Consolation Prize

I’ve just seen that a price cut has been announced for the Sony PS3 in North America. The 100 USD cut brings the price of the 60GB model down to 499 USD. Also announced is that a new 80GB model will be available from August for 599 USD bundled with a copy of Motorstorm.

There’s been speculation of a cut for some time now, so the move is not entirely unexpected and the 100 USD amount is spot on with what was
anticipated. We now have to wait and see what happens in the rest of the world, but I’m hoping this carries forward to Europe.

Press release via
PR Newswire

Sony Computer Entertainment America Introduces New 80GB PLAYSTATION(R)3 (PS3(TM)); Announces New Price on Current 60GB Model

80GB System Designed for Today’s Connected Gamer, 60GB Price Now $499

FOSTER CITY, Calif., July 9 /PRNewswire/ — Sony Computer Entertainment
America (SCEA), Inc. today announced a new 80GB model of its PLAYSTATION(R)3 (PS3(TM)) computer entertainment system. Beginning in August, the new PS3 model will be available in North America for a suggested retail price of $599/$659 CND and will be sold with the popular online-enabled racing game MotorStorm(TM). In conjunction with this news, the company also announced that effective immediately, the current 60GB PS3 model will be available in North America for $499/$549 CND, or $100 below the original launch price.

By featuring an expanded hard disk drive (HDD), the new 80GB PS3 is designed to appeal to the online gaming and entertainment enthusiast, providing ample storage space to download more games and other entertainment content from PLAYSTATION(R)Network. There are currently more than 60 playable games and game-related downloads available through PLAYSTATION(R)Store, with expanded entertainment content coming soon. The new model features the million-selling game MotorStorm in the box, allowing up to 12 players to play online at one time, hitting the dirt in this visually-arresting, fast-paced racing title.

Throughout the holidays and this fiscal year, more than 120 new first and third-party software titles will be available for North American PS3 users to enjoy, in addition to the more than 40 software titles currently available. Key upcoming first-party titles include Folklore(TM), Heavenly Sword(TM), LAIR, NBA ‘08, Ratchet & Clank(R) Future: Tools of Destruction(TM), SingStar(TM), SOCOM: U.S. Navy SEALs Confrontation, THE EYE OF JUDGMENT(TM), Uncharted: Drake’s Fortune and Warhawk(TM).

Numerous third-party titles, including several exclusives, will also be available such as Devil May Cry(R)IV, Dynasty Warriors(R):GUNDAM(R), Grand Theft Auto IV, Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix, Hellboy, Metal Gear Solid 4 Guns of the Patriots, Ninja Gaiden Sigma(R), SEGA Rally(R) Revo, Stranglehold(TM), The Darkness, TimeShift(TM), Tom Clancy’s Rainbow Six Vegas and Tom Clancy’s Ghost Recon Advanced Warfighter(TM) 2.

Additional games and services will also be available for PS3 system owners through the PLAYSTATION Network including PlayStation Home, a state-of-the-art 3D online community that serves as a meeting place for PS3 users around the world, as well as numerous downloadable games including the highly-anticipated title PAIN.
“As we move into the next phase of PS3, it’s important that we continue to evaluate our product line, offering consumers the technology and features that meet their growing needs for new forms of media and the way in which it is delivered,” said Jack Tretton, president and CEO of SCEA. “The introduction of the 80GB PS3, the new pricing for the current 60GB model, the availability of more than 100 new software titles this fiscal year and, finally, the expansion of services for PLAYSTATION Network, will provide even more options for users and will help bring new consumers into the PS3 fold.”

Both the 80GB and 60GB PS3 models come standard with Cell Broadband Engine(TM) (Cell/B.E.), Blu-ray Disc(TM) (BD) player, built-in HDD, 1080p high-definition output, Wi-Fi connectivity and SIXAXIS(TM) wireless controller.

About Sony Computer Entertainment America Inc.
Sony Computer Entertainment America Inc. continues to redefine the entertainment lifestyle with its PlayStation(R) and PS one(R) game console, the PlayStation(R)2 computer entertainment system, the PSP(R) (PlayStation(R)Portable) mobile entertainment system, the ground-breaking PLAYSTATION(R)3 (PS3(TM)) computer entertainment system and its online and network services the PLAYSTATION(R)Network and PLAYSTATION(R)Store.
Recognized as the undisputed industry leader, Sony Computer Entertainment America Inc. markets the PlayStation family of products and develops, publishes, markets and distributes software for the PS one game console, the PlayStation 2 computer entertainment system and the PSP system for the North American market. Based in Foster City, Calif. Sony Computer Entertainment America Inc. serves as headquarters for all North American operations and is a wholly owned subsidiary of Sony Computer Entertainment Inc.
Visit us on the Web at http://www.us.playstation.com
“PlayStation”, “PLAYSTATION”, “PSP,” “PS one” are registered trademarks and “PS3″, “Cell Broadband Engine” and “SIXAXIS” are trademarks of Sony Computer Entertainment Inc.

Some great news was announced by Microsoft yesterday. Peter Moore has issued an open letter to the Xbox community and as of 5th July all Xbox 360’s are now “covered by an enhanced warranty program to address specifically the general hardware failures indicated by the three flashing red lights on the console”. The enhanced warranty applies to both new and previously bought consoles and will last for three years from the date of purchase. Additionally Microsoft will reimburse you if you’ve paid for your console to be repaired due to the “three red flashing lights”.

This is definitely a step in the right direction from Microsoft, however the new warranty is specific to hardware failures displaying the “three red lights” so it isn’t the great panacea for the 360 that some may have hoped for. If you’ve paid for an extended warranty from a retailer, then fear not, it’s still very useful and should cover you for any other failures not specific to the three red lights of doom.

Open Letter From Peter Moore

To our Xbox Community:

You’ve spoken, and we’ve heard you. Good service and a good customer experience are areas of the business that we care deeply about. And frankly, we’ve not been doing a good enough job.

Some of you have expressed frustration with the customer experiences you have had with Xbox 360; frustration with having to return your console for service after receiving the general hardware error message on the console.

The majority of customers who own Xbox 360 consoles have had a terrific experience from their first day, and continue to, day in and day out. But when anyone questions the reliability of our product, or our commitment to our customers, it’s something I take very seriously.

We have been following this issue closely, and with on-going testing have identified several factors that can cause a general hardware failure indicated by three flashing red lights on the console. To address this issue, and as part of our ongoing work, we have already made certain improvements to the console.

We are also implementing some important policy changes intended to keep you in the game, worry-free.

As of today, all Xbox 360 consoles are covered by an enhanced warranty program to address specifically the general hardware failures indicated by the three flashing red lights on the console. This applies to new and previously-sold consoles. While we will still have a general one year console warranty (two years in some countries), we are announcing today a three-year warranty that covers any console that displays a three flashing red lights error message. If a customer has an issue indicated by the three flashing red lights, Microsoft will repair the console free of charge—including shipping—for three years from the console’s purchase date. We will also retroactively reimburse any of you who paid for repairs related to problems indicated by this error message in the past. In doing so, Microsoft stands behind its products and takes responsibility to ensure that every Xbox 360 console owner continues to have a fantastic gaming experience.

If we have let any of you down in the experience you have had with your Xbox 360, we sincerely apologize. We are taking responsibility and are making these changes to ensure that every Xbox 360 owner continues to have a great experience.

This will take a few days to roll out globally, and I appreciate your continued patience as we launch this program. I’ve posted an FAQ that should address some additional questions, and we’ll update it over the next few days.

I want to thank you, on behalf of all us at Microsoft, for your loyalty.

The
Open Letter also has an
FAQ and
Update that are worth a read.

The Legend of Zelda: Phantom Hourglass for the Nintendo DS has been given a release date as the 1st October 2007 by Nintendo of America. As yet there has been no official word on a European release date and given the usual track record for Nintendo Europe I think we’ll be lucky to see it on UK shores before the end of the year.

However all is not lost for UK gamers and if you can’t bare to wait for a European release, and as the DS is region free, there will be plenty of importers lining up to supply you with the American version.

After reading the rumours it has now been officially announced that the Wii will play host to “WiiWare” starting early 2008. WiiWare is going to be a new service that enables developers to make available original downloadable content for sale via the Wii shopping channel. It’s reported that Nintendo will be responsible for setting the price of games (payable via Wii points), but it is up to developers to secure a games rating.

The service is, in some respects, similar to that on offer by both Microsoft and Sony via Xbox Live and Playstation Network repectively, but it’s still great to see Nintendo following suit and offering new original games content and not just virtual console games for download. The only thing that still needs to be answered is how all this new content can be stored. Can SD cards be used? or are the rumours about a new piece of Wii hardware (external HD drive) true?

Official press release via
PR Newswire

Nintendo’s WiiWare Paves The Way For Fresh Games, Cool Consumer Experiences

REDMOND, WA UNITED STATES

Nintendo Sets a New Paradigm: One Game Can Still Make a Difference

SANTA MONICA, Calif., June 27 /PRNewswire/ — The search for the next ingeniously ground-breaking video game has begun. At a private developers conference this week, Nintendo announced the introduction of WiiWare(TM), a game-creation service that will allow developers large and small to create new downloadable video game content for sale by Nintendo through the Wii Shop Channel of the hot Wii(TM) home video game system. WiiWare paves the way for smaller, more creative games to make their way to the public at lower prices, without any inventory risk to developers. The first WiiWare content will launch in early 2008.

“Independent developers armed with small budgets and big ideas will be able to get their original games into the marketplace to see if we can find the next smash hit,” says Nintendo of America President Reggie Fils-Aime. “WiiWare brings new levels of creativity and value to the ever-growing population of Wii owners.”

The possibilities for WiiWare are limited only by the imaginations of developers. WiiWare provides game creators a simple method by which they can get their games to the public. This approach, combined with the remarkable motion controls of the Wii Remote(TM) and Nunchuk(TM), will give birth to fresh takes on established genres, as well as original ideas that currently exist only in developers’ minds. The reduced barriers to development provide developers the freedom to create and an inexpensive,
clearly defined path to reach consumers who will ultimately determine which game will become the Next Big Thing.

WiiWare will be posted on the Wii Shop Channel. As with current Wii Shop Channel offerings, users will redeem Wii Points(TM) to download content. It will support a variety of pricing options. Details about that and upcoming projects will be announced at a later date. For more information about Wii, visit http://www.Wii.com.

The worldwide innovator in the creation of interactive entertainment, Nintendo Co., Ltd., of Kyoto, Japan, manufactures and markets hardware and software for its Wii(TM), Nintendo DS(TM), Game Boy(R) Advance and Nintendo GameCube(TM) systems. Since 1983, Nintendo has sold nearly 2.4 billion video games and more than 409 million hardware units globally, and has created industry icons like Mario(TM), Donkey Kong(R), Metroid(R), Zelda(TM) and Pokemon(R). A wholly owned subsidiary, Nintendo of America Inc., based in Redmond, Wash., serves as headquarters for Nintendo’s operations in the Western Hemisphere. For more information about Nintendo,
visit the company’s Web site at http://www.Nintendo.com.

Europeans it’s time to rejoice! Nintendo Europe have not forsaken us and has issued its Quarter 3 release schedule. At last some key Wii titles have been dated but before you get too excited there’s still a while to wait before you can get your hands on Super Paper Mario, Mario Party 8 or Trauma Centre.

Mario Party 8 - 13th July 2007
Trauma Center: Second Opinion - 10th August 2007
Super Paper Mario - 14th September 2007

The full release list can be found on
Eurogamer

US hardware sales for May have been recently released. Nintendo once again continues its dominance over the rest of the field with the DS and Wii in 1st and 2nd place respectively.

In general the number of units sold were down for all when compared to April apart from the PSP which saw a rise. The PS3 continues to under achieve but at least it wasn’t outsold by the GBA this time.

1. Nintendo DS (423,000)
2. Nintendo Wii (338,000)
3. Sony PSP (221,120)
4. Sony PS2 (187,800)
5. Microsoft Xbox 360 (154,900)
6. Sony PS3 (81,600)
7. Nintendo GBA (80,554)
8. Nintendo Gamecube (10,728)

Finally “Elite Beat Agents” has been given a European release date of July 13th. The Nintendo DS rhythm game is the westernised version of the frequently imported Japanese original “Osu! Tatakae! Ouendan” with government agents replacing black clad cheerleaders and a new track listing replacing the J-Pop listing of the original.

The game has been available in the US since November 6th 2006 and Japan has recently seen the release of its successor “Moero! Nekketsu Rhythm Damashii Osu! Tatakae! Ouendan 2″

I’ve been tempted to import Ouendan and Elite Beat Agents on a number of occasions but for some reason or another never got around to it. I’ve got a feeling I may pick this game up at some point after it’s released as it’s piqued my curiosity.

The other day Nintendo Europe confirmed that
Pokemon Diamond / Pearl will be released in Europe on the 27th of July.

This is a full ten months after the Japanese release and only three months after the American release. At least we’re not too far behind the American release this time and we’ve actually got a release date, which is more than can be said for some other high profile Nintendo games we’re waiting for.

I’ve only ever played
Pokemon Red on the Nintendo Gameboy many years ago when it was released in 1999 and although I really enjoyed the game I’ve never felt the need to pick up one of the many sequels. However I’m tempted to try either Diamond or Pearl as it’s had positive reviews and I’m intrigued to see how it’s come on over the years.