Hmm, it seems like Sony has plans set for PS4 already, and the recent shift in Sony's management is of no relevance to the PS making plans.
According to Holman, it's too soon to be speaking of the PS4, since game developers are just discovering that the PS3 has
"more processing headroom than they initially anticipated and that this was resulting in the development of new gaming capabilities."Holman clarifies that Sony is indeed planning to launch a PS4, but no sooner than 2010.
Apparently, the release of PS3 FW 2.40 yesterday seems to have caused hardware problems for those who updated to the new release, as reported by Kotaku earlier.
Now, Sony pulled the update back and reverted to FW 2.36! It seems this is to prevent any more problems for the users!
I, and other gamers as well, remain unaffected by the newest update problems. Seems like you need to format your HDD in order to get your PS3 going again!
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All our dreams may actually come true! Errm, maybe not all of them... Have you ever wished upon a shooting star for a remake (or port is more accurate) for the ever popular Chrono Trigger? Well, that wasn't a shooting star 'cause certainly your wish is coming true, probably!
A new page on Square Enix's Japanese website suggests that the company is planning to port its highly popular SNES (and later PS) RPG Chrono Trigger to the Nintendo DS. Director Takashi Tokita had previously suggested a DS remake of the game was feasible, assuming
"demand is great enough." -I'd say, pfft-A winter 2008 release was suggested for the Japanese edition, though not so much for other editons.
Blizzard has confirmed that it has another MMO in the works.
"There is still one unknown project,"Blizzard executive VP Rob Pardo revealed to OnlineWelten during the Blizzard Worldwide Invitational.
"We have another development team."The company had previously stated that the project was not a World of Warcraft expansion nor Diablo III.
"The idea of a new franchise is very intriguing to employees of the company,"said Blizzard chief operating officer Paul Sams to Gamasutra in a recent interview.
"Are we ever going to release a new one? I would absolutely say we will at some point. I just don't know when that day will be quite yet."I think we could safely assume that this new MMO will actually be a new game. I guess it's time Blizzard started trying a new, yet could be a blockbuster, MMORPG!
I just found out about this new MMOARPG (Massively Multiplayer Online Action Role Playing Game) that's called Dragon Nest. Of course I'm assuming it's MMORPG, but I could be wrong.
The development team based in Korea called Eyedentity has revealed its existence and announced their first fantasy MMO. The dev team consists of former members of NCsoft, Webzen, Gravity and other Korean based publishers and are creating Dragon Nest using their own graphics engine.
The press release announcing the game suggests it will have some Diablo elements such as random generating dungeons and random spawning monsters. Dragon Nest is due to be beta tested in Korea in late 2008 with a worldwide release (including North America) in 2009.
The footage above suggests that this MMO will be action. At first glance, it resembled a cross between Dawn of Mana / Zelda. The graphics aren't that well done, but they're cartoonish which makes it acceptable.
I'm sure interested and will be following the news on this one. Could it be that we're gazing upon the new era of MMORPGs ?! Only time and developers will tell :)
So here's the second part of the PS3 FW 2.40 walkthrough by Sony. In this part, you can see the trophy system in action. Trophy system refers to a system where you get rewarded for your achievments in-game. You could also compare your unlocked trophies online with your friends.
This system resembles that of the X360's. But it's a good step of advancement from Sony's part. I hope we get more and more and very soon, too!
I think this shatters all hopes of any implementation of HOME in this update, but don't give up!
*Update: Sony released a short list of trophy supported titles:
This is the second trailer from Square Enix's fighting game, Dissidia: Final Fantasy. The trailer shows the newly revealed character, Tidus from FFX, in action along some old mentioned ones. I gotta say, the fighting in this game seems kind of good! I actually have high expectations of it. What struck me most is they've finally given voice to characters from older Final Fantasies (earlier than FFX), now we get to hear Zidane, Squall (although he was voiced before in Kingdom Hearts I & II), Edea and even Kuja!
The battle scene where Squall is the one fighting Sephiroth, not Cloud, is actually quite interesting! It actually could put a little relief on the whole "Who's stronger? Cloud or Squall" debate! But not entirely, though.
PS: In one scene, Squall says something to the hero in FFII. I guess it was "We're fighting to protect the crystal/s".
Sony Computer Entertainment Europe (or SCEE for short) announced that the DualShock 3 for Europe. The vibration function controller goes on sale in Europe from July 2nd.
We are delighted to confirm that DUALSHOCK 3 will be released in SCEE territories in early July. We hope this will add to the intense gaming experience for our fans, as we continue to evolve PS3, its software and its peripherals.
So Sony finally officially announced PS3 FW 2.40 details! Here's a piece of the news:
"Here's the short list of what you can now do without exiting from games:That's a quote from Joystiq.
- In-game XMB (a quick tap of the PS button brings it up)
- View game-specific trophies (We'll have more on this major feature at 8AM EST / 5AM PST)
- Time / date display
- Send text messages to PSN users on your friends list
- Access accessory settings, such as Bluetooth pairing and voice changer
- View and manage downloads
- Quits game directly from an icon under the "Game" section of the XMB
- Search the web using the Google Search option under "Network" (similar to the latest PSP firmware)
- Launch directly into another game from the one you're currently playing
- Play music tracks stored on the HDD in games that support this feature
- Access a new on-screen music player interface (when listening to your own tracks in supported titles)"
Sony's Kaz Hirai accounced earlier PS3's new non game initiative, "Life with PlayStation". This came as a part of Sony's intent to make PS3 more than just a gaming console but rather a whole entertainment system.
The new features, as uninteresting as they may be, are applications that tell weather and news. That, of course, aside from the previously announced video download service.
“For the primary version the application sticks to the present time but in the future we plan to build a system that can visually present stored photos and movies according to their recorded time and place, allowing users with their friends and family to enjoy the visuals in chronological order,” said Hirai showing more to expect from "Life with PlayStation".
"In a posting on his IMDB page, Hayter urged the fans to email Matt Tolmach at Sony Pictures and convince him that they want Hayter to write the screenplay. This may be our only chance to make sure the Metal Gear Solid movie has any chance of actually being good. The email address is matt_tolmach@spe.sony.com"Please everyone, email this dude if you value MGS! I know I will right after I finish posting this. Considering David Hayter is the screenplay writer for X-men movies (the first and the second and not the third, in case you're wondering why it sucked), I'd say our shots of getting a decent MGS movie is here, at our own grasp just waiting for our love to radiate through the darkness in order to bring the MGS luster unto this miserable world and... Umm, I might've gotten a little carried away back there but can you blame me?
Capping off the plethora of good information from Sony Computer Entertainment CEO Kaz Hirai's business briefing, White Knight Story (known in Japan as Shirokishi Monogatari) is expected to arrive during Sony's Fiscal Year 2008, which is the period between now and March-April 2009. Not so much has been heard much about Level 5's epic since its showing at TGS '07.
~Source
SOCOM Confrontation's retail release will include a Bluetooth headset, Sony confirmed this with pictures. The headset appears to be well-designed and, in fact, PlayStation-branded.
Features include a prominent Mute button, USB charging cradle, and extended battery life. Sony has neither finalized the design nor priced a standalone model, but the SOCOM bundle is rumored to fetch $80.
McKool Smith, PC today announced that a federal court has upheld a $21 million patent infringement verdict in favor of Anascape against Nintendo of America. Judge Ron Clark of the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Texas denied Nintendo's motion for a reduced verdict, ruling that the jury's award is supported by the evidence.
The jury had found that various Nintendo controllers, such as the GameCube controller, Wavebird and Wii Remote, infringed Anascape's patents.
"We appreciate the Court's thoughtful consideration in upholding the jury's decision,"says Doug Cawley, principal at McKool Smith and lead counsel for Anascape.
"Although not a giant corporation like Nintendo, Anascape has every right to protect its technology."Everyone seems to be on Nintendo's neck these days :( I hope they don't get anymore lawsuits.
On June 27th, the Game Creators announced the launching of the Game Creator Store. Currently, there are more than 1,000 assets available, ranging from models of weapons and objects to vehicles and characters. Game Creators will add more content in the future, including music and sound effects, with additional format support coming as
"Game Creator Store is another significant step in our campaign to democratize game development,"says Richard Vanner, Financial Director with The Game Creators.
"With the games industry increasingly polarising on a few big players, it's good to broaden it out with new talent but game making isn't as easy as many people think. Independent game developers have the need to create 3D models but they're not artists so they don't always have the ability or contacts. Most current catalogues are designed more for artists than developers and their assets have a high polygon count that doesn't support quick gaming. Game Creator Store fills the gap with objects that are better priced than existing offerings and come game ready."So now independent game developers can be at ease with Game Creators supporting them!
Epic Games' lead designer Cliff Bleszinski has taken a shot at the current blockbuster PS3 title from Konami, Metal Gear Solid 4. When asked about dealing with the pressure of creating a follow-up to a multi-million selling title like Gears, Bleszinski responded,
"To be honest, it's fun because in it's own unique way, there's no pressure. We completely ignore it and follow our hearts."
"We wanted a blockbuster pace, and in doing so, we lost the story a bit. So that's one of the lessons we learned. This time round there's more repetition. Games aren't movies and aren't consumed in a single sitting. So secondary characters will remind you about stuff, which is re-established in plot cues. Metal Gear Solid is our example of the game we're not doing. Passive entertainment is on its way out – you need to hook up with this web 2.0 stuff."
In the company's fiscal 2008 annual report, Sony revealed that they've now lost roughly $3.3 billion on the PS3 since its launch.
Why? Pricing the console below its production cost. The $599 the PS3 had originally back when it first launched was significantly cheaper than the cost of producing it in the first place, and while the retail price has come down some, the losses keep piling up.
"the large-scale investment required during the development and introductory period of a new gaming platform may not be fully recovered."
Although the PS3 business has yet to record a profit for Sony, the company did sell 9.24 million units of the console in the last fiscal year. For the current fiscal year (ending March 2009), the company is projecting sales of another 10 million units.
Sony's game division saw a 26% sales spike last quarter, a trend they expect will continue on the strength of strong exclusives like the recently released Metal Gear Solid 4 and the upcoming sequel Resistance 2.
All hopes for the PS3! The PS3 really deserves credit! I mean, it outweighs the X360 easily! I'm not much of a tech freak, so I don't the "insides" of both of the consoles, but I do know this, PS3 has Blu-Ray which in turn allow for much more content than the X360!
Full report here.Sony’s John Koller acknowledges that the PSP has had mostly games that are ports and not so many originals, but refutes the idea that the PSP is dying, and in fact believes that
“we’re at a point actually where the counter to that is that it’s actually doing very, very well.”
“From a gaming standpoint, I think that there’s a few things that are happening. There’s been a calibration amongst publishers of how to publish for the PSP,”Koller said. He admits that
“initially a lot of the games that launched were either ports or games that didn’t really meet the demographic’s interest, and that was as we were shifting down to that teen demo,”and thinks that’s due to publishers being unsure of what demographic was actually buying the PSP.
“We have been — and I guess where we are now is at a point were today publishers are seeing the results of decisions made 18 months ago. Where they were saying, ‘You know what, maybe we’ll try this or that or maybe we’ll wait a little bit to see how the PSP does.’ The level of games that we have now are very strong on the quality side, and I think, in many ways, have kind of followed what we have been preaching here is that the key to success in publishing on the PSP is to launch larger franchise games with unique gameplay underneath. That’s a non-port type strategy. That’s something like a God of War or Crisis Core where it’s a large brand name, it’s a very good game from a quality standpoint, but it’s unique. You can’t play it on console, and it avoids the cannibalization that you would get from someone who may own a console and play their PSP at home, which is a common occurrence.”
He continued,
“Given that situation, many consumers were choosing one or the other, and that’s not a situation that we want to put a consumer in. That’s another point to be made, and then the third thing is a lot of interest in the PSN, the PlayStation Network, and the downloadable distribution there. There’s some considerable resources there being placed against development in that area as well.”
“I think the net of this is that over the course of the next six to twelve months, there’s going to be a tremendous amount of excitement about the franchises that are coming to PSP, the quality of the games, and then also the games that are going to be easily downloaded that are very engaging but for a less expensive price. I think that those areas are really going to instigate a lot of excitement around that category.”
According to CVG, they have received a few facts and figures about Peter Molyneux's Fable II.
The speech of the game has been recorded at the London-based firm Side. It's latest newsletter reveals that Side cast over 45 actors (aged from 8 to 80) to play almost 200 speaking characters.
"Four of Side's voice directors ensured that all performances harmonized perfectly with Fable II's idiosyncratic world and captured the complexities of its inhabitants. The voice recording ran concurrently in two studios for over three months, amounting to nearly 370,000 words recorded - that's 38 hours of dialogue."
Ubisoft has announced that the title to the new Nintendo DS exclusive Prince of Persia game will be titled The Fallen King.Prince of Persia: The Fallen King will complement the new Prince of Persia coming out this holiday on consoles & PC by expanding the saga with an independent storyline, and will be also available at retailers nationwide for the 2008 holiday season.
Storyline: Facing imminent danger, the Prince flees to a deserted kingdom that seemingly offers sanctuary. Already touched by the evil Corruption, a dark substance that physically contaminates the land and the skies, the kingdom is filled with adventure, challenge and intrigue. As the Prince seeks a way to fight the spreading Corruption destroying the land, he encounters a partially infected creature that promises salvation. But is the creature truly an ally or merely an enemy in disguise? It seems this perilous alliance may be the only way for the Prince to face the forces of darkness and save the Persian kingdom from the Corruption once and for all.
Features:
- The award-winning Prince of Persia franchise, built exclusively for Nintendo DS: Use the DS stylus to master the acrobatics, strategy and fighting tactics of the most agile warrior of all time.
- The epic journey continues in an all-new adventure: Immerse yourself in the captivating Prince of Persia universe with an original and independent story that closely coincides with the action of the console & PC editions of the game.
- Unique visual style: Brand-new art design delivers incredible environments in over 50+ maps. Explore deserted cities, dark labyrinths and forbidding jungles to battle the evil Corruption.
- Play as the all-new character: the Magus: Switch between the Prince and this mysterious new ally to fight, solve puzzles and utilize his magical powers to make your way through the corrupted land.
