PlayStation 3

The PlayStation 3 (often and officially abbreviated as PS3) is a video game console developed by Sony as a successor to the PlayStation 2. It was released first in Japan on November 11, 2006; November 17, 2006 in North America; and March 23, 2007 in Europe and Australia. It competes against the Xbox 360 and Wii as part of the seventh generation of video game hardware.

It was discontinued in North America in October 2016 and in Japan in May 2017.

Announcement and Launch


The PlayStation 3 was officially unveiled at E3 2005 on May 16, along with the Sixaxis Controller, which would remain the official controller until 2008, when it was replaced by the DualShock 3 Controller.

It was first released in Japan on November 11, 2006 at 07:00. According to Media Crate, 81,639 PS3 systems were sold within 24 hours of its release. It would later be released in North America on November 17. Reports of violence surrounded the release of the PS3, with campers being robbed at gunpoint and a drive-by shooting with BB guns being a few examples of the violence over the systems.

On March 23, 2007, the PlayStation 3 was released in Europe, Australia, the Middle East, Africa, and New Zealand - where it sold about 600,000 units in its first two days.

Hardware
The PlayStation 3 features a Blu-ray Disc drive for games, Blu-ray movies, DVDs, CDs, and other optical media. Originally, the PS3 was made available with hard drives of 20 and 60 GB; but various sizes up to 500 GB have been made available over the years. All PS3 models can have their hard drives upgraded.

The console uses the Cell microprocessor, designed by Sony, Toshiba, and IBM, as its CPU. The system has Bluetooth 2.0, Gigabit Ethernet, USB 2.0, and HDMI 1.4 built in. Wi-Fi networking is also built-in on all but the 20 GB models.

Controller
At E3 2005, the Dual Shock 3 controller with a crescent-shaped design was shown for the PlayStation 3. However, the model was changed to one similar to the Dual Shock 2 controller of the PS2 because of negative response from gamers. Sony later introduced the Sixaxis controller which exhibits six degrees of freedom. The controller is also as lightweight as the Dual Shock 2, making the Xbox 360 controller look like a paperweight. The controls are the same as the old Dual Shock controller but the vibrating features have been removed and replaced with a motion sensor. The controller also uses wireless Bluetooth technology and can be wired and charged with an USB cable.

Pricing
On July 1, 2007 Sony dropped the price of the PlayStation 3 from $599 to $499 for the 60 GiB model. This model was later discontinued.

Exclusive Titles
Exclusive games to PlayStation 3 include:


 * 3D Dot Game Heroes
 * Afrika
 * Agent
 * Amy
 * Ape Escape
 * Aguanaut's Holiday : Hidden Memories
 * Ar Tonelico Qoga: Knell of Ar Ciel
 * Atelier Rorona: The Alchemist of Arland
 * Boku no Natyusasumi 3
 * Buzz!: Brain of the UK
 * Buzz!: Quize TV
 * Buzz!: Quize World
 * Demon's Souls
 * Derby Time Online
 * Disgaea 3: Absence of Justice
 * Disgaea 4
 * Eight Days
 * Everybody's Golf 5
 * The Eye of Judgement
 * Eyedentify
 * EyePet
 * The Fight: Lights Out
 * Folklore
 * Formula One Championship Edition
 * Full Auto 2: Battlelines
 * G1 Jockey 4 2007
 * G1 Jockey 4 2008
 * The Getaway
 * God of War III
 * God of War Collection
 * Gran Turismo 5
 * Gran Turismo 5: Prologue
 * Gran Turismo 6
 * Haze
 * Heavenly Sword
 * Heavy Rain
 * InFamous
 * InFamous 2
 * Janeline R
 * Katamari Forever
 * Killzone 2
 * Killzone 3
 * Lair
 * The Last Guardian
 * Last Rebellion
 * LittleBigPlanet
 * LittleBigPlanet 2
 * MAG
 * Makai Wars
 * Metal Gear Online
 * Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of the Patriots
 * Mist of Chaos
 * MLB 07: The Show
 * MLB 08: The Show
 * MLB 09: The Show
 * MLB 10: The Show
 * Mobile Suit Gundam: Crossfire
 * Mobile suit Gundam: Battlefield Record U.C 0081
 * ModNation Racers
 * Monster Madness: Grave Danger
 * MotorStorm 1
 * MotorStorm 2: Pacific Rift
 * MotorStorm 3: Apocalypse
 * Naruto: Ultimate Ninja Storm
 * NBA 07
 * NBA 08
 * NBA 09: The Inside
 * Neptune
 * Ninja Gaiden Sigma
 * Ninja Gaiden Sigma 2
 * One Piece: Pirate Warriors
 * One Piece: Pirate Warriors 2
 * Pain
 * Prince of Persia Trilogy
 * Ratchet and Clank Future: Quest for Booty
 * Ratchet and Clank Future: Tools of Destruction
 * Ratchet and Clank Future: A Crack in Time
 * Ratchet and Clank: All 4 One
 * Resistance: Fall of Man
 * Resistance 2
 * Resistance 3
 * Ridge Racer 7
 * SEGA Golf Club
 * SingStar
 * SingStar Vol. 2
 * SingStar Vol. 3: Party Edition
 * Siren: Blood Curse
 * The Sly Collection
 * SOCOM: U.S Navy SEALs Confrontation
 * SOCOM 4
 * Supercar Challenge
 * Tales of Symphonia Chronicles
 * Tales of Xillia
 * Tales of Xillia 2
 * Tales of Zesteria
 * Time Crisis 4
 * Tom Clancy's Splinter Cell Classic Trilogy HD
 * The Tomb Raider Trilogy
 * Trinity Universe
 * Twisted Metal
 * Uncharted: Drake's Fortune
 * Uncharted 2: Among Thieves
 * Uncharted 3: Drake's Deception
 * Untold Legends: Dark Kingdom
 * Valkyria Chronicles
 * Warhawk
 * White Knight Chronicles
 * White Knight Chronicles 2
 * Wipeout HD
 * Yakuza 3
 * Yakuza 4