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Talking Heads: Social Gaming- Is the PS3 Disconnected?

In what I hope to be the first of many different formats and collaberations on this blog, I talk to fellow gamer Rockers Delight about social gaming and how the PS3 compares against the Xbox 360 in this regard.  In the following transcript Los Havros will be denoted with LH and Rockers Delight with RD.

LH: Thanks for taking time out to have a chat!  We’re going to be talking about the PS3 and its lack of social connectivity.  I have to admit, I’m a bit confused here.  I couldn’t help but notice some of your recent tweets noting that for you the PS3 user experience feels a bit ‘disconnected’, ‘unsociable’… your ‘loner console’.

I find this area of debate fascinating, but could you expand on what you mean.  Is it simply a lack of cross-game chat, or is it more?

RD: Hey, Los Havros! You are indeed right, more than once I’ve referred to the PlayStation 3 as my ‘loner console’, most recently spurred by a 360 gamer switching to PS3 and Tweeting the same thing.

Let me point out, though, that despite my feelings of solitary with my PS3, all my real life friends are in fact PS3 gamers, not 360. So, despite being new to the console, I do actually have a decent-sized friends list.

It’s difficult to know where to start, and to also refrain from sharing all my thoughts on this at once. To sum up how social a console the 360 can be, it feels like you’re missing a leg if not connected to Xbox Live. PS3, on the other hand, wouldn’t make much difference to me if I was playing online or offline.

The fact the PlayStation 3 is sold without any device for communicating is a good starting point. It shows that connectivity between gamers isn’t a priority for Sony, unlike Microsoft who box every console with a basic headset.

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Hands-on with Zuma for the PlayStation Network

Zuma is another one of Pop Cap Games’ classics that has made its way on to the PlayStation Store.  In  contrast with Bejeweled 2, I haven’t had previous gaming experience with this strange new animal.  So much so in fact, I discover that this game isn’t new at all, its a few years old, which figures.

The gameplay however, is what I’d like to describe as ‘hardcore classic’.  It’s one of those games where the controls and the gameplay are just so ‘spot on’ that all that’s stopping your progression or high scores is your gaming ability.  This allows for some serious hardcore gaming sessions, the likes of which I don’t think I’ll be able to muster!  Why?  Read on…

The concept of Zuma (like many classic games) is simple.  There are different colured balls following a winding track that eventually leads to a skull where upon arrival at the skull: it’s game over.  Standing between you and almost certain doom is a friendly little frog (which I guess is either Aztec or Mayan in origin, hence the name ‘Zuma’ but that’s not particularly important when considering the merits of the game) which you can spin in any direction, firing out the same coloured balls from it’s mouth.  Match 3 or more of the same coloured balls in a row, and the snaking coloured balls that you matched will disappear whilst the remaining balls making their way to the skull will be pulled backwards to close the gap, giving you precious extra time.

Continue reading Hands-on with Zuma for the PlayStation Network

Committing Grand Theft Auto

I would like to announce with much fanfare that I have finally fired up my copy of Grand Theft Auto IV and I’m aiming to play right through it.  For me, that is quite an achievement.  The game has just been sitting there, gathering dust for over a year at my current estimate.  Partly I think it’s been due to lack of free time, and otherwise it’s been total apathy towards the game.

Apathy, you say?  Well, yes.  Back on the PS2 the Grand Theft Auto series was genuinely ground breaking and it offered something new.  On the next generation systems, despite great visuals, more detailed environments and gameplay enhancements, I’ve felt it’s been a case of peddling out more of the same.  Besides, during the launch of GTA IV in 2008, I got hooked on Race Driver: GRID anyway, which is a totally awesome racing game.  One in fact, that I need to revisit as all my gamesaves got wiped in the ‘Great PS3 Christmas Tragedy of 2008’ that I’ll continue to mention for a good while yet as it still hurts.

Back to discussing a bit of GTA IV- from what I’ve played so far, it mostly feels exactly the same as previous instalments.  The only thing that got my attention was the explosion of a car bomb, which looked so shocking and real.  A definite improvement from past instalments in the series.  Yet I’ve felt the apathy creep in again.  Although you play as an Eastern European with a conscience, you still end up going on a rampage like in previous games in the series, so I’m skipping through the cut scenes as I just don’t care.  A bonus in doing this is I figure I can go for the ‘Liberty City Minute’ Trophy where I’ve got to complete the main story in less than 30 hours.  Sorted.

Pausing to reflect for a moment: If there has been one downside to playing GTA IV and Prince of Persia, then it has been leaving Lara Croft on her own in some cave somewhere, waiting for me to guide her on her way…

Some thoughts on Prince of Persia

I have waited till I completed the game in full before offering up some final thoughts on Prince of Persia, and I’m glad I did, as I can now visualise the game as a whole and in the right perspective.  I think the easiest way to go about it, is to direct you to GameSpot’s review and take it from there.

Elika
Elika

I’ll agree with GameSpot in that Prince of Persia looks and sounds fantastic.  In certain places, it really is spectacular- drawing you in to the universe depicted in the game.  Yet my opinion differs when turning my attention to the level design.  The mechanics of the level design are technically sound in that the environments are visually interesting and quite exhilarating to navigate through.  Yet as I was progressing through Prince of Persia I had a nagging feeling in the back of my mind that yes, this was just a game, and it felt like one too.  In many respects, it’s all down to the level design for me.

Continue reading Some thoughts on Prince of Persia

Good things come in twos

There’s been a couple of games that I’ve been really excited about for a long time now that are currently on the horizon, and will be with us later this year: Assassin’s Creed 2 and Uncharted 2: Among Thieves.  With E3, we’ve all been deluged with plenty of information about both games.  Here’s a round-up of what I’ve been reading and found to be most interesting:

Assassin’s Creed 2

Uncharted 2: Among Thieves

For all new PS3 owners

Updated 27th June 2009

Want inspiration for what to do initially as a new PS3 owner?  Step right this way… I’ve jotted some points down covering various areas that might be of use, and tips that I’ve found helpful to get up and running quickly, but also to provide the most enjoyment:

  • The first switch-on– immediately get connected to the internet either by a wired or wireless connection.  You might need a system update for a start, and it’s pretty much essential for updating your games with the latest patches/improvements.  (See http://ps3explained.com/ if you want clear and detailed guidance.)
  • Sign up to the PlayStation Network (it’s free!) and get yourself a PlayStation Network ID, which will give you access to the PlayStation Store, the ability to start collecting Trophies, PlayStation Home and most crucially perhaps, the ability to play against other people online.
  • Try a great game– Now is the time to try a great game that will show off what the PS3 is all about: personally, I’d recommend Uncharted: Drake’s Fortune, LittleBigPlanet, and Metal Gear Solid 4, to name but a few.  Visuals like you’ve never seen before.  At least rent one of these titles!  If you’d like a wider selection to choose from, and you’re in a bit of a hurry, you can’t go far wrong with No Fuss Reviews.
  • Stay in the loop– If you want the inside scoop straight from the horse’s mouth, than you can do no better than paying PlayStation.Blog.US and PlayStation.Blog.Europe a visit.  For regular news, there’s Joystiq and TheSixthAxis.  Or for a more personal take on everything there’s always good old reliable Los Havros.  Ahem.
  • Go beyond– The beauty about gaming on the PS3 is that the experience is as deep and rich as you want it to be: sample free demos or purchase extra content on the PlayStation Store, mix and mingle with people in PlayStation Home, go it alone in-game, or go out and play on the PlayStation Network.  For those feeling a bit philanthropic, then do some good with your PS3 and number-crunch protein folding for Folding@Home that is contained within Life With PlayStation.
My top tip: Want to chat to other gamers online, but don’t have a PlayStation headset?  If you have a bluetooth headset for your mobile phone lying around, charge it up and sync it with your PS3.  Sorted!

Hands-on with Bejeweled 2 for the PlayStation Network

I was given the wonderful opportunity to try out Bejeweled 2 , which has been ported to the PS3 and has been available on the PlayStation Network for just a couple of weeks now, joining the Xbox 360 version on the Xbox Live Arcade.  What am I doing looking at a relatively small PlayStation Network title?  Well, if you know where to look on the PlayStation Store, you can find a few gems.  Ahem.

The real reason I couldn’t pass on trying this game is that I am a total Bejeweled addict.  I’ve played the flash version on my PC, I’ve got it on my iPod Nano, my iPod touch, and now, the PS3.  This actually gives me a unique perspective from which to look at some finer details in the game.

Continue reading Hands-on with Bejeweled 2 for the PlayStation Network

Gaming on the rise

With recent talk of gaming slumps reverberating across the blogosphere, I read them and can totally relate, having to effectively abstain from any meaningful amount of gaming for the past few months and feeling my self-worth as a gamer shrivel.

So I tried to rack my brains for the antonym of ‘slump’ and the best I could come up with, with the help good-old Google, was ‘rise’.  To me this conjures up images of well, rising: a return, upping the ante, stepping up to the plate etc.  I think you get what I’m trying to say!  I trully believe that this summer I will in fact be stepping up to the plate, and seeing what I’m made of, gaming wise.  After an abence of months from the gaming world, my appetitie for gaming has not diminished, but altogether increased, becoming positively insatiable.

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PlayStation Home: The next chapter?

Welcome to the final article in my series on PlayStation Home.  Over the past couple of weeks I’ve looked at different aspects of Home, but I’ve dodged answering what exactly Home is, and where it might be heading.

People have been complaining that PlayStation Home simply lacks things to do, content etc.  And we’re all told that to attract consumers, ‘content is king’.  So where is it?  Well, in the article ‘Sony: Home is the “perfect storm” for publishers‘ by gamesindustry.biz, Sony describe Home as a platform upon which third parties can engage directly with PlayStation gamers with their own content.
Continue reading PlayStation Home: The next chapter?

PlayStation Home: We’re all going to Xi

As the penultimate article in my series on PlayStation Home, we now delve into the mysteries of Xi which pushes the limits of what you’d think possible from a virtual world merely for socialising.

What gets me most about Xi, is the sheer genius of it all.  PlayStation Home as a cohesive online world has the potential to have lots of secrets, some of  which Xi is exploiting fully, creating it’s own mythology around Home which I find very compelling.  The first glimpse of Xi you’ll see will be through a secret Home area called the Hub.  It’s worth reading what Joystiq has to say both about Xi in general and about the Hub in its article, ‘Xi infiltrates Home- and it’s kind of neat‘.  My own thoughts echo Joystiq’s: why aren’t other Home spaces this cool?  Quickly followed by the demand: let’s have more of this!

Continue reading PlayStation Home: We’re all going to Xi