Is Microsoft worried about Sony's out-of-the-box online service? Pffft. Not at all. Xbox Live marketing manager Aaron Greenberg blows raspberries at the PS3's service, calling it "yet another knockoff" and saying Sony's Gamers Days had "so little news in Sony's online announcements." What's more, Greenberg stated:

We will compete with them in the same way we have for the last four years by out-innovating and focusing on community, value, and the content that gamers want. They offered basic free matchmaking on the PS2, and from what we can tell, their online story has not evolved much.

Microsoft does something, Sony gets catty. Sony does something, Microsoft spews venom. Anyone sick of this dog-and-pony show? (The boneheaded comments from Sony execs are still fun, though.) Brian Ashcraft

Greenberg Isn't Impressed [Eurogamer]

Contrary to popular belief, we do not loathe Sony. Actually, we quite enjoy their products and are very much looking forward to the free PS3 consoles the company is going to send all of us. Microsoft, on the other hand, hates Sony with the scorn of a thousands years in hell. And that's when Msoft is being nice.

Speaking of nice, Microsoft does have a nice game blog, Gamerscore. It's run by John, Cesar and some other marketing guys I haven't yet met. The site is friendly and PG-13. My mom likes it.

Then, there's Ozymandias, which is written by Andre Vrignaud of the Xbox team. This is Microsoft's bitchy blog. While it's not Florian bitchy (nothing is), the site is unabashed in Sony pooh-poohing. From Blu-ray follies to PS3 problems, Andre takes great joy in posting every bad bit of news regarding Sony. Take a look at what Andre has to say about the Sony's Manager of Developer Relations quitting:

Mark was one of the best in developer relations, very well respected in the industry, and was instrumental in trying to get Sony Corporate to take developer support seriously. (Although I like to think Mark was following the example our Game Technology Group sets.) ;)

I do have to wonder how much of Sony's flailing was a part of this decision.

I count at least four snide jabs at Sony. If you lean extremely close to your monitor while reading the page, you can just make out the sound of Xbox honcho Peter Moore cackling in the background. Brian Ashcraft

Read Here, Haters [Ozymandias] Thanks, DirtyDebutant!

The Microsoft-Sony corporate bitch fight continues, this time with SCE honcho Kaz Hirai getting snappy. While Sony's been accused of copying everything from the Wii-mote to Xbox Live, Kaz says that just ain't the case in the latest issue of PlayStation Magazine. It's Microsoft who are the big copycats.

PSM: Sony and Microsoft seem to be taking the exact same path.

Hirai: We seem to. Every time we go down a path, we look behind and they're right there - we just can't shake these guys. I wish that they would come up with some strategies of their own, but they seem to be going down the path of everything we do. If you look at their strategy in other business areas as well, they tend to do that.

A master class in finger pointing. According to Kaz, every good idea Microsoft ever had was swiped. And not only that, Microsoft are poor planers say Kaz! He lays into Msoft with this jab:

Hirai: ...And the other thing is, you take a look at, for example, the fact that we incorporate the Blu-ray drive from day one. You're not going to be asking me, 'So, talk to me about this Blu-ray add-on that you have. Does it work for games? Is it just for movies?' That's exactly the kind of pitfall you fall into if you launch something that's too early, too premature...

How sassy! I love it! Brian Ashcraft

More Here [QJ.NET] Thanks, KrazyNick!

In what is turning out to be the bitchiest console war in recent memory, Jack Tretton, co-chief officer of Sony Computer Entertainment America, is spewing venom all over Microsoft. In an interview with financial news site The Street, Tretton didn't pull any punches, repeatedly laying into Msoft. Here are the choice quotes:

• "I guess if price is the only consideration, then we've won the war, because we've got a $129 PlayStation 2 that outsells the Xbox 360 today."
• "We're looking to sell 100 million-plus worldwide. We're looking to sell 50 million plus in North America. So, if a competitor gets to 6 to 10 million worldwide, I would not consider that to be a significant advantage or a significant disadvantage as far as we're concerned."
• "There's no question they [Microsoft] have a higher pain tolerance. I think most companies, if they'd lost the billions that Microsoft has lost on the Xbox, would question whether or not they belong in the business. Obviously, they have a different standard of success."

Grab a bowl of popcorn, 'cause there are more fireworks after the jump.

• "If we had suffered the struggles that Microsoft had, I'd question whether we'd be serious about the business today. Fortunately for us, we've never been in that position. And I guess until we get in that position, it's difficult to determine how we would react."
• "There's no question that having the Grand Theft Auto franchise helped us a lot and helped us sell some units, but I don't think the battle would be any different with or without Grand Theft Auto."
• "I think it's a fact that Sony Computer Entertainment software has far outsold Halo, because Halo was the one and only title to come out there. So, do we have a title? I don't know."
• "I guess I'd have to look at the numbers on Gran Turismo vs. the numbers on Halo. But I can guarantee you that Sony Computer Entertainment's first-party software far and away outsold Microsoft's first-party software."

Woah. Sony totally hates Micrsoft! Like really, really hates them!! Brian Ashcraft

He Does Say Sony Was "Pleased" With the E3 Presser [The Street] Thanks, Allen!