Kutaragi Delay Hindered PS3 Exclusivity??? News

One of the biggest news stories to break at this year's E3, was confirmation that Grand Theft Auto IV would be released on Xbox 360 the same day as it will on PlayStation3. It was a huge coup for Microsoft considering the part played by the GTA franchise in securing dominance for PlayStation2 in the previous 'console war', all the more when Xbox supremo Peter Moore confirmed that two pieces of epic GTA IV downloadable content would be exclusive to Xbox 360.

At the same time in May, Ubisoft were showing off an early look at Assassin's Creed, which back then was being developed for PlayStation3. It was one of the year's worst kept secrets in videogaming when it was finally revealed as also heading to Xbox 360.

But according to a detailed article in esteemed US publication Newsweek, it could have been a very different story...

In the report, Newsweek claims that Sony Computer Entertainment's Ken Kutaragi was lax in responding to negotiations with the likes of Rockstar Games (which wanted to continue the delayed exclusivity deal with Sony) and Ubisoft (which wanted PS3 exclusivity for Assassin's Creed), the result being that the third-party publishers finally listened to Microsoft...and the rest is history.

Newsweek's claims are being greyed out by Sony Computer Entertainment America's VP Jack Tretton, who said:

"I don't want to get into confidential discussions with another company...but there was interest on Take-Two's part to bring Grand Theft Auto onto Xbox platforms. We wouldn't encourage them to do that. The interest came from them...That being said, you would be crazy to say that you would never entertain or not welcome exclusives. It's just a question of how deep into your pockets do you have to reach to secure that? Desperation breeds deep pockets. Confidence breeds the opposite. When it makes sense, you do the deal. When it doesn't, you pass."

So with Newsweek claiming one side, and SCEA stating that Microsoft's money broke the exclusives, it seems the truth lies deep beneath the muddied waters of backroom deals...

We'll have more news shortly...