Why aren't shmups coming to PS3?

[dsheinem]

So I think the difficulty of releasing or porting something to the PS3 these days is looking more and more like a myth.

I was referring to both the"being on a Sony console" costs as well as the costs of actually porting/developing (time spent coding, etc.). I think you are right that the cost of being on Sony has gone down, but I think it is still cost prohibitive for a small studio to spend the time and money acquiring and working with a devkit, especially when the time and energy of a small staff could be better spent elsewhere.

[wip3outguy7]

So I think the difficulty of releasing or porting something to the PS3 these days is looking more and more like a myth.

I was referring to both the"being on a Sony console" costs as well as the costs of actually porting/developing (time spent coding, etc.). I think you are right that the cost of being on Sony has gone down, but I think it is still cost prohibitive for a small studio to spend the time and money acquiring and working with a devkit, especially when the time and energy of a small staff could be better spent elsewhere.

Yeah, it probably all just boils down to the early release of the Xbox 360 and the high initial cost of PS3 hardware and production.

Still doesn't explain why we don't have Mark of the fucking Wolves and Samurai Shodown fucking II on PSN.

[swiftzx]

Still doesn't explain why we don't have Mark of the fucking Wolves and Samurai Shodown fucking II on PSN.

You can join us in the 360 fight thread this week

360 seems to have the Treasure market cornered as well.. Guardian Heroes anyone? Although some people claim moneyhatting..

Ikaruga, Gunstar Heroes, Bangai-O HD, and Radiant Silvergun as well.

[CD AGES]

Let not forget about the compilation market! 360 has got that shit on lock as well.

[noiseredux]

Ikaruga, Gunstar Heroes, Bangai-O HD, and Radiant Silvergun as well.

PSN has Gunstar. Bangai-O sucks anyway.

There are some indie shmups on PSN though. I guess I'd be happy to see more of that happen.

[ZenErik]

Ikaruga, Gunstar Heroes, Bangai-O HD, and Radiant Silvergun as well.

PSN has Gunstar. Bangai-O sucks anyway.

There are some indie shmups on PSN though. I guess I'd be happy to see more of that happen.

Bangai-O is awesome. Especially Bangai-O HD. controls are much better on the 360 version.

[noiseredux]

Bangai-O is awesome. Especially Bangai-O HD. controls are much better on the 360 version.

I just can't get into it.

[EvilRyu2099]

360 seems to have the Treasure market cornered as well.. Guardian Heroes anyone? Although some people claim moneyhatting..

Ikaruga, Gunstar Heroes, Bangai-O HD, and Radiant Silvergun as well.

Ugh I know most games I just wanted to name an example of one that wasn't a SHMUP..

[samwitsend]

- Sony don't want retail games in 4:3 (something about it potentially damaging the image of Blu-ray).
- The minimum number of copies demanded to be pressed is much lower from Microsoft in Japan (this is more to do with Microsoft having such a low grip on the market over there as oppose to them being nice guys. Although, to their credit, they were apparently the ones who contacted Cave about releasing Deathsmiles II over GoD untranslated, which shows that they do value this market). This is also a reason so many visual novels also get released on the 360.
- The 360 is generally both easier and cheaper to develop for. Niche games obviously need to cut the costs where they can, and you can see this historically from the releases of shmups in previous generations. The branding of the console doesn't really mean anything (i.e PS2 -> PS3). These are companies and will go to what works the best for them.
- The fact that the 360 is region-locked means that these games have the possibility of WW releases, such as Deathsmiles, Akai Katana etc. It benefits the small publishers that do this if everyone who wanted the game hasn't already imported it.
- Finally, when shmups/VNs do get ported to the PS3, there isn't a massive gulf in sales. This late in the generation, it's come to the point where most people who want these types of games have bought a 360 now.

Just from what I've read from numerous threads on .system11.

[AppleQueso]

- Sony don't want retail games in 4:3 (something about it potentially damaging the image of Blu-ray).

Well that's stupid sounding. Of course this is from the same company that had a "no-2D" policy in the ps1 era so I guess it's not all that farfetched.