Those with PS3 consoles who are struggling to sell them may have to paint theres to get a great markup on the sale price, the group who painted theres white the other day sold their PS3 on ebay for $1425
Reports have been steadily trickling in since yesterday of stockpiles of Playstation 3s found sitting around in Best Buys untouched, or hardly touched.
Best Buy announced they would be selling a bunch of the consoles starting Sunday and according to several emailers, very few people took them up on their offer. Of course this is all anecdotally, so I'm not sure how widespread it is.
What I can tell you is that the Best Buy near my house had 31 Playstation 3s sitting in a lovely wall o' consoles this morning when I swung by the store. Many, if not all of them, were the 60GB model.
While taking pictures of the stack load of PS3s (and the nearby wall of Xbox 360s, twice the size) someone came buy and plucked one up. He happened to be right next to me when I was paying for my stuff and I heard him saying that the main reason he decided to get it was because it offered up games at 1080p and he wanted to see what it looked like on his plasma. It appeared he was also buying a Blu-ray movie and a copy of Madden for the system.
I can't help but wonder if this seeming lack of interest in the PS3 at Best Buys is because of a general post-holiday buying drought or something more about the system itself. It certainly doesn't look good, especially when coupled with the details were reported on last week about the PS3's grey market.
Like every year, Dengeki Online has put together a massive New Years feature. And as every year, the most prominent feature of this special is a collection of comments made by Japan's leading developers.
The director of Koei's online business and producer of Nobunaga's Ambition Online, Kenji Matsuhara, talked at length about the possibilities offered by the PlayStation 3's CELL processor. Using this new powerful hardware, Matsuhara wants to deliver an undisclosed game fans can freely enjoy.
Hiroshi Matsuyama, president of CyberConnect 2, the developers of Bandai Namco's .hack and .hack//GU series, emphasized the different functions offered by each of the three next-generation systems. He also confirmed that his company has begun to work with the new hardware, without going into specifics.
Phantasy Star Universe producer Takao Miyoshi obviously emphasized the online capabilities of the new hardware. In particular, he feels Nintendo's Wii offers enormous potential.
Miyoshi's colleague at Sega, Yuuji Naka, was particularly interested in the new input devices (the Wiimote and the PlayStation 3's SIXAXIS controller). Since games were, unlike movies, interactive, Naka felt these new input schemes will become very important in the future.
Nippon Ichi Software's Souhei Shinkawa offered a less enthusiastic view. He pointed to a shrinking market and declining sales of high profile games. Hence, the key to survival would be the creation of games by making good use of the next generation console's capabilities, focusing on one's idea, while balancing rising development costs. His main ambition for 2007 was the creation of a game fans could truly enjoy. While we was likely talking about Makai Wars, Shinkawa did not mention the title, which was first announced at Electronic Entertainment Expo in May.
Bandai Namco Games' Tales series producer Makoto Yoshidzumi also chose his words carefully. He explained that, traditionally, the Tales series wasn't about the latest technology and CG. Instead, the developers focused on using existing technology and offering players a story they can freely enjoy. However, the producer said he had no idea what the future had in store for the series. He feels the time has come for the entire concept behind Tales to be re-built.
Level 5 president Akihiko Hino, on the other hand, apparently has had no such trouble adapting. His Fukuoka-based company is currently hard at work on its first adventure title, Layton Kyouju to Fushigi na Machi, and Dragon Quest IX Hoshizora no Mamori Hito for DS. Hino did not comment on Shirokishi Monogatari, the PlayStation 3 RPG Level 5 is developing for Sony Computer Entertainment, as it is still early in development.
From Soft's Atsushi Taniguchi promised the announcement of a DS title would be forthcoming. The game is a new installment of an existing franchise and will feature multiplayer support.
Time have posted the top 10 games of 2006, lets see if you agree with their findings:
1. WII SPORTS (for Wii)
2. GEARS OF WAR (for Xbox 360)
3. NEW SUPER MARIO BROS. (for Nintendo DS)
4. LEGEND OF ZELDA: TWILIGHT PRINCESS (for Wii)
5. RESISTANCE: FALL OF MAN (for PS3)
6. PREY (for PC, Xbox 360)
7. ROCKSTAR GAMES PRESENTS TABLE TENNIS (for Xbox 360)
8. GUITAR HERO 2 (for PS2)
9. LEGO STAR WARS II: THE ORIGINAL TRILOGY (for Xbox, Xbox 360, Gamecube, PS2)
10.BULLY (for PS2)
I'm pleased to announce that a BETA LiveCD for PS3s and PowerMacs is making it's way onto the Gentoo mirrors as I write this. The LiveCD can be found on the mirrors in the ppc64 experimental section. You can check out a screenshot from the LiveCD at:
The LiveCD works on PS3s and G5 Apple PowerMacs. It contains a full Gnome desktop as well as:
Firefox-2x (Bon Echo)
Audacious
Xchat
Gaim
Evolution
Gimp-2
Among other things, we plan to add Thunderbird in the near future.
Please feel free to download and test the LiveCD; however, do not, under any circumstances, report bugs via Gentoo's official bugzilla mechanism. I'd prefer join us on #gentoo-ppc64 to report feedback.
Note to PS3 Users
The LiveCD contains a kboot.conf file which should allow you to boot the LiveCD. Choose the label that most closely matches your TV's resolution. This is an area where we plan to put some future enhancements.
Sound
Sound should be functional on the LiveCD. You need to unmute the master channel with the alsa-mixer application.
I would like to thank each of the following for their participation in the LiveCD creation: lu_zero, mtb, nickthecook, deadfall, wolf3l02, and mmschnei. Sorry if I missed anyone.
Gran Turismo HD Concept is now out in North America and Japan, the 'demo' version of planned-but-canned full GT HD PS3 game releasing for download - for free - over Christmas.
News of GT HD's demise and Polyphony Digital's decision to instead release Concept broke in December last year. PS3 owners, for the download, get GT racing supporting 1080p, 10 cars, unlocks - further tuned versions of the vehicles and game mode Drift Trial - and new course Eiger Nordwand. Unlocks are accessed by performing very excellently in Time Trial mode on Eiger Nordwand.
Drift Trial driving mode allows players to "master the art of drifting and achieve ultimate control of their car", Sony's explained.
"Gran Turismo HD Concept provides PS3 and automotive fans a glimpse into the future of Gran Turismo," said Kazunori Yamauchi, creator of Gran Turismo. "With the power of the PS3 technology, the world of Gran Turismo is refined by its full HD visual presentation and unique interactive experience, resulting in an even more realistic and true driving simulator."
Full sequel Gran Turismo 5 is not expected to hit until 2008, but this Concept demo may not be the last PS3 hears of Gran Turismo before 5's out. Yamaouchi has explained previously that it's possible additional Concept demos will be released further down the line.
Christmas '06 has proved to be the biggest ever for UK games, with game sales up nearly 10 percent compared to the same time last year and a staggering 30 percent in the week before Christmas - according to MCV
EA benefited most from the festive game-buying explosion, with Need for Speed: Carbon pushing the retail charge and FIFA '07 following closely behind. The Christmas period finishes off a successful year for the publishing giant, where it managed to grace the UK top spot a total of 26 times throughout 2006.
Meanwhile Nintendo's Wii saw a resurgence in sales over the holiday period, as hardware finally managed to trickle back into UK shops. Flagship launch title Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess climbed up to number 11 in the top 40, While Ubisoft's Rayman and Red Steel re-entered at 32 and 34 respectively.
Thanks to all who have helped in my absence, i did manage to do some newsposting on holiday but now we will be fully 100% back up to full speed once more.
By 2010, Xbox 360 and Wii will be trailing behind PS3 as Sony's console reaches a worldwide install base of 75 million, reckons Dublin-based market research company Research and Markets.
The educated forecast has appeared in an abstract of a study titled "The Transforming Global Video Games Market: The Emergence of Next Generation Gaming", according to a report on Next-Gen.biz.
But while it's said the PS3 will lead in the console war, it won't enjoy the same huge dominance achieved by PS2. This is down to "late launch issues in the PAL region and the early lead of Microsoft's Xbox 360."
Well, in three - and a bit, we guess - years' time we'll see how on the money this educated forecast turned out to be...
Who cares about waiting for a patented idea to come to fruition when you can just handle things yourself? In ebphondaprelude's case, the modder apparently didn't feel comfortable waiting for Sony's LED-infused SIXAXIS to make it to market, and cracked open the PlayStation 3 controller for a bit of hackeration. Seemingly on the less difficult end of the DIY spectrum (at least compared to some entries we've seen), this mod simply requires a steady hand, 2.8v LEDs, a bit of wire, and your trusty soldering iron. The end result gives you four LEDs across the top and a PlayStation symbol that emanates blue in the night. So if you've nothing better to do on this first day back from an entirely too short holiday pause, be sure to hit the read link and get to work.
Market analysts NPD have published a list of the top ten best-selling games in North America for 2006, with the PlayStation 2 version of Madden NFL 07 at number one.
More than 1.8 million copies of the game have been sold so far, and it's one of five PS2 titles in the chart - Kingdom Hearts II is at number three, followed by Final Fantasy XII at six, Grand Theft Auto: Liberty City Stories in seventh place and NCAA Football 07 in eighth.
Second position goes to New Super Mario Bros., which sold around 1.5 million copies. Fellow Nintendo DS game Brain Age finishes off the chart at number ten, having racked up sales of more than 790,000 units.
There are three Xbox 360 titles listed, with platform exclusive Gears of War at number four. More than 1 million copies of the game have been sold so far and it's the most popular title on Xbox Live.
GOW is followed by Ghost Recon: Advanced Warfighter in fifth place (913,000 units sold), and the 360 version of Madden NFL 07 in ninth (826,000 units).
The chart was published by USA Today. NPD has yet to release complete hardware sales figures for 2006, but has issued preliminary estimates which suggest that Xbox 360 won the battle for Christmas cash - beating the Nintendo Wii by a small margin.
Despite Sony's "official" statement that their BDP-S1 standalone Blu-Ray player only uses similar parts to the Pioneer BDP-HD1, there's been more than a few similarities noted in their reviews. The Pioneer and the Sony players all have the same format support, menus, disc drives, back panels, and load times. Now, with the release of The Descent they crash and burn in exactly the same way.
Reason? Both players don't support BD-J (Java enhanced discs), which is what Lionsgate produced The Descent in. Gee, if people are having a hard time telling DVDs from Blu-Ray and HD DVDs, how do you think they'll react when you tell them their player won't support BD-J discs? The PS3 plays back these discs just fine, and Sony's said they will release a firmware update to upgrade to BD-J support "sometime early this year".
Everyone knows that Sony's PS3 is the cheapest way to bring a Blu-ray player home, but is it the best? That's the question the folks at Home Theater Blog and Ultimate AV are trying to answer. Both agree that as a standard DVD player the PS3's image quality is a bit soft, but when it comes to Blu-ray titles the PS3 is no slouch.
Here's what they had to say.
Ultimate AV:
The PS3 more than holds its own in image quality, and wins hands down on boot up and disc access speed.
Home Theater Blog:
It would be hard for me to recommend a PS3 as a primary Blu-ray playback device; to those with zero interest in gaming. On the other hand for those with at least a passing interest in gaming, multimedia and Blu-ray playback, the PS3 does indeed offer an attractive mix of features.
So while it may be difficult to find (depending on where you live), the PS3 is your best bet as far as "bargain" BD players go.
Not only do owners of Sonic the Hedgehog have to suffer through bad gameplay, poor camera angles and lousy design decisions, but they also must endure painful loading, the kind that hurts in waves like a series of soft flicks to the family chaos emeralds. Anyone with the PlayStation 3 version on pre-order ought to watch the above clip, just to see what kind of mess they might be getting themselves into. Bravo, Sonic Team! Another job well done!
Sounds like Konami might have taken the Coded Arms: Assault criticism to heart. The latest rumor suggests that the PlayStation 3 FPS has been canceled. Most reports indicate that Famitsu broke the news, but there has been no official confirmation form Konami. The rumor can be traced back to German site GameFront.
GameFront's original entry is short, and reads (as translated by Google): "The Shooter Coded of arm: Assault of Konami is to appear allegedly no more. That comes out from Japanese trade price lists. Konami did not express itself to the report yet and the attitude of Coded of arm: Assault so far officially does not confirm." From this, it's unclear how Famitsu became involved in the rumor. Perhaps the Japanese magazine published its own report based on the alleged trade price lists; or perhaps Famitsu has been wrongly tied to the cancellation rumor.
True or not, the loss of Coded Arms would hardly deal a crushing blow to PS3's image. Good riddance. (May we remind you that there are more important Konami titles at stake?)
I was playing fl0w on my PS3 and dicided to see when it was comeing out for PS3(i own one) and to my suprise its in 2 days! YEY!
info on game as follows from GameSpot:
At the Tokyo Game Show, we came upon an unexpected, serene, aquatic action game called flOw that was just sitting there on the show floor, minding its own business, without any particularly informative English description. Luckily, Sony brought the downloadable game along to its San Francisco press event so we could try it again for ourselves and try to make some more sense of it. We also got to speak with Kellee Santiago, one of the game's original contributors, who explained a great deal about this mysterious game that will be available as an "e-distributed" title for the PlayStation 3 shortly after the system's launch next month.
So here's the story with flOw. It began as one of USC student Jenova Chen's graduate projects, which is available in simplified form as a Flash game that you can play right this moment. On the PS3, flOw has evolved with high-definition visuals (the game will run in 1080p at launch) and other, more sophisticated production values. But it's all based on Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi's 1990 work Flow: The Psychology of Optimal Experience, which explores the human engagement with immediate activity, positing that man is happiest when completely at one with the action at hand.
What that means in gameplay terms is that flOw is as serene or as aggressive as you want it to be. You control a spiny-looking aquatic creature, swimming around and eating other organisms to grow and evolve. Or not. If you don't want to attempt to eat bigger creatures--which will in turn try to eat you--you're free to swim around lazily, and your fellow life forms will remain docile while you do. But to progress in the game, you've got to eat, which you do simply by swimming up behind and over other creatures. When you successfully eat another life form, its unique physical attributes will be added to your own, and naturally, the bigger you get the stronger you get and the more damage you can take from aggressors.
There isn't much more to the gameplay than that, from what we saw. A few colored organisms float nearby as you swim around. Eating blue ones will make you swim upward toward the surface and eating red ones will make you descend to the depths, where the boss of each area lurks. There are five playable creatures in the game, and each time you consume a boss, you'll rise to the surface and evolve into the next form to begin the new area.
flOw is simplistic from what we got to see, but it's big on concept, and it seems like the perfect sort of game to zone out with on your couch after a grueling day at the office. It's basically a game of eat-or-be-eaten, and you could probably swim around for hours and hours without actually engaging the core gameplay if you really wanted to. flOw's sparse visuals convey the feel of primordial underwater life quite well, and we imagine they'll look pretty nice on a good HD display, too. It's due out as a downloadable game on the PS3 sometime before the end of the year, so lucky early PS3 adopters should keep their eyes peeled for one of the more unique games we've seen in quite a while.
UK games retail is in the midst of a new year price-cutting blitz, with many PS2 games on sale for under a fiver and even current top ten Xbox 360 titles available for around £25.
Gamers have plenty of bargains to choose from at the January sales, with Christmas number one FIFA ’07 going for under £20 at Amazon and £14.99 at Play.com on PS2. The High Street is also getting in on the act, with PS2 FIFA ’07 selling for under £25 at major retailers including GAME, Gamestation, HMV, Woolworths and Tesco.
And online even current Xbox 360 chart titles are included in the price bonanza, with Play.com offering Pro Evolution Soccer 6, WWE Smackdown Vs Raw 2007, Dead Rising and Saints Row all for £24.99, while next-gen FIFA ’07 and Need for Speed: Carbon are on sale for £27.99.
Amazon’s headline deals include Canis Canem Edit on PS2 for a bargain basement £14.99, GTA: Vice City Stories on PSP at £19.99 and The Sims 2: Pets on PS2 for £17.97, while its Xbox 360 range includes Tom Clancy’s Splinter Cell: Double Agent for £25.97 and PES 6 for £24.99.
Leading specialist GAME is also shifting next-gen games at under £30, with Need for Speed: Carbon and Splinter Cell: Double Agent on Xbox 360 at £26.98 and £25.98 respectively. The retailer has a 'two games for £30' promotion running on DS and PSP titles, and also has releases like Brian Lara International Cricket and True Crime: New York City on PS2 for £4.98.
Supermarket giant Tesco is currently promoting a two for £25 deal on a wide range of PS2 games, while catalogue PS2 releases like Goldeneye: Rogue Agent, Wipeout Fusion and Area 51 are all going for under a fiver.
And Woolworths is starting to shift its old stock for staggeringly low prices too, with PS2 title Area 51 on sale for £4.73, Black available at £7.47 and Burnout Revenge on the shelves at £7.47.
Seems that two SKU's aren't enough for Sony. We've got our surprisingly acceptable $499 model of PS3 and the super-snazzy Wi-Fi $599 model, but how would you guys like to toss out those bits of trash and obsolete Sony nonsense for the amazingly awesome, beyond your wildest imagination $2500 model? No, we didn't put one too many zeroes on that (the words zeroes and zeros are both acceptable, so no worries). Rub your eyes and continue reading.
This rumored new model of PS3 in the works is a more "media-centric" build. It's going to look more like a video player and have upgraded playback features, including two HDMI connectors to keep your audio and visual separate. It's not the SCEI brand -- it's a Sony. It's not the PS3 -- it's the PS3.5 and it hasn't been verified, but it's slated to set you back $2500. Oh and yeah, it can also play those PS3 games. What do you guys think of this? Bad idea, or the worst idea?
We're quite aware that all of you aren't RPG fanatics, but that's okay. The Sony consoles became reigning champion of the RPG genre after the SNES drifted off to a tender sleep (but still gets woken up every so often by classic enthusiasts), so for that reason, it's important to hear what the developers of a "crutch" genre have to say about this coming year. Crutch genre, meaning that it's one of the major selling points of Sony consoles -- no other system has had such a focus on them. Anyway, let's make a neat list.
Koei is looking forward to using the cell processor to create "an undisclosed game" fans can freely enjoy. Freely, like downloadable content? Hmm.
Bandai-Namco emphasizes the various functions of all next-gen consoles and admits they have begun working with new hardware. No specifics.
Sega/Sonic Team/Phantasy Star Universe producer spoke of the online capabilities of each console and admitted there's a lot of potential in the Wii. They also mentioned the SIXAXIS and Wiimote as important to the future of gaming.
Nippon Ichi Software spoke of a declining market for high-profile games. Survival in the industry will be dictated by the ability to utilize the next-gen console's capabilities while balancing rising development costs. True enough, if a bit depressing.
Bandai Namco's Tales of... producer said specifically that it's time for the concept behind the Tales series to be rebuilt -- but is unsure about the future of the series at the same time.
Level 5 president Akihiko Hino is optimistic. He's got two titles in the works (one being the Dragon Quest IX game for the Nintendo DS) as well as White Knight Story. He didn't comment on that one, sadly.
From Software announces the development of the DS title also.
Could RPG's be moving more and more onto the DS because of rising development costs and the sheer number of DS's out there? Do you guys think Sony will have to share the genre with it, or will Sony lose it entirely? Either way, it'll be a good year for gamers who like dealing damage in the form of numbers.
Ghost Recon: Advanced Warfighter 2, Splinter Cell Double Agent and Rainbow Six: Vegas are three of five titles that Ubisoft will have out for PS3's launch in the UK and Europe in March, according to the publisher's latest release schedule.
Arcade flight combat game Blazing Angels and The Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion also join the line-up.
'But what about original games?' you cry. Well, yes, but at the least Double Agent on PS3 features additional content in the shape of extra multiplayer maps. It was recently rumoured too that the game may well support the PS3 controller's tilt functionality in some way.
Keen eyes have spotted this careless passage published in the PlayStation 3 version of the NBA 2K7 instruction booklet: "Once you start feeling your heart rate pumping (via controller vibration), you'll be ready to begin! Shooting free throws in 24/7: NEXT is just like shooting free throws in a normal quick game" (page 15). The rumble citation is an amusing relic of pre-Sixaxis days when the manual's authors must have assumed (or were told) the final PS3 controller would feature a standard vibration function. Guess 2K Games didn't bother to hire a knowledgeable copy editor.
Please, let's not assume this means PS3 games have 'hidden' vibration features. A typo's a typo. And PS3 launch titles won't be a'rumblin.
GamersReports has posted a workaround for PlayStation 3 owners eager to download Tekken 5.
Unless you're living in Hong Kong or Japan you're forced to wait until Sony gets around to releasing Tekken 5 in other territories ... or you could cheat the system. This trick is relatively simple, if not inherently dishonest:
Create a new user (not sub-user)
When entering the credit card info, pick Hong Kong as country, and then a corresponding city
After account is created, select 'Add Funds' (a sub-option within 'Account Management')
Add $40 (Hong Kong dollars) to your 'Wallet' twice (total should now be 80 HKD); never add more than $50 in one transaction, as this will prompt a validation of the address registered with the credit card
Now go to the PlayStation Store and select Tekken 5
Opt to add more funds (bringing Wallet total to 125 HKD)
Purchase and download Tekken 5
Sony is no doubt taking measures to lock out this workaround as you read this. Act now if you must. Our advice: sit patient and wait for the official worldwide releases.
PDRoms the Home of Homebrew Roms for the Whole scene have today reemerged from a few months of being offline to announce a new Coders Competition for a ton of systems, heres the newspost in full from PD Roms:
Introduction Text :
It's time for a new coding competition, PDRC #3.666 hits the web. This is the sixth coding competition held by PD Roms. Due to the success of PDRC #2.5 we rewarm a topic...
PS: You are allowed to DIRECT LINK one of the banners if you wish.
Your job :
Create a one-screen LCD style game for one of the following systems:
Super Nintendo Entertainment System aka SNES (tested with ZSNES or Snes9x)
GP2x (tested on the real thing, one file games only, seperated readme files are ok)
Gameboy Advance (tested via Supercard on the real thing, if it does not work on a SC via Visualboy Advance or no$gba)
Gameboy Classic and/or Color (tested via BGB or no$gbc)
GP32 (tested on the real thing, one file games only, seperated readme files are ok)
Dreamcast (tested on the real thing, please submit a burnable cd image/selfboot plus scrambled or unscrambled binary)
Nintendo Entertainment System aka NES (tested via emulator)
Wonderswan Classic and/or Color (tested via emulator)
PC Engine / Turbo Grafix 16 (tested via emulator)
Neo Geo Pocket Classic or Color (tested via emulator)
Sega Master System (tested via emulator)
Sega GameGear (tested via emulator)
Intellivision (tested via emulator)
ColecoVision (tested via emulator)
Megadrive / Genesis (tested via emulator)
Neo Geo and/or Neo Geo CD (tested via emulator, submit drivers if required)
Nintendo 64 (tested via emulator)
Disclaimer: All mentioned trademarks are property of their respective owner and are in no way affilated with this competition.
General Rules:
All systems will take part in one pot!
Participants keep their full copyright.
Games must not contain any copyright violation (Use of copyrighted characteres, titles, etc.). By entering a title you guarantee to have (obtained) all rights on the used code, media, graphics, etc. We reserve the right to refuse and/or disqualify entries violating copyright. In case you have obtained permissions to use copyrighted stuff, we want to see a proof.
The game must be freely distributeable to everyone - We don't care under what kind of license your are going to release it.
Due to fairness we do NOT allow plain ports. Everyone should have the same base to start an entry. We don't have a problem if you get impressions from other existing games.
Games have to be unreleased and stay unreleased till the final results are out, but can be announced or promoted beforehand.
Submit as many entries as you like. Each entry seperated in one compressed file (.zip prefered)
Judges are allowed to enter, but their entry will not be voted/scored for a prize. Same applies if a judge is indirectly involved in a production (eg. leveldesign, graphics, music, ...)
Submit your entry to submission(at)pdroms(dot)de - By submitting your entry, you agree to have fully understand all given rules.
Submission Deadline is Sunday 04.03.2007 23:59 in YOUR timezone.
We reserve the right to modify rules, for better and clearer understanding. We are also in the position to RAISE the prize money or add more prizes at any time. Any changes will be stated out at the bottom of this page.
Rules for your production:
We do NOT accept Fenix, Python and LUA coded games - use a REAL coding language, thank you!
The entry must be child-proof - No abusive material (racism, pornography, extreme violence...)
You can use the full size resolution of your picked system, but the game has to be on one screen.
The "sprites" must be in one color, preferably black.
The background picture can contain as many colours as you like, but keep the colors realistic in relation with the foreground.
The game must play like those old "Nintendo Game & Watch" or "Q&Q" games. To get a proper impression have a look at this picture:
As start sequence you have to show all "sprite positions" at once (see picture), if you add a logo or anything before such a screen, is your choice (xy presents or similar stuff)
Please don't add funky music to your entry, a LCD game doesn't have real music. We expect beep sounds
Prizes:
#1 150 US$
#2 100 US$
#3 50 US$
If you submit three games and all three games rank in the TOP 3 you will take all the money.
The prize money is paid per winning title. If a team has worked on an entry, they have to share things themselves.
To claim your prize money there are a few ways: 1) Paypal 2) A bank account in the European Union or 3) Money transfer via Western Union (any transfer fees for that will be cut from your prize money!)
Judging:
We judge on gameplay, gamefun, realism and originality. Use the advantages or disadvantages of your selected submission platform in a wise way and get more out than other competitiors. We announce the name of judges by mid of February 2007..
UK sales of Nintendo's DS Lite in the run-up to Christmas last year eclipsed that of Sony's PSP, highlighting DS's broad appeal and value for money, and potentially boding well for long term success from Wii's similarly accessible quality.
Recently released figures from analyst ChartTrack shows that in the three weeks before Christmas nearly 250,000 DS Lites were sold, including a staggering 99,617 in a single week, compared to 166,000 PSPs during the same period. It's a truly fantastic achievement for the quirky handheld, which was only released in the UK last June.
Even so, Sony's much maligned handheld still managed to shift over 800,000 units in 2006. That's 50,000 more than the 740,000 Xbox 360s sold last year, proving that, despite some astonishingly bad press surrounding PSP and Sony's mentalist marketing tactics, PlayStation Portable ain't dead and buried quite yet.
PS2 continues to soldier on, turning out an average of more than 40,000 in each of the three weeks before Christmas - compared with paltry sales of the UK's remaining Xbox and GameCube consoles.
Meanwhile, Sega USA told BusinessWeek.com that it predicts PS2 will actually "sell more than any other format" during November to December this year, with yet another price cut "in the not-too-distant future" helping Sony's previous console to be "actively sold" well into 2008. Which is probably over-egging it a bit.
Big Island police say a teenager struck a Kailua-Kona man with a baseball bat today in an attempt to steal his Playstation 3 video game system.
The 26-year-old victim was treated for pain to his left arm, but refused treatment. The suspect was described as being about 18 years old and six feet tall, with short black hair. He was wearing shorts and a red T-shirt.
Police said the attack happened about noon, when the man was walking south along Queen Ka'ahumanu Highway with a Playstation 3. The man was walking with his 16-year-old brother. Police said the two were approached by a vehicle with three occupants. The assailant got out of the car and struck the victim with a baseball bat in an attempt to take the Playstation.
But the victim's younger brother was able to take the bat away from the suspect, who returned to his brown sports utility vehicle and fled the scene, police said. The license plate number on the vehicle is HCP 042.
Encouraged by the positive reception and high eBay sales price fetched by his white PS3 mod, Michal Berecki is expanding the operation to include silver and red system cases. The new colors are still in the concept stage for now, but Berecki has promised the brightly colored PS3s will be on sale in the coming weeks.
We can't help but be tickled by the idea of a home hobbyist filling in a market niche that a console maker seems unwilling or unable to fill. With three colors planned already, the sky's the limit. What kind of designs would you like to see on a future PS3 case?
Usually news from International Solid State Circuits Conference would leave us a little cold, however, a snippet of news has caught our attention. This relates to a 1:30pm meeting on Tuesday February 13th entitled: “18.1 Implementation of the CELL Broadband Engine in a 65nm SOI Technology” – specifically that:
” The chip operates at 6GHz at 1.3V and is fabricated in a 65nm CMOS SOI technology.
The CELL Broadband Engine is, of course, better known simply at ‘The Cell processor’ and is used in the PlayStation 3 (as well as IBM’s Blade servers and some HD TVs). The Cell currently powering the PS3 runs at 3.2GHz and is fabricated on 90-nano-metre (nm) Silicon On Insulator (SOI) tech.
We read on:
”The 65nm CELL Broadband Engine design features a dual power supply, which enhances SRAM stability and performance using an elevated array-specific power supply, while reducing the logic power consumption. Hardware measurements demonstrate low-voltage operation and reduced scatter of the minimum operating voltage.”
We were then drawn to the people attending the conference. Tucked in alongside IBM and Toshiba delegates, was an S. Tokito. We looked more closely to discover that S. Tokito was visiting from Austin, Texas – specifically from Sony Computer Entertainment in Austin, Texas.
Could this be Shizuo Tokito? A man whose name is writ large on several papers regarding blue light emitting diodes (Blue Rays)? Quite possibly. Now, there’s only really one connection between the Cell processor and Blue Ray – although they don’t communicate directly with each other, they do co-exist within the confines of Sony’s enormous, hot and heavy PlayStation 3.
Therefore, a knee-jerk reaction to this could be that Sony is readying the next-gen-Next-Gen PS3 with a buff new processor running at twice the speed of the current unit. The form-factor of such a new unit would also be smaller; the heat emissions would be less… all in all, you’d have a PS3 v.2 which would not require most of your sitting room to place it in. But, as we say, that’s knee-jerk.
This strikes us as more than unlikely – with problems with current PS3 production, the idea of two PS3s on the market would be disastrous.
More possible (notice that we are not saying, ‘likely’) would be for the new processor to be slotted into the existing PS3 and running at the current clock-speed. This would give a performance increase while cooling the system.
Another reaction could be that the company will be placing the new 6Ghz cell in the AV-centric PS3 mooted by Ken Kutaragi last December – and poo-pooed by the rest of the world as the ramblings of the ‘father of PlayStation’.
Final reactions could, of course, be that the conference organisers got Tokito-san’s company wrong – that this is not Shizuo at all, but some other Japanese uber-scientist who works with Sony’s HD-TV group instead; or even works with NHK.
LG Electronics (LG), a leader in consumer electronics and mobile communications, announced that it will launch the world's first dual-format high-definition disc player, capable of playing both Blu-ray Disc and HD DVD content. The unit will be released in the United States in early 2007. Details will be provided at the 2007 International Consumer Electronics Show (CES), held January 8-11 in Las Vegas.
LG expects this technological breakthrough to end the confusion and inconvenience of competing high-definition disc formats for both content producers and consumers.
People love to continue to characterize Blu-ray and HD DVD as VHS vs. BetaMax -- but it's vaguely reassuringly quite different. This time around we aren't contending with physical cartridge incompatibilities and differing analog tape types, thankfully now it's blu-laser based optical discs which do operate differently, but are at least different in the same physical form factor. Enter Warner's finally-commercialized Total HD discs, the hybrid double-sided Blu-ray HD DVD discs we originally heard about being patented are now being commercialized and introduced at CES next week. Of course, so long as some studios don't release in both formats on the same disc (say, for example, Sony Pictures Entertainment), this disc actually hinders the unwitting user who buys content that isn't double-sided, thinking that Blu-ray and HD DVD formats are no longer relevant in day to day buying decisions. We know this is indeed a great stopgap for all those crossover movies released in multiple formats, but we really think it's the hybrid players, not discs, that are going to save the day during this format war.
It was only a matter of time before we started to see the first wave of PS3 branded input devices, and no surprise, Logitech is leading the charge. Today they're introducing their Cordless MediaBoard keyboard for PlayStation 3, a wireless keyboard with vertical scrollbar and touchpad so you can forget stringing that mouse across the room. Although you can't exactly use it to games, it'll be available next month to sate your PS3 browsing and messaging needs for $80 -- two things sure to make Phantom weep a little harder over its scammy little Lapboard.
Wedbush Morgan analyst Michael Pachter has told GamesIndustry.biz that the games industry is likely to experience more modest growth than has been predicted in the coming months.
"I think 2007 will be sloppy. It will start out quite strong, due to the PS3 and Wii supply situation being fixed in the US and the PS3 launch in Europe," he stated.
"Software sales in the summer should trend down to mid-single digits, due to impossible comparisons to 2006 and extraordinarily expensive console prices. I think that the PS3 and the Xbox 360 will continue to sell very slowly during the summer, because at the price, they are no longer an impulse purchase."
However, Pachter went on, software sales should pick up in the autumn - with an increase of around 15 per cent likely during November and December. He also believes that hardware sales are likely to be higher at Christmas than during past years, and will continue to rise in 2008 as the household penetration of high definition monitors grows.
"We expect to see only 30 per cent penetration in the US as of now and probably under 15 per cent in Europe; that should grow to 50 per cent and 25 per cent by year-end 2007, and to 70 per cent and 50 per cent by year-end 2008," Pachter stated.
"Once that many households have HD, PS3 and 360 sales should pick up dramatically, and software sales will grow as well."
Overall, Pachter said, the industry is likely to see "slightly more modest growth than many expect early in the cycle".
"We'll get a false signal in the first part of 2007 due to the next generation console supply situation," he added.
In a separate report, Wedbush Morgan predicted that publishing giant Electronic Arts is "likely to meet or modestly beat" its targets for Q3, with revenue estimates standing at US$ 1.3 billion.
WM has also issued reports noting that US rental service Netflix has launched more aggressive promotions after Blockbuster announced it secured 2.2 million subscribers - exceeding its year-end target by 200,000. According to the reports, Netflix is still likely to face difficulties in competing as many subscribers are signed up through Blockbuster's high street stores.
Gran Turismo HD, the bite-sized, high-def PS3 outing for The Real Driving Simulator series, might not be much more than a demo but it does feature a gorgeous new circuit, the Eiger Nordwand. Plus it'll be totally free to download, so we can't really complain. Hit the movies tab above to see us tear round this fantastic-looking track in a shiny Ferrari 599.
Already available in Japan and the US, we're expecting GT HD to be downloadable as soon as the PS3 Network opens in Europe, so we can enjoy some hi-def racing on our spanking new consoles. Sony has yet to confirm an exact release date but it'd be madness to deny early adopters this crisp new dose of Gran Turismo goodness. Hopefully we'll know for sure in the next few weeks.
Read our corner-by-corner guide for yet more GT HD.
A video posted on YouTube titled Moral Kombat is set to become a controversial forum topic - a trailer for the first full-length film documentary to tackle the videogame violence debate head-on, featuring none other than game-obsessed lawyer Jack Thompson.
According to the film's maker, Spencer Halpin (quoted on the Apple Pro/Video website), his aim is to show that "consumers need access to information about the content of games so they can make their own decisions about what to buy". Which seems a bit of a non-starter given organisations already exist to do just that (the BBFC and PEGI age rate games in the UK and the ESRB have a similar advisory role in the US).
From the look of the trailer it's all a bit alarmist, with one memorable sequence suggesting that videogames were in some way to blame for the World Trade Center attack. How? The pilots learned how to fly the planes by 'playing' a flight simulator, obviously. As you might expect, background footage is a roll call of famous game scapegoats including Manhunt, Grand Theft Auto and Hitman.
Despite high production values, and a balanced approach promised (the film includes interviews with videogame apologists as well as the likes of Jack Thompson), we can't imagine any major movie studios will want to sign up Halpin's film, given their close relations with videogame film and TV licences, many of which contain violent content. Good job, then, that Halpin has made the film without profit in mind. Instead he's going to donate all the money it makes to a kidney research foundation.
Check out the VIDEO HERE and let us know what you think.
Sorry to all, the release of the Dark Alex custom firmware took down our servers twice tonight and killed our stats counter and then stopped people from forum posting.
strangely enough the posting is back to normal but stats are still fubared. will update soon
Just check out the first screenshots from the upcoming Burnout 5 - vehicle pile-ups have never looked prettier.
Developed primarily for the PS3 - although an Xbox 360 version is also in the pipeline - the fifth Burnout is sporting an entirely new game engine and apparently has "the best crashes ever in a game," according to series developer Criterion's Alex Ward.
"If you don't believe the crash is real, then it's not going to frighten you," Ward recently told MSNBC. "The first crash you see on PlayStation 3 has got to go way beyond everything you've ever seen, beyond anything that we've ever done. Because every time we put our game out, people say, 'It's the best crashes ever in a game.' We've got to go beyond that now. We have to go beyond a game, and we have to go beyond a game car crash. That's what all of our work is focused on right now."
There's no official release date yet, though Criterion has hinted that it'll be out on PS3 before the end of the year. Screenshots are from the PS3 version of the game, but we're assuming the Xbox 360 version will look pretty much identical.
A new series of articles is out on IBM DeveloperWorks on programming the PS3. The first article is up, discussing the installation of Yellow Dog Linux and first steps in programming the Cell BE Processor on this platform. From the article: ' It is unusual for gaming consoles to allow foreign operating systems to be installed on them. Since consoles are usually sold at a loss, they are usually locked down to prevent games from running on them without the publisher paying royalties to the console developer. Sony decided to open up the PS3 console a little bit, and allow third-party operating systems to be installed, with the caveat that they do not get accelerated graphics. Because of this, you can now install Linux on the PS3. You have to jump through a few hoops, but it definitely works.
It doesn't take a scientist to figure out that playing a heated game of Dance Dance Revolution will burn more calories than sitting on the couch with a controller in hand. However, Mayo Clinic obesity researcher Lorraine Lanningham-Foster wanted to find out exactly how much more energy dancing games require, and her findings were recently published in the medical journal Pediatrics.
"In this day and time, children really love to play video games," Lanningham-Foster told GameSpot. "And even though we might want children to be outside and engaged in more traditional children's play, I don't think that children are going to abandon video games anytime soon...It's important to look at it this way because video gaming may potentially be a better way for obesity researchers to develop better interventions for children."
Led by Lanningham-Foster, a group of researchers measured the amount of energy expended by 25 children (10 of them mildly obese) in five states of activity. The children were tested sitting while watching television, sitting and playing a traditional game, playing two different types of games that require activity, and then walking on a treadmill at 1.5 miles per hour while watching television. The traditional game was Disney's Extreme Skate Adventure on the PlayStation 2, while the games requiring activity were the EyeToy-compatible Nicktoons Movin' on the PS2 and Dance Dance Revolution Ultramix 2 on the Xbox.
The researchers found that children that watched television and played a traditional game used the same amount of energy, while those that played the Jellyfish Jam game on Nicktoons Movin' tripled the calories burned. However, the obese children used five times as much energy as they had when playing a traditional game. For both groups, the most energy-intensive of the activities studied turned out to be Dance Dance Revolution, with the obese children burning six times the calories of sitting still while playing the song "Samba" on speed setting 3 in the game's training mode.
"Activity-promoting video games have the potential to increase energy expenditure in children to a degree similar to that of traditional playtime," the researchers concluded, adding, "We think that converting seat-based screen time to activity-associated screen time is an essential approach for promoting an active environment that is also fun for children."
The study was completed months before Nintendo released its activity-oriented Wii, so Lanningham-Foster and her team couldn't include it in this round of research. However, she said she's fascinated by the system.
"I haven't had a chance to do some studies with it, but it's something I'd love to have the opportunity to do," Lanningham-Foster said. "The technology there is actually quite similar to some of the technology we use to monitor physical activity in children."
The researchers acknowledged that the study group used was small, but they consider the findings sufficient to warrant further studies in randomized trials.
360: Lost Planet, Crackdown, Medal of Honor: Airborne, Assassin's Creed, Kane & Lynch: Dead Men, BioShock PS3: MotorStorm, Formula One Championship Edition, Assassin's Creed, Burnout 5, Alone in the Dark, Heavenly Sword, Warhawk, Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of the Patriots Wii: Super Mario Galaxy, Super Smash Bros. Brawl, Metroid Prime 3: Corruption, WarioWare: Smooth Moves, Wii Play, Mortal Kombat: Armageddon
A Tekken 5: Dark Resurrection gameplay sequence is today's most-watched GameTrailers video. The footage of the arcade game -- turned PS3 download -- looks true to the Tekken empire, with most of its moves based loosely in reality, instead of the complete fantasy of some fighters. Do you like a real-world grounding in fighters, or would you rather the game embellish more?
We think that the graphics and backgrounds look strong, but judge for yourself.
By Knuttz's count, it's taken 70 steps, including many retreads, to get from Odyssey to Wii. You can view each of these steps -- all 71 consoles -- in this scrolling gallery.
UK tabloid The Daily Mirror today leads with a story of a tragic holiday accident and a half-page headline stating: "Killed by Xmas Game Boy."
The story, also on the red top's website, tells of 7 year-old Connor O'Keefe, who was electrocuted while unplugging a charger in his hotel room in Thailand.
"There should be some kind of warning about different electrical currents you get abroad because this would not have happened in England," said the mother of the child, Kathleen Curry.
She also said that Connor was aware of the dangers of electricity, while police at the Sunset Beach Hotel in Phuket described the incident as a tragic accident.
All Game Boy handhelds come with numerous safety warnings in the manual and on printed leaflets, detailing consumer information and precautions. Instruction booklets also warn that devices 'must be used with the recommended power supply', and that they conform to the EEC's Low Voltage Directive.
Nintendo was unavailable for comment at the time of writing.
After narrowly escaping the horrors of the underground Hive facility, Alice (Milla Jovovich) is quickly thrust back into a war raging above ground between the living and the Undead. As the city is locked down under quarantine, Alice joins a small band of elite soldiers to rescue the missing daughter of Dr. Ashford, the creator of the mutating T-virus. Written and produced by the visionary director of Resident Evil, Paul W. S. Anderson (Alien Vs. Predator) and directed by Alexander Witt, RESIDENT EVIL: Apocalypse is a superior sci-fi suspense sequel.
GameStop released its sales numbers for the nine-week holiday period ending December 30. The news was good for GameStop and EB Games as sales topped $1.7 billion, a 29% increase from the prior year.
"Without question this holiday season was one of the most successful ever for GameStop," said R. Richard Fontaine, GameStop Chairman and CEO. "I am particularly pleased with the robust sales of hardware systems, even in the face of ongoing shortages of PlayStation 3 and Wii... We have never had a holiday season with more hardware choices or more accessory options, and perhaps what is most encouraging is that, we are seeing a broader base of customers enjoying the gaming experience than ever before."
The top five best-selling newly-released videogames of the holidays were Gears of War, Final Fantasy XII, Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess, Guitar Hero II and WWE SmackDown Vs. Raw 2007.
Sony Computer Entertainment America confirmed that there would be no supported force feedback technology with its PlayStation 3. They told 1UP the following:
"All PS3 games are programmed for the SIXAXIS which doesn't have force feedback, therefore the force feedback in the wheels won't be recognized."
The only way to get a question answered sometimes is to ask directly so if anyone out there has a PS3 and a PS2 Action Replay Max Evo then can you post if it works on the PS3.
Of if you have seen the topic discussed elsewhere so i can gather the information needed.
Sega has released a batch of new Virtua Fighter 5 screenshots showing the PS3 version in action, in the wake of recent news that the game will also be coming to Xbox 360.
The hard-hitting fighter is currently scheduled for a spring released on PS3, with the 360 version slated for a latter arrival in the summer. PS3 launch title? We'd be surprised if Sega didn't make it happen.
Sony bolstered the ranks of games flashing about its American PlayStation 3 Store overnight, giving those of you with import consoles and, er, import credit cards the chance to try the PS3 version of PSP puzzle-racer GripShift.
Not only that, but there's another PSone game for those of you who enjoy downloading them and running off to play them on the PSP. This time it's Jumping Flash, which goes for US$ 5.99. GripShift costs US$ 9.99.
Kotaku has a follow-up feature to their earlier look at the declining PS3 market on EBay. Post author Michael Fahey has now gone back and looked at Ebay sales, comparing the PS3 and the Wii. Unlike the sharp dips and spikes the PS3 market has suffered, the price seems to be fairly constant for the Wii console. From the article:
"Considering the small window that the PlayStation 3 auctions had to turn a truly amazing profit, prospectors would have been better off in the long run purchasing a couple of Wiis, which have maintained an average profit margin of 45-50% since preorders became available. Definitely not a windfall, but a much more financially sound investment in the long run. Unfortunately these launches weren't about being sound financially. They were about betting on the big bucks, and the majority of the PS3 prospectors out there played the tables and lost."
Outspoken Tory MP Boris Johnson has declared that it's time to "garotte the Game Boy and paralyse the PlayStation", blaming falling literacy rates on the rise of videogames.
In a recent opinion piece for The Telegraph, Johnson wrote, "Millions of seven to 15 year olds are hooked, especially boys, and it is time someone had the guts to stand up, cross the room and just say no to Nintendo.
"It is about time, as a society, that we admitted the catastrophic effect these blasted gizmos are having on the literacy and the prospects of young males."
According to Johnson, less and less children are enjoying reading and more and more students are arriving at university without adequate writing skills. He added, "I refuse to believe that these hypnotic little machines are innocent."
Johnson went on to quote figures stating that the number of computer games per household is higher for Britain than for any other EU country, and that 89 per cent of UK households with children own a console.
"These possessions are not so much an index of wealth as a cause of ignorance and underachievement and, yes, poverty," he continued.
"The nippers are bleeping and zapping in speechless rapture, their passive faces washed in explosions and gore. They sit for so long that their souls seem to have been sucked down the cathode ray tube.
"They become like blinking lizards, motionless, absorbed, only the twitching of their hands showing they are still conscious. These machines teach them nothing. They stimulate no ratiocination, discovery or feat of memory."
Although Johnson is not a regular commentator on videogames, he is well known in Britain for his controversial opinions on a wide range of topics. He has hit the headlines for describing George W. Bush as "a cross-eyed Texan warmonger" and Tony Blair as "a mixture of Harry Houdini and a greased piglet", and last year angered the embassy of Papua New Guinea by referring to "orgies of cannibalism and chief-killing".
He has become something of a cult figure in the UK, with some fans calling for him to become Prime Minister - but according to Johnson, there is as much chance of this happening as "my being reincarnated as an olive".
Another out of touch idiot blaming Video games when they should really be looking and education and upholding the law, always a twat trying to make a name for themselves.
Gamasutra examines video game addiction as covered by mass media, its treatment by several clinics, and its lack of research. Sure, people have problems with excessive play, but can games be as addictive as other substances?
From the article: "Games are substance-free and value-free ... There are a million wonderful examples of community building in these games. There are a million wonderful examples that could be used to build a stronger and more wholesome society. You just need to look at games with the right eyes. The informed ones."
Where do you stand on game addiction? Has that stance changed for those with children?
Previously, we ran photos of unsold PS3s in Tokyo. To shed more light on the situation, here's a collection of photos taken at retailers in Osaka's Den-Den Town. The area is Osaka's gaming and electronics district, and these pictures were taken at retailers like Sofmap, Big Tiger, Super Potato, a-Too and even 7-11. (Yes, 7-11 in Japan sells video game consoles.) The above pic is from Sofmap, and the sign says the Wii and the DS Lite are sold out; they have PS3 units in stock. A cocktail of high price, bad press and lackluster titles might be driving customers away. Expect sales to pick up as new games start to flesh out the line-up. More photos after the jump, make of them what you will
Although we don't have any hard details of how MotorStorm will play online - that's coming shortly, we promise - at least we can bring you the first pic of what it will look like. Judging from the screens, up to 15 racers can compete simultaneously, with player names displayed above the vehicle. Additionally players can choose from any kind of vehicle, with big rigs going up against quads and cars in what promises to be the multiplayer experience for PS3 come its launch later this year.
Just prior to the break, we reported on a mysterious new PS3 project called Gundam Musou. Kicking off the New Year, Bandai Namco has unveiled full details on this Dynasty Warriors meets Gundam.
In development over at Koei's Omega Force studio, the folks responsible for the Dynasty Warriors series (known as Shin Sangoku Musou in Japan), this latest Gundam title promises to blend the "tactical action" of the Koei series with the vast array of mechs from the classic Bandai robot anime. You take control of a single Mobile Suit unit in a face off against over a thousand rivals.
Screenshots (which can be seen at Japan's Impress Watch) should hint at the similarities with Dynasty Warriors. There's one major difference, though. The X button is used here to make your mech dash, a change that promises to make you feel like you're piloting a futuristic mech rather than controlling a general ripped from the pages of history.
The main mode of play in Gundam Musou is known as the Official Mode. Playing as one of a number of characters, including the original Gundam's hero, Ray Amuro, and even enemy characters, you work through a storyline told from a variety of perspectives, complete with event and movie sequences. The game features elements from the original Gundam, Z Gundam and Gundam ZZ.
Although news of Gundam Musou appeared out of nowhere last year, development has been going on for some time now. Speaking with Impress Watch, the game's producers revealed that Koei first proposed to Bandai Namco the idea of combining Gundam and Dynasty Warriors. This early phase of development took place around a year and a half ago. The game, incidentally, has always been targeted for the PlayStation 3.
This will be the first "Musou" game on the PlayStation 3 -- surprising, sincá the Dynasty Warriors series has been a yearly event on the PS2. We'll get our first taste of next generation Musou (and Gundam too, since the PS3 launch title was so bad that it doesn't count) when Gundam Musou sees Japanese release this Spring.
For the third straight year in a row, the famed creator of the Gran Turismo racing series has made it to Motor Trend's annual top 50 Power List. Yet again, Yamauchi was the only videogame personality to make the list which generally includes automotive industry professionals. Yamauchi entered the list at 27, ahead of Jean Todt (Ferrari CEO) and Takeo Fukui (Honda CEO).
The complete top 50 Power List rankings can be found in the February 2007 issue of Motor Trend which hit newsstands earlier this week. Motor Trend's list ranks key players in the automotive industry based on their influence and impact on the industry in the past year.
Almost 10 years ago, Yamauchi started the Gran Turismo franchise with a team of only four people. Today, he has climbed the ranks at Sony to become the President of Polyphony Digital. The development studio is now comprised of more than 70 members including programmers, designers, and artists. Currently Yamauchi and the rest of the Polyphony team are hard at work preparing for the upcoming release of Gran Turismo 5 for the PlayStation 3.
GadgetNutz's storybreaking reporter, The Bandito, has uncovered a developing story concerning Sony via his network of industry insiders around the Sony camp.
On the heels of various industry reports of the lackluster sales of Sony's new Playstation 3 console up to, during, and beyond the Christmas season, it's no wonder that Sony feels internal pressure to alter it's course to more profitable waters. Obviously, the number one deficit of the new electronic entertainment device is the sheer number of newly introduced technologies, each with it's own seemingly continuous chain of production pitfalls. This same collection of newly deployed technologies directly impacts the pricing, further straining the retail sales of the Playstation 3. Considering that HDDVD technology is moving towards a broader market of consumers, Blu Ray is taking a considerable hit regardless of the Playstation branding.
One doesn't have to pay close attention, or even take a second glance, to see that Sony, as a large corporation, has dropped the ball in it's own court. It has been reported time and time again that Sony has been facing financial difficulties, having to lay off workers, close plants, and refocus parts of their business. What only a few expected, Playstation 3 sales failed to match even the reduced supply during this holiday season. The affect of this has rippled through the major electronics retailers, creating a need to ship stock from store to store, and further impacting what profit margins retailers expected to see from the launch of a major new platform. The slick new Nintendo Wii and the powerhouse Microsoft XBox 360 managed to dominate the market, taking full advantage of the price differential, supply problems, and even the imagination of the consumer market. The season, in reality, isn't even over, and there is already a new captain at the helm, an almost unprecedented event indicating changes to come.
At a cost of over two hundred dollars per drive, the Blu Ray is the force behind the massive cost of the Sony Playstation 3. It is speculated that Sony is bleeding some three hundred bucks per unit, and continues the wild trend of manufacturers losing cash on the console in expectations to get their money back on the software. However, with a scant dozen titles or so, Sony holds little hope of a quick turn around in their fortunes. From it's core, the powerful Cell processor,with it's poor production yields, has added pitfalls to it's on rollout that is compounded by the difficulty in mass producing the Blu Ray in the Playstation 3. The tremendous cost of product, let alone support and delivery costs, may have been a factor in the recent executive level staff changes, but that change (of executives) has pushed the importance of other changes up the ladder of importance.
Sony is rumored to be making drastic changes to recapture the market before losing even more of it's command share to the likes of Nintendo (the success story of the holiday season) or the XBox 360 (still suffering in the land of the rising sun, but gaining momentum everywhere else). In a move that one source says is "aimed at family pricing," Sony is rumored to be working on a Playstation 3 that does not include the Blu Ray drive. Whether this will result in the current low-end model having a change, or a newer "entry level" Playstation 3, remains to be seen. However, this is in stark contrast to their previous, egocentric, statements regarding "what kind of consumer"* will be looking at the Playstation 3.
To further fuel the fire, Toshiba has been reported to be getting ready to announce at CES (The Consumer Electronics Show) a new HDDVD player in the sub-two hundred dollar range. If these reports hold to be true, Sony's Blu Ray hopes may be dashed in even more markets than just that of the video-game arena. The steep pricing of Blu Ray players already make the Playstation 3 the entry level model, and Toshiba may have just put the nail in the coffin of this format. This holiday season was Sony's chance to leap ahead of the HDDVD format, establishing Blu Ray in the consumer market.
Supply problems alone would have likely created problems with Sony's hopes about Blu Ray, but with lackluster sales it is nearly a forgone conclusion. This puts Sony in a terrible position of not only trying to turn their ship around, but if they aren't careful--it could very well sink. A Playstation 3 without Blu Ray technology may save the Playstation from the fate previously seen by Sega's Saturn, but it will be the death nail in the Blu Ray coffin.
You've heard the consumer reports: PS3s are in stock (despite short supply)! Tipster Tejan sent in the above camera phone image allegedly taken at a Long Island GameStop on January 5. Notice the retailer spares no expense in promoting the available supply. "Get 'em while they're hot, expensive, and short on games!!!"
diabolix has successfully compiled an Xbox 360 controller driver for Fedora Core 5. What exactly does this mean? Well if you’re running linux on your PS3 you can now use your wired Xbox360 controller with it! Its been tested with Snes9x and Doom under FC5-PPC.
Copy this installer to your PS3’s HDD linux partition and connect your controller via USB. Run “install-xbox360-driver.sh” initially from the terminal, enter your root password (if you aren’t root already), and viola — a functioning Xbox360 controller on your PS3!
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via ps3hacks
Sony announced today, that it has licensed the rights from Midway to develop and release six classic Midway games for the Playstation 3. The games will be available for digital download through the Playstation Network; with the first game being available in early 2007.
The six downloadable titles are: Mortal Kombat II, Gauntlet II, Joust, Rampage World Tour, Rampart and Championship Sprint.
Despite initial manufacturing problems, Sony has shipped a total of 1 million PS3 consoles to North America in the first six weeks on sale.
Jack Tretton, chief executive of Sony Computer Entertainment, confirmed the figures at the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas yesterday, commenting: "SCEA went to great lengths to help meet demand for PS3 including airlifting systems into North America on a weekly basis"
He added, "The fact that we were able to reach the one-million mark faster than our top-selling platform, the PS2, further validates the strength of the PlayStation brand and our belief that consumers are ready to experience true high-definition gaming."
This figure beats the Xbox 360, which shipped 600,000 units in the same time at its launch, but still trails the Wii, which has already sold more than 1.8 million consoles.
Jack Tretton, chief executive of Sony Computer Entertainment, has once again re-stated Sony's European launch plans for the PS3, confirming that its on schedule for March.
"We're equally strong in all three markets. We can't afford to sacrifice any one of them," Tretton said.
This news follows speculation that the console will suffer further delays - although such has already been dismissed by Sony's Euro boss as being "without foundation."
Even if the PS3 does indeed launch in March, the Xbox 360 will have already been on sale in PAL territories for a year and four months. There's much catching up to be done.
High Definition Digital audio/visual cable by Nyko for the Playstation 3. Enjoy the full graphical power of the PS3 with this high quality cable that brings high definition 1080p resolution to any display with HDMI socket!
Specifications & extra information
• Enhance the PS3 gaming experience with high definition quality
• Upgrade the quality of both audio and visual output
• Full 1080p resolution output
• Conversion free digital connection
• Fits into any HDMI outlet
Charge Link by Nyko is a wireless controller USB charging cable for Playstation 3 that can be used while playing (easy with its 10 feet/3 meters length). It can also be used with any Mini USB device and as always with Nyko the quality standard is just perfect and the cable comes a special shield that insure high quality protection and high lifetime.
Specifications & extra information
• Simultaneously charge and play with the PS3
wireless controller
• Can be used for various USB compatible devices
• Extra long 10ft cable
• Includes Velcro wrap for clean and convenient storage
• Unique woven cable shielding improves cable durability
• Can be used with other Mini USB devices such as the PSP and digital cameras
We interrupt our regularly scheduled CES blogathon to bring you some important industry news from the world of video games: the PlayStation 3's new (sort of) SIXAXIS controller has been honored by the National Academy of Television Arts and Sciences with a Technology and Engineering Emmy. Details are scarce, but the award will be handed over at an awards presentation being held tonight at ... wait, CES! Everything is captured in its gravitational pull, there's no avoiding it. Regardless, we're not sure exactly why the Sixaxis is receiving this honor, short of it being a technology product that undoubtedly involved some engineering, but we can't help but think something in the world of television must have been more deserving of such accolades.
Many consumers have put off buying new high-definition DVD players, wary of the battle between two competing formats. Now, some electronics hardware makers are hoping to make the question moot by rolling out machines that play movies in both formats.
The two new formats, known as HD-DVD and Blu-ray, have been duking it out to become the next-generation DVD format of choice, each offering high-resolution video to match the HDTV sets that more families are buying.
But at the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas next week, at least one hardware provider, LG Electronics Co., is expected to showcase DVD players that work with either technology. Hewlett-Packard Co. will also have products that support both formats in the marketplace this year, a source close to the company says. Others are expected to follow suit.
The news should come as a boon to consumers who are weighing which player to buy to go with their new big-screen, high-definition TV sets. While regular DVDs work on the new sets, DVD players specifically designed for HD offer exceptionally sharp pictures and more features.
But the burgeoning format war between the backers of HD-DVD and Blu-ray has caused many consumers to pause before taking the plunge into high-definition movie discs. Many studios aren't releasing movies in both HD-DVD and Blu-ray, so choosing one player or another could mean that the high-def version of a favorite title isn't available. Universal Pictures, for example, releases movies only in HD-DVD, so its remake of "King Kong" isn't available in Blu-ray. Walt Disney Co., News Corp.'s Twentieth Century Fox and Sony Corp. release films only in Blu-ray, meaning there is no HD-DVD version of Disney's "Pearl Harbor." Viacom Inc.'s Paramount Pictures and Time Warner Inc.'s Warner Bros. release movies in both formats.
The new dual-format players will work by using optical drives and integrated circuits that can run with both HD-DVD and Blu-ray. Developing the drives proved tough because they needed to pull data from two different places on the discs, close to the top edge for Blu-ray and closer to the middle for HD-DVDs.
For now, the dual-format players are likely to carry high price tags, expected to be around $1,200 or higher. That's actually lower than some of the Blu-ray players out there -- Pioneer Corp.'s Pioneer Elite BDP HD-1 costs $1,500, although Sony and Samsung Electronics Co. offer less-expensive players at $1,000 and $800, respectively -- but more than double the $500 it costs for a Toshiba HD DVD player.
Sales of stand-alone DVD players have been slow, but there is an alternative for consumers looking to try high-def discs: game devices. Sony's PlayStation 3, which costs around $500, comes equipped with Blu-ray. And for $200, consumers can pick up an attachment that plays HD-DVD movies for Microsoft Corp.'s Xbox 360, which costs $300 to $400.
About 695,000 consumers own either a Blu-ray or an HD-DVD player, according to Tom Adams of Adams Media Research in Carmel, Calif. But only about 25,000 have purchased stand-alone Blu-ray players. Another 400,000 consumers have Blu-ray because they bought a Sony PS3 game console. Meanwhile, about 120,000 or so have a stand-alone HD-DVD player while about 150,000 have an HD-DVD upgrade kit for their Xbox 360 game consoles, Mr. Adams says. He adds that those numbers are well in excess of the 300,000 DVD-player sales in 1997, when that technology rolled out.
Some consumers have dodged high-definition players because they already own top-of-the-line DVD players that add higher resolution onto regular DVDs so they look crisper on HDTV sets. For those viewers, there might not be much advantage to the newer technologies.
San Francisco computer consultant Tyler Dikman, for example, owns a high-end Denon 3910 DVD player that he uses with a 60-inch Sony Grand Wega rear-projection HDTV set. Mr. Dikman had heard the buzz about next-generation DVDs for a couple of years and shelled out $1,000 for a Sony Blu-ray player in November. After watching movies like Paramount Pictures' "Mission Impossible III" and Columbia Pictures' "The Fifth Element" on the new player, he decided that, although the text was crisper on subtitles and there were fewer glitches like blurring, overall the Blu-ray movies didn't look much better than regular DVDs on his Denon player. The Sony player also wouldn't play his audio CDs. He took it back to a Best Buy Co. store last month.
"I was waiting for this night-and-day difference, and I don't feel I got it," says Mr. Dikman, who says he still plans to buy a high-definition DVD player once the players have overcome snafus like the CD issue. Sony says there may be changes in future models, and overall, consumers have responded favorably to the product. "Of course, performance is affected by several factors, including what other components are included in the home theater system, how they are connected to one another and how the content was encoded," a Sony spokesman says.
Even if more hardware companies introduce dual-format players this year, it doesn't mean the Blu-ray vs. HD-DVD war is over for the movie studios. The same goes for the the major hardware backers of each side: Sony for Blu-ray and Toshiba Corp. for HD-DVD. "We're fully expecting a couple of years of format war," says Mr. Adams.
Both formats offer similar extra features, including an option to inset smaller video clips into the main movie. That allows the movie to run with discreetly placed boxes showing, say, directors discussing their techniques.
The two formats allow consumers to get extra information with the click of a button while watching a movie. In Universal's "Miami Vice" on HD-DVD, users can click on a button to get a series of on-screen pop-up boxes with details like who made the boats or planes in a scene, what some of their features are and how much they cost. In Fox's globe-trotting "The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen" in Blu-ray viewers can turn on a "trivia track" feature explaining tidbits like where each scene was shot.
Because the Blu-ray-capable PS3 game consoles came to market only late last year, and many buyers are using them primarily for games, HD-DVD movies were far outselling Blu-ray titles, Mr. Adams says. Before the PS3s were shipped, HD-DVD titles were outselling Blu-Ray titles by two to one, he estimates, although the difference has narrowed considerably in recent weeks.
Both sides are offering plenty of incentives for consumers. The HD-DVD add-on for the Xbox 360 comes with "King Kong" in HD-DVD, for example, and anyone who buys a Toshiba HD-DVD player can choose three out of 15 movie titles as by-mail freebies. The first PS3 shipped with the Columbia Pictures movie "Talladega Nights" bundled in the package, and buyers of Blu-ray players receive coupon booklets good for $70 in rebates off various titles
features
Fully Compatible with Xbox 360™, Wii™, PS3™/PS2™
Support Component Signal (Stereo Function)
High Quality and High Speed for Transfer Signal.
Support Dolby Prologic.
Support DTS 5.1 Channel System.
Support DOLBY Digital and Surround Sound
Support Stereo Sound
Support Optical Signal
Compatible with Surround Receiver or Integrated Amplifier
Support CRT, Plasma, LCD or any HDTV System
Support D2 (480i/480P); (720i/720P) & D4 (1080 i/ 1080 P) technology.
More Description of Playstation 3 PS3 Controller Battery (3rd Party)
the PS3 console battery is designed on the basis of specification size of PS3 controller inside battery. It can help to prolong the using time of the PS3 controller. Attach with a USB charge cable, you can charge the controller at any time. It is convenient, succinct and practical.
The surprising availability of the PlayStation 3 in both the U.S. and Japan has been well documented – although they do appear to be selling in Tokyo, albeit at a rather more sedate pace than perhaps predicted.
Yet despite this, and the fact that the new PlayStation is region free for gaming, one optimistic Akihabara outlet has outrageously opted to try and sell an imported PS3 for the truly preposterous price of 128,000 yen (1,082 dollars) – just over double the price of an identical Japanese machine.
Idea Factory’s first Playstation 3 game, Mist of Chaos is getting bumped back from February 2007 to March 22, 2007. It’s not a long delay and more time will hopefully make Mist of Chaos a better final product. So what’s the deal with Mist of Chaos? It’s a strategy RPG from the makers of Spectral Souls and Generation of Chaos. The screenshots show a large number of units and open battle fields, which could make Mist of Chaos stand out compared to other strategy RPGs. Also Mist of Chaos is going to be the first strategy RPG on the Playstation 3 and it’s going to be interesting to see how (if?) Idea Factory uses the extra horse power of the PS3 to spice up the genre.
Today, the Consumer Electronics Association forecasted a significant revenue increase for the electronics industry as a whole in 2007. With year-end electronics revenue at $145 billion for 2006, the CEA expects to see 2007 pull in more than $155 billion.
The CEA also predicts that the videogame market will see a 23% revenue increase in 2007, taking in $16 billion. This prediction is largely due to the brisk sale of next-gen consoles during the 2006 holiday season.
What's this mean for you, the consumer? Not much, other than the ability to throw these stats back in the face of anyone who questions your obsession with gaming. "Mom, this is a $16 billion industry, so back off!"
The CEA sponsors the Consumer Electronics Show, currently in full swing in Las Vegas.
One of the big selling points for the upcoming PlayStation 3 version of Virtua Tennis is its support for 1080p resolution -- a huge update over the arcade version's 720p. So the big question was, would Virtua Fighter 5 get the same treatment?
The answer was presumably no, until an image of the back of the Japanese version's box appeared on Japanese fan sites today. Shown below, the supposed box image indicates that VF5 will join the small list of early PS3 titles to support "true HD."
In an attempt to determine the authenticity of this image, IGN booted up its massive network of Cell-powered image processing terminals, but found that JPEG files won't be readable until an upcoming firmware update. So, we looked at the image real hard and determined that it just might be the real deal.
We haven't been able to verify the legitimacy from Sega itself yet, however. And, to be honest, we're a little skeptical, as if 1080p support is included, why hasn't Sega been hyping it up like it has with Virtua Tennis?
We'll see if we can dig a little deeper, but at the very least, expect a firm answer to the 1080p question when VF5 hits Japan on February 8, and America a few weeks later.
Gundam Musou made its surprise debut just weeks ago, but it's already become one of the few PS3 games in Japan with a solid release date. A retailer blog reveals today that Bandai Namco Games has put the game on a fast track for Japanese release on March 1.
In case you weren't paying attention over the holidays, here's what all the fuss is about. Gundam Musou combines the mechs and characters of Gundam with the kill all mechanics of Koei's Shin Sangoku Musou series. The latter is known internationally as Dynasty Warriors. In fact, Dynasty Warriors developer Omega Force is heading up development on Gundam Musou.
Dynasty Warriors is one of Japan's biggest series. Gundam is... well, it's Gundam! With a release hot on the heels of VF5's 2/8 Japanese release, the PS3 software situation looks like it will be improving in a big way shortly.
Sony president Kaz Hirai has fired a broadside at Microsoft's Xbox 360, saying that assumptions that the console is as powerful as the PlayStation 3 "simply is not true."
"No other next generation entertainment system pushes the envelope on advanced technology like PS3," Hirai told Blu-Ray Daily in a CES interview.
"People say that a high-capacity game delivery vehicle like Blu-ray isn't necessary in a next generation computer entertainment system. But you just can't expect that 9GBs of storage capacity found on today's DVDs are going to have enough space to hold tomorrow's games, he said. "Resistance: Fall of Man simply wouldn't be possible on any other system without using multiple discs."
Speaking about PS3's launch - and seemingly extending the gaming handbag scuffle to Sony's other competitor, Nintendo - Hirai said that "A worldwide launch for any console is quite ambitious. In fact, it has never been done before. I suppose if we had simply done a mild upgrade to the PS2 and not pushed the envelope so hard, it would have been easier on ourselves. However, if we did that every time, we wouldn't be Sony."
Hirai then touched on the console's manufacturing problems: "I don't think anyone could have foreseen the difficulties we encountered in the production of the blue laser diode for the PlayStation 3, which ultimately delayed the launch of PlayStation 3. We were asking our teams to develop millions of components for the PlayStation 3, like the Blu-ray Disc player and cell broadband engine, that had previously only been produced in the thousands."
PlayStation 3 is expected to launch in the UK in March.
Electronic Arts continues its dominance of the UK All Formats charts, with FIFA 07 at number one, Need for Speed: Carbon at two and The Sims 2: Pets at three, in the first chart of the New Year.
Konami's Pro Evolution Soccer 6 drops two places to number four, while Rockstar's Canis Canem Edit manages its highest chart position so far due to discounting, at number five.
Activision's Call of Duty 3 slips one place to number six, while THQ's movie tie-in Cars has climbed once again to the number seven position.
LucasArts' Lego Star Wars II: The Original Trilogy also climbs up the top ten at number eight, followed by DS-exclusive New Super Mario Bros. at nine and Microsoft's Xbox 360 big-gun Gears of War, at ten.
Despite persistent games industry speculation that the European PS3 launch may be subject to further delay, online retailer Play.com has told GamesRadar that it has full faith in Sony achieving its March date.
"We're confident that Sony will meet the March release date," Play.com's senior games buyer, Gian Luzio, told us. "There are always scare stories about slippage but Sony has been reliable in the past and until we hear differently from Sony directly we believe a level of stock will be ready for launch."
Meanwhile, during a presentation at the Consumer Electronics Show 2007 in Las Vegas, Peter Dille, vice president of marketing for Sony America (SCEA) also reconfirmed that Sony Europe (SCEE) were still on track, "They're [SCEE] set for March release and looking forward to it," he said.
Furthermore, Sony UK has maintained its stance in a recent phone call, with no new comment issued except a reiteration of David Reeves' "still on schedule" statement originally given in December 2006.
So the month's seemingly set in stone (we reserve the right to retract this at a later date) but what about the actual date?
Currently Sony UK is promising an announcement "before the end of January" but we've heard from other unofficial sources to expect a 30 March release. This seems to fit in a business sense as the new financial year begins on 1 April. A Sony UK spokesperson was, predictably, unable to confirm or deny this speculation.
We'll bring you more news on a confirmed date as soon as we get it.
via gamesradar
With a next-generation Street game comes a new Gamebreaker. Similar to the Gamebreaker in FIFA Street 2, in Street it is not a canned animation or cutscene. The Gamebreaker in NBA Street Homecourt is in your hands.
We sat down with NBA Street Homecourt producer Todd Batty to get the inside track on the new mechanic and what it means for EA's upcoming streetballer, scheduled to hit the, um, streets this February.
Since Sony reported on Monday that the PS3's SIXAXIS controller had won a Technology and Engineering Emmy Award, the Emmy governing body, NATAS, has issued a statement to confirm that this claim is inaccurate, and the award was in fact given to the Dual Shock controller.
When blogger, Séamus Byrne, contacted NATAS after his disbelief that Nintendo hadn't taken the award for innovations of the Wii Remote, he received a reply confirming: "Sony did not win for their PS3 controller, they won for their Dual Shock Analog controller."
The statement confirms: "The award is from the Video Game Technology Group. It was nominated by our internal group and considered along with the Nintendo D-Pad both of which were considered Emmy worthy for the development of the generation of controllers that followed the classic joysticks."
An innocent mistake on Sony's part, or intentionally misleading information? Sony was not available for comment at the time of writing.
A report on the 20 top-selling videogame franchises of all time has pinned Nintendo's Mario at the number one spot, with a total of 193 million sales worldwide.
Published by The Independent, London, the report has put Pokémon in second place with 155 million sales during its lifetime, Final Fantasy following with 68 million. Popular series like The Sims and Grand Theft Auto also appear in the top 10, the former with 54 million sales worldwide and the latter 50 million.
The full top 20 list, with sales figures, is as follows:
Microsoft games head Peter Moore launched an unprecedented attack on Sony's PlayStation 3 business at CES in Las Vegas yesterday, saying the company lacks the talent or the company make-up to ever deliver a suitable online console service for consumers.
"It's going to take [Sony] a couple of years to get up to speed on this, and I'm not sure that they necessarily have the talent, or it's built into who they are as a company," said Moore regarding PlayStation 3's online feature set. "They're struggling with some of their hardware issues, and apparently they're going to deliver another five million in the next 90 days. But this business is about hardware, software and services now. And the consumer expects that."
Numbers, numbers, numbers. Stacks of unsold PS3s in America and Japan don't point as high sales as Sony was hoping for (though, we still think they did alright). SCEA's Senior VP of Marketing Peter Dille states:
...what we do pay attention to is that month in, month out, the PlayStation 2 continues to outsell Xbox 360. I think you see the consumers voting with their wallets on the PlayStation brand. But also, if people want to go out and buy a 360, their stacked pretty high at retail and yet, six-year-old technology is outselling it. I also think there's another trend going on. Every Sunday in the paper, there's a new deal with a free controller or a free game or $100 off all discounting the 360. I don't think you take those measures if you're selling as expected.
Good points, but when did who's selling more turn into who's selling worse?
Nyko's PS3 charge base is designed to hold four Emmy-winning Sixaxis wireless controllers. The PS3 base comes with a six foot standard wall plug, to not take up any USB ports or force you to leave your system on. The charge base for the PS3 is suggested to cost $39.99 USD. We can't help but wonder what cost there was in manufacturing -- or hidden cost in licensing -- that made this glorified wall outlet $10 more than the Wii station, which does the same thing but gives you two rechargeable NiMH "rubberized" battery packs. If you want to just full-on skip the docking station, Nyko also has a 10 foot long charge link for $14.99 that allows gamers to keep playing while they recharge their Sixaxis controller.
NHL 2K7 brings back the champion of hockey games with better gameplay and faster on-ice action. Take command of tape-to-tape passing, behind-the-net plays and precision give-and-go attacks. Dominate the ice with NHL caliber goaltending, skating, checking and puck handling with the deeply enhanced animation system. Featuring all-new presentation elements, commentary and cut-scenes, NHL 2K7 brings the ice to you. Online gameplay and comprehensive online features - Completely online stat tracking, buddy lists management and online leagues
Game Politics is carrying the news that the state of Massachusetts is asking Jack Thompson for help in drafting a piece of videogaming related legislation. The bill aims to block minors from purchasing games which fall under one of these categories:
"Depicts violence in a manner patently offensive to prevailing standards in the adult community, so as to appeal predominantly to the morbid interest in violence of minors. Is patently contrary to prevailing standards of adults in the county where the offense was committed as to suitable material for such minors. Lacks serious literary, artistic, political or scientific value for minors."
The bill has strong backing in the state, from mayors all the way up to state senators.
Looks like the uninformed are telling gamers how to play again
On Monday, Sony issued a clearly worded press release trumpeted the fact that its controversial new game controller had won an Emmy. "Sony Computer Entertainment America (SCEA) today announced that it has been recognized by the National Academy of Television Arts & Sciences with a Technology and Engineering Emmy Award for the PlayStation computer entertainment system's Sixaxis wireless controller." Many sites, including GameSpot reported on the news.
"No Emmy for you!"
By Tuesday, though, the waters had grown murky. That's because when the Emmy was handed out the previous evening at the 2007 Consumer Electronics Show, it was given to Sony and Nintendo for "Peripheral Development and Technological Impact of Video Game Controllers," according to the official Emmy Web site, which did not mention a specific device. Some reports from the event claimed that the award was actually for the PlayStation and PlayStation 2's DualShock controllers, which helped introduce thumbsticks and force-feedback functionality, not the rumble-less, motion-sensing Sixaxis.
Wednesday morning, the confusion was dispelled when Sony issued a statement retracting its earlier proclamation of a Sixaxis Emmy. "In a press release dated January 8, 2007, SCEA announced we had been recognized by the National Academy of Television Arts and Sciences (NATAS) with a Technology and Engineering Emmy Award for the Sixaxis wireless controller," it read. "Due to miscommunication between the two organizations, this information was incorrectly reported. SCEA won a Technology and Engineering Emmy Award for the DualShock controller."
Konami's support for both the PS3 and Wii appears to have taken a major hit. The release list in the latest issue of Famitsu reveals reveals that a number of next generation titles previously announced by the company are no longer in development.
Here's the full list of cancelled titles.
Gradius Series (PS3)
Jikkyou Powerful Pro Baseball (PS3)
New Action Game (PS3)
New Role Playing Game (PS3)
New Action Adventure Game 2 (Wii)
Role Playing Game (Wii)
With those titles gone, Konami's Wii and PS3 lineup reads as follows:
Pro Baseball Spirits Series (PS3)
Metal Gear Solid 4 (PS3)
World Soccer Winning Eleven Series (PS3)
Music Simulation Game (Wii)
New Action Adventure Game (Wii)
Sports Game -- Soccer (Wii)
Sports Game -- Baseball (Wii)
So what happened? Sadly, the magazine provides no details. However, you'll notice that none of the the cancelled games have actual names yet. It's possible that Konami had intended to make the games, but decided to go in a different direction.
At Ubisoft's preview event last week held at the numbingly cold Dogpatch Studios south of Market Street, a handful of reporters attended to observe a real-time demo and play the single- and the multi-player game. The game ran on the Xbox 360; the PS3 version wasn't there. But due in March for both Xbox 360 and PS3, GRAW 2 already looks fantastic. To be honest, its looks are a little deceiving. The visual improvements are subtle on one level, huge on another. At first look, you'll initially see very little. The character models are slightly more detailed and the vehicles all look decent, but if you look closely at the environment textures, you'll see a marked difference. The variety and detail is impressive. The first couple levels I played didn't really show off the changes I had hoped to see. By looking closely, improvements in shadows (you'll see full, complete shadows), transparencies, and a torrent of special effects (heat blurs, lens flares, particles, animations) will slowly show themselves.
The UK interactive entertainment software market hit a new all time high in 2006, according to ELSPA (Entertainment and Leisure Software Publishers Association) as it reveals annual performance figures today.
2006 was an exciting year for the industry with a growth in sales, the industry enjoyed a 7% increase on units sold from the previous year taking the total to a whopping 65.1 million units sold. ELSPA happily announces these record sales of interactive entertainment software across all formats totalling £1.36 billion, an increase of over 1% per cent over 2005’s record figures.
Paul Jackson, Director General of ELSPA, said: "We are thrilled to see the industry growing and software sales continuing to rise. With the new generation consoles and new handhelds there are some amazing titles out there and consumers are continuing to enjoy them. There are new and exciting games available and more and more family orientated and mentally stimulating titles to grasp and hold the interest of all ages. This is also a testament to the industry and it will continue to gain momentum.”
With popularity of the handhelds on the market, the PSP and the DS, and the next generation consoles titles it is fantastic to see that PC software sales are also continuing to increase. Seeing PC titles have had their best year in ever in 2006 with a huge 7% increase since the previous year.
Paul Jackson continued: “Although there are new consoles and handhelds for gamers its is great to see that the PC market is doing so well.”
The most popular console software was the PS2, followed by the Xbox 360, the Xbox, Wii and GameCube followed.
2006 was the year of the handheld too with the Nintendo DS and Sony’s PSP software coming in only behind PS2 software, with the DS slightly outdoing the PSP.
The top ten games for 2006:
1 FIFA 07 (GBA, DS, X360, Xb, GC, PS2, PSP, PC) 2 Pro Evolution Soccer 6 (DS, PSP, X360, PS2, PC) 3 Need For Speed: Carbon (DS, GBA, GC, PS2, PSP, X360, Xb, PC, Wii) 4 Grand Theft Auto: Liberty City Stories (PSP, PS2) 5 Lego Star Wars 2: The Original Trilogy (DS, GBA, GC, PC, PS2, PSP, Xb) 6 The Sims 2: Pets (PC) 7 Cars (DS, GBA, GC, PC, PS2, PSP, Xb, X360, Wii 8 Tomb Raider Legend (PC, PS2, X360, Xb, PSP, DS, GBA, GC) 9 The Sims 2 (PC, DS, GBA, GC, PS2, Xb, Mob, PSP) 10 WWE Smackdown vs Raw 2007 (PS2, X360, PSP,)
Sony has responded to the 'mix-up' surrounding its announcement on the PS3 Sixaxis controller winning an Emmy earlier this week, stating that yes, it was the Dual Shock that won the award.
A minor furore erupted when Sony originally issued a statement saying the honour had been bestowed on Sixaxis, as it subsequently emerged that the statement was incorrect. The National Academy of Television Arts & Sciences confirmed it had awarded the Emmy to the Dual Shock.
It appears Sony was initially scratching heads about the nature of the award, too. Speaking to Next-Gen.biz before the company corrected its announcement about the Emmy, SCEA's PR chief Dave Karraker said, "I accepted the award myself and all they said was that the award was for 'technological innovation for device controller' ... but looking back, they never really did say for which one".
Karaker also said that The National Academy of Television Arts & Sciences had actually approved Sony's press announcement on Sixaxis' success prior to its release.
Extended versions of The Godfather game previously released on Xbox, Xbox 360 and PS are on their way to the Wii and PS3, with extra content and enhanced controls.
The Godfather The Don's Edition is the name of the version coming to PS3 whilst the Wii game will be titled, The Godfather Blackhand Edition.
Both games will feature new missions, new ways to find dirty cops for your dodgy deals, and the added ability to follow the path of either an Enforcer or Operator, offering you different "perks and abilities".
The Don's Edition on PS3 will also have new Shipyard and Rail yard transportation hubs which will presumably increase mobility throughout the city, whilst the Blackhand Edition on Wii will have you swinging the Remote and Nunchuk to fight, and pointing the Remote like a gun to shoot your enemies.
The already-released Godfather game is a decent urban-gangster romp and, even though it's been out for a while already, with the new features added these versions, they could be well worth a look for Wii and PS3 owners this spring.
Both games are due in March in the US, and presumably shortly after in UK.
SCEA's senior director of corporate communications, Dave Karraker, has responded to sniping comments made by Microsoft earlier this week, where MS's Peter Moore and Chris Satchell called Sony's PS3 online service a "disaster", and said Sony doesn't have the "talent" to launch a service matching Xbox Live.
"I would argue that consumers worldwide, to the tune of over 200 million PlayStations, PS2s, PSPs and PS3s, have decided whether or not Sony has the DNA to deliver hardware, software and services to suit this industry," Karraker told Gamepro.com, making sure to note that Gran Turisom HD highlights "the potential of the PlayStation Network and the kind of ground breaking content we plan to offer".
Karraker also took issue with Microsoft's recent announcement that it has sold 10.4 million Xbox 360s, suggesting that MS's touted number is actually the number of consoles shipped, rather than those actually in the hands of gamers.
"Microsoft views 'sold' as what has been sold to retailers but could be sitting on pallets in warehouses or stacked on store shelves," he said.
"'Sold' to Sony has always meant what the consumer has actually purchased, I think many people have incorrectly viewed our competitor's 'sold' figure to believe it was actually sold to consumers, which it was not."
Blu-ray DVDs are to include a feature that will allow copies of films to be transferred to laptops or other devices.
It's an effort by Sony to gain wider acceptance of its new format and, more importantly, rival Microsoft's HD-DVD technology.
Speaking at the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas this week, head of Sony's home entertainment unit, David Bishop, indicated that we'll see this feature soon.
"It's not currently part of anything on our current release schedule, but we'll probably roll it out sometime this year."
Which sounds rather familiar. Take with a pinch of salt.
Blu-ray famously holds more than five-times as much data as a normal DVD, and Sony have already claimed that games are filling the impressive 25GB capacity. What exactly are they filling it with? We can only hazard a guess.
Here's a confirmed sighting of The Outsider, the mysterious Xbox 360 and PS3 action game from gaming legend David Braben, the creative mega-brain behind sci-fi classic Elite. And, although it's only a snatched glimpse of movie action, we reckon it gives away a few fact-morsels about The Outsider's unexplained gameplay. Hit the movies tab above to see the footage.
In light of this fresh footage evidence, we're willing to table a number of bets about the game. First, it'll boast a similar crowd feature to Assassin's Creed and Kane & Lynch; just look at framed main man Jameson sprinting through a throng of scattering tourists, as a (particularly useless) sniper attempts to take him down. Perfect, hectic, human-shield potential there.
Then there's Jameson's location, and his reasons for trekking back to the Whitehouse. We expect to see a suitably next-gen version of Hitman's disguise and body-hiding gameplay, with Jameson's insider knowledge (we predict he's a former black-ops agent who uncovered dirty secrets and was framed to keep him quiet) helping in any sneaking tasks.
Finally, the end of the movie sees Jameson shooting a pursuing enforcer in the arm, before aiming at another. This points towards a stress on a non-fatal attitude (he is trying to prove he's not a killer, remember?) in some situations, while promising acrobatic skills and an ability to hold-up enemies, as in Metal Gear Solid.
Go on, watch the video again. See what we mean? Expect fresh details on The Outsider to leak in the coming months, confirming - we're that confident - our enlightened predictions.
The we-can't-wait-to-buy-it Heavenly Sword has gotten dated. The title will drop March 6th in the US according to Sony Computer Entertainment of America's website. No word on Japan yet. This red-headed "Goddess of War" game got generally favorable reviews (impressions?) at last year's E3. Can't wait.
The 'True HD' concept is certainly off to a rocky start on Sony's console that could. Despite confirmation from SCEA senior VP of marketing Peter Dille that MotorStorm would rocket to the US at 60fps in glorious 1080p, Sony today rescinded that remark. MotorStorm, alas, will be presented in lowly 720p, chugging along at 30fps.
Seriously though, those numbers will keep MotorStorm competitive -- and in HD. We just couldn't miss out on an opportunity to muffle the True HD buzz.
PS3 2in1 Dust Prevent Cover Pack is designed for protecting the PS3 console from dust which slowly damage your console. The rubber plugs are well fitting the ports of console and there is a sponge in the dust prevent cover which effectively seperate the dust.
European commisssioner for justice and security, Franco Frattini, is calling for a unified crackdown on the sale of violent videogames to minors.
The EU politician is hoping to introduce new legislation within six months, proposing that tougher sanctions are imposed on retailers caught selling mature-rated titles to under-age consumers.
"I want to harmonise rules punishing people illegally selling products, people not controlling and checking identity," Frattini told Reuters.
The politician wants unified rules across Europe, but also expects individual countries to decide which titles should face sale restrictions.
"We cannot judge from Brussels which videogames should be prohibited," he said.
First of all we hope you had a great Xmas and wish you the best for 2007.
PS3 Hyperdrive design is finished. This is a product that will enable you to connect any size HDD both whether its sata or ide*(still being added not tested completely yet) using a plug and play system so you can maximise your storage space and minimize your hard drive costs. You can also connect the Hyperdrive to your PC via USB for doing whatever you wanna do with the data without any fuss. Its a very simple plug and play system. Here are the features and a preview pics are attached.
Features:
1. Supports 2.5" and 3.5" SATA HDD (Also working on built in IDE support)
2. Switch for SATA HDD (2.5"/3.5") w/ LED
3. Switch for select output interface for PC (SATA or USB) w/ LED
4. Special SATA female(Hyperdrive) to Male(PS3) connecter with custom plug-lock design, easy install and just plug and lock.
5. Release lock button for disconnecting Hyperdrive with PS3
6. Molex power source input.
7. Easy to install HDD inside the HyperDrive.
8. Built-in cooling fan.
I know we seem to be a little slow on dev lately but we just want to get things done right without having to address problems later down the road. Thanks for your patience.
Why does this game look so ridiculously sexy? Maybe I'm a sucker for weird reddish-pink blonde hair. Maybe I'm a sucker for RPGs. Maybe I'm just tired of playing PS2 games and really want to feel what the "next-gen" is in regards to role-playing titles. Whatever the case, both of the PS3 Final Fantasy XIII titles are lookin' hot. Or hawt, depending on how nerdy we want to get. We can't really say what the article is telling us, since Babelfish has decided to shun us at the time of this writing. It doesn't matter, though. We'd much rather have those scans translated. Is it just us, or is Shiva transforming into a motorcycle in one of the scans? Transforming is awesome. Especially if you're Optimus Prime.
What's interesting, though, is that there's finally something that appears to be "cinematic" and we can therefore assume the other images we've seen thus far are at the very least "cutscene gameplay" -- that is, extra nice... er... normal graphics. We chose to throw the cinematic image up because, well, it looks damn near like a real person. But it isn't. Because no one looks like that. Unfortunately. Are we gushing too much? It's just exciting! Take a look yourselves and grin in silence.
Today Ubisoft announced that it is currently working on a PlayStation 3 version of the Japanese action-RPG, Enchanted Arms. Previously an Xbox 360-exclusive game, Enchanted Arms is created by From Software in Japan and is set to be one of the first Japanese RPGs to hit the PlayStation 3. Enchanted Arms includes more than 50 hours of gameplay, and makes use of the exclusive SpeedTactics Battle System, which enables the player to use distance-dependent attacks in battle.
With its move to the PlayStation 3, Enchanted Arms has made use of the Sixaxis's motion-sensing abilities to craft a more detailed experience. Players can harness weapons, recover their EX power meters, unlock more powerful attacks, and solve puzzles all through real-world manipulation of the controller. The game features more than 500 chanracters, including 130 unlockable creatures to control in battle. The PS3 version of the game also includes 30 exclusive creatures for your battling pleasure. Other PS3-exclusive additions to the game include an all-new English language track and ten additional minutes of anime cutscenes.
Expect Enchanted Arms to spread its tactical charm on the PS3 this March.
Sony Online Entertainment and Midway recently announced an agreement to bring classic Midway games to the PlayStation Store. We took a trip down memory lane at CES this week and played all six titles: Championship Sprint, Mortal Kombat II, Rampart, Gauntlet II, Joust, and Rampage World Tour.
With the exception of Joust, which is already out on Xbox Live, all of these titles will be exclusive to the PlayStation Store. They all feature offline and online multiplayer, private and public games, and leaderboards. Pricing hasn't been set, yet, but Sony confirmed they would not be offered as a bundle. The first game should arrive in March, with more releases staggered after that. Sony and Midway have only been working on these ports for a week, so many details have yet to be worked out and some of the titles weren't at 100 percent functionality.
Rampage World Tour
Rampage World Tour: Of the six games we played, we had the most fun with this one. Originally released back in 1997, World Tour updates the classic Rampage game with slicker graphics, more detail, and more stuff to smash and eat. Pick your favorite giant monster and get to destroying some of the world's most famous locations. The game supports up to three players at a time, and the PS3 version will save your progress automatically so you can return to it later.
Rampart
Rampart: Released in arcades in 1990, Rampart is that game that puts you in charge of defending your castle from invaders. Place cannons within your castle walls, send a volley to the enemy, then rebuild before time runs out. The original game used a trackball to move the curser around, and although Rampart has been ported to many different platforms the controls always suffer a bit in the translation.
Championship Sprint
Championship Sprint: This is another game which used a non-traditional control scheme in the arcades (a steering wheel and pedal) and now feels a little strange mapped to the Sixaxis. But the support for four players goes a ways towards making up for the controls. The main problem may be that there just isn't much to the game. Race to the finish line on a track that's only as big as the screen, avoid oil slicks, and don't crash into the walls too often. That's about it. We did notice that some of the colors were different from the original game. For instance, in the winner's circle screen shown after a race, the background was purple, whereas the original game showed the cars sitting on the track. This may be because they've only been working on these ports for a week, though.
Mortal Kombat II
Mortal Kombat II: MKII is one of the highlights of the six Midway games coming to the PlayStation Store. Although not as ideal as an arcade joystick, the PlayStation 3 d-pad works well with Mortal Kombat II. Pounding out the classic moves took as long as it took to dust off the MK section of our brains and remember how to do them. The game looks and plays just the same way as it did in the arcade, straight down to the huge spouts of blood that only a well placed upper cut can deliver. The one new addition to the game is an online multiplayer mode and leader boards. It wasn't up and running yet though, so we weren't able to give it a try. The matchmaking will be a simple affair of just looking for a quick match and being put into a game with another player or creating a private and password protected match. The only real downside to this port of Mortal Kombat II is that Stryker, the most hilarious MK fighter, wasn't put into the series yet.
Joust
Joust: This is the one game in the initial group of Midway games that can also be found on the competing Xbox Live Arcade. The PlayStation version, though, is a direct port of one of the most bizarre games of all time. What kind of drugs were the designers on when they thought a knight on a flying ostrich fighting vulture knights and flying lizards was the next big thing? Oddity aside, Joust is a classic game in every sense and it handles well with the PlayStation analog stick. The only problem we found with the game is that we couldn't stop killing each other long enough to focus on the enemies. It's Joust just as you remember it.
Gauntlet II
Gauntlet 2: The classic multiplayer arcade game returns, though this time it won't eat every last one of your quarters and then leave you wondering how you were going to pay the bus fare home. Curse you Gauntlet 2! Unlike the other Guantlet game to come out in a digital distribution form, this one won't have a button to add quarters and increase your health. You can still continue when you die, but getting a high score becomes a difficult task. Those who are pros at finding keys, gold, and food to stay alive will sit at the top of the online leader boards with pride. The controls are simple here and so they work fine with the PS3 configuration.
Has Sony gone mad? Prominent adult movie producer Digital Playground (site) says it is forced to use HD DVD instead of Blu-ray, because Sony does not allow XXX-rated movies to be released on Blu-ray.
It does not matter how you stand to porn. It is here and it is a massive business. It is also an industry that is an early adopter for new media technology. VHS might not have won with out the adult film industry adopting it.
German Heise has interviewed Joone the founder of Digital Playgrounds at the AVN 2007 show in Las Vegas. Joone says actually said last year he is committed to Blu-ray. Now they announced four HD DVD titles in the United States. In the interview Joone says he was forced to use HD DVD, because no Blu-ray disc manufacturer would make his discs, because Sony was against it and they would loose their license.
If this holds true, Blu-ray is at a major disadvantage and could fail.
The big winner is the DS (supprised? ), but next gen wise, its a important victory. Helped by Wii and PS3 shortages, the Xbox 360 finally breaks the 1 million sold a month, mark! (outselling the PS3 and the Wii combined) Shame for them it was still beaten by the old PS2.
Also good news for the PSP, after months of "the PSP is dieing" comments and news posts, it sells just short of million mark, doubling its last months sales.
Toshiba has announced a new 51GB HD-DVD Rom disc at this year's CES.
Beating Blu-ray by 1GB, Toshiba today said that they had successfully created a triple layer HD-DVD disc that could contain 51GB worth of data with 17GB on each layer.
"Continued improvement in disc mastering technology has achieved further minimization in the recording pit, supporting a further boost in capacity to 17GB in single layer and a full 51GB on a single-sided triple-layer disc. Toshiba has confirmed the disc structure and its successful operation." said the press release. "This time-tested physical structure offers proven volume manufacturing at little cost increment."
Toshiba has now closed the storage gab with Blu-ray, which can store 50GB on a dual-layered disc.
Konami has NOT cancelled a mass of PS3 and Wii titles after all, Japanese mag Famitsu has said on it website.
Previously the magazine listed a bundle of titles supposedly canned by the Metal Gear Solid developer, including Jikkyou Powerful Pro Baseball (we've not heard of it either) and a next-gen version of Gradius, along with a shed-load of untitiled projects including 'New action adventure game 2' (we're sure we played that one on the SNES).
Famitsu points to a "printing error" as the reason for cancellation claims. Konami istelf has kept shtum over the report.
The PS3 version of From Software's role-playing game Enchanted Arms has joined the European launch line-up, according to Ubisoft which is to publish the title this March on these shores.
In its announcement on the release date, the publisher has flagged up use of PS3's Sixaxis controller of one of the key features: "Use the motion-sensitive controller to harness weapons, recover your EX power meter, unlock more powerful attacks and solve puzzles." We're guessing that means the tilt function is being employed - but we're double-checking with Ubisoft.
Enchanted Arms - which has previously released on Xbox 360 - finds player embarking on an adventure romp as Atsuma, an enchanter-in-training who becomes saviour of the day. Over 50 hours of gameplay is promised, along with a heap of characters and questing and, of course, combat.
Advertising agency TBWA London has defended a new marketing campaign which invites consumers to come up with ideas about how to promote Sony products.
Titled The Big What Adventure, it's billed as "An experiment whose goal is to both seek out and nourish creativity, wherever it may be." The BWA website invites visitors to "submit ideas for real briefs", and come up with concepts for online ad campaigns, TV ads, posters, events and packaging. Products featured on the site include the PlayStation 3 and the SingStar series of games.
The site promises a "reward" for anyone who comes up with an idea which is used. However, as spotted by Private Eye magazine, the site's terms and conditions section reveals that TBWA will own the intellectual property rights to all content submitted, and will be able use it "without payment" to the creator.
Private Eye described the initiative as "an attempt to get the public to do TBWA's work for them" - but executive planning director Neil Houston told GamesIndustry.biz, "Thebigwhatadventure.com is an experiment in open source creativity - nothing more, nothing less.
"More and more creative ideas and campaigns are non traditional in their form, often relying on what we would conventionally call 'consumers' to at the least participate in - and often construct - the campaign itself.
"Learning how to collaborate and create with people outside of the conventional realms of the advertising community is something that we think is important."
According to Houston, all briefs featured on the site are "being worked on within our creative department with at least as much vigour as any other brief in our system".
"We are not relying on 'outsiders' to crack the brief - we have invited them to participate in the creative process with the full consent of our clients, who incidentally are at least as curious as us about this experiment," he continued.
"If and when an 'outsider' cracks the brief, we will reward them appropriately - in much the same way as we would reward one of the many work experience placements that travel through our creative department on a regular basis - with the right combination of financial reward, personal fame and / or career progression."
Sony's recent sales figures in North America are proof of the company's brand power in the territory, according to US CEO Jack Tretton.
The best-selling Sony system was the six-year old PlayStation 2, which moved 1.4 million units in December - outselling rival next-gen consoles from Microsoft and Nintendo.
"If there was ever any doubt about the power of the PlayStation brand in the US, the December NPD data should quickly quell it," said Tretton.
Although PSP sales rose by 130 per cent from the previous month, it was still out-sold by the DS, with Sony's handheld selling 953,200 compared to Nintendo's 1.6 million units.
Sony managed to sell 497,000 PlayStation 3s in December, bringing the total to 687,000 of the reported one million units it has shipped so far.
Tretton is still upbeat when it comes to PS3's performance, despite the low sales of the console compared to the figures for Wii and Xbox 360.
"Not only did consumers drive records for PlayStation 3, they also validated the excellent value represented by PlayStation 2 and the entertainment versatility of PSP. These sales figures bode very well for the company heading into 2007," he said.
With the release of NPD Funworld's 2006 numbers today, one big question was answered. Namely, the figures revealed which of the three formerly next-generation consoles sold the most at launch.
"...It smells like Wiictory."
To those following the industry, the winner should come as no surprise. From its release on November 19 until December 31, more than 1.1 million "new-gen" Wiis were sold in the US. That was nearly double the approximately 687,300 PlayStation 3s sold following its November 17 launch until the end of the year. By comparison, the just over 607,000 Xbox 360s were sold in 2005 following its November 22 launch.
During December 2006, the 360 sold more than 1.1 million units, no doubt benefiting from scant supplies of the PS3 and the popularity of Gears of War. As of the end of 2006, Microsoft's console had sold just over 4.5 million units in the US and more than 10.4 million worldwide.
But before the Nintendo faithful begin writing epitaphs for Sony and Microsoft, NPD senior marketing manager David Riley said the only thing holding back the 360 and PS3 was production capacity. "Comparing the three consoles is like apples and oranges," he told GameSpot. "It was all about availability. Microsoft and Sony were moving them as fast as they could put them out. [But] Nintendo was on the ball."
Riley also thought the PS3's high price--$499 for the 20GB model, $599 for the 60GB--wasn't as large a factor as many have made it out to be. "I think price plays a role there, but remember during the holiday season people have deep pockets," he said. "Kids know what they want, and if they tell mom to go buy a PS3 and she comes home with a Wii, they won't be happy."
Fundamentally, though, Riley thinks that there are no losers in the next-gen console war--only winners. "I know plenty of gamers who own multiple platforms. That's why I despise the term console wars," he said. "I have all three, and I buy the software I want for each one."
[UPDATE] Within an hour of the NPD numbers' release, the spin doctors were out in force. Dave Karraker, Sony Computer Entertainment America's director of corporate communications, said that his company did indeed ship 1 million PS3s in North America in 2006. "NPD doesn't account for Canada... [and] doesn't cover all of our USA retailers," he told GameSpot. "We sold-in more than 150,000 systems the last week of December, so there were many units in transit or at retailer's backrooms waiting to be put out [by year's end]."
For its part, Microsoft claimed outright victory over the holidays. "The Xbox 360 garnered a 51 percent market share in the United States for December 2006...outselling the PlayStation 3 and Wii combined in December and outselling all next-generation consoles in November and December," the company said in a statement.
Analysts were also skeptical, with some believing that the Wii sold more than NPD reported. "I don't understand how US Wii sell-through could be 1.1 million cumulatively, with Nintendo saying that they shipped half of their 4 million here and zero inventory on retail shelves at year end," said Wedbush Morgan Securities' Michael Pachter. "Where are the other 900,000 units? I assume 200,000 are in transit, but this number makes no sense to me at all."
With the shift to the new generation of consoles finally complete, there's little left to discuss about the transitional year aside from how well the industry weathered it. The industry-tracking NPD Group today released its US retail gaming sales results for December and for the entirety of 2006, and the figures showed a record sales year and growth almost across the board.
When hardware, software, and accessories sales are combined, the total US gaming market for the year amounted to $12.5 billion, a 19 percent jump over 2005's $10.5 billion, which was the previous highest grossing year in US gaming. December alone saw the industry bring in $3.7 billion, 27.8 percent more than the $2.9 billion it brought in for December 2005. The figures did not include sales of PC games, PC game subscriptions, or downloaded content.
Last month, retailers racked up $1.7 billion in game sales, a 5.4 percent increase over December 2005. While sales of games for the recently released Nintendo Wii and the PlayStation 3 added to the tally, console software sales overall were virtually unchanged, up only about .5 percent. However, last month's portable game sales showed significantly more growth over December 2005, as they cumulatively jumped 18.8 percent to $521.6 million.
The numbers were reversed on the hardware side of the equation. While portable systems showed the strongest growth as far as software went, sales of the hardware were actually down for the month, slipping 5.7 percent from the year before to $488.7 million. It was the Wii and PS3 driving hardware growth last month, as December's $1.1 billion take for console hardware was double December 2005's tally and then some, up 131.2 percent from the year before. Combining the portable and console markets, hardware sales for the month were up 59.2 percent to $1.6 billion.
As for which piece of hardware proved to be the most popular for the month, the Nintendo DS led all systems with 1.6 million units sold, trailed by the PlayStation 2 (1.4 million units sold) and the Xbox 360 (1.1 million units sold).
The newcomers to the mix fell a little short of analysts' projections, as the Wii sold 604,200 units in December, while the PS3 managed to move 490,700 system sales. Combined with their November hardware sales tallies, the Wii sold 1.1 million systems in the US through the end of the year, while Sony managed to move 687,300 PS3s.
According to NPD's figures, the growth of game sales in December was very much in line with game sales growth for the whole year. The US game industry's total 2006 game sales take came in at $6.5 billion, a 6.4 percent increase over 2005, with portable game sales experiencing pronounced growth of 18.8 percent to $1.7 billion and console game sales up a more modest 2.6 percent to $4.8 billion.
Similarly, hardware sales for the full year mirrored the December trend. Console hardware sales were up 87.5 percent to $2.9 billion, while portable hardware sales actually slipped .3 percent, racking up $1.6 billion. Combined hardware for the year was up 42.8 percent to $4.6 billion.
For the month, EA's Madden NFL 07 was the best-selling game, managing sales of 1.9 million units across all platforms. Call of Duty 3 took the second spot as the only other million-unit seller for the month, with 1.1 million copies sold. Trailing those two were Cars, Need for Speed Carbon, and Gears of War.
The single best-selling game for the year was the PlayStation 2 edition of Madden NFL 07, which garnered sales of 2.8 million units (Hall of Fame edition included). New Super Mario Bros. for the DS came in second with 2 million units sold in 2006, followed by Gears of War (1.8 million units sold, including collector's edition), Kingdom Hearts II (1.7 million units sold), and Guitar Hero 2 (1.3 million units sold, with or without guitar).
"We were expecting it to be a great year, with two new consoles being introduced," NPD senior marketing manager David Riley told GameSpot. "Also, there were tons of great new games for existing platforms, including Final Fantasy XII, [The Legend of Zelda] Twilight Princess for GameCube, and Guitar Hero II for PS2. There were also holdover hits like New Super Mario Bros. for the DS."
Despite the flat numbers posted for portable hardware sales, Riley wasn't too concerned.
"I would prefer to see they're flat," he said of the figures. "It's a transition year for the console market, so there's a sector that's bound to suffer. The DS had a great year."
The final game sales numbers for 2006 have been released by industry-trackers NPD Group, and a familiar face has risen to the top. Electronic Arts' most valuable player, the PlayStation 2 version of the Madden NFL franchise, was declared the top-selling game of the year in the US.
Madden NFL 07 for Sony's current-generation system, which debuted in August, sold 2.8 million copies (the figure includes the game's deluxe Hall of Fame edition). Last year's version of the series, Madden NFL 06, beat that number slightly, tallying 2.9 million units sold.
From overgrown linemen to stubby plumbers, second place for US game sales in 2006 went to Nintendo's mustachioed mascot. New Super Mario Bros. for the DS mustered 2 million units sold. The DS, which has sold 9.2 million units in the US to date, was also represented on the charts by Mario's chart mate, Brain Age: Train Your Brain in Minutes a Day. The brainteaser sold 1.1 million units in 2006.
New Super Mario Bros. sold well all year.
Just over one year old, the Xbox 360 had three of its games in the top 10. Madden NFL 07 took eighth with 1.1 million sold and Ubisoft's Tom Clancy's Ghost Recon Advanced Warfighter was just behind it in ninth, with 1 million rung up. But the most impressive Xbox 360 game was Epic Games' Gears of War, which sold 1.8 million copies despite only being released in November.
Even with all the hoopla surrounding the next-gen wars, Sony's iron horse, the PS2, was still the story for software. The system held five of the top 10 spots in 2006 thanks to Kingdom Hearts II, Guitar Hero 2, Final Fantasy XII, and NCAA Football 07.
The list of top 10 selling games for 2006 (with figures) is listed below.
Gears of War pwned December.
Sales figures for the last month of 2006 were also released today, and Gears of War came out on top...barely. The Xbox 360 shooter sold 815,700 units, just edging out the PS2 version of Guitar Hero 2, which racked up 805,200 sales. While both of those games were holiday releases, third place went to Madden NFL 07 for the PS2 (737,100 units sold in December), despite being a summer release.
While much attention was focused on Wii owners scooping up that system's version of The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess in droves, it was actually outperformed in December by its GameCube counterpart. Twilight Princess for the GameCube landed in fourth (532,900 sold) just ahead of the Wii version, which took fifth (519,200 sold).
The list of top 10 selling games for December 2006 (with figures) is listed below.
Across all platforms, Madden once again took the December crown, scrambling ahead to 1.9 million games sold. Behind it were Call of Duty 3 (1.1 million), Cars (874,000), Need for Speed: Carbon (871,600), the Xbox-360-exclusive Gears of War, and the PS2-exclusive Guitar Hero 2.
As far as sales of accessories in December go, the top slot went to the Xbox 360 wireless controller with 823,800 units sold. Nintendo had a one-two punch in second and third, with the Wii Remote (646,700) and Wii Nunchuk (497,100), respectively.
Top-selling games for 2006
PS2--Madden NFL 07, Electronic Arts--2.8 M
NDS--New Super Mario Bros., Nintendo--2.0 M
360--Gears of War, Microsoft--1.8 M
PS2--Kingdom Hearts II, Square Enix--1.7 M
PS2--Guitar Hero II, Activision--1.3 M
PS2--Final Fantasy XII, Square Enix--1.3 M
NDS--Brain Age: Train Your Brain in Minutes a Day, Nintendo--1.1 M
360--Madden NFL 07, Electronic Arts--1.1 M
360--Tom Clancy's GRAW, Ubisoft--1.0 M
PS2--NCAA Football 07, Electronic Arts--1.0 M
Top-selling games for December 2006
360--Gears of War, Microsoft--815.7 K
PS2--Guitar Hero II, Activision--805.2 K
PS2--Madden NFL 07, Electronic Arts--737.1 K
GC--Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess, Nintendo--532.9 K
Wii--Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess, Nintendo--519.2 K
PS2--WWE SmackDown! vs. RAW 2007, THQ--484.5 K
NDS--New Super Mario Bros., Nintendo--427.5 K
360--Call of Duty 3, Activision--410.8 K
NDS--Yoshi's Island 2, Nintendo--407.2 K
PS2--Call of Duty 3, Activision--365.3 K
Top-selling games for December 2006 across all platforms
Madden NFL 07, Electronic Arts--1.9 M
Call of Duty 3, Activision--1.1 M
Cars, THQ--874.0 K
Need For Speed: Carbon, Electronic Arts--871.6 K
Gears of War, Microsoft--815.7 K
Guitar Hero 2, Activision--805.2 K
Lego Star Wars II: The Original Trilogy, LucasArts--792.3 K
WWE SmackDown! vs. RAW 2007, THQ--731.6 K
Tony Hawk's Project 8, Activision--713.9 K
Marvel: Ultimate Alliance, Activision--642.9 K
Top selling accessories in December 2006
360 Wireless Controller--823.8 K
Wii Remote Controller--646.7 K
Wii Nunchuk Controller--497.1 K
PS2 8MB Memory Card--474.8 K
PS3 Sixaxis Wireless Controller--336.0 K
A well-placed source - who wishes to remain anonymous - has informed CVG that an announcement from Sony on complete, concrete PS3 Euro launch details is "likely to go ahead at the end of January".
But the timing of the company's announcement is not yet etched in stone, they added. Fingers crossed though, eh?
Sony remains adamant that PS3 is on track for a March launch in Europe, pooh-poohing recent rumour suggesting that the console may suffer further delay, possibly to September.
Sony was unavailable for comment on the information given by our source at the time of writing.
All the official drivers, cars, circuits, rules, and teams of Scuderia Toro Rosso, Super Aguri F1 Team, and Midland F1 Racing speed onto PS3 with Studio Liverpool's Formula One 06. High definition visuals, full surround sound, extensive circuit details and lighting effects, and progressive dirt and car damage lend themselves towards an attempt at the game's true realism. Interconnectivity with the PlayStation Portable system has also been included.
Developed by Evolution Studios, MotorStorm delivers visceral off-road racing, plunging players into a frenzied environment awash with grit, mud and petrol, in a game that leaves the standard rules of racing in the dust. Gone are the limits of power restrictions, limited classes, and qualifying rounds. Players simply choose their vehicle from a massive range ?including dirt bikes, ATVs, sand rails, rally cars, monster trucks, and everything in between ?then hit the track in a no-holds-barred sprint to the finish line. Carving a swathe of destruction through the ever-changing wilderness, players must compete in a gasoline-fuelled, horsepower spectacle where the only rule is to try and stay alive.
Sadly, this "updated" version of the neat demo for Gran Turismo HD doesn't come with any special tracks or added options. It fixes a bug. Apparently, a 700MB bug. That's right, no patches, but you've got to re-download the entire thing. Not only that, but doing so erases all your track and drift records. It's... kind of a slap to the face, Polyphony. Why? I was in the top twenty for something... well, probably not anymore, but at some point I was.
Oh! We never told you the bug. Here's the big problem: the bug caused the time to stop before you got to the finish line. That's it. Download the new version at your own discretion, everyone!
RapidMind and Terra Soft announced today that they have teamed up to make application development for the PlayStation?3 easier than ever. As part of an agreement with Sony Computer Entertainment Incorporated, Terra Soft Solutions announced last month the release of Yellow Dog Linux for the PlayStation 3. With the RapidMind Development Platform, developers can easily create applications that will run on the PlayStation 3, as well as other hardware solutions based on the Cell Broadband Engine? (Cell BE).
If you're in Colorado you might also be interested in the Terra Soft Solutions Cell processor "hack-a-thon". More information available at www.terrasoftsolutions.com and www.rapidmind.net
Forget single-layer media, that dual-layer stuff that was all the rage last year, and even the triple-layered flavor that got announced just days ago. Heck, even an eight-layer disc would be forced to bow down to the sure-to-be-outdone-soon ten-layer rendition supposedly crafted by Ritek. No sooner than we all celebrated the idea of a 51GB HD DVD, Ritek has reportedly "designed HD media with a full ten layers," not to mention the supposed three- and four-layer coasters it has laying around while working its way up. As if that weren't impressive enough, it also claims that this multi-layer process can be applied to both HD DVD and Blu-ray, a feat that Toshiba's recent creation can't quite compete with. Of course, Ritek officials were quick to point out that the "real barrier to this advancement is the lack of reader / writer laser diodes to support the additional layers," but if there really are 250GB BD discs just waiting to get spun, those lasers aren't too far behind.
Well, I finally have had time to go through and organize all of the pictures I took at MAGFest 2007, and I am ready to write some reflections .
First of all, the pictures can be found here. I have divided the pictures up into 4 different categories. Those categories include: DreamCon 2007, CosPlay Images, Vendors and Fun and Games (the various other pictures that didn't fit into the other three categories).
Now, onto my reflections of the festival:
First of all, my family, my friend and I all had an absolute blast. The festival was great fun. There were games from just about every system you can think of, including some very interesting arcade cabinets. There were also some very old consoles, including an original Intellivision, with three different games to play. .
I only took time out of the game room to watch one of the bands perform. I overheard one of the other bands, but I'm not sure which one they were. However, whoever they were, they did a great cover of the Zelda theme song.
The band I did check out was called "This Place Is Haunted". They were very cool. Their live performance was extremely heavy. Their claim to fame is a full rendition of the entire original Castlevania soundtrack. While I was checking them out, I picked up a t-shirt, a sticker and a CD for them. The shirt is cool, as it features their name in the "Castlevania" logo. The CD is decent, but, as usual, doesn't compare to their live performance.
After Crecente posted about Nyko's announcement that their PS3 Play Adaptor allowing Guitar Hero controllers to be used on the new console, I immediately went into doubt mode. I even questioned Crecente's ability to read press releases, as I'd heard in November from a Red Octane rep that there was no workaround for getting your current guitar controllers to work on the PS3.
Fortunately, I was wrong. I stopped by the Nyko suite yesterday at CES to get it from the source. Unfortunately, no working demo was available for me (of little faith) to try out, but the Nyko marketing dudes confirmed it flat out. Yes, the Nyko Play Adaptor will let you use your guitar controllers on the PlayStation 3, courtesy of a magical little toggle switch that solves the current hardware and software issues that are keeping thousands of PlayStation 2s still hooked up.
Earlier today, EBgames listed a SKU and release date for a PlayStation 3 version of Volition and THQ's Saints Row. As you can see by visiting the original URL for the PS3 Saints Row page, that data base entry has since been removed (just as 1UP predicted). They just can't find what we're looking for!
You know what that means: it's definitely coming. And that shouldn't come as a surprise to almost anyone. With no "Only For Xbox 360" branding and THQ's desire to actually make money, it only makes sense to port the action adventure title to Sony's console.
We'll obviously let you know when THQ formally announces the game's existence.
Got my PS3 today. Decided to try and compile pygame for Yellow Dog Linux since well… it should work. It did
Compiling all of the dependencies and the pygame made it possible for me to run stuff at decent speed. Its not exactly fast, but absolutely fast enough to develop graphical user interfaces and small games.
Since python is such a high level language you are of course limited to a single SPE, which isn’t very nice, but well… it works
If people want me to I can write a guide for compiling pygame for PS3, but it’s pretty much the same as compiling it for any other platform… Simply install all dependencies for SDL, then SDL and SDL_mixer, SDL_image and so on and top it all of with pygame.
Gamestop and EB Games is offering $100 off the purchase of a PS3 by handing over your PS2. The PS3 does play PS2 games, albeit a little jagged, so getting $100 off for trading it in could be construed as a good deal -- especially if you're part of the PS2 sporadic "disc read error" crew. This advertisement and deal is one the first true signs that retailers have stock and want those systems out the door.
We now wait to see if any other retailers begin offering deals to move PS3s. Stores aren't making very much money off of the systems, so moving those puppies out is top priority. The real profit exists in getting customers to buy games and accessories.
So, while the retailer gets rid of their stacks of immovable PS3 consoles with this deal, they also get your old friend who certainly will sell. This deal means Gamestop gets your $400 - $500 from the PS3 purchase, plus whatever accessories and games go with the sale, and then they will sell the traded-in PS2 for another $100 to someone not ready to upgrade. Ding, they break even or profit, and everyone walks away happy.
Rapidly charge and store 4 SIXAXIS controllers for the Playstation®3 with the Charge Base PS3. The Charge Base plugs into any standard wall outlet, and is compact enough to fit in any home entertainment setup. Once plugged in, the Charge Base is able to store and charge up to 4 SIXAXIS controllers for the PlayStation 3. Utilizing Nyko’s patent pending technology, all 4 controllers will be charged simultaneously through the Mini USB ports, while only requiring 1 wall outlet leaving the PS3 USB ports, free and the console cord free. The Charge Base is the ultimate charging and organizational accessory for the SIXAXIS controller.
"Sony needs more must-have first-party titles to sell consoles"
IDC analyst Billy Pidgeon has told GamesIndustry.biz that Sony must produce more first-party software for PlayStation 3 or risk seeing more and more units left on shop shelves.
Pidgeon's comments follow the release of NPD's videogame sales data for 2006 which, according to SCEA boss Jack Tretton, show "the power of PlayStation".
The IDC analyst said he agreed with Tretton that the power of the brand "is confirmed with the PS2's performance in the market", adding that sales of hit titles such as Guitar Hero 2 meant that last year "PS2 was helpful to most third-party publishers' bottom lines".
However, he continued, "The PlayStation brand doesn't appear to be helping the PS3. If NPD's numbers are correct, there are over 300K PS3s on retail shelves. That is not good for a console launch of only a million and it's not good for publishers with PS3 software."
Pidgeon warned that Sony must focus on the games available for PlayStation 3 and the number of first-party titles in development, stating, "Software libraries are the key driver of console sales, and no console is going to sell on the promises - they've got to deliver.
"Sony needs more must-have first party titles to sell consoles. Gamers know Halo 3 is coming on the Xbox 360, and they can expect Mario on the Wii, but there are no established first party franchises coming to the PS3 except Gran Turismo - and that is delayed."
Pidgeon did say that first-party PS3 games Heavenly Sword and Motorstorm "look great", but observed, "They are new and less anticipated."
Ad campaign to run towards end of month, says TBWA
TBWA has told GamesIndustry.biz that the UK advertising campaign for PS3 will begin towards the end of March - supporting suggestions from a senior retail source that the console will launch on the 23rd.
Last month, SCEE boss David Reeves confirmed that the PS3 is still on track to reach Europe in March, despite rumours to the contrary. However, Sony has yet to reveal an official date and price point for launch.
Speaking to GI.biz, a spokesperson for advertising agency TBWA said the marketing campaign for the console "launches towards the end of March" - which would suggest that an early March date is unlikely.
That's been backed up by a retail source who told GI.biz, "It's safe to assume that the PS3 launch will be towards the end of the month. My money is on the 23rd."
The source also confirmed reports that Sony is set to announce the final details of the launch within the next fortnight.
First details have emerged on two new Midway shooters, currently in the pipeline for Xbox 360 and PS3. And possibly even PC...
In the hallowed pages of US mag EGM comes news of Blacksite: Area 51, the next chapter in its alien shooting / X Files franchise. Details are slim but we reckon there'll be loads of guns and grey aliens to shoot.
More interesting is the firm's brand new IP in a while, Hour Of Victory, planned for 360 only at this time. Following the trend of World War II shooters, HOV allows you to play war games through the different perspectives of various soldier types.
There's a Midway Gamers' Day planned for later in the month, so expect first shots and more details soon. With a bit of luck UT 2007 will be playable too!
Sega's going another round with beat-'em-up fans this morning as new screenshots from its Virtua Fighter 5 spin-kick in. It's the PS3 version of the fighter that's in the frame, but as we all know the game's also heading to Xbox 360. Check out the shots and see what you think.
VF 5 on PS3 is still down as a UK and Europe launch game, while the 360 iteration should be with us this summer.
As with some other recent reports concerning the trio of new consoles, we're not asserting that this decibel test is entirely accurate, as the methodology was far from scientific, but the results were interesting -- and a bit unexpected -- to say the least. While users have long since complained that the Xbox 360 kicked out an unusual amount of fan noise courtesy of the overheating problems it's been plagued with, one lucky owner of all three consoles found that Microsoft's unit actually wasn't the biggest racket-maker in the bunch, all things considered. By utilizing a standard handheld decibel meter, he measured the ambient sound output of the Wii, PS3, and Xbox 360 just after start-up, playing games sans an optical disc, and during disc playback to judge which console is noisiest overall. While results were noticeably mixed, it was concluded that the Xbox 360, on average, was actually the quietest of the bunch, and while the PS3 remained fairly calm initially, an extended period of play threw its fans (and consequently, the noise factor) into overdrive. Interestingly, Nintendo's Wii kept nearly silent during bootup, but after playing a few rounds of Wii Sports, it actually became the loudest of the three, clocking in at 70dB, or nearly 8dB higher than the nearest competitor. Granted, most folks won't notice the background whir when the 5.1s are thumpin' and folks are getting rowdy on the last lap of Excite Truck, but c'mon, this is the stuff we geeks are made to scrutinize, so be sure and hit the read link to make of it all what you will.
Online is likely to be the only key change to MotorStorm prior to its European and American launches this year, although developer Evolution has said it may introduce new features via download.
"There will be enhancements, but many will be under the hood," product manager Matt Southern told Edge Online. "A lot of the changes for the US and Europe are legal or even cultural - things like the gestures are specific to each territory and their respective age rating guidelines." (In the Japanese version, released in December, the AI racers often wave 'colourfully' when you piss them off.)
Southern says that the main change, as previously stated, will be the addition of online - something the Japanese didn't miss especially. "It's a cultural thing, really, which we had to learn from Yasu-san [Japanese external producer Yasuhiro Iizuka]. The Japanese are used to new iterations of a game at a later stage, and are also less bothered by online multiplayer. The scores seem to have justified our decision."
And we can expect that multiplayer element to offer voice comms, incidentally, "either using USB headsets or Bluetooth wireless sets. "Currently we have 12-player; recently we had 15 but we've had to cull this. We're still hoping for 16 but we can’t commit to that right now," Southern added.
Some of the surprise at the Japanese release's slightness stemmed from the absence not only of online features, but also additional gameplay modes and even split-screen. What's more, split-screen won't be added to the Western release, although Southern's keen not to rule out the possibility further down the road - "the beauty of online consoles," he notes, "is that the game can change in the future and we can sit down with SCEE and say, 'Let's offer this for download - the fans want it'."
Ditto the idea of recording replays. "Not for the boxed launch," Southern says when asked about it, "but as ever we'll see what is being demanded by fans when we start to offer download packs. Remember, we were up against it with MotorStorm, even with the timescale we had. The ability to pause and rotate the camera was added really late - it was classic feature creep."
After consideration, we have revised the rules for signatures, now they can have larger filesizes. With this allowance however, we will start being less leniant with violators and those who violate it will be given an infraction just like breaking any other forum rule. The new section of rules regarding signatures is as follows:
6: Sig pics can not be bigger than 520x120 pixels, and 75kBs in size. This size limit applies to the entire sig, not to any individual image in it. A full sized sig (120 px) cannot have more than 4 lines of text with it. For sigs without images, the text the sig contains should not be larger than the largest allowed sig with text. The staff reserves the right to take down any sig they deem unacceptable.
Blacksite: Area 51 is the confirmed codename for developer Midway's second extraterrestrial actioner, due to crash-land on PS3 and Xbox 360 in the summer, complete with blinding visuals, superb squad controls and super-smart AI.
Taking its name from a covert military term, this fresh foray into the successful Area 51 universe is aiming for a political-flavoured twist to its alien-based plotline. A 'blacksite' is somewhere the military operates while denying the place actually exists, and also often refers to secret CIA prisons operating outside the law, used to interrogate suspected terrorists.
All this points towards classic B-movie themes like invasions, cover-ups and, of course, lots and lots of grotesque alien invaders. This time around you'll be fighting The Reborn, towering creatures that are the result of flawed human/alien experiments. Take a look at the screen below for a teasing glimpse of these gangly nasties.
With Area 51 destroyed, Blacksite takes place above ground in normal towns and cities surrounding the disaster zone left by the previous game. This mix of wild, unreal beings stalking you through dusty, small town Nevada only heightens the game's world-gone-weird atmosphere. And, while you soak up the mood, your squad of brainbox team-mates can watch your back.
Midway has gone all out in the pursuit of AI reliability. Squad mates have their own personalities, which should enhance your attachment to the poor lads, and convincing voice-work gives you a window into their morale - when things are good they'll be deadly effective but if the situation gets really sticky your buddies will lose combat effectiveness and accuracy.
Sony seems to be having a bit of a problem. They have a portable system that is a success, but not by any means their main product. Then they have a new console that desperately needs games any way it can get them. Obviously they need to compete on the high end next gen game front, but they also need to compete against the Virtual Console and Xbox Live Arcade. Without the backlog of games like Nintendo or the head start of Microsoft, they seem to be turning to a questionable source for their downloadable games; the PSP.
The obvious issue with PSP games going to PS3 is that it begins to negate the reasons for a consumer to own both. Sure, right now it's a Gripshift and a Tekken, but what happens if the trend just continues? Sure, this would strengthen the PlayStation Network, but at the cost of PSP exclusives. This is just not acceptable when the PSP still has a long way to go to establish itself.
If Sony does insist on continuing to take games from the PSP library to the PS3, than it needs to change how it does so. Microsoft announced Live Anywhere quite some time ago, but we're still waiting for the day when we can play Xbox Live Arcade games on the go. Part of the reason is that Microsoft doesn't yet have a portable gaming system, but Sony does. Why not have it so if I download Gripshift on the PS3 I can download it to my PSP as well free as charge. For games that require progress, it would be great if I was able to share saves between my PSP and PS3. Maybe this is part of Sony's eventual plans anyway, but until I can buy Tekken on my PSP and continue it on my PS3 or vice-versa, it seems like a missed opportunity.
It could just be that this is a temporary solution and as more developers jump on board the PlayStation Network, Sony will stop relying on PSP games as downloadable content. Even if this is the case though, it still seems like a dangerous road for Sony to travel. It could just be that I'm overreacting though. What do fellow PSP owners think of this development?
Interesting news for the PS2 Homebrew Scene is that CDs can be used on PS3 via this method:
First take the torx bolt out slide the face plate off and remove few phillips screws. Take the metal cover off the top of the bd drive. Then remove the top plastic cover and unplug the sensor. Secure it down with a couple screws. Then cut a circle (with a plastic cutting saw bit) on the top cover. Your face plate now slides back over to allow swapping and still keeping the PS3 looking clean.
Boot the PS2 DVD and wait for it to load. Now hold the PS button and quit the game. Slide your cover back and push down on the disk secure magnet. It will stop the laser, but not the spinning. swap disks and press circle(jp) X to boot your backup.
Tested with 1.10 firmware, swap magic confirmed unplayable with 1.31, but this exploit is unconfirmed with that version of firmware. Swapmagic is only needed for PAL conversion and CD.
Not at all easy but for those who really want emulators and homebrew on the PS3 then heres your chance.
THQ has penned a deal with LLC to publish games based on the Ultimate Fighting Championship brand up to the year 2011.
Watching UFC is a bit like standing outside your local chippy after the pubs have closed and watching the chavs kick each other senseless. It's brutal brawling at its best and not for the faint hearted.It's almost like real wrestling.
Under the terms of the deal, THQ can now create UFC games for all current and next generation consoles, PC and handheld platforms.
The publisher is looking top pack each game with online, downloadable and multiplayer capabilities where it can.
A high definition HDMI cable to fully enjoy your Playstation 3 power. Durable and high quality material.
- High definition and durable cable
- Supports Dolby digital and DTS system
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- Supports 1080i/1080p, RGB or YCbCr color signal, with LCD, Plasma or HDTV systems
- Fully compatible with Playstation 3 systems and games
Capcom's Lost Planet: Extreme Condition has taken the number one spot in the UK All Formats charts on its first week of release.
The title, Capcom's second exclusive for the Xbox 360, breaks Electronic Arts' dominance of the coveted position, and sees the company repeat the first week success it celebrated with Dead Rising in September 2006.
Nintendo also has reason to celebrate this week, with Wii-exclusive Wario Ware: Smooth Moves entering the chart at number two, as a new supply of Wii hardware sees sales of the console jump by 85 per cent.
EA's FIFA 07 suffered a drop in sales of 59 per cent this week, with the title slipping to number three in the charts, with football rival Pro Evolution Soccer 6 from Konami at number four.
Rounding out the top five is Need for Speed: Carbon at number five, nudging Rockstar's Canis Canem Edit down one place to number six, and The Sims 2: Pets to number seven.
The highest climber this week is The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess which storms up the charts from number 36 to number eight, again proving that a fresh supply of Wii consoles has arrived in stores.
Microsoft's Gears of War climbs one place to number nine, with Activison's Call of Duty 3 sitting at number ten.
The only other new release this week is SEGA's World Snooker Championship 2007 at number 17, while there are re-entries in the top forty from Wii Play at 19 and Red Steel at number 34.
Sony will miss its PlayStation 3 sales targets for the fiscal year by 25 per cent due to poor sales of the next-gen console over the Christmas period.
That's the latest assessment from industry analyst Nomura Securities, which lowered its estimates for the year ending March 2007 from 6 million units to 4.5 million.
Moving into the fiscal year ending March 2008, Nomura also predicts a reduction in sales from 16 million to 10 million, and then the following year, ending March 2009, from 18 million to 11 million.
Sony has shipped one million PlayStation 3 units to North America, while last weeks' NPD data revealed the company has so far sold 687,000 of those units in the region.
Sony has announced that shipments of PlayStation 3 units to Japan have reached the one million mark.
The total number of worldwide shipments of the new console is now two million units, which Sony claims beats comparative shipment totals for previous PlayStation platforms.
Software shipments for the next-generation machine had reached five million units by the end of December 2006.
Sony has promised the next-gen console will launch in Europe in two months time, with retail sources pointing towards an expected launch date of March 23.
I didn't know about this until frank pointed it out - there's actually a wiki for rom hacks out there. It's quite neat. Go to the Super Mario Bros. 3 page, for instance, and you see all the hacks the community knows of for that game, so the one where the enemies are replaced with Spiderman villains, or the 'lost levels' patch, which allows access to development-only incomplete levels. Then the patch for the rom is linked. It's very well laid out into each console, then alphabetized. So there's a section for NES, SNES, GB/GBC, GBA, Genesis, and N64 (not much in that one though). As you can imagine, the bulk of the hacks are for the NES (there's even a Sesame Street ABC hack called The Muppets Take it all off). Anyway, really nice place, and worth a look if you're into that sort of thing. And of course, if you have hacks of your own, that's the place to put links to them!
At the recent Tokyo Auto Salon, a fleet of Gran Turismo Concept cabinets were wheeled out for car enthusiasts. It was possible to cruise through "Time Attack" mode or "Drift Trial," and each bucket-seat unit was outfitted with hi-def monitors and feedback GT FORCE Pro steering wheel controllers for a "real driving" experience. Well, real-ish.
Hell froze over. We've got some positive Sony news today. IGN has picked the PS3 as the best new console of 2006 despite its lackluster launch and widespread criticism. Even though there were only two new consoles to choose from and despite its lack of games, IGN says the PS3 wins the best console award on potential alone:
"Judging the consoles based upon a broad perspective that includes software now available and coming in the future an entirely different argument could be formulated. However, from a hardware perspective, the PS3 is by far the more interesting console. Though the launch software hasn't blown anyone away, the 360's launch titles were equally unimpressive, and the system will certainly mature. Sony's embrace of the PS3 as a computer rather than just a console, and the availability of supported Linux distributions for the console will also develop and will likely bear entirely unexpected fruit in future."
It's refreshing to see someone play Devil's Advocate, but that reads like IGN's best new computer award, not best console award. Hardware, Linux distros ... sounds exciting! Anyone else stoked for the PS3's future potential?
Who thinks the Wii should have Won?, agree or disagree then voice your feelings via comments
We can exclusively reveal the first shots of SEGA Rally on PS3 - the newest entry in SEGA's mud-slinging driving game. Speed freaks with a fetish for filth will be delighted to hear the game's set to speed onto Sony's next-gen console this winter.
While these screens might not be actual in-race footage, they show off SEGA Rally's in-game engine splendidly, being "indicative" (according to a UK SEGA representative) of the final PS3 release.
While actual gameplay details are thin on the ground, its already evident that SEGA's upping the detail factor from previous iterations of the game, with cars spattering up mud and carving through the dirt, much like PS3's other big racing game MotorStorm. Of course, questions remain including whether the weight of your car, size of your tyres and speed will affect those next-gen physics, but then that's what relentless future preview coverage is for, right? Similarly, time should reveal the extent of SEGA's damage engine - and, frankly, if we don't get scratched paintwork, crumpled bumpers and flailing car parts ricochetting through the air, we'd be very surprised.
Don't fret though, SEGA is promising more concrete information on SEGA Rally PS3 soon.
Having already dominated US skies on Xbox 360 and PlayStation, Ubisoft has announced that Blazing Angels, its WWII plane-based shooter, is flying on Sony's next-gen console in time for its March launch (whenever that is, obviously). What's more, the game will hit our shores boasting brand new content and improved graphics compared to the Xbox 360 version.
As one of the world's finest fighter pilots, your stiffest upper lip is required to get through some of the most famous and action-packed sky battles from 1939 onwards, including the Battle of Britain and Pearl Harbour. To make the experience as realistic as possible players can use the SIXAXIS's motion-sensing capabilities to pilot their aircraft, tilting the pad to fly. It'll be just like being in the cockpit of a Spitfire.
To celebrate the imminent arrival of Blazing Angels in UK skies, IGN went behind enemy lines at Ubisoft Romania to interrogate the game's lead designer, Bogdan Bridinel, about prepping the PS3's hottest historical fighter for take off.
IGN: How has the introduction of the SIXAXIS's motion sensing added to the gameplay, and how sensitive and accurate is it compared to the analogue controls?
Bogdan Bridinel: Initially, we didn't know what to expect from the SIXAXIS controls but they turned out surprisingly well. While they do not offer the same level of accuracy as the analogue controls, the accuracy is still quite good and the freshness of the experience easily makes up for the somewhat higher difficulty. We certainly see players using the motion sensing controls and having fun with them, although we can't say for how many players they will actually become the standard playing method.
IGN: Why did you decide to rewrite and re-record the dialogues from the Xbox 360 version?
Bogdan Bridinel: Before starting on the PS3 port we did a review of the criticisms aimed at the 360 game and tried to see which of the problems could be fixed in the time that we had. Rewriting and re-recording the dialogues was not exactly a small enterprise, but we felt it was absolutely necessary, seeing that the dialogues of the original version had been almost universally criticised.
IGN: Although the game was released last year in America on PS3, can we expect to see any improvements for Europe, bearing in mind the additional development time you've had?
Bogdan Bridinel: The PAL version will be identical to the US one.
IGN: Some of the gameplay elements have been improved for this PS3 version - can you explain what these refinements are and why you chose to include them?
Bogdan Bridinel: Most of the changes are refinements based on our post mortem of the game and on the feedback that we received from players and the press. There are many tweaks to the missions and the game mechanics aimed at making the game less linear and more challenging, but also a number of more significant changes. More playing styles are now catered for, as the game offers a cockpit view and the option to switch to a simulator-style control method. Some new HUD elements like a radar were added to give the player more awareness and therefore more options. Plus a new multiplayer mode, called Assault, has been included, along with two new single player missions. The dialogues were completely reworked.
IGN: When you're including new content, at what point do you have to stop yourself and consider that maybe you should make a follow-up instead? Would it have been easier to start from scratch with this version rather than tweaking the 360 game?
Bogdan Bridinel: Tweaking an old game is definitely easier than making one from scratch, but it's true that the scope of the changes we made in the PS3 version is bigger than what you normally see in a port. We simply felt that it would be a pity if we released the game unchanged, when there were issues with it that could be easily, or reasonably easy to change. The only difficulty was in drawing the line between reasonable and unreasonable, as at times we did find ourselves getting carried away and thinking about changes that would be more suited in a sequel.
IGN: How well are World War II games received across Europe? Do you have to tweak content for different countries or is the same game released across the whole continent?
Bogdan Bridinel: Sensitivity is definitely required, but our approach was to make just one version for all territories, making sure that the content that would not prove problematic in any of the European countries.
IGN: The PS3 game already features two new missions - will these ever come to Xbox 360?
Bogdan Bridinel: No, the two missions will not be released on the Xbox Live Marketplace. They are exclusive to the PS3 version and were created specifically for it.
Rumor Reporter has confirmed that Incognito's Warhawk is the subject of the site's ominous story posted early this morning. An anonymous source working on the title has allegedly told Rumor Reporter that development has "stalled completely." Supposed "infighting and lack of clear direction" have led to a swelling budget; in turn, prompting layoffs and employee migration.
SCEA has apparently brought in a new director who may be considering a significant change of direction for Warhawk. What was once a high profile title (the first to utilize functioning Sixaxis motion control), may now become a simple downloadable game. Rumor Reporter suggests that Warhawk's four complete missions could be destined for PlayStation Store. Another Gran Turismo HD? Perhaps. But, for now, this is strictly rumor.
We did contact Sony for a statement. Here's the predictable reply: "We haven't made any official announcements regarding Warhawk since last year. At this time, we have nothing new to report regarding this title."
According to information on the Irish version of the official PlayStation 3 website, the 60GB version of the console will launch in the territory priced at EUR 629.99 - EUR 30 more than previously announced.
Text on the "Price" section of the website also suggests that the 20GB model will retail for EUR 529.99. However, it will not be available "at launch" in Ireland.
Back in May 2006 at Sony's pre-E3 conference, it was announced that the PS3 would cost EUR 499 / 599 in Europe, and the other EU territory sites still feature these price points.
But it seems that Irish consumers could be asked to pay more for their PS3s - or it could be that the other localised versions of the website have yet to be updated with the new price.
It's no surprise to learn that the 20GB model may not go on sale in some European territories. As early as last July, SCE UK's David Wilson told GamesIndustry.biz that it was likely the two versions of the PS3 will go on sale in the UK, but that there was still a decision to be made over whether this will be the case at launch.
SCEE was unavailable for comment at the time of writing.
After not being able to buy a PlayStation 3 at or around the US launch (unless you headed to eBay), over half of a group of retail stores surveyed in the US had PS3s in stock, while you couldn't find a Wii for love nor money.
An analyst has jumped to the conclusion that demand for the market leader's new console may be soft because you're now able to walk right in and buy one.
American Technology Research analyst Paul-Jon McNealy said, "Our channel checks yesterday of 52 retail stores, from boutiques to big-box retailers, showed that 28 of the 52 stores had PS3 consoles in stock, while none had Wii consoles in stock."
Sony is currently airlifting over 100,000 PS3 units to the US every week and the firm's US spokesman Dave Karraker said of the search results that, "It isn't because demand has weakened, it is because we have kept the supply pipeline moving."
Citing an anonymous source, website Rumour Reporter has claimed that development on a "high profile title for the PlayStation 3" has "stalled completely", and could change from a full-fledged retail release to a chopped-up download on the PS3's online store.
The title in question is widely assumed to be Incognito's PS3 update of Warhawk, which has seemingly gone AWOL since it was shown in hands-on form at last year's E3.
Responding to the rumours David 'God of War drunkard' Jaffe - who was recently at the studio working on Calling All Cars! - said, "So just because some disgruntled ex-worker- who thought the game should have been made HIS way- is now getting his 15 minutes by spouting off to some news source, does not mean he is bringing any meat to the table in terms of valid information. It may be TRUE information in terms of a game having been down a tough road, but again- that is par for the course."
A Sony spokesperson told CVG that they were "not aware of any problems" with Warhawk's development, but we'll report back once we get any futher updates.
Sony CEO Howard Stringer seems to have let the cat out of the bag regarding when PS3 will finally launch throughout Europe. And it looks like April.
Speaking to News.com Howard Stringer was asked what the goals were this year for PlayStation? His response? "I think it's 6 million units by the end of the quarter, worldwide. And then we have got the European launch in April, which is very important to us."
Could that be the biggest slip-up by Sony yet? A date of late March has been doing the rounds lately but what's a week or two in the grand scheme of things? Regarding the launch games, he added, "I think we have 20 games out there. I assume we're going to increase the number of games."
Sony Europe is sticking to its guns of a March launch with all other talk just "speculation".
What is Debian Live? You've got me there, but what I do know is that it's a highly respected Linux engine... more so than Fedora Core and... that other one. What's more is that this system/engine/thingy is being distributed via .iso, so download it now, stick it onto a CD and load it right onto your PS3 with little to no trouble and/or effort! That's... how it works, right? No? Hmm, I really need to learn how to do this.
Anyway, on the Debian Live for PS3 site, there's a list of all the prompts you can use as well as parameters you can set (login, password, etc). We're linking you directly to their site because it makes a lot more sense than if I tried to describe it. Also, if you have any trouble, visit the About page and see if anything there helps you out -- I couldn't find a specific set of instructions (probably because this is supposed to be easy), but it seems like they go into more detail here. If anyone gets this up and running, tell us how it stacks up to the other programs available.
Consumers looking to buy a PlayStation 3 in the US have multiple outlets to choose from, as over 50 per cent of all stores surveyed have units in stock.
Compared to the Nintendo Wii, which is in short supply in all regions across the globe, the PS3 is readily available in specialist and electrical retailers across North America, where Sony recently announced it had shipped a total of one million units.
"Our channel checks yesterday of 52 retail stores, from boutiques to big-box retailers, showed that 28 of the 52 stores had PS3 consoles in stock, while none had Wii consoles in stock," said PJ McNealy of American Technology Research.
While some have suggested the amount of stock available may be indication of slowing demand, Sony's David Karraker disputes the idea, instead pointing out that the company is doing such a good job of supplying retailers with available units.
"It isn't because demand has weakend, it is because we have kept the supply pipeline moving," Karraker told Reuters.
New hardware traditionally suffers from short supply at retail, as the demand from early-adopting consumers is fulfilled.
Microsoft's Xbox 360 came under increased pressure from retail following its launch in 2005, with supplies limited through the first quarter of 2006.
Despite the amount of PS3 units on store shelves, PJ McNealy pointed out that high levels of stock didn't not neccesarily indicate slow demand.
A SCEE spokesperson has told GamesIndustry.biz that PlayStation 3 is still on track to launch in Europe in March, despite suggestions from Sony CEO Howard Stringer that it will be here in April.
In an interview with CNET-owned site News.com, Stringer is quoted as saying, "We have got the European launch in April, which is very important to us."
But a spokesperson told GI.biz, "It is not the case that PS3 is launching in April," adding that suggestions otherwise are "incorrect".
"The date has been and still is March," the spokesperson confirmed.
Sony has yet to announce a specific date for the launch of PS3. However, several senior retail sources speaking to GI.biz have said that March 23 is set to be the day when the console hits the shops, and SCEE are expected to make an official announcement next week.
Senior retail sources have told GamesIndustry.biz that the 60GB PlayStation 3 will go on sale in the UK for GBP 425, as previously stated by Sony UK boss Ray Maguire.
His comments were made in an interview with GI.biz in May of last year, where he defended the price point as "a bargain" for consumers.
Now several retail execs have confirmed that the GBP 425 figure is correct, and said they are expecting an official announcement from Sony next week. It's thought that the 20GB PlayStation 3 will not be made available in the UK, at least during the initial launch period.
The announcement is also expected to confirm a March 23 launch date across Europe, as previously reported.
The UK price is equivalent to just under EUR 647, which is likely to elicit complaints about "rip-off Britain" as Sony has confirmed that the 60GB PS3 will cost EUR 599 in most other European territories. The price for Ireland, however, has been set at EUR 629.99, apparently due to a higher VAT rate.
One retail source said that the higher UK price has not been driven by Sony but by British retailers, who traditionally seek bigger profit margins than their Continental counterparts.
Voodoo Extreme has a feature up that's a wishlist for future sequels. They run down some great game franchises that have been off the board for a little while, and wonder out loud about the possibility of new installments. Besides the usual suspects for lists like this (StarCraft, TIE Fighter, Descent, Ultima), they touch on some cult favorites that are ... less likely to show up in modern gaming. From the article:
"Planescape Torment 2: The Poop -- Loved by many a forumgoer is Planescape Torment, a Dungeons & Dragons-themed RPG set in the other planes of existence. It was a dark game with evil undertones, but also lighthearted and funny at times. Just think Baldur's Gate with an M rating. The Scoop -- Odds of a sequel are equal to or greater than Elvis coming home on the mothership."
Any oldies you'd like to see back on modern systems? While I really like many of the ideas listed here, the LucasArts classics Grim Fandango and Maniac Mansion are the ones I'd most like to see rehashed.
You might remember last week we spent a long time playing MotorStorm and crashing a lot. It was kind of therapeutic. With no pressure to actually win anything, we just drove head first into boulders and entered a catatonic daze as our vehicle elegantly disintegrated before our glazed-over eyes.
With import copies of PS3's Formula One: Championship Edition arriving in the GamesRadar office, an elevated level of high-speed collision has become our new object of desire. It's simple really, F1 cars go faster, race on a narrower track and have more opponents - providing more opportunities for deliberate high-speed horseplay.
The results are nothing short of spectacular. Not least because of the amount of disruption you can cause by simply clipping another driver's wheels - even really gently. We even thought of cutting these pile-ups to some moving orchestral music, like Barber's Adagio for Strings, for effect. It didn't amount to more than a thought. Maybe we'll do it for the next instalment.
Germany is leading the charge for standardizing rules regarding violent video games across the European Union. The country has perceived a massive rise in video game related violence as of late (which happens when you start looking for video game links to every crime that occurs) has recently proposed a law in their own country banning any game that depicts violence against humans. Since they are calling for standardized rules, one can easily assume they would like to see the same sort of law adapted across the whole of Europe.
"A certain degree of linkage between the growing violence among the younger generation and the growing diffusion of violent games exists," said Franco Frattini, the European Justice commissioner, at a meeting of the justice ministers in Dresden, Germany, on Tuesday.
Just what we need out of touch people telling gamers what games to play
The game is set in Soleanna, the beautiful city of water. In his first adventure set in the human world, Sonic meets a beautiful princess named Elise, whom he quickly befriends, but Princess Elise is abducted by none other than the calculating Dr. Eggman who is working under dark and sinister motives,to destroy this special kingdom of hers. In order to restore safety and serenity, Sonic must maneuver his way through a series of adventures and challenges where he will encounter and interact with a bevy of allies and enemies, and ultimately go head to head against the menacing doctor to thwart his malicious plans. Along the way, Sonic encounters a mysterious character named Silver. Blocking him with unique supernatural powers, even the Blue dude with ‘tude will find it difficult to out-maneuver the enigmatic Silver! As Sonic speeds through the huge kingdom, the mysteries unravel.
Sonic The Hedgehog melds top-tier animation production values with next generation art, physics and game design to create the most intense, high velocity Sonic adventure yet! Featuring interactive 3D environments, a large cast of new and returning characters, and a blistering sense of speed, get ready for the reinvention of Sonic The Hedgehog!
What's a Japanese video game console release like without exotic Japanese games? From the makers of the popular Densha de Go! series comes the very first PlayStation3?train simulation game -- Railfan.
The game emphasizes on realism and allows you to drive trains in three different locations, including Chicago's brown line, part of Tokyo's JR system and Osaka. Your task in the game is simply, you need to run the train properly and make sure to stop on time at each station. Controls are pretty simple as well, you only need to control the train's throttle.
Railfan differs from other train simulation games mainly by its graphics. The game's graphics are displayed by a streaming video of the actual train lines. The camera shakes to give you the feeling of a moving train and cut-scenes will display additional overhead views of the train.
I have received numerous (more than 3) independent reports that an exploit has been found on the PS3 that will reveal the title/volume keys for Blu-ray disks using a PS3. The procedure involves some minor modding of the boot process and Linux.
I have not been told of the exact process but the information makes it seem that the process is not that difficult once you know what you are doing and the lengthy steps are duplicated.
So there you go: you can either install game assets on the hard drive or by place redundant game data around the disc. The problem in both of these solutions is that one of the advantages of Blu-ray become less compelling. Why bother with a large Blu-ray disc when you're putting that data on the hard drive before you play anyway? You could have simply put that extra information on a DVD and then moved it onto the hard drive The same can be said about the redundancy approach: why not just use a standard DVD and have it load quickly in the first place instead of doubling or tripling up your data on a slower but larger disc?
The Blu-ray drive is useful for movies, of course, but for gaming, Blu-ray doesn't look like it's the best choice until faster drives are released. There is every possibility of a future PS3 revision with a faster Blu-ray drive, but that won't help current PS3 owners. Blu-ray may be the future for storage that's both large and fast, but right now it seems shoe-horned into gaming applications. It seems like developers may actually do better by shipping some of their PS3 games on DVDs. Games will load faster and manufacturers will save money on the discs. Would Sony allow it?
PS3 games like Resistance: Fall of Man and the upcoming Motorstorm already look fantastic. Sony CEO Howard Stringer (right) argues that these games are barely using 25% of the system's "bandwidth." He also thinks Sony can break even on PS3 costs at the end of this year.
In a new interview with CNET, Sony CEO Sir Howard Stringer shared his feelings on how the PlayStation 3 has been faring thus far and what he sees for the future of the PlayStation business.
Although there was a lot of negativity surrounding Sony from E3 up until launch last year, and the PS3 was hurt by shortages of blue laser diodes, Stringer believes that everything turned out rather well. "... We're now very comfortable with our research program for PlayStation 3, which one researcher recently described as the Mercedes of games players, for obvious reasons. The million is more than we delivered of PlayStation 2 so, for all the anxiety, I think PlayStation 3 is well on the way to living up to that promise. That's a good sign," he remarked.
Interestingly, Stringer also noted that current software offerings for the PS3 would seem to be using only a quarter or less of the console's total power. "Lost in the shuffle is the fact that the current games that are out there are only using about 20 percent to 25 percent of the [PS3's] bandwidth. Once the publishers' excitement reaches a level of intensity that they start using more of the bandwidth, that will create additional excitement," he said.
It's no secret that the new Blu-ray hi-def format is a key part of Sony's PS3 strategy. Some have argued that just because someone owns a PS3 that doesn't mean that consumer is playing Blu-ray movies on it. Stringer, however, believes that the vast majority of PS3 owners have in fact been converted to Blu-ray users. "I'd say 90 percent of the people who (own) PS3s are playing that Blu-ray disc on it or playing other Blu-ray discs on it. Contrary to some of the reports, it is an effective Blu-ray player. The people who like Blu-ray are the people who play PlayStation 3, just as people who play PS2s were the early proponents of the DVD format. It drove the DVD format," he asserted.
The combination of Blu-ray and a Cell processor is an expensive proposition for the consumer and Sony itself. A recent analysis by iSuppli indicated that Sony is losing somewhere in the range of $300 per unit. That said, Stringer believes that the console can break even at the end of this year.
"I think Kutaragi-san (PlayStation chief Ken Kutaragi) said that it would be break-even by the end of the year, at the end of '07. PS2 was not profitable in the first year. You make it up on the content as the content gathers momentum, the licensees from that and so forth," he explained.
Previously only slated for a vague release 'some time this year', Koei has announced it'll be unleashing both Fatal Inertia and Bladestorm: The Hundred Years War on PS3 here in the UK 'this summer'.
Unfortunately both will miss the console's rumoured March launch to ensure Koei can "continue to work on these titles up until release to ensure the highest levels of quality possible".
Fatal Inertia is a futuristic racer that mixes street racing, demolition derbies and rallying - no doubt featuring the prerequisite robots and neon lights. Travelling backwards in time, Bladestorm is a historical tactical battler set in the early half of the 14th century. Koei will be swapping robots for Joan of Arc and Prince Edward (the Black Prince).
We asked Koei for a more specific UK date but were told the official release will be announced nearer the time.
After conquering American and Japanese PS3s with its mixture of swords, demons, samurais and giant crabs, Genji: Days of the Blade is slicing its way towards the European console launch. For months, developer Game Republic has been busy ensuring the story about ancient Japanese warriors is ready for UK audiences.
Set three years after the last Genji, Days of the Blade continues to expand upon legends and historically accurate facts about feudal Japan. The Heishi clan, which was defeated at the end of the original, has returned. Its military strength has been increased by the use of unholy magic, allowing its legions of soldiers to turn into hideous demons. So it's up to Yoshitsune to draw his blade once again, ready to clash with the evil hordes.
As the legions draw close to European shores, IGN spoke to the game's creator Yoshiki Okamoto about bringing a title steeped in Japanese history to western markets.
IGN UK: Do you think PS3 owners outside of Japan will understand the mythological storyline of Genji?
Yoshiki Okamoto: I have not thought about how other nations will regard it. In Japan we watch kung-fu films and see car chases in New York or even hear about people talking about the Knights of the Round Table and we enjoy them all. I just wanted to show that people will be able to enjoy the storyline even if they do not know about Japanese mythology and history. They will see the different battles and will hopefully want to see where the battles took place and will learn about it.
IGN UK: Are Japanese-influenced games becoming more popular in Europe thanks to anime and manga?
Yoshiki Okamoto: I was not really thinking about manga and anime being popular in Europe. The artists that drew the art work in Japan, so they are most familiar with the style of artwork found in manga and anime. The character designs will have certain similarities but that is a by-product of Japanese development, rather than a conscious decision.
IGN UK: Will there be any improvements to the EU version of Genji compared to the American one?
Yoshiki Okamoto: Obviously we did not want to change the game system but we have been able to refine some gameplay elements. We will also have downloadable content ready for the European launch. In America and Japan they have had to wait for the different packs but we will have them all ready for Europe.
IGN UK: Are you planning on releasing different downloadable content for each territory?
Yoshiki Okamoto: No, it'll be worldwide.
IGN UK: The game was originally slated for a PS2 release, so were there problems when making the transition to PS3?
Yoshiki Okamoto: From changing the hardware there were some negative points and some positive points. If we had stayed on PS2 we would have had to keep the same level of graphics from the first game. But with the PS3 we were certainly able to improve. One improvement we looked at was the camera from Genji, which was only on rails. In Days of the Blade we went through all the camera work and improved it a lot. We created a new camera system that shows just how pretty the game looks whilst not hindering the gameplay.
IGN: Would you be interested in developing a new Genji that's created entirely for PS3?
Yoshiki Okamoto: I would like to. If I could start again I would like to make Days of the Blade a little bit different with just the PS3 in mind. I would like to start at the point we're at now with the hardware and with our understanding for developing on PS3. It was really difficult to create a launch title. But we would like to make another PS3 title, although not necessarily a Genji game, using the lessons we've already learnt.
Well that's just great. Now we're going to have to actually play more of Sony's offensively bad PlayStation Store download, Mainichi Issho.
Sony Computer Entertainment Japan and Bandai Namco are teaming up -- conspiring, if you will -- to combine Ridge Racer with Doko Demo Issyo. As part of the plan -- conspiracy? -- Ridge Racer spokeswoman Reiko Nagase will make a limited appearance in the Mainichi Issyo downloadable game.
Reiko will appear in the form of a poster that can be given to Toro. Sony's fat mascot cat will then hang the digital goddess in his room. Bandai Namco is also creating a Ridge Racer 7 box poster, but we're sure Toro would rather have a wall-sized Reiko.
Thankfully, while being forced to endure more of Mainichi Issyo, we won't have to pay a dime. Not only is the game itself free, but so too are these two items. Both will be available starting 1/18 in Mainichi Issyo's Toro Station.
Microtransactions can be used and abused as long as they're free, which made it all the more pleasing today to learn of not one, but two free microtransaction promotions from Bandai Namco. For the first, check out this story from earlier today.
In addition to the news of Reiko Nagase appearing as an item in Mainichi Issyo, Bandai Namco has announced a set of free themed stickers that can be used to decorate your cars in Ridge Racer 7. .hack//G.U., Ace Combat, Doko Demo Issyo, Eureka Seven, Code Geass and Sousei no Aquarion are the lucky franchises that have been chosen for this promotion. The latter three are anime titles in the Bandai Namco group.
Sony has confirmed it will announce the UK PS3 price and release date early next week, while confirming yesterday's reports that the Irish PS3 price has been bumped up.
Following yesterday's reports on the Irish PS3 website, Sony Europe sent out a blanket email to try and clear things up. Again boss David Reeves confirmed that the console is still on course for a March release, despite CEO Howard Stringer saying it was happening in April.
Whatever it may be, we'll know early next week, according to the statement: "Sony is planning an announcement about the UK PS3 price and release date early next week."
Sony also explained why the price is higher in Ireland saying, "The price for PS3 in Europe is still €499 and €599 respectively. The higher price for the 60GB model in Ireland is purely down to their local rate of VAT, which is 21%."
It's about time. We're just sick and tired of all those whipper snappers, running amok in our deatmatches and stealing all our kills. Rep. Aurelia Greene (D) and Rep. Keith Wright (D), patron saints of mature gamers, have both proposed laws which ban the sale of violent video games to minors in the state of New York, and hide them away in an adults only section of the store. Rep. Wright's law concentrates on more scandalous forms of violence and racism, while Rep. Greene seems generally down on the whole general of video game violence. Keith Wright's law would require an ID check for anyone appearing under the age of 30 attempting to buy a violent video game, which seems to work so well at keeping alcohol and cigarettes out of the hands of minors.
KOEI has announced that PS3 titles Bladestorm and Fatal Inertia, originally scheduled for March, will now launch in summer 2007.
We're told the development teams simply need more time to get the games ship-shape.
Maybe so, but perhaps the recent revelation that both games are also on their way to Xbox 360 has something to do with the date slide.
Fatal Inertia is a futuristic racing game from KOEI's Canadian studio, which aims to make clever use of spectacular weapons and physics to disrupt other racers' progress. Originally a launch title for the console, it's now neither on time, nor exclusive.
Bladestorm is put together by KOEI's Omega Force team, the button-mashers behind Dynasty Warriors, and takes place during the Hundred Years War. Play as England or France, command bucket-loads of troops, and create massive carnage.
High Definition Content Protection is supposed to make sure you're not playing pirated content, but sometimes your devices screw up the HDCP 'handshake' (over an HDMI cable) and nothing works. This happens with some regularity with the PS3, and Popular Mechanics investigated and found a quick and dirty workaround. From the article: 'We then checked with Leslie Chard, president of HDMI Licensing, which owns the rights to the standard, who told us that HDCP is one component of HDMI that has been plagued with interoperability issues. HDCP (high-bandwidth digital content protection) is designed to prevent the interception of data — specifically copyrighted Hollywood movies — between an output component and a display. As Steve Balough, the president of Digital Content Protection, the licensing company for HDCP explains, the two pieces of hardware must exchange a key, a sort of certificate of authenticity unique to each individual device, to verify a secure connection.' The problem isn't limited to the PS3 — many HDTV cable boxes and have the same problem. The fix there? Unplugging the power cable.
Square Enix has announced plans for a playable demo of Final Fantasy XIII to be released sometime this year. In the latest issue of Dengeki, representatives from the Squeenix dev talk about the demo's planned release. "'We are hoping to have a playable demo ready for E3 in 2007." This could be great news for the PlayStation 3, as something truly wonderful on the Final Fantasy front could spark a wave of renewed excitement for the system.
I would sure love to get my hands on a playable version of the game myself, though with E3 invites now being handled by gaming companies themselves I'll have to hold out hope that there is a company out there I haven't offended egregiously yet, and it isn't looking too good. Besides that, there is no guarantee that it will be ready in time for the event. We might end up having to rely on Ashcraft on the winners of our TGS contest for impressions.
From the same creators of the custom white PS3 (the gents over at the PS3 Center), we bring you their homemade silver edition shortly after its planned archetype. It's a thing of beauty. And we swear it looks fresh off Sony's official production line, though the controller appears to have gained a few pounds over the holidays. Tubby.
Via Play Asia comes all of this weeks gaming releases.
Heres the full listing:
Xbox360™:
Gears of War JPN US$ 64.90
Gears of War [First Print Limited Edition] JPN US$ 64.90
Lost Planet: Extreme Condition US US$ 59.90
Lost Planet: Extreme Condition (Collector's Edition) US US$ 69.90
Nintendo Wii™:
Excite Truck JPN US$ 59.90
LAN Adapter US$ 29.90
WarioWare: Smooth Moves US US$ 59.90
Nintendo DS™:
Arthur & the Invisibles US US$ 34.90
Kaitou Wario the Seven / Wario: Master of Disguise JPN US$ 48.90
Ochaken no Heya DS 2 JPN US$ 48.90
Phoenix Wright: Ace Attorney Justice for All US US$ 29.90
Sekaiju no Meikyuu / Etrian Odyssey JPN US$ 48.90
Yu-Gi-Oh! GX Spirit Caller US US$ 34.90
Sony PSP™:
FIFA Soccer 07 JPN US$ 48.90
Initial D Street Stage (PSP the Best) JPN US$ 29.90
M.A.C.H. (Modified Air Combat Heroes) JPN US$ 48.90
SOCOM: U.S.NAVY SEALs Fireteam Bravo II (English Version) ASIA US$ 42.90
Talkman Shiki: Shabe Lingual Eikaiwa JPN US$ 42.90
Talkman Shiki: Shabe Lingual Eikaiwa (w/ Microphone) JPN US$ 59.90
The Sims 2: Pets JPN US$ 48.90
Wizardry Empire III: Haoh no Keifu JPN US$ 48.90
PC Games:
Carte Blanche First Episode: For a Fistful of Teeth... ASIA US$ 29.90
First Eagles: The Great Air War 1918 ASIA US$ 29.90
Flyboys Squadron ASIA US$ 34.90
Freak Out - Extreme Freeride ASIA US$ 29.90
IL-2 Sturmovik: 1946 ASIA US$ 34.90
Patriots: A Nation Under Fire ASIA US$ 34.90
Guidebooks:
Lost Planet: Extreme Condition Signature Series Guide US US$ 19.90
Toys & Misc:
Aero R/C Remote SuiSui Pikachu Car US$ 15.90
Animal Crossing Candy Toy (Theater Version) US$ 2.99
Animal Crossing Face Purse - Buke US$ 9.90
Animal Crossing Face Purse - Sari US$ 9.90
Animal Crossing Face Purse - Saruo US$ 9.90
Animal Crossing Face Purse - Tanukichi US$ 9.90
Animal Crossing Face Purse - Totakeke US$ 9.90
Animal Crossing Pre-Painted PVC Figure: Desk Top Sofbi Series (Theater Version) US$ 49.90
CardCaptor Sakura Pre-painted PVC Figure: Sakura Battle Costume (Pastel Pearl) US$ 17.90
CardCaptor Sakura Pre-painted PVC Figure: Tomoyo Daidouj (Pastel Pearl) US$ 17.90
FA4 Type-Moon Collection Figure: Figure Association For Life US$ 8.99
Monster Hunter Screen Cleaner Phone Strap Gashapon JPN US$ 2.49
Nohohon Cream White Type US$ 9.90
Nohohon Double Happiness US$ 9.90
Peace@Pieces Nagi 1/8 Scale Pre-painted PVC Figure: Death Costume Version US$ 51.90
Rozen Maiden ~traumend~ Little Mascot Keychain Figure (Ver. 1.5) US$ 2.90
Shin Megami Tensei Nocturne One Coin Figure Series Part 5 US$ 5.90
Tales of the Abyss 1/8 Scale Pre-painted PVC Figure - Natalia Luzu Kimuelasca Lanvaldear US$ 39.90
Tandem Twin Animal Girls Action Figure - Amethyst US$ 59.90
Tandem Twin Animal Girls Action Figure - Sapphire (Asobitcity Limited Version) US$ 59.90
Video Game Soundtracks:
Pink Sweets Original Sound Track JPN US$ 38.90
Rolling Star (Bleach Theme Song) JPN US$ 11.90
Strike Party!!! JPN US$ 9.90
Strike Party!!! [CD+DVD] JPN US$ 17.90
The Complete Sound Track Rune Factory Shin Bokujo Monogatari JPN US$ 24.90
The PS3 hasn’t performed as well as expected. In fact, since E3 last year, not much has actually gone Sony’s way. There was the removal of features, loss of exclusives, extreme price and severe supply constraint… and that’s just leading up to the launch. Once November 17th rolled around, there were people camping outside of Best Buy to get PS3s so that they could scalp them on eBay for extreme prices, and that worked for a while. Then buyers got sick of paying for a system with one semi-desirable game, a blu-ray player with questionable usefulness and a really bad PS2 emulator. They’re not the only one. Gabe Newell, Co-founder and Managing Director of Valve Software, had this to say about the PS3:
“The PS3 is a total disaster on so many levels. I think it’s really clear that Sony lost track of what customers wanted and what developers wanted. I’d say, even at this late date, they should cancel it and do a ‘do over.’ Just say, ‘This was a horrible disaster and we’re sorry and we’re going to stop selling this and stop trying to convince people to develop for it.’”
Even after all that, it’s still possible for the PS3 to turn it all around. With that in mind, I decided to try and figure out a way for the PS3 to make a solid recovery, so I started sending emails and making calls. I talked to N’Gai Croal of Newsweek, Chris Baker of Wired and several others in my quest to see what could change and bring Sony back from this black hole of negative buzz. Here’s what we came up with.
Cut Off the Head
It’s absolutely true that Sony has had better PR moments than what we’ve seen recently. What could be the root cause of all this bad PR? “Sony’s PS3 problems stem not from production issues or even pricing - though both are significant problems, both can be overcome with time and effort,” said Jakub Wojnarowicz, Games Editor-in-Chief of Firing Squad. ” What cannot be overcome without Sony’s active involvement is the rooting out of the cause of these problems: Ken Kutaragi.”
Kutaragi, the father of the Playstation, has made Sony quite a bit of money over the years, so it seems that they aren’t too keen to get rid of him. However, Kutaragi was recently “promoted” out of his job of President of Sony Computer Entertainment (SCEI) and given the position of Chairman of SCEI. Though this “promotion” isn’t attributed to bad PS3 press, it surely couldn’t have helped.
At Least the PS2 Was A DVD Player
No matter what could have happened up to the point when the console launched, as soon as the first really great game comes out, all is forgiven. However, that hasn’t happened yet and it doesn’t really look like it’s going to any time soon. “Nothing in the launch lineup is going to convince people that the PS3 does anything that the XBox 360 can’t, and the killer app exclusives are still several months away,” said Wired Associate Editor, Chris Baker. “The Gran Turismo giveaway was a very smart move—Sony needs to flood the pipeline with more free (or at least very cheap) exclusives like that. The faster they can fill the pipeline with free demo levels of Motorstorm, Heavenly Sword, Warhawk and etc., the better.”
Chris isn’t alone is his assessment of the launch lineup situation. Tom Chick, freelance journalist and editor, agreed with Chris’ viewpoint. “I think their biggest problem is the launch line-up,” said Chick. “They really needed a powerful franchise as a hook, and Ridge Racer ain’t it. The PS3 launch was the absolute worst time to have a developer like Insomniac try to launch a derivative concept like Resistance, which is Half-Life meets Call of Duty. Instead, they should have had a new Ratchet & Clank ready. There should have been a GTA or a Final Fantasy.”
Well, that’s one problem that’s basically out of Sony’s hands, other than pressuring companies to produce faster, or even making their own successful game. However, that may not be very easy considering the tools that most developers currently have.
Better Development Tools and Support
Sony, historically, hasn’t had the easiest-to-develop-for consoles, and this one doesn’t seem to be an exception. Though the PS3 isn’t as notoriously hard to program for as the PS2, it has that stigma hanging around it. Sony has tried to counter-act that bit of unpleasantness by purchasing SN Systems, a software tool development company, but it just isn’t quite there yet.
Erick Schonfeld with Business 2.0 said, “They need game developers to come out with unbelievable games that you can’t get on the XBox or anywhere else. This should be possible given the capabilities of the Cell processor powering the PS3, but programming for the Cell is not something that most developers can do easily right out of the gate.”
Is All This Negative Buzz Just Us?
The one question that keeps nagging at me is, “Why are you being so hard on the PS3?” You know, it’s certainly early in this cycle and no one has lost yet, so why are we all judging? Our friend N’Gai Croal, a Newsweek columnist, had this to say about the subject:
“What you’re seeing is a supply problem. According to Sony, they shipped a million units in North America. I spoke to Jack Tretton, CEO of Playstation America, and he said that they’re not sitting in a factory in China, they’re in the US and on store shelfs or moving through the chain. We don’t have any visibility of what’s going on in Japan, but anecdotally, there are supposedly units on the shelves. If that’s so, then we may have turned the corner on the supply issues and that’s what they’ve said publicly. If that’s the case then we have to see what the demand is, and that’s 45 to 50 days after the launch. It’s a little early too tell. What you’re talking about is the negative buzz that popped up around the PS3 this last year after E3. If they launch in Europe in March, that would suggest that they’ve worked out their supply problems.”
“People like you and me, other game journalist, bloggers and people who post on forums may be typical of the hardcore, but are atypical of the entire population. Absent some sort of real market research, while there is buzz among the console intelligencia, I don’t know how that buzz is reflected in the population of PS3 owners.“
You know, maybe he’s right. They’re Sony after all, and it’s very early. The Playstation name and some price-dropping could turn this thing around quickly. I could look back on this article in a year and think, “How could I have been so silly?” I really think that Mr. Chick summed it up best:
“However, it’s important to remember that stumbling out of the gate isn’t a measure of anything but the first stretch of the race. I’d say Sony has a year to do things differently before things get really dire.“
Speaking with EGM, a paper magazine, Bethesda Software's Todd Howard commented on the upcoming PS3 version of Oblivion:
"Drive speed matters more to me [than capacity], and Blu-ray is slower."
The developer is apparently duplicating critical data on the Blu-ray disc in order to fill up all the unused space, which improves load times for the game. Tests have shown that load times on the PS3 could be slightly slower than those on the Xbox 360, which has lead the developer to using data duplication techniques to improve the PS3's performance.
As soon as Oblivion launches, we'll report back with exact load time statistics for comparison with the Xbox 360 version. This will give us the first real comparison between the Xbox 360 and PS3 load times. Of course, it could be argued that the PS3 version contains more data, and thus will load slower regardless.
We nearly had an ice storm in Athens. It got very cold, very fast. In fact, some of us living here have windows that aren't built right, so they don't close all the way... making their room incredibly frigid and they're having trouble typing posts with fingers that are as pliable as a crowbar. That aside, no snow. Which is sad, but completely irrelevant to the news at hand.
Yeah, we've also been waiting around the PS-Store, looking for flOw, since we were told it was coming out. Seems we didn't get the memo that the game was delayed another month. Yep, the game is now due out at the end of February. Sony representatives said this about the release: "We'll be posting a trailer at the end of this month [January] / beginning of next. As for the game itself, we'll be releasing near the end of February." So, that's like, what, February 30th? Teehee, teehee... if you thought I was serious, come on. Come. On.
Kudo Tsunoda proudly proclaimed this statement at EA's Winter Preview today. However, it wasn't a remixed version of Revolution X that we were watching; instead, we were checking out the latest build of Def Jam: Icon, the upcoming brawler from EA Chicago. We've covered some of the basics of the fighting system in previous coverage, mentioning the invisible DJ, but we finally got a deeper grasp of just how music will influence every fight.
At the start of a battle, players choose a specific song that will represent their fighter. Choosing a song that you know well is important, because the downbeat of certain songs can trigger environmental hazards that can damage yourself or your opponent. For instance, one level that we saw had an electrical hazard that released arcing bolts of juice streaking from a malfunctioning power box. While there are some hazards that will constantly be around from the start of a fight, Kudo informed us that as time goes on during a battle, more hazards will be uncovered, making the stage much more dangerous to the combatants. So if your bass is truly banging, you can completely alter the landscape.
Jumping on the virtual ones and twos.
But you aren't limited to waiting for a beat before the environment blows up. Players can literally scratch the beat forward or backwards at any time to trigger hazards. In effect, the fighter becomes a DJ on invisible turntables, mixing up the rhythm of the stage to help him out. The left analog stick represents the left turntable and the right analog stick takes the right turntable. Scratch well enough, and you can use the music to cut through your opponent's defenses, flinging them from one hazard to another. However, your opponent has access to this move as well, meaning that skilled players can engage in scratch battles just like DJs do: the best player on the ones and twos can gain the upper hand.
But how do you defend against these momentum changing attacks? Well, first of all, players have the ability to do scratch stomps to squash a beat, so if your enemy is tearing up the digital vinyl, you can crush their groove. Secondly, if you're knocked down, you can do a quick scratch on the turntables to get back up. You also have the opportunity to try to flip the record to your own song, especially if your adversary has been playing their song for most of the battle. This gives you the chance to pump your fighter up and take your skills out on him. Finally, you have the ability to taunt your foes by hijacking their beats when they're knocked down. We noticed a number of times today where The Game would jump all over Big Boi's preferred song, laying down taunts while the member of Outkast was on the ground. The lyrics of that song would be slightly muted as the insults were hurled, just to make sure that you heard what your rival was saying. Sure, it might increase your beef with that rapper, but it's definitely a good way to flip the script on someone who's got a lot of momentum on their side.
Lay down some taunts while the environment crashes and burns.
Your fighters have a number of attacks that they can launch against their opponents, such as punches, kicks and grabs. Players can vary these attacks by throwing different directional modifiers in with these strikes, so players can knock an enemy to either the left, right or backwards along with just pounding them into the ground. Of course, depending on how you string these moves together, you can create different combos. But here's where the music comes in. Your music will play louder and stronger depending on how well you've been fighting, and that will boost the strength of your attacks, letting you knock enemies around much farther. This means that as time goes on and opponents get weaker, you'll be able to fling them halfway across the screen as you get an adrenaline rush from your song.
Don't know any of the licensed tracks that have been included in the game? Don't worry, because you'll be able to import your favorite songs into the game and use them to beat down your enemies. That means that any song on your system can potentially be a dangerous weapon in the game. Kudo told us about a fellow team member that likes to play with Sade's "Smooth Operator" to throw off his opponents. Others like using 80's tracks, prog rock, or speed metal. It doesn't take an active imagination to see that just about any musical preference can potentially be used against the computer or your friends. You'll also be able to use this to help you create your character, because your fighting style will be based on the kind of beats that you like to listen to.
To check out this system in action, Kudo showed off two new levels that we hadn't seen before. The neighborhood level evoked images of the Dirty South, with a double shotgun style house that had guys sitting on the porch watching the battle. A car pealed its tires on the asphalt and could be used to whip opponents, while fire hydrants sprayed massive jets of water into the air. Another car had a downed power transformer on its trunk that exploded in time with the music. The other level was a rooftop stage with a helicopter that hovered precariously overhead. Beats would drive the tail rotor into the roof for a vicious whip effect. Other areas on the stage featured the aforementioned power box hazard, as well as buildings whose lights were transformed into a virtual equalizer in tune with the rhythm of the songs.
If music is the weapon, then play on, playa, play on.
The recently unveiled Xbox 360 and PC Oblivion expansion, The Elder Scrolls IV: Shivering Isles, will also hit PS3 this year, Bethesda has said.
According to the developer Shivering Isles (due this spring for PC and 360) is about one quarter the size Cyrodiil, where Oblivion takes place. There'll be plenty to see and do but it's not just another gate to Oblivion: "Oblivion is made of lots of planes, one for each Daedric Prince. Oblivion featured the fiery realm of Mehrunes Dagon. The Shivering Isles is the realm of Sheogorath, the Daedric Prince of Madness. It's a place unlike anything you've seen in Oblivion," says the developer.
The good news is that Bethesda plans on a PS3 launch but whether it'll come bundled with the original, currently due for PS3's launch, remains to be seen. "It is our intention to make it available for PlayStation this year, but no release date has been set."
Expect to get around 30 hours of gameplay out of Shivering Isles. And before you ask, yes you can back and forth between Oblivion and Shivering Isles with your character whenever you like.
Next-generation consoles have suffered a slow week of sales in Japan, with the PlayStation 3 recording its worst figures since release.
According to data from Media Create, the PS3 sold 25,531 units for the week ending January 14.
Nintendo Wii sales were estimated at 93,708 units, the second worst week since it sold just over 85,000 units immediately after launch.
The news wasn't impressive for Microsoft either, with the Xbox 360 managing just over 9,000 units sold in the same period.
Sony recently announced it has shipped over a million units of the PS3 to Japanese retailers.
Looking at sales data for software, Wii Sports is the number one title in the region, selling over 61,000 units. Resistance: Fall of Man is the highest ranking PS3 title in the charts at number 40, while there are no Xbox 360 games in the top fifty at all.
GamesIndustry.biz has learned that Sony Computer Entertainment has chosen HMV as the official retail partner for the UK launch of PlayStation 3.
Sony is due to announce full details of the European PS3 launch and price point next week - but sources have previously told GI.biz that the 60GB model will hit the shops on March 23, priced at GBP 425.
Now a source has revealed that HMV will be Sony's official launch partner, with a special midnight event set to take place at the retailer's flagship Oxford Street store.
Neither Sony nor HMV would confirm the deal, with HMV games boss Tim Ellis telling GI.biz, "There are no confirmed plans just yet with Sony regarding the launch of PS3."
However, he added, "We are currently discussing a range of possible options. I can't say right now whether this will include an official launch event, as such, but it's certainly the case that more and more publishers and games companies are approaching HMV following the success of a number of major launches over the last few years."
Most recently, HMV hosted the launch event for World of Warcraft expansion pack The Burning Crusade, which took place on Monday night. According to Ellis, "The midnight launch attracted a staggering 1500 fans, making it by far the biggest event of its kind ever staged by our Oxford Circus store."
HMV was also Nintendo's official partner for the launch of the Wii in December, and was previously chosen by Sony as its partner for the PSP launch in September 2005.
There are two kinds of people in the world - Beatles fans and Elvis fans. Wait. Actually, there are two kinds of gamers in the world - graphics fans and gameplay fans. You can be a graphics fan and still value gameplay, or be a gameplay fan who appreciates graphics, but really, either visuals matter to you or they don't.
There's no questioning that the current generation of consoles, Xbox 360, PS3 and to a lesser extent, Wii, are all capable of gorgeous, eye-melting visuals. Alright, the Wii is definitely a solid generation behind. But, like it or not, the fact is that for many gamers, publishers and developers, a huge component of next-gen gaming are its next-gen visuals. Herein lies our discussion point for this piece, and we've sought opinions from the chaps in the know during a couple of recent meetings with Pandemic staff.
Back in December we caught up with Kirk Gibbons, Art Director at Pandemic LA and Adam Myhill, Senior Technical Artist at Pandemic Brisbane, at the Australian Game Developer's Conference. On our more recent trip to Pandemic, we sat down with John Passfield, Creative Director and Morgan Jaffit, Lead Designer.
Although interviewed in separate sessions, both parties shared very interesting correlations on the importance of strong design. However, they also admit that technology and tools are a major factor in the retail success of a title in the eyes of the consumer. Full article
Don't mind Bill's trash talk about the Cell processor; surely he would approve of you running Windows on it! Well, not exactly directly on the Cell processor ... rather through the QEMU virtualization software running in Yellow Dog Linux on the PlayStation 3, as shown at the PlayStation.com forums. Thanks to the ability to install alternative operating systems, curious (and masochistic) gamers can load up all sorts of crazy things on their PS3s. We'd like to see someone load up Windows Media Center and use it to stream video from their PS3 to their Xbox 360. Or maybe, install that x86 build of Mac OS X in QEMU under Linux, then run Windows XP via Parallels under that, and then run VMWare running Linux under that. And then get the hell out of there before your PS3 implodes.
The giant monster genre doesn't get enough love these days. Fortunately, the fine folks at SouthPeak Interactive are taking advantage of the PS3's dirth of quality monster fighting games and unleashing Monster Madness: Battle for Suburbia on the unsupecting populace.
"The top-down shooter allows up to four players to battle a monster invasion in a suburban setting. In addition to a cooperative mode, the game will feature multiplayer onlinebattles for up to 16 players."
Well, the official Sony webpage has pulled the February release of MotorStorm and replaced it with "Spring". While that, to some, may say "oops", don't worry. What happens in March? Oh yeah, Spring. IGN contacted Sony to give this vague release date change a little more focus. Do you wonder what they found out? Let's raise the curtain and shed some light on the situation.
Sony says: "The team is doing some additional fine tuning and getting the online features squared away so they are taking a bit more time. It'll come out in March, though we [won't] make the specific date public yet." If you read any impressions on the Japanese release of MotorStorm, you'll have heard of a barren game with no additional options other than "race". So, let's give these developers the benefit of the doubt and allow them the honor of tweaking online play and whatever other options so we get the amazing off-road madness we so desperately desire.
Last March, EA released what it had hoped would be its answer to the open world genre dominated by Grand Theft Auto. It featured some interesting new ideas like the ability to take over fronts and build up your empire, along with of course a very strong storyline taken straight from the films. It wasn't perfect, but EA wasn't finished. With the Xbox 360 release half a year later, the next-gen version of The Godfather saw the addition of new content, online rankings, new abilities and more, making it something of an expanded edition of the original release.
The game is now headed to the PlayStation 3 and Wii by the names of The Godfather: The Don's Edition and The Godfather: Blackhand Edition, respectively. The two games will be identical content-wise aside from the PlayStation 3 version's online leaderboard rankings, the same that we saw on the 360. Other than the differing control mechanisms, the two versions will feature the same new additions over the 360 version, making these the biggest Godfather releases yet.
The Don's Edition for the PS3 will make use of the SIXAXIS' motion sensing functionality for use with interrogations and some melee combat. If someone is on their knees, you just pull the controller in an upwards manner to lift them off the ground. Moving the controller from side to side will yank them around, and pushing it forward and then releasing the grab buttons will shove them away. The rest of the controls are as we've seen in past versions of the game - steering and general movement is done with the analog sticks.
EA looks to have not only added some new features to The Godfather for these releases, but tweaked some old mechanics as well for easier play. For example, while you're still able to cycle through weapons one-by-one, a quick-select wheel has been implemented that works something like what you'd find in Ratchet & Clank.or Trauma Center. As well, the skill tree has been expanded a great deal to encompass Enforcer and Operator branches. Essentially, these give you more control over various upgrades to your character while also providing more specific bonuses, like the ability to heal faster or call in a hit squad faster.
Speaking of the hit squad, that's one of the cooler new elements that we saw on display. While you're still able to hire someone to stick with you on a mission, you're now able to call in the Corleone hit squad, a group of four men that come to your assistance and lay waste to anyone around you. They'll stick with you for a while, allowing you to take a small army into a mission to take down a rival family.
Similarly, the cops can now also fight for you. You can bribe them in the same way that you could before, where they'll look the other way while you take over an establishment, but you can now pay the entire police force to take to the streets and help you take out a rival family. Combined with the hit squad, you're able to take exponentially more help with you on a mission than before.
A series of new environments will also make their way into the game. Rooftop areas will now be rather common, with plenty of shootouts taking place high above the city. A couple new transportation hubs will find their way into the games as well, namely a train station and a shipyard. Taking these over will earn you a lot more loot than a barber shop or something similar, making them prime targets on your way to the top.
Lastly, the variety in The Godfather has been greatly expanded for the Wii and PS3 versions of the game. Each family will now have their own unique compound, unlike before where they were essentially copies of each other. More pedestrians and vehicles will fill the roads and sidewalks in the game, and more unique models for each will help spice things up. Oh, and speaking of cars, you'll now be able to take them and their passengers out with the new car bombs, one of the unlockable skills you can earn. Cool stuff.
The Godfather: The Don's Edition and The Godfather: Blackhand Edition are set to make their debut on March 20th.
Look, we're not going to lie to you. Virtua Tennis 3 plays an awful lot like previous Virtua Tennis games. This isn't a title that reinvents the wheel. It doesn't swap racquets out in favour of blazing tennis guitars (*note to self: patent tennis guitars*), transforming rallies into duelling solos. Nor does it shift the setting to aboard a space zeppelin, where the tennis rock operas of the future are sure to be played out, instead opting for more humble Earthly locations such as New York and Melbourne. No, the Virtua Tennis 3 story is much like the one by Charles Darwin; a tale of evolution. It may not be a brand new game - far from it in fact, but with each iteration Sega come closer and closer to tennis perfection.
The meat of the game lies, once again, in the World Tour mode, so we'll give you the guided tour. Player creation options aren't staggeringly complex, but you'll certainly be able to put together a freakish looking creation… should that be your goal. Which, if you're anything like us, it probably will be. Basic options include choosing height and weight, then selecting skin tone, eye colour, hair, hair colour, eyebrows, eyebrow colour, beard and beard colour. Perhaps the option that gives you the most power is the face shape tool, breaking your player's face into three categories - eye shape, nose shape and mouth shape. Each can be adjusted using the right analogue stick. You'll have your half man, half puffer fish up and playing in no time. Once you're happy with your player's look, there are a few other decisions to be made, most importantly whether you're left or right handed, and which animations you'd like for serving, receiving and hitting the ball. Pretty standard stuff really.
With that out of the way, you're whisked off to the globe hub map to choose the location of your secret lair. Sorry, home base. From here you can access your mail (gee, thanks for giving me a wristband for winning my first tournament, Coach!) and the calendar, where you can check out a week by week breakdown of the tournaments you may want to play in. As you'd expect, the World Tour mode kicks off with your player ranked 300 in the world, with no stats to speak of. Fortunately, there are a whole host of training mini-games to take part in, each designed to hone your skills in a particular area. Several of these return from previous games, while others are fresh off the designer's notepad. Each training session takes up a week, as does resting - which you'll need to do from time to time when your stamina levels get low enough.
Even though the BDA association (that's Blu-ray) isn't technically against porn, they sure are making it hard for any porn to get produced on Blu-ray. Sony's just announced that it won't allow its subsidiary, Sony DADC Global, from producing any adult film titles. Seeing as Sony DADC is pretty much the largest Blu-ray disc producer, without their support it's near impossible to get any discs out there.
Of course, the adult industry could find another Blu-ray disc manufacturer to step up and make their discs, but they seem to be going the HD DVD route instead. However, HD DVD's not running out into the streets yelling, "Look at us! If you want next-gen porn, come here!
1UP examines the differences in American and Japanese game design including philosophies, camera control, save points, cultural interpretations, and linearity. Here are a few abridged concepts outlining why our games may be so different:
Americans are big on individuality, hence they like free-roaming environments in games
Japanese favor cinematic presentation over the added control of free-roaming cameras
American designers generally aim for realism whereas the Japanese seem to prefer more stylized graphics
The right to bear arms and a strong military influence could be the reason Americans prefer FPSs more than the Japanese where a military presence is almost non-existent
In essence, both societies rely heavily on their respective cultures for inspiration when making games. That's not to say the two don't have a lot in common, however; censorship of violent games is a contested topic in both countries.
Square Enix is spreading the love on Final Fantasy XIII pretty evenly between Japan's biggest game publications. Following up on our earlier reports from Famitsu, we have even more info from the pages ofDengeki PlayStation and Famitsu PS2.
In Dengeki, FFXIII director Motome Toriyama said, "The intensity of the opening scene -- it's probably the most in the Final Fantasy series so far." The game's opening will consist of a real time battle scene whose intensity Toriyama promises will surpass what's been shown in the few trailers release for the game so far.
Toriyama also clarified some points on the relationship between the Cocoon world and the world below it. FFXIII's story begins as something from the lower world invades the Cocoon, causing a panic. The people of Cocoon are generally afraid of the outside world, and anyone who is believed to have received outside influence is forced out of Cocoon. Toriyama likened this "influence" to a virus.
The biggest concern amongst Cocoon residents is that of their home falling from the sky. People who do things that could make Cocoon fall from the sky, and people who are ablieved to have the ability to do such things, are deported from Cocoon.
Closing up his comments with Dengeki, Toriyama promised some surprises for the celebration of Final Fantasy's 20th anniversary this year, as well as a chance to get our hands on Final Fantasy XIII as soon as possible. The first 20th anniversary surprise came recently with the announcement of the Final Fantasy 1 and 2 remakes for the PSP. Let's hope the second part of Toriyama's promise isn't too far off.
Tetsuya Nomura had a few comments of his own with Dengeki, regarding both FFXIII and FF Versus XIII. Nomura, character designer for FFXIII, shared some details on the mysterious blonde-haired guy who appears at the end of the latest FFXIII trailer. He's a big guy, Nomura revealed, adding that the design specs for the character called for someone big enough to run while carrying two people around. Recently, it was decided that his foot size would be 33 centimeters.
He wouldn't reveal the relationship between this character and Lightning, the game's main character, except to say that it will be something different that what we've seen so far. Other friendly characters will appear in the game, of course, although Nomura admitted to currently being in the middle of the design process.
Nomura has more involvement in the Versus project, on which he's serving as director. While nothing but CG has been shown for the game so far, he said that due to the power of the PS3, the game should be able to feature battles set in areas with great differences in height, just like in the trailer. Players will have to fight using the full environment, both directly in front of them and above and below.
The trailer showed the still nameless main character warping about while taking out enemies. Nomura explained that players wont be able to warp freely to every spot on the battle field. However, you will be able to warp to the location where you've placed your sword. You can also throw your sword into the distance, then warp to it. This is one area of the game where Nomura and crew are currently conducting tests.
Also hinted at the trailer is that the main character will be fighting by himself. That won't be the case in the final version. You'll fight along side party members who have their own abilities and weapons. We can expect something similar to Kingdom Hearts, said Nomura.
Nomura added one more important bit when discussing FF Versus XIII with Famitsu PS2. Asked what type of PS3-only features the game will have, he mentioned Six Axis support. He didn't go into specifics.
Like FFXIII, we're sure you're wondering when you'll be able to get your hands on FF Versus XIII. Nomura has mentioned previously that development on the Versus XIII project is trailing that of its sister project. While Toriyama was able to suggest a playable version of FFXIII in the not so distant future, Nomura stated that he's already come up with ideas for the next Versus XIII trailer, which he promises will be extremely cool.
"Wait till next year." Easily one of the worst phrases any sports fan can utter, those four words are the last attempt to absolve teams of mistakes or lackluster play over a season. The same can be said for some games. While some of the concepts behind Major League Baseball 2K6 were good ideas, their implementation was less than stellar. Whether it was the baserunning issues, fielding problems or visually tame player models, MLB 2K6 seemed more like it was in the minor leagues at times.
What a difference a year makes. Instead of trying to brush off the issues that plagued the previous game with a load of new features, 2K Sports decided to completely overhaul the pre-existing title. Don't think that this is a step backwards at all though, as the core features of the game that worked well have been retained while other aspects are being re-tuned and fixed. 2K Sports stopped by a few days ago, and showed off a number of the improvements to the next gen versions of the franchise, and the attention to detail is definitely noticeable. For instance, the design team wanted to bring little nuances to each player's game, so they decided to implement what they're calling Signature Style for each player.
Everything from a player's batting rituals at the plate to facial expressions have been captured in this year's game, making them seem like their real-life counterparts. Player accessories have also been personalized as well, so if an athlete wears things like baggy pants, wrist bands or a certain type of glove, they'll be properly represented. Player models have also been improved to with accurate physiques for each athlete. No longer are there simply tall or stocky character models; larger players like Bartolo Colon or C.C. Sabathia will actually have guts in the game (maybe now they'll actually hit a treadmill -- although I'm not holding my breath).
There've also been some subtle changes to some of last year's features. The Inside Edge scouting system does make a return to MLB 2K7, although there's now a bit more of a bonus system provided to batters. If a particular pitcher has been scouted before the game, and a batter uses this information to guess where a ball may be going in a particular hot or cold zone, they'll receive additional power on their swing. The controversial sprinting mechanic, which could give some players a superhuman burst of speed as long as you had quick fingers, does make a return in 2K7, although it has been redesigned. Now, the burst has been downgraded to a more realistic and manageable level. As for fielding, players will notice a couple of changes to last year's Pure Motion Physics system. Not only will guys back up positions on some plays, accurately responding with relay and cutoff men, but fielders will smoothly get in position to make the catch, planting and adjusting to make the play. This addresses the stuttering animation issues that hampered throws or dives last year.
Now, while this is the first time that 2K Sports has brought baseball to the PS3, they're still planning on taking advantage of the SIXAXIS controller when you're at the plate. To use the feature, players keep the controller level in front of them, and simply push the controller forward to make contact with the ball. Now, you can push or pull the ball to the left or the right by twisting the controller in those directions. Similarly, you can influence whether you're going to try to pop the ball up or aim for a ground ball by pushing the controller up or down in a 30 degree angle. It seems to take a little getting used to, but once you've got the hang of it, it's a creative use of the motion sensitivity mechanic.
Fans of the 2K series will also pick up on some of the other touches that have been included to make the game seem much more natural or vibrant. For one thing, players will notice pitchers sent out to bullpens to warm up during a game. Umpires will have their own personality, which can affect their tolerance towards a call that a player may want to argue. Some may be willing to take a little jawing, while others will be quick to start tossing players out of the game. You'll notice different camera angles that frame the action from the mound to the plate. In particular, we were impressed by the Dirt Cam and Grass Cam, which presented sharp details of on-field action. This is especially cool when you're watching a replay of baserunning, which has received a facelift. No longer will you see large numbers in the corners of the screen to represent a base. Now, you'll find a runner moving on the screen via a transparent overlay, with bases appearing as he nears them. These technical improvements will be supported with a stronger presence from the commentary crew. Jeanne Zelasko and Steve Physioc will have a much more in-depth presentation before the start of games, and Jon Miller and Joe Morgan will once again anchor the solid play-by-play for each game.
Other features from the previous game, like Franchise mode and GM Career mode, have gotten minor tweaks as well. For instance, Franchise mode has received a visual makeover (which kind of looks like "Franchise for Windows"), with pulldown menus and information broken out in a more visually segmented way. GM Career mode, on the other hand, now has a low level economic system, where players will set ticket prices and handle other promotional aspects of a club. Plus, for those GMs that want to take on competition, online league play will be available for players to test their skills.
We've written a number of previews on it already, but SEGA's highly-anticipated Virtua Fighter 5 is finally in our offices. This means that we could sit down and try features we had only heard about before, or spend additional time with things we had to rush through at gaming events. The new Quest, Customize, and VF.TV modes stand out in particular, and there were a few surprises to be found as well.
The first stop that most v-fighters should make is at the rather extensive customization screen. It's a lot more detailed than the character modifier from VF Evo, and it gives players the opportunity to equip items won in battle onto ten different sections of the body (including their face, hips, wrists, legs, and feet to name a few). To keep things interesting, combatants are also given a maximum encumbrance level that limits how much stuff they can wear at once (illustrated with a 10-point system). Some items are worth more points than others and even if you haven't equipped every section of your body, if your item points exceed 10, then you can't equip anything else.
As you might expect, the huge range of items that players can toy around with alters their fighter's look pretty drastically. Users can unlock or purchase an incredible number of costume alterations and add-ons ranging from standard jackets and shirts to the more exotic swords, shurikens, and face masks. Even better is that gamers can now customize four different costumes for a single character instead just two, and you can save up to 30 unique characters per game. Bizarrely, the rather useless "red contact lenses" have made their return from Evo and can be equipped as well, but why anyone would want to spend their money on this barely noticeable addition is beyond me,
The meatiest and most addictive option, of course, is the aforementioned Quest mode -- which is essentially a beefed up version of the like-named Kumite revamp from Virtua Fighter 4: Evolution. Its premise is simple: take one of the characters you've customized above and throw them into the wild and wacky world of arcade dominance. Illustrated with a surprisingly old-gen menu interface, the city is shown as an icon-based map that allows competitors to hop from virtual arcade to virtual arcade. There are seven coin-op havens in all, and they're the ideal place to rack up ranking points, items, money, and other goodies (you can still go up ranks in standard arcade or versus matches too). There's even an "Orb Disc" that you can fill with spheres earned in special bouts that allows you extremely rare and unique items as you progress.
The systems on sale today are great in their own way but none apart from the made for homebrew GP2X handheld console support Homebrew and Emulation.
So what got me thinking is could a Homebrew Console (like a Wii/PS3 etc) be done and done cheaply but with a decent enough spec for Homebrewers and Independent Programmers to learn their craft on.
Any homebrew console really would need i would say a processor of 700Mhz, at least 64MB of ram or even 128mb ram. A decent graphics chip that can do 2d and 3D.
For storage and maybe a virtual Memory option say use SD Cards, cd/dvd drives are expensive and break a lot so a static device would be longer lasting ?
Maybe USB ports and possibly a VGA Out.
You can see where im going with this but for what price could this realistically be done and also what specs would you include. I for one think Wifi would be needed for Online Homebrew games.
Now if only someone would take this Dream and develop it.
It's still early on to tell whether this is actually true, but HD DVD cracker muslix64 is back, and with the help of another anti-DRM cracker, Janvitos, claims to have also broken the Blu-ray's implementation of AACS. Although their protection does not yet account for BD+ copy-protection, they claim to have been able to implement the same key-grabbing known-plaintext attack as muslix64 used to crack HD DVD in order to successfully to crack Blu-ray without even using a disc or drive (apparently they just used a raw encrypted data file and nothing more). Unfortunately they haven't yet posted code for us to test this out, so we'll have to take their word for it for the time being.
So... there have been four other Burnout games? Really? Geez, must've missed the boat on that one. Perhaps they jumped consoles every other time or something, but I really don't recall four other of these games -- maybe two. Anyway, some new info has surfaced about the fifth title in the Burnout series. What's the info? Well, pretty much everything. Too much to even begin to list, but we'll try.
Cars will have over 80 different parts that will react realistically upon explosion, crash, wall-bashing, etc. Crashing is one of the main focal points Criterion is going for -- if it looks crappy, it's not next-gen to them.
Don't be confused, they're going for real physics, but not realistic physics: "Real physics don't make for great gameplay all the time. If we want to blow the car up, we'll blow the car up. Like when they blew up the Death Star--there's no fire in space."
Audio is getting a major facelift, but through non-traditional means: "Going back to the idea that absolutely real is a bit boring, there's a lot of audio in there that isn't traditional." Examples include trees, electricity, and apes screeching in agony. For crashes, apparently.
No longer are there "areas" or "tracks"... a seamless world awaits you! As Criterion said, "We analyzed the layouts of some big American cities and cross-referenced those against the best tracks from previous Burnouts. We can't go actual size--we've had to be a little constrained-- but we're definitely bigger than any other open world in any other racing game."
To get to the end of these "open worlds", it would take about five or six minutes of top-speed, uninterrupted driving.
Tilt function will be used in full -- one such use will be to control the way your car flips and spins, including the direction.
The L2 and R2 buttons will be more sensitive, now used for the brake and accelerator, respectively. So, press down real hard on the gas at the get-go, you'll get a (giggle) burnout. Braking hard is always good, though. Always.
There will be downloadable content -- possibly different play modes for download.
Hmm, call me crazy, but I'd rather take Final Fantasy XIII's Lightning out for coffee than Heavenly Sword's Nariko. Why? Uhhh... check out the latest screens/scans from the latter's game and you tell us. Yeah, you'd feel safe if Nariko was having a good time and you suddenly get surrounded by a plethora of ninjas, but what if she asked for decaf and you forgot? Something tells me she'd be less receptive than Lightning.
Anyway, these latest scans show the long red-haired heroine dealing some major deathblows to some masked peons, as well as Jeux-France's confirmation that indeed, the game is due out in March for the North American crowd. Which is really strange, since the latest EGM threw this title out in their "Fall '07" lineup. But of course, this is the same EGM who hosted a poll asking "What's wrong with the PlayStation Store" and 55% of the voters said "It's not XBox Live". I mean, I don't like cheese because it isn't ice cream. Sure, both are dairy, but I'm ignorant and take advantage of a poll without any screening questions.
Wow, we're getting off topic. Although, not much to be on topic about. Check out the scans and get pumped up for March!
Screens Here
Google is currently in talks to buy in-game ads company Adscape, a company that specialises in technology that allows adverts to be placed in online videogames.
According to a report in The Wall Street Journal, a deal could be announced as early as this week.
"We are always considering new ways to extend Google's advertising program to benefit our users, advertisers and publishers," said a spokesperson for Google.
"In-game advertising offers one such possible extension among many others," said the company.
The deal would follow Microsoft's purchase last May of Massive Inc, a firm that has numerous gaming partners including 2K Sports, Codemasters, Eidos, Konami and NCsoft.
UK trade paper MCV has printed ChartTracks' All Prices Top Ten for games sold between Jan 1 and Dec 30, 2006. FIFA 07 and PES 6 take first and second place respectively, proving that the world's greatest game is the most popular videogame money can buy.
These were the biggest selling games of last year. The top ten list in full:
FIFA 07
Pro Evolution Soccer 6
Need For Speed: Carbon
Grand Theft Auto: Liberty City Stories
LEGO Star Wars II: The Original Trilogy
The Sims 2 Pets
Cars
Tomb Raider: Legend
The Sims 2
WWE Smackdown! Vs Raw 2007
Ryan Jones, general manager of Electronic Arts Australia, has said that he believes the console cycle transition phase is now at an end - and that game prices are set to fall as a result.
As reported by Australian news site TheAge, Jones said, "I think it's safe to say that we're just about done with transition.
"Retail will show strong growth with the investment of GAME into the market, and it bodes well for the future having two strong specialists in the market as they tend to hold pricing and discount less to drive sales," he continued.
"On that point though, we do see next-gen pricing drifting down to AU $99 [EUR 60] by the end of the calendar year for all premium new releases." At present, full price Xbox 360 games retail for AU $120 (EUR 73) in Australia - the same price PS3 titles are expected to cost when the console launches there. Wii games sell for AU $100.
"We've had very successful next-gen launches in 360 and Wii, and with PS3 launching in March its initial success has become less significant," Jones said.
"Longer term it's hard to say who will win the console war out of the three hardware platforms but three strong platforms is certainly better than one strong, one average and one failure.
According to Jones the Nintendo DS is still enjoying strong growth, which he believes will make the handheld "a strong bet" for third-party publishers.
"We might see Nintendo's dominance on their own platforms challenged for the first time," he added.
"The challenges will be maximising the retail opportunities with so many different platforms in the market and limited growth in retail real estate in the medium term."
The folks at 'The 1up Show' had the chance to interview David Jaffe, the well-known designer behind God of War. They discuss his upcoming project for the PS3, Calling All Cars, the future of the God of War series, as well as the ever-increasing price of making games. From the article:
"A lot of games recently it's cell phone, PC, DS, PSP, if you look at EA they blanket it -- it's everywhere. As a gamer, I kind of miss the 'you can only get it on this system.' There's kind of an excitement that was about that back up until recently. With this new hardware, though, that idea is seems to be going away. Is it really all going to come down to first party now? Or it ultimately going to come to one system? 'Cause 10 years from now there's going to be one system because there's so much more third party software than first party software from any hardware manufacturer. It may not be feasible to make it the war of the first party or the war of the exclusives."
PS3 sales in Japan haven't cooled off, they've frozen. Consoles sit on shelves as gamers wait it out: Waiting for actual games to appear or prices to drop. Retailers, on the other hand, are an impatient lot. Retailers are also buying "used" PS3s at much lower prices than previously, paying well under the original sticker price. Just look at how the Don Quijote in Akihabara is slicing 20 percent off the 20GB PLAYSTATION 3. Nice 20-20 irony. The 20GB version originally books at 49,980 yen (US $412), but is being offered for 39,980 yen ($329) in a sale ending February. The shop is knocking a flat 10,000 yen ($82) right now. Japanese bulletin board 2chan reports that this at other Don Quijotes as well. It's interesting to check out the PS3 vibe at 2chan; Reasons for not buying go from "there are no games I want" to "video stores don't rent Blu-ray movies." Well, not yet that is.
This is not for sale, I repeat, this is not for sale. Japan's T-ZONE.PC DIY SHOP (their caps and wacky punctuation, not mine) has outfitted a PS3 with external HDD for funnsies. The shop is rather famous for modding game consoles and putting them on display. This go round aimed to prove that it was possible to install large HDDs. With the demo, mirroring was do-able but data stripping wasn't. Just know: This sort of modding isn't recommended by the manufacture or even the store at that! (When is it?)
Are you ready for some business-related math? While it may be attributed to the translation of the page (my browser screws up... if yours pauses for a minute and asks you to stop the script or continue... just stop it), the release date for the upcoming title Alone in the Dark is difficult to understand. The fourth trimester of this year, meaning the fourth quarter, right? But the slated date is the first quarter of 2008, which is the fourth fiscal quarter of 2007. Seriously, let's just expect it around the holidays.
The game is coming along nicely, it seems. Set for simultaneous release across the major next-gen consoles (except Wii, because this game is just too damn pretty for a motion-sensing GameCube) and PC, the game is set up similar to a Noir film, or a mystery novel. Heck, we could even say it's an interactive miniseries. There are about 12 episodes, each "running" approximately 40 minutes (but your explorative nature could run the "show" over an hour for each episode) and concluding with a cliffhanger. Looks sweet. We'll keep an eye out.
Original Guitar Hero developer Harmonix has confirmed last week's rumours that Neversoft will be handling Guitar Hero 3, while it goes after a new project.
Speaking to Gamasutra producer Daniel Sussman said, "Here's the official line: Harmonix can confirm that we are not developing Guitar Hero 3. We are instead working on a different music game project, one that is a bigger and more ambitious endeavour than we felt we could pursue within the bounds of the Guitar Hero franchise."
Publisher Activision has yet to make any official announcements regarding the future of the Guitar Hero franchise.
Five new screenshots of the latest revamped and Unreal Engine 3-powered Turok have stomped on to the internet - and it's looking gorgeous on PS3 and Xbox 360.
After the crushing disappointment of the last Acclaim-developed instalment we're hoping that BVG's next-gen stab will turn out to be a welcome return to form for the series - and going on what we've seen thus far it just might happen.
The PlayStation 3 will launch in Europe on March 23 for £425, says games mag Edge
In a post on its website, Edge says that it has been advised by a source wishing to remain nameless that the PlayStation 3 will "definitely launch in the UK on March 23 at £425".
Both the date and price have been strongly touted via internet rumours over the last few weeks.
Last week Sony said that the official price and date would be announced early this week, though semi-official blog Three Speach now claims that the announcment has now been pushed back a few days to either "Thursday or Friday".
When we picked up the phone Sony unfortunately wasn't around to give us their official line on the Edge report - but we'll be sure to let you know when they get back to us.
So would you but a PS3 at £425? Or have you already imported one? Share your verdict in the comments section below.
While one may argue that a computer doesn't talk back, disagree, or rub one the wrong way as we're sure just about everyone's spouse / SO definitely can, you must have somehow avoided the BSOD, kernel error, 404, clicking HDD, invalid drivers, and the host of other "cyber stresses" that can elicit all sorts of rage and frustration. A recent survey conducted by Kelton Research discovered that a majority of Americans (52-percent) said their "most recent experience with a computer problem provoked emotions such as anger, sadness or alienation," yet a whopping 65-percent of these same folks spend more time with their beloved computer than their own spouse. Adding even more fuel to the computer addict fire, 84-percent of responders stated that they were "more dependent on their home computer now than they were just three years ago." Interestingly enough, rather than founding some sort of rehab facility to coax folks away from the keyboard and back into reality, SupportSoft is looking to provide loving, caring advice to help folks suffering from "cyber stress" solve their PC troubles without tearing down the house. Essentially, the service actually encourages folks glued to their computer to stay that way, as the new startup looks to provide answers to the issues that could eventually run even the most loyal computer user back to their oft forgotten spouse, but the company does insinuate that by solving PC quandaries, folks will have more time to spend when the ones they love. Nevertheless, we can't say these figures are entirely shocking, especially when you consider that folks would take an iPod over booze and nearly anything trendy for an SO.
Like your home rolled media center do ya? Well tell us this, can yours throw down against dual integrated CableCARDs, Blu-ray, HD DVD and more than 3TB of RAID-5 protected storage? Definitely not since you haven't managed to skirt the CableLabs certification process... have you? Well, VidaBox's latest all-in-ones can, at least they will once they begin shipping in March 2007. Each new media center system will be engineered to record two HD shows while playing back your choice of a pre-recorded show from disk, Blu-ray or HD DVD media, high fidelity music, upscaled DVD, or digital picture slideshow. Not sure if those optical drives will be writers or read-only devices but we'll guess the latter -- just like their MAX and LUX dual-drive systems. While pricing or specific models were announced, you can expect 'em to drop for more than $5k as their new, top-o-the-line systems.
The PlayStation 3 is set to receive another backwards compatibility boost in the next couple of days, as Sony readies a version 1.5 firmware update for the US and Japan.
Already listed on the PS3 website in Japan, where it's due out on 24th January, the update also introduces support for the "Edy" system prepaid smartcards, allowing owners to buy content from the online store without having to rely on a credit card.
Edy is currently used to charge certain mobile phones, and uses Sony's FeliCa technology, although it's only available in Japan, where users will need an appropriate card reader attached to the PS3 to take advantage.
Other additions in version 1.5 include Korean language input options.
Team Ninja boss Tomonobu Itagaki has been leaking words again, talking about everything from the misunderstood Dead or Alive Xtreme 2 to how much he likes Wii.
It turns out that he's not particularly bowled over by Sony's next-gen efforts though; apparently there are no games that grab him.
"There's no launch titles that create within me an urge to search all over Tokyo to find a PS3 so I can play them," he told 1UP in a recent interview.
"The only thing I've seen running on a PS3 is Ninja Gaiden Sigma..." Which happens to be coming along very well, thank you very much, though he didn't say anything more about it.
In contrast he's very impressed with Nintendo, suggesting that he'd like to work with Wii when he finishes his current projects. He envisions himself holding a Japanese sword, that's the kind of frame of mind he's in, scarily.
"I thought it would be good, but I didn't think it would be this good. I do think now that there are more types of games that are suitable for this machine than I actually thought."
Itagaki was speaking in the aftermath of DOAX2's critical panning. He maintains that the game was misunderstood, saying it was a parody of Japanese TV shows featuring girls in bikinis, something that the US and Europe don't have.
"It's almost kind of a joke, a throwback to that, something to make you laugh."
He reckons it's still the best example of the genre on the market though, but that might be because it's a made up genre and DOAX2 is the only game in it.
America's Academy of Interactive Arts and Sciences has announced the nominees for its 2006 awards, with Epic's Gears of War scoring ten nominations including Overall Game of the Year.
The 10th Annual Interactive Achievement Awards take place in Las Vegas next month as part of the D.I.C.E. Summit, and awards games for achievements in animation, art direction, sound design and story and character development, amongst others.
Along with Gears of War's ten nominations, Bethesda's The Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion and Nintendo's The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess have scored six nominations each.
The full list of nominees and categories follows:
Overall Game of the Year
Gears of War (Epic Games/Microsoft Game Studios)
Wii Sports (Nintendo/Nintendo)
The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess (Nintendo/Nintendo)
Guitar Hero 2 (Harmonix/Activision/Red Octane)
Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion (Bethesda Softworks/2K Games)
Console Game of the Year
Gears of War (Epic Games/Microsoft Game Studios)
The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess (Nintendo/Nintendo)
Wii Sports (Nintendo/Nintendo)
Guitar Hero 2 (Harmonix/Activision/Red Octane)
Viva Piñata (Rare/Microsoft Game Studios)
Computer Game of the Year
Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion (Bethesda Softworks/2K Games)
Battlefield 2142 (D.I.C.E./Electronic Arts)
Prey (Human Head Games/2K Games)
Age of Empires III: The Warchiefs (Ensemble Studios/Microsoft Game Studios)
Outstanding Innovation in Gaming
Wii Sports (Nintendo/Nintendo)
Brain Age: Train Your Brain in Minutes a Day (Nintendo/Nintendo)
Gears of War (Epic Games/Microsoft Game Studios)
Viva Piñata (Rare/Microsoft Game Studios)
LocoRoco (Sony Computer Entertainment/Sony Computer Entertainment)
Handheld Game of the Year
LocoRoco (Sony Computer Entertainment/Sony Computer Entertainment)
Elite Beat Agents (Nintendo/Nintendo) New Super Mario Bros. (Nintendo/Nintendo)
Brain Age: Train Your Brain in Minutes a Day (Nintendo/Nintendo)
Lego Star Wars II: The Original Trilogy (TT Games/Lucas Arts)
Outstanding Achievement in Animation
Gears of War (Epic Games/Microsoft Game Studios)
Daxter (ReadyatDawn/Sony Computer Entertainment)
Lego Star Wars II: The Original Trilogy (TT Games/Lucas Arts)
Rayman Raving Rabidds (Ubisoft Montpellier/Ubisoft)
Fight Night Round 3 (EA Sports/Electronic Arts)
Outstanding Achievement in Art Direction
Gears of War (Epic Games/Microsoft Game Studios)
Final Fantasy XII (Square Enix/Square Enix)
Call of Duty 3 (Treyarch/Activision)
Tom Clancy's Rainbow Six: Vegas (Ubisoft Montreal/Ubisoft)
Viva Piñata (Rare/Microsoft Game Studios)
Outstanding Achievement in Soundtrack
Guitar Hero 2 (Harmonix/Activision/Red Octane)
SingStar Rocks! (Sony Computer Entertainment London/Sony Computer Entertainment)
FIFA '07 (Electronic Arts Canada/Electronic Arts)
Marc Ecko's Getting Up (The Collective/Atari)
Scarface (Radical Entertainment/Sierra Entertainment)
Outstanding Achievement in Original Music Composition
Call of Duty 3 (Treyarch/Activision)
LocoRoco (Sony Computer Entertainment/Sony Computer Entertainment)
Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion (Bethesda Softworks/2K Games)
Tom Clancy's Splinter Cell: Double Agent (Ubisoft Shanghai/Ubisoft)
Black (Criterion Games/Electronic Arts)
Outstanding Achievement in Sound Design
Call of Duty 3 (Treyarch/Activision)
Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion (Bethesda Softworks/2K Games)
Tom Clancy's Ghost Recon Advanced Warfighter (Redstorm Studios/Ubisoft Paris/Ubisoft)
Tom Clancy's Splinter Cell: Double Agent (Ubisoft Shanghai/Ubisoft)
Company of Heroes (Relic/THQ)
Outstanding Character Performance - Male
Gears of War (Epic Games/Microsoft Game Studios)
Tom Clancy's Splinter Cell: Double Agent(Ubisoft Shanghai/Ubisoft)
Bully (Rockstar Games/Rockstar Games)
Lego Star Wars II: The Original Trilogy (TT Games/Lucas Arts)
Daxter (ReadyatDawn/Sony Computer Entertainment)
Outstanding Achievement in Character Performance - Female
Outstanding Achievement in Story and Character Development
Sam and Max Episode 1: Culture Shock (GameTap/Telltale Games)
Saints Row (Volition/THQ)
24: The Game (Sony Online Entertainment/2K Games)
The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess (Nintendo/Nintendo)
Dreamfall: The Longest Journey (Funcom/Aspyr)
Outstanding Achievement in Game Play Engineering
Wii Sports (Nintendo/Nintendo)
Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion (Bethesda Softworks/2K Games)
The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess (Nintendo/Nintendo)
Gears of War (Epic Games/Microsoft Game Studios)
Company of Heroes (Relic/THQ)
Outstanding Achievement in Online Game Play
Call of Duty 3 (Treyarch/Activision)
Tom Clancy's Ghost Recon Advanced Warfighter (Redstorm Studios/Ubisoft Paris/Ubisoft)
Gears of War (Epic Games/Microsoft Game Studios)
Chromehounds (From Software/Sega of America)
Battlefield 2142 (D.I.C.E./Electronic Arts)
Outstanding Achievement in Visual Engineering
Viva Piñata (Rare/Microsoft Game Studios)
Resistance: Fall of Man (Insomniac Games/Sony Computer Entertainment)
Gears of War (Epic Games/Microsoft Game Studios)
Call of Duty 3 (Treyarch/Activision)
Company of Heroes (Relic/THQ)
Outstanding Achievement in Game Design
Wii Sports (Nintendo/Nintendo)
Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion (Bethesda Softworks/2K Games)
Company of Heroes (Relic/THQ)
The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess (Nintendo/Nintendo)
Nintendo Brain Age (Nintendo/Nintendo)
Sports Game of the Year
Tony Hawk's Project 8 (Neversoft Entertainment/Activision)
MLB '06: The Show (SCEA SD Sports Studio/Sony Computer Entertainment)
NBA 2K7 (Visual Concepts/2K Sports)
FIFA '07 (Electronic Arts Canada/Electronic Arts)
NBA '07 (SCEA SD Sports Studio/Sony Computer Entertainment)
Strategy Game of the Year
Company of Heroes (Relic/THQ)
Star Wars: Empire at War (Petroglyph/Lucas Arts)
Lord of the Rings: The Battle for Middle-earth II (Electronic Arts/Electronic Arts)
Rise of Nations: Rise of Legends (Big Huge Games/Microsoft Game Studios)
Medieval II: Total War (Creative Assembly/Sega of America)
First-Person Action Game of the Year
Tom Clancy's Rainbow Six: Vegas (Ubisoft Montreal/Ubisoft)
Resistance: Fall of Man (Insomniac Games/Sony Computer Entertainment)
Prey (Human Head Games/2K Games)
Half Life 2: Episode 1 (Valve/Electronic Arts)
Black (Criterion Games/Electronic Arts)
Fighting Game of the Year
Fight Night Round 3 (EA Sports/Electronic Arts)
Mortal Kombat: Armageddon (Midway/Midway)
WWE Smackdown! Vs. Raw 2006 (Yuke's Co. Ltd./THQ)
Tekken Dark Ressurection (Namco/Namco)
Racing Game of the Year
Test Drive Unlimited (Eden Studios/Atari)
Burnout Revenge (Criterion Games/Electronic Arts)
Excite Truck (Nintendo/Nintendo)
Full Auto 2: Battlelines (Pseudo Interactive/Sega of America)
Need for Speed: Carbon (Black Box/Electronic Arts)
Role-Playing Game of the Year
Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion (Bethesda Softworks/2K Games)
Final Fantasy XII (Square Enix/Square Enix)
Final Fantasy III DS (Square Enix/Square Enix)
Titan Quest (Iron Lore Entertainment/THQ)
Phantasy Star Universe (Sonic Team/Sega of America)
Children's Game of the Year
LocoRoco (Sony Computer Entertainment/Sony Computer Entertainment)
Pokemon Mystery Dungeon: Blue Rescue Team (The Pokemon Co./CHUNSOFT Co./Nintendo)
Disney's Kim Possible: What's the Switch (A2M/Buena Vista Games)
Over the Hedge (Edge of Reality/Activision)
Legend of Spyro: A New Beginning (Krome Studios/Sierra Entertainment)
Action/Adventure Game of the Year
Gears of War (Epic Games/Microsoft Game Studios)
The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess (Nintendo/Nintendo)
Tom Clancy's Splinter Cell: Double Agent (Ubisoft Shanghai/Ubisoft)
Saints Row (Volition/THQ)
Daxter (ReadyatDawn/Sony Computer Entertainment)
Massively Multiplayer Game of the Year
Eve Online: Revelations (CCP Games/CCP Games)
Guild Wars: Nightfall (Arena Net/NCsoft)
Dungeons and Dragons Online: Stormreach (Turbine/Atari/Wizards of the Coast)
Auto Assault (Net Devil/NCsoft)
Family Game of the Year
Rayman Raving Rabidds (Ubisoft Montpellier/Ubisoft)
Viva Piñata (Rare/Microsoft Game Studios)
Guitar Hero 2 (Harmonix/Activision/Red Octane)
Lego Star Wars II: The Original Trilogy (TT Games/Lucas Arts)
Brain Age: Train Your Brain in Minutes a Day (Nintendo/Nintendo)
Simulation Game of the Year
Microsoft Flight Simulator X (Microsoft Game Studios/Microsoft Game Studios)
Sid Meier's Railroads! (Firaxis Games/2K Games)
Tourist Trophy (Polyphony Digital, Inc./Sony Computer Entertainment)
Downloadable Game of the Year
Mystery Case Files: Prime Suspects (Big Fish Games/Big Fish Games)
Virtual Villagers: A New Home (Last Day of Work/Big Fish Games)
Diner Dash: Flo on the Go (Playfirst/Playfirst)
Bookworm Adventures (PopCap/PopCap)
Plantasia (Playfirst/Playfirst)
Mobile Game of the Year
Orcs and Elves (Fountainhead Entertainment/Electronic Arts Mobile)
Tropical Madness (Gameloft/Gameloft)
Duckshot (MoFactor/Hands-On Mobile)
Brothers in Arms 3D (Gameloft)
SCEA boss Jack Tretton has warned that it will be hard to cut the cost of PS3 as the machine is so expensive to make - but according to reports, some Japanese retailers have already slashed 20 per cent off the RRP.
When asked in an interview with US magazine Game Informer whether PS3 price cuts be "as soon or as drastic" as they were for PS2 Tretton replied, "No... There's a heck of a lot more under the hood and it costs us more money to make it."
But although he conceded it will be "a lot more difficult to cost reduce" PS3, Tretton said that consumers will still be willing to pay the asking price.
"I think the consumers that get their hands on a PlayStation 3 clearly see the value and not only want to buy one for $599, in some instances they're willing to pay ridiculous prices to buy one on eBay," he concluded.
However, reports suggest that demand for the hardware is already slowing in Japan. According to Media Create figures the PS3 suffered its worst sales week so far earlier this month, and now there are claims that some retailers are drastically cutting the price of PlayStation 3.
As reported on Akibablog.net and partially translated by Kotaku, some shops are said to be reducing the price for the 20GB model from YEN 49,980 (EUR 315) to YEN 39,980 (EUR 253) - a drop of 20 per cent.
But market watchers PS3 wasn't the only console to experience a post-Christmas sales slump - Media Create's figures revealed that the numbers for Nintendo Wii and Xbox 360 were also down during the same period.
Blizzard's World of Warcraft: The Burning Crusade has becomes the second fastest-selling PC game in chart history, taking the number one spot in the All Formats charts and accounting for 30 per cent of all PC game sales last week.
The expansion pack was released on January 16, with midnight launch events held at stores throughout Europe.
In a week of sales that saw no other games released, the rest of the top ten has shuffled around to accommodate the new entry.
Capcom's Xbox 360 exclusive Lost Planet: Extreme Condition has dropped a single place to number two, as has Nintendo's Wario Ware: Smooth Moves at number three.
Football rivals FIFA 07 and Pro Evolution Soccer 6 sit at numbers four and five, respectively, while number six sees the top ten entry of Sega's World Snooker Championship 2007, climbing from number 17.
Need for Speed: Carbon is at number seven, just ahead of Call of Duty 3 at eight, The Sims 2: Pets at nine and Rockstar's Canis Canem Edit at ten.
Few publishers have ever embraced a new system with the fervor Ubisoft took to the Wii. Back in August, the French publisher promised to have seven new games ready for the system's launch. Even though some of those titles failed to hit shelves on day one (Open Season, Far Cry Vengeance, and Blazing Angels all slipped), the games that were released sold well enough to make Ubisoft the top third-party publisher on the system in both the US and Europe, according to a financial report released by the company today.
Even beyond the Wii, Ubisoft trumpeted a strong third fiscal quarter (October through December 2006) that saw its sales jump 24 percent over the year before to 311 million euros ($408 million). For the first nine months of its fiscal year, Ubisoft posted 483 million euros ($628 million) in revenue, a 20 percent jump over the 403 million euros ($524 million) it managed in the first nine months of last year.
Xbox 360 games were the biggest driver of the company's sales, accounting for 28 percent of its quarterly revenues thanks to releases like Tom Clancy's Rainbow Six Vegas and Tom Clancy's Splinter Cell Double Agent. In the previous year's third quarter, sales of Ubisoft's Xbox 360 game catalog--which contained only Peter Jackson's King Kong: The Official Game of the Movie--only made up 5 percent of Ubisoft revenues.
Meanwhile, games for the Wii--which wasn't even launched until more than halfway through the quarter--made up 21 percent of Ubisoft's take for the period, with Red Steel being a top seller for the company. The Wii and the Xbox 360 combined accounted for 49 percent of Ubisoft's quarterly revenue. The publisher did not include the PlayStation 3 by name in its sales breakdown for the quarter, but the December release of Blazing Angels on the system is presumably covered by the 1 percent of the company's revenue it attributes to "other" platforms.
Ubisoft also released a few tidbits of game specific news in its filing. First off, the company's first-person shooter Haze, originally scheduled for release on the PS3, Xbox 360, and PC by March 31, has slipped into the next fiscal year. Also, the publisher confirmed that a Blazing Angels follow-up spotted on online retailers is coming to the Xbox 360 and PC by the end of March.
Going forward, Ubisoft looks to continue its support for the Wii in the future, with four new games planned for release by the end of its fiscal year (Blazing Angels, Driver: Parallel Lines, TMNT, Prince of Persia: Rival Swords). Three more had been penciled in for the company's fourth quarter, but were bumped back to the next fiscal year, much like Haze.
Finally, the company increased its revenue projections for the year in light of its third quarter results. For the full fiscal year, Ubisoft now expects sales to be up 16 percent as opposed to its previous 10-12 percent projected range.
There are plenty of fugly consoles out there, so which are the most aesthetically pleasing? Opposable Thumbs pipes in with their take on the best use of exterior design for game consoles. From the article: "The 360 design bores me, the PS3 looks like a grill, the SNES was boxy and ugly, the DS looked like makeup, and the DS Lite looks like more expensive makeup. The GameCube? It's a purple purse, for the love of Gygax!" The op-ed piece dubs the PS2 Mini, GBA SP, and Wii as the most awesomely designed platforms to date. Mmmm... the clamshell was most awesome. So put on a black T-Shirt and tell us which console you think has the best looking and most functional hardware.
Sixty gigabytes not enough for you to store all your pictures and movies on your PS3? Sure, you could use a USB hard drive to expand the space, but that's much too easy. For those masochists that just need to have that extra storage inside the system casing, there's now a MySpace page with detailed advice on how to install any 3.5" drive in your system.
For those of you who just need to have every USB device you own hooked up to the PS3 at the same time, the site also has video instructions for installing a USB hub to expand the four ports included with the system. Personally, we're too busy playing Resistance: Fall of Man to take the time to do any of this stuff, but for the hardware fetishists out there, go nuts.
