Report: SCEE Courting Developers To Boost India's PS2 Sales

According to a new report, seeking to accelerate the PlayStation 2’s growth in India, Sony Computer Entertainment Europe (SCEE) is working with thirteen Indian developers to produce Indian games competitively priced below Rs 499 per title. This follows a recent announcement that development studio Aurona Technologies is creating a PlayStation 2 title featuring Indian mythology figure Hanuman. Sony hopes to release the title in India and other territories with significant Indian populations. SCEE has also courted other Indian developers, such as Indiagames, Trine, DQ Entertainment, and Dhruva, to produce Bollywood and Indian culture-themed games targeted at both local and international markets. Motivated by the success of the Wii and the Wii Remote, SCEE will emphasize the introduction of its Eye Toy camera and games in India. Said SCEE vice president of of publisher and developer relations Zeno Colaco, “PS2 users will get the best out of their machines with games based on our motion-sensing technology.” Eight years on the market, PlayStation 2’s installed base in India is estimated at 3,250,000. PlayStation 3 sales, on the other hand, have languished, selling only 1,200 units per month. Colaco reiterated SCEE’s support of local developers through technical assistance, long-term development tool loans, and other financial incentives: “We are supporting the game developers by lending them developers kit (worth around Rs 3,17,000) at subsidised rates. Such special pricing helps the game developers in breaking even as it brings down the cost of game development.”