It’s time to face the facts, dear readers, 2007 wasn’t a great year for the PS3. It’s true, the console sold better in its first six months than the PS2 did, but no matter how much sugar Sony pours over its sales figures, this year belonged to Microsoft. The Xbox 360 had been around for 14 months before the PS3 launched, had a bumper package of games already out for it, and a big enough user base to entice third-party developers into its embrace. When the PS3 launched in March, the 360 was waiting right outside Sony’s house, ready to give its fledging console a good kicking as soon as it stepped out of the door.

But 2008 will be different. Sony has got its act together and toned down the arrogant posturing that angered so many gamers during E3 2006. But most importantly, Sony has finally caved into the demands of consumers and developers the world over and drastically cut the PS3’s price. After the release of the £299 PS3, console sales received a massive boost. In the UK the PS3 shifted around 12,000 week on week throughout October, beating the 360, on average, by 2,000 units, and in the rest of Europe the PS3 outsold the 360 by a massive two to one throughout October.

However, there will be more to the PS3’s dominance in 2008 than just price cuts. As the user base for the PS3 expands, developing PS3 games becomes a more profitable enterprise for third-party publishers, which means more games will get released for the console. Let’s face it, the 360 blew its load a bit early, triple-A titles such as BioShock, Mass Effect and Halo 3 have come and gone, and 360 owners have few exclusives to look forward to next year. PS3 owners, on the other hand, have Metal Gear Solid 4, Metal Gear Solid Online, LittleBigPlanet, Unreal Tournament III and Gran Turismo 5, to get excited about.

2008 will also see the introduction of Play TV, a service that is totally unique to the PS3, and, of course, the long-awaited launch of Sony’s online social club, Home. The other major factor in the battle between the 360 and the PS3, will be the tussle between Blu-ray and HD-DVD. As you well know, Sony has had a hole burnt in its wallet incorporating Blu-ray players in to the PS3, and Microsoft has thrown oodles of cash behind Toshiba’s HD-DVD, in an effort to scupper Sony’s plans. Both companies know that the success of their consoles is intimately linked with the success of the formats they support. Since we last covered the Bluray/ HD-DVD war in Play 157, Blu-ray has been making steady gains. Warner recently revealed that the film 300 sold twice as many copies on Blu-ray as it did on HD-DVD. Of course, Microsoft isn’t going to take all this lying down, evidenced by the $300 million it shelled out for the allegiance of Paramount Studios, but most analysts now agree that HD-DVD’s success is starting to look doubtful.

Play is confident that 2008 will be the year Sony gets its groove back. The storm of late 360 ports, dodgy frame rates, over-hyped games, and high prices, has been weathered. Finally, PS3 owners will be able to sail unimpeded to gaming bliss. Still not convinced? Check out the following top ten reasons to own a PS3 next year.