Sony Saves Developers Dough

Since it came out last November, the Sony PlayStation 3 has struggled to regain reign over its gaming throne, established during the first and second ages of the PlayStation. Heck, right now I think Sony would be pleased just to stand next to that throne, swinging a big fan and supplying Nintendo or Microsoft with juicy, delicious grapes.

So, yeah, Sony isn't number one. But, it's doing all it can to change that.

In a recent move, the company has lowered the price of its software for developers intent on crafting games for the PlayStation 3. In the past, that's been a bit of a problem, both because of cost and because the PS3 is reputedly a difficult platform to develop for. That's been a marked difference between the Xbox 360 and PS3, with noted game-makers like John Carmack (co-creator of Doom) praising Microsoft's machine as a far friendlier device for developers. (Source: gizmocafe.com)

So, what kind of impact will the price drop have?

Unfortunately, it probably won't make games any cheaper for the average gamer. However, given that Sony is actually slicing the price of its software for developers in half, there's a good chance more exclusive hits could be coming to the hulking black console in the next few years. That's been a major problem for Sony, with titles like Assassin's Creed and Grand Theft Auto IV dipping their pens in the competition's ink. Both of those games are or will be available for the Xbox 360 as well.

Unsurprisingly, Sony announced that the price cut is aimed at making development easier for crafting PS3 games. Although the system was a hot topic long before it launched, primarily because of its massive hardware achievements, those same technical advantages have made it both difficult and expensive for developers to make games for the PlayStation 3. (Source: marketwatch.com)

So, even as Sony attends to current kings Microsoft and Nintendo, the war is not over. After all, even disgruntled developers will work on a system for half price.