GamerNode: Latest PlayStation 3 News

Konami confirms MGS4 release date of June 12

Reports from the Sony event earlier this week stated that Metal Gear Solid 4 would hit stores on June 12, and today Konami has confirmed that date via a press release.

"Blockbuster events and premieres are a tradition of the summer," said Kazumi Kitaue, Konami Digital Entertainment Inc. Chairman and CEO. "We anticipate that Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of the Patriots fits that bill perfectly, and consumers will be waiting in line to get their copy of the game just like it's a hit Hollywood movie." In addition to the game's release of June 12 (which is also the day the PS3 MGS4 bundle goes on sale) the release also gave some mention about the pre-sale program.

Beginning in April, gamers who pre-order MGS4 will receive Metal Gear Saga 2.0 DVD, containing a Prologue that recaps the Metal Gear fra...

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Disgaea 3 coming to PS3

NIS America announced today that the Disgaea series will be heading to the next gen PlayStation 3 for the first time in franchise history. The in-house strategy RPG had appeared only on the Playstation 2 up until last year, when Disgaea: Afternoon of Darkness was released on the PSP to its fair share of critical acclaim.

This time around, NIS is adding new features like the terrain-altering Geo Block and the stat-altering Geo Panel, so fans can expect some new variety to spice things up in Disgaea 3.

GamerNode reported last July that the game was likely headed to Japan sometime in 2008, but only now has the publisher confirmed a North American release, as well. The game will arrive on western shores in August of this year.

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Haze dissipates, confirmed for May '08 release

Like a continuing line of slaps in the face, the broken record line of announcements from Ubisoft throughout late last year and this year regarding Haze's release date was pretty painful to endure.

On Eurogamer today, Ubisoft threw all of these delays into the trashcan and confirmed that the first-person shooter Haze will be released for the PS3 this May.

Originally slated for release last November, the game was pushed back to December of last year, then to Q1 2008, then to next month, and finally then rested at Ubisoft's fiscal 2008-2009 year, which runs from April 2008 to March 2009. The last "confirmed" release date seemed to be a death sentence for Haze, but thankfully the game will be released this May.

The game is currently a PS3 exclusive game but past rumors have appeared that the g...

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Next RockStar franchise is PS3 only

GTA 4 is going to be one of the biggest titles launches for 2008. But Sony and RockStar are already thinking ahead, especially when it comes to the future of both companies. The general consensus of the gaming community was that Sony had lost its marbles by letting the GTA franchise slip through their fingers.

But turns out Sony has had a plan all along. Recently revealed, Sony and RockStar have partnered up to bring the next RockStar franchise only to the PlayStation 3.

RockStar wants to make the first game which takes full advantage of the PlayStation 3 hardware, and based on Sony's ten year plan for their console, games like RockStar is planning is exactly what Sony wants and needs. When we will see this game no one knows, but being that it is RockStar and that Sony gave up the GTA lice...

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Overlord coming to PS3

Codemasters' and Triumph Studios' Overlord is one of those games that seems to have been overlooked by gamers, despite the great concept and gameplay that it brings to the table. Around the time of the game's release, it only got light press coverage, and was never a part of any huge marketing plan.

Hopefully, the recently announded PlayStation 3 port of the previously PC and Xbox 360 -only title will allow a larger audience to take a stab at it. This humorous and enjoyable game experience feels like the lovechild of Pikmin and Fable, but at the same time is completely fresh.

The port will be called Overlord: Raising Hell, and will include the original game and all of its existing downloadable content on a single blu-ray disc. It will arrive on store shelves this summer. PS3 owners, do...

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Sony thinking about no more PS3 price drops

Pricing a console is never easy. Nothing is a better example of this than the PlayStation 3. With multiple SKUs and varying price ranges, to say the PlayStation 3's price has remained constant is a joke.

But if there was one constant of the PlayStation 3, it is that everyone agreed that its price should be lowered. With the Wii at $250 US and the Xbox 360 sitting comfortably around the $350 US mark, it didn't take a major in buisness to realize that if the PlayStation 3 wanted to compete, it had to lower its steep price tag.

So who would have thought, just after a year on the shelves that the PlayStation 3 would be outselling the Xbox 360 for the month of January (reliablity Microsoft, reliability), have an upcoming game library even Microsoft and Nintendo should be envious of, and have th...

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No Left 4 Dead for PS3; Valve likes the Wii

Valve's vice president of marketing, Doug Lombardi, spoke with videogaming247 at GDC and revealed potential console plans for Turtle Rock Studios' upcoming online co-op FPS Left 4 Dead. Currently penciled for a release in fall 2008, Left 4 Dead has been confirmed for PC and Xbox 360, but Lombardi spoke about possible Wii and PS3 plans.

First, Lombardi mentioned that, if given the option, Valve would have developed Left 4 Dead for the Wii. He said, "If Valve were to develop in-house for another format, it would be the Wii. It's growing, there's already a huge user-base, and it's fun. Source is really scaleable[sic]. We can do that."

The same can't be said for the PS3; Lombardi said that Left 4 Dead will not head to Sony's console. Reasons given included limited interest and lack of experience...

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Metal Gear Solid 4 release date. PS3 bundle coming...

There is a solid release period for the super anticipated experience that is Metal Gear Solid 4--sometime in the second quarter of 2008.

What sort of things can we expect from MGS4? According to Sony:

"Guns of the Patriots will be available in North America in late Q2 2008. A Metal Gear Online "Starter Pack" will also be launched to support online game play. Gamers can select a single player experience or take the action online with up to 16 players and battle it out using the latest weapons and stealth techniques..."

On top of that Sony is releasing a PlayStation 3 MGS4 bundle too. It will include the PS3 80GB system, the game and one Dual Shock 3 controller for $499. We assume that this bundle will hit alongside the Metal Gear Solid 4 release.

Jack Tretton, president of SCEA said of the ne...

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PS3 DualShock 3 with rumble. Finally!

When the PS3 was launched, two major things caught the attention of the gaming community in a negative way--the price of the PS3 and the lack of a rumble feature in the controller. Sony explained that it was unable to make the rumble work with its motion-sensing feature.

As it turns out, it was actually due to a huge $90 million lawsuit brought against Sony for "borrowing" the rumble technology illegally from the patent holders--Immersion Corp. In the lawsuit, Sony was forced to cease all production of DualShock controllers which had the rumble technology.

Since then, PlayStation 3 fans have been crying into their beer mugs and Mountain Dew soda cans at the loss of feeling the jolt of their rocket launchers or other tools of destruction in their PS3 games.

But all will be well (almost) as ...

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PS3 has a big "secret" game

The PS3 has a secret game in development. End of news. Ok, in order to extend this news a little bit longer I'll give you a little tid bit of what Darren Waters from the BBC experienced at the Sony studios in Europe.

"Well, I was shown a trailer for a game not due out till 2009 but was sworn to absolute secrecy. Apparently, Sony just wanted to give a glimpse of what the console will be capable of. In fact, the game is such a secret that when I mentioned the game to Phil Harrison last week he was unsure at first whether even to admit the title existed.

"When I explained I had been shown it under strict Non Disclosure Agreement terms he looked relieved. I don't mean to be a tease - all I can say is that I was left speechless. If the footage I was shown truly is "in game", as told to me by th...

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Sony opens up PS3 advertising

According to gamesindustry.biz, Sony opening up its in-game advertising platform will spark a battle among Double Fusion, IGA and AdScape.

"Sony will offer an open platform on the PlayStation 3, allowing the three key players in the in-game advertising market to strike deals with game publishers. They already have their own PlayStation Network sales force to sell dynamic ads in Sony-produced games such as Pain. Making things open only makes things better for marketers or people who want to place ads because they aren't the mercy of a given network," eMarketer senior writer James Belcher told Advertising Age. "Everyone's playing around with the best model - how to charge, what gamers will and will not put up with."

Yes indeed, that is the most important factor in all of this, isn't it? How ...

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LittleBigPlanet to be a triple-A title for Sony

The indie gaming scene is growing exponentially, and gamers are being invited to the simple yet incredibly creative experiences that these developers are creating. One such title is Media Molecule's LittleBigPlanet that will be available exclusively for the Playstation 3.

LittleBigPlanet is more than just a platformer, it's an intuitive, imaginative level creator that gamers will be able to play around with, and will no doubt, bring new and exciting gaming possibilities.

Sony realizes the uniqueness of the game, and its mass appeal, so they are not afraid to say, "LittleBigPlanet is potentially our biggest Blu-ray release of 2008. We definitely see it as a triple-A Blu-ray release and will be a full price product."

Sony's senior product manager, Nick Robinson, told VideoGamer.com that "Son...

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Sony chief, Phil Harrison, quits after 15 years

Phil Harrison, president of Sony Computer Entertainment Worldwide Studios, will be leaving his longtime employer of 15 years starting February 29, 2008.

Kaz Hirai, president and group CEO of Sony Computer Entertainment will take on Harrison's responsibility of worldwide studios in addition to his other duties as the main man at SCE. Hirai took over the position of CEO at Sony Japan from Ken Kutaragi last year.

Harrison has had a long distinguished career with Sony and was instrumental in the launch of all four PlayStation platforms. He led Sony Computer Entertainment's first party game development operations and vigorously went after the improvement of Sony's online stature.

No word has come out for the reasons behind Harrison's departure but the content of Kaz Hirai's statement on the depar...

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Final Fantasy XIII Delayed till 2010?

First off, this is just a rumor and nothing more, but still a scary one at that. Milling about the interwebz is a nasty tidibit of speculation that Final Fantasy XIII could potentially not hit the PlayStation 3 until 2010.

This opinion comes from a Japanese news trader site called Trader's Web, but the reasons behind this timeline theory is never fully explained.

Instead all we have to go on, at the moment, is Square's recently denial that FFXIII would be launched in 2008. With MGS4 on the horizon and Killzone 2 potentially around the corner it is easy to see why Square would hold out until 2009 at the latest.

Sony would obviously want another game to keep the momentum going, and FFXIII could hit (in 2010) when there is very little competition for gamer's dollars (unless GOW3 is revealed ...

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PSN downloads top 7.9 million

The PlayStation 3 is really hitting its stride. With Sony's system actually outselling the Xbox 360 in January, Blu-ray winning the format war, and developers figuring out how to take advantage of the PS3 architecture, it isn't a stretch thinking that 2008 will be very nice to Sony.

The latest accomplishment Sony can tout is the downloads from the PlayStationNetwork--topping 7.9 million downloads for the month of January.

While content isn't as robust as Xbox Live, and the online integration of games could use some work, the generally faster surfing experience and wonderful price tag of free online mutiplayer is making PSN a very worthy competitor to Xbox Live. Let's just hope when Home launches it actually adds to the PSN experience and doesn't turn it into an MMO wannabe.

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Haze's delay makes it "better"

Haze has been getting a bit of scrutiny lately. With botchy release dates and an unappreciated story, it's been getting less hype as more interesting games have been introduced as of late. But Free Radical is assuring PS3 owners that the delays brought to Haze have made the game better. Well I hope it did!

"While we can't explicitly say what improvements we've made (I'd love to tell you all the cool stuff we've been putting in!... but I also love my job too...)", a Free Radical staffer teased on Ubisoft forums, "I can guarantee you that the extra bit of time has made a big difference for the better". He goes on to say that he feels sorry for the gamers who had to listen to the announcements of delays and assures them that he understands.

A spokesperson goes on to say that "we just want to ma...

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Resistance 2 Update!

More info has risen from the depths of the rumor abyss, but this time these rumors were put to the test. How did they do? They came back being truthful and oh so sweet to hear. Over at the PlayThree blog, new information on Resistance 2 can be found, covering aspects of the games single-player and multi-player features.

According to the upcoming March edition of the Official PlayStation Magazine UK, it has revealed a number of new and exciting details. Let's take a gander.

* There are 3 co-op character classes. Soldier, medic, and special-ops trooper. Each can collect XP points to improve their skills (ala Call of Duty 4.)

* Resistance 2 will feature the Chimera in a major onslaught at the San Francisco Bay Bridge and other American landmarks. They are coming...

* The 60 person multiplayer gam...

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Hot Shots Golf 5 requires 5GB installation?

Okay, this is getting stupid. According to the rumor mill, another PlayStation 3 game is going to be taking a 5GB bite out of our precious harddrives. Who is the culprit this time? Hot Shots Golf 5.

Devil May Cry 4 started this trend and with a game of that caliber we, the gaming community, let the mandatory installation slide.

But now another game? Sorry developers, you aren't getting off the hook. Take the time, learn the hardware, and get the games running without taking chunks out of our HDDs. We as console gamers, are not going to sit by and watch as the PlayStation 3 is treated as a PC. Last time we checked, that is what the PC gaming community dealt with, not the console crowd.

Sure small installations are fine, but 5GB is ridiculous.

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PlayStation 3 has hidden power say biased sources

Sony has been saying it for years, but it looks like the developers are finally agreeing with them. For the longest time they've been telling us about the "true power" of the PS3. They are even beginning to understand what Ken Kutaragi meant when he said, "4-D Graphics."

Just kidding, Kutaragi is still insane. But everything else was true.

A new article on MonstersandCritics.com has quotes from a number of different PS3 development sources.

"Once you put the effort in and start to understand the hardware, you can see PS3's huge technical potential," said Dave Connell, lead console programmer at Traveller's Tales. "We are going to see the quality of PS3 titles improve for many years to come as people get to grips with them. It might turn out that things we've not even thought of end up best ...

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DMC4 20-minute installation time shocks PS3 gamers...

Console gamers have traditionally expected relatively fast load times as far as their games are concerned. But this has also spoiled them to a certain extent. If loading screens take more than 20 seconds, console gamers start to get antsy and wonder if the game is broken.

But that 20 second wait is nothing compared to the 22- 25-minute wait to install Devil May Cry 4 onto their PS3s.

The reason for the apparent slow load is due to the various installation files put onto the PS3's hard drive. After the installation is finished, the entire game access routine will virtually be instantaneous as you breeze through various cut-scenes and levels.

The upside of the long installation time is that gamers will be treated to various screenshots of the previous Devil May Cry games. This serves as a r...

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