Tag: PS3

Sony PlayStation 3 (PS3) videogame system

What Forbes won’t tell you about the PS3.

Last night I said I thought I was spent on PS3 Slim info, but this article from Forbes (via N4G) hand me immediately look at one of the mass market news outlets – USAToday – to see their take.

According to Forbes, the new price point is too little, too late.

Now Sony’s latest move, slashing the PlayStation3’s price by $100 to $299 and offering a thinner version of the ginormous console, has almost no hope of making a difference. That’s because Sony’s technology-packed console will remain more expensive than either the Xbox 360, which starts at less than $20,0 [sic] and the Wii, which sells for $250.

Not a good place to be, with price cuts for those consoles almost surely on the way. And while Sony’s offering is packed with expensive technology, it’s the least mature where it matters most: motion-sensitive controllers and online gaming.

I guess that the motion-sensitive action on the 360 far surpasses the Wii? I guess Nintendo decided that their technology was so damn good that they better release the Wii Motion Plus accessory before Microsoft and Sony put out their new challengers? When was the last time that Nintendo’s online offerings were put in front of the PS3 or Xbox/360? Is Sony really that far behind Microsoft in the online arena?

Good grief! I am not trying to offer up fanboy reporting, but this kind of crap is ridiculous. Just report that the price cut will not matter because the dollar conscious consumer is going to go with the lower priced 360 or gravitate towards the family appeal of the Wii. I could buy that sentiment.

Now to USAToday which has a fairly long interview with Jack Tretton, president and CEO of Sony Computer Entertainment America. The article also features this nugget of info that you will not find in the Forbes article.

The price drop totally changes the PS3’s positioning in the marketplace, says Jesse Divnich, director of analyst services at Electronic Entertainment Design and Research. “The PS3 price drop finally puts the Sony home console on par with its main rival, the Xbox 360. In fact, in terms of value, the PS3 is a much superior product in comparison to the Xbox 360; however, this is not to suggest that hardware sales will suddenly shift into Sony’s favor. It would be safe to assume that this recent price cut will slowly begin to close the gap between the two consoles.”

Even though Sony priced the PS3 higher than competitors the $250 Nintendo Wii and Microsoft Xbox 360, the electronics giant sold more than 8 million PS3s in the U.S., according to market tracking firm the NPD Group.

I too believe that the price cut will make a difference. The 360 may remain in front of the 360 in terms of overall numbers, but I think that the PS3’s new price positions Sony to capture the upcoming holiday sales cycle.

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PS3 Slim: IGN happy with $299 price point.

All-in-all a good news day for Sony. If IGN is happy, then the masses will follow in lock step. In fact, I would wager that folks sitting on the fence are going to move in the direction of the PS3 this Christmas season. After all, the Wii is already the non gamer’s console. Call it the Dallas Cowboys of videogames – America’s Team. While the 360 is going to be positioned as the value console. No facts. Just opinions.

IGN posted some PS3 Slim impressions; mostly favorable, but with a theme of it is about damn time Sony dropped the price.

And then there’s the price drop, which is really what this whole thing is all about, and is easily the most important aspect of it. If the redesign was necessitated for a price drop, then I’m glad it’s here today rather than a year from now (even though there maybe could have been a more significant size reduction). That $299 price tag is much, much more enticing for people than the previous $399 sticker (and certainly the original $499/$599 price as well). And now that games like Uncharted 2, God of War III and Gran Turismo 5 are all just over the horizon, lots and lots of people are finally at the point where it’s time to buy.

Not sure what else I can say about the story. It is not like I am about to run out and buy a PS3 Slim to rejoice in the moment.

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Uncharted: Drake’s Fortune gets Greatest Hits Status.

Good news for those of you that have not given Uncharted a spin; the official PlayStation Blog announced that the original Uncharted is now available in the Greatest Hits format.

Last week, we announced the availability of two new “Greatest Hits” titles . U.S. Navy SEALs Confrontation and Uncharted: Drake’s Fortune are the latest best-selling titles to enter into the elite world of “Greatest Hits.”

I am all for any game getting the $29.99 treatment, and in the case of the original Uncharted, it is a great experience that should not be missed. Now consider that the sequel is on the way, so the timing of this newest edition to the PS3 Greatest Hits library could not be better.

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Consoles break; often.

First thing this morning I checked N4G to see what sort of PS3 price drop announcement was afoot, but right now we are getting silence. I am not sure why I care; it is not as if I am going to buy another PS3 just because they are cheaper. Maybe because mine dies again, which brings me to the point of this post from The Consumerist.

The poorly manufactured, red ring of death-prone console has a 54.2 percent failure rate, compared to 10.6 percent for the PS3 and the Wii’s 6.8 percent.

The magazine surveyed nearly 5,000 readers to get the data. And while the 360’s rate is alarmingly higher than the others, it’s still bafflingly low because it blows the mind to imagine that 45.8 percent of the consoles have not broken. Also, Microsoft’s numbers are inflated because 360s are used the most of the three consoles. Results said 40.3 percent of 360 owners use the console three to five hours a day, compared to 37 percent of PS3 owners. Meanwhile, the plurality of Wii owners (41.4 percent) play their consoles less than an hour a day.

Console failure rates in general are abysmal. I am not sure how they compare to computers, iPods, or other consumer electronics, but the numbers from this article are baffling.

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UK gets PS3 price drop. What about the U.S.?

So here come the PS3 price drops. At least in the UK. According to MCV (via N4G)

As of today the retailer [Asda] is offering what is described as a ‘limited promotion’ on 80GB machines, which offers the hardware plus two games for just £250 – that’s £50 less than the current UK RRP.

I am sure this is just an inventory clearance move, but it should be a sign of what to expect tomorrow. I bet gaming sites are going to crash and burn tomorrow with a glut of traffic. No matter what happens, I am sure that there will be a large contingent of anti Sony media pissing a river complaining that the price cuts are not deep enough, or that the price cuts will not stop the bleeding. Oh well, more fodder for the RB.

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Slow news Monday returns.

Except for a glut (and I mean a serious run) of PS3 price cut and PS3 slim rumors, there is just not all that much going on today.

So far I have enjoyed my brief time with Madden 10. Two important points. First, the game is improved over last year. Second, the sliders do appear to work and provide noticeable differences when tweaked. At least when I upped the penalty sliders, I started getting more penalties called. This is still a work in progress, and it is much too soon to call a final review score (as if I did those any more).

I have stayed away from Madden message boards, sites, and searches. If there is something glaring that has been found, for now I want to be clueless. I think it is better that way.

I ordered Madden 10 for the Wii for my son’s b-day. I am not expecting any major enhancements, but the kids like Madden, so they should be happy.

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Madden 10 – First game.

This is one of those stupid first impression articles that long time sports gamers dread. The kind that ends in It’s the best one yet!”. You know; the kind that we all hate, love to slam, and all that jazz. It had to happen to me some day.

I only had time for a quick game last night. I did not play around with any of the settings, other than changing my favorite team to the Atlanta Falcons. I think that means the game was on Pro, and 7 minute quarters with an accelerated clock.  Not sure if the IQ thing was turned on, but I think it was because IQ500 was displayed at the start and end of the games.

I picked the 70’s red helmets, gray pants, and current red jerseys. Horrid combination, but fun. Played Tampa Bay and won 17-0.

The presentation is truly upgraded, and is a welcome enhancement. No, it has nothing to do with the gameplay, but it is worth pointing out. Besides, I only played one game so I don’t have a lot of gamplay bobbles to throw your way!

I started the game on defense, and I had no idea what I was doing so I just used the “Ask Madden” option. Same for controls; I could not work much magic, and after looking at the in-game controls options, I really did not see much in the way of “taking control of your player” or special moves options. I hope this means I just missed a menu or setting. Maybe the game defaults to some sort of easy setting? Regardless, I held the Buccaneers to three and out.

On offense I opened the game up with Matt Ryan’s new toy. Quick Pass route to Tony Gonzalez. While I only had a short gain, I can imagine what the Falcons will do with Gonzalez this year, and it will be impressive. I ended the game with Gonzalez having 4 catches; one other designed play, while the other two where dump off passes.

In past versions of Madden, I never felt like I had time to really learn the playbook. Clock is always ticking. Same for this year. I need to see if there is an option where the accelerated clock runs after you select your play. One thing I did notice straight away – use the Right Analog stick to quickly change the sets. Sub your HB, WR for TE, and put in a Big set. I love the ability to quickly and easily put Michael Turner and Jerious Norwood in the same backfield. The “Falcons” formation is also included; this is Atlanta’s version of the wildcat formation.

The only nitpicks I can offer up right now are not really gameplay related. Sometimes Madden (via the “Ask Madden” feature) will talk over the commentary, leading to a confusing array of dual audio channels. I also saw a couple of graphical animation type screw ups. These resulted in the ball carrier quickly (warp speed) doing something. Usually as part of a tackle sequence.

I won the game 17-0. I had the ball 20+ minutes to the Bucs 7 minutes of possession. I held the Bucs to under 100 yards of offense (2-3 sacks hurt their cause); they did have ~125 kick return yards. I forget my passing yardage, but it was somewhere around 200, while rushing yards were around 60, with a 2.5 yards/rush average. Remember, this is default settings, me not knowing the controls, and after a couple Abita Jockamo IPAs.

I think there is some hope in this version of Madden, but a new season always brings fresh hope. I am not going to end this post by saying that this is the best version ever [WTF, did you think I was a complete tool?], but at least I did not walk away thinking the game sucks. In my book, I call that a win.

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Early Madden 10 Reviews Positive

The early Madden 10 reviews are extremely positive. According to Metacritic Madden 10 currently has an 88% rating from 12 reviews. Of course most of these are mega site type reviews, but the fact that the game has not been panned is encouraging.

I have to wait a couple more hours before I can crack open the game, but do plan to spend some time with it over the weekend.

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PSN Preorders Debunked

With all the rumors spiraling around about the PS3 price cut, PS3 Slim, PSP Go (will it or won’t it keep a $249 price point), I am glad the rumor of Sony offering PSN preorder bonus has proven false.

I really don’t understand the point. Why reserve a digital copy or a game? It would make sense if a preorder gave you the ability to download games early before they are generally available to the public.

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PS3 Slim is coming; hold your applause.

I will be glad when Sony gets the PS3 Slim, price cut, relaunch, or whatever out of the way. I am sick and tired of reading all the crap about one of the worst kept secrets in recent memory. The problem is that right now there is really not a whole lot of other videogame news out there (except for PS3 Porn) so this rumor stuff keeps filling up N4G, various searches, all my usual sites, and then some.

Fanning the flames is this article from kotaku.

Allegedly, the French, as a purported screen shot from retailer Micromania’s product database shows the oft-rumored PlayStation 3 “Slim” redesign. If this listing is the real deal—it’s not reflected on Micromania’s web site—it would confirm a long-standing rumor.

That shot, hosted by Total Manga and via NeoGAF’s marathon thread of PS3 Slim speculation, could be easily faked. But the details are inline with recent chatter about the mythical console redesign’s leaks. Micromania supposedly listed a September 1 arrival date and a €299 price point. That’s cheaper than the current €399 model, which has been the target of retailer price drops over the past few weeks.

Of course, previous leaks are just as much confirmation as this rumored listing. There was the Amazon.de product listing for the “PS3 Konsole Slim,” a listing which didn’t last long before it was pulled.

I don’t fault kotaku for running this story. As the writer said, this latest bit could have easily been faked. I just wish someone get an “official” leak so we can all get back to something more productive.

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Zen Pinball?

I will probably pick up Zen Pinball (PS3) from the PSN sooner or later because you can never have too much pinball. This avault review (3 stars out of 5) does a pretty good job of capturing the flavor of the game and providing a high level overviews of its strengths and weaknesses.

Even though Zen Pinball is obviously a labor of love, it does have some faults that hold it back from greatness. The game is a visual treat, but each table has its own corny voice-over audio tracks that made me cringe every time I heard them. Thankfully, you can crank your personal music playlist to drown out the dialogue. Though the mechanics of the game are sound and functional, ball physics are suspect. For the most part, the physics are adequate, but sometimes the balls seem to move too fast. As a result, I couldn’t react quickly enough when I unlocked the secret segment of a table. Also, the ball finds the gutter more often than it should. Maybe a slow-motion transitioning segment could have fixed this.

I doubt I will pick this one up until I see what sort of DLC will be available. If Zen Pinball is supported in the same manner as HVB, it will probably be a steady staple on the PSN download charts for a while.

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