Goldeneye 007 To Re-Re-Release On Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3

 

By: Kareem 

First there was Goldeneye on the Nintendo 64, it was fun we all had a blast shooting our friends and most importantly it brought a decent FPS to a home console and introduced many a gamer to their first taste of 4-player home gaming madness. That’s something no other console could do at the time out of the box, without the need for any extra peripherals (besides the controllers of course).

Then, GoldenEye got re-released on the Wii in 2010 and…nobody cared. It went mostly unnoticed and ignored, those that did have a chance to play it like it but there just wasn’t enough. The Wii’s lack of real HD quality left the re-release with a kind of bad facelift vibe though, sure it looked better but you felt like Activision could’ve done better.

Which leads us to this news. Activision is planning to re-re-release GoldenEye 007 on the Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3. They haven’t announced an official release date exactly but say be prepared for a fall release. The new version of Goldeneye will obviously be in full 720-1080p HD resolution and offer support for the PlayStation move including the sharp shooter peripheral that goes along with it. Unfortunately for Xbox 360 owners there will be no Kinect functionality. That’s not all however, the game will also feature an improved version of the classic 4-player split screen as well as 16 player online multiplayer.

According to Activision the game is being built on an entirely new engine so it should be pretty damned awesome. As long as the gameplay holds up and everything is nicely polished this should definitely be a game worth checking out this fall. If for no other reason than sheer nostalgia.

Related Stuffs:

• Source: PC World
• Official: Goldeneye Game Site

 

Goldeneye 007 Reboot Trailer:

Next Gen Xbox to Offer ‘Avatar Quality’ Graphics?

By: Kareem 

There’s a rumor going around the interwebs lately about AMD letting it slip to OXM (Official Xbox Magazine) that the next generation of Xbox consoles, the so-called Xbox 720 will feature Avatar style graphics capabilities.

Neither Microsoft nor AMD have actually admitted the Xbox 720 is in development, however that’s not stopping the latter’s expectations of the next generation of consoles. However since AMD is the current Xbox’s GPU manufacturer it would seem to me they have somewhat of an inside heads-up. There’s also no mention that AMD is making the 720’s GPU, but again it does make sense given their history.

According to the OXM article the Xbox 720’s new chipset and board should also allow for a much higher A.I capable of individualizing each NPC in a game like Grand Theft Auto to the point that they have their own personalities and react rather than just running pre-rendered scripts (at least that’s how I understood it).

Personally I think that’s just insanity. If they can pull it off without resorting to wizardry I’ll be amazed. I understand companies have to hype their next projects but promises like this are almost certain to leave quite a few people disappointed. I’ve been a gamer long enough to know that gaming companies tend to make huge exaggerations when it comes to what their capable of and this would seem to fall right into that category nicely. I remember pretty much these same claims of super-smart A.I when the first Xbox released and then with the 360, needless to say the level of A.I they were pitching came nowhere close to the level of A.I that actually made it into games.

Just as a quick sidebar check out this video of what to expect from the Unreal 3 engine:

Unless they’ve seriously amped up their Processor (I’m taking 6 cores or higher at at least 3.2GHz), GPU, Motherboard and (this might be a little important) upgrade to at least 4 gig’s of DDR3 RAM I don’t see the Xbox 720 pulling off Avatar style graphics while at the same time providing this genius A.I AMD is claiming. It takes A LOT to pull off a playable Avatar, and although I don’t think it’s impossible by any means I do think that this is just hype getting people prepped for next years E3, We should hear a lot more during the Windows 8 details release in a couple of months, when Microsoft is expected to announce the details on how they plan to bring Windows 8 to the Phone, PC, Tablet, and consoles, doing something not even the almighty Apple has…bringing one OS to every device. That should be very very interesting.

Either way you slice it you have to take this rumor with a grain of salt. Especially since there really isn’t anything to base it in reality, it never hurts to hope though.

Related Stuffs:

• Source: Dvice
• Business Insider: Xbox 720 to Feature Avatar Quality Graphics, says AMD

Nintendo 3DS Get Netflix

By: Syeed

Netflix is now available for 3DS users on the systems eShop. Kind of a slap in the face to Android users (after all these years no decent integration yet far as I know). Nonetheless a cool addition to the DS’ repertoire of fancy things.

People who download the app will be able to connect to their Netflix accounts and view their instant queues, watch a movie, or continue watching a move they started on another device. All things I wish I could do on my damned Evo Shift but whatever…I’m not bitter.  According to Alexis M over at gaming bits, the interface is “sharp and colorful” and the top screen has a slight 3D effect” on the box art when browsing.  The controls for playback all reside where you would expect them, on the bottom screen. Although there isn’t any 3D streaming content on Netflix yet. Nintendo is assuring people that folks will soon have accesses to an additional library of select movies viewable in 3D without the need for glasses. That’s pretty damn sweet in my opinion.

Related Stuffs:

Source: Gaming Bits

New PlayStation 3’s Will Not Support Component Blu-Ray Output

By: Kareem 

The latest news about the web is Sony’s announcement that they will no longer support Blu Ray playback on their next generation PS3’s (version K). Apparently the restriction is to enforce copy-protected playback on the console.

What that means is that if your T.V or receiver dosen’t support HDMI, or if you already have all your HDMI ports occupied and you buy a version K PS3 your pretty much boned if you planned on using it to watch Blu Ray’s. If you can fandangle PS3 version A-J however, you’ll be fine going through component. To make matters $5-$10 worse they’re not even including the HDMI cable with the console. Just the standard A/V cables that come with it (which do include the component cables, so at least you can game and stream movies in HD). 

It’s not really too big a deal since most HDTV’s have HDMI inputs so eh really much else to report on that. If your curious however, read on and we shall find out the who, what, where’s and why’s.

So why is Sony doing this? According to them it’s to enforce AACS standards…if your like me you have no idea what the hell AACS is so lets learn together. This is from good old Wikipedia:

The Advanced Access Content System (AACS) is a standard for content distribution and digital rights management, intended to restrict access to and copying of the "next generation" of optical discs and DVDs. The specification was publicly released in April 2005 and the standard has been adopted as the access restriction scheme for HD DVD and Blu-ray Disc (BD). It is developed by AACS Licensing Administrator, LLC (AACS LA), a consortium that includes Disney, Intel, Microsoft, Panasonic, Warner Bros., IBM, Toshiba and Sony. AACS has been operating under an "interim agreement" since the final specification (including provisions for Managed Copy) has not yet been finalized.

Since appearing in devices in 2006, several AACS decryption keys have been extracted from weakly protected software players and published on the Internet, allowing decryption by other unlicensed software.

…still with me?

Ok so AACS is pretty much just a way for Blu-Ray publishers and distributers to protect their content. I’m not exactly pro IP or hardcore anti IP I’m kind of in the middle there. I think there’s room for both closed and open formats in todays world. They both have pros and cons, to each his own I say. More options=more freedom…somewhat. Anyway this got me thinking, why is it AACS depends on HDMI and can’t use component.

So why is AACS dependent on HDMI? Well after a little research I dug up this, again from Wikipedia:

High-bandwidth Digital Content Protection (HDCP) is a form of digital copy protection developed by Intel Corporation to prevent copying of digital audio and video content as it travels across connections. These connections include popular ones like DisplayPort (DP), Digital Visual Interface (DVI), and High-Definition Multimedia Interface (HDMI), as well as non-popular or now defunct connections like Gigabit Video Interface (GVIF), and Unified Display Interface (UDI). It is commonly, though incorrectly, referred to as High-definition Copyright Protection.

HDCP does not allow copying permitted by fair use laws. The system is meant to stop HDCP-encrypted content from being played on devices that do not support HDCP or which have been modified to copy HDCP content. Before sending data, a transmitting device checks that the receiver is authorized to receive it. If so, the transmitter encrypts the data to prevent eavesdropping as it flows to the receiver.

Manufacturers who want to make a device that supports HDCP must obtain a license from Intel subsidiary Digital Content Protection LLC, pay an annual fee, and submit to various conditions. For example, devices cannot be designed to copy content; devices must "frustrate attempts to defeat the content protection requirements"; high-definition digital video sources must not transmit protected content to non-HDCP receivers; and DVD-Audio content can only be played at CD-audio quality by non-HDCP digital audio outputs (analog audio outputs have no quality limits).

Cryptanalysis researchers demonstrated flaws in HDCP as early as 2001. In September 2010, an HDCP master key that allows for the generation of valid device keys - rendering the key revocation feature of HDCP useless - was released to the public. Intel has confirmed that the crack is real, and believes the master key was reverse engineered rather than leaked. In practical terms, the impact of the crack has been described as "the digital equivalent of pointing a video camera at the TV", and of limited importance for pirates because the encryption of high-definition discs has been attacked directly, without the loss of interactive features like menus. Intel threatened to sue anyone producing an unlicensed device.

The highlighted section is what I believe is the reason. The speed of HDMI makes it very hard for people to eavesdrop on the line and steal the encryption key in transit.

What makes this all the more odd is that according this the AACS encryption key has already been cracked and the whole thing might be pretty well useless.

So there you have it. Probably more than you wanted to know about AACS and this whole nonsense.

 

Related Stuffs:

• Source: Ars Technica
• Article: New PS3 Model Requires HDMI for HD Blu-ray Playback, But Not HD Gaming

Windows 8 Bringing Xbox360 Games To PC?

By: Kareem 

Yes you read that right, according to the rumors on the web this morning Microsoft is planning to bring Xbox360 games and the Xbox marketplace to Windows 8. The details are scarce, and although Microsoft hasn’t announced anything officially yet, this would be a huge move in a great direction for Ballmer and co.

Here’s the nitti gritty on what I could find.

First off the integration; if the rumors are to be believed then the entire Xbox360 dashboard you get on your console will be available on Windows 8 PC’s as well. Not only that, but Windows 8 will be including drivers that allow DVD drives to read Xbox360 games.  There’s nothing about cross-platform playability (i.e. will PC users be able to game with Xbox360 users?) But I would have to wager that it’s technically possible, and most likely going to happen. I mean it’s basically like shoving an Xbox360 emulator into Windows 8 so it should work the same allowing access for all.

There’s no mention on how pricing is going to work, it’s pretty much expected new subscribers will have to pay the $50 a year to get access. What isn’t expected/known is whether or not Microsoft plans to add an extra $10-$20 a year for the added PC use. I hope not but I don’t see why they wouldn’t try to squeeze every last dime out of their customers. So expect it.

Lastly my opinion on the whole thing: I think the idea of moving the Xbox360 to the PC via Windows 8 is on of the best ideas Microsoft has had in a while. If it turns out to be true it could have huge implications for big M, and be a sign of some bigger things Microsoft is planning. 

Related Stuffs:

• Source: MetroWNY
• Article: Xbox Live Will Be Built In Into Windows 8
• Article: Play Xbox360 Games on PC – Windows 8

Sega Gets Hacked LulzSec Offers Help

 

By: Syeed 

Sega had one of their databases broken into recently and lost about 1.3 million users information. LulzSec has decided their going to help out this time, apparently they really love the Dreamcast.

So first off here’s the details on the breach.  According to an email sent out by Sega to it’s Sega Pass users on Friday, the breach occurred on June 15th and on June 16th they shut down the Sega Pass system for safety reasons. The email goes on to say that Sega identified some of their users email addresses, dates of birth and encrypted passwords were stolen. Sega says they took immediate action, isolated the problem, closed off the system and reset all the passwords. They recommend that users who night use the same email/password combination for other sites should go and change those ASAP, and to be cautious of all emails you receive as the information could be used for spear phishing.

The real kicker here (for Sony at least) is that no payment information was stolen because Sega is either not financially capable of, or not stupid enough to take payment information on their own. All users payments go through external payment providers which is a good thing, a very very good thing.

That’s not all either. In an odd twist the biggest suspect is actually offering to help Sega catch the people who did this, LulzSec. The mentioned in a tweet yesterday aimed at Sega that they want to help them destroy the hackers that attacked them. Their reason, they love the Dreamcast. It’s still tough to say if their honestly offering their services (I would wager they are) or if LulzSec is just pulling an O.J and trying to make themselves look more innocent by going after “the real killers”. Either way that’s one hell of a twist.

Related stuffs:

• Source: CBS
• Article: Sega Pass Database Hacked, Account Information Compromised
• Article: Reports: Sega Customer Database Hacked

Microsoft E3 Tons Of Goodies Announced

By: Syeed 

So Microsoft recently held their Keynote at E3 and they’ve got quite a few interesting new plans for Xbox 360 and Live.

First off, live T.V and YouTube will finally be coming to Xbox 360. From what I understand it’s rolling out in Australia and France, but I haven’t been able to track down any specific details on a US release. This is a pretty big addition and might allow for future software that could make your Xbox into a DVR. The new T.V service will also have full Kinect support as well as make use of Bin voice search to help users find content.

As far as games go, it was sequel-a-plenty time there’s Halo 4, which will be the first in a new Halo trilogy, a remake of the original Halo…but in HD and with online co-op, Kinect Star Was was announced…pretty much any decent selling Xbox 360 ever is getting a sequel it seems. My favorite and one I’ve been waiting awhile for is Mass Effect 3, I love that game and can’t wait to finish it out.

There were some other cool things for Kinect announced such as support that will allow players to scan their faces and whatnot, I guess if your going to be shooting your friends in the face online, it might as well look like ‘em right? There’s also tell of a Kinect-enabled version of Mincraft releasing next year, and Kinect Fun Labs, an addition to the Xbox 360’s dashboard that’s pretty much just a goof-around tool for Kinect.

Related Stuffs:

• Geek O System: Microsoft’s E3 2011 Keynote Recap
• International Business Times: E3 Day 1: Microsoft Launches Streaming TV for Xbox Live
• The Kansas City Star:  'Mass Effect 3' moves beyond dirty dozen, to a warring galaxy

Nintendo’s New Console, Wii U Get’s Unveiled

 

By: Kareem 

Nintendo just unveiled it’s next console at E3. It’s called the Wii U, has a tablet for a controller and looks pretty sweet. There are still some questions however, but it’s still looking pretty nice.

The controller is a 6.2 inch touch screen tablet-like device. It’s got front and rear facing cameras for video chat and some standard controller buttons (two analog sticks, a d-pad, four face buttons, shoulder buttons, start, select, home, and power).

The interesting thing is how it works. The controller can add content from a game running on screen or mirror the game completley, which is kind of expected since Nintendo’s been interfacing their handheld’s with their consoles for years. The controller can also play a game from the Wii U on it’s own if somebodies using the television, a pretty neat feature that allows you to keep gaming all over your WiFi connection without having to be tied to a T.V.

Oh and that’s not all. There’s also full motion control support and the console will be backwards compatible with all the current Wii’s peripherals and Nintendo has announced a version of Super Smash Bros that can probably be expected at launch.

Now for the questions, Nintendo made no announcements about the price, the details on the specs or when exactly the Wii U will be released. Those are some pretty important questions that hopefully we’ll be getting an answer to soon. The did just announce it about a couple hours ago so there should be tons more info coming out today and in the coming days. For now check out the links below.

Related Stuffs:

ZDNet: The six big questions Nintendo has to answer about the Wii U and its new controller

Los Angeles Times:  Nintendo unveils Wii U with tablet-sized touch-screen controller

G4TV: Super Smash Brothers Confirmed For The New Nintendo Console Wii U and Nintendo 3DS

Video: The Story Of Videogames

A good documentary on the history of video games. Check it out.

 

It’s 5 videos long all in one playlist very interesting stuff.

Quick Hit: Lenovo Releasing Game Console In China

Lenovo, the company know for laptops, announced yesterday that they will be releasing a game console in China that will be heavy on the motion control.

The console will be called the iSec which stands for ‘Sports Entertainment Center” (I’m guessing the I stands for internet) and will be controlled solely by motion control.

China currently has some pretty hardcore PC gamers but the county’s government has banned all the major consoles due to fears of how the content might affect it’s people. Sony and Microsoft are both currently in talks with the country to try and get their consoles sold there, while Nintendo released a fairly unpopular China-only console a little while back.

The iSec will release later this year and Lenovo is hoping that the console can make up for the lack of PS3, Wii, and Xbox 360 in China. Which would give a much needed boost to the basically non-existent console game market.

I’ll have the specs, vids, pictures and all that soon so stay posted!

Source: Toms Guide

Trailer: Sonic Generations

Here’s the trailer for Sega’s Sonic Generations game set to release this holiday season on PS3 and Xbox 360.

 

 

Taken From Official Sonic Generations Sega Page:

DOUBLE THE SPEED, DOUBLE THE FUN
Celebrate 20 years of Sonic with Sonic Generations
SAN FRANCISCO & LONDON (April 18, 2011) –SEGA® America, Inc. and SEGA® Europe Ltd., today announced details of Sonic Generations™, the highly anticipated video game title in development to celebrate Sonic the Hedgehog’s 20th Anniversary. Delivering the definitive gaming experience for Sonic fans old and new, Sonic Generations™ sees Sonic the Hedgehog playable as both the much loved classic 1991 character, and the modern day video game hero he has become in this exciting new fast paced adventure. Sonic Generations™ will speed into stores for the Xbox 360® video game and entertainment system from Microsoft and PlayStation®3 computer entertainment system for Holiday 2011.
Set across three defining eras from 20 years of Sonic the Hedgehog video game history, the instantly recognizable environments of Sonic Generations have been re-built in stunning HD and are now playable in both classic side scrolling 2D from 1991, as well as modern 3D style found in Sonic’s most recent adventures. Each incarnation of Sonic in Sonic Generations comes complete with his trademark special move, Spin Dash and Spin Attack for Classic Sonic, and the Homing Attack and Sonic Boost for Modern Sonic. An innovative new interactive menu system allows for complete immersion in Sonic’s universe with favorite characters and hidden treasures gradually being revealed throughout the game.
“Sonic Generations will certainly be a fitting celebration for Sonic’s 20th Anniversary,” commented David Corless, Global Brand Director for Sonic. “By having the classic 1991 Sonic that many fans know and love team up with his modern day incarnation, we are bringing back the nostalgia of the early days of Sonic and combining it with the innovation and stunning HD technology of the modern gaming era. Sonic Generations will bring to life the last twenty years of Sonic’s universe in a truly unique and imaginative way.”
Sonic’s universe is thrown into chaos when a mysterious new power creates ‘time holes’ which pull him and his friends back through time. As a result, he encounters some surprises from his past history including Classic Sonic, Sonic as he was in 1991.
Modern Sonic and Classic Sonic must defeat this strange new enemy, save their friends, and find out who really is behind this diabolical deed…

Official: Sonic Generations

Video: Mind Controlled Angry Birds

A couple of guys named Rafael Misrahi and Anat Samboi from Feng-Gui a group of magicians who call themselves “artificial vision scientist and interactive designers,” were able to use an Emotive Epoch neuro-headset (magic hat) and some free software (magic tricks) called GlovePie to play Angry Birds using nothing but angry thoughts, check out the vid:

 

OK, so it’s not so ‘magical,’ more like some really slick programming skills and a little effort. Apparently the software (GlovePie) allows them to map mouse/hand gestures and inputs to certain thoughts. It’s pretty damned cool I think, not so much cause it’s angry birds sans physical input, but because it’s going to give more attention to something I think is one of the coolest devices invented in a while, the Emotive headsets.

Here’s Tan Le, the head of Emotive explaining the headsets in a ted talk:

 

As she explains, developers can purchase the headset which comes aong with the SDK to play with on their own for $500, which isn’t too bad, it’s less than most ‘professional’ editing software.

Related Stuffs:

• Source: PCMag
• Site: Emotive

UPDATE(2): PSN Still Down, Might Be Back Next Week, But At Least Your Info’s Safe…Right?

BY: kareem@techsual.com

Ok so here we are, over a week since the PSN and Qriocity services were attacked by an intruder, who stole your personal information and caused Sony to do what would seem like a whole re-tooling of their entire network security.

Sony released a statement via the PlayStation blog today which basically says that they turned off the networks after an attack on their San Diego data center in order to prevent the breach from getting any worse (which was actually a good move), then hired some good pen testers to come in and audit their security systems and implement new security measures based on the audits. That’s what the long delay was all about.

But there is good news, the credit card data that was stolen was in an encrypted file and we all know that once something is en-crypted it can never be de-crypted….wait a sec…half the world  just told me that’s not true. Stupid stupid Sony expects people to really believe that whoever was smart enough to get into their systems and steal the information in the first place couldn’t decrypt the file? or at least knows someone who can? I would wager that the people or person who did this is not stupid enough to try and use, sell or do anything with the card numbers at least, it would be too easy to trace back and most likely whomever did this was trying to prove a point. PSN and Sony in general is not secure. Sure they’ll spend millions on lawyers to sue people, but they get real cheap when it comes to hiring proper pen testers to make sure their security is at least somewhat legit. I guess they figured encrypted credit card information was enough. I guess they didn’t take into consideration that people wouldn’t be able to access PSN or Qrocity and didn’t bother to put up proper security to defend against an attack in the first place.

The next bit of good news for al you PSN and Qriocity users out there is that Sony has implemented such cutting-edge and revolutionary new security techniques such as:

• Automated software monitoring and configuration management to help defend against new attacks
• Enhanced levels of data protection and encryption
• Enhanced ability to detect software intrusions within the network, unauthorized access and unusual activity patterns
• Implementation of additional firewalls

Wooooweeeee that’s secure, I feel real safe now thanks Sony! This looks like a superheroes stat list, not like some wimpy computer security system I-am-impressed. Hold on though, what about physical security, how do we know this wasn’t someone inside the data center in the first place? I’m getting scared again… wait, there is more from Patrick Seybold who is the one posting on their blog:

“The company also expedited an already planned move of the system to a new data center in a different location that has been under construction and development for several months.”

Well ok then, I’m sorry I doubted you Sony.

If all that wasn’t enough Sony felt they’d do right by their users and give them a free 30 day membership to PlayStation plus, which if you were already a year long subscriber saves you all of $4 for that month hooray.

Sony hasn’t given an official date for when service will be restored, they only said their networks should be back up by the end of next week.

More to read:

Source: PlayStation Blog

Article: PSN Still Down And If That's Not Enough Someone Stole Your Info

Old But Funny Vid:

 

Thanks for reading!

Jurassic Park Game Coming This Fall From Telltale Games

 

 

By: syeed@techsual.com

Telltale games, the makers of the Sam and Max, Tales of Money Island and Wallace and Gromit games. Have announced they’ll be releasing a Jurassic Park game for the PC, Mac, Xbox 360 and PS3.

Telltale plans to release the adventure game simultaneously  in 5 episodic parts on the PC, Mac and PC with a disc version is planned for the Xbox 360. The storyline is set in the same time as the first movie and game puts players in the role of a smuggler who infiltrated the island to steal dinosaur embryos and ends up getting caught up in the dinosaur breakout. She meets up with other survivors and they continue on their quest to get the F off the island before they’re killed.

Check out the trailersbelow.

 

 

 

• Source: Tell Tale Games Press Release
• Official: Jurassic Park Game Website

Redbox Will Start Renting Games At It’s Kiosks Starting June

 

By: syeed@techsual.com

The kings of impulse movie renting, Redbox have decided to expand their kiosks to include game rentals this month. You’ll be able to rent PS3, Xbox 360 and Wii for $2 a day, which is a $1 more than what they charge for movie rentals.

Some are wondering if Redbox will be able to compete with Gamefly, but they don’t seem worried.They’ve already tested the waters by putting games in 5,000 of their locations for a few months, they received 1 million rentals in that little test, and I guess that was enough to give them the confidence to run ahead with the idea. Not to mention they’ve been in direct competition with Netflix for some time now and have been doing just fine.

I personally think it’s a good idea, even though I use Gamefly I wouldn’t mind being able to shoot over to a Redbox kiosk and rent a game for a day just to check it out. Although $2 a day seems a little pricey, they should make some kind of credit system where you can buy a week for like $1.25 a day and then just play all you want without having to accrue an annoying debt if you want to keep the game a little longer. It would save you from being locked into a Gamefly account that charges your credit card every month. On the other hand I don’t know if they have gift cards, but even if they do, your still not getting a per-day deal.

Source: ZDNet

It’s Official New Nintendo Console Coming 2012

So it seems like there was some truth to all those rumors floating around about Nintendo’s next big thing. The company announced today that it will be showing their next console at E3.

It hasn’t been named yet and no one knows what it looks like outside the company. Nintendo intends to keep it that way too…at least for another month and change. The console won’t be available until next year but we’ll all be getting a chance to see and play with one of the as-yet-unamend consoles at this years E3, which is taking place (in my hometown) Los Angeles on June 7th.

There wasn’t much in the way of information besides the E3 bit, but Nintendo’s president Satoru Iwata mentioned in an interview with Bloomberg that the company is “proposing a new approach to home video game consoles.”  Iwata also mentioned that there will be no 3D included in this console, stating the lack of wide acceptance of 3D televisions by the public, kind of weird considering they released the 3Ds earlier this year.

If the rumors are correct then there is a lot to be expected from Nintendo’s new console. Hopefully with the announcement being made official now, more tidbits will be released in the coming days.

• Source: This Is My Next
• By: Syeed

QUICK HIT:Nintendo Says Wii Successor Will Debut At This Years E3

Hiya folks hitting you from my phone I just couldn't wait till I got home.

I just came across the news that Nintendo will be announcing the details to its next console at this years E3. They haven't released any other details yet (like whether or not it will have the much rumored tablet-like controller) bit its still pretty exciting news, I like the fact Nintendo decided to just go ahead and make it official rather than let the rumors run wild. I will have an update for you soon.

By: Syeed@techsual.com

Update: PSN Still Down

By: Syeed

The PlayStation network is still down, and now Sony is saying it might be a few more days until it comes back.  They haven’t said anything defiant yet, but there expecting service to fully return for all users on Tuesday.

The problems started Wednesday evening, when Sony acknowledged that certain functions of the PSN were down. On Thursday the official PlayStation blog reported that the network will be up and running in a day or two. Friday came around and the update was that Sony shut down the network on their own in order to increase security from outside intrusions. The intrusions in question took place on the PSN and Qriocity services, but Sony refused to release details, come Saturday Sony tells everyone that they are taking this opportunity to increase security on their infrastructure . It’s now Sunday and Sony still hasn’t restored service and says they don’t plan to till Tuesday. That’s a 6-day network fail, great job guys.

Originally the hacker group anonymous was being blamed for the attack, they had previously launched a successful DDoS attack on the PSN, which ended when gamers started complaining. Anonymous’ goal was never to harm or annoy gamers, they wanted Sony and it’s top brass to suffer, so they stopped attacking.

I find it kind of odd that Sony decides to shutdown their own network without warning. Especially during a week when three major games were released on the PlayStation 3. If they needed to update, why don’t they do what Microsoft does and just roll out the updates late at night/early AM when hardly anyone is online?

If they were attacked and continue to keep their network closed to ‘update’ security then that’s just lame on their part, you would think that after anonymous launched their earlier DDoS attack that Sony would have beefed up security. I would guess they would’ve done that as soon as the warning of the attack went out, but it seems like instead, Sony decided that since anonymous stopped attacking they had nothing to worry about. It seems like they just left security on their network wide open for whoever wanted to go next, an now after the fact they’re rushing to fix a problem that should’ve been addressed weeks ago.

Source: PC Mag

New Round Of Gaming Consoles Might Not Come Till 2014

The gaming blog Kotaku is reporting that their sources are telling them Microsoft, and that company I will not mention are planning to wait till 2014 to release their next generation of gaming consoles, which would put Nintendo in a first-to-market spot if the rumors of their next consoles release are to be believed.

Although the Xbox 360 and the … are already at double the lifespan of the average console, Kotaku’s source tells them that both companies plan to hold out a few more years for new consoles. It makes sense seeing as both companies have updated their respective current consoles a number of times. The update may very well be the reason that both companies are lagging on giving us our new toys. Some people have speculated that they might just be waiting for HDD and chip manufacturing costs to go down before they start making any decisions. If they were to upgrade to anything meaningful before then it might mean as much as a $500-$600 price range, which is just insanity. No one wants to end up another 3DO.

Nintendo is already planning a console for 2012 and some people are expecting to see something at this years E3 and maybe a release as early as October 2011. This would put Nintendo in a prime position, first to market. Their new console is rumored to be pretty powerful and developers are already working with the software, so who knows? Maybe Nintendo will rise again.

• By: syeed@techsual.com
• Source: Kotaku

Game Trailer: Alice In Wonderland Goes Goth…Again

Electronic Arts’ Alice: Madness Returns is launching June 14th on Xbox 360, PC and that console by that company I don’t like.

The game is a follow up to American McGee’s Alice a PC game that released in 2000, that game was a pretty dark re-telling of Alice in Wonderland in which wonderland is really an insane asylum Alice was placed in when her entire family is killed in a fire. Alice must fight her way through the wonderland of the dammed in order to kill the queen and restore her sanity.

Alice: Madness Returns picks up with the poor girl being released from her ten year stint at the insane asylum. Alice is place in the care of a psychiatrist who attempts to help her with lingering psychotic issues. Only one problem, she has to go back into wonderland and finish the queen.

EA also announced recently that people who pre-order Alice: Madness Returns will receive a code to download the original American McGee’s Alice for free, those who don’t pre-order will be able to download the game from their consoles respective marketplace for $10.

Here’s a trailer:

 

• Source: IGN
• Official: EA