Now, this comes from Cnet who are pro Microsoft , but they have based it on an article in the Official Playstation mag.
One of the complaints levelled at the PS3 (by a few developers, notably Gabe Newell from Valve) is that it is difficult to develop for. According to Kaz Hirai, the CEO of Sony Computer Entertainment:
http://news.cnet.com/8301-13506_3-10...ag=mncol;posts
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We don't provide the 'easy to program for' console that (developers) want, because 'easy to program for' means that anybody will be able to take advantage of pretty much what the hardware can do, so then the question is, what do you do for the rest of the nine-and-a-half years?
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Now, it could be that the remarks have been taken massively out of context, but he appears to be saying that he is concerned that developers will be getting the best out of the PS3 within a couple of years.
But, this does not necessarily hold true. While I don't want to re-ignite the xbox/PS3 battle, the 360 has a very easy to use developers system, and yet developers are still finding ways to improve the capabilities of game engines.
In fact, making the PS3 more difficult to develop for may actually backfire on Sony. Difficulty in developing means more development time. More development time means more cost. More cost means a need to sell more copies (unlikely if the console does not sell well) or higher costs for the gamers (which may negatively impact sales of the console).
If the games do not recover their costs, that may make the developers question the viability of developing for the PS3. If they do stop, then that will mean fewer consoles sold.
He also said
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So it's a kind of--I wouldn't say a double-edged sword--but it's hard to program for," Hirai continued, "and a lot of people see the negatives of it, but if you flip that around, it means the hardware has a lot more to offer.
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This actually isn't true. Windows is a lot harder to develop for than OSX, but that does not automatically mean the hardware is capable of more. It may be, it may not.
Yes, the hardware of the PS3 may be much more capable than the 360 (in fact, I believe it is), but that is a result of superior hardware, not that it is harder to develop for.