Alpha authors
- Dan Ackerman
- Rich Brown
- David Carnoy
- Bonnie Cha
- Brian Cooley
- Wayne Cunningham
- Robert Dubbin
- Matthew Elliott
- John Falcone
- Jasmine France
- Kent German
- Will Greenwald
- Lori Grunin
- Justin Jaffe
- David Katzmaier
- James Kim
- Nicole Lee
- Lara Luepke
- Kevin Massy
- Tom Merritt
- Tim Moynihan
- Rafe Needleman
- David Rudden
- Philip Ryan
- Michelle Thatcher
- Robert Vamosi
- Elsa Wenzel
- Molly Wood
- Felisa Yang
August 23, 2005, 9:39 AM PDTBreaking: PSP v2.0 firmware finally arrives (updated)
Posted by: Robert Dubbin Update 3 (August 24): It's here, and for real this time. You can now download the PSP v2.0 firmware upgrade via your PSP's Network Update feature or by visiting the official download site. Of course, before installing this patch, you'll want to make sure that you actually want to install the update; make:blog's Philip Torrone has already weighed in against making the switch, which will cripple your PSP's homebrew capabilities if you're flashing up from the v1.5 firmware. Versions 1.51 and 1.52 don't have homebrew, so if you have those, then flash away.
Update 2: Though this will perhaps disappoint those TalkBackers who felt that I had somehow "made a lot of money posting [this] article," CNET user yammer2002 appears to have shed some light on what happened with this patch today. If you check his message at the bottom of the comments, you'll see that following the link from my original post (via Engadget), then entering a certain username and password will give you access to the v2.0 firmware download site. It seems that the update briefly went live, but then somebody at Sony reconsidered and slapped a login prompt in front of the page. So while it's doubtful that this in any way constitutes an "official" release of the v2.0 firmware, if nothing else, the American version of the patch is now available for download. This time, I even took a screenshot.
Update: Wheeeew.... OK. If you check the link in the entry below or the comments following that, you'll notice that something has gone horribly wrong. Here's what happened: earlier today, Engadget posted an entry saying that the PSP update was maybe coming today and that SCEA had put up a temporary "staging site" for the patch. Now, if you go to that entry, you'll see that the link is still there and that it resolves to the same "stage-us" PlayStation domain that I link to at the top of this post, although now it asks you for a logon and password. But earlier, here's how we got that info: I opened a new Firefox tab, pasted the link, and proceeded to refresh it roughly every 15 minutes starting at 11 a.m. ET. Lo and behold, at 12 p.m. my time, the link resolved to a download page for the official release of Sony's v2.0 firmware, specs included. Did I take a screenshot? No. But was the page up? Yes, and the download worked, and it was working at least up until I went to get a salad, when all hell appears to have broken lose. I've spoken to an SCEA representative, and I've forwarded them the URL; hopefully, we'll have an official statement for you (and, honestly, for us) shortly.
Original post:
This just in: the American release of the PSP's v2.0 firmware has arrived.
Unfortunately, the additional week of waiting time didn't result in any bonus features; this update contains the same Web browser, WPA support, and homebrew-stifling goodness as its Japanese counterpart, which many savvy PSP owners have already installed. This begs the question: why did Sony wait a week to officially release an upgrade that 1) added significant functionality to its product; and 2) was already, for all intents and purposes, done?
It's a mystery until you think about what the competition has been up to this week. Yesterday, both Advance Wars: Dual Strike and Nintendogs launched for the Nintendo DS, each garnering high critical praise and arguably giving the PSP's archrival its first two killer apps. Remember how Microsoft is going to launch Halo 3 the same day as Sony drops the PlayStation 3? Seems like SCEA isn't above adopting the same subtle tactics.
Do you think Sony's firmware delay was deliberate? Are you planning to upgrade now that the update is official? Have you gotten so into Nintendogs that you don't care one way or another? Let the TalkBacks commence.
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August 18, 2005, 2:52 PM PDTWill MMORPGs take over the world?
Posted by: Robert Dubbin
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Well, wait a minute. While it's a credit to Blizzard, ArenaNet, and Cryptic Studios that World of Warcraft, Guild Wars, and City of Heroes provide such immersively persistent gaming experiences, it would be folly not to admit that the genre's explosive progress is largely tied to advances in hardware. Now, before you flame, I know that MUDs have existed longer than I have; I, too, have racked up hundred-dollar phone bills while combing the text-only dungeons of Gemstone III. But these days, mainstream gamers demand immersive graphics, which require cutting-edge hardware, which in turn requires disposable income. And there's the rub: while there's no doubting that the PlayStation 3 will offer jaw-dropping visuals, its rumored $400-level price tag may prevent it from achieving household ubiquity. And while I'd like to believe, as this article's author states, that one day "there will be a branch of government to rule the virtual world," my guess is that the rising cost of gaming hardware will cap the genre's growth before we need a Department of Azerothian Security.
What do you think? Am I merely dismissing the inevitable? Hit me with your talkbacks.
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August 17, 2005, 9:30 AM PDTMarch of the Xbox 360 accessories
Posted by: Robert Dubbin I touched on this briefly in the previous post, but today's Xbox 360 announcements also included an official list of approved accessories. Reproduced for your consumption:
Naturally, all of these are pricey; we expect nothing less from proprietary peripherals. But unlike Xboxes past, for which unscrupulous overseas exporters could pump out $10 knockoffs within seconds of launch, the Xbox 360 has a rigid security mechanism to ensure that only properly approved and licensed accessories can be used with the box.
So, while DRM schemes can be cracked--and we're not ruling that out for the future--for now, you'll have to shell out for a 64MB memory card that somehow costs $40. Ugh--haven't we, as a civilization, advanced past the point where we need proprietary memory cards? Memory hasn't been this expensive per megabyte since 640K was enough for everybody. I wonder how much they'll charge for the 2,400baud modem.
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August 17, 2005, 9:00 AM PDTXbox 360 pricing and bundles confirmed
Posted by: Robert Dubbin A flood of Xbox 360 pricing details hit the wire this morning, confirming that Microsoft's next-generation console will launch in two flavors: a $299 edition that comes with one wired controller, a detachable faceplate, and standard A/V cables; and a souped-up $399 version that ships with a 20GB hard drive, a wireless controller, a wireless headset, a limited-edition wireless Media Center remote, and HD-capable component A/V cables. Both SKUs will include a basic Xbox Live Silver membership.
The long and short of the announcement is this: Yes, you'll be able to get an Xbox 360 for the same $299 you would have paid to get the original Xbox back in 2001. But you'll be getting a deliberately bare-bones rig whose necessary accessories will bring you perilously close to the cost of the $399 package anyway; without a hard drive, you'll need a memory card, and the "official" 64MB model ($39.99) is only 60 bucks cheaper than the bump up to the 20GB deluxe package.
Also significant about this release is what it didn't tell us: there's still no confirmed release date, nor are there any set launch titles (whoops!). But gamers now know exactly what size piggy bank they'll need to fill between now and the holidays.
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August 11, 2005, 2:16 PM PDTXbox 360 launch lineup leaks
Posted by: Robert Dubbin Where would we be without the hapless retail outlets who routinely leak details of products before they're announced through official channels? It seems that EBgames has inadvertently tipped Microsoft's hand, announcing the Xbox 360's launch lineup a full three months before the console's anticipated release date.
Check out the full list here (via digg.com), and note that, for now, you can click through to individual game pages on EB's site, then mutter to yourself upon noticing that they all appear to be priced in the vicinity of $59.99. Now, if only EB could start leaking coupon codes and free gift certificates and maybe just start direct-mailing Xbox 360s to people, then we'd be getting somewhere.
Update: EBgames has since put up a disclaimer saying that prices aren't official. Though the pricing and release dates you see on its sites are likely close to accurate, you'll want to take them with a few grains of salt.
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August 10, 2005, 1:55 PM PDTHands on with Madden NFL 06 (PSP)
Posted by: Robert Dubbin
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I have a point here, and it is this: if you can take even a "pretty good" console game, and make it portable, then you have created magic. And that's what EA Sports has done with Madden NFL 06 for the Sony PSP. This is without question the PSP's first killer app and the fulfillment of all those promises we heard back in March of a "handheld PlayStation 2." The Madden experience that piqued over the last couple years arrives remarkably intact on the PSP; the controls feel right (expected), there's a full franchise mode (incredible), and the graphics are roughly on par with what you'd see playing console Madden on a PSP-size screen (unprecedented). Screenshots really don't do this game justice, because they fail to capture the particular feeling you get when you see a 3D Ronnie Brown burst into the secondary after a lifetime of sprite-based Madden efforts on the GBA.
Longtime fans of the franchise will also be happy to hear that the game's learning curve remains intact; I found the moderate difficulty level fairly challenging, and though I'm no great shakes at Madden, it's nice to see that handheld football has evolved past the point where you can just speed-burst into the end zone on every play. Passing adheres to the same time-honored methods of Maddens past, so you won't have to bother with turning off the newfangled Cone of Vision that so many people seem to hate on consoles. A few of the other console-specific moves are absent as well, due to the PSP's lack of a right analog control; you can still "truck" defenders with the triangle button, but can't do the back-juke that, if deftly executed, would likely allow experienced players to speed-burst into the end zone on every play. So maybe that's a good thing.
There were a couple features I couldn't try out; there was no Wi-Fi at the press event, so my multiplayer options were limited, and I didn't get a chance to sync the PSP with the PS2 version of the game, which would have allowed me to play a week from my season on the go. But EA's PR types assured me that those features worked perfectly well, so you'll be able to log in and manhandle any guy from Chicago who insists on playing as the Bears.
It's the rare game that actually inspires people to buy the platform it comes on, but Madden has the potential to do just that for the PSP. I can almost picture the collective sigh of relief at Sony HQ--you're in bad shape when your console's most exciting title is a Web browser.
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August 05, 2005, 2:25 PM PDTGame(s) of the Week(s)
Posted by: Robert Dubbin Happy weekend! Why go out or visit friends when you can enjoy CNET's Game of the Week slide shows from this and last week?!
This week: Ghost Recon: Advanced Warfighter (Xbox 360)
Last week: Quake 4 (PC)
Next week, I'll have hands-on previews of EA Sports' Madden 2006, NBA Live 2006, and Tiger Woods 2006 for the Sony PSP, as well as a brief rundown of NHL 2006 for consoles. Yep--it's that time of year, when everyone who's tired of their MLB 2006 season looks forward to bigger and better things.
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August 04, 2005, 8:40 AM PDTA not quite Final Fantasy
Posted by: Robert Dubbin
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You see, normally I don't put much stock in hands-on previews; they're informative, certainly, and much better than relying on screenshots. But since they normally involve a developer hovering over your shoulder and visibly trembling if the frame rate in his prealpha build slows down, I think reviewers can sometimes be a bit too forgiving. Which is why, upon reading 1up.com's hands-on preview of Dirge of Cerberus: Final Fantasy VII, I stopped dead in my tracks: They didn't like the game. This was bad, bad news; you must understand that for a game journalist even to look askance at a prebuild title, never mind a Final Fantasy title, never mind a Final Fantasy VII-derived title, it has not only to stink, but also to give off visible smell rays.
OK, I'm overreacting. A lot of the problems 1up had with Dirge of Cerberus were early build issues, and if you read the article, you'll see that they retain a sort of cautious optimism that things will work themselves out in the end. But is it fair to say that maybe Square Enix needs to keep a tighter leash on their treasured Final Fantasy properties? If Dirge of Cerberus tanks, it certainly won't cheapen anyone's memories of the original FFVII, but it will temper their excitement for future spin-off efforts, especially the unapologetically crappy ones. Final Fantasy overexposure needs to end, before the franchise's name can become even more deeply ironic. I don't think I'm alone in longing for a time when Cloud was making awesome cameos in Kingdom Hearts instead of shilling digital cameras.
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August 02, 2005, 8:10 AM PDTPSP v2.0 firmware arrives stateside on 8/12
Posted by: Robert Dubbin Engadget is reporting that Sony will officially release the PSP's v2.0 firmware in America on August 12. Of course, by then, pretty much everyone planning to make the update will have grabbed the readily available Japanese upgrade file; as a practical matter, the only significance of the August 12 date is that you'll be able to download the firmware flasher using the Network Update option on your PSP's main menu instead of manually saving it to your memory stick. So there's no real reason to wait, unless you're one of those conspiracy theorists who's holding out for an official release because you believe that all Japanese-upgraded PSPs will turn themselves on at the stroke of midnight on August 12, forming a distributed artificial intelligence network determined to enslave humanity. But honestly, how is an American firmware update going to help you if that happens? Permalink | Post a comment
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August 01, 2005, 8:22 AM PDTSAG gives games a lift
Posted by: Robert Dubbin
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This is a big deal, because for a while there it looked like the SAG might drop the S-bomb (strike, not Stephen) and foul up such forthcoming titles as The Godfather (featuring the vocal stylings of James Caan and a posthumous Marlon Brando) and Stargate SG-1 (featuring the slightly less famous stars of the original TV series). Oh, and also pretty much every other video game in development, since a generous portion of voice actors belong to the guild, even if their fame currently registers at sub-Stargate levels.
So yeah, good news all around. I couldn't imagine there being much interest in a replacement-player Godfather title, voiced by a rickety cast of scabs and celebrity impersonators. Though you have to wonder whether using Brando in the first place required some sort of workaround--I picture his body, wearing sunglasses, propped up at the mic by those two guys from Weekend at Bernie's.
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