PlayStation

First Look At Madden 12

by Jesse Fogarty | May 11, 2011 | 25 comments

When you mention football NFL fans have the tendency to cringe at the thought of the lockout continuing for the whole season – when you mention Madden, NFL fans should smile amidst the bountiful improvements implemented in the upcoming 18th installment to the Madden series (not counting the previous John Madden versions). In Madden 12, EA has taken a new approach in development – focusing more on improvements to the games current features, with a new few additions here and there to provide a more realistic experience for users.

Some of the improvements are updated small features that seem so miniscule that it’s safe to say most wont notice a change in a 15 minute game. When users do have a nice hour to sit down and enjoy a game – they’ll notice that they are now unable to zoom in freely as they used to. Cameramen now have a more realistic feel, forcing users to obey rules that cameramen in the NFL have to obey when taping the players and the games.

Speaking of more realistic things, the NFL cameramen were created using motion captured so that users can pick up the smallest of actions; such as how a cameramen tries to limit their breathing to keep still. Along with the many improvements to the camera, EA has also implemented a much updated to team jerseys, making them a whole lot “Sexier”, as well as shrinking the ball size for a more realistic feel.

Last year EA introduced a new feature called “Game Flow” which provided a choice of plays for the user, based on their team, which received a fair amount of criticism due to the lack of customization. Of course EA knew this had to be fixed, so they added a Game Flow enhancement to Madden 12. Users can now rate their plays, allowing Game Flow to recognize the users favorite plays.

EA also made some desperately needed changes to the Tackle Mechanics. In previous versions, users would lose control of their selected players 2-3 yards before the collision, lining up for a hit, and delivering. With the new improvements, users now have full control over their players, with collisions starting when the players are in front of one another, and not 2-3 yards in advance.

Finally, EA has thoroughly worked on their environment mechanics, providing a HUGE realistic boost. For example, if your team is on the West Coast and is going to play an East Coast game, be prepared for the time change, weather change, and different fan enthusiasm.

Keep in mind that this was just the first of many Madden 12 presentations. This time around, EA is going with the “staggered” news approach, the kind that worked well with Marvel Vs. Capcom 3: Fate of Two Worlds. Users you can be sure that I’ll have more news on the game as the release date (August 30) nears.

Sony Plans to Restore PSN Services ‘Fully’ by May 31st

by Sohrab Osati | May 9, 2011 | 36 comments

Chances are that for those of you who are eager to jump on your PlayStation 3 and play some online games or hang out in PlayStation Home will be able to do sometime this week. As we reported earlier, Sony is in the final stages of testing out the PSN network. Part of this will also be a new firmware that will be issued to all PS3 owners. Still, if the above does happen, it doesn’t mean that all services will be available.

Shigenori Yoshida, a Tokyo-based spokesman said that by May 31st, the company hopes to have full PSN and Qriocity services restored. At this point, it remains unclear as to what services might not be up and running but speculation can lead to such services as Qriocity, Folding@Home and PlayStation Store thought those remain our own personal guesses. Here is to hoping that Sony can indeed restore some PSN functionality this week but I would rather them take their time and do it right, as opposed to a rushed solution which could harm the company and the millions of users down the line again.

[Via Bloomberg]

A Personal Letter from Sony CEO Sir Howard Stringer to PSN and Qriocity Users

by Sohrab Osati | May 5, 2011 | 4 comments

As Sony continues to wrap up maintenance on PSN and Qriocity services, Sony President and CEO, Sir Howard Stringer has written an open letter to those who have been affected by this outage. Lets just remember that the real bad buys are the hackers and not Sony shall we?

The letter is after the jump.

Sony Nears Completion of Restoring PSN Services

by Sohrab Osati | May 5, 2011 | 33 comments

Sony, via the PlayStation Blog has been feeding users updates on the status of the downed PSN (PlayStation Network) and Qriocity nearly from the beginning of this saga. Now, the company has some good news to announce for those eager to start playing online and streaming music. Sony and the PlayStation team have entered the “final stages of internal testing of the new system” which will lead to the restoration of PSN and Qriocity services.

Hit the jump for their full statement.

Editorial: Those Who Blame Sony for the PSN Meltdown Need to Grow Up

by Sohrab Osati | May 5, 2011 | 47 comments

When I normally start off an article, I like to recap the past events that have taken place in order to give the readers a sense of past and direction for the article. However, covering the PSN fiasco really needs no introduction. What started off as users wondering why PSN was down was soon covered on the PlayStation Blog and a week later, had Katie Couric pondering how Sony would respond to all of this though I’m doubtful if Couric and most traditional journalists have a single clue as to what PSN really is.

Though I’m not surprised by it, I feel like it’s worth mentioning that I am disgusted. Every gaming website out there and non-gaming sites as well are simply doing what our pop culture, TMZ/Kotaku reporting outlets tend to do: come up with some catchy headline to bash the intended target in order to maximize their readership. Facts simply don’t mean much; instead, who can write the juciest, most angry piece they can to, in this case, burn Sony and PlayStation to the ground. To put things into perspective, it was reported again that SOE (Sony Online Entertainment) was just breached as well, with over 24 million accounts being hacked. How many of you can honestly say that you were also aware of the fact that the data was from 2007 and that none of the exposed card data was from U.S. subscribers? On top of that, only 900 of the 12,700 exposed cards were even active. Is this still a horrible situation for those potential 900 victims? Of course, but it’s sure a lot less scary than a headline which reads, “Sony Hacked Again. Another 24 Million Accounts Exposed!”. On top of that, with all the data breaches going on, people are still forgetting the fact that the credit card data was indeed encrypted and hacking into servers is one thing, while getting those informations is another thing. However, nobody wants to report that because it’s boring. Now some might point out and say that we are a Sony centric website and that we don’t want to bash Sony. Fair enough, let’s go along with the story that Sony is a evil giant corporation that only cares about itself, the fans, and buyers of its products.

Hit to jump for my full opinion.

Sony Sued for $1 Billion Due to the Theft of Information

by Jesse Fogarty | May 5, 2011 | 40 comments

Sony, Sony, Sony… It seems as though the worst has yet to come. Today marked the second class-action lawsuit filed against Sony (first Canadian suit). Canadians can thank their spokesperson Natasha Maksimovic, a Humber College student from Ontario who yesterday filed the lawsuit on behalf of about 1 million Canadian Sony users affected by the Sony PlayStation Network and Qriocity’s breach of security mid-April. The suit itself is due to the breach of privacy and negligence.

Hit the jump for the full story.

Reminder, Even with PSN Down, Netflix and VUDU Still Work on your PS3

by Sohrab Osati | May 4, 2011 | 40 comments

It goes without saying that the last two weeks have been a trying time for PlayStation fans and employees alike who we sometimes we forget are really taking the short end of the stick. Not only is their service down too, but they are getting the brunt of the frustration for an event that is not in their hands to control. I figured this was as good as anytime to point out like the previous article we ran that while PSN is down, your PlayStation 3 still has plenty to offer and entertain you with. Our previous article was mainly pointing out the PS3’s offline functionalities like Blu-ray movies, photos, and single player games. So what about those of you who want some more media via the web? Well I can indeed report that both Netflix and VUDU still function 100% without PSN. Though they will ask you to log into your PSN account, you can actually bypass that and enjoy the full offering from both services as they are not tied to PSN in any shape. All you need is a internet connection like before.

Resistance 3 Demo to be Bundled with Battle: Los Angeles Blu-ray

by Jesse Fogarty | May 3, 2011 | 24 comments

Those of you that can’t wait for the release of Resistance 3 have a chance to get a taste of the game before the September release. It was announced yesterday on G4TV that the hit movie Battle L.A. will feature a 30 minute action packed single-player demo when purchasing the Blu-ray. The game demo will come installed directly onto the Blu-ray disc, so y’all don’t have to worry about multiple disks.

That’s not the only way to get your hands on the demo – there is one more. For those of you who purchased the SOCOM 4 add-on “Full Deployment Edition” count yourselves lucky – you’ll also be recieving a copy of the Resistance 3 demo.

The down fall to this is I’m unable to report if the demo will be available for download through the PSN. A multi-player demo is still in the works.

Battle: Los Angeles is slated to invade your Blu-ray player on June 14th while Resistance 3 is looking at a September 6th as for its own personal invasion.

Hit the jump for a video trailer of Resistance 3, exclusive on the PlayStation 3.

Sony & Qriocity Users Recieve Compensation For Outage

by Jesse Fogarty | May 2, 2011 | 14 comments

April 21, 2011 was the start of the massive PlayStation and Qriocity service outages, one day later its announced the outage was due to an External Intrusion widely speculated as being the product of the infamous hactavist group Anonymous. As days went by users took to social media sites to speak their frustration – lately its been all the more common to see speculation of compensation for the PlayStation and Qriocity users effected by the outage.

I’ve seen some pretty… I hate to say it but dumbass ideas such as “1 free game download, or at least $40 PSN store credit…” – most of those “dumbasses” are comparing this outage to the 2008 and Xbox LIVE outage in which users were compensated for their lost time… Lets stop right here and take a moment to shut up these fools – Xbox LIVE is a pay to play service which those users are paying monthly to play – are you paying monthly for the PlayStation Network or is it free? (Those users with PlayStation Plus and/or Qriocity service please disregard this)

With that being Sony announced in their latest blog update that their users WILL be compensated for the recent outage and their “Patience”, so thank you to all those who hadn’t went on a criticizing commenting online rampage you are the reason for this.

Hit the jump for the full offering of the “Welcome Back” package.

New Black Ops Map Pack Releasing May 3rd 2011

by Jesse Fogarty | Apr 30, 2011 | 29 comments

Call of Duty fans we have something to look forward to during this PlayStation Network fiasco – Activison recently added some new screenshots and trailers to the Call of Duty site to hype up the May 3rd (For xbox live) debut of the second Call of Duty: Black Ops Map-Pack. The pack includes 5 new intensive combat maps as well a new addition to zombies featuring an more in-depth story line to get users more into Zombie packed fun.

The multi-player section of the pack features 4 new maps for players to dive themselves into – the first map “Hotel” takes place on the roof of a Cuban luxury hotel, where players battle against the backdrop of old Havana. The next map players have to indulge themselves in is called “Convoy” and as the name suggest the map takes place at the scene of an ambushed US military convoy – the perfect map for those who like fast-paced close-quarter combat. Third on the multi-player list is “Zoo” which takes place in an abandoned Soviet Russian Zoo. Lastly we have “Stockpile” placing players in a remote Russian farm town housing secret weapons of mass destruction facilities.

New Information About the PSN and Qriocity Outage

by Sohrab Osati | Apr 29, 2011 | 18 comments

Now that we know what took place during the last week to have Sony shut down their PSN and Qriocity services, gamers have began to ask focus on specific questions like what would happen to their Trophies and Download lists. Sony has a released a new set of answers that should help shed a lot of light.

Q: Will our download history/friends list/settings be affected by the PSN downtime?
A: No, they will not.
Q: Will trophies that were earned in single-player offline games during the outage be intact when the service resumes?
A: These trophies are intact and will be re-synched when the network is once again operational.
Q: Will my PS+ cloud saves be retrievable?
A: Yes, once PSN is restored.
Q: What if we have a subscription to PS3 MMOs DC Universe Online or Free Realms? Will we get compensation for that?
A: From Sony Online Entertainment: “We apologize for any inconvenience players may have experienced as a result of the recent service interruption. As a global leader in online gaming, SOE is committed to delivering stable and entertaining games for players of all ages. To thank players for their patience, we will be hosting special events across our game portfolio. We are also working on a “make good” plan for players of the PS3 versions of DC Universe Online and Free Realms. Details will be available soon on the individual game websites and forums.”
Q: Will there be a goodwill gesture for the time we haven’t been able to utilize PSN/Qriocity?
A: We are currently evaluating ways to show appreciation for your extraordinary patience as we work to get these services back online.

[Via PlayStation Blog]

Sony Drops Price of PS3 + Move Bundle to $349. Saves You $77 (expired)

by Sohrab Osati | Apr 28, 2011 | 2 comments

If you’ve been eyeing yourself a PlayStation 3 and PlayStation Move, the following will be welcome news to you. Sony has dropped $50 off of the PS3 + Move bundle to bring it to $349. The bundle gets you the following:

320GB PS3 system
Dualshock 3 wireless controller
PlayStation Move motion controller
PlayStation Eye camera
Sports Champions game

Have to say, this is not a bad deal at all. Especially if you consider that the PS3 is ($299), Move Motion controller ($49), PlayStation Eye ($39) and Sports Champion ($39) which totals $426.

[Via Sony]

Personal Information Leaked in PSN and Qriocity Attack

by Jesse Fogarty | Apr 27, 2011 | 22 comments

PlayStation Network and Qriocity users what you’ve feared most has come true – today Patrick Seybold Sr. Director, Corporate Communications & Social Media for Sony posted on the US PlayStation blog that before the PlayStation Network and Qriocity services went offline personal information such as Addresses, zip codes and purchase history were compromised.

We have discovered that between April 17 and April 19, 2011, certain PlayStation Network and Qriocity service user account information was compromised in connection with an illegal and unauthorized intrusion into our network.

Further on Patrick alerts all users that Sony will not contact you asking for any personally identifiable information such as your social security or credit card number. Its goes without saying that scams will be on the rise; therefor, PlayStation Network and Qriocity users are urged “to be especially aware of email, telephone, and postal mail scams that ask for personal or sensitive information”.

There is a bright side to this seemingly dark post – the team at Sony working on restoring the PlayStation and Qriocity “have a clear path to have PlayStation Network and Qriocity systems back online, and expect to restore some services within a week.”

It’s also important that when services are restored users change their passwords as well as look over recent account summary and monitor your credit reports – you want to make sure your account is secure still.

So to all those frustrated by the outage that have taken to the web to criticize Sony and the job they’ve done – to end this post here’s the final paragraph to the outage update, and please remember if Sony didn’t love their users they would offer a paid service like Xbox LIVE.

Sony takes information protection very seriously and will continue to work to ensure that additional measures are taken to protect personally identifiable information. Providing quality and secure entertainment services to our customers is our utmost priority. Please contact us at 1-800-345-7669 should you have any additional questions.

Editorial: Sonys PSN Outage Updates Vary

by Sohrab Osati | Apr 26, 2011 | 92 comments

It seems for PlayStation gamers there’s no end to the now full week PlayStation Network outage. The PlayStation Network has over 70 million users that have taken to social media outlets to voice their frustration, which is not only due to the outage but the lack of updates from Sony regarding status of the PlayStation Network.

What has fed the flame is the lack of updates from Sony to its users – Sony has various social media outlets to communicate to their users whatever their need might be to; however, they’ve chosen to stick to their official PlayStation blogs (the Europe and US blog). Which would be acceptable had they posted updated more frequently than every 24-48 hours. Though that can’t be said for both blogs – after a little digging I’ve uncovered the difference in the European and US blog.

Editorial: What PSN Outage?

by Sohrab Osati | Apr 23, 2011 | 6 comments

If you are a PlayStation 3 user, you might noted that we have now entered the 3rd day of the PSN outage. For those not aware PSN (PlayStation Network) is Sony’s free service which allows users access to the PlayStation Store, PlayStation Home and to play online games. The official reasoning from Sony is:

An external intrusion on our system has affected our PlayStation Network and Qriocity services. In order to conduct a thorough investigation and to verify the smooth and secure operation of our network services going forward, we turned off PlayStation Network & Qriocity services on the evening of Wednesday, April 20th. Providing quality entertainment services to our customers and partners is our utmost priority. We are doing all we can to resolve this situation quickly, and we once again thank you for your patience. We will continue to update you promptly as we have additional information to share.

Now many of you fellow internets people have slowly begun freaking out, pointing out that you cant play games now. Although I get what you’re saying, I actually don’t. You see, the last two weeks, I’ve been working on beating the single player campaign of RUSE and once I’m done with that, I still have Gran Turismo 5, Killzone 3 and LittleBigPlanet 2 to name a few of the games I’ve yet to beat. Outside of those, plenty of games are not only worth repeating like Uncharted 2, but there is still many trophies to be collected as well (which yes, they will sync once PSN is backup). So I don’t know about you but all my single player games have been playing just fine, I was able to last night watch TRON: Legacy on Blu-ray via my PS3 just fine and yea, those music files on my PS3 still play as well. I know, I know, you can’t play your Call of Duty online but come on people, there is still plenty to experience and do on your PS3. It’s not like I’m asking you to go outside. So how about you guys and gals? What are you doing with the lack of PSN?

[Via PlayStation Blog]