And then, just this week, the hammer fell. On Thursday, Sony surprised and alarmed analysts and gamers alike when it announced a .

Now, financials might seem like a yawn-inducing turn of events to some of you, but take note of the fact that Sony signaled out its games division as a key area where those cuts would take place.

"We expect our results to be lower than the July forecast with operating income decreasing by approximately 130 billion yen, mainly within the Electronics and the Game segments," Sony said. Related reports saw the PS3 "leaking sales" in Japan, North America and Europe.

In layman's terms, this means less R&D for the PS3 and PSP, fewer games, and less development on riskier titles. At least until Sony's situation improves, anyway.

The announcement came on the heels of an equally troubling Sony announcement that saw a Japanese spokesperson . The crux of the statement was that HD gaming, a cornerstone of the console alongside the , has not taken off quite as quickly as Sony would have liked in Japan.