Sony Removes Feature Through Firmware Update: WTF

In a new bout of megalomaniacal insanity, the all-powerful Sony has decided to take away the ability to install other operating systems on the PS3 (such as Linux). Considering this is a somewhat major feature (even if only among major geeks ♥), Sony's move is causing an uproar reminiscent of that time Amazon deleted books off of customer's Kindles. Advertising a product feature for the PS3 and then deliberately removing it from already-purchased items sounds suspiciously like an illegal bait-and-switch. It seems that, against our will, consumers are being shifted away from owning content in favor of renting it. I believe that as a society we are not quite ready to fully relinquish real possession of a physical product in favor of the flexibility (on *both* sides) of digital "ownership" that can be taken away/corrupted/deleted in a heartbeat. As such, we will continue to experience growing pains in the form of lawsuits that will spawn legislation to address the new needs caused by such advances in technology. Watch out, Sony, because it looks like you'll be next in line for a class action suit.

Netflix Streaming for Wii Faster Than PS3?

Netflix streaming has been available to XBox 360 and PS3 owners for a while and now the Wii is finally gaining movie-streaming ability. Several concerns have been raised by this. The obvious issue is that the Wii's resolution is only 480p, so HD streaming is out of the picture. Secondly, current hardware limitations require an instant streaming disc similar to that of the PS3; this is a minor inconvenience but annoying nonetheless. Lastly, there were worries that the load time for Wii streamed movies would be slow. Interestingly enough, of these potential problems, the third looks to be the least worrisome. Testing has shown that the Wii's load times are often faster than the PS3's, so the underdog in this competition isn't quite so far behind as you may think.

The fact that the competition exists at all is a more compelling matter than it may appear at first glance. With most current consoles, the user has the ability not just to play games, but to browse the web, play music, watch movies and more, including the new ability to stream movies from Netflix. When did video game consoles cease to be just video game consoles? An early offshoot of gaming was the Game Boy Camera, released in 1998, which interfaced with the Game Boy printer to essentially use the Game Boy (or GB Pocket, Color or Advance) as a camera. This was one of the earliest signs of the trend we are seeing today in multimedia, all-in-one type consoles. Arguably, the success of the iPhone can be attributed not so much to its cell phone capabilities, but to its App Store, which has made the iPhone one of the most versatile handheld systems in history. The major players in the video game industry have caught on to this trend and seek to simplify users' access to the various media we use regularly. By definition, however, just the fact that there are multiple competitors in this market means we will never have the perfect all-in-one console for all of our needs (unless of course one of the hardware manufacturers gained a monopoly, but this is unlikely in a creative market). As such, for me it will always come down to which producer has exclusive rights to the best games, not the best internet browser or even the highest quality Netflix streaming.

Super Mario Kart out on Virtual Console April 2

The game that created and defined a genre will finally be available on the Wii's Virtual Console on April 2. Kart racing at its finest, I'm sure fans of the series will be happy to return to the original for arguably the best Battle Mode in kart history, and I know I will be pleased to play a Rainbow Road without walls again. With this much anticipated release comes the inevitable talk of producers convincing consumers to pay for the same game multiple times through ports such as Super Mario Kart. Some wish that game companies would focus their efforts on new games instead of continuing to milk older cash cow titles and think it is crazy that gamers will buy the same game two or three times. As a member of the latter group, for better or for worse, I personally love having old favorites ported onto more recent systems, especially when some new content is added (think anime cutscenes in Chrono Trigger for PS). You really can't argue with supply and demand; there is a real demand for ported or updated versions of popular games, and as long as consumers buy them, producers will keep putting them on shelves. I don't see a major issue with this anyway as development time is generally considerably shorter than it is for a new title so ports don't take much away from the creation of new games. Now if we can just get Squenix to re-do Final Fantasy VII as they've been hinting for years, we'll be ready for business.

SpyParty: Psychological Multiplayer Gaming at its Finest

Wired contributer Gus Mastrapa has tested out a new type of game designed by Chris Hecker (Spore) called SpyParty and it is awesome. Adding a deeper level to psychological gaming, the game challenges one player, the sniper, to determine which of the attendees of a cocktail party is player two, the spy, with other attendees being controlled by the computer. The spy must complete four tasks of espionage before the sniper shoots him/her; the sniper has just one shot. The best parts of this game actually occur off-screen as the sniper studies the real-life spy, looking for tells, and the spy tries to hide them. This type of asymmetrical multiplayer is rarely done and is reminiscent of a video game version of hide and seek. SpyParty is still in the earliest stages of development but I am excited to see what Hecker can do with the concept. The game is part of a long-term trend moving toward innovative, personally engaging multiplayer options and away from traditional console gaming. MMOs allow for, well, MMOs/human interaction; the Wii incorporates movement and encourages casual gamers to participate; Rock Band and Guitar Hero use additional equipment to enhance the experience, especially among multiple players; and now SpyParty can take much of the game off-screen, increasing the connection between the two players. So much for the traditional stereotype of the lonely gamer; these new kinds of multiplayer games dominate the markets.

Nintendo 3DS Officially Announced

As predicted, Nintendo has announced the newest iteration of its handheld product line, currently going under the name of "3DS." The big selling point of this system is that it will feature the ability to utilize 3D effects without forcing players to wear special glasses. Further details will be provided at E3. It looks like just about everyone is aboard the 3D train so here's hoping someone will develop new technology that won't give us all a big headache.

XBox 360 Slim to be announced at E3?

Gofanboy has conjectured that Microsoft will finally announce plans for an XBox 360 Slim at E3 this June, and rumor has it that "fat" XBox 360s will be liquidated at the low price of $149 to make room for the updated system. This comes on the heels of the recent XBox 360 news of a firmware update to allow USB storage capability, affording gamers with a greater degree of flexibility in hard drive choice as they would not need the pricier higher-capacity 360 to have access to more space. From this information, it looks like Microsoft is making a strong attempt to lower manufacturing costs, allowing them to decrease retail pricing to make their console more cost-accessible to gamers. Efficiency of this sort can only be a positive thing for consumers, and the implied future increase in console sales would mean greater market share and the potential for increased profits for Microsoft. It's a win-win; nice work, Microsoft.

Pokewalker: Anti-piracy exercise at its finest

Amidst all the noise involving DRM and other anti-piracy measures, Nintendo has come up with a fun idea to prevent game piracy without angering gamers: the Pokewalker. Bundled with Pokemon HeartGold and SoulSilver, the Pokewalker is a pedometer that connects to the DS games via infrared signals and helps to level up the Pokemon you transfer to it by traveling along different routes. On each route there are different wild Pokemon and items to be found. At first only certain routes are available, but as the player uses the Pokewalker more, additional routes open up, allowing for more game options and keeping the Pokewalker accessory relevant and addictive.

How does this relate to piracy prevention? The Pokewalker can be thought of the same way as DLC - content that adds to the basic game. By introducing a fun new piece of hardware that greatly enhances the gaming experience, Nintendo has effectively deterred players from pirating this game, as software may be easily crackable but hardware is difficult to replicate. Although pirates could still most likely get their hands on an illegal basic copy of HeartGold or SoulSilver, they would be missing out on an integral and engaging part of the game, so it would be significantly less enticing to pirate a copy.

For many games, adding on hardware to enhance the in-game experience may not make sense. However, if an appropriate opportunity for such an add-on comes up, it seems to be a viable option to help deter piracy.

Nintendo to unveil DS2 at E3?

Per engadget, Nintendo may be announcing the Nintendo DS2 at E3 this year. They are speculating that the newest in the line of handheld systems could be available by the holiday season this year as several developers have stated they will have games ready for it by the end of the year. This is coming right on the heels of the DSi XL and would be the 11th major handheld system developed and manufactured by Nintendo for distribution in the US since the original in 1989:

1. Game Boy
2. Game Boy Pocket
3. Game Boy Color
4. Game Boy Advance
5. Game Boy Advance SP
6. Game Boy Micro
7. Nintendo DS
8. Nintendo DS Lite
9. Nintendo DSi
10. Nintendo DSi XL
11. Nintendo DS2

Considering the strong growth in the handheld market, it is clear why Nintendo has such a fast turnaround on developing new systems. Unfortunately, it looks like the iPhone is whittling away at the need for a gaming-exclusive handheld device; Nintendo's DS sales have dropped 15% in the last year while the iPod Touch and iPhone game sales have doubled. As Nintendo undoubtedly knows from the success of the Wii, accessibility has become key to selling games, and for the millions of people already carrying an iPhone/iPod Touch in their pockets regularly, downloading and playing a game are just a touch away. The question for consumers lies in whether it is better to have a separate, more powerful handheld gaming device, or a less powerful but more diverse one (over 21,000 titles vs. DS' ~3,700) in a multi-function device. I would bet that for hardcore gamers and children, the choice will continue to be a gaming-exclusive console, with casual gamers flocking to the ease of gaming on their phones and MP3 players. There is room in this growing market for everyone (for the time being).

Multi-platform game differentiation a plus

Dragon Age producer Fernando Melo has told gamasutra that having clear platform differentiation "paid off" for Dragon Age. DA:O was originally created as a PC game and then brought over to the console market for XBox 360 and PS3, but it was not done as a direct port, instead having many components specifically tailored to the individual systems. For example, the battle system managed to be intuitive for both PC and console versions, as more controls are easily accessible via keyboard to PC gamers (top left pic), whereas in the console versions the shoulder buttons were used in conjunction with the front-facing buttons to provide easy access to multiple menus without being overwhelming (top right pic). The general vision of differentiated versions has turned out to be a great move on BioWare's part, garnering best game awards for both PC and console versions. As a mainly console-based gamer myself, I hope that other developers follow suit in providing solid, version-appropriate games going forward.

In related news, Dragon Age: Origins - Awakening is out tomorrow!

Final Fantasy XIII review

It is with a heavy heart that I write the following: Squenix has sacrificed fun gameplay in favor of being pretty and story-heavy. I am about 15 hours into the game and I can verify what other reviewers have alleged; FFXIII is beautiful and boring. I have been a fan of the series since its inception on the NES and even made it through FFVIII without a problem (although I wouldn't want to replay it), but the fact of the matter is, FFXIII has failed to captivate me. A list will best illustrate the pros and cons of playing this game:

Pros:

• Visually stunning, maybe the best in-game graphics I've ever seen.
• Interesting storyline.
• Paradigm shifts in battle have potential.
• The Crystarium is a fun leveling device.
• Music is appropriate.

Cons:

• Extremely linear to the point of boredom. The pace is set by the game, not the player.
• The camera is awful. It bobs around, making me dizzy, and always seems to default to looking out higher than the field of vision I want.
• Walk in a straight line for 5 minutes, then watch 5 minute long cutscene. Repeat. Enough with the cutscenes; I was hoping to play a video game, not watch a movie.
• Ridiculously melodramatic voice acting. Lightning can't possibly be 21; she sounds like my angsty 15 year-old cousin. And don't get me started on how annoying Vanille's voice is, or the fact that she can't stop exclaiming, giggling and breathing heavily for 5 seconds.
• Normal battles = easy, repetitive, no thinking necessary. Boss battles = sharp increase in difficulty that the player is simply not prepared for.
• Damage in battle is difficult to see. I can't tell which abilities are causing more damage than others.
• Auto-battle vs. selecting abilities manually: auto-battle is much more efficient than I am; the AI is frighteningly good. In normal battles, there is little point in trying to choose the best abilities to use in the 5 seconds you will be fighting, and in boss battles, it is hard enough just trying to Paradigm Shift in time to save your main character.
• You cannot control the actions of the two characters in your party who are not the main character. With FFXII, you could set up Gambits so at least the characters were doing what you told them. In XIII, I feel like I am just watching the computer play the game for me.
• Why is it Game Over when your main character dies? This is insane. The other members of your party don't know how to use a Phoenix Down? The worst part is that healing (thus far) is difficult as your main character is usually someone who does not have the Medic specialization, so you must either use a potion or hope that the Medic in your party heals you in time. There is little control.
• The game tries to prevent the player from having to grind by capping growth in the Crystarium in each chapter, but all this does is make the player feel even more as though his/her actions are irrelevant to moving the game forward.

I will stick it out with FFXIII for the time being in the small hope that it will improve later in the game, but at this point, the release of Dragon Age: Origins - Awakening tomorrow is looking better and better.

Overall rating: 6/10

Android Market gaming revenue increases 50% in February

Mobile gaming sales have proven to be on the rise and Google's Android Market is beginning to reap some of the benefits. Although still light years behind the iPhone's dominating 99.4% market share app store, Android Market's revenue growth of 50% from January to February could signal a positive trend for the service. With 1200 new games added to the Android Market in 2010 alone, it appears that developers are finally taking advantage of the only open and free mobile platform. The hope, of course, is that the ease and speed of game development for Android will encourage increased game output to the market, enticing mobile gamers to make the switch to mobile phones using the Android platform. It will take some time to get the installed base of Android phones to the critical point where game development and sales can really take off, but as Android's smartphone market share increases and devs become more frustrated with Apple's app approval process and turn instead to game development for Android Market, more consumers can be expected to jump ship to Android phones and Android Market mobile gaming.

Sony unveils the Move, a new motion controller

In a "Move" (har har) designed to challenge the Wii's stranglehold on the motion controlled games market, Sony has announced the Playstation Move, their new motion controller. Pictures defy work-appropriate words for this gadget, but the reviews are generally good. Apparently the Move is lighter than the Wiimote and it features a main controller supplemented by a subcontroller, much like the Wiimote with nunchuk feature. There are still some issues to work out, such as a slight lag and the lack of exact mimicry of movements on screen (per engadget, "You're still working through a library of sensed, pre-defined actions instead of a true 1:1 fighting game with simulated physics."). Overall though it looks like Sony has developed a solid product that could provide many additional gaming options to the PS3 and appeal to new demographics.

EA Project Ten Dollar

EA has come up with a new plan to regain profits from used game sales. Essentially, new games will come with a voucher code that will unlock a subset of content from the game. This code is good only once for one account. Should the game be re-sold, the new user will need to pay $10 to the publisher to unlock this content for their account. Considering the fact that about a third of all games sold are secondhand, this could mean serious recouping of profits for publishers.

There are a couple of small problems I see with this plan.

1. What happens if the original buyers lose their codes or somehow get locked out of their accounts? This is a common issue coming up lately, especially as gaming continues to shift from the physical, disc-based space to the online world. Information stored online can be corrupted, and codes written on physical paper can be lost. EA will need to address this, perhaps by having users register their games so that codes can be reset and re-sent. This would however add extra time and annoyance to the process of playing a game; what gamer is going to want to have to fill out forms before being able to access a game when the current model requires only sticking the disc in the system?

2. What about if there are multiple players in the same household sharing the game - will one of them need to shell out an extra $10 to have access to content that should be included with the purchase? My guess is that EA will need to implement a sharing system similar to that of iTunes home network sharing, enabling a small number of authorized accounts to access the full game.

Despite these two issues, I think Project Ten Dollar is a smart move on EA's part, and I expect other publishers to announce similar plans once it has proven successful. This could mean trouble for major game retailers who rely heavily on the secondhand market for profits. For example, Gamestop's used game sales represent 23% of their total revenues, and used games have a much higher profit margin than new games (50% for used games vs. 21% for new). With Project Ten Dollar and other similar programs in effect, buyers may become more likely to just buy new if buying used would mean they have to pay for both the game and the added extra content fee on top of it. To combat this, retailers would be forced to reduce their pricing on used games (on average, Gamestop sells used copies of new releases at $5 less than the new price), cutting into their profit margins, unless of course they start paying out less for trade-ins (right now, Gamestop typically pays 30% of the title's worth). It is likely that lower trade-in values would affect the volume of trade-ins as gamers may instead look to alternative, more lucrative methods of reselling their games, such as eBay or craigslist, so used game retailers may not have much wiggle room for decreasing trade-in value.

tl;dr Project Ten Dollar and similar plans are likely to cut into game retailers' profit margins on used games. Producers will reap the benefits.

Sony 3DTV Unveiled

Sony has released information regarding their upcoming line of 3DTVs. In addition to enabling 3D TV watching through the use of an IR emitter and RealID active shutter glasses, the TVs will have some interesting features, such as the ability to detect if a viewer is sitting too close or too far away as well as that of determining if the viewer has stopped watching and turning off the screen as a result.

What will the eventual widespread home use of 3DTVs (should the trend take hold) mean for future video game development? 3D features have been attempted many times over the years (mostly unsuccessfully; see Virtual Boy) but gamers have yet to experience true 3D gaming. These new 3DTVs could enable game developers to work with the TV technology to create high-quality realistic game atmospheres. However, studies have shown that the current mechanism for creating the illusion of depth causes discomfort for viewers, from eye soreness to extreme nausea. Filmmakers have made recent improvements in 3D technology that ameliorate some of the problem, but the basic technique is still the same and as such will always be an issue. This would only be exacerbated by potentially hours-long gaming sessions (in contrast to watching a 2 hour movie). As such, I think that gamers will sadly have to wait for a major breakthrough using brand-new 3D technology before we will find success in 3D gaming despite the buzz surrounding 3DTVs.

Valve announces Steam for Mac

Parent company Valve has officially announced that starting in May, their popular gaming service Steam will be available for Mac users. In addition, those gamers who own the PC versions of Valve games but want to play on their Macs will be able to re-download games they have purchased onto their Macs for free. Thank you Valve for having a clue about what consumers really want. It's also a smart business move - with computer game sales at roughly $1 trillion, and the Mac market share at about 10% and increasing each year, the installed base has reached a point where it makes sense financially to port titles to the Mac. Valve's move is likely to inspire other developers to follow suit. Apple fanboys must be thrilled with this news, and gamers who have previously hesitated to make the switch from PC to Mac due to gaming limitations may start rethinking their positions and investing in shiny new Apples as more developers jump on board.

Game Censorship Abroad

There has been an alarming new trend of non-US countries cracking down on games they consider too violent or sexual in nature. Most gamers are aware of Australia's relatively new stance on violence, drugs and sex in games. Many Australian versions of games have been reclassified as unfit for gamers under the age of 15, and some have even been modified to remove objectionable content, such as stripping the real-world drugs from Fallout 3. Germany regularly changes the content of games as it pleases, such as when the country only allowed the Germany-modified version of Call of Duty 4 to be purchased online. Now Venezuela is jumping on board, imposing a ban on violent games that would put distributers and manufacturers of banned games in prison for 3-5 years. This trend is alarming, for as more countries decide to impose stronger censorship on games, more companies will edit down their original games to fit foreign guidelines. It would be costly to create multiple versions of the same game with differing levels of "obscene" content, so instead the entire gaming world will get watered-down versions of games that were intended to be powerfully edgy; for example, the above-mentioned drug references in Fallout 3 were removed from every version of the game, not just Australia's. In my opinion, video games are a multimedia art form, and it is sad to think that potentially envelope-pushing games may end up like a Venus de Milo sans visible bosom - defeating the purpose entirely.

Sony patents new kind of game demo

Interesting idea from Sony: They have patented a game demo that essentially gives the user the full game to begin with but over time (or based on number of plays) it will gradually lose features until the user purchases the full game. For example, if the game is an RPG, when you reach certain levels or after you have played so many hours, your character stats may decrease or you may lose your more powerful weapons. In addition (or alternatively), the sound or visuals of the game could degrade, becoming quiet or fuzzy (good for a cat, bad for a game). If done well, this could be a good move on Sony's part - regular demos usually have that limited feel to them, while this new degradable demo would give a better idea of the whole game. Furthermore, once the played is hooked and decides to purchase the game, it would only require some kind of re-unlocking (not a word) of the demo, so any play done beforehand would not be lost. That has always been my pet peeve about demos - if you like the game and want to buy it, you will typically have to play back through the parts you've already beaten on the demo. If a player could simply enter in a code to authorize full play on the degradable demo, it would save time (wouldn't have to go to the store to buy the new copy) as well as the irritation at having to replay old levels. It also adds the ever-so-important ability to impulse buy the game; if a player is enjoying the demo, it can only boost sales if s/he has the ability to immediately pay for and unlock the entire game rather than ordering it online or making the trip to the store.

Ubisoft's DRM Cracked

Much to the glee of game pirates everywhere, Ubisoft's DRM has already been cracked for Silent Hunter 5 and Assassin's Creed 2, rendering the illegally downloaded versions of these games playable. When the new DRM was announced, the general response was righteous indignation, as new Ubisoft games would require gamers to maintain a contant connection to the internet lest their account be inauthenticated. This ridiculous (and French) idea did not take into account those of us on wireless connections that occasionally are reset, on wired connections with spotty providers, or even those of us with clumsy roommates or selves or cats. With the successful crack (despite Ubisoft's official statement claiming the downloadable versions are incomplete), the only gamers being punished by the DRM are those of us who legitimately bought the games. There has to be a better way to protect games that won't have the unintended consequence of encouraging pirates and punishing honest gamers. I've always been a big proponent of password + fingerprint authorization (like Bloomberg terminals use, for you I-bankers reading this). Enable each member of a household to use the game and maybe have temporary authorizations permitted for visiting friends. Something, anything, that is not so easy to crack so that pirates will actually be deterred and maybe prices could come down a bit (see, I'm an optimist).

Activision vs. Infinity Ward Update

Looks like Infinity Ward is fighting back. The two lead developers who were let go, Vince Zampella and Jason West, are filing a lawsuit against Activision. It turns out that the royalties from Modern Warfare 2 were just about to kick in, making the timing of the devs' terminations suspiciously lucrative for Activision. In addition to attempting to gain some sort of compensation for their groundbreaking work, the devs are also trying to regain the rights to the Modern Warfare brand. If they are successful, and in my opinion they will be, so much for Treyarch; the co-developer has exclusivity with Activision and as such would no longer be able to participate in the development of CoD7.

Wow, WoW

In case anyone has been wondering if the video game industry is booming, please refer to this handy infographic detailing revenues, demographics and other statistics of World of Warcraft alone. It's statistics time: This one game brings in $800 million a year in revenue, which the chart helpfully points out is larger than the GDP of Samoa. 11.5 million players subscribe worldwide, and Americans play an average of 22.7 hours a week. This is all for one game, people. Even withstanding the fact that Wow is an outlier, gaming is a $20 billion industry. The Wii has made gaming accessible to casual gamers and non-gamers (your mom, your grandparents, your dog), helping to make 65% of American households gaming households in 2008. Who else wants in?

Sonic and Sega All-Stars Racing review

Sega's new kart racing game is surprisingly fun and worth buying - just not on the Wii. If you have a PS3 or XBox 360 and have been looking for a solidly fun kart racer that isn't just a disappointing version of Mario Kart, you've found a contender. When it comes to the Wii, it's a better idea to just stick with Mario Kart, the clear winner in this genre. For other consoles, Sonic and Sega All-Stars Racing delivers a racer that rides like Mario with its responsive controls and excellent track design. Sonic also adds a few twists such as the items rock-paper-scissors effect where you can use some items to defend against others. Despite some background choppiness at higher speeds, the stages are visually compelling, and the music is appropriately energetic for a racing game (although I do recommend turning off the commentary as it can become grating quickly). The online play sees little downturn in quality with the only notable difference being that you cannot perform "All-Star Moves," special abilities exclusive to each character. This game is well worth owning on PS3 or XBox 360.

Overall rating: 8/10

Castlevania: Lords of Shadow update

New renders, screenshots and concept art have been released for the newest installment of the Castlevania franchise: http://bit.ly/bSSsJe

Release is anticipated sometime this year on PS3 and XBox 360. The plot is being rebooted, not continued from the original canon, but the producer Dave Cox said in an interview it will draw inspiration from older titles, including Castlevania for the NES and Super Castlevania IV. I think fans will be pleased with the new direction. With the way it's shaping up, it's no surprise that C: LoS has been ranked the #7 most anticipated game of 2010 by gametrailer.com.

Activision fires lead developer at Infinity Ward

Story at Kotaku

A lead developer at Infinity Ward, Jason West, has been fired by Activision for insubordination and breaches of contract. Vince Zampella, another lead dev, was also present in meetings with management and his status with the company is currently unknown. As respected as West is, I don't think it's a stretch to expect other IW developers to jump ship with them. I have two main questions at the moment:

1. Where will West and whoever follows him go? IW devs (then under 2015, Inc.) left EA in late 2003 for Activision in order to develop non-Medal of Honor titles. After the success of the Call of Duty series, I'd be willing to bet that EA is tripping over itself trying to recruit the IW boys back on their team.

2. What will this mean for future installments of the Call of Duty series? The brand is one of the strongest in the industry and they know it - note that Activision's new FPS Singularity, developed by Raven (exclusive contract with Activision), was delayed to June 2010 due to strong demand for CoD: MW2 despite solid hype and positive previews. Clearly they are maintaining focus on existing brand awareness and not so much on riskier new ventures. I wonder which way they will go to keep the series on top: keep CoD mainly at IW with presumably weaker developers, or shift more responsibility on to Treyarch (lesser dev of MW, known to be working on CoD 7)?

PlayStation Network is down; rampant panic and terror ensue

The title may be glib, but the PlayStation Network issue that struck last night and has yet to be remedied is a serious problem for those gamers with older ("fat") PS3s. Not only is the network down, preventing users from logging in to online gameplay, the bug is also affecting the ability to load many offline games and has corrupted some user data. Rumors are circulating that the bug is related to improper handling of leap years. Sony has recommended that gamers leave their older PS3s off until this bug has been fixed. Updates on the situtation can be found on Engadget.

The question here is, how could this kind of bug have made it past Sony's quality control? This problem appears to be similar to what happened to Microsoft's Zunes in 2008. For such a foreseeable issue, it is disappointing that not only was Sony unable to prevent the bug from affecting gamers in the first place, but also that it is taking so long to release a fix. Get on with it, please, as my forecast calls for... Heavy Rain. (The pun, much like the PSN bug, was both foreseeable and permitted despite widespread disapproval.)

RPG Madness - Days of Note

It's a good time to be an RPG-lover, unless of course you cherish your social life. The following games have either just released or will be out shortly as noted. Time to take a vacation from work and invest in a mini-fridge; you won't be leaving the apartment for weeks (a conservative estimate).

Heavy Rain: PS3, released February 23. Sold over 500,000 copies in a week and there's a good reason for that. Check out GameInformer's review for details.

Final Fantasy XIII: PS3 and XBox 360 (goodbye Sony exclusivity), to be released March 9. The January trailer promises yet another gorgeous installment in the series.

Dragon Age: Origins - Awakening: PS3, XBox 360 and PC, to be released March 16. Another new character has been revealed - details on Kotaku.com.

We're looking at another 200+ hours of gameplay between the above three games. Get ready to buckle down; RPGs are serious business.

Welcome to Ahead of the Games!

Here at Ahead of the Games, I strive to keep readers abreast of breaking news in the video game industry. Check back regularly for updates on upcoming titles, reviews of new releases, developer and publisher news, and other related top stories from the gaming world.