Cut-price PS3 in the UK?

If you are preparing to hand over your hard-earned (more than) disposable income in the run-up to Christmas, and you fancy a big black shiny dust magnet of a PS3 for your gaming needs, then please watch the press in the coming days/weeks as rumours are rife (online, and in various gaming magazines), that Sony are planning to launch a “cut-price” 40Gb model of their ‘next-gen’ console to steal some of the attention away from Microsoft’s release of “Halo 3″.

Various sources (some at Sony) have unofficially quoted a street price of £299 for the unit, but it is likely to be without a few of the features found on the bigger brother, 60Gb, model; namely, it will not be backwardly-compatible (with PlayStation [One] & PS2 titles), and the USB ports will not be available.

Such a move would be in keeping with comments made by David Reeves, Sony Computer Entertainment Europe CEO/President, in June this year, when discussing the need for an 80Gb console in a market (like Korea) where there is a very high broadband penetration leading to increased desires to download content onto the hard drive of a console. At the time he said, “…at the moment we don’t see a requirement for launching this version in Europe. Certainly not in the foreseeable future“, and furthermore added, “...I can confirm that it’s highly unlikely that the 20Gb version will be launch in PAL territories“.

It does seem a strange approach to reduce functionality and/or remove the ability to charge the SIXAXIS wireless controllers on-board or add external devices, but whatever the soon-to-be-released console will offer, it shows that Sony is either bowing to consumer pressure on pricing, or is scared that Microsoft will dominate Christmas sales (again) this year.

However, perhaps this is just a strategy to phase-out the 60Gb console once the current stocks have run dry, and then release a larger capacity (80Gb, or even 120Gb) model at the same price (£425), whilst offering a cheaper alternative to directly compete with the Xbox 360?

Or, will Nintendo’s latest console, Wiin overall?

What do you think?

BFN,

fp.

(1upGamers.com Forums Moderator)

The US & the UK… what’s in Store?

Hi,

Last night (well, early this morning), I created a new user (main account) on my UK PS3, and went through the registration process as a US owner, so I now have access to both the UK & US PLAYSTATION Store content.

When I finally got to the US Store, I found a wealth of Playable Demo (free) downloads that the UK has yet to be offered:

These are just the first batch I left downloading when I left my house this morning…

Skate Demo
Stuntman: Ignition Demo (Playable Demo)
SEGA Rally Revo™ Demo (Playable Demo)
PixelJunk™ Racers Demo (Playable Demo)
Tony Hawk’s Proving Ground Demo (Playable Demo)
Dynasty Warriors: GUNDAM Demo (Playable Demo)
Def Jam: Icon™ Demo (Playable Demo)
Full Auto™ 2: Battlelines Demo (Playable Demo)
Super Puzzle Fighter II Turbo HD Remix Demo
NASCAR® 08 Demo (Playable Demo)
Stranglehold Demo (Playable Demo)

Subject to remaining space on my PS3’s hard drive; when I return this evening, I will be attempting to download the rest, namely:

NBA 08 Demo (Playable Demo)
NHL® 08 Demo (Playable Demo)
Tiger Woods PGA Tour® 2008 Demo
All-Pro Football 2K8 Demo
NCAA® Football 08 Demo
Major League Baseball 2K7 Demo
NBA 07 Demo (Playable Demo)

The US Store was also offering more in-game Add-ons, for example, the “Playable New Goblin” character for the “Spider-man 3: The Movie” title (that we, in the UK, had to buy as an exclusive title in our GAME stores), and extra content for “Sonic The Hedgehog”, as well as more vehicles for “MotorStorm” than the UK Store.

More trailers for upcoming movies, more clips of Blu-ray movie content, and more videos of future UK game titles (such as “Ratchet & Clank Future: Tools of Destruction” due for release in the UK on 7 November 2007).

(Note to self here: Must remember to download the trailer for “Bee Movie”).

No wonder people complain about what (or, rather, not) the lacklustre UK Store has to offer.

If you are “over the pond”, I’m not even sure it is worth doing the same as I did but in reverse, by creating a UK main account on your US console, as I do not think there is any content we have that you do not.

*And* there are rumours surfacing that the US are to see a new entry-level PS3 with a 40Gb hard drive (to replace the now discontinued 20Gb model).

The only good news for the UK this week seems to be that in HMV (and probably many other good stores in the near future), GBP 424.99 now buys you a PS3 60Gb console, two SIXAXIS controllers, “MotorStorm”, “Resistance: Fall Of Man”, and now also “Heavenly Sword”.

If only I could read Japanese… so I could check out what the Japanese PLAYSTATION Store has available.

Job for the weekend, me-thinks.

Oh, and before I forget, “MotorStorm 2″ (working title) is going to be developed now that Sony Computer Entertainment Worldwide Studios has brought developer Evolution Studios, and its subsidiary, Bigbig Studio, in-house. Expect a release of this title in 2008.

And talking of 2008, that is also when the US & the UK will see the “DUALSHOCK 3” controller; the SIXAXIS with Rumble (of “force feedback”, if you prefer). The Japanese market will probably see a release of this accessory in November this year, but the other regions will be waiting for it until spring of next year.

To whet your appetite, here is the current list of PS3 titles that have been confirmed to be compatible with the “DUALSHOCK 3” (in North America & Europe) as of 20 September 2007:

• The Darkness
• Enemy Territory: Quake Wars
• Soldier of Fortune
• BIOHAZARD(R) 5
• Devil May Cry(R) 4
• N-Cube
• Warbit
• Dark Sector
• Turok
• Highlander
• Kane & Lynch: Dead Men
• Burnout Paradise
• FIFA franchise (title name TBD)
• Legendary: The Box
• To End All Wars
• RAGE
• WarDevil - Unleash the Beast Within
• Dynasty Warriors 6
• Fatal Inertia
• METAL GEAR SOLID 4 GUNS OF THE PATRIOTS
• Blacksite: Area 51
• TNA Wrestling
• Unreal Tournament 3
• Wheelman
• Cops (codename, title name TBD)
• Planet One (codename, title name TBD)
• Heroes over Europe
• Condemned 2
• Iron Man
• The Club
• The Crucible
• The Incredible Hulk
• Blast Factor (*1)
• echochrome
• Elefunk
• Folklore (*1)
• FORMULA ONE CHAMPIONSHIP EDITION (*1)
• Go! Sports Ski (*1)
• Heavenly Sword (*1)
• High Velocity Bowling
• MLB 08: The Show
• MotorStorm (*1)
• NBA 08 (*1)
• PAIN
• Rat Race
• Ratchet & Clank Future: Tools of Destruction
• Resistance: Fall of Man (*1)
• Snakeball
• SOCOM: Confrontation
• Super Stardust HD (*1)
• TOY HOME
• Uncharted: Drake’s Fortune
• Warhawk (*1)
• WipEout HD
• GripShift(R)
• NBA 2K8
• Destroy All Humans 3
• Stuntman Ignition
• Assassin’s Creed
• BEOWULF
• HAZE
• Tom Clancy’s Ghost Recon Advanced Warfighter 2 (*1)
• Tom Clancy’s Rainbow Six Vegas (*1)
• Prototype
• The Chronicles of Riddick: Assault on Dark Athena

(*1) Users will be able to enjoy the rumble feature through software update.
(*2) Actual titles to be released may vary among countries and regions.

Finally, although I still have sealed DVDs stacked-up from last Christmas, Sony are going to be pushing the PS3 as a Blu-ray movie machine in the run-up to this year’s festive season, so expect to see many more movie releases in the next few months. I just wish they have checked with me first! Some people…

BFN,

fp.

(1upGamers.com Forums Moderator)