Sega believed they had the stronger position going into E3 over Sony, as gaming publications, comparing the Saturn to the PlayStation, rated the Saturn as the better system. At the first E3 in May 1995, Sega's Kalinske premiered the North American version of the Saturn, announced its various features and its selling price of $399, and said that while it would officially launch that same day, they had already sent a number of systems to selected vendors for sale.[1] Sony's Olaf Olafsson of Sony Electronic Publishing began to cover the PlayStation features, then invited Steve Race, president of Sony Computer Entertainment America to the stage. Race stated the launch price of the PlayStation, "$299", and then left to "thunderous applause".[33] The surprise price cut caught Sega off-guard, and, in addition to several stores pulling Sega from their lineup due to being shunned from early Saturn sales, the higher price point made it more difficult for them to sell the system.[33] When the PlayStation officially launched in the United States in September 1995, its sales over the first two days exceeded what the Saturn had sold over the prior five months.[34] Because Sega had invested heavily on Saturn into the future, Sony's competition drastically hurt the company's finances.[3]