The SIXAXIS Report 03.04.08
Posted by Mark Salmela on 03.04.2008
Sony strikes back! This week I’ve got huge news concerning a Metal Gear Solid 4 bundle and release date, how everyone can get the Metal Gear Online beta, DualShock 3 news, a white PS3 on the way, Little Big Planet, a Haze release date, Grand Theft Auto 4, War Room Home integration, a makeover for the PlayStation Store, and much more in this jam packed edition of the SIXAXIS Report!
Well I wasn't expecting this. Last week I wrote about how disappointed I was in Sony for not revealing anything big while Microsoft and Nintendo both had rather large announcements at the Game Developers Conference 2008. Maybe someone at Sony read my column *or maybe just realized they fucked up* and released a whole bunch of news over the past week. Well here I am everyone; I've got the scoop on all of the latest Sony dealings for the week. So news, rumors, opinions, I've got you covered. Let's get to it!
Not being bundled in with a PS3, it's Sony News of the Week
They just go together like peanut butter and jelly
This news story and the one right below this are very similar, but this was announced first. Almost immediately following GDC 2008 Sony came out and announced a brand new PS3 package. The 80 GB PS3, which many feared would be dropped in favor of the 40 GB PS3, will be coming back. The 80 GB PS3 will be not be bundled with Motorstorm however, but rather Metal Gear Solid 4. That's right; MGS4 and the PS3 will be bundled in one brilliant package. Not only will the 80 GB PS3 and MGS4 come in one package, but it will also feature the brand new DualShock 3 controller for the PS3. Worrying about the price? Don't worry, it's still $500.
While it was stupid for Sony to announce this package so early, it needed to happen. Sony got dominated at GDC, and they needed to get the focus back on them. Trust me; MGS4 is the type of game that moves consoles. I already know plenty of people who are planning to buy this PS3 package on day one. MGS moves consoles, plain and simple. The only problem here is that why would you buy a PS3 between now and then? If you know you can get a DualShock 3 controller and MGS4 with an 80 GB PS3 *which will still have PS2 backwards compatibility if you were wondering* for the same price as the current 80 GB with Motorstorm and a SIXAXIS, why not wait? I love the idea of MGS4 and PS3 together in one package *maybe the best pack in since Super Mario World and the SNES*, but don't be surprised if we see very low PS3 sales between now and then.
They're coming for you!
Credit: Sony and Kojima Productions
Metal Gear Solid 4 confirmed for June 12, will be world wide release
This is basically just a continuation of the previous article. The day after the 80 GB PS3 bundle with MGS4 and DualShock 3 Konami came out and announced the MGS4 release date. Metal Gear Solid 4 will be released world wide on June 12th. Not only will you get MGS4, but you will also get the Metal Gear Online starter pack. MGO Starter Pack will feature 16 player online multiplayer battles, similar to the online mode MGS3 had. MGS3's online was some of the best multiplayer on the PS2, so here's hoping MGO can make it even better. $60 for online MGO and MGS4 in one game? I'm sold. Not to mention on the interesting side of things Konami has announced they've actually had to cut the Japanese voice acting from MGS4 because they've ran out of disc space. That means MGS4 will be well over 50 GB in space *it'll be a full dual-layer Blu-Ray release*. That's pretty damn impressive.
In addition everyone can take part in the Metal Gear Online Beta test. Konami will release a preorder package for MGS4 to all stores sometime in the beginning of April that will include a download code for the MGO online Beta. The online beta will last for 2 weeks around the end of April. There is no extra charge for this MGS4 preorder package and a bunch of extra behind the scenes MGS content will be packed in with the preorder disc. So get ready to preorder MGS4 in April, I'll be sure to include details about the preorders as they come in.
Will North America be getting the white PlayStation 3?
Ever since the PlayStation 3 was announced, Sony has been showing off 3 different colors of the PS3. There's the black PS3 which we have now, but there was also a silver and white PS3 shown off back at E3 2005. Japan has had the white PS3 for several months, and will soon be getting the silver PS3. Up until now there have been no announcements what-so-ever on the status of other PS3 colors. Well according to rumors from both Gamestop and Circuit City, a white 40 GB PS3 is on the way, and soon. As some of you may or may not know, Spiderman 3 will no longer be packed in with 40 GB PS3's yet the price will still be $400. I think that's a rip-off personally, but I do think being able to get the PS3 in either white or black is a small step up. Right now some stores are only carrying the 40 GB PS3, so here's hoping if this proves to be true sales will hold steady until the 80 GB returns with the MGS4 bundle in June. I'll be sure to keep you guys updated.
This has got to be one of the coolest features I've heard about for Home so far. Home will be integrating a new feature called the War Room where people can go and view 3D replicas of levels in video games with up to 8 other players in Home to plan out their strategy. I have yet to see pictures or screens of how this would work, but wow. We already know players can launch multiplayer video games from Home, but to see and plan out your attacks in a 3D recreation sounds really cool. Now I covered the WarHawk update which will include Home integration, well now it's been reported that the Home integration will be this War Room feature. Other games which have been reported to include the War Room feature already will be Uncharted and Resistance. Rumors of the Home release date are still all over the board, but a potential Home Beta release date has been launched via this website. The legitimacy of this release date *March 20* is questionable, as there's no proof as to who registered that website. Any who the War Room looks really cool, hopefully Home is actually coming sometime soon.
This is still rumor, but according to Sony insiders the PlayStation Store will be getting a total makeover in the near future. The makeover will apparently make the PlayStation Store look more like the Singstar Store *SingStore* which I admit does look a lot better than the current PlayStation Store layout. The planned makeover will reportedly come in the middle of April, just in time for the Gran Turismo 5 Prologue which will be released via download and Blu-Ray disc. While I would rather see the in game cross-media bar feature and Home get released I am glad to see that it looks as if Sony is finally redoing the PlayStation Store. I'm not as hard on the look and navigation of the store as some people, but I do agree they need to make a lot of improvements on it if they want to match the quality of the Xbox Live Marketplace.
There was so much news to cover this week I didn't even get to report on the PlayStation Store update. Well we aren't missing much, as it turns out there wasn't any new demos or any new games on the PSN this week. Literally the entire update consisted of new songs for Rock Band and Guitar Hero 3 as well as lame videos on baseball.
In one last piece of Metal Gear Solid 4 use, Kojima Productions has actually removed several SIXAXIS controlled functions. For example, the Mk. II Robot will no longer be controlled via SIXAXIS. To be honest I like this idea, as I personally hate using SIXAXIS control in the majority of PS3 games. Dual analog and rumble will be enough for me.
The DualShock 3 controller will officially be released in the US on April 15, just 2 days before the release of Gran Turismo 5 Prologue. The DualShock 3 controller will cost $55 and will support over 100 games on launch. Also if you didn't read the DualShock 3 controller will be packed in with the MGS4 PS3 bundle for June 12.
Rockstar came out and announced there are no plans for a Grand Theft Auto IV demo. Then again most people are going to buy GTA4 anyways; a demo would have just helped to hold them over until the April release date. In some good news, Rockstar says GTA4 will take over 100 hours to complete every mission in the game. That is damn impressive. Grand Theft Auto 4 will also run at a solid 30 frames per second on both consoles and the PS3 version will use SIXAXIS controls in some form.
Sagat and Balrog have been confirmed to be opponents in Street Fighter IV. While it's still unknown as to whether or not they will be playable *my guess is they will be*, they will be in the game. Boy, it seems as if they're going to put the entire Street Fighter 2 roster in Street Fighter IV at this point. Also, Street Fighter IV has not been announced for any platforms according to Capcom, so the sites claiming the game will be a PS3 exclusive are wrong.
Despite being denied earlier, Codemasters finally confirmed a PS3 version of last years 360/PC exclusive Overlord. I never really got into Overlord but a couple of my friends kept bragging about it. Look for Overlord on the PS3 sometime in May.
For fans who were still in denial, the back of the PSP God of War manual confirms that God of War 3 will be coming to the PS3. While the ad says God of War 3 for the PS3 will be coming "soon" I'm still expecting a March 2009 release.
Disgaea 3 will be coming to North America in 2008. Disgaea is apparently really popular in Japan and NIS will be bringing it onto our shores sometime in 2008. While there isn't a definite release date I've heard everything from April – August 2008.
Haze has also been given a May 20 release date. While the game was supposed to be released late last year the development team has said the delay has allowed for significant improvements in gameplay. Look below for the latest trailer.
Little Big Planet will be a Blu-Ray release, not a downloadable title from the PSN. Sony executives were bragging about the game this past week claiming Little Big Planet could be one of their biggest 2008 releases, which is saying a lot considering they just announced an MGS4 release date and bundle. I have very high expectations for Little Big Planet and am glad to see they won't be holding anything back by making this a downloadable title on the PSN. Little Big Planet definitely needs the space of a Blu-Ray disc *25 – 54 GB*. Also there will be a single player campaign mode for anyone who has been wondering. Look for Little Big Planet in September of this year.
Video B3yond!
Here is the latest Nectar trailer for PS3 exclusive Haze. The game looks pretty good; I might pick this one up to hold me over until MGS4 in June.
Man, Tank War still looks really awesome. If you didn't read last weeks article this is a PSN game that uses the PSEye to upload anything you draw *as long as it's a closed shape* as a weapon on a battlefield. I can't wait for this game.
Here's a trailer for Battlefield: Bad Company which will be coming to the PS3 and 360 later this spring. The exploding buildings look really sweet, here's hoping the game rocks.
The One Man Water Cooler~!
Here is the link to last week's article where I wrote a detailed guide on how to upgrade your PS3 hard drive. Be sure to check that out in case you missed it.
Well I finally beat Pixel Junk Monsters this week. I love all of the upgrades like the land mines. It's so satisfying to blow those fat ass bees up with land mines. It's funny in the picture for PJM there's a bee getting torched by fire, yet in the actual game it's impossible to use fire against the bees. It's not a big deal, I just found it kind of weird.
I didn't come into the One Man Water Cooler with any type of a game plan this week, I just figured I'd talk about what I've been up to lately. I found a great deal on a Sega Saturn this past week, so I'm hoping to get that in before the weeks end. I think I've found a pretty good deal on a couple of Saturn Stunner light guns, but if anyone knows of a better Saturn light gun or a Saturn anything be sure to drop me a comment or email. I've been dying to replay the House of the Dead as well as other classic light gun games like Area 51 and both of the Virtua Cops. The Saturn really gets more crap for being a bad system then it deserves. It definitely suffered from bad marketing from Sega, but the library of games is pretty good. I can't wait to get my hands on Panzer Dragoon Saga and NiGHTS. It's pretty interesting the same week an article on this site goes up about how Sonic Xtreme got cancelled for the Saturn that I decide to buy one of my own. Sonic's always fucked with my life like that.
In addition to that I got to go through Twisted Metal: Head On: Extra Twisted Edition co-op with a friend. Boy that game is still awesome. I can't wait for the PS3 version of the game, I just hope it actually comes out sometime this year *early reports say the game won't make it out before 2009*. I also played some Hydro Thunder on the Midway Arcade Treasures 3 pack, and now I can't get that announcers voice out of my head. "3… 2… 1… GO GO GO~!" GET OUT OF MY HEAD DAMMIT!
I was also browsing the 411 games site and noticed on the bottom left hand side that it says the TNA Impact video game is the 4th hottest topic here. Now Maybe I'm missing something but I haven't seen one damn article on the TNA Impact game from anyone here. Not to mention the hottest topic on the 411 games section apparently is WWE Smackdown vs. Raw 2007. 2007? Seriously?! Someone needs to get on fixing that…
Well that's all I've got to say this week. There was so much news to cover I didn't think of anything important to talk about. Maybe next week I'll find something to blab on about. Oh, and Metal Gear Solid 4 will be awesome, that is all.
Well that's all I've got for everyone this week. If you didn't see I took part in Fact or Fiction for the games section last week. I could take the easy way out and say I cleaned house, but then again we pretty much agreed on everything. I also have a review for Twisted Metal: Head On: Extra Twisted Edition up for the PS2, so be sure to go check that out. Man, between those 2 articles, this weekly news report, and the March gaming roundtable which I took part in this week I've been a busy man around 411 lately. I'd love to have another week off, but if we keep having weeks like this with all of this Sony news that'll obviously never happen. Any who that's all I've got for this week, check back for another edition of the SIXAXIS Report next Tuesday right here on 411!
Oh crap, I forgot to make my weekly attack towards the Xbox 360. Feel the hate fanboys!
Metal Gear Solid 4 on the 360!
Breaking news: Phil Harrison has just accepted a position as head of Infogrames, parent company to Atari. Not much is known other than Phil is happy to be in this position and hopes to bring Atari back to its former glory.
Sorry about the Phil Harrison update. I literally found out about it about 10 minutes ago and it still has yet to be posted on most major websites. He was rumored to be going to Atari anyways so this is just conformation. Any who Phil Harrison = President of Infogrames.
Posted By: Mark Salmela (Registered) on March 04, 2008 at 12:54 AM
I can't wait for MGS4 for the PS3. Too bad I picked up a 40 GB, but I can always upgrade the HDD at a later date (something I can't do with my 360).
Posted By: David R (Guest) on March 04, 2008 at 02:05 AM
Im thinking about just rebuying the ps3 with mgs4 and selling my ps3 on ebay. I wonder if that would be worth it?
Posted By: calem (Guest) on March 04, 2008 at 12:29 PM
Hey David, not an attack or anything, but I have noticed that you seem to knock the supposed 360 fan boys whenever you get the chance for saying anything bad about the PS3, but yet are always here to make a dig about the xbox 360, and what it will not do... I guess my question is should everybody, and especially that tubby guy start calling you retarded and a bunch of other names? Again, please do not take this as an attack, but more of an open observation.
and before you attack me like you have in the past, I would like to point out that I am not an xbox fan boy, and plan on picking up a PS3 shortly.
Posted By: Todd (Guest) on March 04, 2008 at 12:48 PM
just like to add: that MGS4 on Xbox 360 video is hilarious!!!
Posted By: todd (Guest) on March 04, 2008 at 12:53 PM
What I don't get is why get upset over what somebody else has to say about a console. Its not like these companies are actually paying u to defend them against these children that like to start these lame arguments online just to get some attention.
Posted By: TWilliams (Guest) on March 04, 2008 at 08:39 PM
Todd,
I didn't take it as an attack. I have an open mind open which system to own, and what not. I just felt like I have to defend a system against mindless attacks, ya know? Currently, I own more 360 games than PS3 games and Wii games combined. However, it seems that my game collection is shifting towards a Sony, Microsoft, Nintendo collection again.
When it comes to JRPGs or action adventure games, the PS3 gets my love.
When it comes to WRPGs or FPS, the 360 gets my love.
When it comes to iconic characters and a throwback to my childhood, the Wii gets my love.
Currently, my collection is dominated by PS2 games (25% of my collection is JRPGs).
When it comes to shooters (besides some excellent, but rare examples like UT3 and R: FoM), the 360, like the Xbox, get my love.
When it comes to Party games and all things Mario, you know what system solves that problem....
Every system has its pros and cons, and it seems that people that don't own it (PS3) are speaking bad about it.
Posted By: David R (Guest) on March 05, 2008 at 03:18 AM
This is a terrible video at the end. I mean we get it blu ray has a higher capacity, it's really funny how whoever made the video like put in a little picture saying insert disc 2 ha ha no... I dread the day when a game actually needs to use the full capacity of a blu ray disc, I mean the production costs for games are already sky high, if you have textures, models, environments, engines and the like that take up 25 - 50 GB think of what the production costs would be. If it gets that way then we'll see an end to indie developers and every game will be made by EA.
Posted By: Guest#7957 (Guest) on March 05, 2008 at 06:41 AM
Thanks for answering me. Oh and by the way OGD of War 3 will be the game that makes me buy a PS3 again. Maybe as early as this week.
Posted By: Todd (Guest) on March 05, 2008 at 10:03 AM
guest#7957, I see what your saying, but you should also look at it this way. If you are making a way cool kick ass game (like mgs4) then production costs mean nothing cause the game is going to sell great. Personally i would like to see higher production costs; this means there is a developer out there trying its best to push out a great and/or innovative game. Low production costs just mean a developer is trying to throw a game out there to make a quick buck..... hence EA. So dont "dread the day" when you see this happening. Embrace it like a sweet innocent child sitting with smooth skin in your arms looking at you with its beautiful eyes screaming "THIS GAME BLEEPING ROCK!"... ok, maybe not like that.... but still... dont dread the day.
Posted By: calem (Guest) on March 07, 2008 at 02:11 AM
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