Sony patents method to emulate PS2 games on PS3 (Rumour)

Rumour has it that Sony are currently involved in a new patent to emulate PS2 games on the PS3. It is already possible to play your PS1 discs on the PS3, and as we all know, when the high overpriced 60GB model PS3 was first introduced on the market, it could play PS2 games. However, since then, Sony removed that feature and a few other features, a few USB ports et al taken out to cut the price of the current now 8oGB model (although they replaced it with a 40GB model initially). Confused? Yes!

Sony have it rumoured to have patented the emulation software as the PS3 contains the PS2 chip! Remember the bitchin Sony gave MS for 360 non Backwards compatibility forcing MS to make emulation software downloadable to play xbox 1 games on the 360? Well, now, Sony are coming back with a vengenance on the PS3 and backwards compatibility. Acccording to Kotaku:

A patent discovered by Siliconera, however, suggests that Sony might be re-thinking this stance. Filed in December 2008, it’s basically a patent for a method that would allow the PS3’s Cell chip to translate code from the PS2’s Emotion Engine. Not half-assed software emulation (which in previous PS3 models couldn’t run some games), full, total replication of the functionality of the Emotion Engine.

Which means, theoretically at least, you could play any PS2 game on any PS3, regardless of the model or year of release.

Whether this would allow you to play actual PS2 discs, or would just be the advance party for the sale of PS2 downloads on the PlayStation Store is unclear. We’d like the former, but with Sony being a business and all, would expect the latter.

Lets hope this move is due to Sony’s 10 year lifecycle theory of the PS2 ending next year and therefore dropping the PS2 form the market finally, and concentrating on the PS3 fully. It would make more sense as PS1 games aree already playable, and many PS2 games would be welcome to be played on the PS3 instead of digging out that PS2 to finish off that God Of War game or FFX game etc.

Warner Bros. Interactive Entertainment will be developing and publishing games based on The Lord of the Rings trilogy. The first Lord of the Rings game coming from Warner Bros. is The Lord of the Rings: Aragorn’s Quest. It’s a third-person adventure headed to the Wii, PS2, DS and PSP.

Details on Lord of the Rings: Aragorn’s Quest from Warner Bros. Interactive Entertainment :

“In The Lord of the Rings: Aragorn’s Quest, preparations are underway in Hobbiton for a great party to welcome Aragorn, King of Gondor, and honor Samwise Gamgee for his service during the War of the Ring. The children of the town are eager to learn more of this great man and so Samwise, now Mayor, embarks on a tale of the revered warrior, Strider—as Aragorn is known in his Ranger days—and his most valiant battles. Players assume the role of Aragorn and embark on his greatest quests from The Lord of the Rings trilogy as they wield his sword, bow or spear on foot and on horseback through an action-packed gameplay experience. On the Wii platform, two-player co-op gameplay featuring Gandalf will allow kids, families and friends to work together in the heart of the action.”

I have never played a LOTR game and honestly I don’t think I ever will. They look cool and like they could be a lot of fun this one included!

A Sony Pictures film based on the critically acclaimed PlayStation 2 game Shadow of the Colossus is in the works, Hollywood Reporter and Variety reported Tuesday.

One of the last games I played on my PS2 before I bought my 360 was this one. The graphics and story line were amazing.

Ben Fritz of Variety had this to say:

“I understand the folks working on the project are planning to have some of the characters who appear only momentarily in the game, such as those who try to track down and stop Wander, play bigger roles in the film. And despite the game’s somewhat “artsy” cred, they’re hoping Shadow will be a Lord of the Rings-style fantasy tentpole.”

I hope this movie actually comes out as I will pay to see it.

Good news Silent Hill fans we got a new game coming at us from Konami. The plot seems pretty typical as quoted below:

“Players follow Harry Mason, the maladroit protagonist who is searching for his missing daughter, Cheryl. While Harry wanders the snowy streets of Silent Hill searching for clues of her disappearance, he must face twisted creatures from the depths of his frozen nightmares.”

Ahhh but why it seems so familiar is that it is just a remake of the original. It is slated for release but there is no date as of yet.

Well it looks like there was a price cut but not on the console I was looking for. Good news for the rest of you though. Sony announced today a price cut on the PS2. It was selling for $129.00 MSRP and now it’s had a price cut of $30. That’s the lowest price the PS2 has sold for since it’s launch.

I give to you a short statement from From John Koller, Director of Hardware Marketing for SCEA:

“In the gaming industry, the typical lifecycle for a console is around five years, but because we build each of our platforms for a large and diverse consumer base, we design our platforms differently. With the original PlayStation and now PlayStation 2, we’ve proven that consumers can rely on our platforms for their gaming and entertainment needs for at least a decade. This speaks to the technology and features that were packed into PlayStation 2 from the beginning, as well as to the ongoing support the platform enjoys from the publishing and retail communities and, well, all of you fans.”

Is it just me or are they hyping the PS2 so that people will say well why not get a PS3, we only spent $99 on this? What are your thoughts?

Update: SCEE’s just confirmed that the UK will not see a PS2 price cut, despite the fact the machine has just dropped to $99 in the US.

PS2 will now cost €99 in Europe, SCEE said today.

“The price of PS2 is not being reduced in the UK,” said a rep.

“For the rest of Europe it has been dropped to €99.”

A new article has been released in T3 Magazine that reveals how Sony feels about the Playstation 3 and how it will compare with the Playstation 2 in the long run.

After Sony stated  afew weeks ago that the Xbox doesn’t have ‘longevity’, they are going to do their upmost to make sure their latest console is a success and will be around for the next eight years.  According to this new article, Sony predict that within the next decade or so, the PS3 will be more successful than the PS2 and with comments like these, it sounds to me like a PS4 isn’t on the cards yet. 

PC gaming giant Crytek recently joined the many developers predicting the launch of the next console in “2011, or 2012.”

So who will be first to release the next console?  Or is it still early days?

Playstation sales have dropped 32% according to mcvuk.  Sales for PSP, PS2 and PS3 declined in the last quarter of 2008 with PS2 taking the sharpest downfall.  PS3 software sales did increase, but the same cannot be said for the PS2 and PSP.

Sony have predicted that they will suffer a loss for it’s fiscal year ending March 31st 2009.

SHADOW OF THE COLOSSUS is one of those rare games which you’ll either love or hate.

Though it was considered to be a prequel to PS2’s I.C.O.

the connections between the two games are undeniable.

IGN says
Developed by Sony Computer Entertainment’s team behind the critically acclaimed ICO. Players take the role of a young man seeking the truth of an ancient tale of power hidden in a mystical land. Shadow of the Colossus is a majestic journey through ancient lands to seek out and destroy gigantic mythical beasts. With a trusty horse at your side, players explore the spacious lands and unearth each towering Colossus creature. The uneasy task of defeating a Colossus relies on intelligent puzzle solving and action oriented gameplay. Armed with strong wits, a mystical sword and a sturdy bow, players use cunning and strategy to topple each behemoth.

GRAPHICS: 8/10
They’re pretty good. The “draw” rate (how far you can see in the distance) is incredible. You can be on a tall hill or the side of a cliff

and you’ll see for miles and miles!

Though the terrain is fairly “flat land” for the most part, there are parts of the land which you can ride off with your horse and “HEEEE HAAAWWWW” (though if you jump off a ledge which is too high, you fall off your horse)

The graphics are identical (possibly a PINCH better) than I.C.O.

They are realistic and “authentic”. Where anything you see, you can pretty much get to (almost).
SOUND: 8.5/10
The “sound track” would be very limited. There isn’t really any music when you’re traveling around with your horse

There is some themed music while you fight a colossus, or for specific parts of the game (in game movie).

All the sounds are very authentic! On a loud system, it’s VERY exciting!

As you fight the colossus or just appreciate the environment, it’s a true marvel!

GAME PLAY: 7.5/10
It CAN be a little tricky to get the buttons down. But once you get going, it’s SUPER easy and fun! Lots of “Prince of Persia” type stuff. Climbing stuff, jumping off things, grabbing ledges etc.

You are given a magic sword which you can activate beams of light like a compass leading you to your next mission.

It may seem like the game is “holding your hand” throughout…but it’s not!

The light will point at a mountain, which seems there is no way in, all around…until you find a cave in the middle or no where which somehow takes you through a few twists and turns to your goal.

There are a VARIETY of Colussi! There are small ones the size of a car. Long ones the length of several residential blocks. HUGE ones, the size of large houses, or tall buildings.

Some of them seem threatened by you and try everything to obliterate you, while others don’t seem to care much for you at all. While others only care if you get close or APPEAR as a threat. But they must all die!

Plenty of bonus “mini games”. There is a normal mode and hard mode. After you kill a Colossi, you can fight it again in a “time trial”. For every two (2) time trials you win (beat the Colossi within a seemingly impossible time frame) you will be rewarded with special items/weapons etc. Some of these items are viciously challenging to get, while others are not so hard.

STORY: 9/10
It is ‘unspokenly’ the prequel of I.C.O.

A good teaser of the story is brought to us by IGN up there ^

It is presented well, set up well, and constantly leaves you wondering!

They don’t answer all of your questions, like some games do, which leaves you wanting more, but at the same time knowing just enough.

ENDING: 8/10
Without spoiling it, the ending is “you love it” or “you hate it”.

It REALLY leaves things to contemplation. If you know anything about I.C.O. you understand the ending a little better. But it still leaves you hanging and wanting to know more.

But you also have a brilliant satisfaction for taking out all the Colossi.

RE-PLAYABILITY: 9/10
Absolutely!!!!

I couldn’t put this one down for weeks when I first got it. I still re-visit it from time to time to take another one out.

One of the best Ps2 games out there, in my opinion.

IGN says:
Fight to the death in six styles of battles: Survival, Battle Royal, Duel, Team Battle, Hunting and Mock Battle; buy and sell a broad array of weapons, shield, helmets, and body armor; throw and pick up items. In combat, everything becomes a weapon; dodge, parry, attack, then execute your opponent, but never surrender. Caesar and the crowds will judge your actions; master brutal fighting techniques and prepare for combat at the gladiator training ground; 2-player Duels in Arena mode. Choose the Colosseum as the battle site for 2-player co-op and Duels.

STORY: 7/10
Similarly based off the Movie You start off owned by a dude who forces you to fight in a small “nobody” ring to fight for your life (the game uses this to “train” you and get used to the controls.

You’re then bought by a rich guy for $1,000,000 who says he will give you your freedom if you can pay him the money back.

Nothing “original” but sets a decent stage to fight.

GAME PLAY: 8/10
It starts off kinda easy…but can get very challenging very fast…depending on your fight choices (if you choose to do hard battles or easy battles…
You start off as a ‘no body’ with crappy weapons and equipment. You get better equipment by taking out your opponents and “take” their weapons as they fall in battle

You get points by defending (either by quick actions of a “dodging” button or blocking with your sword…takes FAST reflexes!). The better you fight, the better you defend, you get the crowd excited and you raise a “power bar” which you can activate to make everything slow motion and do WAY more damage on your opponents for a temporary time.

The better you fight and defend, the more points you get, the more “money” you earn (to put toward your $1,000,000 debt + make your own profit to buy equipment)

As you continue to fight well, you get promotions from the guy who bought you and (like grand theft auto 3) you get “better rooms” and treated better by the guards etc.

SOUND: 8/10
EXCELLENT sounds + sound effects: The effects of battle, of the crowd, music sound track…
EXCELLENT voice acting
Sounds great on sorround sound!

GRAPHICS: 8.5/10
There is a breath taking intro movie!!!
Graphics during game play pretty much always stay the same, but they are REALLY well done!

CONTROLS: 8/10
They can be a little challenging to get used to. There’s a specific button to “dodge” an attack. If you’re careful and wait for the enemy to take a swipe, you can dodge it. If you can press the attack button at the exact same time as you dodge, you can block with your weapon, and potentially knock their weapon out of their hands (the crowd loves that stuff).
You can throw your weapons, you can JUMP attack, roll attack, nearly hit multiple enemies at once.

If you’re sorrounded you can time your attacks well to smack each opponent one at a time. the crowd goes bonkers when you take on multiple enemies. If you can get good at it, you’ll get a GREAT SCORE and quick power ups!

There are combo moves you can get and master which really help your score and the crowd feedback. These combo’s are dropped in battle my your opponents.

ENDING: –
Truth be told…I haven’t finished it yet.

You have a limited number of days in the game to gain the $1,000,000 and pay back the debt (I think it’s 50 days). IF you don’t pay it back…you are put into a match against a MASSIVE number of opponents. I’ve tried it a couple times, but didn’t quite make it (that was a while ago)

there’s a nother possible ending scenario. The story line has you set up to accomplish a MAJOR task (not gonna spoil what it is). Once you do it, suddenly you are volunteered by the ones who set you on this task to face a mega powerful guy to win your way free. I tried and tried and tried that battle a LOT (on my first time through the game) but I couldn’t quite do it.

the second time through the game I did a few things differently, got much better weapons and stuff…but I’m still on my way to finishing it.

Even though it’s been months since I’ve played it…it’s an EXTREMELY fun, and can be quite violent (blood and stuff). High action and satisfying!

Over at JJ Games they’ve posted up the pictures below of video gaming pumpkins/Jack-o-Lanterns and just in time for Halloween!

There are some crazy pumpkin designs here and I still have my pumpkin to carve so I’m getting some good ideas too:

8 Bit Mario

Read More