Archive for March, 2007
Harrison on MTV reveals some details on Home
Sorry this is a little old, but I thought it was worth a post. :P
Phil Harrison has recently had an interview with MT, and in that interview he spoke of Playstation Home and revealed a few more details on the anticipated online world. First of all, he makes it clear that Home is not an alternative to gaming by any means;
“I think that you shouldn’t lose sight that home is all about games and creating social interaction between gamers … [Home is] a springboard to a deeper gaming experience,”
Home will launch with apartments, a private space where you can make your apartment your style. It will hold a max of 16 persons at a time, which is more than enough in my opinion. [no, im not a loner ;p] It will then evolve to something much cooler. It will expand out to Homes, Gardens and even Neighborhoods.
The closed beta trial will begin next month.
Source: PS3News.ca
Blu-Ray outsells HD-DVD for the second month running
Blu-Ray has once again outsold the HD-DVD for the second month in a row at a ratio of 2:1, meaning that every time someone bought an HD-DVD, two people bought a Blu-Ray. Keep in mind that Blu-Ray discs still havent been released in the UK and Europe yet, so the launch can only secure the Blu-Ray’s win.
In February 250,000 Blu-ray titles were sold compared to only 125,000 HD-DVDs. Hopefully this is healing the huge dent in Sony’s profits from the Playstation 3.
GAME Cares
As of Monday (12th March) GAME, a popular UK retailer have started selling insurance for game consoles in store. The plan they’re calling it GAMECARE. Basically, for a fixed price per console you can get free, unlimited repairs and accidental damage cover for a small price. This varies on how long you take out the plan, from your choice of either 2 or 3 years.
At the moment, during the PS3 launch and a weeks after, GAMECARE for 3 years will be £34.99. I personally think this an excellent deal. It covers you against “accidental damage”… which means if you get bad and throw your SIXAXIS across the room, you’re covered. When I suggested this scenario to the manager of my local GAME about this, she responded with “Its not our problem, Alliance and Cole hill deal with it.”
So there you go. £34.99 for unlimited repairs on your console and everything that comes in the box. Smash your controller once, get a replacement and thats your insurance costs covered. :P
PAL PS3 backwards compatibility update
A report from the German site Cynamite has given us a look into the European Playstation 3 and its backwards compatibility. They tested a total of 12 games, and the games they tested where:
Only one of which worked sucessfully. That was….Eragon… Heh. The other games completely refused to play and referred the user to a future firmware upgrade….However, this doesn’t mean we’ll only be able to Play Eragon on launch day. (Which then brings the point; who would play a PS2 game on the PS3 launch day?) The PS3 they tested was reported to have been running version Firmware 1.50. Us Europeans will be getting 1.60 on launch day, so lets hope a few more are supported by then.
Source: The Inquirer
Epic Games boss thinks highly of the Playstation 3
In an interview with gamesindustry.biz shortly after Phil Harrison’s Keynote speech,
Epic Games’ Boss, Mark Rein has stated that he still believes “Sony is still the one to beat”. He states that “Sony is still a hard brand to beat”. He also made a comment on comparison between the battling consoles.
“The Wii is an impressive piece of hardware, but as you get the visually more impressive games coming out for PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360, as the marketing dollars get turned up to support the larger quantities of machines, with potential price drops and titles like Singstar which appeal to the larger market… Those machines will ignite, they’ll take off, and they’ll sell just fine.”
lol grphx. The Wii fans will flame him so badly for hinting that graphics is the future. Though we all know it is *rollseyes*
In his opinion, the “big titles” are what are going to move the PS3’s. He also commented on the old “Playstation Home is a Mii rip-off” thing;
“I read on a developer forum, one of the guys who worked on PlayStation Home said they started designing it in 2004. So when people say things like, ‘Oh, they announced this new piece of software! They just copied so-and-so!’. What, you think they just made it last week in their basement?”
Haha. Im not sure how i felt about him in the past, but now he’s a good guy. XD
The full interview with Mark Rein will be published on GamesIndustry.biz next week.
Source: GamesIndustry.biz
Portal is only four hours long
Eurogamer is reporting from their experience at GDC, playing the demo of portal and talking with level designer Kim Swift that Portal, a bundle game with the PC, 360 and Playstation 3 version of the Half Life 2 (Which also includes Episode 2 and Team Fortress 2) will last a mere FOUR hours. Not really that long. The game looks good but i expected a little more than 4 hours out of it.
Source: Eurogamer
Warhawk on Blu-Ray
A while back there was no word on whether the multi player online-only, Warhawk PS3 would be downloadable from the Playstation Store, or available in the shops on a Blu-Ray disc.
A sony spokesperson has resently confirmed that it would be on Blu-Ray in the shops.
“Officially, Warhawk will be released as a Blu-ray-based product,” commented a SCEA representative. “It will see release in late summer.”
So there you have it. This summer you will be able to buy Warhawk over the counter. :D
In-Game Killzone screenshots in the next issue of OPMUK
Haha, an advantage of living in the UK. :P
PSU.com is reporting that the next issue of Official Playstation Magazine UK (Release March 30th) will feature some brand new, in-game Killzone PS3 screenshots.
“Killzone 2, Sony’s incredible future shooter breaks cover! OPM has first in-game shots and hard info.”
I usually buy OPM, PSM3 and a couple of other PS3 magazines, so ill be sure to get this one on they day, and we’ll have the images right here.
Source: Playstation Universe
Phil Harrison confident that Blu-Ray will move PS3s
Sony’s own Phil Harrsion has earlier commented that he believes the so-far sucess of the Blu-Ray Disc will ultimatley help Sony maintain their #1 place in the gaming world and win the Next-Gen war. He states;
“In America, where PS3 disc is already out, Blu-ray disc is surging ahead as the next-generation movie format of choice. It’s absolutely trouncing any other formats, and I think we’ll see the same in Europe and the UK.”
While the Blu-Ray might be beating other formats, I dont believe that everyone “Rents a Blu-Ray”, theyre still renting DVD’s. Though, more and more movies are coming out on BLu-Ray and IGN.com’s recent review of the latest James Bond, Casino Royale, on Blu Ray was a pretty good one, so I hope the Blu Ray has a bright future too. :p
New Clive Barker’s: Jericho Screenshots
Jericho is Clive Barker’s latest horror game for Playstation 3Xbox 360 and PC and QJ.net has come across some brand new Clive Barker’s: Jericho screenshots. Where from, they didnt say, but they certainly match the feel of the trailer, thats for sure.
You can see the screens over at QJ.net
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