200°

Next Gen: Sony Could Offload PS3 Graphics Chip Factory

Sony is reportedly in discussions with Toshiba to sell off its PS3 graphics chip production facility in western Japan's Oita province.

The discussions form part of the platform holder's strategy to reduce costs at its semiconductor unit, reports Reuters, and follow on from Tuesday's announement of a new joint DRAM manufacturing venture between Sony and Infineon Technologies.

It is the second time Sony and Toshiba have been linked over the past month. In September Sony was said to be in negotiations with Toshiba concerning the sale of its manufacturing facilities in Nagasaki where microchips including the PS3's Cell microprocessor are produced.

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next-gen.biz
Bolts6041d ago

Unlike MS, Sony can't bleed money for very long. Sooner or later they're going to need to make a little cash and this is their way of achieving that goal. Plus cranking out silicons isn't one of Sony's strong suits.

MrTangent6041d ago

Like Fanboi said, this is just a way for Sony to recoup some losses. It's a good thing they're outsourcing some of their manufacturing as it will allow them to build PS3's cheaper, and in doing so, pass along the savings to the consumer.

Korosuke6041d ago

ready to withdraw from PS3 business ?

Lord Anubis6041d ago

Sony has discussed their buisness strategies in the past. Selling their fabs is done only if they will pay less then what they are actually cranking out. So if another company can produce cell or their graphics chip at a lower price much faster then they do, they would shut down their fabs. They want to sell their billion dollar lab to Toshiba which they actually created together, who knows if they will get more vendor for their tvs as I am certain Toshiba will start supplying their own tv line with cell processors and leave sony with only the weekly stock of PS3 chips.

+ Show (1) more replyLast reply 6041d ago
Marty83706041d ago

Sony can out source cheaper than making the chips themselves.

Salvadore6041d ago

What benefit does Sony receive from this?

Enigma_20996041d ago

Wasn't this already reported once?

DJ6041d ago

half a dozen times? IBM and Toshiba also produce Cell (and RSX uses similar fab lines). Either way, they're still responsible for building the PS3 and putting all the components together.

90°

10 Weirdest Video Games of All Time

Plenty of unforgettable games have completely messed up their players throughout the years, all the way back from the PS1 days to the dark recesses of the modern internet.

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culturedvultures.com
JonTheGod4h ago

Why are the Katamari games not on the list??

130°

70 percent of devs unsure of live-service games sustainability

With so many games fighting for players' attention and interest losing out over time, time sink games are at risk of eventually losing steam.

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gamedeveloper.com
thorstein1d ago

It was worrisome to begin with.

It's a niche genre with only a handful of hits that can stand the test of time.

Cacabunga3h ago

I like the sound of that!! I will for sure never support these gaas games.
Sony must be shocked at gamer's reaction, making them cancel a few of these and hopefully go back to the good heavy hitters they had us used to..
now bring on that PSPro reveal and show us some SP 1st party awesomeness.

CrimsonWing691d ago

What’s to be unsure of!? Look at the ratio of success to failure!

DarXyde7h ago

It's pretty ridiculous.

Imagine having a breadth of data at your disposal to see the statistically low success rate of these games, only to be laser focused on the exceptional case studies.

shinoff218322h ago

Yes. Stop all the live service bs.

jznrpg22h ago

Only a few will catch on. You need a perfect storm to be successful in GaaS and a bit of luck on top of that. But a potential cash cow will keep them trying and some will go out of business because of it.

MIDGETonSTILTS1722h ago

Helldivers 2 manages just fine…

Keep production costs low… don’t just make custscenes until the mechanics and enemies are perfected first.

Make so much content that you can drip extra content for years, and the game already feels complete without them.

Most importantly: make weapons, enemies, levels, and mechanics that will stand the test of 1000 hours. This might require more devs embracing procedurally generated leveled, which I think separates Helldivers 2 from Destiny’s repetitiveness.

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60°

The Battle Pass Is The Worst Thing To Happen To Modern Gaming

Nameer from eXputer: "Some exceptions aside, I don't think the battle pass is a net positive for gaming with how they're implemented in most live service titles."

got_dam1d 2h ago

Battle passes AND meta gaming both.

DivineHand1251d ago (Edited 1d ago )

I like the way Helldivers 2 does battle passes. It allows you to make purchases on each level of the battle pass and gives you the option of choosing which item to unlock first. The more purchases you make using medals the further you progress. There is no timer and you can earn medals towards purchasing stuff via personal orders and Major orders.

I haven't played much live service games that have battle passes but I remember some games that have battle passes where you progress through it linearly using an exp system. What makes it really bad is that the battle pass will have like 50 or more levels with the cooler stuff being closer to the end. They also have an in-game shop that sells exp boosters so you can reach the end of the pass before it refreshes. Everyone ilse will have to grind their way through.

lucian22923h ago

battle pass in fortnite is perfect; buy one and it buys the rest for every other season as it gives you more money than the first cost. so 8.50 and season ends with you getting 13.00, it pays for the next and you have some pocket change to save up for cash shop. All of which is optional