Monthly Archives: May 2010

PlayStation 3 News

Gran Turismo 5: PS3 Release Date Delay – More 3D Rumors‎

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Gran Turismo 5, it seems just keeps getting delayed with an unholy jinx. The game which is currently under development by Polyphony Digital is a PS3 exclusive title.

First revealed by its producer Kazunori Yamauchi in E3 2006, it has taken more than 4 years and $60 million in its development process. And yet according to Yamauchi, it’s still 90 percent complete (as stated by him during start of May and before that in January). The latest delay, as per the MCV report is due to the developers adding 3-D imaging and Playstation Move support.

Further details will be announced in E3 in June which will be held at Los Angeles Convention Center. The reaction from fans is as expected – frustration and anger. Although getting 3D and Move support is by no means a bad initiative but delaying it any further certainly is. It’s only evident that we gamers want a confirmed release date in this year’s E3 with no further delays for this critically acclaimed racing simulation.

PlayStation 3 News

PS3 3D patches will be free‎

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A handful of first-party PS3 games will be the first to incorporate the new stereoscopic 3D standard, and gamers should be happy to know that those 3D updates won’t cost a thing.

Within the last month, Sony introduced a new firmware update that makes the PS3 capable of producing 3D images on compatible TV sets. This means the PS3 is already the first, and so far the only, video game console to incorporate the new 3D standard.

Some time this summer, Sony Computer Entertainment will update four of its first-party published games – Motorstorm: Pacific Rift, Wipeout HD, Super Stardust HD, and Pain – to render them in 3D.

There wasn’t really any question as to whether or not these game updates would cost anything, but Sony has now confirmed that they will indeed be free.

Sony has been late to the game when it comes to providing 3D TV hardware. Its first sets, to be released under the “Bravia” line, are due out soon, and will probably correspond to the PS3 3D updates.

The flagship Bravia 3D TV will also come with all four of the aforementioned PS3 games for free.

PlayStation 3 News

Killzone 3: Release Date Set by Sony, Vehicles and More‎

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Are you looking forward to the 3D jetpacking action which Killzone 3 will be offering? If so we have some good news for you, it seems as if Sony have set a release date for the game’s release.
According to a recent article posted on ComputerAndVideoGames Sony has internally set a release date for Killzone 3, apparently we should expect it in May 2011, which is slightly more accurate than the Spring 2011 release date which was previously rumored.

Some other details were also ‘reaffirmed’, such as more than one online co-op mode, including a standard two-player co-op and a four-player co-op as well. As for standard multiplayer gaming, we can expect to see vehicles too.

Other confirmations include PlayStation Move compatibility, Stereoscopic 3D gameplay, jetpacks with guns on them, all of which seem pretty neat.

PlayStation 3 News

Killzone 3 officially announced for PS3‎

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Sony Computer Entertainment has officially announced Killzone 3 today. Our first glimpse of the title came out of the latest GamePro over the weekend, revealing hand-to-hand combat, jetpacks, and bigger everything.
A “war far from won”, Killzone 3 picks up where Killzone 2 left off, with Helghast dictator Visari dead at the hands of Sev and Rico and new political and social madness erupting as a result. A nuclear bomb set off in the Heglhan Capital Phyruss has decimated the ISA invasion force, leaving the player and company alone with no re-enforcements.

Killzone 3 promises levels “ten times bigger” than the previous game, promising new diversity whilst bringing players to toxic wastelands, alien jungles, arctic areas, and even space. Guerrilla says “every location features a distinct gameplay style for you to master.”

New features for the game includes “high definition, stereoscopic 3D”, jetpack troopers, “portable weapons of mass destruction”, and a lot more.

PlayStation 3 News

Sony Bringing HBO to PlayStation 3‎

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HBO is coming to the PlayStation 3. The Wall Street Journal reports that Sony has reached a deal with the cable network to bring their original programming to the PlayStation Network’s video on demand store.
The plan calls for episodes from 11 of HBO’s series to show up on the PlayStation Store as they become available on DVD (estimated at around 11 months following the shows’ television premieres). New episodes are set to appear on the console every Tuesday, with series like Curb Your Enthusiasm, Entourage, and Big Love mentioned by name in the announcement.

“HBO is a high-profile content provider, and a real premium service, so we think this really reinforces that the PlayStation is more than just a videogame console now,” said Sony Computer Entertainment America president and CEO Jack Tretton. “It gives consumers that big-screen, HD experience in the home on a device other than cable and satellite, and that’s becoming the norm now as opposed to the exception.”

Pricing for most individual episodes will be set at 99 cents apiece, though the popular vampire series True Blood will apparently carry a $2.99 per episode price tag. The increased digital availability of HBO’s programming library is expected to help offset the company’s slipping DVD sales, while the staggered release schedule is intended to preserve the network’s relationship with cable providers.

“Networks like HBO can be beholden to the cable and satellite companies, or they can play wherever the consumers play,” added Sony’s Jack Tretton.

PlayStation 3 News

Modern Warfare 2 – Stimulus Pack Sets PSN Sales Record

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Are you one of the one million gamers who downloaded the Stimulus Pack for Modern Warfare 2 on PS3? Well thanks to you, a new PSN record has been broken.

In its first week over one million different PlayStation gamers have downloaded the map pack. The Xbox 360 version has also sold very well, and has over-doubled that of the PSN with 2.5 million downloads in it’s first week on Xbox Live.

The news was shared by Robert Bowling, via his Twitter account where he said “Thanks to the 1 Million+ @playstation users who helped the Modern Warfare 2 Stimulus Package break day 1 & week 1 download records on PSN!

Infinity Ward and Activision also revealed that another package named the Resurgence Pack would also be released on June 3 on Xbox Live. Wonder how well that will sell?

Let us just inform you that for combined sales in the first week of 3.5 million downloads, at $15 each, leads to $50million. Crazy huh?

PlayStation 3 News

20% Less Resolution for PS3 Version of Red Dead Redemption

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Two well known forum members of Beyond 3D have recently discovered that the PS3 version of Red Dead Redemption is not quite the 720p level of resolution that it claims to be.

Forum member Al_Strong confirmed the vertical resolution to be at around 640 while he has still yet to figure out the games horizontal resolution. Fellow forum member Quaz51 backed up these finding by stating the Horizontal resolution is the same as Grand Theft Auto IV’s, meaning the resolution is suspected to be at 640 x 1152 which is the equivalent of 644p.
When comparing the Xbox 360’s 720p resolution to the PS3’s alleged 640p version of the game, that equates to 20% drop in resolution for the PS3. Obviously this also means that PS3 version has a less sharp image than the 360’s. As you you can see in the image above, it is only a slight difference when viewing with the human eye. If anyone can remember, this same issue of resolution has risen before with Grand Theft Auto 4.

Rockstar has yet to confirm these resolution specs, so all of this is just a rumor for now, but one of the forum members, Quaz51, has hit the nail on the head before with his discovery of Halo 3’s sub par resolution.

PlayStation 3 News

Sony to launch cinephile film service for PlayStation 3‎

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As the Cannes film festival gets into its second week, Sony Computer Entertainment Europe is preparing to launch a new highbrow film service for the PlayStation 3.
Called MUBI, and already available for PCs, the online service will be bringing a collection of over 300 films to the home console ranging from Jacques Audiard (director of Read My Lips and The Beat My Heart Skipped) to Franco Zeffirelli (Brother Sun, Sister Moon; Jesus of Nazareth).

The auteur output of Pedro Almodóvar, the Coen brothers, Jean Luc Godard, Takeshi ‘Beat Takeshi’ Kitano, and Gus Van Sant are also being touted as likely candidates for the service’s console debut.

MUBI also has a strong community aspect, encouraging viewers to discuss the films they’ve seen with each other and recommend new cinematic experiences to friends and MUBI members.

The company have also managed to tie up online distribution rights for various pieces of world cinema which have not yet been released on DVD, including Martin Scorsese’s World Cinema Foundation that specializes in restoring neglected films.

The MUBI service is tabled for an autumn launch, expected to coincide with the availability of new Wii-like motion controllers for the PlayStation 3, and helps to associate the machine with an aspirational lifestyle – as does Sony’s links with 3D TV.

CEO Efe Cakarel confirmed to PlayStation Europe that launch territories will be the UK and Ireland; France, Italy, Portugal, Spain, Gibraltar and Andorra; Switzerland, Belgium, the Netherlands and Luxembourg; and Australia and New Zealand. Sweden, Norway, Finland and Denmark are also expected to be brought onboard before the service goes live.

Efe also revealed that short films are to cost £1 and feature length works £3 for UK users. The MUBI website currently prices shorts at €2 and features at €4.

Meanwhile, Microsoft is also preparing a marketing effort to promote and expand the multimedia and social capabilities of the Xbox 360, which has been able to link up with Facebook, Twitter and Last.fm since November 2009.

In North America, the Xbox 360, PlayStation 3, and Nintendo Wii can all be used in conjunction with a Netflix subscription in order to stream a wide range of films. For European users, the MUBI deal works to bolster the existing PlayStation Video Store which provides more mainstream movies to North America, Oceania, and some European countries.