No, Jim Ryan - Gaming In The Middle East Existed Long Before PlayStation
From the Famicom to internet cafes, we were enjoying video games long before PlayStation came to our shores.
me.ign.com
A few days ago, GamesIndustry.biz ran a lengthy conversation with Sony Interactive Entertainment CEO, Jim Ryan. The interview touches on Sony's ambitions with the PlayStation 5, and how Ryan hopes that the PlayStation brand and its games can be accessible to "hundreds of millions of people", in a similar way that music and movies are.
But there was one, seemingly off-the-cuff remark Ryan made that has caused quite a bit of stir in the Middle East's gaming community, not only for its remarkable inaccuracy but also for how unknowledgeable the CEO of Sony Interactive Entertainment sounds.
When discussing the impact the PlayStation 1 and PlayStation 2 had worldwide, Jim Ryan said, "One of the things that I am proud about there is that we kind-of pushed the envelope. We opened up markets that had never had any gaming culture ever. Middle East...people had never played games before PlayStation in the Middle East."
I mean...huh?
From the article, some names weighing in:
I'm not even really sure what to make of a statement like that. It's... very obviously wrong. Did he think nobody would notice a lie like that, or does he really think PlayStation created gaming in the Middle East?