February 1, 2009February 3, 2009

PlayStation Around the Web: What We Read

Sure, it’s Super Bowl Sunday. But if you’re not a football fan, a reader outside of the US, or just a bitter, still-not-over-it Eagles fan like myself who can’t bear to watch the game this year – here’s something to look forward to for tomorrow: Killzone 2 reviews.

IGN’s North American-exclusive review checked in late last week with an “Outstanding” 9.4 (link below), and you’ll see a lot more hit tomorrow. It doesn’t make the wait for the game go by any faster, but it does help reassure you that the wait til February 27th will be well worth it.

Here is the rest of what we read this week, and you may notice there are no links to PS3 or PSP Fanboy. Those sites have coalesced into Joystiq [PlayStation], which looks great and links to us a lot ;-)

The PS Blog weekly reading list (Week of January 26, 2009)

Comments are closed.

93 Comments

12 Author Replies

TheHater2
February 1, 2009 at 7:43 pm PST

Resident Evil Demo now available for download on the Japanese Playstation Store. The demo is 942MB.
Dehshizknight
February 1, 2009 at 8:07 pm PST

I love how you put the [PlayStation] tag for posts from Joystiq PlayStation.

And why not put a link to the PSNation episode of the week on these posts?
- Jeff Rubenstein
  February 1, 2009 at 9:22 pm PST
  
  These are stories I\’ve actually read, and I\’m usually behind on the PS Nation podcasts. That said, if Torgo wants to shout them out on the comments, he\’s welcome to do so.
thekingtavy
February 1, 2009 at 8:50 pm PST

I was hopin 4 a superbowl ad tonight :(
i knew the teamwork one was fake but i was hoping for a real one.

BTW good job last week with the post guys and i will start posting more instead of being a ghost that just reads the red comments.
DUDEyourdead
February 1, 2009 at 9:05 pm PST

Killzone 2 demo this thursday, cant wait to play it!!!
BrianC6234
February 1, 2009 at 9:32 pm PST

“I was hopin 4 a superbowl ad tonight :(”

Me too. Someone at SCEA in the marketing department is asleep at the wheel. Shame on them for this huge blunder. I knew the posted ad wasn’t real but I thought for sure Sony would see the value in advertising such a huge game during such a huge event. That would have most likely sold a lot of PS3s too. They could have included the demo with all new PS3s and even mention that during the commercial.
JpinterPSU
February 1, 2009 at 10:57 pm PST

You guys should add PSU.com to your reading list.
ross_k
February 2, 2009 at 12:03 am PST

Heres something cool I saw, hopefully SCE will take note, Jeff make it happen

http://boardsus.playstation.com/playstation/board/message?board.id=ps3&message.id=3682900&jump=true#M3682900
Chase167
February 2, 2009 at 12:27 am PST

THIS DEMO SUPER SUCKZ
HOLY CRAP
IM GOING 2 GAMESTOP IN THE MORNING
TAKING MY MONEY OFF THIS CRAP
THIS DEMO IS SO DISAPPOINTING
HOLY CRAP
Letters2Kay
February 2, 2009 at 12:56 am PST

“Resident Evil 5 requires a 5GB install”
http://www.psu.com/Resident-Evil-5-requires-5-GB-install–a006298-p0.php

I’m already out of room on my 60 GB- I’ve been deleting old game installs to put new ones on and all my video content is on a removeable HD (sloppy), so I’ll be upgrading HUGE before it hits. I’ll have to delete something to install the demo this Thursday, though- it’s almost 1 GB in Japan, which means I’ll need 2 GB for the demo installation…
Raadius
February 2, 2009 at 1:28 am PST

^ Epic fail.

@51,

Sony doesn’t have that kind of money to be spending on a 30second spot, did you not read there financial earnings?!
Letters2Kay
February 2, 2009 at 1:30 am PST

Tax Return – $120 for 500GB HD = Extreme Happiness
wolfsrain
February 2, 2009 at 1:42 am PST

So when are we gonna see PlayStation gamers being interview???? Maybe gamers with a high Trophy score???
Letters2Kay
February 2, 2009 at 1:51 am PST

Speaking of trophy support, weren’t “all PS3 games in 2009” supposed to support trophies?? I bought Afro Samurai on 1/28/09 and it has 0. I contacted Namco/Bandai/Surge and was told they’d passed my suggestions on to the team. When I contacted Sony, I was told to contact Bandai customer service. Thanks guys, but isn’t it YOUR responsibility to make sure the games you license include these things? Sony made the statement, after all- and nothing gets published without their approval. Dropped the ball… so when CAN we actually expect trophy support out of all PS3 titles, then?? Custom soundtracks would’ve been nice here, too- but they’re not mandatory, like the trophy system now SHOULD BE! :(
ghamdikh1
February 2, 2009 at 2:04 am PST

again for Jeff Rubenstein

i have:

2=Q

1-is there any plans to make an ad for KillZone 2 in Superbowl?

2-is there any plans to bring KillZone 2 bandel to the US?
Letters2Kay
February 2, 2009 at 2:12 am PST

^ Again, and with the same misspelling! ;P

–bundle– …right?
angelcoma
February 2, 2009 at 2:14 am PST

@ Letters2Kay

I’m pretty sure the requirement for trophies isn’t till like march. Not 100%
VenomUK
February 2, 2009 at 2:28 am PST

NEW PSN ID CARD CONCEPT ART

Jeff, as you are looking around the web I just thought everyone here might like to take a look at this fantastic work by eMesark.

He has created some stunning designs for a prospective new look /new features PSN ID card. You can take a look on the official PSN forums.

http://boardsus.playstation.com/playstation/board/message?board.id=ps3&thread.id=3682900&view=by_date_ascending&page=1

I’d love it if these features & style were integrated into the 2009 PSN ID card redesign. Peace!
Ti_dus
February 2, 2009 at 2:32 am PST

You really want custom soundtracks guys? I prefer to play with a game’s OST. It would be like watching a movie without original soundtrack – horrible :/ But trophies should be everywhere ;)
VenomXv
February 2, 2009 at 2:39 am PST

Can’t wait for KZ2. The reviews aren’t really a surprise after playing the beta.
AshtonFX
February 2, 2009 at 2:53 am PST

@Jeff

jeff I m posting this to ask you to go and check a thread in the Forum section of the official playstation US website in the general PS3 section and look up this title:

The New PSN Experience/Gamercard *UPDATED*

the guy has made an outstanding updated PSN card and everyone on the net loves it.(it has been already posted in many major gaming news websites like N4G.com)

you might want to contact him/her and talk to sony to consider adding something like that. it would be swell(the only challenging part will be keeping the loading time down)

jeff make it happen please ,,,let him/her to be heard in SCEA.it even has home avatar in it.it’s awesome all around.look it up man.(i can’t post the link as this site will block my comment )
Letters2Kay
February 2, 2009 at 2:57 am PST

@ angelcoma

The press release I remember reading said “It is mandatory that all PS3 games support trophies in 2009.” I’m paraphrasing, but they never mentioned a specific month, just that ’09 was the year of the trophy on PS3- and I know it’s still technically early in 2009, but the year is 1/12th over already…

Checked for articles, and sure enough:

“Sony officially makes trophies mandatory in January”
http://www.destructoid.com/sony-officially-makes-trophies-mandatory-in-january-112156.phtml

“PS3 Trophies to be mandatory from January 2009”
http://www.videogamer.com/news/20-11-2008-9989.html

“Sony: Trophies Required For All PlayStation 3 Titles In 2009”
http://www.psxextreme.com/ps3-news/4151.html

“All PlayStation 3 Games Must Have Trophies Says Sony”
http://news.softpedia.com/news/All-PlayStation-3-Games-Must-Have-Trophies-98416.shtml
Letters2Kay
February 2, 2009 at 3:03 am PST

@ angelcoma

I put up a post full of links RE: mandatory trophy support as of January 2009. It’ll have to be approved before it’s posted, but check back here if you need to see just a few of the articles I found in a quick search…

Titles include:
“Sony officially makes trophies mandatory in January”
“PS3 Trophies to be mandatory from January 2009″
“Sony: Trophies Required For All PlayStation 3 Titles In 2009″
“All PlayStation 3 Games Must Have Trophies Says Sony”

BTW- I’m really not a trophy whore, but if I’m taking time away from other games (Skate 2, LBP) to play Afro Samurai, I’d like to have something to show for it.
Letters2Kay
February 2, 2009 at 3:15 am PST

@ Ti_dus

I agree there are a lot of games that benefit from having a truly great original score. MGS4 wouldn’t have been the same if I was blasing A Perfect Circle the whole time, but I like having the feature in games that have awful, licensed music. Midnight Club: LA is a prime example- the only tracks I like at all are the 2 NIN ones, and having just those tracks on a playlist gets old fast (thanks for going above and beyond, Rockstar!). Skate 2 could REALLY use them and although I’m sure a lot of people want to play Afro Samurai with the original Rza music, I’m not a Wu-Tang fan and I could do without the western hip-hop soundtrack. Not a huge deal for me, anyway- I have a 2.1 sound system hooked up to my PSP remote dock inside my 5.1 surround array, so I can just turn the game music volume to 0 and custom ST everything. It’s a lot easier and a bit more complimentary to the experience when it’s all built in to the game, though…
xenorevlis
February 2, 2009 at 3:45 am PST

For those of you who are at all hyped (or interested) in Killzone 2, I’ve made a trailer to wash away the bad taste that fake Superbowl ad left.

http://www.killzonefans.com/great-fan-made-trailer/

Not my best work, but hopefully you enjoy it!
JpinterPSU
February 2, 2009 at 3:45 am PST

Killzone 2 review:
http://www.psu.com/Killzone-2-Review–a006296-p0.php
PirateThom
February 2, 2009 at 4:12 am PST

@64

As it turns out, it’s only if Sony approved the game after Jan 1st, it needs trophies. Afro Samurai went gold very early in January so was probably approved just before the cut off date.
neunzehn
February 2, 2009 at 4:13 am PST

k2 – huge title with “must have” trophies, but one. recently posted over web: Sucker Punch Game Director Nate Fox has indicated that InFamous will include Trophy support, describing the feature as “videogame crack.” I’m fully agreed with him. Desire of more trophies killing impressions, it’s fact, despite the custom music making impressions more brightly and prolonging playing time. I never use my ps3 for a listening music, but I always listening music on the walk via my psp. music is a part of, but none 1st. Why SONY making trophies (“videogame crack” feature) necessary part of upcoming titles and pushing back custom music?
Audioboxer
February 2, 2009 at 4:32 am PST

Hey Jeff, thanks for the response. I am indeed following the PSBlog twitter.

Hope the guys over at Guerilla are feeling generous, they are based in the EU as we know ;)

By the way, Flower looks great. Get Jenova on the Blog again. February is officially the month of Flowerzone 2 haha.
XSE_Greystone
February 2, 2009 at 4:35 am PST

Hey Jeff, you ever get in contact with your Capcom buddies to ask them when they were gonna give us Dead Rising? Give me some good news to make 2009 worth while.
Audioboxer
February 2, 2009 at 4:55 am PST

For all the EU guys, according to Eurogamer the EU Killzone 2 demo is up Thursday! :D
Ti_dus
February 2, 2009 at 5:21 am PST

Letters2Kay – > ye, you could be right. Custom soundtracks in racing and sport games would be nice feature ;) But in games with a strong a storyline (MGS, Uncharted, Heave Rain etc) it’s better to have original music ;)
BTW -> RE5 demo right now on EU Store ;) It’s amazing :D
Audioboxer -> Hopefully, it’s true. I can’t wait for the K2 demo.
quiomar01
February 2, 2009 at 5:26 am PST

oops! I thought something was wrong about that article about those kids burning 360s (should’ve read the entire thing). Then again, half of that story could’ve been real. :( Blind loyalty and disappointment to who or what you were loyal to lead some to do crazy things. Anyway, off to work
Jeigh
February 2, 2009 at 5:50 am PST

I’ve already pre-ordered Killzone 2 in full off of Amazon.com! :D I actually just did it last night with that $5 off rebate code. February 27 can NOT come too quickly! :D
Smoutefretter_BE
February 2, 2009 at 6:23 am PST

I hope the PSBlog crew and especially the sony Firmware team will read/ VIEW this:
http://boardsus.playstation.com/playstation/board/message?board.id=ps3&thread.id=3682900&view=by_date_ascending&page=1
It’s a new and much improved trophy/profile card for the PSN.
I think it’s a smart choice to talk to this person and bring his idea to life!
MakasuUS
February 2, 2009 at 6:52 am PST

…and here you win a copy of Killzone 2 :D

http://www.vgwatchdog.com
Letters2Kay
February 2, 2009 at 7:05 am PST

@ PirateThom

That makes a lot of sense, you’re probably right. The approval process for Afro probably happened in late ’08. Still, I’m sure I’m not the only one who took the statement “from Jan 09 all games must have trophies” to mean that all games released in or after January 2009 would include trophies. They should’ve anticipated such a mix up…
DemonOfRazgriz07
February 2, 2009 at 7:34 am PST

LMAO OMG read the “Killzone 2 Prompts Local AV Club to Burn Xboxs « Hardcasual” article! the quotes he says are hysterical omg XD
Hatebreed13
February 2, 2009 at 8:00 am PST

I’m a bitter Eagles fan! BUT I can’t wait for Killzone 2.
StalkingSilence
February 2, 2009 at 8:56 am PST

http://playstationlifestyle.net/2009/01/31/exclusive-leaked-lbp-dlc-patch-schedule-from-media-molecule/
WEAPON20X
February 2, 2009 at 9:19 am PST

I live in Philadelphia and today is another black monday for us EAGLES fans. Although there is another in the same state (steelers) I WILL NEVER cheer for them Philly teams ONLY. Don’t worry jeff only one of our o-line is coming back and I hope it isn’t Thomas he’s always getting beat.
DaxMontana
February 2, 2009 at 9:53 am PST

All you kids clamouring for a SUPER BOWL AD need to understand the financials involved. A 30-second Super Bowl spot costs roughly $3 million to secure, and that doesn’t include the cost of actually developing the commercial.

Now, considering a developer only makes a few dollars profit on each copy of the game they sell (if they’re lucky), they’d need to sell MILLIONS of additional copies just to cover the expense of one commercial.

And the liklihood of one 30-second commercial selling millions of extra copies is ZERO.
neorudemovement
February 2, 2009 at 11:37 am PST

wha wha wha!!! i didnt get trophies.

come on people, are we playing games or collecting trophies here?

i could understand if you could spend trophy points in the store but you can so……

just play some amazing games on the worlds best gaming system!
Letters2Kay
February 2, 2009 at 12:03 pm PST

@ neorudemovement

“just play some amazing games on the worlds best gaming system!”

That’s the thing, though. Afro Samurai is a multi-platform title, and XBL has required achievements since day one. As I said, I’m taking time away from other games that would earn me trophies to play this game, and I’d like to have something to show for it. Not to mention that a trophy system pushes the player to get that much more out of their games- and to get that much better at them. 360 players are enjoying them, so why should I get shafted just because I chose to play it on a better system? I did have my choice of systems- and I’d still have chosen PS3 even with this knowledge, but someone else might not. That brings up another point: To many consumers, the 360 version is just going to look that much more appealing. One more reason for the Xbots to say “My system is teh best! I get better features.” Nobody wants to see that…
angelcoma
February 2, 2009 at 3:58 pm PST

@ Letters2Kay

Sorry I couldn’t respond to you sooner, yeah I read those articles. I finally remember where I saw the ‘it doesn’t apply in early 2009’, it was here:
” Games released in 2009 are required to have Trophies. This may not apply to games released in early 2009.”
http://playstation.joystiq.com/trophies

I think this means that if the game is far into development and is released in early 2009 they won’t force them to add trophies.

I think Sony should set a date, draw a line on the sand, cause this is BS. I also think Sony should patch all their games already released with Trophies, hopefully that will encourage others to patch their games too.
squishy_butt
February 2, 2009 at 7:24 pm PST

I JUST WISH WE COULD HAVE MORE FEATUERS ON PSN FRIENDS INFO ETC UHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH
TrueStoryGuy
February 2, 2009 at 8:24 pm PST

Jeff, you just scored about 100+ points from me for being an Eagles fan. Also, great to see all the hype that Killzone 2 warranting. I can’t wait for the official release…
Letters2Kay
February 3, 2009 at 9:53 am PST

Thanks, angel. Good info… :)
neunzehn
February 3, 2009 at 10:45 am PST

And what read “we” – http://www.psu.com/Sony-fan-creates-his-own-PSN-Experience-prototype-News–a006305-p0.php reasonable thinks over this thread, XMB need for a significant changes.
SOOPERGOOMAN187
February 3, 2009 at 1:03 pm PST

KZ2 might be good, needs CO-OP multiplayer for me to even consider thinking about maybe trying out for a day. that being said that fan made KZ2 faux Superbowl ad is making the rounds on TV stations now as a REAL commercial. What gives? is it fan made or Sony Made viral marketing that you’ll get caught for again? Just wondering because it is a superbly done ad. Hire That person ok.
PullusPardusUS
February 3, 2009 at 6:30 pm PST

O_o Chen is still coughing?
that pic with him sitting next to the T.v the game looks like a painting .. very nice.