E3 06: Microsoft responds to Sony conference

LOS ANGELES--It's only Monday of the E3 week, but there have already been plenty of newsworthy events. Sony held its annual pre-E3 conference this afternoon, and two vital pieces of information were divulged. The PlayStation 3 will make its debut on November 11 in Japan, and will also be released in North America, Europe, and Oceania on November 17. The system will come in two iterations: the $499 model that comes with a 20GB hard drive and a $599 model that comes with a 60GB hard drive.

This year's E3 has been hyped as a battle between "The Big Three," but much of the focus has been on the war between Sony and Microsoft, who many believe are competing for the same audience.

Shortly after the Sony conference, GameSpot News spoke with Shane Kim, general manager of Microsoft Game Studios, to get his company's impressions of its rival's media event.

Kim's overall feeling of the event was that he was fairly unimpressed. "There wasn't much news. We didn't see anything really new or innovative," he said. "There's a pretty significant price differential between the two." Currently, the premium Xbox 360 pack, which comes with a 20GB hard drive, is $399, versus Sony's $599 60GB hard drive system.

There was a lot of talk about Microsoft's month-long global launch, which many didn't deem as "successful." Sony will be attempting an even harder task, hitting three major markets in less than a week.

"We know how difficult a global launch is," Kim said. Kim pointed out how Sony will need to launch with an all-new online functionality, and how Microsoft has been working with Xbox Live for more than five years. "There wasn't much talk about their online strategy," he said, reflecting on the conference. "It's going to be difficult for them."

As for the PS3's new motion-sensitive controller? "We tried that five or six years ago with the Freestyle Pro," he said. "It worked well for a few games, but it wasn't a general purpose controller. It seems as though they were taking a page from Nintendo's book [in reference to the Wii's controller], but Nintendo is more innovative."

As for Nintendo, which holds its press conference tomorrow morning, Kim believes that "their strategy and focus marries well into their history. They're looking more at a niche group."

When asked about Microsoft's pre-E3 press conference, Kim wouldn't reveal any secrets, but was giddy with excitement. "You won't want to miss it," he warned.