PS3 never to be successful-Howard Stringer

Sony CEO Sir Howard Stringer had a light-hearted chat with German news source Welt Online. He revealed that the $3 billion spent on developing the PS3 probably won't be recovered; well, "Not for as long as I live" .

You've got to wonder at the enormous amount of money Sony spent on its console, even though we're now pretty happy with the end result. I'm not sure Sir Howard is not playing a hand close to his chest here. Sure, that $3billion is never going to earned from hardware sales of the PS3 - or at least not until it reaches PS2 levels of sales. Even though Sony won the latest high-definition format war(although Blu-ray hasn't pentrated the Media the way DVD did) it succeeded in the same way as DVD. The PS3 was absolutely fundamental to that victory and the revenue that it will generate for Sony in the long term can only be guessed at.

PSP 3001 has its own tricks up its sleeve

According to a source inside Best Buy, the new PSP-3000 model - recently announced and due in October - doesn't just offer good and improvised screen with better brightness and contrast and all-but also the feature to be compatible with PS3's controllers....the SIXAXIS and the DualShock3! Sorry, its not the PS3's controllers,..wait a sec, IT IS!

How would the chance to play your PSP games using a DualShock 3 or Sixaxis controller be? The new PSP is apparently going to be compatible with PS3 controllers. Sony is very innovative nowadays these days, don't you think? So obviously, that must mean that the new PSP has Bluetooth! This piece of news-that the new PSP is having Bluetooth has itself been vaguely rumoured before.

But wait - how would you hold the screen up so you could actually see it ? Not a problem - it's also going to output video via composite cable in 480i resolution.

I don't know, it sort of sounds plausible. Maybe. Certainly it's one way of overcoming the problem Sony has of everyone in Europe and the US thinking it's a bit over priced for a handheld with a not overwhelming brilliant games catalogue. So... turning it into a games console of its own is not a bad idea. Any officially confirmed statements will be posted. Stay tuned folks.

Resistance 2 BD case shot!

What's up with the 'Threespeech.com' ad you say?

Screen grab may be coming in a new PS3 update!

CVG a sneaky inside source that is spilling the beans that the next PS3 firmware (version 2.50), will grant the new ability to grab screen shots.!

This is something that PC users have enjoyed for many a year, and with gaming communities growing ever larger and more people wanting to share their gaming achievements with the world, this new idea is a going to be hit with all PS3 fans.

With a bit of luck, stage two will be full blown video recording so you can save up all your favourite online kills. Meanwhile I have to wonder again how long it will be before PS3 gets something resembling a full blown photo editing suite.

PSP sells 10 million + in Japan, top 5 games revealed

Sony's handheld has just sold its 10 millionth unit in Japan(alone). Who cares how much the DS sold.

You might want to know which games has pushed the neat (portable) black box over the 10m milestone. People who aren't fans of endlessly milked franchises should look away now:

• Monster Hunter Portable 2nd G (Capcom)
• Monster Hunter Portable 2nd (Capcom)
• Core - Final Fantasy VII (Square Enix)
• Hunter Portable (Capcom)
• Star Portable (SEGA)

This isn't the anywhere near the end of the PSP either - there's a new SKU coming out in October which will rejenuvate the shiny (portable) black box.

Little Big PLanet to feature "Copyright"

In an interesting interview over at Eurogamer with Media Molecule co-founder Alex Evans, it came into light that a "Copyright" system(what devs refer o it as) will be incorporated in the game so that creative users can "protect" their creative in-game content.

If you turn on "Copyright" other players can come into your level, collect your item and use it in their own levels. However, because it is "Copyrighted", they won't be able to change it, edit it, or share it around themselves.

If you leave "Copyright" off, then anyone can come in, collect the object, play with it, adjust it to their tastes and share it to anyone they please. This means that your awesome creation can also go around the LBP community and finnaly become utterly ridiculous! All this depends on whether the "LBP community" will be a success(duh!)

MotorStorm Pacific Rift in early September!

Sony has announced they will be releasing a Motorstorm: Pacific Rift demo as part of QORE, their online "magazine"(subscription) for the PlayStation Network. Those who download the upcoming episode - QORE: Episode 4 - will get access to the demo, and get to play it “a month before anyone else.”

Here's some bad news for those not subscribing to QORE, they will have to endure a month long wait till the demo will then go live on PSN as a free download, and be available for all to grab about a week before the games retail release on October 7th.

Sony has somehow found a way to manage it's "free" online service; by releasing a subscription based magazine! Not pretty much "free" is it? QORE is a pay service (costing $2.99 an episode), and is currently only available in the US it will be very hard for Europeans to get their hands on the demo as QORE is not yet released in the PAL regions. Although the release date hasn't been confirmed, new episodes of QORE usually go up the first Thursday of every month. Because of this a September 4th release in likely in my opinion.

PS3 controller add-on; Wireless QWERTY keypad!

You thought the public statement Sony made yesterday regarding a new 160 GB SKU was all? Well, think again my friend. Pictured is the new Wireless Keypad. As you can see, it's very reminiscent of Xbox 360's Messenger kit, as they are both QWERTY keypads that cleverly buckle onto their respective controllers. In this instance though, the pad aligns to the top of the controller, rather than the bottom - a design choice that we fear could make the pads heavy front heavy, especially the featherweight Sixaxis.

Even so, the keypad is pretty much ideal if you need to fire off a quick message to someone on your friends list, and now that Sony has got the in-game messaging system sorted via Firmware 2.40, these accessories are pretty well timed. It should also be good for web browsing too, although Sony may have somewhat reduced its own market share by being so generous with Bluetooth keyboard compatibility.

Other features include a 'Touch pad mode', which is apparently something like a mouse trackpad, although even scrutinizing the product pics sheds no light on how it works.

The Wireless Keypad is out in November in the US, and will be with the rest of us sometime before the end of the year. Perfectly in time for Christmas! There's little chance of Sony missing out on extra sales during the Christmas hardware rush, so I'm guessing late November is a possibility. Prices are still being decided.

NO more PS3 price drops for this year

SCEE president David Reeves, when quizzed by VG247, clearly stated "No," and added "We're not going to drop the price this year."

Is Reeves a liar? Maybe.. "No" really means "We aren't talking about it yet". Last year, Sony, having failed to drum up sufficient consumer enthusiasm from a semi-reduced bundle pack offering announced at E3 (a bit like this year's 80GB announcement for Europe), turned the PS3's ailing fortunes around in an instant by suddenly slashing prices with the 40GB model, announced in early October.

However, with PS3 roaring ahead at full speed, there's a lot less need for a dramatic, desperate price cut, so we're compelled to believe Reeves for now. This is a quiet time of year though - once the big three makers start playing their aces in the run up to Christmas, things might seem a lot different.

Killzone 2 Leipzeig trailer!

October to see the wake of PSP-3000!

Sony has again proved to everyone that it is not be believed, as it recently confirmed that our beloved tiny PSP would be given an image make over! The PSP-3000 is a slight but significant tweak to the Slim and Light model. The new hardware now includes an integrated microphone and an improved LCD screen. They will be available in the usual black, silver or white.

David Reeves, head of Sony Europe, was keen to hype the latest model as more communications orientated. The addition of Skype and Go!Messenger in the past year have demonstrated the PSP's communications potential, but forcing users to buy additional headsets and mics has presumably not gone down so well. With a mic on board though, there should be better uptake of the services. It may also serve as incentive for developers to include more VoIP features in their games too.

The LCD screen is where the biggest single improvement is this time. Sony claims the screen quality has been enhanced to offer not just a wider colour gamut for better looking graphics, but also a sharper contrast and an anti-reflective coating to make it easier to see in natural light. One of main gripes has been the struggle to see the screen in sunlight - something the DS Lite manages - so this is a serious lure for me and a good incentive to upgrade from my old 1000 model.

The 3000 model is due out in October. For 199 Euros you'll get a PSP 3000 and either the Go!Communications software package, or Buzz!: Master Quiz, FIFA '09 or Harry Potter. UK price has been confirmed as 149.99 Pounds.

160GB PS3 model for Europe in October!

Games Convention in Leipzig is exciting in its own way as Sony has unveiled yet another PS3 model. It is essentially the same as the 80GB and its predecessor, the 40GB, but has doubled the hard drive capacity again, taking it to 160GB.

It is due to launch on October 31st across Europe and is set to cost 449 Euros.The fact that Sony has generously made it so simple to replace PS3 hard drives up to any capacity you like makes it seem ridiculous to launch new models with larger HDDs, so to even it out, the 160GB will also come with 70 Euros worth of additional downloadable content. There's no indication as to what that is - it seems unlikely to be PSN games though. We'll be finding out somewhere closer to the October launch. UK may be lucky, with prices seem to be around 399.99 Pounds.

PlayStation Home to have Adult-only sections?

Speaking to Three Speech at the recent Edinburgh Interactive Festival, Peter Edward, director of the PlayStation Home Platform Group revealed that in the long-term there could be a number of 18 rated areas "cropping up".

Before you get too excited, that probably doesn't mean in-Home topless bars or cyber-brothels, but probably something more like an online casino. Or - and we're really rolling the depravity here - theatres showing mature rated video game trailers.

In an interesting aside, Jamie McDonald, VP of Sony Worldwide Studios, revealed that PlayStation Home had been in production long before Second Life - the closest conceptual equivalent to Home, which has been around for a fair few years now.

Toshiba propels DVD quality to near HD

Toshiba, which lost out to Sony in the battle for the next-generation DVD format, has announced a new technology that could help extend the life of current DVD libraries.

The technology, called XDE (eXtended Detail Enhancement), upgrades DVD picture quality to a higher definition of up to 1080p, according to Toshiba. The company was quick to point out that XDE does not give true HD, but it said the improved picture quality comes close to it.

A player already on sale from Toshiba will boost picture quality to 720p, 1080i or 1080p, depending on a TV's resolution.

Standard DVD picture quality is 480i/p. Toshiba is offering XDE DVD players for US$149.99.

This could tempt users who are opting to switch over to the new High-Def format to be tempted to continue using the DVD. Toshiba is finally avenging its loss to Sony.

Europe to join the 80GB PS3 league soon!

Britishers who are waiting to buy the new 80GB Ps3 which has hit the U.S. many days ago, can now heave a sigh of relief as the long wait for the 80GB PS3 model is about to end and surprisingly sooner than expected. Various online retailers are saying that the first shipments of the updated console will begin this Friday which will be a bit of a relief for anyone who has been holding out for the new hardware.

It costs the exact same as the current 40GB models - although it's not to unreasonable to expect to find some decent deals as older 40GB stock is shed to make way for the more spacious version.

Sony has made it very clear that it won't be slicing any more of the price either. Some people were hoping the manufacturer might be using the Leipzig Games Convention, which begins tomorrow, to announce a price drop to make it more competitive with its cheaper rivals. However a spokesmen said "It's not going to happen", adding "If you're coming for that you'll be disappointed".

Maggie Q debuts in latest Need For Speed instalment...!

"Need for Speed Undercover features a deep and engaging story of spectacular Hollywood-style live-action that will transport players into the fictional world of the Tri-City Bay Area," said exec producer, Bill Harrison. "Working with talent the caliber of Maggie Q allows us to deliver an unparalleled level of storytelling that will keep players engaged in between 180-mile an hour races."


EA is now yelling at everybody that international movie star Maggie Q will lead the live-action sequences in the latest Need For Speed instalment 'Undercover' which is yet to release.


She plays as Federal Agent Chase Linh, "a seductive handler who recruits and guides players as they go undercover. Players will take on dangerous jobs and compete in races in order to infiltrate and takedown a ruthless international crime syndicate," says EA. The latest racing franchise instalment will hit stores on November 18 in the U.S.


EA CEO John Riccitiello said that the new game which has already started garnering attention will resemble 2005's Most Wanted; with car chases, underground racing and highway battles!


Well, nowadays EA is falling for hot Hollywood actresses I guess!

Dad! Mummy is better on Blu-Ray than on Cinema! Dad, are you listening?

Mummy 3 Director reckons that the movie experience is considerably better on Blu-Ray than in theatres! This is huge complement I guess? In what way does it matter to you? It means Blu-Ray kicks HD DVD's arse!
This is apparent since when Blu-Ray won over the official Blu-Ray-HD DVD war and until Toshiba withdrew support from manufacturing HD DVD goods.


"Things that are dimensional, like the dragon lunging at the camera, in Blu-Ray really knock your head off because you are seeing all the details we put in it that are even a little better defined," said Rob Cohen, director of the third CGI -heavy Mummy cinematic debacle. "The dark/light values are better so you can be darker and still see all the detail."

PlayStation Store learns alphabets!

Sony apparently did not like wasting time doing nothing; so it instead is adding a new A-Z search function to the PlayStation Store! The A-Z function will be under the All Games category. The search will filter all games. At least this must put the European PlayStation Store on par with the U.S. PlayStation Store. I don't think a full-fledged update will be needed, or does it?

Life With PlayStation

Aren't you excited to hear that Life With PlayStation is landing this month!?? Well I am not!(I may change my mind!) Because it's nothing but a silly app copied from Nintendo Wii. By doing such silly Sony will surely lose it's status of supreme novelty! I don't think anybody would be so base to forget the day when Jack Tretton announced the concept of Life With PlayStation.

For those of you who don't know what Life With PlayStation is listen up; it's an app that brings news from around the world o your shiny black PS3.

New Snake? Or zombie Snake?

I don't think that anyone would be so base to recollect the day when Kojima said that Snake's era is coming to an end. Kojima was very cunning at that time.....and now too! Kojima is hinting at a new Snake! Who knows whether zombie or not! May be his spirit still lives on!


"I would like you to think that this good-bye to Snake is a good-bye to this era and represents closure to your old self," Kojima told The Cut Scene. "If there ever were to be a new Snake (might have a different name), he will be a Snake for a new era."