Divinity
03-09-2005, 11:43 AM
Playstation 3 FAQ - The Vital Answers
Most of the Information currently available on PS3 is extremely limited; and as a result, much of the data out there is merely rumored or is just plain wrong. PS3 Land sets out to find what it believes to be the closest to the truth, by weighing up different trusted sources and past knowledge. Here PS3Land presents what it believes to be Sony's plans for the Playstation 3 console.
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1) When will the PS3 come out?
2) What features will it have?
3) How much will it cost?
4) Will PS3 play PS2 and PS1 games?
5) What will the PS3 look like?
6) How powerful will it be?
7) Will PS3 games be playable online?
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When will PS3 come out?
This is hard to answer at present - although we would estimate late 2005 / early 2006. This answer is based on the fact that PS2 is still in maturity, and there are a healthy amount of new games currently coming onto the market. As far as a 2004 release goes we don't feel Sony has the want or means to implement PS3 this year, unfortunately.
What features will it have?
This is currently mostly unknown. Rumours suggest that it will have a DVD burner and be able to record TV, but we believe Sony will leave that to the PSX - as this would drive the price up beyond the capacity of most gamers. We feel it is highly likely that PS3 will have a Hard Drive as Sony have made it clear that the future of gaming appears to be online, and this would provide memory for downloads, game saves, and improving loading times like in FFX. PS3Land believes that it is likely the PS3 will be upgradeable with add-ons, much like the PS2's network adaptor and Hard drive (only available in Japan). There has been strong evidence to suggest that there will be two versions of the PS3 available at launch – a total home entertainment and gaming system, and a ‘watered down’ version which will just play the games.
How much will it cost?
Typically the last two generations of the PlayStation have been priced at around $300 at launch. Both have continuously decreased in price year on year into their life, its quite likely PS3 will do the same. It's not known how much it will cost but around $300 is probably a fair guess, as this is the maximum price most gamers would be willing to way.
Will PS3 play PS2 and PS1 games?
Yes! They will! Sony Computer Entertainment boss Ken Kutaragi has confirmed that the PlayStation 3 will feature backwards compatibility with the PS2 and PSone, ensuring continued support for older software formats in the new hardware. Article
What will PS3 look like?
At the moment all of the pictures of PS3 on the Internet are mocks done by fans – so don’t believe anything you see quite yet. You can view most of these mocks here. What it looks like won't be known until just before launch, which will most probably be in Japan first.
How powerful will the PS3 be?
Sony has formed a partnership with Toshiba and IBM, to make a processor called the Cell. The processor is actually a collection of smaller processors. Software packets, called “cells”, are then sent to each of the smaller processors in order to give instructions on what tasks to perform. Potentially, the processor will be able to calculate up to 1 trillion floating-point calculations per second. It has been rumoured by some that the PS3 will be up to 1000 times more powerful - however this is unlikely. The actual specs haven’t been released by Sony yet, but we shall keep you informed when they are.
Will PS3 games be playable online?
Online prospects are looking good for the PlayStation 3. Sony has been keen to sort out online gaming and have used the PS2 as a sort of test platform with games like Socom and FF11. Developers have had their doubts, but the success of these games and the amount of players logging on has been phenomenal. Although it’s not definite, Sony believe it to be the way forward so it is highly likely that PS3 will incorporate online gaming in some form. Whether it will be through an external adaptor or come as standard with the console is yet to be revealed.
Most of the Information currently available on PS3 is extremely limited; and as a result, much of the data out there is merely rumored or is just plain wrong. PS3 Land sets out to find what it believes to be the closest to the truth, by weighing up different trusted sources and past knowledge. Here PS3Land presents what it believes to be Sony's plans for the Playstation 3 console.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
1) When will the PS3 come out?
2) What features will it have?
3) How much will it cost?
4) Will PS3 play PS2 and PS1 games?
5) What will the PS3 look like?
6) How powerful will it be?
7) Will PS3 games be playable online?
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
When will PS3 come out?
This is hard to answer at present - although we would estimate late 2005 / early 2006. This answer is based on the fact that PS2 is still in maturity, and there are a healthy amount of new games currently coming onto the market. As far as a 2004 release goes we don't feel Sony has the want or means to implement PS3 this year, unfortunately.
What features will it have?
This is currently mostly unknown. Rumours suggest that it will have a DVD burner and be able to record TV, but we believe Sony will leave that to the PSX - as this would drive the price up beyond the capacity of most gamers. We feel it is highly likely that PS3 will have a Hard Drive as Sony have made it clear that the future of gaming appears to be online, and this would provide memory for downloads, game saves, and improving loading times like in FFX. PS3Land believes that it is likely the PS3 will be upgradeable with add-ons, much like the PS2's network adaptor and Hard drive (only available in Japan). There has been strong evidence to suggest that there will be two versions of the PS3 available at launch – a total home entertainment and gaming system, and a ‘watered down’ version which will just play the games.
How much will it cost?
Typically the last two generations of the PlayStation have been priced at around $300 at launch. Both have continuously decreased in price year on year into their life, its quite likely PS3 will do the same. It's not known how much it will cost but around $300 is probably a fair guess, as this is the maximum price most gamers would be willing to way.
Will PS3 play PS2 and PS1 games?
Yes! They will! Sony Computer Entertainment boss Ken Kutaragi has confirmed that the PlayStation 3 will feature backwards compatibility with the PS2 and PSone, ensuring continued support for older software formats in the new hardware. Article
What will PS3 look like?
At the moment all of the pictures of PS3 on the Internet are mocks done by fans – so don’t believe anything you see quite yet. You can view most of these mocks here. What it looks like won't be known until just before launch, which will most probably be in Japan first.
How powerful will the PS3 be?
Sony has formed a partnership with Toshiba and IBM, to make a processor called the Cell. The processor is actually a collection of smaller processors. Software packets, called “cells”, are then sent to each of the smaller processors in order to give instructions on what tasks to perform. Potentially, the processor will be able to calculate up to 1 trillion floating-point calculations per second. It has been rumoured by some that the PS3 will be up to 1000 times more powerful - however this is unlikely. The actual specs haven’t been released by Sony yet, but we shall keep you informed when they are.
Will PS3 games be playable online?
Online prospects are looking good for the PlayStation 3. Sony has been keen to sort out online gaming and have used the PS2 as a sort of test platform with games like Socom and FF11. Developers have had their doubts, but the success of these games and the amount of players logging on has been phenomenal. Although it’s not definite, Sony believe it to be the way forward so it is highly likely that PS3 will incorporate online gaming in some form. Whether it will be through an external adaptor or come as standard with the console is yet to be revealed.