The PS3, impressively, uses barely anything when off; the Watt display on the Kill-A-Watt metering device showing between 0 and 1 watts.
When sitting idle at the crossbar navigation system, the equivalent to the Xbox 360 dashboard or the Wii's home menu, the PS3 used anywhere from 185 to 205 watts. When doing similar work the Xbox 360 uses 145 watts and the Wii just 15-20.
Now, for the gaming. We tested with three games and found consumption to be lowest when playing Tiger Woods 07, registering at 185-190 watts, and highest when playing Formula One Championship Edition, which demanded a rather more disconcerting 217 watts on average. By comparison the Xbox 360 comes in at 165 watts during gameplay with the Wii using only around 120. Finally, during Blu-ray playback the PS3 continued to draw a surprising 205 watts, just to spew the rather craptacular Ricky Bobby to my HDTV.
Our PSP News site has finally had a makeover using the new Network design and much better it looks for it, Check it out here --> http://psp-news.dcemu.co.uk/
And more interestingly Yamauchi san also has posted his comments there saying that Gran turismo 5 is being given preference over gran turismo HD and he expects that to be released earlier.
Anyways lets be content with Santa yamauchi's gift of a demo this christmas. By the way its been quite some time since we have heard of that GT-Mobile... maybe its no more on cards for the PSP???
Sony says it would be "rather short-sighted" to suggest there won't be a PlayStation 4, after Nomura analyst Yuta Sakurai did just that.
Speaking to the Financial Times in the wake of Sony's decision to to promote Kaz Hirai, Sakurai said he thought SCE's future would be determined by the former US boss's relationship with worldwide studios boss Phil Harrison.
But far more interesting were his thoughts on Sony's direction. "The appointment of Hirai could be the start of a shift from hardware to software," he suggested. "I cannot now imagine a PlayStation 4." (You think you've got it bad, Yuta - most of us in Europe cannot now imagine a PlayStation 3.)
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Inevitably, Sony has responded, with US spokesperson Dave Karraker telling GameSpot: "Following the launch of the PlayStation 3 just a few weeks ago, and witnessing the huge consumer demand for the product, I think it would be rather short-sighted for anyone to predict there might not be a next generation of PlayStation product."
Indeed, Sony's never made any suggestion that it plans to stop with PS3 - Hirai himself having noted that a PS4 is in his plans, and Phil Harrison having speculated on whether it will use discs or an e-distribution model. Eurogamer.net
The DS sells over twice as much as all the other hardware sales combined, nothing new there.
The PS3 drops its sales by near 10,000 but that is most likely because of lack of supply rather than demand.
Good news for the PSP and the PS2 near double their sales after a few weeks of declining sales.
With Dead or Alive Xtreme 2 released (selling 45k units) driving the Xbox 360 sales up to 7k, the question is how much will Blue Dragon will drive xbox 360 sales? It goes on sale on the 7 Dec.
Smaller version of handheld is likely, says Probst
Electronic Arts boss Larry Probst has said that Sony should consider slashing the price of PSP and introducing a new, smaller model in order to boost sales.
Speaking in an interview with Newsweek, Probst said, "I think what moves the needle is a new form factor that's smaller than the existing unit, at a lower price, and hopefully that price is US$100 or lower.
"I think the price point needs to be lower, and I think you're going to see that next year, along with a different form factor," he added.
Whilst Probst was careful to identify his comments as "pure speculation", he said it "would not be hugely surprising" if Sony was to cut the price of the PSP to US$149, offering "a more fully-featured upscale unit that retails at US$249 or US$299".
Probst dismissed suggestions that EA is focused on producing new IP for the PSP, stating, "It's more likely that we would target platforms like the PS3, Xbox 360 or Nintendo Wii if we had an original in mind. Our strategy on PSP has typically been to take the franchises that we build on other platforms and exploit them on the PSP."
However, he went on to concedethat consumers won't necessarily want to buy PSP versions of a franchise title if they already own console versions of the same game. "If someone owns Madden on multiple systems already, they're less likely to buy it on PSP. It's true. If you've got Madden on PS2 and Xbox 360, how likely are you to buy it on PSP?"
According to Probst, EA is "interested in interoperability between PSP and Sony's other platforms, and if we can do something along those lines, that would be helpful".
Wedbush Morgan analyst Michael Pachter has dismissed suggestions that Sony's executive reshuffle signals the company's exit from the console hardware market as "foolish" and "embarassing".
"I think Kutaragi's promotion signals absolutely nothing about Sony's plans for a PlayStation 4," Pachter told GamesIndustry.biz.
"It is embarassing that an analyst could reach that conclusion so soon after launch. Sony cannot have made such a decision, and to draw such an inference is foolish."
Pachter's comments come after former SCEA boss Kaz Hirai was announced as the new president of SCEI - a move which, according to Nomura analyst Yuta Sakurai, suggests a shift by Sony away from hardware and towards software.
It's not just Pachter who disagrees - speaking to consumer site Gamespot, SCEA communications boss Dave Karraker said, "Following the launch of the PlayStation 3 just a few weeks ago, and witnessing the huge consumer demand for the product, I think it would be rather short-sighted for anyone to predict there might not be a next generation of PlayStation product."
Pachter went on to say that he was in agreement with another analyst, Hiroshi Kamide, who has stated that he believes Ken Kutaragi will now be responsible for managing relationships with third-parties.
"I have said repeatedly that this is the last console 'cycle' as we know them, and that future hardware would contain new features and functions, but not change the architecture until we are ready for virtual reality or holographic gaming," Pachter concluded.
New screenshots of next-gen action title Cipher Complex have just snuck in; a game which developer and publisher Edge of Reality hopes will change the stealth genre forever.
For Edge of Reality all stealth games are incredibly slow, full of careful positioning and skulking in shadows; in Cipher Complex the stealth attacks will consist of lightening-quick attacks with hero John Cipher dashing towards opponents and taking them out before they're aware of what's hit them.
This 'aggressive infiltration' is at the heart of the game which sees a Russian missile complex taken over by a mysterious military faction. Taking on the role of US military operative John Cipher, gamers must regain control of the base before any of the nuclear warheads are launched.
Cipher took a bullet to the head in an earlier mission and had to be brought out of the resulting coma with experimental surgery that affected his adrenal glands, and it's adrenaline that fuels these devastating stealth kills. Therefore the trick is to manage the amount of adrenaline Cipher uses so he has enough to cope with any situation.
Cipher Complex is currently in development for PS3 and Xbox 360 with a release date yet to be confirmed.
The PlayStation 3 is just about to fill the combat racing game hole in its 2006 lineup. Sega has announced that Full Auto 2: Battlelines has gone gold and will ship to stores on December 7. The game was developed by Pseudo Interactive, who also created Battlelines' predecessor, Full Auto for the Xbox 360.
Battlelines features more than two dozen cars, each outfitted with firepower from a roster of 20 weapons. The backdrops of fictional Meridian City are fully destructible, meaning on one pass a turn may be clear and an another lap it could be littered with rubble. Full Auto 2 also features an "unwreck" feature, allowing gamers to rewind short periods of time.
As if asking upwards of a couple thousand bucks for your PS3 wasn't enough, a jackass wants all of $5,000,000 for his PlayStation 3. He whines:
This auction is being listed to help raise money for me to pay my medical school tuition. I waited on line at Wal-mart for over 57 hours. I was even there a whole day before anyone else arrived. I was first in line and when all the PS3's were finally released to the public, I bought everything they had available and therefore, THIS IS THE ULTIMATE PS3 AUCTION! I haven't seen a bigger PS3 auction on eBay yet!
Unfortunately for him, eBay's taken down his auction. Unfortunately for everyone else, he'll no doubt scam enough money to pay for his education, after which he'll become your local doctor.
A radio station in Minneapolis held on on-air joke promotion this past Wednesday, offering parents a chance to give away their babies for an overnight in exchange for a PS3 system. 101.3FM's Dave in the Morning show found their phone lines flooded with folks seriously willing to make the trade.
I think the station should have agreed to make the trades and then had child services waiting when the parents showed up. I cannot believe people could possibly be that stupid and careless, to try and trade their own flesh and blood for a $600 video game console while on the air with a major radio station. The blackmarket is there for a reason, people.
We've been playing with a PS3. Didn't take long to come up with a useful product - codenamed the HYPERDRIVE.
Features:
* Connect any 3.5" SATA Hard Drive to the PS3
* Developing ability to connect IDE hard drive
* Supports upto 750GB (maybe more thats all we have here)
* Switch between external HYPERDRIVE and internal 2.5" HDD
* HYPERDRIVE USB2.0 Support to dump data to/from HDD
When you connect the system announces the drive requires formatting etc and then promptly begins to prep it. All system settings are unchanged so they are stored internally to the PS3 and not on the HDD.
We can assure you that larger hard drives will be essential in the near future. After speaking to colleagues from the Playstation Scene, booting games from HDD is possible and not far off. As the games are blu-ray (17gb+ dumps available) then the larger HDD the better, and you wont get very large and cheap 2.5" drives, however 250GB 3.5" drives are close to $60 these days.
We may release a simple adapter first so you can hook up with ease right now rather than wait for release of the HYPERDRIVE, that won't take too long at all to release.
Product pics / more info soon.
Here's some crappy pics showing our first attempts at 3.5" hook ups. Drive in this pics was 150GB - note how much OS space is taken up !!
A top law firm has told MCV that any profits made from importing PS3s could prove insignificant compared to the huge legal costs if Sony were to throw the book at unscrupulous importers.
Mitra Pahlabod of Davenport Lyons has warned that without a legal leg to stand on, anyone selling US or Japanese PS3s over here is taking a huge risk in defying the might of Sony.
“As far as importers of PS3s are concerned, they should bear in mind that any profit they may make from importing the consoles into Europe without Sony’s consent this Christmas may well be short lived,” Pahlabod stated. “They run the real risk of defending lengthy and costly trademark infringement proceedings.”
She adds that anyone trying their luck won’t have any excuse as far as the law is concerned – and Sony should keep a close eye on importers. “It is up to the grey importer to prove that consent to resell the goods in Europe has been given by the trademark owner,” she said.
“Brand owners should be aware of their rights with regard to grey importing, monitor closely the sale of their goods and where possible ensure that their trademark registrations are kept fully up to date.”
Sony maintains that gamers should wait for the official European launch in March, but that hasn't stopped some unscrupulous traders from taking full advantage of the huge demand for Sony's next generation console. The platform holder recently got in touch with Trading Standards when it discovered a company named Mastercash ran a poster campaign promsing PS3s before Christmas, and told MCV:
"SCEE has been made aware of this promotion, and we are investigating it further. We have forwarded the details onto Trading Standards."
As soon as we installed Linux on our office PS3, it was clear that trouble would be brewing quickly. We began taking bets on how soon someone would hack the PS3. While we haven't heard of anyone truly cracking the PS3 software yet, thanks to Linux, Blu-Ray movies are now being ripped onto the PS3 hard drive.
Multiple sites, including PVRWire, are reporting on gamers illegally copying movies to the PS3 hard drive. Once the large file is on the hard drive, it's possible that someone could figure out a way to burn them.
It only took a few days, but already the Linux PS3 has enabled piracy. As the months continue, users are certain to find other ways to exploit Sony's new console. The fault lies with those committing the crime as the majority of those who download Terra Soft's Yellow Dog Linux v5.0 are likely doing so legitimately.
When you look at the handhelds PSP, GBA and Nintendo DS you see 3 consoles that have region free gaming and they are a major success because gamers who want to play games from other regions can do so.
Then you look at the Consoles Xbox 360, Wii and PS3. Strange that Nintendo went with region encoding when they have had the massive success with the GBA and DS, Microsoft have some region free but why not all, then we go to PS3 and Sony have got this right, region free games for their console..
Isnt it time that all consoles were region free in todays small world ?
An anonymous reader sent a link suggesting we might enjoy High Def Digest's next-gen console media comparison. They take a look at the PlayStation 3's Blu-ray playback capabilities, and compare it to the performance of the Xbox 360's HD DVD add-on. The article offers a number of technical details for the movie, audio, and gaming buff. As you might expect, given the companies involved, both products basically perform their functions very well. From the article:
"That doesn't mean both aren't without their drawbacks. The Xbox 360 add-on suffers from a lack of HDMI and analog outputs, though it still delivers excellent results despite those limitations. The PS3, meanwhile, also lacks analog outs, but it does have HDMI 1.3 support and can decode Dolby TrueHD. The lack of 1080 upconversion of 720p sources on the PS3 is a huge issue, though, so unless you have a 1080p-capable HDTV, you may suffer buyer's remorse."
thatgamecompany's expansion of flOw onto PlayStation 3 has finally been targeted for release on December 19*. Coinciding with this announcement is word of a three-game deal signed between Sony and the former USC Interactive Media Division students who founded thatgamecompany. Details about the two additional games have not been provided, but Sony has reserved a space for the team at its Santa Monica base.
"This is a watershed moment in the history of the school," recognized USC Dean Elizabeth M. Daley, "It builds on our tradition of expanding relationships with the professional community, and opens the door for our students and graduates to showcase their creative talents in an incredibly dynamic market." Guess the gang is sorta like the Bushes and Leinharts of the Interactive Media Division. Go Trojans!
*flOw will be offered as a premium downloadable title on the PlayStation Store.
The US Version of Call of Duty 3 for the PS3 has been released, heres the details:
description
The follow-up to the #1 next-generation game, Call of Duty® 3 delivers the intensity of being closer than ever to the fury of combat during the Normandy Breakout, the historic campaign that made the liberation of Paris possible and brought the Allies a step closer to Berlin. Through a seamless narrative that delivers the rush of unrelenting battle and breathtaking action, players assume the roles of four ordinary Allied soldiers—American, British, Canadian and Polish—and are thrust onto an authentic, living battlefield for an unprecedented variety of combat, with advanced high-definition graphics, detailed character animations and explosive on-screen action, delivering the most immersive and cinematically intense war experience ever.
Right from its announcement, Sony always proclaimed that the PlayStation 3 would be more than a simple gaming console. It had always said the same thing about the PlayStation 2, dubbed a Computer Entertainment System by the company, though this time it's a great deal more serious about it. At the unveiling during its E3 2005 press conference, Sony stated that it would ship Linux pre-installed on the PlayStation 3's hard disc drive. While that (and numerous other things) changed before its release, the system does still support Linux - you just have to install it yourself.
A few months ago, Terra Soft Solutions announced that its Yellow Dog Linux would be the first officially supported flavor of the OS to run on the PS3. Other flavors do in fact work just as well, but Terra Soft is indeed the first company to fully push its support, so that's what we've installed.
It's worth noting that everything in this article, including the images, was created and posted solely from within Yellow Dog on the PS3.
If you haven't used Linux before, it's important to note that this is a power user's operating system. Being an open source OS, it's strengths lie in its flexibility rather than ease of use. While you're able to do almost everything in Linux that you can on a PC or Mac (aside from run platform-specific applications and games, of course), there's quite a bit of a learning curve to get over to fully make use of the system and get it up and running like you'd want it to.
As we're catering to a very wide audience, I'll be taking the newbie approach to this article, focusing on what works out of the box and what doesn't. If additional packages needed to be tracked down, compiled and installed to provide functionality, I intentionally didn't do so. With as numerous as the options are, I could spend days fiddling with these things, and so for time purposes as well as to mirror the assumed involvement of our readers, I'm only reporting on how the OS works after its default installation.
Receiving and Installing
There are three ways to get Yellow Dog Linux v5.0. If you're a paying, Enhanced member of its ydl.net network, you can download it as of this writing. Come December 11th, you'll be able to purchase a DVD package for $49.95. Two weeks later (on Christmas, no less), you'll be able to download the complete OS for free, though you'll need a DVD writer to burn the ISO.
After you have the operating system in your hands and on a disc, there are a couple steps you need to take to get it installed. First, you need to partition your PS3's hard drive using the Format utility in the Cross Media Bar. Oddly enough, you can only set aside 10GB to either the other OS or the PS3 for gaming/video/music purposes. In other words, if you have the 60GB system, you can't do 30/30; you can only do 50/10, though you can choose which OS gets 10GB and which gets the rest. Note that this will erase everything on the drive, including your saves, so you'll want to back them up first.
After formatting the drive, you need to create the installer. Using either a flash drive or a blank recordable disc of some sort, you need to download two files - Sony's bootloader installer and the actual bootloader. The bootloader installer comes from Sony itself and is simply used to start the installation of a third-party bootloader. This bootloader will then let you choose between starting Linux or the GameOS (a.k.a. the Cross Media Bar for playing games). Getting these files copied over and run is a pretty straightforward process that is nicely explained in the Yellow Dog Install Guide.
Once you have the bootloader running, you can start the actual installation process via your disc. The process takes about an hour or so and is relatively painless, though there are a few screens that may seem a bit scary if you don't know they're coming. For example, since the Linux partition won't have been formatted yet, you'll see an error that says that the OS can't read from the disc. It makes it look like you have a bad drive, but it's just a poorly worded message that everyone will see.
Once it's set up, you'll still default to booting to the Cross Media Bar. Heading into the System Settings, you change the default boot OS to OtherOS, which in this case is Yellow Dog. Upon restarting you wind up at a command prompt, and from here you need to either type ydl to start Yellow Dog or boot-game-os to start the regular PS3 interface for playing games and such. You can reboot to the GameOS from inside of Yellow Dog, though it seems that once you head back to that it becomes the default booting OS again, so you'll have to head back into System Settings to switch back to Yellow Dog again and restart. It's not the smoothest thing in the world, but it's reasonably simple once you know what's going on.
Robbery suspect and his dog are gunned down in Wilmington, NC
The PlayStation 3 frenzy took a deadly turn this past Friday when a sheriff's deputy for New Hanover County (NC) shot and killed a man suspected of robbing a UNCW student of two of the consoles. The shooting and the circumstances surrounding it have left many in the area puzzled.
The story began on November 17: the US launch date of the highly anticipated PS3 console. On that day, UNCW student Justin Raines purchased two PS3 consoles from Wal-mart along with a few games. When Raines arrived back at his on-campus apartment, he was attacked with a blunt object by two men and his prized merchandise was stolen.
Officers reviewed surveillance camera footage from the Wal-Mart and investigated several leads given to them. After the invesigation, the decision was made to serve Peyton Strickland and Ryan David Mills with arrest warrants on charges of breaking and entering, robbery and assault with a deadly weapon.
When sheriff's deputies arrived at 533 Long Leaf Acres Drive to serve Strickland with an arrest warrant, Strickland was playing a round of Tiger Woods PGA Tour on his recently acquired PS3. The officers knocked on the door; Strickland walked to the door with controller in hand and opened it. "There was a bunch of yelling," said Mike Rhoton, a roommate of Strickland. "Four or five shots went off and they killed him. They pinned me down to the ground and told me not to move anything."
There were three guns found in Strickland’s room, but none were used in the incident. Even more puzzling is the fact that police officers also shot and killed Blaze, Strickland's German shepherd.
The District Attorney's Office along with the UNCW police department and Hanover Country Sherriff’s department are investigating the incident. "I am making this my top priority. No one's above the law. If there's any criminal conduct that can be established, I'm not going to hesitate to treat them as any other defendant," said New Hanover County District Attorney Ben David.
According to the StarNewsOnline, Strickland was the youngest of three children and his father is a high-profile lawyer in the Raleigh-Durham (RDU) area.
My pal CraigIx the webmaster of GP2X UK the UK and Europe main distrubuter of the GP2X Homebrew Handheld has put up a staggering Auction of Games Consoles and accessories etc:
Heres the full listing
Games (Mostly Boxed Gameking, but
also NES, GP32 + Neogeo pocket) = 404
PSU = Over 300, many brand new multivoltage UK
NES Controllers = Over 120
Ariel Cables = Over 100
GBA Memory Sticks = 64
Nintendo RF Switches = 59
Nintendo PSU's = 53
GBA/DS USB Charger = 51
Genesis Controllers = over 40, some brand new 6 button
SNES Consoles = 36
PSP Cases = 36
NES Consoles = 35
SNES Controllers = Over 30, some brand new
Sega Power Supplies = over 30 + brand new ones
Atari Joysticks = 23
76in1 Consoles = 23
Vcom Consoles = 21
PSP Car Chargers = 20
NES Zappers = 20
Atari PSU = 19
Sega RF Switches = 19
Genesis 2 Consoles = 15
GBA Chargers = 15
PS1 Controllers = 14
Playstation AV Cables = 14
PS1 Memory Cards = 13
N64 Rumble Paks = 13
GBA TV Tuners = 13
Gameking Consoles = 12
Atari 2600 Console (Woodern) = 12
Playstation RF Adaptors = 12
PSP USB Chargers = 10
N64 Controller Pak = 10
GP32 Consoles = Around 10, unknown type, most boxed
RF Switches = 11
32x Console = 11
Dreamcast Memory Cards = 11
Dreamcast PSU's = 9
NES PSU's = 9
Atari 2600 Console (Plastic) = 9
Atari Single Hand Dial Joystick = 8
Genesis Consoles = 7
Sega Joysticks = 6
NES Advantage Controllers = 6
NES Joysticks = 6
Sega Lightphaser = 5
GBA Carry Cases = 5
GBA Battery Packs = 5
DS Carry Cases = 5
N64 Memory Cards = 5
JVC RF Switches = 5
GBA Consoles = 4
GBA Link Cable = 3
Gamegear Consoles = 3
Wireless Gamecube Controllers = 3
128 SMC. = 3
Treamcast Consoles (with cases, cables, LCD screen etc.) = 3
Sega Saturn Consoles = 3
Atari Dual Joystick = 3
NES Floormat Controller = 2
NES Console Box = 2
Gameboy Consoles = 2
GBA Battery Chargers = 2
GBA Charger PSU's = 2
Gamecube Consoles = 2
Genesis Console Box = 2
Genesis 3 Consoles = 2
Mega CD 2 Consoles = 2
Sega Saturn Controllers = 2
Dreamcast Consoles = 2
Dreamcast Controllers = 2
Dreamcast Keyboards = 2
Atari 2600 Console (Special Wood) = 2
7.5 inch LCD TV = 1
Atari 2600 Box = 1
Atari 5200 Console = 1
Atari 7900 Console = 1
Atari RF Switch = 1
PSX Receiver For Controller = 1
PS2 Controller = 1
PS2 Multitap = 1
Playstation PSU = 1
PSX RF Switch = 1
A whole load of GBA flash kits, cables, carts, xchangers etc. etc.
Also:
Genesis 2 Console Box, Genesis 3 Console Box, Master System Console, Master System Controller, Sega Receiver, Boxed Dreamcast, Dreamcast Internet Cable, Sega Control Deck, Boxed Sega Arcade Joypad,NES Laserscope Headset, Nintendo Receiver, Gamecube to GBA Adaptor, Gamecube RF Adaptor, GBA Camera, Gameboy Screen Magnifier, Gameboy Booster, N64 Transfer Pak, N64 Receiver, N64 Console, Boxed SNES 2 Console, SNES 2 Console, NES 4 Player Adaptor, NES Satellite Receiver, NES Zoomer, Gamecube RF Adaptor, JVC Controller, Lightgun, Racing Wheel, Joypad, Av Cables, Menacer Receiver, Wireless RF Links, Ariel Adaptor (loads of these), Tape Storage Box, Tape Storage Deck, GameSystem Bag, Plastic Lid, Gamegear Carry Case, Handyboy, Handy Gear, Microphone, Mattel Intellivision, Intellivision TV Game Console, Video Game Computer Centre (Boxed), Astrocade Arcade Box.
Thats one bloody massive auction, buyers would really want to be in the UK as your gonna need a Van to shift that lot. Full details at the Ebay Auction - 7 Days Left as of writing
1.) Nintendo DS Lite - 34,938
2.) XBOX 360 - 25,832
3.) PlayStation 2 - 20,322
4.) Nintendo DS - 19,703
5.) PlayStation Portable - 19,033
6.) Game Boy Advance SP - 3,932
7.) XBOX - 1,841
8.) Game Boy micro - 1,382
9.) GameCube - 91
10.) PlayStation - 16
11.) Game Boy Advance - 7
12.) Nokia N-Gage QD - 5
Sales info leaked from chart-track from a few weeks ago, show a snapshot of the current hardware sales trends in the UK. Like the rest of the world the DS dominates but the original DS is still selling well, were as in the US and Japan, most people opt for the Lite version. The good news for Sony is that the PS seems to be holding its own relative to other hardware sales, and don't seem to have the problems PSP has been having in japan, sales wise.
It also seems that the Gamecube is all but dead, after major chains like GAME have been clearing there stock the last few months, making way for the Wii.
Good news for MS as the Xbox 360, beats the PS2 into second place, remember it will be at least another 3 months till the PS3 arrives here. Xbox 360 sales were most likely boosted by Gears of War which had just launched that week.
According to creator David Jaffe, initial design for the franchise's PS3 debut started on November 10 between him and the director. But that doesn't mean God Of War 3 has got the green light from Sony HQ. Even though Jaffe is "dying to make a new one".
Jaffe said, "That doesn't mean we're in development, it just means I've got my notebook open, I've got a bunch of books in front of me, and I'm starting to think 'what could it be if we actually make it?'"
He added, "No one's come down from Sony exec level and said 'here's your money, here's you team, go make it.' We have a lot of ideas of how we can do a lot of neat things with the controller in every aspect of the game design."
See the full interview (at the Playboy Mansion), over on YouTube.
Next-gen mech mashing game Armored Core 4 is out next year for PS3 and Xbox 360 - making it the first AC game to appear on a Microsoft console - and we've uncovered a handful of new screenshots for you.
Following on from Last Raven on PS2, Armored Core 4 will allow gamers to customise their mech in appearance and performance, but this time the choices will be so varied and vast that gamers can create a 100% original mech.
This fourth game in the series will also be the first Armored Core to be fully online allowing up to eight players to get involved with deathmatch challenges or team based battles.
Developer FromSoftware is resetting the storyline in order to allow gamers new to the series to feel more involved. Set some time in the future, six global corporations are battling for resources and land at a time when over-population has ravaged Earth. This conflict is, of course, settled by giant robot warfare.
Via Kotaku comes a list of what Japans Gamers want the most, interesting to see an Xbox360 title so high up the charts:
1. Final Fantasy XIII (PS3)
2. Blue Dragon (Xbox 360)
3. Biohazard 5 (PS3)
4. Metal Gear Solid (PS3)
5. The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess (Wii)
6. Summon Night 4 (PS2)
7. Ryu ga Gotoku 2 (PS2)
8. Seiken Densetsu 4 (PS2)
9. Bruise of Destiny (PS 2)
10. Lost Odyssey (Xbox 360)
11. Super Robot Wars OG (PS2)
12. Fushigi No Dungeon: Furai No Shiren DS (NDS)
13. Monster Hunter Portable 2nd (PSP)
14. Final Fantasy VI Advance (GBA)
15. Super Smash Bros Brawl (Wii)
16. Gyakuten Saiban 4 (NDS)
17. Dragon Quest Monsters Joker (NDS)
18. Higurashi No Naku Kei nor Matsuri (PS)
19. Gran Turismo HD (PS3)
20. Devil May Cry 4 (PS3)
21. Sangoku Shitaisen DS (DS)
22. The Legend of Zelda DS (DS)
23. Dragon Shadow Spell (PS2)
24. Shining Wind (PS2)
25. Mobile Suit Gundam Seed Destiny Rengou vs. Z.A.F.T. II (PS2)
26. Metal Gear Solid: Portable Ops (PSP)
27. The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess (GC)
28. Final Fantasy XIII: Versus (PS3)
29. Fate/stay night [Realta Nua] (PS2)
30. Dragon Quest Swords: The Masked Queen and the Tower of Mirrors (Wii)
Some gross looking person on ebay has put his PS3 up for sale for a daft price and worse of all hes naked too. check out the weirdest Ebay auction here
Online reports have confirmed that the first selection of downloadable PlayStation One titles have now hit Sony's PlayStation Store, giving PSP players a chance to play portable versions of classic PS1 franchise hits like Crash Bandicoot and Syphon Filter.
The full list of PlayStation titles currently available is Crash Bandicoot, Cool Boarders, Hot Shots Golf 2, Syphon Filter, and Tekken 2. All of the games are being sold at a price of $5.99, and range in size from 157 to 535 megabytes.
As earlier reported, the downloadable PlayStation titles also require the latest version of PSP firmware, 3.01, to play, and PSP owners currently must own a PS3 in order to download and transmit the titles, though Sony promises to have a dedicated PSP version of the PlayStation Store online in the coming months for direct download of the PS1 titles to a memory stick.
Clearly chosen as representative of the classic North American franchises that defined the PlayStation, the initial list is somewhat shorter and notably lacking a few key franchises already available to Japanese users. Japan's initial lineup, for instance, included Capcom's genre-defining Resident Evil: Director's Cut, Sony's 3D platformer Jumping Flash!, Namco puzzler Mr. Driller, and Bandai's cult action title Silent Bomber.
As yet there is no word on how often the PlayStation Store will be supplied with new PS1 titles, or whether Sony will introduce price point variations or continue to stick with $5.99 for all future titles.
Sony has an interesting "strategy": low supply creates high demand. Ah, the wonders of basic economics concerning luxury goods. In any case, Kaz Hirai recently sat down to an interview and discussed the whole PS3 supply/demand issue, among other things. Let's highlight the big points, shall we?
To compensate for the limited supply, Kaz says that Sony is chartering flights to bring systems to North America faster -- normally, items of PS3 size/weight are sent via boat. Production is ramping up also, but still... chartering flights is way more expensive than boats. Thanks, we guess?
Shipments would like to be weekly to keep up with demand, but that's up to consumers. As for grabbing one off of a retail shelf casually, that's also up to the demand of consumers and Kaz has no idea when the surplus will kick in.
Kaz says that Sony does not favor one retailer over another, so if your pre-order falls through due to unit allocation, it's the store's fault... not Sony's.
No price cut in North America for the 20GB model. Oh well, who wants that one anyway?
The bottleneck in production came from the blue laser diodes, but that's been fixed. Even so, says Kaz, "you do have a ramp-up period. You suddenly can't go from zero one day to 100,000 units the next day."
Support for the PS2 will continue for some time -- unlike other console companies who drop an old console overnight.
Kaz assures us that PS2 and PSOne titles that have compatibility issues will be ironed out with firmware updates. That's the beauty with the PS3!
Overall, it was a good interview. Nothing necessarily groundbreaking was revealed, but it's always nice to be reassured that things are okay, even if they're not. If your dog died, you'd want a hug from your mom and not a silent crying session... or something. The point is, being told nice things is nice. How can you possibly disagree?
OK, on the playstation store, there's two files you need to download. One is the main "data" file (383MB for syphon filter), the other is the 100Kb License file. Once the license is downloaded it shows up in the new "Certification Manager" on the PSP:
Once the data file is installed, it shows up in the memory stick area just like the free demos:
Upon loading the game, you're greeted with a familiar logo...
And after the requisite credit screens, you get the menu:
Introducing... Gabe Logan!
Pressing the home button brings up a number of options available to the emulator...
... including the COMPLETE game manual:
You also have the option of adjusting the video output to fill the entire screen:
This distorts the image a little bit, but i think its worth it to get the full sized image.
As far as the installation processes. The download went pretty quickly, and it will require the PSP to be plugged in prior to the download. Hopefully this restriction will be removed once the PS3 itself can play the games. It is clear the download is stored on the PS3 HDD, but it does not seem to be accessible from the XMB interface.
After the download is complete, there is an installation process to the PSP, which actually takes WAY too long. Clearly its doing more than just copying the file because 383MB over USB2 should be done in a few minutes. It took at least 10.
Also, the license download is probably going to be confusing for some people. Its not a big deal per se, but it isn't very elegant.
Including the manual was a pleasant surprise.
On the memory card, the game file is in /PSP/GAME/SCUS94240 and the eboot.pbp itself is 387MB, so we're clearly not just getting an ISO here.
Wii is a core gaming device while PS3 is a broader entertainment solution says Sony
14 CommentsSony's general manager for Australia and New Zealand has had enough of the negative PS3 press: "The Wii-type functionality is more just a sub-element of what the PlayStation 3 offers," he told the Sydney Morning Herald.
"Wii is a core gaming device. It's a more fun, intuitive sort of product to pick up, where the PS3 is a broader entertainment solution; so you can have your fun, enjoyable gaming ... but then you have a whole suite of other applications ... such as Blu-ray media playback, the ability to access your music, access your photos and the interoperability with the PSP", he added.
Speaking to smarthouse.com.au Paul Holman, vice president of technology at SCEE said that recent talk of Sony moving focus from hardware to software following recent changes in its board room "is a bit far fetched". He said, "To say that there will be no PS4 because of a management change is a bit far fetched."
The smarthouse story ran with the headline PS4 in 2010, but we can't see that happening at all, the console won't even go on sale in Europe until 2007 and Sony has already said that PS3's life cycle could last up to ten years - not that we can see that happening either...
Speaking of PlayStation Store, Holman added, "The site will have movie trailers, 1080p Blue Ray movies and game clips as well as full movie and game titles for direct purchase by a consumer. We believe that this will appeal to PS3 users while also allowing new developers to market their developments to the PS3 user."
Holman also said that he expects 20 new PS3 games to be available from the European launch next March.
Bookmaker Paddy Power has predicted that EA's Need for Speed will top the all-formats software chart for the third year running this Christmas.
NFS: Carbon is the favourite with odds of 8/13, followed by fellow EA title FIFA 07 at 4 to 1. NFS: Most Wanted took the number one spot last year, while NFS: Underground 2 achieved the same feat in 2004.
Hit Xbox 360 shooter Gears of War has been given odds of 10 to 1, along with Rainbow Six: Vegas and Vivendi's new movie tie-in, Eragon.
Also in the running are Tony Hawk's Project 8, Superman Returns, Call of Duty 3 and the latest instalment in the WWE Smackdown vs. Raw series, plus family-oriented titles Bratz: Forever Diamonds and Happy Feet at 80 to 1. The full list of odds is available at PaddyPower.com.
"Need for Speed is the game to beat every year and this year it's no different," said Paddy Power's Sharon McHugh.
"There are some great games out there - FIFA 07 is proving to be very popular with enhanced features that have made it go straight to No.1 in the charts. Gears of War has also been hailed as one of the best games this year, but the fact it's only available on the Xbox 360 means it won't be able to compete with Need for Speed."
ELSPA MD Mike Rawlinson said Christmas 2006 is likely to be "another great year" for videogames, adding, "There are lots of strong competitors as always and it is impossible to tell if the favourite will make it or be pipped to the post last minute. There is a great selection of games that will appeal to various age groups and styles of gameplay to battle it out."
Department store and online retailer Littlewoods has started taking preorders for Sony's PlayStation 3 console on its Web site. Customers can choose from a variety of bundles, all for the 60GB PlayStation 3, starting at £549 (approx. $1,086) for a PS3 and the Motorstorm game.
Other bundles include a £609 ($1,204) bundle that matches the console and two games--Resistance: Fall of Man and Call of Duty 3. The most expensive bundle is going for £699 ($1,383) and includes four games--Genji: Days of the Blade, Motorstorm, Sonic the Hedgehog, and Tony Hawk's Project 8.
Extra controllers can be bought for £39 ($77). Twelve games are listed, and can be bought for £55 ($108) each. Other game titles include Singstar, Tom Clancy's Rainbow Six: Vegas, and Pimp My Ride. The Web site promises delivery "within 17 weeks."
The store is also offering preorders for the Nintendo Wii--due to be released in Europe on December 7--although the delivery time for the consoles could be up to nine weeks.
When asked if it was going to start preorders, a Woolworths rep told GameSpot, "It is too early to take PS3 preorders. It is vitally important to have visibility of stock levels before taking customer orders to avoid disappointing any customers." A spokesperson from Argos said, "All I can tell you is that we will be [offering preorders] in the near future but the date has yet to be finalised." And one retailer who requested anonymity said of the Littlewoods preorders, "Are they mad?"
Sony is planning to release a series of firmware upgrades to make sure PlayStation 3 reaches its full potential, which means there will be no need for a new Sony console until at least 2010.
Paul Holman, vice president of technology for Sony Computer Entertainment Europe, claims that PS3's Cell processor has "a heap more processing headroom than was initially anticipated and that this is resulting in the development of new gaming capabilities". He then revealed that Sony will attempt to "harness this power with firmware upgrades and new features".
These new features could include the ability to download third-party operating systems to the console, as Holman has witnessed a PS3 handling a Linux application. While that isn't the most exciting news ever, it's clear that Sony is aware that PS3 has masses of potential and that it will have to work hard to exploit it fully.
Holman also mentioned that a firmware upgrade will be in place for the European launch as well as 20 more PS3 titles than were available at the US launch.
After being delayed multiple times, Sony's BDP-S1 Blu-ray is finally available for purchase. They should be in stores now, if not later this week.
Sony's BDP-S1 has 1080p and HDMI outputs, along with the ability to play back just about all Blu-ray format discs out there now. If you're looking to save $400, and can actually find one in stock, a PlayStation 3 can also play back Blu-ray movies in 1080p and has HDMI as well.
The Sony PlayStation 3 European debut - due to take place in March 2007 - will be accompanied by a major firmware update, a senior Sony Computer Entertainment (SCE) Europe executive has revealed.
Alas, SCE Europe VP of Technology Paul Holman, cited by Australian website Smarthouse, didn't say what the update will contain, though he alluded to "new features [and] new gaming capabilities".
Those capabilities look set to enhance the PS3's ability to operate as a media centre system, Holman indicated, and may even include utilities to allow the next-generation console to download alternative operating systems. At least one Linux distribution has already been announced for the console.
Since the PS3 launched in the US and Japan last month, a number of issues have emerged, including incompatibilities with some older PS2 and PSOne games, and problems driving HD TVs that support the 1080i resolution rather than the 720p and 1080p resolutions the PS3 favours. Sony has hinted that fixes for these glitches are in the works, but provided no indication when a patch might be made available
Those of you playing Resistance: Fall of Man online in the UK (hi Rob) will be pleased to hear that Insomniac's working on a patch to spruce up a few things.
This from the developer's lead multiplayer programmer Eric Ellis, whose latest blog post offers some insight:
"I can't yet talk about all the things we've changed, but I really think that people will be very pleased to see how responsive this is to some concerns that have come out since we went live," he writes.
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"We've addressed a few key balance issues and put a big focus on making it possible to more effectively use a variety of strategic and team-based tactics in the game. I'm very excited to see how people like the change when it releases. That should happen very soon, so stay tuned."
Resistance: Fall of Man is due out alongside the PlayStation 3 in Europe next March, although there's no word on whether that version will be patched up prior to release.
Freshly swiped from EA's screenshot fortress, we've got 29 (count 'em, 29) new Fight Night Round 3 PlayStation 3 screenshots, which is due in shops sometime next year.
As you've probably noticed, EA has moved the action in to first-person for the PlayStation 3 update, which we must say is looking nigh-on stunning on Sony's hardware. Hopefully this should make for a more visceral boxing experience, but we'll just have to wait and see how it turns out.
All we can say is "Oof" at some of these new screenshots from MotorStorm that reveal further motor carnage in PS3's mud-caked racing title. It's got more flying body parts than a human being dropped onto a spinning propeller. And we won't entertain that particular image any longer than we have to...
New details emerging on the PS3 version of From Software's RPG Enchanted Arms are telling us to expect numerous improvements over the already-released Xbox 360 iteration.
According to a report on 1up, improvements include the likes of the game's story benefiting from new episodes, graphics being given a lick of the soup-up brush to bring them more inline with the title's movie sequences and characters receiving a makeover. In addition, the battle system is being tweaked and there's significant work being done with the title's music - and apparently "a large number of new golems will be added".
Enchanted Arms, which has previously been described as one of the first true next-gen RPG adventures, hits PS3 and Japan in January 2007. In the game, you play Atsuma, a young enchanter who is living during a time of war and eventually develops into a kick-ass fighter and magic wielder who'll save the day.
Well whaddaya know. Sony just rolled out a global update for the PS3 this morning, fixing some of the smaller gripes with the console, and completely ignoring the only one we care about. Naturally, most people have been a bit anxious about that 1080i bug, especially since Sony retracted its initial statement about a fix being on the way, so instead of calming our fears with soothing PR statements or, perish the thought, actually fixing the problem, Sony is teasing us all with a re-org of display resolution hierarchy, moving 720p to below 1080i in preferences. Sony also added a BD/DVD image output option, for switching between automatic, RGB and Y Pb/Cb Pr/Cr over HDMI. Slightly less exciting -- but still welcome -- are the additions of a utility to backup your SD cards, compact flash cards and USB memory sticks to the hard drive, and a HDD formatting option, to bring your PS3 back to spankin' new status. All that's great and all, but if Sony doesn't currently have 50 engineers chained to desks in Tokyo, feverishly working out a fix for this bug, we're not inviting Sony to our birthday party. So there!
Given that these days, PS3s are selling on the resale market (e.g., eBay) for somewhere in the neighborhood of $800 or $900, someone in Japan stands to make a hefty profit. Asahi.com reports that on the evening of December 5, 180 units were lifted from the Meitetsu transport company's Ibaraki warehouse in Naka city (northeast of Tokyo), which should yield some serious dough, or whatever the Japanese slang for yen is. While this will only drive up the prices of PS3s in the short term (we hear 180 units is 80% of this week's production run), at least this good ol' fashioned theft was the type where no one gets hurt, or killed.
The battle over modchips rages on in Australia, heres the news from aussie it
GAMES console makers such as Sony Computer Entertainment and Microsoft may need to re-engineer anti-piracy technology in consoles made for the Australian market to stop consumers using illegal game titles, according to law firm Minter Ellison.
Amendments to Australia's copyright laws expected to be passed this week will make it legal for consumers to use modified chips (mod-chips) that circumvent anti-piracy technology built into game consoles if they also overcome measures that restrict the use of DVDs and games titles purchased legally in other regions.
Minter Ellison special counsel Carolyn Dalton said technology measures designed to restrict use of copyright material in geographic regions, including coding built into DVD players and games consoles, won't be given special protection under the law.
Games manufacturers will need to have technology in their consoles to deal with region coding and copyright protection that operate independently.
"I think people are just going to have to sit down and think about manufacturing standards," Ms Dalton said.
Sony lost a High Court battle to outlaw mod-chips in Australia in October 2005.
The hearing ended a three-year battle against backyard mod-chip supplier Eddy Stevens, which reached the full bench of the Federal Court.
Sony asked the court to interpret parts of Copyright Act dealing with technological prevention measures to include access control measures in its consoles, thereby outlawing the use of mod-chips Mr Stevens was selling.
The federal Government was expected to amend provisions of the Copyright Act dealing with TPMs to make mod-chips illegal as part of its obligations under its Free Trade Agreement with the US.
However, Minter Ellison said, changes to the law incorporated in the Copyright Amendment Bill 2006 and presented to the Senate in October only outlaw chips in cases where they have the sole purpose of overcoming anti-piracy technology.
Attorney General Phillip Ruddock rejected recommendations by the Senate's standing committee on legal constitutional affairs that the Bill's wording be amended to outlaw the chips that overcome region coding.
Sony declined the opportunity to comment on the new laws when contacted late yesterday.
The Australian computer games industry's peak representative body, the Interactive Gaming Association of Australia, was unable to comment on the new laws in time for publication.
Are you an artist? Want to help fight breast cancer? If you said yes to all of these then you can try your hand at creating a piece of art and be one of eight winners of a PS3 or a Wii. theOtaku is holding a contest to coincide with AnimeFF being held in Las Vegas Jan. 13 - 14. AnimeFF is a "fully funded non-profit anime convention," which means 100% of ticket proceeds will go to breast cancer research. The contest brings attention to the convention, driving ticket sales to support a good cause.
The actual contest involves submitting a piece of art to theOtaku.com with the tag "awareness" and the art must have "something" related to breast cancer awareness. All art must be original, so no using a licensed anime babe with her breast sandwiched in a mammogram machine. All entries must be in by Dec. 20. Top two people get a PS3 and the other six get a Wii. And before anyone gets smart, they say they already have the prizes, so availability will not be an issue.
So go make art, maybe win a system and support a good cause.
The Sony PS3 SIXAXIS controller can be used on a Windows PC but Windows XP and upwards would be best. It works as USB HID device under Windows.
Here's the instructions to make it work:
1. Download and install the filter driver (libusb-win32-filter-bin-0.1.10.1.exe). (attached zip)
2. Unpack ps3sixaxis_en.exe
3. Plug the SIXAXIS into your PC.
4. Run ps3sixaxis_en.exe once. A command prompt window will appear for a few seconds.
5. When the window closes, press and hold the PS button on the Sixaxis controller for at least 2-3 seconds.
If you want to see if the controller is being detected:
1. Go to Control Panel > Printers and Other Hardware > Game Controllers.
2. Select the Playstation 3 controller and choose Properties. A dialog window will appear.
3. Move both the analog sticks and press the buttons. The cursor and bars will move in the Axis section and the numbers in the Buttons area will light up.
4. If output is displayed, the controller is properly detected and working fine.
The PlayStation Network is off to a slow start, but things are going to get a lot more interesting in the near future. According to Japan's Famitsu Weekly, Bandai Namco will be releasing a version of Tekken 5 Dark Resurrection for the download service. A release date and pricing information were not announced.
This version of Tekken 5 is based off the arcade update that powered the recent PSP entry in the series. The PS3 version will feature full 1080p visuals and the playable debut of boss character Jinpachi, who was unplayable in the arcade version. The various modes found in the arcade game, including arcade battle, ghost battle and gallery, will also be updated for the PS3 version.
At the very least, this ought to hold Tekken fanatics over until Bandai Namco is ready to start talking about Tekken 6.
It looks like Sony is continuing its implementation of Wii-like technology in the Playstation 3. Now, in addition to the tilt motion sensing, Sony is has filed a patent for technology which will allow users to point to places on the screen using a Wiimote-like pointing device. The patent even includes a description of "A receiver portion includ[ing] one or more sensor units located in or near the target area." Sounds like a sensor bar to us. You decide.
While some folks just can't make up their mind, and other have already leaned one way or the other, a recent independent survey points to Sony's format being the one losing ground and interest, but we can't say we're surprised. Betamax, ATRAC, MiniDisc, and UMDs were all crafted by Sony, and all fell (basically) flat before ever really catching on, and it seems the costly Blu-ray format may be headed for the same fate. Cymfony, a market influence analytics company, found that "positive discussions" about HD DVD were "46-percent higher" than talks about Blu-ray, with over twice as many post authors being "impressed with HD DVD" rather than "impressed with Blu-ray." A good deal of the negativity shown towards Blu-ray was attributed to Sony's "heavy handed" approach of forcing Blu-ray upon PlayStation 3 owners, not to mention the notoriously delayed (and pricey) standalone players. Although it's still far too early to tell which format will rise victorious (you know, since peace talks have all but ceased), there's no denying the high costs associated with both next-generation discs, but Sony's track record with these proprietary ideas definitely doesn't bode well for it.
Apparantly a Minnesota radio host announced over the radio that if parents were willing to turn their children over to the station for 24 hours, they would give them a new PS3. They got more than they bargained for:
"We got more calls than we could handle," said Dave Ryan, "They were lined up willing to turn their kids over to strangers for a freakin' PlayStation."
Children offered included a one week and two day old baby. One caller named Katie attempted to get a PS3 by offering her 1 month old up for a 3 day period. When informed it was a hoax, she responded in disbelief.
Dave Ryan went onto say in an article,"But I didn't want them to feel too badly. I said, 'Listen you're not the only one who fell for this'. But at the same time, think about it, these are your kids, these are the most precious responsibility you'll ever have in your entire life. Be careful with your babies.' "
Two officers have been accused of using their station to cut in line during the PS3 launch. A security guard in charge of managing the line of hopeful fans at the Sony store in Providence, Rhode Island allowed seven people to move ahead and obtain PS3s. Two of those people were police officers.
One of the officers later admitted to cutting the line. The officer in question believed himself to have done no wrong. "I just beg to differ," Providence Police Chief Dean Esserman said. "We think he did something
