A Harmonix representative has confirmed the US retail price and release date for their upcoming Rock Band game.
Online retailer Amazon.com recently changed the listing of the game to reflect a price of USD 169.99 [£83] for the Xbox 360 and PS3 versions of the game, with a release date of November 23. According to a GameSpot story, a Harmonix representative confirmed that Amazon's information was correct.
The Xbox 360 and PS3 bundles include a wired drum kit, guitar, and microphone along with a copy of the game. The 360 Stratocaster guitar controller will be wired, and the bundle will include a USB hub. The PS3 Stratocaster guitar will be wireless.
The PS2 version will sell for USD 159.99, and won't be available until December 10 according to the Harmonix spokesperson. The game and instruments will also be sold separately.
Calls to Harmonix were not immediately returned.
UPDATE: An EA public relations manager has confirmed that the date and price were reported correctly. No word yet on an official UK release date or price.
One anonymous respectable industry veteran told GameDaily BIZ that his company has been referring to the PS3 as the 'PS3DO' for some time now. The 3DO, introduced by EA founder Trip Hawkins back in 1993, sported cutting-edge tech for its time. A steep price ($699) and a lack of any real "killer apps" didn't allow the platform to live out the 32-bit era, however. By 1996 it was officially dead. 3DO's marketing even promoted the platform not as a video game console but more as a high-end audio/visual product. Sound familiar?
But is the comparison to 3DO fair? David Cole of market research firm DFC Intelligence certainly doesn't think so.
"I don't think there is any comparison at all to the PS3 and 3DO," he said. "The main argument would be that they were both priced high at launch. But 3DO was a startup company with a different business model to license their platform to hardware manufacturers who could really have cared less about promoting the platform. They also didn't have software support and thus they didn't have games to drive the platform. With no games, a shoestring marketing budget and no consumer base to start with it sold less than a million units in the time it was on the market."
Wedbush Morgan Securities analyst Michael Pachter agrees. "It's a pretty stupid (and unfair) comparison," he said. "3DO was a new platform, no brand ID, not compatible with legacy software, and with no first or third party support. The PS3 has a great brand, a loyal customer base, is generally backward compatible, has a ton of third party support, and an ever-increasing number of good first party titles. I hope the industry veteran was kidding. If he was serious, he's a fool."
Future US has announced that it will be publishing PlayStation: The Official Magazine under an agreement with SCEA.
The new magazine will debut in November, with former PSM editor-in-chief Rob Smith at the helm.
Future plc currently publishes the Official Sony PlayStation Magazine in the UK and licenses it in other countries. It expects an initial circulation of 300,000 copies, with 13 issues printed each year.
"We're very excited to be working with a group that is nearly as passionate about our brand as we are ourselves and we look forward to working with Future on many innovative ideas they have to create a best in class enthusiast publication," said Peter Dille, SCEA's senior VP of marketing and PlayStation Network.
The original Official PlayStation Magazine was published in the US by Ziff-Davis from September 1997 until January 2007. It was the first gaming magazine to include a demo disk.
Metal Gear franchise creator Kojima said at the E3 Media and Business Summit in July that the hotly anticipate PlayStation 3 title Metal Gear Solid 4 would be the last Metal Gear game that he is directly involved with.
But in a recent phone interview with Next Gen, Konami Digital Entertainment's new marketing VP Anthony Crouts said otherwise.
"I'm sure he's never going to let go of Metal Gear Solid-trust me. [Snake's] a big character, so as a franchise I think he'll always hold it near and dear to his heart.
"In one capacity or another, he will always be involved in the Metal Gear franchise."
This wouldn't be the first time that Kojima has said any one Metal Gear game would be his last. The celebrated developer most recently said the same thing about 2004's Metal Gear Solid 3.
The future of Metal Gear's famed protagonist Solid Snake is also in question, as trailers depict a character on the emotional and physical brink.
N'gai Croal reports that Sony will start selling a $40 version of Warhawk in stories later this month. The $40 version, matching the price of the download-only version available on the Playstation Network, won't come with the Jabra Bluetooth packed in that comes with the $60 version of the game.
The $40 version will go on sale starting Oct. 10, according to GamStop, but Sony reps were only able to confirm the price and not the date to Croal. This could be a new pricing strategy for Sony, though I think it would make more sense in the future to release both a bundle and a non-bundle at stores on the same day rather than waiting to start selling the game-only version at stores.
In the meantime, you can see what Sony has done: the company has focused on reducing the cost of building the PS3 while also closely watching how sales of lower-priced units are doing. The time is ripe for a new PS3 model to hit the scene, and we strongly believe that the company is about to launch a $399 PS3 in time for the holiday season. We've been hearing rumors to this effect for some time, but now the evidence of a new PlayStation 3 configuration is almost undeniable: an FCC filing details a new model number for the system.
What this new model number means is impossible to know for sure; the FCC filing leaves out pictures to "avoid premature release of sensitive information prior to marketing or release of the product to the public." The product description tells us that there is no difference in the wireless configuration, CPU, or Bluetooth aspects of this new PlayStation 3. The information that details the differences has been conveniently left out of the released paperwork, for the aforementioned reason.
We also have a date to pin this information to: our sources tell us that the $399 PlayStation 3 hardware will launch on, or before, November 16. We're confident in this information, as our sources in this area have always given us accurate information in the past. The "sensitive information" in the FCC filing will go public 45 days from September 4, unless something changes.
Sony Corp., the world's second-biggest maker of consumer electronics, raised 320 billion yen ($2.8 billion) in its insurance unit's initial public offering, Japan's biggest this year.
A total of 800,000 Sony Financial Holdings Inc. shares were sold at 400,000 yen each, Tokyo-based Sony said today.
Sony sold the shares at the top end of its range, spurring demand by reducing the price from an original reference level of 415,000 yen, after losses in the U.S. subprime-mortgage market triggered a global rout in stocks. Proceeds from the share sale of Sony Financial, the biggest profit contributor after consumer electronics, will help Sony increase production of Bravia televisions and fund the money-losing PlayStation unit.
The value of the computer game market in Japan, at 292.8 billion yen, was 21.7 percent higher in the fiscal first half to September than a year before, largely because of the success of Nintendo Co Ltd's Nintendo DS, magazine publisher Enterbrain said.
Sales of Nintendo's Wii and Sony (NYSE:SNE) Computer Entertainment Inc's PlayStation Portable 3 (PSP3) also helped the market expand, Enterbrain said.
Enterbrain conducted a survey of the market between March 26 and Sept 23.
The hardware market expanded by 33.5 percent to 138.3 billion yen and the software market increased by 12.8 percent to 154.5 billion yen, Enterbrain said in a written statement.
In the hardware market, Nintendo sold 3.478 million Nintendo DSs and Nintendo DS Lites in the fiscal first half and Sony Corp unit Sony Computer Entertainment sold 1.07 million PSP-1000s and PSP-2000s.
In the software market, Nintendo sold 819,237 sets of Mario Party 8 for the Wii and 789,091 sets of one of the series of the Legend of Zelda game for the Nintendo DS, Enterbrain said.
The always popular Michael Pachter offered up the opinion last week that LittleBigPlanet may be the title the PlayStation 3 needs to have breakout success. In a report pointing out failings on Microsoft and Sony's part to appeal to 'family gamers', Pachter said:
"After seeing LittleBigPlanet at TGS, I believe it could be a console mover. The game is really innovative, and I think it adds a family element that is so far missing from both the Xbox 360 and the PS3. If they can accompany that game's launch with a price cut (or a lower priced SKU), I think we'll see a spike in sales."
The game is really innovate, and I'm looking forward to it a bunch ... but I think I agree with the folks at Ars when they say the pricetag is still too high to appeal to family gamers.
Although SCEA continues to remain tight-lipped, retailer documents have been leaked showing a new 40GB PlayStation 3 on its way to the US.
An Engadget story purports to show documents from Best Buy listing the new 40GB console at a retail price of USD 399.99. The documents suggest that the console will be available in early November, packaged with the Spider-Man 3 movie on Blu-ray disc.
Best Buy has a policy of not commenting on pricing rumours.
Last week, Sony filed documents with the FCC on a product designated CECHG01, leading many to believe that they are on the verge of releasing a new model PlayStation 3. The model numbers for the 60GB and 80GB PlayStation 3 consoles are CECHA01 and CECH01, respectively.
Many analysts have already stated that they believe Sony will drop the price or release a cheaper version of the PS3 before the upcoming holiday season, and some were surprised that no announcement was made at the recent Tokyo Game Show.
Halo 3 has claimed the number one spot in the UK all-format charts, in a strong week for new releases.
However, it is not the fastest-selling game in UK history, as many had expected. According to Chart Track, that record still belongs to Rockstar's 2004 release Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas, with Halo 3 second.
Chart Track also stated that Halo 3 had doubled sales of 360 hardware to the highest level this year.
EA Sports' multiformat football update, FIFA 08, entered the chart in second place behind Microsoft's Xbox 360 blockbuster. Last week's top two - Tiger Woods 08 and MySims - claimed fourth and third places respectively for EA.
Other new entries in the top 10 were Juiced 2 at 5, and Sega Rally at 7. EA's new skateboarding franchise Skate just missed out, debuting at number 11. Activision's Enemy Territory: Quake Wars also failed to make the top 10, entering at 16.
The remainder of places in the top 10 were taken by Nintendo (with More Brain Training, Super Paper Mario and Wii Play) and Activision's Transformers licence.
THQ's Ratatouille did not fare so well, entering the chart at 39. However, the Pixar film on which it is based has yet to be released in the UK.
As well as the 360 itself, there was one other notable beneficiary of the Halo effect: Microsoft's racing sim Forza Motorsport 2, which soared 22 places, from 35 to 13.
GamePro France is reporting that Sony has plans for a "big bang" announcement set for Oct. 12. While rumors and speculation have been filling message boards across the internet, we feel safe to say this announcement will probably focus on the mysterious 40GB PlayStation 3.
Sony's recent FCC filing over the alleged 40GB PS3 has gotten us all focusing on the wrong issues. Why do we constantly look at the one feature of the PS3 that consumers can most easily change (the swappable hard drive) to define an SKU?
* It draws less current; Now only rated 3A down from the previous 3.2A
* Bluetooth is the same version as before, however the Antenna gain is increased on Antenna1 from 0.21dBi (max) in the original 60Gb, up to 3.83dBi (max) in the new SKU. Antenna2 also sees an increase, from 4.13dBi (max) up to 4,92 dBi (max).
* WLAN is still 802.11b/g, however there is a difference in Antenna gain too. ANT0 is now 0.69dBi from 0.10dBi previously, and ANT1 is now -0.26dBi from 0.91dBi.
* The controller used in the test had the model number of the original launch Sixaxis, not the Dual Shock 3.
Sony has announced that sales of Blu-ray titles in Europe are exceeding sales of HD DVD titles by a factor of 4-to-1. This decisive lead has forced studios such as Universum Film (Germany) and Studio Canal (France) to plan Blu-ray releases for this important Q4.
A video projector including Wii connection cable but also compatible with any video source (any console, DVD player etc.) to play or watch movie in sharp definition on any wall/screen. Compatible with PAL/NSTC format, universal power adapter to use anywhere, high resolution... it includes all the features you expected, and comes with a low price tag!
Specifications & extra information
- Projection size: 12 to 80 inches
- Projection distance: 1.1 to 5.5 yards (1 to 5 meters)
- Compatible with PAL/NTSC
- Universal 100/240V adapter with power plug adapter (Europe/USA)
- Resolution 960 * 234
- 8-120 ANSI Lumens
- Lamp type: 50W, 1000 hours
- Compatible with iPod Video
- Smart design and compact size
- Special for Wii console use (AV cable included)
- Sharp picture, low lux, high resolution
- Compatible with any A/V (Audio/Video) signal output port
- Mega power amplifier and stereo speakers built-in
- Built-in contrast, color, brightness and volume adjust function
- Compatible with various systems like Playstation 3, Playstation 2, Xbox 360,
Xbox, Gamecube, DVD player, MP4 player etc
Celebrating a successful introduction with the launch of NBA ’07 on the PLAYSTATION®3, Sony Computer Entertainment America’s San Diego Studio introduced a next-generation basketball experience that delivered smooth, ultra-realistic basketball action. For the first time in any console sports title, NBA ’07 incorporated true 1080p high definition at 60 frames per second (fps) to provide detailed, lifelike graphics and the most engaging gameplay available. This year, NBA ’08 continues to improve on this next-gen hoops formula by further pushing the graphical envelope as well as adding a host of new features and innovative gameplay functionality.
features
The Heavenly Sword – The Heavenly Sword itself can transform into three distinct weapons, each with its own accompanying fighting stance used by Nariko to vary combat styles.
The Combat Engine – The combat engine can scale up from sophisticated one-on-one encounters to one-on-many, where enemies employ intelligent squad-based dynamics, right up to combat against battalions pushing real-time gameplay and Artificial Intelligence (AI) to unprecedented new levels.
Physics-Based Combat – The physics-based combat allows players to sweep debris against opponents, kick tables to halt an oncoming surge of fighters, smash the enemy into the scenery, or throw bodies into other enemies using “aftertouch” controls.
Wide range of Objects & Weaponry – Heavenly Sword provides a wide range of objects & weaponry including rapid fire crossbows and massively damaging bazookas.
Creative in-game Cinematography – Coupled with real-time story evolvement and amazing set-pieces, Heavenly Sword feels like a blockbuster action movie that takes combat gameplay to new heights.
PLAYSTATION®3 – Greater processing power on the PS3 enables more immersive visuals and sound effects in Heavenly Sword, heightening the character performance and combat within the stunningly beautiful environments.
description
Emotionally charged, stunningly beautiful, and delivering unprecedented dramatic character performance, Heavenly Sword™ showcases the power of PLAYSTATION®3 (PS3™) computer entertainment system. A dramatic tale of revenge sees Nariko, a fiery red-haired heroine, embark on a quest for vengeance against an invading King and his army. The story builds around the ancient Heavenly Sword, which once belonged to a powerful deity. It can never be wielded by a mortal without it slowly but inevitably draining their life-force.
When the invading King (played by Andy Serkis) destroys the warrior clan that guards the Heavenly Sword, the clan leader’s daughter, Nariko, takes up the sword in a desperate fight for survival. Nariko must now pay the ultimate price as she embarks on one last mission of vengeance against the King and his army before her life is finally and irreparably overtaken by the omnipotent Heavenly Sword…
Thanks to a helpful tipster, we have a couple of Best Buy documents showing a $399 Playstation 3 with 40GB disk and Spiderman 3 (yes, Blu-ray) bundle with an "In Stock Date" of October 28. However, the more important "Street Date" field is unfortunately empty at the moment. While the docs look legit and don't seem to be Photoshopped, they can still be faked easily enough. So we did a quick lookup on the UPC code and sure enough, while the details are masked, the manufacturer is listed as "Sony Computer Entertainment of America."
Sony Corp. will design chips with Infineon Technologies AG to reduce development costs at its consumer electronics division, the world's second largest.
Sony and Infineon's Qimonda AG will own equal stakes in a Tokyo-based venture that will design DRAM chips that speed up data processing in cameras and mobile phones, the companies said today in a statement. Elpida Memory Inc., a Sony supplier, fell on the Tokyo Stock Exchange on concern it will lose orders.
The agreement will help Tokyo-based Sony reduce costs as Chief Executive Officer Howard Stringer overhauls the chip operations to raise overall profitability to the highest this decade. The semiconductor unit, which makes processors for PlayStation 3 game consoles, posted a 10 billion yen ($86 million) loss last year.
Epic's VP Mark Rein has given an official response regarding the now possible Unreal Tournament 3 delay. You can read his response below:
"As a public company, Midway felt an obligation to its shareholders to let them know about the possibility of a delay. But our goal is still to get the PS3 version of UT3 in stores before the end of 2007. However, we will only ship it once it's ready and is the best game we can deliver. The PC version is still on track for a November release."
Last week, one of GameDaily BIZ's sources close to Sony Computer Entertainment America (SCEA) informed us that there had recently been a "breach of security" in Sony's PlayStation Network (PSN). Our source indicated that one of SCEA's employees was actually tricked over the phone into giving out this important access to the network.
Kimberly Otzman, Corporate Communications, explained, "Just to clarify, there has been no hacking or electronic breach to any of SCEA's electronic security systems. An as-yet-unidentified PSN user impersonating an SCEA IT employee apparently called customer service agents in order to gain unauthorized access to two PSN user accounts not belonging to the imposter. The unauthorized accessing of the two accounts was discovered immediately after it took place, the unauthorized access was disabled, and the account-holders were notified."
We had a blast at the Tokyo Game Show playing Toy Home, Sony's surprise PS3 racing game. But the big question was, who was behind the title? It turns out that the SIXAXIS compatible toy racer is being developed by none-other-than Game Republic, the studio formed by former Capcom producer Yoshiki Okamoto and recently responsible for Folklore.
Famitsu got Okamoto to share a few comments on Toy Home and other titles during an interview conducted at TGS. According to Okamoto, Toy Home will be released to Japan exclusively as a download title. In addition to SIXAXIS support for steering (see see our TGS preview for more), the game will support rumble. Okamoto says that players should look forward to some heavy shake when they drift their toy vehicles.
Game Republic has been making games primarily for the PS3 of late, but the studio is definitely not all Sony. Okamoto says the Xbox 360 title he's been talking about for two years now is still in the works. He describes being able to develop this game as fulfilling a dream. While it's been a long time in the coming, this is the game he's shifted his focus to following the development of Folklore, so hopefully the wait won't be too long.
Okamoto also expressed interest in the Wii. However, he believes that you can't make a game where players are swinging the Wiimote around over a full 30 hours of play time. Instead, he suggests something where you play in 30 minute segments, like a mission-based title, or a serial manga where you read one short episode a day.
Toy Home will be Game Republic's next release. While release outside of Japan has yet to be announced, players with Japanese PlayStation Store accounts will be able to make the download this Winter.
The much-rumoured reduce-priced 40GB PS3 will hit stores in Italy on October 10 for €399 - roughly £277.
That's word from Italian trade magazine, Gamestore, who reveals that the cut-price console will also be available in a two-game package for €499 (£346).
So the big question is where's the UK cut? Sony UK says "no comment", although we remain hopeful that a similar cut is in the pipeline.
Sources have previously told CVG that the new model will launch here at £299.
It is also rumoured that as well as a smaller hard drive, the new console will come without backwards compatibility and fewer USB ports, although that's yet to be confirmed.
When the game is on the line and the ball is in your hands, what will you do? Will you penetrate, drive the lane and rise above the rim for a monster dunk, or find an opening on the perimeter and sink a game-winning three? Take control of the game with a full arsenal to win the one-on-one match-up from every spot on the floor with NBA LIVE 08.
Providing an unrivaled level of authenticity to the sport, NBA LIVE 08 introduces hot spots, where real NBA shot data is used to illuminate the locations on the floor where your players are most effective. Couple this with all-new signature go-to Moves that capture the essence of the NBA's best, and you can now play the game on a console like you see it from the stands.
Pass the ball inside and rule down low with 'own the paint' post play. String together combos of fakes and shots to fool your defender into committing and create space for the game-defining bucket.
On the perimeter, in the paint, and with unparalleled depth, dominate with your go-to move with NBA LIVE 08.
features
Famitsu Wave Magazine
Japan's No.1 selling video game magazine
Check out all the latest game news every month
Includes a DVD disc featuring latest game footage
description
The Famitsu Wave is Japan's No.1 selling video game magazine. It features all the latest video game news and pictures from Japan's upcoming video games.
Each magazine includes a DVD disc with video game footage. The DVD disc is NTSC Region 2 encoded.
Halo 3 continues its world domination by taking the top stop in Japan after selling 59,000 units in its first week of release. Not as good as its UK total of 466,000 but still MS should be happy considering how much trouble the 360 is having in Japan.
Halo 3 is one of six new entries in the top ten, as Sony's consoles software sales sees a resurgence after months of Nintendo domination.
Capcom has said that its focus on software development for Sony products will now shift to titles for the PlayStation 3.
Previously, Capcom has dedicated the majority of its efforts on PlayStation 2 games. But according to a report by Jiji Press, the publisher now intends to develop more PlayStation 3 titles from next year.
Company president Haruhiro Tsujimoto has also said that the publisher will continue to develop multiplatform titles in order to maximise profits.
Capcom has already brought a number of successful new IPs to market via the Xbox 360, with both Lost Planet: Extreme Condition and Dead Rising becoming big sellers in Japan, the US and Europe.
According to a trade media outlet in Italy, several retailers in the territory have confirmed details of the rumoured new PlayStation 3 SKU.
The new product will allegedly be released on October 10 in Italy, with a retail price of EUR 399 (GBP 276, USD 563).
The unit will feature a 40GB hard drive, two USB slots, but have no provision for PlayStation 2 backwards compatibility.
While the industry anticipates an announcement from the Corporation soon regarding the PlayStation 3 in Europe, no details have yet been confirmed, and Sony Computer Entertainment Europe won't be commenting until any announcement is made.
This week Sony has added a quartet of demos to the European PlayStation Store, as well as a pair wallpapers and a batch of trailers.
Jericho leads the playable foursome, followed by Stuntman: Ignition, Bladestorm and Skate tasters, while trailers look like numerous GRAW 2 bits and bobs and a look at shooter Haze in action. Elsewhere you can expect to pretty things up with new Blast Factor and flOw wallpapers.
Cast a quick glance across the pond to the US and you will see they were treated to Go! Sports Ski for USD 2.99, as well as demos for The Simpsons and Bladestorm.
They also got tutorial videos for NBA 08 and Eye of Judgement, interview footage with Haze developer Free Radical, behind the scenes footage for Uncharted: Drake's Fortune, and Tekkonkinkreet and Surf's Up trailers.
Eurogamer TV has plenty more than that, pop pickers.
The British Academy of Film and Television Arts, in association with PC World, is inviting the UK public to vote for their favourite games.
The inaugural PC World Gamers' Award, to be presented at BAFTA's 2007 Video Games Awards, is the only game to be voted for by the public at this year's ceremony taking place on Tuesday 23 October at Battersea Evolution in Battersea Park, London.
The list of finalists is as follows:
Dr. Kawashima's Brain Training (DS) (Nintendo/Nintendo)
FIFA 07 (PS2) (EA Canada/Electronic Arts)
Football Manager 2007 (PC) (Sports Interactive/SEGA)
Gears of War (Xbox 360) (Epic Games/Microsoft)
Grand Theft Auto: Vice City Stories (PSP) (Rockstar Leeds/Take Two)
Resistance: Fall of Man (PS3) (Insomniac/Sony Computer Entertainment Europe)
Wii Play (Wii) (Nintendo/Nintendo)
The public can vote for the award here. Each eligible voter will be entered into a drawing to win prizes including four pairs of tickets to the Awards show, a day at EA's development studios, a PS3, an Xbox 360, a DS lite, the top 10 chart games, and 3 Pyramat wireless gaming chairs.
"The great thing about the PC World Gamers' Award shortlist is that it reflects the real diversity of games being played by the public," said Hilary Bevan Jones, chairman of the Academy, "and I am sure everyone will look forward to tuning in to watch the ceremony on November 4 at 11pm on E4 to see which one is victorious."
The Academy will recognise excellence in Artistic Achievement, Technical Achievement, Gameplay, Innovation, Original Score, Use of Audio, and Story and Character as well as achievements in the genres of Action and Adventure, Casual, Multiplayer, Sports, Strategy and Simulation in addition to Best Game.
"We are extremely proud to be once again associated with these great awards, and this year as headline sponsor," said Chris McShane, head of trading for PC World.
"Working within the gaming industry is extremely exciting and this year's awards will show the best of the industry’s talent – may the best games win!"
Hitachi has developed a prototype four layer Blu-Ray disc capable of holding 100GB of data.
While companies such as TDK and Panasonic have previously mooted 100GB discs, they have always needed a specially developed optical head in the player to read the disc.
Hitachi, however, claims to have used a standard Blu-Ray drive optical head that's only slightly modified to allow it to read and write data across the four 25GB layers. It's believed this will only require a firmware update to make existing drives compatible. http://www.pcpro.co.uk/news/126871/h...uray-disc.html
Reports of people having trouble with the new BD+ copy protection are starting to surface. The movies in question are Fox's Blu-ray releases of "The Day After Tomorrow" and "Fantastic Four: Rise of the Silver Surfer."
BD+ is an extra layer of copy protection. With it, Sony should be able to change the keys used to unlock it. In short, this means that if a BD+ disc is hacked and copied, Sony can change the keys that secure future discs from being copied.
Here is what we know so far:
Some Samsung players may be unable to play the discs, but a firmware upgrade should be available or in works. However, other people say they will not play on the latest firmware from the company. Panasonic players will play the discs but load times are high. Again, Playstation 3 seems to be the safest bet when it come to Blu-ray. It seems to play BD+ without problems.
Sony Europe has categorically denied to Eurogamer that it has a press conference scheduled for next week.
Rumours erupted yesterday that the platform holder had a "Big Bang" meeting planned for next Friday, which speculation suggested could be about a new 40GB PS3 model.
However, a spokesperson for Sony told us it has not announced anything and has nothing of the sort planned. http://www.eurogamer.net/article.php?article_id=84613
That pig in the first screenshot below is no-one's bacon. You can 'mental' in his eyes. He'll easily kill your whole family. That's what we reckon.
These are the latest shots of Tekken 6, by the way. It all looks very shiny and nice, if a little lacking in fine detail compared to the lush Virtua Fighter 5.
We'll be well up for some PS3-worthy Tekken though - anything to save us from making do with the PSP graphics of Tekken 5 every time we fancy taking Law out for a ruckus on our shiny PS3.
Slap your eyeballs into action for four new screenshots from Condemned 2: Bloodshot, which come from the PS3 version of the game. We're not exactly blown away by the shots nor feeling shivers of joy flowing down our collective spines , but make up your own mind.
In the sequel - which is also in development for Xbox 360 - you jump back into the shoes of Ethan Thomas, former Serial Crimes Unit investigator who's been called back to duty to track down his missing partner and to investigate more serial killer nastiness.
We're not usually ones for card-based videogames, but the technology used in The Eye of Judgement has itself grabbed our interest, and we've got videos to show you why.
Sony's card game uses the PlayStation Eye - the PS3 equivalent of the EyeToy - to track the placement of real game cards on a playing mat on your table.
When you place the card down the PS3 reads the special coding on it and summons the corresponding monster on the screen.
We thought it a nice touch that it can identify the cards' facing direction and place the monster the right way - something that plays a fundamental part of the gameplay, as you can see in the gameplay video below, in which we take on the computer.
Yet, even though the game itself is a relatively static, grid-based card game, the tracking tech of this set-up gets even more impressive. The software actually has the ability to accurately track the movement of cards in real-time, and shift the on-screen 3D monster as though it were standing on the card itself.
This doesn't just include movement over a 2D plain, but full 3D motion tracking, meaning if you move the card close to the camera the PS3 makes the monster bigger as it gets closer to the screen. It even tracks the tilt of the card, so tipping it left or right rotates the monster on-screen (until you tilt that card too far and the Eye can't read it).
So in essence you're holding that monster in your hand and can manipulate it in full 3D. That's truly amazing stuff and, with that kind of tracking technology, Sony could come up with some truly amazing gameplay mechanics in future PS3 titles. Especially considering how well the camera can merge interactive in-game objects with real-life scenery.
You could have advanced puzzle games that use real-life manipulation of objects, or Sony could make marked cards that you place around your room so that the PS3 can detect surfaces and objects for, umm... some sort of physics-based game or something (we'll leave the creative ideas to developers).
Check out the video captioned 'EyeToy-ing around' to see the impressive camera tech at work as we use TEoJ's Card Profile mode to demonstrate it's tracking abilities.
The game's intro cinematic is pretty nice too, so we threw a video of that in here for good measure. Dive in...
Kane & Lynch: Dead Men isn't even out the Eidos front door yet but the company has revealed a sequel is already in production.
It sees major potential in the series too, MCV reporting that Eidos is pumping more cash into marketing the game than it's ever done with any game in the Tomb Raider series.
Jane Cavanagh, CEO of Eidos parent company SCi, said SCi believes Kane & Lynch has the potential to be a franchise for adults that is respected and loved in the same way as Hitman.
"We've already got Kane & Lynch 2 in production, which just goes to show the belief we have in it as a long-term franchise", Cavanagh added.
Developed by Hitman studio IO Interactive, Kane & Lynch: Dead Men is out on November 23 on PS3, Xbox 360 and PC.
Your poker skills will be put to the ultimate test by over 30 of the world's top poker champions
Phil Hellmuth, Chris Ferguson, and Mike Matusow will teach you their tips and tricks in a poker school setting
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Build your bankroll at all the favorite locations of previous years such as Harrah's New Orleans, Grand Tunica, Rio All-Suites Hotel and Casino and new this year, the hottest poker rooms of the Las Vegas strip!
ESRB Rated RP for Rating Pending
SuccessHK has today dropped the price of the new 80GB Playstation 3 down to USD 519.35 (£254)
A saving of £146/$260 for those of us in the UK. The UK is still stuck with the 60GB versions at the moment.
All PS3 Games are worldwide Region Free as are most Blueray Films. Buying a HK PS3 will lose PS2/Ps1 compatability but for the price it may be worth it..
SuccessHK do ship worldwide so good news for importers, but make sure you ship airmail and ask for the box to be marked as sample
EA's decided it's time to open up a bit on Burnout Paradise this week. Not only did it release eight new screenshots from the game yesterday, it's sent out another eight new shots into the interweb wild today.
Take a look. The screenshots show the Carson GT Concept.
Burnout Paradise is out on PS3 and Xbox 360 next year.
You might or might not know, but I will be leaving home (Ireland) to go travel the world for a year (Thailand, Australia, New Zealand and Japan). And so I will not be about the running the site no were near as much, if at all.
I have been with the DCEmu team from the very start, and I have loved every minute of it ( bar the really crap times, but lets not talk about that).
So I wanted to reward all the thousand of visitors/ members of DCEmu with a prizes give away! (Xbox 360 owners only, sorry)
Whats up for grabs? 2 Xbox Live Arcade games, Joust and Robotron!
How do I enter? Simple just post in this thread (you have to be a member to post, but signing up is free) Your top 5 Xbox 360 games. The winner will be picked randomly, duplicate posted/entry's will be disqualified!
I will pick 2 winners randomly Sunday night/ Monday GMT.
Plagued by initial production issues, extremely high manufacturing costs and excessive retail price, PlayStation 3 from Sony Computer Entertainment Inc. is even less successful than heavily-criticized Nintendo GameCube. At least, in the first ten months of sales Nintendo GameCube was sold in larger quantities than Sony PS3.
According to data from NPD, based on the first ten months of availability, the troubled PlayStation 3 sold 22% less than the Nintendo GameCube for the same period, reports GamePro web-site. In the first ten months of availability about 2.12 million Nintendo GameCube were bought by end-users, whereas only 1.742 million Sony PlayStation 3 gaming machines were sold in from November ’06 to September ’07.
Nintendo GameCube was released in November 2001 and sold in 21.6 million quantity worldwide, below sales of Microsoft Xbox, which reached 24 million, and five times less compared to Sony PlayStation 2.
Sony PlayStation 3 is currently available at $599 in the U.S., the price-point that is widely considered to be too high. Despite of the fact that Sony’s PS3 comes with built-in Blu-ray drive and features high-quality graphics games, the price is believed to be one of the major factors that keep gamers away from PlayStation 3. By contrast, Nintendo’s GameCube could offer neither DVD playback, nor high-quality graphics, nor unique motion-sensitive game controller, like that of Nintendo Wii.
Sony PlayStation 3 console is based on the Cell processor developed by IBM, Sony and Toshiba, the RSX graphics chip by Nvidia Corp., wireless network and Bluetooth connectivity and is equipped with Blu-ray optical disk drive. There are several versions of the consoles available around the world with 60GB or 80GB hard disk drives and variable compatibility with PlayStation 1/2 games. In the U.S. PlayStation 3 80GB is sold for $599, whereas the hard-to-find 60GB model retails for $499.
Sony has dropped the price of the 60GB PlayStation 3 to GBP 349 and introduced an "entry level" 40GB model to retail at GBP 299.
The repositioned prices will come into effect on October 10, with the new 60GB "value pack" including two first-party games for the GBP 349 asking price, along with a single controller.
It takes the place of the current Sony GBP 425 bundle, which included the console, two first-party games and an extra Sixaxis controller.
At the lower price point is the new 40GB model which only features two USB ports rather than four, and loses the multi-memory card slot and backwards compatibility with the PlayStation 2 back catalogue.
Sony says that it has introduced the two new offerings following "feedback from thousands of existing PS3 owners as well as research into future potential PS3 owners."
"As we approach our first PlayStation Christmas, it is satisfying to be able to offer UK consumers the choice of two PlayStation 3 packages both now representing remarkable value," commented Ray Maguire, MD of SCEUK.
"We have a brand new 40 GB machine that represents an excellent entry point into the world of high definition games and movies, and we have the fully featured 60GB machine being offered with two next-generation gaming experiences at a highly competitive price."
David Reeves, president of Sony Computer Entertainment Europe added: "The introduction of the new PS3 has been the result of extensive research into the entertainment needs and preferences of the next-generation PS3 owners."
A full interview with Ray Maguire, where he discusses the new price points in detail, dismisses any comparisons with Microsoft's Xbox 360 pricing, and the problems of early adoption, can be read on GamesIndustry.biz on Monday.
Imagine Publishing has announced that it is merging its PlayStation Magazine, PSU3, with Play, effective immediately.
Acording to a press release, the decision was made after examining the magazine market, which "has not seen the significant growth shown by Xbox 360 titles." Imagine does not see the PlayStation magazine market improving in the short to medium term.
"The fact is that the PlayStation market is at an all-time low and this has been reflected in the sales of PlayStation magazines," said Nick Jones, editor of Imagine's PlayStation titles.
"With a lower than expected PlayStation 3 installed user base, no price reduction of the hardware, and few triple-A games until much later next year, we have taken the decision to merge PSU3 with Play and focus on our most long-standing games brands and also our new launches."
UK-based Imagine Publishing, formed in 2005, publishes 20 magazines and 20 websites in the videogames, computing, entertainment, and photography markets.
The consolidation comes only days after Future announced that they would be publishing an official PlayStation magazine in the US.
In Japan, console hardware sales stand as follows:
PSP: 102,809
DS Lite: 72,895
Wii: 24,143
PS3: 13,105
PS2: 12,980
Xbox 360: 5,215
Game Boy Micro: 229
Gamecube: 73
Game Boy Advance SP: 49
Game Boy Advance original: 41
DS original: 30
The PSP has seen a major drop by about 175,00 from last reading but still in the lead. DS Lite increases slightly by 2,000, Wii drops 845, PS3 and PS2 rises by some 1,000 each. Xbox 360 also rises by 3,500 and Gamecube by 43.
Figures released by GfK Australia show Nintendo's DS console enjoying a healthy lead over its rivals in the hardware stakes.
According to a report on GameSpot, the numbers, which represent total sales for the third financial quarter, put DS sales at 139, 483, bringing the total install base for Australia to 730,076.
The next best quarterly performance, from Sony's PlayStation 2, was less than half the DS figure, shifting 66,228 - although the PS2 install base dwarfs the other consoles' total numbers put together.
Nintendo's other piece of hardware, the Wii, was in third place, with the Xbox 360 in fourth, the PlayStation Portable in fifth and the PlayStation 3 in sixth position.
Here are the numbers in full:
1. Nintendo DS: 139,483 (730,076 total)
2. PlayStation 2: 66,228 (2,118,646 total)
3. Nintendo Wii: 61,027 (167,899 total)
4. Xbox 360: 40,467 (222,136 total)
5. PlayStation Portable: 28,374 (222,136 total)
6. PlayStation 3: 27,533 (82,261 total)
Sony Computer Entertainment Europe (SCEE) today announced details of its exciting new PLAYSTATION®3 (PS3™) model that will launch throughout the SCEE territories on 10th October 2007 at the highly attractive price of €399.
Providing an incredibly appealing entry point to the world of High Definition gaming and entertainment for the holiday season, the new PS3 brings the next generation of interactive home entertainment to homes all across Europe, Middle East, Africa and Australasia.
Along with an ever expanding line-up of PS3 titles (a total of 65 titles tracking across all genres by Christmas), the new PS3 is equipped with a 40GB HDD and includes all the features central to the High Definition entertainment experience; true next generation gameplay, stunning High Definition Blu-ray Disc™ movies, SIXAXIS™ wireless controller, Wi-Fi and HDMI connectivity, all powered by the Cell Broadband Engine™, the digital heart of PS3.
As with the 60GB PS3, the new PS3 features upgradeable firmware allowing new features and functionality to be added to the system as time progresses. A recent firmware update, for example, enabled PS3 to upscale DVD's played on the system to full 1080P High Definition.
The introduction of the new PS3 has been determined following user feedback from thousands of existing PS3 owners as well as research into future potential PS3 owners. The new model features two USB 2.0 ports rather than four and no longer includes the multi memory card port.
The new model is no longer backwards compatible with PlayStation®2 titles, reflecting both the reduced emphasis placed on this feature amongst later purchasers of PS3, as well as the availability of a more extensive line-up of PS3 specific titles (a total of 65 titles across all genres by Christmas).
The existing Starter Pack*, comprising a 60GB PS3 with extensive backwards compatibility, an additional SIXAXIS wireless controller and two first party titles will be reduced in price to €499. Remaining on sale while stocks last, the 60GB model represents outstanding value for the keen gamer wishing to upgrade to the High Definition capabilities of PS3.
"The introduction of the new PS3 has been the result of extensive research into the entertainment needs and preferences of the next generation of PS3 owners," said David Reeves, President of SCEE. "It has allowed us to deliver an extremely advanced, yet incredibly affordable High Definition gaming and entertainment system, configured to the needs of the next generation of European PS3 owners. PS3 has always been the device of choice for the discerning gamer and entertainment seeker, and the new PS3 is more than ever the perfect High Definition entertainment system.
*In the UK and Ireland, the Starter Pack will be replaced by a separate in-store promotion on the 60GB PS3.
The UK price is GBP 349 for the 60GB and GBP 299 for the 40GB version.
* HiHD: Sony and PS3 detractors dismiss Blu-ray is just another proprietary Sony format that will not succeed any better than previous Sony proprietary CE formats dating back to Betamax.
* HIRAI: In our eyes, we wanted to provide developers with the absolute biggest canvas on which to create their games. We could have gone with the 9 GBs of DVD or the 30 GBs of data on an HD DVD, but why would we, when we had 50 GBs of data on the Blu-ray Disc? I think its success as a delivery vehicle for games has already been proven. As for movies, I think it (is) really hard for any studio or retailer to ignore the fact that there are already millions of Blu-ray players in the world in the form of PS3. That is the kind of installed base DVD only dreamed of when it launched and before we debuted PlayStation®2.
* HiHD: What are the primary erroneous points of information/misconceptions out there in blogger-land about PS3 in general and vs Xbox?
* HIRAI: I have heard many people say our competitors' systems are just as powerful as PS3. That simply is not true. No other next-generation entertainment system pushes the envelope on advanced technology like PS3. I have heard people say that a high-capacity game delivery vehicle like Blu-ray isn't necessary in a next-generation computer entertainment system. You just can't expect that the 9 GBs of storage capacity found on today's DVDs are going to have enough space to hold tomorrow's games. Developers have already pushed the DVD to its limits in terms of space used. We had games like ‘Resistance: Fall of Man' coming in 16 GBs at launch. That game simply wouldn't be possible on any other system without using multiple discs. There is no doubt in my mind that you need more capacity on discs for truly next-generation gaming, and Blu-ray gives us that space.
The wireless Guitar Hero III guitars for PlayStation 3 will not work seemlessly with the console's Bluetooth technology, instead requiring a dongle that plugs into the USB ports. On the plus side, as noted by Wired's Chris Kohler, is that the dongles are modeled after guitar picks. Much more appealing than a boring, black brick.
Rock Band's wireless PS3 guitar also showed up recently in an FCC filing with a mysterious (albeit less attractive) dongle solution, which presumably will ship with the final product. Maybe by then, however, the Harmonix gang will pretty their dongle up.
According to the November 2007 issue # 76 of the Official Xbox Magazine Sony has secured the next Grand Theft Auto, which would be number 7 in the series, to be a true exclusive to the Playstation 3.
"Rockstar really wanted to make a game that you can truly only do on PS3, harnessing the power of the Cell and Blu-ray disc and this deal lets them do just that" as said by Sony's Michael Shorrock in a statement to the press. " We handed Rockstar a signed blank check because we were short sighted enough to let Grand Theft Auto's exclusivity get away from us. Oops!"
Looks like the Xbox fans may be out of luck when it come to the next installment of Grand Theft Auto. If they do release a 360 version it sounds like it would have to be on multiple dvd discs if the game truly takes advantage of Blu-ray.
One thing is for sure. This will be interesting to watch play out. Stay tuned!
As most or some have seen or read, I started a page for DCEmu on MySpace. If you havent already, request to be a friend!
With that, I bring you...DCEmu on Facebook! So if you're already registered with Facebook, add us to your friends list! If not, what are you waiting for? Register with Facebook today and add us!
You can search for us by typing in "Dcemu Networks" or by email dcemu.facebook[@]gmail.com (remove brackets).
*UPDATE*
Everyone should have a DS right? Well, I'm throwing up a contest. To help with DCEmu Reviews replace their Xbox360, whoever REQUESTS an invite for the Video Game Community application (Goozex) and adds the application to their Facebook between Oct. 7-13, will be eligible for the contest. I will post the names who has added the application and is eligible for the drawing. If you dont see your name but have added the application, let me know and I will see what can be done.
So what is the prize? SuperCard DS ONE. Of course, this is ONLY if DCEmu Reviews wins the Xbox360. If DCEmu Reviews does not win, contest is null and voided. So if you havent received an invite, request one either through Facebook or email us at dcemu.facebook[@]gmail.com.
So all you have to do is request a invite, add the application to your Facebook and you're automatically entered into the drawing!
This new model does not contain the PS2 chip and will not feature backwards compatibility through software emulation either. SCEE said this reflects "both the reduced emphasis placed on this feature amongst later purchasers of PS3, as well as the availability of a more extensive line-up of PS3 specific titles (a total of 65 titles across all genres by Christmas)."
GameDaily BIZ also contacted SCEE spokesman Nick Sharples who told us, "We have made clear on many occasions that our priority is on developing innovative new features and services for PS3 and not on backwards compatibility. The 40GB model no longer contains any elements of the PS2 chip set which powered backwards compatibility in previous models, and is therefore only compatible with PS one titles." http://biz.gamedaily.com/industry/feature/?id=17683
In the UK and Ireland, a Value Pack consisting of a 60GB PS3 with extensive backwards compatibility and two first party titles will be on sale at a price of €499 (£349). Remaining on sale while stocks last, the 60GB model represents outstanding value for the keen gamer wishing to upgrade to the High Definition capabilities of PS3. Once stocks are exhausted the new 40GB model will be the only one available in the SCEE territories. http://uk.playstation.com/ps3/news/a...r-seen-before/
As Sony ships its new model PlayStation 3 to stores for launch this Wednesday, UK managing director Ray Maguire has told GamesIndustry.biz that the new SKU is a natural evolution and the company always had plans to offer a cheaper product.
But he also admitted that he could understand that PlayStation 3 early adopters might feel cheated for buying the console earlier in the year when it commanded a luxury GBP 425 price point.
"I think it's natural to feel that way, of course it is," said Maguire, in an exclusive interview published today.
"The difference between our industry and many other industries is that if you're selling cars or houses the price goes up steadily. Consumer electronics only goes one way and that's downwards."
Maguire, who describes himself as an early adopter of new technology, said that the reward for paying premium prices is the ability to experience technology ahead of the mass market.
"One thing is common amongst the entire market for consumer electronics and that is that there are early adopters like myself who will spend GBP 10,000 on a plasma TV that is worth GBP 3000 within three years. That's the way the market goes
"What do they get for that? They get six months of enjoyment of the product before anybody else gets that ability to play those games," he said.
He also said that the introduction of a new 40GB model was the next step for Sony, as it lowers prices to tempt new consumers to the PlayStation 3 experience, but denied there is confusion with different models in different regions.
"As products evolve the offerings change because they have to adapt to the needs of the consumers but I don't think it's been particularly confusing in six months to go from stand alone, to a bundled proposition into a low price entry level model," he said.
"We also have to remember that consumers don't search around the world for different configurations. We are a global company but we have to act locally as well."
The full interview with Ray Maguire can be read today.
