Sony is clearly going all-guns to own the gaming market this coming Christmas holiday season, offering gamers the $299 120GB PS3 Slim and the as-yet-unpriced slightly more [...]]]> Just when you thought things couldn’t get any better,  Sony releases one new PlayStation 3. Another one was confirmed today that a 250GB PS3 is due to release in October.

Sony is clearly going all-guns to own the gaming market this coming Christmas holiday season, offering gamers the $299 120GB PS3 Slim and the as-yet-unpriced slightly more expensive ultimate 250GB PS3.

Additionally, a leading entertainment retailer has backed up rumours of a 250GB PS3 with a high-capacity ‘movie bundle’.

Included will be the rumoured 250GB PS3 Slim, Blu-ray remote control, Blu-ray movie and – possibly – Sony’s PlayTV attachment which turns PS3 into a fully-functional Freeview TV recorder.

Via Techradar

The GT creator, and head of Polyphony, also confirmed that any cars unlocked from Gran Turismo PSP will be carried over to GT5. He then reaffirms the fact they [...]]]> Kazunouri Yamauchi has gone on record in an interview just published that it would be “impossible” to try and fully describe Gran Turismo 5.

The GT creator, and head of Polyphony, also confirmed that any cars unlocked from Gran Turismo PSP will be carried over to GT5. He then reaffirms the fact they could release the game this year if they wanted to.

“About GT5, specifications are not finalized, we can release it anytime now, but we can also spend an infinite amount of time polishing things. That’s the current situation. We’ll release it when we’re totally happy with the result. And there’s so much in GT5 that it would be impossible to fully describe it using just a summary,” said Yamauchi.

“If you have a car in GT PSP, then it will be unlocked in GT5.”

Catch full video over at JeuxVideo. Translation from GAF.

Via goonlinegames.net

Next3D has announced that it is expanding the availability of its movie player, by offering it to both Mac and PS3 users.

Currently, the 3D movie [...]]]> With Hollywood firmly fixed on the idea that 3D is the future of home entertainment, there’s one company who wants to bring you 3D in the home for free.

Next3D has announced that it is expanding the availability of its movie player, by offering it to both Mac and PS3 users.

Currently, the 3D movie player is only available for PC users and those with an Xbox but the new announcement means that most people will now have the ability to play full 1080p theatrical 3D high-definition movies in the living room.

Movie industry is ready

Next3D demoed the movie player on the PS3 at this year’s Game Developers’ Conference inSan Francisco.

DJ Roller, Co-Founder of Next3D, said about the feedback the player is getting: “The response has been phenomenal.

“Clearly the movie industry is ready for a home 3D audience, and the home 3D audience is primed to emerge. Next3D is on course to be the first to deliver.”

To view 3D content on the player, you will need a compatible 3D-Ready TV, LCD ‘shutter glasses’.

To sign up for the Beta, point your browser to www.next3D.com.

Via MacWorld, Techradar

Tags: PS3, Next3D, 3D, 3D-Ready TV

Admittedly, the charts in question are the Japanese hardware rankings, but Sony knows its machines [...]]]>

Sony may be going through difficult times when viewed from a wider perspective, but at least it got some cheer this week when it emerged that its PlayStation 3 has leapt to the top of the sales charts.

Admittedly, the charts in question are the Japanese hardware rankings, but Sony knows its machines need to do well at home before shining elsewhere.

DS going strong

The last week of February saw the PS3 sell 36,513 units, which was double what it managed the previous week. Nintendo’s DSi and the Sony PSP came in close behind on 35,827 and 35,588 respectively, with the Xbox 360 far behind on 11,795.

Nintendo’s plain-vanilla DS Lite handheld sold 11,774 units, meaning the DS platform was really the most popular one, but we get the feeling that Sony will take a win however it all adds up.

Yakuza surge

The high PS3 numbers were due to the release of the third instalment in the Yakuza series of games, so it’s likely there will be a return to normality when the hardcore fans have all snapped up the title.

Incidentally, the Yakuza line of games isn’t known in Japan by that name – instead, it goes by “Ryu Ga Gotoku“, which means “Like a Dragon” in Japanese. Don’t say we never educate our readers.

Source: Techradar.com ]]> http://mitchellarrieta.com/2009/03/ps3s-back-on-track/feed/ 0 http://mitchellarrieta.com/2008/12/home-will-launch-tomorrow/ http://mitchellarrieta.com/2008/12/home-will-launch-tomorrow/#comments Wed, 10 Dec 2008 14:47:53 +0000 admin http://mitchellarrieta.com/2008/12/10/home-will-launch-tomorrow/ SCEE’s confirmed that Home will launch tomorrow “evening,” although a specific launch time isn’t available as yet, a rep said this morning.

Sony announced this morning that Home’s open beta will be available for all PS3 owners ads a free download as of tomorrow, December 11.

Source: VG247

Tags:

Playstation Home

Sony announced this morning that Home’s open beta will be available for all PS3 owners ads a free download as of tomorrow, December 11.

Source: VG247

Tags: SonyHome, Home, PS3, playstation

This generation has seen a new battleground for the console wars: the online community offerings. Up to now, few would argue that the Xbox 360 has ruled the roost, with Xbox Live offering a brilliant and user-friendly place for gamers to congregate. But the battle lines are now being redrawn as the [...]]]> Source: Blorge.com

This generation has seen a new battleground for the console wars: the online community offerings. Up to now, few would argue that the Xbox 360 has ruled the roost, with Xbox Live offering a brilliant and user-friendly place for gamers to congregate. But the battle lines are now being redrawn as the all-new Xbox Live attempts to go up against Home on the PS3.

The Tokyo Game Show has brought few surprises, but some interesting announcements, nonetheless. In terms of the new online offerings from both companies, Sony confirmed that its long-awaited Playstation Home service, exclusive to the PS3, will be here by the end of the year; while Microsoft announced details of its New Xbox Live ‘Experience’ – coming to a 360 near you on November 19th.

Home has been a long time coming and there are still mixed views over whether it will actually live up to the hype built over the past three years. It’s still not quite here, currently stuck in private beta, but a full, open beta has been promised before the end of 2009.

Home will allow PS3 owners to create an avatar and decorate their own apartment. They will then be able to live out a virtual life, online, in a kind of Second Life way. Community will be the order of the day, with meeting new people, chatting, hanging out together and generally cohabiting being the main bulk of the experience.

Other features will include a virtual cinema, showing movies, stores by companies such as EA, Rockstar, and Sega, and of course the chance to play against other gamers online for free.

The New Xbox Live ‘Experience’ demonstrates a whole new way of thinking by Microsoft. According to an interesting look at the new online playground by CNET, the Experience is mostly about the new avatars, which themselves are just a rip off of Wii Miis.

Another new feature will be ‘Parties’, a new way of interacting with friends and keeping track of who’s playing what. But apart from that, there doesn’t look to be too much to get excited about. And to be honest, I can see many Xbox Live veterans not being happy at the changes, clearly intended to appeal to the more casual end of the gaming spectrum.

I can see both services having difficulties for a few months, with Xbox 360 owners struggling to adapt to the changes while PS3 owners will have to come to grips with the complete change of pace on their network. In the end though, despite all the difficulties, delays and disappointments in getting Home here, I think it’ll prove to be the ultimate winner.

Tags: Microsoft, Opinion, PS3, PlayStation 3, Sony, Xbox 360, Xbox Experience, Xbox Live

If there’s one thing that’s sure to get video gamers talking, it’s a rumor that there could be a new Wii, Xbox, or PlayStation console on the horizon.

Well, the hot topic of discussion du jour is that there could be a new Wii by 2011, according to a [...]]]>

Source: News.cnet.com

If there’s one thing that’s sure to get video gamers talking, it’s a rumor that there could be a new Wii, Xbox, or PlayStation console on the horizon.

Well, the hot topic of discussion du jour is that there could be a new Wii by 2011, according to a post on the blog What They Play.

That site “has heard from multiple sources in the game development and publishing community that Nintendo is currently showing early presentations of its next home console hardware. Apparently set to hit the market ‘by 2011,’ the device is said to be the true ‘next generation’ Nintendo console, and far more than a simple refresh of the current (Wii) hardware.”

The post continued, asserting that this rumored new device could have high-definition capabilities, as well as a “greater emphasis on digitally distributed and backwardly compatible content.”

For its part, Nintendo said it does not comment on rumors.

It could be mere coincidence (because odds are that even if the rumors are true, Nintendo wouldn’t want to confirm them for quite some time), but on Thursday, the company is hosting its annual media day here in San Francisco. And I’d been told that it would “have news” it would be releasing at the event. Until now, I’d assumed the news would be something only minimally consequential, but of course, announcing a new Wii development project would make a few headlines, I would think.

More likely, the news that Nintendo will put out Thursday will be about a new multimedia DS handheld device, such as the one the video game blog Joystiq says could be unveiled at a separate press event in Japan Wednesday night.

Still, if the new Wii rumors are true, it will be a long time before Nintendo would be ready to unveil any details–think maybe the Game Development Conference in March, 2009, or E3 next July. Or possibly not even then.

One big question is why Nintendo would be rushing to put out a new console when the Wii is selling at unbelievable levels, far outselling Microsoft’s Xbox 360 and Sony’s PlayStation 3. In August, according to industry analysts The NPD Group, the Wii sold 453,000 units, while the Xbox moved 195,000 and the PS3 just 185,000.

Of course, as has been made abundantly clear over the last year or so, many people don’t consider the Wii to be a direct competitor to the Xbox and the PS3. Rather, some see the Wii as complementary to the other two consoles, despite the fact that before any of them hit the market, all three were touted as “next generation” devices.

But the Xbox and the PS3 are both HD consoles that provide very high-quality graphics capabilities. By contrast, the Wii’s graphics are not nearly as powerful; instead, the console’s success is based mainly on its innovative motion-sensitive controllers.

Some gamers, however, would most likely love to see a console from Nintendo that can offer high-quality graphics and HD capabilities, which is why any new Wii, such as the one talked about in these rumors, centers on that functionality.

It would be fair to ask why a Nintendo console would need HD capabilities, and the answer there could easily be that just because any new device had them doesn’t mean all new games for it would have to take advantage of them. Some could, however, and I’m sure gamers would like the variety of choices that such a development would offer.

Price-wise, however, it’s hard to see how a new Wii device would make sense. One way the Wii has arrived at its dominant position–one few expected before the three consoles hit the market in 2005 and 2006–is by having the lowest price.

Now, however, the lowest-end Xbox costs less than the Wii. Last month, Microsoft said it was lowering the price of the Xbox Arcade to $199, becoming the first next-gen console to break the $200 price barrier that many industry observers feel is the magic price point that opens up a market to mass consumers. The Wii still costs $249.

But in my opinion, that $50 price difference would not be enough to discourage Wii buyers–holiday 2008 sales will tell the story, I suppose–and I expect that in the near term, Nintendo will continue to see its sales be an order of magnitude higher than the Xbox or the PS3.

And over the next couple of years, the Wii’s price could drop further, joining the Xbox below the $200 threshold and ensuring continued strong sales.

So why would Nintendo want to put out a new console that would almost surely cost more?

That’s the question I think is hard to answer. The company would almost certainly have to subsidize the price to keep it low, and as long as there wasn’t yet a new Xbox or PlayStation–some think Microsoft may have a new device in the works, while almost no one foresees a PlayStation 4 any time soon–a new HD Wii would mean that Nintendo would have to lose money in the short term to build market share with a new device, even as the Wii would likely still be selling well.

All in all, it’s hard to know how to take rumors like these. There are certainly some reasons to think Nintendo would want to go this direction, and there are other reasons why it wouldn’t.

Eventually, of course, Nintendo will have to release a new console–and the traditional five-year console cycle would have the company coming out with a new one in 2011. But why mess with the kind of success the Wii is having?

Tags: Nintendo Wii, DS, Microsoft Xbox 360, Sony PlayStation 3, PS3