索尼攜PS4再戰遊戲江湖
Sony Corp. unveiled its PlayStation 4 video game console Wednesday, showing off a machine with dramatically improved technical abilities, crisp graphics, and a slew of social networking features. The new console is a major bid by the company to regain momentum in the quickly changing, $78 billion global games industry.
索尼公司（Sony Corp.）週三發佈了PlayStation4遊戲機。這款產品展現了大幅提升的技術能力、清晰圖像和一系列社交特色。索尼意圖在這個快速變化、價值780億美元的全球遊戲產業重振旗鼓，而PS4則是其戰略中的王牌。Due for the 2013 holiday, the Playstation 4 will be powered by an x86 chipset, advanced graphic processing unit, 8 gigabytes of memory, and come with a built-in hard disk drive. Sony (SNE) described the system as being built on a "supercharged PC architecture," making it relatively simple for developers to create games for computers running MicrosoFT (MSFT) Windows as well as the PS4. It will feature a motion-sensing wireless controller, the Dual Shock 4, that looks similar to the current version but features a touch-sensitive track pad. (See image below.)
預計2013年假期發售的PS4將會配備x86芯片、先進的圖形處理器、8GB內存和內置的硬盤驅動器。索尼稱它爲建立在“超動力PC架構”上的系統，開發商可以相對容易地開發同時兼容微軟（Microsoft）Windows系統和PS4系統的遊戲。它擁有極具特色的無限運動傳感控制器Dual Shock 4，外型與目前的版本相似，不過增加了內置觸摸板。The final design of the machine was not shown to the public, however. Sony did not announce whether it plans to launch the system first in Japan and later in the United States, as it sometimes has in the past, or simultaneously around the world. It also did not disclose an estimated retail price for the video game system.
然而，這款機器的最終設計並未對外公佈。索尼並未做出聲明，說明PS4是否會按照之前的做法，先在日本上市，再在美國發行，抑或全球同步發行。索尼也沒有公佈該系統的預計零售價格。
"Today is a moment of truth for Sony," said Andrew House, president and group CEO of Sony Computer Entertainment. "The stakes are high," he added, perhaps nodding to Sony's delicate financial position. The beleaguered Japanese electronics giant has been waiting for a turnaround to materialize for years. Outside of the Playstation business, it has progressively lost ground in the race to create lust-worthy consumer electronics to the likes of Samsung and Apple (AAPL).
索尼電腦娛樂公司（Sony Computer Entertainment）董事長和集團總裁安德魯??豪斯說：“現在到了索尼的關鍵時刻。”也許是考慮到索尼微妙的財務狀況，他補充道：“利害攸關。”這家遭遇困境的日本電子巨頭等待轉機已有多年。遊戲機業務之外，它在製造高品質消費性電子產品上的競爭節節敗退，三星（Samsung）和蘋果（Apple）等公司則成爲了贏家。Earlier on Wednesday, Sony said it expects to post a $1.23 billion operating profit for the fiscal year ending March 31, 2013. But it also previously disclosed a third quarter loss of $115 million, due to a significant decrease in hardware and software sales. Game hardware sales decreased 15.1% from the previous year's third quarter. In January, Sony Corporation of America revealed plans to sell its 37-story headquarters in New York City, a move expected to generate some $770 million.
週三早些時候，索尼稱預期在2013年5月31日財年結束時營業收益達到12.3億美元。但是它之前發佈的財報顯示，由於軟硬件銷量皆遭重挫，第三季度虧損達1.15億美元。自去年第三季度以來，遊戲硬件銷量降低了15.1%。今年一月，索尼美國公司（Sony Corporation of America）透露，計劃出售位於紐約的37層總部大樓，預計此舉可籌集7.7億美元資金。Sony's announcement also comes as doubts about the future of traditional console gaming are mounting. Last month, Nintendo (NTDOY)—the first of the three major console makers to release next-generation hardware—slashed its sales outlook, reflecting disappointing holiday sales of its new Wii U console. The Sony competitor cut its projection to $7.39 billion for the fiscal year to March, a 17% drop; just a few years ago, it was raking in record profits thanks to its hit, original Wii. Microsoft has yet to announce plans for a successor to its best-selling Xbox 360console.
索尼的聲明也被視爲是對傳統遊戲機未來前景的懷疑。上月，任天堂（Nintendo）——三大遊戲機廠商中首家發佈新一代硬件的公司——降低了銷售預期，體現出對全新Wii U遊戲機假期銷售情況的失望。這家索尼的競爭對手預計在5月財年結束前達到銷售額73.9億美元，較原預期下調了17%。而就在幾年前，由於最初的Wii帶來的轟動，它的收益還處於歷史最好水平之列。至於是否計劃開發最暢銷的Xbox 360平臺的續作，微軟仍未發表聲明。With the Playstation 4, Sony appears to be coming to terms with major shifts in technology as well as the impact of mobile phones, tablets, and social networking on how gamers play. The console features cloud-based technology that can stream games to players' homes instantly, much like Netflix (NFLX) and Amazon (AMZN) beam movies and TV shows. (Last year, Sony bought cloud provider Gaikaifor $380 million.) "The living room is no longer the center of the ecosystem," said Sony's House, referring to the ability to connect to PS4 games via tablets, smartphones and the web.
索尼推出PS4，表明它屈服於科技的轉變及手機、平板電腦和社交網絡對玩家遊戲方式的影響。控制檯採用雲技術，可以讓遊戲立刻傳輸到玩家的家中，這點很像網飛（Netflix）和亞馬遜（Amazon）傳輸電影和電視節目。（去年，索尼以3.8億美元收購了雲服務提供商Gaikai。）索尼的豪斯說：“客廳已經不再是家庭生態環境中的中心，”指的是人們能夠通過平板電腦、智能手機和網絡連接，從而玩到PS4的遊戲。Additionally, Playstation Vita owners will be able to use their handheld gaming device as a supplementary screen, including controlling games remotely or displaying tactical information. Sony said it would offer a motion-sensing camera system akin to Microsoft's popularKinect device. That will allow the machine to pick up the movements of a player. In one example, developer Media Molecule showed a video of users sculpting 3D objects by waving a motion controller in the air.
此外，PS VITA用戶將能夠使用手持遊戲設備作爲輔助屏幕，包括遠程控制遊戲或顯示策略信息。索尼稱將提供類似於流行的微軟Kinect動作傳感攝像頭系統。它能夠讓機器記錄玩家的動作。比如，開發商Media Molecule展示了一個視頻，其中的用戶通過在空中移動動作控制器進行了3D物體的雕刻。Sony showed a number of game demos, some running in real-time on development hardware, including action-adventure title Knack and realistic driving simulator Drive Club. Developers from some of the biggest forms in gaming were a part of the presentation, including Capcom, Square Enix, Bungie, and Blizzard (ATVI). Blizzard announced that its PC-only blockbuster Diablo 3 would be available for the PS4 and PS3.
索尼進行了大量遊戲演示，其中一些在開發硬件上實時運行，包括動作冒險遊戲《Knack》和模擬現實駕駛的《駕駛俱樂部》（Drive Club）。Capcom、Square Enix、Bungie和暴雪（Blizzard）在內的遊戲開發巨頭也參與了演示。暴雪稱，之前僅在PC機上運行的鉅作《暗黑破壞神3》（Diablo 3）也將開始支持PS4和PS3平臺。
