It's been the rallying cry of Sony fanboys from the beginning. Things might be bad right now, but you just wait until Metal Gear Solid 4. Then we'll see the PlayStation 3 rise up to conquer, just like the PS2 did, and you'll all be sorry for doubting it.
But will we really? There's a very good argument that Metal Gear's release won't make the blindest bit of difference to the PS3's fortunes as a format, however good it turns out to be (and there's every chance that it will be brilliant). The reason? Things just don't work that way any more.
The industry has changed a lot since Metal Gear Solid became a killer app for the PSone. It's changed almost beyond recognition in just the last twelve months in fact. Two major differences separate the way things are now from the way thing were then: The cost of making games and the kind of people who play them.