Razer CEO Defends Company Stance on PS3 Controllers
There's no Microsoft-Razer conspiracy going on.
Razer CEO Min-Liang Tan took to Twitter two days ago and explained why his company doesn't produce PlayStation accessories. As it stands now, Razer only offers products for both the PC platform and Microsoft's Xbox 360. To a PlayStation 3 gamer, it looks as if Razer has some sort of exclusivity deal with Microsoft.
However Razer's CEO admitted that one of the big reasons why his company doesn't make PlayStation accessories is because he simply doesn't spend time with the PlayStation 3. He's had the console for a long time, he said, but it's just collecting dust. Naturally that opened the door to some unnecessary flaming.
"I think I spent 2 days straight on it for Infamous - but haven't felt the need to go back since," he said after one Twitter user said Last of Us would change is mind.
One Twitter user called him selfish, and he followed up stating that he designs products that he actually wants as a gamer rather than sell devices to gamers for money, a stance he basically described to us during E3 2013. The new Razer Blade is a perfect example of that business model: he didn't just bake a laptop and throw it at consumers, but instead waited until both the technology and the time was right.
Still, he's obviously a big fan of the Xbox 360: Razer offers a number of controllers for Microsoft's box. To a consumer, the lack of PlayStation 3 support simply because Razer's CEO doesn't play on the console – because he hasn't spent quality hands-on time with Sony's console to design peripherals for Razer fans -- could be a little insulting.
"Fair enough," he said, "but there's got to be games I want to play on the PS3. I really like Infamous so hopefully I'll like Last of Us."
One Twitter user responding to his original comment took a racial stance (really people?) while another, using the #dumb hashtag, accused him of using fanboyism to lead the company and not make more money -- there's a big market for PlayStation 3 accessories. Another said that from a business standpoint, Razer should provide peripherals to all customers. After all, the slogan is "by gamers for gamers", right? PlayStation 3 owners are gamers too.
"It's not fanboyism," he said. "I loved some of the games on the PS3, but I just didn't play it as much. I'm looking forward to the PS4 tho. You're assuming it's just a business for us :) If it were, we'd be a much larger company than who we are today. But yes - we'll definitely be looking at PS4 but no promises there."
What Min-Liang Tan does with his company is his business, and it obviously works. The decision to not produce PlayStation 3 controllers means he's not willing to throw a product at consumers without his own personal involvement. It's a good thing that a company CEO is so involved with the products he designs, manufactures and sells.
At this point, there's no use in hoping that Razer will produce a PlayStation 3 controller, but to look ahead and see how Min-Liang Tan takes to the PlayStation 4 and Xbox One. Meanwhile, PC gamers are bathing in Razer greatness, as always.
What the fuck is wrong with you people?
Millenial mindset of entitlement - "I demand all things I desire be provided for me by the commercial/industrial world, and before I even realize I want it. If a product could exist and I decide I want it, it is their obligation to make it to appease my consumer appetites."
Seriously, in a world where people flip out if their phone goes even a few months without the next incremental update, are you shocked people have claimed fanboyism, bias, behind the scene deals, and even racism for reasons that the travesty of one video game console not getting certain third party controllers took place? People are entitled brats, end of story.
Ultimately, if it's a market that has demand and they're not capitalizing on it, they lose out on they money they would make from that market, and leave it wide open for someone else to swoop in. I think it's a bit silly to not release products for the PS3 as well but, really, not my concern. I think it's silly that MS took years to get an Office suite out for Apple and we are still waiting for an Android one and, go figure, significant Office clone programs have taken foothold on those platforms for their tardiness. You snooze, you lose.
Millenial mindset of entitlement - "I demand all things I desire be provided for me by the commercial/industrial world, and before I even realize I want it. If a product could exist and I decide I want it, it is their obligation to make it to appease my consumer appetites."
Seriously, in a world where people flip out if their phone goes even a few months without the next incremental update, are you shocked people have claimed fanboyism, bias, behind the scene deals, and even racism for reasons that the travesty of one video game console not getting certain third party controllers took place? People are entitled brats, end of story.
It's his company and his choice though so who cares he can build and sell the products he wishes to the game demography he wishes more room for other peripheral makers to fill that void.
What the fuck is wrong with you people?
And, I'm going to go with the assumption that someone who's built his own successful gaming accessories company wouldn't be purposefully doing something so insanely stupid... which leads to the obvious logical conclusion:
Microsoft is greasing his palms somehow.
And, I'm going to go with the assumption that someone who's built his own successful gaming accessories company wouldn't be purposefully doing something so insanely stupid... which leads to the obvious logical conclusion:
Microsoft is greasing his palms somehow.
There is a third conclusion that *seems* insane but, given that it's Sony we're talking about here, might make sense. That conclusions is that Sony has either intentionally, or just through lack of caring in making it easy to work with people on their machine, has made it difficult for hardware to be created for their machine - perhaps hardware wise, perhaps legally, perhaps some sort of obscene licensing fee, whatever.
Keep in mind, the CEO of Sony Computer Entertainment has come out and outright said that they intentionally made the PS3 difficult to develop for, rather than making it more reasonable like developers wanted.
"We don't provide the 'easy to program for' console that (developers) want, because 'easy to program for' means that anybody will be able to take advantage of pretty much what the hardware can do, so then the question is, what do you do for the rest of the nine-and-a-half years?" explained Hirai.
"So it's a kind of--I wouldn't say a double-edged sword--but it's hard to program for," Hirai continued, "and a lot of people see the negatives of it, but if you flip that around, it means the hardware has a lot more to offer."
http://news.cnet.com/sony-ps3-is-hard-to-develop-for-on-purpose/
This company is one part arrogant and one part inane. Would it really shock anyone if they've made it substantially more difficult or costly than it has to be to produce hardware for the PS3 just so they could keep their edge? Nintendo used to produce a whole slew of games with more advanced cartridge technology before releasing them to third party developers so that their games would seem technically far superior to those of their competitors... Based on Sony's history of industry bullying, would it be such a shocker for them to do something similar here?
Yeah just like when he played PS3, so I guess the PS4 will be collecting dust in the not to distant future
I don't care.