Just received word in my inbox that something special is coming down the pipeline from Sony this month.  Not one but two firmware updates are on the way. and both offer some new features that I’m genuinely pretty excited about.

PS3 firmware 2.50 will feature the oft-rumored screen capture ability, support for the new PlayStation Bluetooth Headset, and enhancements to the Trophy system.  A few smaller features round things out — but the biggest draw of 2.5?  There’s going to be a power save mode for both console and controller.  Now if my system is unattended for a pre-determined length of time, it’s going to boot down.  I don’t mind so much if the console is on when I’m not there (Life With PlayStation still include Folding@Home, and I’m a sucker for curing cancer), but my damned wiener kids always turn the controllers on, and I’m left with zero battery whenever I want to fire up some PixelJunk/Wipeout/Buzz goodness.

PSP firmware 5.00 will include an on-screen QWERTY keyboard and provide fullscreen TV-out support for PSOne games.

You’ve only read the highlights.  Hit the jump for the full presser;

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Jim S Squires, esq here. Myself and Ted Ryan Newsome Hewson had a most excellent adventure yesterday. No, we didn’t get to travel back in time and help stop Hitler. Even better — we went to the future (which was conveniently located in downtown Toronto). What did we see? What did we play? Put on your safety helmets and shin guards, kids. You’re in for some lengthy exposition on this biggest PlayStation games to come out during the upcoming holiday season!

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I’m a bit of a trivia nerd at heart. Anyone who’s listened to our recent Jeopardy bitcast and giveaway should know that. After all, a man doesn’t write 60 gaming question and fake a Trebek voice for an hour because he’s a fan of the Wheel, you know. That’s why it should come as no surprise that one of my most eagerly anticipated releases this fall was Sony’s first PS3 foray for the Buzz! franchise.

We should probably preface this review by making it clear that this is my first experience with Buzz. I have yet to dabble with any of the PS2 releases that appeared stateside last year (though our own Kevin has had some experience with them) , so my own excitement was based purely on what I’d seen of it, the promise of MyBuzz, and the good words spoken by others in the past. So did Buzz Quiz TV tickle my trivia bone? Continue Reading »

WipEout HD is one of those rare titles that people were either frothing at the mouth for or disinterested to the point of comatose about. The series has it’s die hard fans, and to those on the outside it just seems like a confusing hardcore mess.

Our staff represented this dichotomy quite well. Ryan and Dan were both series veterans. As a matter of fact, those following the site know that there’s no title Ryan has posted about more than WipEout HD. His anticipation was frighteningly palpable. Dan too was looking forward to picking it up. But Jim? He may of dabbled in the past, but in all honesty couldn’t have cared less about WipEout HD’s impending release.

So now that it’s here, what did all three (lovers and naysayers alike) think about it?

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Most people, when asked what they’d do if their opportunities were limitless, would have some pretty noble goals. Some would want to end world hunger. Some would want to be astronauts. Me? I’d want to be in the LittleBigPlanet beta. Now I am. My impressions after the jump.

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Marvel really knows how to tickle my fangasm bone.  I’m a die hard fan of the Punisher.  Hell — I’ve even gone so far as to defend the 80’s film adaptation on this very blog.  And yet video games and comic books have a spotty track record at best.  For every gem like Ultimate Alliance and Freedom Force there are a dozen Marvel Nemesis’ out there.  Even The Punisher has had more than a few games before, most of which were stinkers.  So what are the chances that this one might be worth a look?

It’s tough to say.  On the one hand it’s a PSN exclusive.  It might not sound like a big deal, but Sony has been notoriously tough on the quality of downloadable games.  For them to shell out the dough to make this an exclusive suggests that there is something here worth a glance.  On the other hand the film Punisher War Zone comes out on December 5th.  For this to get an announce in September and a release date of 2008 suggests that this is likely a quick cash grab to go with the release of the movie.  And if it is a cash grab, does the decision to develop a smaller title for digital distribution instead of a full-fledged retail game mean that reduced development cost and time could still eek out a winner?

It’s being pitched as an arena-based first person shooter with a complete single player experience tacked on.  Honestly, I don’t know how I feel about the choice of genre.  Here’s hoping the Punisher: No Mercy screenshots released tomorrow give us something to start looking forward to.

Not having ever really been on the LEGO gaming train, most of what LEGO Batman has to offer has flown under my radar.  Maybe that’s why I was so surprised last night when I was unloading a shipment at work and saw “Remote Play” mentioned right on the back of the box.

For those of you unawares, remote play is a PS3-exclusive feature that allows some games to be streamed to your PSP from your PS3 from any wifi location.  To the best of my recollection, it’s a feature that’s only been available for PS1 games and the occasional PSN download thus far.  As for full retail I think this might be the first title to support it.  If I’m wrong on this, please correct me.

So what does this mean to you the consumer?  While the PS3 version may not support trophies it’s essentially shipping with a free PSP version.  Given the nature of remote play, it’s also pretty likely that the game you take on the road with you will be running from the same save that you’re playing at home.

No word yet on how it actually stacks up against the real PSP version, though we can assume it’s probably a tad choppier by comparison.  Either way, if you’re on the fence about picking it up for the 360 or the PS3, this info should prove essential to your purchasing decision.