Final Fantasy is gone, is the PS3 dead in the water?

Microsoft fired off the shot heard round the world today at their E3 press conference when it was announced that the long time Sony exclusive Final Fantasy franchise would be making its way to Microsoft’s Xbox 360. The chaos that ensued from the ’Final Fantasy Exclusivity Crisis’ was evident across hundreds of gaming message boards. Square-Enix was branded a turncoat and sell out. ’FailStation’ doomsday proclamations were made. Hundreds of angry fanboys frantically scrawled out flames and flinged insults. This is a defining day in the 7th generation console war, there is absolutely no way denying this. However, is it possible that this announcement and its effect on the PS3 could be over exaggerated? Is Sony dead in the water, and the PS3 rendered a $400 paper weight, as some have said?

Final Fantasy is one of the pillars supporting Sony’s gaming kingdom. The series, since Final Fantasy VII, has sold over 30 million copies on the PlayStation brand consoles. This announcement doesn’t change Final Fantasy’s significance to Sony. Final Fantasy XIII will still be released on the PS3. If it was announced 360 exclusive, then this would be an issue. As it stands though, the 360 has gained a franchise while Sony still has it as well. This just means that it will split the sales with the 360. On top of that, FFXIII is still PS3 exclusive in Japan, where the series maintains most of it’s popularity. Final Fantasy Versus XIII is still exclusive to the PS3 as well.

Moreover, the Final Fantasy games were never Sony’s best selling games. If anything, sales show a declining interest with each entry into the series. The franchise that holds that title is the Sony exclusive Gran Turismo series. Gran Turismo 3 was the best selling PS2 exclusive title last generation, with close to 15 million copies sold. Together, the 4 Gran Turismo titles have outsold the 6 most recent Final Fantasy games by over 10 million units. On top of that, Sony has dozens of other multi-million best sellers.

In conclusion, the reaction to Final Fantasy XIII’s has definitely been over exaggerated. While it will have an effect on the PS3, what we see now is just a knee jerk reaction to the announcement. Sony’s PS3 still has a long, viable life ahead of it. Once the initial shock value wears off, people will see past this. They did when Grand Theft Auto went multiplatform. They did when Devil May Cry went multiplatform. And now, they will too with Final Fantasy XIII.