When Kutaragi left Sony a few weeks ago, I had a feeling a price drop was imminent. Sony is squarely in third place in the next-gen video game console wars. HD-DVD players continue to drop in price and offer all kinds of incentives to buy. Sony is fighting tooth and nail to make BluRay the winning hi-def DVD format. They need to do something to make inroads on both fronts sooner rather than later and next week's E3 expo will be the perfect venue for an announcement. MS is sure to trumpet a very strong lineup of games for the holidays and Sony needs something to counter that and create some buzz. Given a dearth of original, exclusive games a price drop is really their only ace in the hole right now.
NightshooterIn bed with SolitairePosts: 2,917MI6 Agent
Not sure I follow you. Are you suggesting Kutaragi should come back disguised as someone else? Hmm, come to think of it, maybe Ken and Kaz are really the same person.
Well, I was at Target this morning and lo and behold, they had dropped the price of the PS3 to $499. I tried to resist, but the lure of the Darkside was too strong and now my lightsaber is a crimson red; in other words, I bought me a PS3. I know, I'm damned. Damned I tell you.
As to initial impressions:
I connected the PS3 to my network to get the latest updates; setup was very easy and the built-in wifi worked quite well. The PS3 supports background downloads (like the 360) but the they bog down badly when doing other activities like watching DVD's.
I bought F1 (more because my brother really enjoyed the demo) and it is a good game but not particularly impressive, visually speaking. It only runs at 720p and since the PS3 cannot upscale PS3 games the level of detail is a little lacking.
I also downloaded the demo to Resistance: Fall of Man. It was basically Call of Duly meets Halo. A very good looking game (even though it also only goes up to 720p) but also a very difficult demo. I'm sure the retail game has adjustable difficulty, but it didn't stand out from other first person shooters I've played enough for me to buy it right away; maybe when it drops in price a bit.
I don't have any BluRay movies yet so I can't comment on those. Tallagega Nights was not in the box; I guess that was a limited time offer only. Standard DVD's however look FANTASTIC thru the PS3; I watched some Star Wars and Blade Runner today and the level of detail was amazing; even better than my dedicated upconverting player.
The PS3 controller is ridiculously light; without the rumble motors it weighs next to nothing. I didn't miss the rumble feature at all (I quickly tune it out while playing) and the control pad charges very quickly with the enclosed (but much too short) USB mini-cable.
The PS3 online store is pretty sparse right now; just a few demos, videos and downloadable games. Unlike Xbox Live, you cannot try the downloadable games before buying.
The unit itself seems pretty sturdy and runs very quietly; I never once heard the hard drive or fans. It does get quite warm on the sides however.
That's about it for now. I think it'll be a keeper, if only for the amazing DVD playback and the occasional BluRay movie I pick up.
NightshooterIn bed with SolitairePosts: 2,917MI6 Agent
I'm trying to convince my dad to buy one just for the Blu Ray player. I really want to play MGS4.
I'm trying to convince my dad to buy one just for the Blu Ray player. I really want to play MGS4.
As I mentioned before, it's also a very good upscaling player for standard DVD's - it brings out a lot of detail I've never seen in my movies - so you can get some mileage out of that as well.
Another nice thing about the PS3 is that I can now try out some of the better PS2 games I was curious about (many of which can be had for $20 or less these days). I picked up the original God of War today and played that for a few hours; it's a great great game with some really wild enemies and bosses. The PS3 actually upscales the graphics of the game, but because it is an old PS2 title there are some jaggies and tearing to be seen. Still, it's a lot of fun. I have a feeling I'll be spending more on PS2 games I wanted to try than new PS3 games for the near future.
I'm trying to convince my dad to buy one just for the Blu Ray player. I really want to play MGS4.
As I mentioned before, it's also a very good upscaling player for standard DVD's - it brings out a lot of detail I've never seen in my movies - so you can get some mileage out of that as well.
Another nice thing about the PS3 is that I can now try out some of the better PS2 games I was curious about (many of which can be had for $20 or less these days). I picked up the original God of War today and played that for a few hours; it's a great great game with some really wild enemies and bosses. The PS3 actually upscales the graphics of the game, but because it is an old PS2 title there are some jaggies and tearing to be seen. Still, it's a lot of fun. I have a feeling I'll be spending more on PS2 games I wanted to try than new PS3 games for the near future.
Wild enemies...bosses...hush you tony, you were just playing "that" minigame over and over for 4 hours...tsk tsk....I see right through your lies...
Wild enemies...bosses...hush you tony, you were just playing "that" minigame over and over for 4 hours...tsk tsk....I see right through your lies...
Well, it is a good way to accumulate experience orbs. )
Actually, I didn't know too much about the game when I bought it (remember, I haven't been near a Playstation since about 2002) - just that it was a very highly rated game and the genre interested me. So when I reached that point, I was really surprised at the explicit nudity. Kind of strange to see something like that in a videogame, actually.
I'm enjoying God of War because I've always liked ancient Greek mythology; the game uses the hallmarks of the genre very well. The fight with the Hydra was really well done.
Tony, I know the PS3 is region free for games, but is it for DVDs (and BluRay movies, as well)?
According to the box, the PS3 will only play Region 1 or Region ALL DVD's and BluRays; so there is a region lock. I'm not surprised actually as the entertainment industry has always frowned on region free playback. I'm also sure there is a hack out there to circumvent it if I really wanted to.
I also bought my first BluRay today; I wanted a backup copy of the new Pat Metheny Group concert, The Way Up, and a local store had it in stock and on sale so I was able to kill two birds with one stone: get a second copy of the title, and evaluate true BluRay playback.
The picture quality was very very good; definitely superior to standard and upscaled DVD. Even though this is a modest title, it still really popped with an almost 3D like quality. The level of detail was also pretty amazing as I could make out writing and dings and dents on the instruments, and even the individual hairs on peoples' faces. It's not as dramatic a jump as going from VHS to DVD, but you can easily see the extra detail and for certain movies (FX heavy films and colorful ones like certain comics adaptations) I'd definitely prefer the BluRay version to the standard version. The sound output was also very good but given my vanilla surround sound system, I really didn't hear that much of a difference; I'd need something that supports Dolby's new sound standards to really hear a difference and my digital 5.1 setup is good enough for now.
NightshooterIn bed with SolitairePosts: 2,917MI6 Agent
Tony, I know the PS3 is region free for games, but is it for DVDs (and BluRay movies, as well)?
According to the box, the PS3 will only play Region 1 or Region ALL DVD's and BluRays; so there is a region lock. I'm not surprised actually as the entertainment industry has always frowned on region free playback. I'm also sure there is a hack out there to circumvent it if I really wanted to.
Thanks for the info, Tony. It's too bad, as I was hoping to convince my dad using that feature. Looks like I wont be getting a PS3 anytime soon.
Thanks for the info, Tony. It's too bad, as I was hoping to convince my dad using that feature. Looks like I wont be getting a PS3 anytime soon.
Here's some ammo you might try with your dad: I recently read that the $499 price is only a temporary thing; once the current allotment of 60GB PS3's runs out, Sony will no longer offer that model. Sony will instead be releasing an 80GB model PS3 in the fall which will not have the emotion chip used for backward compatibility (they will instead go the Xbox 360 route of software emulation for BC). This new model will come with a copy of Motorstorm and sell for $599.
Personally, I think this is a really boneheaded move on Sony's part; the $499 pricetag is a pricepoint that consumers seem able to accept and sales have gone up dramatically since they dropped the price. They ought to be doing everything to continue to sell the PS3 at the $499 price. I guess they just don't get it.
Leave it to Sony to find new ways to screw themselves over - just because I now own a PS3, it doesn't mean I'm going to give them a free ride. :v
After the $100 price cut, sales of the PS3 went up dramatically. And what does Sony do? They cut off their own positive word of mouth and momentum right at the knees. If they're smart, they'll never go above $499 for the remainder of the PS3's life; consumers seem able to swallow a purchase at that price. They still don't have too much in the way of games software for the holiday season (a lot of their big titles have been pushed back to 2008) so it would be suicide to jack up the price again just as MS releases Halo 3 and the rest of their very strong holiday lineup.
And here's more bad news for Sony - HD-DVD hardware and software actually outsold BluRay for the past month. Looks like the format wars are far from over.
Let me get this straight.If I decide to wait a bit longer and purchase one of those more expensive PS3's--because I have more money than I know what to do with--I won't be able to play any of my PS2 games on the newer machine?AND I'll be paying $100 more than the current price for that experience?
Let me get this straight.If I decide to wait a bit longer and purchase one of those more expensive PS3's--because I have more money than I know what to do with--I won't be able to play any of my PS2 games on the newer machine?AND I'll be paying $100 more than the current price for that experience?
Geez....sounds just wonderful.:v
Well, the emulation of the PS2 will be done thru software rather than a hardware chip - it'll be hit and miss; some games will work fine, others won't.
Sony is trying to jusify the additional $100 by providing a slightly larger hard drive (80GB as opposed to the currect 60GB) and a free game (Motorstorm, an offroading game that has sold very well; everyone who really wants a copy probably already has it so Sony won't lose too much by bundling it in).
By the time the quantities of the current 60GB model are all gone Sony may rethink their strategy yet again. I fully expect a major spike in Xbox 360 sales when Halo 3 debuts in late September; and there's even talk that Microsoft my drop the price of their Xbox 360 at that point to entice potential new owners. Factors like that may force Sony to bite the bullet and keep it at $499. Then again, Sony execs have rarely been considered to be the brightest bulbs in the chandelier, if you catch my drift.
RogueAgentSpeeding in the Tumbler...Posts: 3,676MI6 Agent
edited August 2007
Months ago,one of my art students invited me to his 15th birthday bash so I had to keep my word that I would attend. Well it was last night and I got a chance to play the PS3 on his huge hi-def television set.
The game that we played was RESISTANCE: Fall Of Man. Not to show any sort of bias but I was not impressed. The game got a little monotonous after awhile and the gameplay looked very grainy. Now this could've been because of the set that they had or the game just was poorly made; I'm not really sure but I don't have an impulse to run out and buy one. Of course it wasn't my place to tell him that despite our Xbox/Ps debates while I try and teach him. )
Believe me, I really tried to find something good about this console; perhaps it was just that particular game. The cutscenes were decent but nothing more really...The game is very gory though.
Mrs. Man Face: "You wouldn't hit a lady? Would you?"
Batman: "The Hammer Of Justice isUNISEX!"
-Batman: The Brave & The Bold -
I have Resistance - it's one of only two PS3 games I own. It's an odd combination of retro sci-fi (aliens invade Earth, conquer Europe, and start transforming humans into mutated monsters) mixed with a World War II motif (the Allied Resistance is all that stands in their way and is mounting a counter-offensive). The weapons are pretty good and there are moments in it where you can go all Rambo and get a visceral rush from just mowing down the bad guys; but it is all stuff that's been done before. In many ways it's basically Call of Duty meets Halo; hardly original by any means. It looks fine on my TV though, so the graininess was probably due to his TV set; the PS3 has been known to look pretty bad when played on standard def TV's.
RogueAgentSpeeding in the Tumbler...Posts: 3,676MI6 Agent
I have Resistance - it's one of only two PS3 games I own. It's an odd combination of retro sci-fi (aliens invade Earth, conquer Europe, and start transforming humans into mutated monsters) mixed with a World War II motif (the Allied Resistance is all that stands in their way and is mounting a counter-offensive). The weapons are pretty good and there are moments in it where you can go all Rambo and get a visceral rush from just mowing down the bad guys; but it is all stuff that's been done before. In many ways it's basically Call of Duty meets Halo; hardly original by any means. It looks fine on my TV though, so the graininess was probably due to his TV set; the PS3 has been known to look pretty bad when played on standard def TV's.
My favorite weapon was the Juicer...or was it called Sapper? All I know was when we were bumrushed by a flood of scorpion-spider things, I just shot away to see them explode. Lazy on my part, yes...but very effective. )
Those mutants with the Augers were a headache to avoid; they shoot through walls.
Mrs. Man Face: "You wouldn't hit a lady? Would you?"
Batman: "The Hammer Of Justice isUNISEX!"
-Batman: The Brave & The Bold -
My favorite weapon was the Juicer...or was it called Sapper? All I know was when we were bumrushed by a flood of scorpion-spider things, I just shot away to see them explode. Lazy on my part, yes...but very effective. )
Those mutants with the Augers were a headache to avoid; they shoot through walls.
I can never keep all the names straight. I've only gone thru 3 or 4 levels so far; it's fun while I play but once I put it away, I have a hard time building up enough interest to get back to it.
BTW, I picked up F.E.A.R. for the 360. I think you'd like it; the combination of SWAT style first person action and horror is offbeat but the game is very creepy, especially the music and quasi subliminal cuts, and you quickly get ill at ease. You'll get punk'd by it.
Well, I've been away from this topic for a while and just thought I'd check in.
I just checked the Circuit City website, and they have indeed lowered the price of the PS3... Fortunately or unfortunately (however one may look at it), university classes start in less than a month and my beloved '85 Nissan is going to be needing some front-end suspension work (blasted CV joints ), so such expenditures will no doubt have to wait. However, at $500, Sony may have just raised my changes of buying a PS3 from 0% to 1%. Still, if Sony shoots itself in the foot by raising the price and removing backward compatibility (what are they thinking?), then I really see no point in buying one. Besides, my TV is still just standard-def, and if it doesn't even look good on such a TV, that's even less incentive.
I'd much rather fix my car and go cruisin' then waste all my money on something that is still rather unimpressive for the money. What I would spend $500 on however, would be all the Greatest Hits PS2 games I can start collecting! Or even a Wii or XBox 360 perhaps...
There are so many brilliant PS2 games that I absolutely love, and now we're not even able to play them all on a PS3, after we were promised backward compatibility from Day One? The new BC only works on some games, but not all? And at a higher price at that? Sounds about as useful as Windows XP's "program compatibility" feature, and we all know how well that works... It's ridiculous. Almost as ridiculous as buying a game without any actual playable content (Gran Turismo 5, anyone?).
Speaking of which, I probably already said this a while back, but I went out and bought a laptop! I always did say I could get a laptop for about the price of the PS3, and sure enough, this baby was just $600! It was back when all the Windows XP computers were on clearance. I didn't even keep the XP that was on it! I put Windows 2000 on it--strangely it runs faster now.
[img=http://www.rueducommerce.fr/ordinateur/images/produits/info/screenshots/HP-V5009-01.jpg]Compaq C300
1.65 GHz Intel Celeron Processor
80 GB Hard drive
512 MB RAM
15 in. widescreen
Capable: Wi-Fi, DVD movies, possible external Blu-ray drive down the road, downloadable movies, PlayStation emulation (I have yet to experiment, but one never knows), and above all--portability.
The Light Side of the Force has its perks after all... [/img]
Sly, here's a friendly bit of advice from a PS3 owner: if you only own a standard def TV, I honestly don't think you'll get too much mileage out of the PS3 right now.
Quite frankly, most of the games for the console are pretty bad. Three high profile and highly anticipated games that Sony was really counting on to reverse their fortunes - Lair, Heavenly Sword and Warhawk - all have been criticized badly. Lair's controls have made the game all but unplayable; Heavenly Sword is plauged by ultra-repetitive gameplay; and Warhawk has no single player content whatsoever. Most other games look and play better on the 360 and the only exclusive PS3 games worth a look are Resistance and F1. There will be good games eventually but too many current PS3 games have some gotcha.
Also BluRay DVD playback will be pretty pointless over a standard def TV since you'll never see the additional detail the format offers. Once you make the investment in a hi-def TV then you'll want to experience the added clarity and detail but right now you're not missing anything.
As such, I think you're better off sticking with your PS2 and PC for gaming; wait another year or two and then think about taking the plunge. The PS3 still has very little to offer I'm afraid.
As I've said before, the only way they'll get me to buy a PS3 (other than giving it away) is if Final Fantasy XIII is exclusive to it. Rumors are flying that even longtime Sony supporter Square Enix is in league with Microsoft, going non-exclusive for the first time ever. Here's an interesting thought, I may just send good old Square a nice letter asking them to go non-exclusive... :v
Thanks for the advice, Tony. It seems everything hi-def is way above my budget at the moment, anyway. I did make the upgrade to digital cable (On Demand is pretty cool), but I have to keep the analog box. Really, I'm fine with just a standard-def 27 inch TV. I'm a bit leery of a low cost HDTV, since I keep hearing of issues with dead pixels and all that. I hear some companies even have a policy of "less than 3 (or 3%) dead pixels = no repair/replacement," yet they charge a fortune for their products. One thing I have to hand Sony is that they have a no-tolerance policy for dead pixels, as far as I know (hence the five digit price tag).
Besides, my laptop is capable of 1200*900 resolution, which is hi-def enough for me. I even bought a power inverter for my car's cigarette lighter! Laptops truly are amazingly versatile. I hear that there will be problems playing Blu-ray on PCs, since most aren't equipped with HDMI, but I'm sure a hack is already in the works.
By the way, what do you think of the PSP? Its price at GameStop has dropped to $199. I hear it's practically a pocket PC or an iPhone without the phone. :P With capabilities such as playing MP3s and movies, I just may invest in one sometime soon. Who knows, since they're almost as cool as an iPod, it may even make a good chick magnet... B-)
As I've said before, the only way they'll get me to buy a PS3 (other than giving it away) is if Final Fantasy XIII is exclusive to it. Rumors are flying that even longtime Sony supporter Square Enix is in league with Microsoft, going non-exclusive for the first time ever. Here's an interesting thought, I may just send good old Square a nice letter asking them to go non-exclusive... :v
It wouldn't hurt; I hear Kojima is even thinking about bringing MGS IV to the 360 so there is always hope. Besides, Square seems pretty open to switching platforms; the jumped from Nintendo to Sony and have already released that online Final Fantasy game for the 360. Truthfully if gaming is your thing then the 360 is definitely the way to go. There are a ton of games available in every genre and a lot of stuff is very affordable. A few friends of mine have a 360 hooked up to a standard def TV and they uniformly say it looks great.
Thanks for the advice, Tony. It seems everything hi-def is way above my budget at the moment, anyway. I did make the upgrade to digital cable (On Demand is pretty cool), but I have to keep the analog box. Really, I'm fine with just a standard-def 27 inch TV. I'm a bit leery of a low cost HDTV, since I keep hearing of issues with dead pixels and all that. I hear some companies even have a policy of "less than 3 (or 3%) dead pixels = no repair/replacement," yet they charge a fortune for their products. One thing I have to hand Sony is that they have a no-tolerance policy for dead pixels, as far as I know (hence the five digit price tag).
I'd stay away from the no-name brands but you can find some very good deals from reputable companies these days. Samsung makes some very good quality LCD's (they actually manufacture the panels for Sony) and their 32" models are quite reasonably priced.
By the way, what do you think of the PSP? Its price at GameStop has dropped to $199. I hear it's practically a pocket PC or an iPhone without the phone. :P With capabilities such as playing MP3s and movies, I just may invest in one sometime soon. Who knows, since they're almost as cool as an iPod, it may even make a good chick magnet... B-)
I bought a PSP when it first came out ... and sold it back about three months later. At the time, there simply were no good games for it and I had zero interest in UMD movies. Since then it has built up a library of very nice games and you're right that it's a favorite for the modding / homebrew community. It also is supposed to have some interconnectivity with the PS3 for some games. Sony is going to be releasing a new version of the PSP later this month; my understanding is that the casing is a little smaller (although the screen size is the same), it will have 32MB more memory and better battery life. Best of all it will still sell for $169 for the core model. I may look into it again at that time although truthfully, I prefer to game on as big a screen as possible.
More egg on Sony's face? Possibly. Someone had been editing the Halo 3 page on Wikipedia, putting in disparaging comments about the game, suggesting that it would not look any better than Halo 2. Upon investigation of the entry by Wikipedia, the IP address was traced back to Sony's Liverpool studios. It's unclear whether this was the work of one person or a stealth corporate attack but either way, the culprits didn't cover their tracks very well and Sony now has yet another PR snafu to contend with. Here's a link with more info.
More egg on Sony's face? Possibly. Someone had been editing the Halo 3 page on Wikipedia, putting in disparaging comments about the game, suggesting that it would not look any better than Halo 2. Upon investigation of the entry by Wikipedia, the IP address was traced back to Sony's Liverpool studios. It's unclear whether this was the work of one person or a stealth corporate attack but either way, the culprits didn't cover their tracks very well and Sony now has yet another PR snafu to contend with. Here's a link with more info.
The sad part is that the PS3 has actually turned out to be a pretty solid and versatile piece of hardware. It's a great BluRay and upscaling DVD player, it actually works quite nicely as a central hub for streaming music and videos and I was even using the browser last night to surf AJB while my brother was on the PC. If Sony would only put as much effort into supporting the PS3 with good software as they do in trash-talking the competition they'd be in far better shape.
They could learn a thing or two from Microsoft, who has largely avoided the name-calling and focused on getting great games and some solid peripherals out the door.
Comments
When Kutaragi left Sony a few weeks ago, I had a feeling a price drop was imminent. Sony is squarely in third place in the next-gen video game console wars. HD-DVD players continue to drop in price and offer all kinds of incentives to buy. Sony is fighting tooth and nail to make BluRay the winning hi-def DVD format. They need to do something to make inroads on both fronts sooner rather than later and next week's E3 expo will be the perfect venue for an announcement. MS is sure to trumpet a very strong lineup of games for the holidays and Sony needs something to counter that and create some buzz. Given a dearth of original, exclusive games a price drop is really their only ace in the hole right now.
Not sure I follow you. Are you suggesting Kutaragi should come back disguised as someone else?
As to initial impressions:
I connected the PS3 to my network to get the latest updates; setup was very easy and the built-in wifi worked quite well. The PS3 supports background downloads (like the 360) but the they bog down badly when doing other activities like watching DVD's.
I bought F1 (more because my brother really enjoyed the demo) and it is a good game but not particularly impressive, visually speaking. It only runs at 720p and since the PS3 cannot upscale PS3 games the level of detail is a little lacking.
I also downloaded the demo to Resistance: Fall of Man. It was basically Call of Duly meets Halo. A very good looking game (even though it also only goes up to 720p) but also a very difficult demo. I'm sure the retail game has adjustable difficulty, but it didn't stand out from other first person shooters I've played enough for me to buy it right away; maybe when it drops in price a bit.
I don't have any BluRay movies yet so I can't comment on those. Tallagega Nights was not in the box; I guess that was a limited time offer only. Standard DVD's however look FANTASTIC thru the PS3; I watched some Star Wars and Blade Runner today and the level of detail was amazing; even better than my dedicated upconverting player.
The PS3 controller is ridiculously light; without the rumble motors it weighs next to nothing. I didn't miss the rumble feature at all (I quickly tune it out while playing) and the control pad charges very quickly with the enclosed (but much too short) USB mini-cable.
The PS3 online store is pretty sparse right now; just a few demos, videos and downloadable games. Unlike Xbox Live, you cannot try the downloadable games before buying.
The unit itself seems pretty sturdy and runs very quietly; I never once heard the hard drive or fans. It does get quite warm on the sides however.
That's about it for now. I think it'll be a keeper, if only for the amazing DVD playback and the occasional BluRay movie I pick up.
As I mentioned before, it's also a very good upscaling player for standard DVD's - it brings out a lot of detail I've never seen in my movies - so you can get some mileage out of that as well.
Another nice thing about the PS3 is that I can now try out some of the better PS2 games I was curious about (many of which can be had for $20 or less these days). I picked up the original God of War today and played that for a few hours; it's a great great game with some really wild enemies and bosses. The PS3 actually upscales the graphics of the game, but because it is an old PS2 title there are some jaggies and tearing to be seen. Still, it's a lot of fun. I have a feeling I'll be spending more on PS2 games I wanted to try than new PS3 games for the near future.
Wild enemies...bosses...hush you tony, you were just playing "that" minigame over and over for 4 hours...tsk tsk....I see right through your lies...
Well, it is a good way to accumulate experience orbs.
Actually, I didn't know too much about the game when I bought it (remember, I haven't been near a Playstation since about 2002) - just that it was a very highly rated game and the genre interested me. So when I reached that point, I was really surprised at the explicit nudity. Kind of strange to see something like that in a videogame, actually.
I'm enjoying God of War because I've always liked ancient Greek mythology; the game uses the hallmarks of the genre very well. The fight with the Hydra was really well done.
I just fell out of my chair laughing...:))
I honestly don't know the answer to that. I'll look at the manual today and follow up.
According to the box, the PS3 will only play Region 1 or Region ALL DVD's and BluRays; so there is a region lock. I'm not surprised actually as the entertainment industry has always frowned on region free playback. I'm also sure there is a hack out there to circumvent it if I really wanted to.
I also bought my first BluRay today; I wanted a backup copy of the new Pat Metheny Group concert, The Way Up, and a local store had it in stock and on sale so I was able to kill two birds with one stone: get a second copy of the title, and evaluate true BluRay playback.
The picture quality was very very good; definitely superior to standard and upscaled DVD. Even though this is a modest title, it still really popped with an almost 3D like quality. The level of detail was also pretty amazing as I could make out writing and dings and dents on the instruments, and even the individual hairs on peoples' faces. It's not as dramatic a jump as going from VHS to DVD, but you can easily see the extra detail and for certain movies (FX heavy films and colorful ones like certain comics adaptations) I'd definitely prefer the BluRay version to the standard version. The sound output was also very good but given my vanilla surround sound system, I really didn't hear that much of a difference; I'd need something that supports Dolby's new sound standards to really hear a difference and my digital 5.1 setup is good enough for now.
Thanks for the info, Tony. It's too bad, as I was hoping to convince my dad using that feature. Looks like I wont be getting a PS3 anytime soon.
Here's some ammo you might try with your dad: I recently read that the $499 price is only a temporary thing; once the current allotment of 60GB PS3's runs out, Sony will no longer offer that model. Sony will instead be releasing an 80GB model PS3 in the fall which will not have the emotion chip used for backward compatibility (they will instead go the Xbox 360 route of software emulation for BC). This new model will come with a copy of Motorstorm and sell for $599.
Personally, I think this is a really boneheaded move on Sony's part; the $499 pricetag is a pricepoint that consumers seem able to accept and sales have gone up dramatically since they dropped the price. They ought to be doing everything to continue to sell the PS3 at the $499 price. I guess they just don't get it.
http://www.fool.com/investing/general/2007/07/18/sonys-ps3-clearance-sale.aspx
Leave it to Sony to find new ways to screw themselves over - just because I now own a PS3, it doesn't mean I'm going to give them a free ride. :v
After the $100 price cut, sales of the PS3 went up dramatically. And what does Sony do? They cut off their own positive word of mouth and momentum right at the knees. If they're smart, they'll never go above $499 for the remainder of the PS3's life; consumers seem able to swallow a purchase at that price. They still don't have too much in the way of games software for the holiday season (a lot of their big titles have been pushed back to 2008) so it would be suicide to jack up the price again just as MS releases Halo 3 and the rest of their very strong holiday lineup.
And here's more bad news for Sony - HD-DVD hardware and software actually outsold BluRay for the past month. Looks like the format wars are far from over.
Geez....sounds just wonderful.:v
Well, the emulation of the PS2 will be done thru software rather than a hardware chip - it'll be hit and miss; some games will work fine, others won't.
Sony is trying to jusify the additional $100 by providing a slightly larger hard drive (80GB as opposed to the currect 60GB) and a free game (Motorstorm, an offroading game that has sold very well; everyone who really wants a copy probably already has it so Sony won't lose too much by bundling it in).
By the time the quantities of the current 60GB model are all gone Sony may rethink their strategy yet again. I fully expect a major spike in Xbox 360 sales when Halo 3 debuts in late September; and there's even talk that Microsoft my drop the price of their Xbox 360 at that point to entice potential new owners. Factors like that may force Sony to bite the bullet and keep it at $499. Then again, Sony execs have rarely been considered to be the brightest bulbs in the chandelier, if you catch my drift.
The game that we played was RESISTANCE: Fall Of Man. Not to show any sort of bias but I was not impressed. The game got a little monotonous after awhile and the gameplay looked very grainy. Now this could've been because of the set that they had or the game just was poorly made; I'm not really sure but I don't have an impulse to run out and buy one. Of course it wasn't my place to tell him that despite our Xbox/Ps debates while I try and teach him.
Believe me, I really tried to find something good about this console; perhaps it was just that particular game. The cutscenes were decent but nothing more really...The game is very gory though.
Batman: "The Hammer Of Justice is UNISEX!"
-Batman: The Brave & The Bold -
My favorite weapon was the Juicer...or was it called Sapper? All I know was when we were bumrushed by a flood of scorpion-spider things, I just shot away to see them explode. Lazy on my part, yes...but very effective.
Those mutants with the Augers were a headache to avoid; they shoot through walls.
Batman: "The Hammer Of Justice is UNISEX!"
-Batman: The Brave & The Bold -
I can never keep all the names straight. I've only gone thru 3 or 4 levels so far; it's fun while I play but once I put it away, I have a hard time building up enough interest to get back to it.
BTW, I picked up F.E.A.R. for the 360. I think you'd like it; the combination of SWAT style first person action and horror is offbeat but the game is very creepy, especially the music and quasi subliminal cuts, and you quickly get ill at ease. You'll get punk'd by it.
I just checked the Circuit City website, and they have indeed lowered the price of the PS3... Fortunately or unfortunately (however one may look at it), university classes start in less than a month and my beloved '85 Nissan is going to be needing some front-end suspension work (blasted CV joints
I'd much rather fix my car and go cruisin' then waste all my money on something that is still rather unimpressive for the money. What I would spend $500 on however, would be all the Greatest Hits PS2 games I can start collecting! Or even a Wii or XBox 360 perhaps...
There are so many brilliant PS2 games that I absolutely love, and now we're not even able to play them all on a PS3, after we were promised backward compatibility from Day One? The new BC only works on some games, but not all? And at a higher price at that? Sounds about as useful as Windows XP's "program compatibility" feature, and we all know how well that works... It's ridiculous. Almost as ridiculous as buying a game without any actual playable content (Gran Turismo 5, anyone?).
Speaking of which, I probably already said this a while back, but I went out and bought a laptop! I always did say I could get a laptop for about the price of the PS3, and sure enough, this baby was just $600! It was back when all the Windows XP computers were on clearance. I didn't even keep the XP that was on it! I put Windows 2000 on it--strangely it runs faster now.
[img=http://www.rueducommerce.fr/ordinateur/images/produits/info/screenshots/HP-V5009-01.jpg]Compaq C300 1.65 GHz Intel Celeron Processor 80 GB Hard drive 512 MB RAM 15 in. widescreen Capable: Wi-Fi, DVD movies, possible external Blu-ray drive down the road, downloadable movies, PlayStation emulation (I have yet to experiment, but one never knows), and above all--portability. The Light Side of the Force has its perks after all...
Quite frankly, most of the games for the console are pretty bad. Three high profile and highly anticipated games that Sony was really counting on to reverse their fortunes - Lair, Heavenly Sword and Warhawk - all have been criticized badly. Lair's controls have made the game all but unplayable; Heavenly Sword is plauged by ultra-repetitive gameplay; and Warhawk has no single player content whatsoever. Most other games look and play better on the 360 and the only exclusive PS3 games worth a look are Resistance and F1. There will be good games eventually but too many current PS3 games have some gotcha.
Also BluRay DVD playback will be pretty pointless over a standard def TV since you'll never see the additional detail the format offers. Once you make the investment in a hi-def TV then you'll want to experience the added clarity and detail but right now you're not missing anything.
As such, I think you're better off sticking with your PS2 and PC for gaming; wait another year or two and then think about taking the plunge. The PS3 still has very little to offer I'm afraid.
Thanks for the advice, Tony. It seems everything hi-def is way above my budget at the moment, anyway. I did make the upgrade to digital cable (On Demand is pretty cool), but I have to keep the analog box.
Besides, my laptop is capable of 1200*900 resolution, which is hi-def enough for me. I even bought a power inverter for my car's cigarette lighter! Laptops truly are amazingly versatile. I hear that there will be problems playing Blu-ray on PCs, since most aren't equipped with HDMI, but I'm sure a hack is already in the works.
By the way, what do you think of the PSP? Its price at GameStop has dropped to $199. I hear it's practically a pocket PC or an iPhone without the phone. :P With capabilities such as playing MP3s and movies, I just may invest in one sometime soon. Who knows, since they're almost as cool as an iPod, it may even make a good chick magnet... B-)
It wouldn't hurt; I hear Kojima is even thinking about bringing MGS IV to the 360 so there is always hope. Besides, Square seems pretty open to switching platforms; the jumped from Nintendo to Sony and have already released that online Final Fantasy game for the 360. Truthfully if gaming is your thing then the 360 is definitely the way to go. There are a ton of games available in every genre and a lot of stuff is very affordable. A few friends of mine have a 360 hooked up to a standard def TV and they uniformly say it looks great.
I'd stay away from the no-name brands but you can find some very good deals from reputable companies these days. Samsung makes some very good quality LCD's (they actually manufacture the panels for Sony) and their 32" models are quite reasonably priced.
I bought a PSP when it first came out ... and sold it back about three months later. At the time, there simply were no good games for it and I had zero interest in UMD movies. Since then it has built up a library of very nice games and you're right that it's a favorite for the modding / homebrew community. It also is supposed to have some interconnectivity with the PS3 for some games. Sony is going to be releasing a new version of the PSP later this month; my understanding is that the casing is a little smaller (although the screen size is the same), it will have 32MB more memory and better battery life. Best of all it will still sell for $169 for the core model. I may look into it again at that time although truthfully, I prefer to game on as big a screen as possible.
http://www.maxconsole.net/?mode=news&newsid=20429
ROFL
They couldn't even use proper capitalization...
"...It will set a new high water-mark, Although it won't look any better than Halo 2."
This really does speak for itself... Priceless!
They could learn a thing or two from Microsoft, who has largely avoided the name-calling and focused on getting great games and some solid peripherals out the door.