Sony's Tretton Sounds Off On Tech & the Competition

Sony has promised long lives for its consoles, and it would love for the PlayStation 3 to have as long of a reign as the PS2. Sony of America CEO Jack Tretton says that the staying power of some of its systems is thanks to the forward-looking technology it puts under the hood – something he says the other companies should do too.

In an interview with Fortune, Tretton pats his company on the back for loading the PS3 up with tech when it launched in 2006. "If you're really going to sustain technology for a decade, you have to be cutting edge when you launch a platform. Here we are four years into the PlayStation 3, and it's just hitting its stride. We'll enjoy a long downhill roll behind it because the technology that was so cutting edge in 2006 is extremely relevant today and is conspicuously absent in our competition."

While Tretton can look back and laugh now, that up-front tech wasn't without its cost. Literally. The PS3 debuted at a whopping $500 to $600 at launch (for the 20GB and 60GB models, respectively), and the system's high price definitely cost it some sales. Then again, the system is doing fine now, and that's thanks to good games coming out for the system as well as a series of price drops.

Continuing to go after the competition, Tretton said that Nintendo and Microsoft haven't done enough to future proof their systems. "[They] are starting to run out of steam now in terms of continuing to be relevant in 2011 and beyond. I mean, you've gotta be kidding me. Why would I buy a gaming system without a hard drive in it? How does this thing scale? Motion gaming is cute, but if I can only wave my arms six inches, how does this really feel like I'm doing true accurate motion gaming?"

On a roll, he even takes a big swipe at Nintendo and specifically its handhelds, calling them "a great babysitting tool – something young kids do on airplanes," but he says that the older gamers aren't apparently interested in them. "No self-respecting twenty-something is going to be sitting on an airplane with one of those. He's too old for that." It's a great soundbite, but Tretton must wear a blindfold in public and is choosing to ignore the great number of 20+ gamers who own DS Lites and now the 3DS.

With the price of the upcoming NGP handheld still under wraps, we'll have to see how committed Tretton and Sony are to a "tech at all costs" approach. Recently, Tretton suggested that the NGP might have a relatively high price, while SCE president of worldwide studios Shu Yoshida has reassured gamers that the company is mindful of the handheld's price. Are the two approaches mutual exclusive?

[via Gamasutra]