take the cake.
As a supporter of Nintendo, am I scared this will steal some of Nintendo’s thunder? Insecure perhaps? Not bloody likely.
I think the thought process is that if Sony can actually reposition the PlayStation 2 as a direct knockoff of the Wii at a cheaper price point — dropping the price below $100, packing in a controller with functionality identical to a Wiimote/nunchuk setup — they can take some of the wind out of Wii’s sails with the strong PlayStation branding and a much lower price point.
What this will really do is validate Nintendo’s strategy. Even now, there are still quite a few people who believe that Nintendo’s bubble is ready to burst at any moment. But if Sony follows right behind them, all that’s going to do is solidify Nintendo’s position. If Sony goes forward with such a product, they’ll be sending a very strong message to consumers that Nintendo was right all along and that this is the wave of the future.
If this happens, expect Sony’s stock to tank. Again. Expect Nintendo’s to rise. Even more. And expect Microsoft to fire off a thousand press releases in a thousand different directions chastising Sony for its backwards thinking. There’s a next generation race to be one, after all, right?
