Jaffe implies that Blu-ray is an expendable PS3 feature

David Jaffe, Sony´s prestigious game designer (´God of War´) has implied that Blu-ray is an expendable feature of the PlayStation3.

Questioned what he would have changed about the console, the designer said in an interview with GameTrailers:

I probably would have taken the Blu-ray out and sold it for less money.

The full context of that comment is to be released this Sunday (the quote originates from a teaser advertising the upcoming third part of the interview). Nevertheless, this one sentence has sent a shockwave through the industry.

Dave Karraker, Senior Director of Corporate Communications at Sony Computer Entertainment America, has defended Jaffe´s right to question Blu-ray, but disagreed with his point, speaking to GameDaily.

David Jaffe is an industry pioneer who has earned the right to speak his mind on anything he wants when it comes to videogames. While we respect his opinion, we feel strongly that the future of gaming lies in the ability to deliver more to the consumer -- more gameplay options, more lifelike graphics, more dynamic sound -- all in high definition.

To do that, you need a storage vehicle such as the 50 GB Blu-ray disc, because your standard 9 GB DVD simply can't handle the demands of true next-generation gaming.

There is no mention of the story over on Jaffe´s blog.



This must be seen as a massive PR blunder for Sony (another one, to be sure). One of their most renowned designers is implying that Blu-ray is an unnecessary and, as such, expendable feature of the PlayStation3.

Sony, in contrast, have spent a great deal of time on hammering the message home that Blu-ray was the key to the PlayStation3 and the gateway to entirely new gaming experiences. In the light of Jaffe´s comment, this must be regarded as an overstatement, to be polite.

EDIT Answering to accusations of sensationalism, GameTrailers (via GamePro) has released a slightly longer excerpt from the full interview, which will be released tomorrow.

GameTrailers: If you designed the PlayStation3, what one thing would you have changed about it?

Jaffe: (pauses) This will bite me in the ass in four years, because it was probably a smart decision. But I probably would have taken the Blu-ray out and sold it for less money.

EDIT The third part of the Jaffe interview is online now, adding the full context of the quote in question.

GameTrailers: If you designed the PlayStation3, what one thing would you have changed about it?

Jaffe: (pauses) This will bite me in the ass in four years, because it was probably a smart decision. But I probably would have taken the Blu-ray out and sold it for less money.

GameTrailers: Why?

Jaffe: I think it could have been a more competitive system that way. I think more gamers would have bought it. And ultimately, I am not personally - not as a Sony employee, as a person - convinced that the average or even above-average consumer is really that interested in sort of trading in their DVD collection for another format right now. Maybe even next generation of PlayStation it would have been the right time.

Probably, this... Sony always surprises me, because they are always a hell of a lot smarter than I think when I hear the first, initial decision. So it will probably work out great and I hear Blu-ray is doing really well. But for me, if I was sitting at the helm at the time, I probably would have said: Yeah ...

GameTrailers: ... would not have taken the risk?

Jaffe: It´s not an issue of risk. It just doesn´t seem to be worth... I would have liked to have sold the box for cheaper and get more gamers having it versus sort of pricing it at that level, which we only could have priced it at, which is a great price when you consider Blu-ray is in it, but I would have just taken Blu-ray out.

Sources: GameTrailers, GameDaily
Thanks to: GameDaily,