Insomniac exec defends PS3, disses Wii

Sony and its PlayStation 3 have been the targets of a lot of criticism in the gaming industry, and Insomniac Games chief creative officer Brian Hastings isn't going to take it anymore. The game developer has written a lengthy blog post (registration required) on the Insomniac Games Web site titled "10 Reason Why PS3 Will Win This Console Generation," a rebuttal of what he calls "the sheer volume of negative spin toward Sony from both the mainstream press and the internet community."

"I'll be the first to say that Sony has had a very rough road from last E3 up through this year's GDC," he says. "Some of their wounds have been self-inflicted, but they've also had to face a conspicuously hostile media." Hastings takes exception to some articles written about the PS3, including GameSpot's "Ten Things to Make the PlayStation 3 Worth Buying" feature (which he refers to as "Ten Complaints We Thought Up While Everyone Else Was Watching LittleBigPlanet").

Hastings points out the advantages the PS3 has (free online play, 50GB games, "Major CPU Advantage"), newly announced features and games (Home, LittleBigPlanet), and the popularity of Blu-ray, but one point he makes is likely to ruffle the feathers of Nintendo fanboys.

Under the heading "The Wii Fad Will Fade," Hastings says that interest in the Wii won't last. Likening the Wii to "mainstream fads" such as Tickle Me Elmo and Furbies, he believes that the many nongamers who have helped the Wii become a sales success will eventually let their Wiis gather dust, as "mainstream fads usually run their course within a year."

Hastings does acknowledge that the Wii is "really, really fun" and that "Nintendo has innovated far more than any other company in the industry," but he believes that in the end, consumers will be drawn to "more graphically impressive games on the PS3 and Xbox 360" for their high-definition televisions.

He sums up his thoughts with, "A lot of industry watchers and even a handful of publishers have been quick to write Sony off this generation, and I think that's near-sighted. Sony has made a lot of decisions with the PS3 that may have slowed them down in the short run, but should give them a big advantage in the long run."

In his post, Hastings also provides an e-mail address to which readers can send their comments on--and criticisms of--his top 10 list.

Of course, gamers didn't need to read Hasting's post to determine which side of the fence he sits on. Insomniac Games, though an independent company, has developed exclusively for Sony platforms and produced the PS3's most critically acclaimed game, Resistance: Fall of Man.