During their TGS keynote speech, Sony revealed that the HDMI port will now be standard on the 20GB version of the PS3. Sony has also announced a PS3 price drop for Japan and confirmed a few launch titles for the region.
Previously lacking HDMI, the 20GB version of the PS3 will now come standard with an HDMI port worldwide, supposedly in response to fan reaction to the missing feature when it was announced at E3. While a final confirmation has not been offered, Sony executives have indicated in multiple interviews that no video cables will be included with any of the systems.
The 20GB PS3 has also seen a price reduction from the originally announced 62,790 yen amount. Now 49,980 yen ($430 US), Japan will get a cheaper 20GB version of the console when compared to the North American price of $499. Wired asked Sony’s Phil Harrison about the discrepancy between the two regions. “We started by calculating the price for the US and European territories by looking at what consumers considered the ‘magic price points’,” said Harrison. “In these territories, the prices we announced were very well accepted. We then converted that price to yen without giving consideration to ‘magic price points.’ The feedback was not supportive, so we lowered the price.”
Finally, the Japan launch will definitely see the following games on day one: Genji: Days of the Blade, Mah-Jong Fight Club Online, Mobile Suit Gundam: Target In Sight, Resistance: Fall of Man, Sega Golf Club and Ridge Racer 7. For December, Sony claims F1 Championship, Gran Turismo HD and Motorstorm are on target for release. Keep in mind these are Japanese release titles, the North American launch day software list remains unconfirmed.
