New Sony PS3 Slim Photos Leaked?

With the Sony PS3 price cut looming around, these rumored photo leaks of the new PS3 slim could make sense. Although the company still denies the Slim’s existence, but it looks like an assembly worker may have risked life and limb to put the truth in the hands of the people. And while these photos are certainly hard to authenticate, it's still hard to ignore that we may be looking at the first images of Sony’s upcoming PS3 Slim. The PS3 logo looks new and beside that, it oddly looks cheap. That leads us connect Sony's desire to cut the PS3's price and be able to compete head-on with cheaper Wii and Xbox 360. Barely no valuable information is available at this point, so we're not expecting any sort of confirmation from Sony and will get by with these photos until any official release is made.

Xbox 360's Innovative Full-body Motion Controlled Gaming

Hot off Sony's rumored motion-sensing PS3 add on, here's another wild one for Microsoft Xbox 360. A tip from someone who allegedly got insider info that Microsoft's at it again to beat the Wii at its own motion-sensing game, which included some of the details from what we were hearing last year. The word is that Microsoft is building a "sensor bar" of sorts, but instead of detecting the waggles of Wiimote-like controllers, it detects full body movement and sound, without any Wii-like controllers. There are two sensors on the bar, along with a mic and a camera, and while nobody knows how it actually works, it sounds pretty impressive. Here's a quick rundown of capabilities mentioned:

* Full body and hand gesture control of games / characters.
* In fighting games you kick, punch, duck, dive, jump and so forth with your body.
* It also picks up small hand gestures like pinching, grabbing and scrolling.
* There will also be video conferencing and games with video.
* Trivia game over the internet with live images of each person playing. When a question pops up, they can clap to buzz in.
* You can "move objects on your screen" and the other party can see what you're doing in real time.
* Sensor detects only the person playing, not folks observing on the couch.



Everything about these new innovations could very well be a tremendous leap where motion-controlled home gaming is concerned and from the sound of it, it could definitely eclipse Sony’s solution which sounds more like catch up than anything else. In both cases however, motion control will definitely be a nice value-add for PS3 and Xbox 360 owners. We just hope Sony and Microsoft aren’t viewing these solutions as game changers — especially where sales are concerned. Sure, the Wiimote might not be unique anymore once these new products hit the market but its just one piece of the equation as far as Wii appeal goes. Of course, this could be real or just another elaborated hoax. But either way, it's only natural for Microsoft to be looking to duplicate -- and expand upon -- the wild success Nintendo has enjoyed with motion-controlled gaming.

Sony PS2 Price Officially Down to $99.99

It's now official, Sony Japan announced that the PS2 will be sold at ONLY US$99 Starting today. The price cut could sustain the life of the PS2, which has sold more than 136 million units since its debut in 2000, making it the world's popular gaming system, Sony said on Tuesday.

Many are hoping about the rumored PS3 price cut but it was officially denied by Sony. Sony added that they will instead add more value to the PS3 to make it more competitive against rival consoles.

Sony dominated the global video game industry for a decade starting in the mid-1990s, but sales of the PS3 have lagged behind those of Nintendo Co Ltd's Wii console and Microsoft Corp's Xbox 360.

So here's to everyone who's enjoyed PS2 over the years and to those who will now be new owners of these cheaper PS2 units and joining the PlayStation family, welcome!



Press Release:

PLAYSTATION®2, THE WORLD’S MOST POPULAR COMPUTER ENTERTAINMENT SYSTEM, NOW MORE AFFORDABLE THAN EVER AT $99.99
Sony Computer Entertainment America and Its Publishing Partners to Expand Gaming Library to Nearly 1,900 Titles This Year

FOSTER CITY, Calif. March 31, 2009 - Sony Computer Entertainment America (SCEA) today announced that PlayStation®2 computer entertainment system will be available starting April 1 for $99.99 (MSRP). Since launching in 2000, PlayStation 2 has sold more than 136 million sell-in units worldwide*, making it the most popular system in gaming industry history. PlayStation 2’s vast library of games from all genres for all types of audiences will grow to nearly 1,900 titles this year. This breadth and depth of content along with the new price point make the platform a stronger value than ever, particularly for families, casual gamers, and those seeking to maximize their entertainment dollar.

“PlayStation 2 set the industry standard for worldwide mass market adoption and is a clear embodiment of our commitment to platforms that deliver 10-year product lifecycles. It's a tribute to outstanding technology, great consumer value and unprecedented development support that we've now been able to do twice what no one else has ever accomplished,” said Jack Tretton, president and CEO, SCEA. “Demand for PlayStation 2 remains strong throughout the world, and the new $99 price point will bring in new consumers who will discover how PlayStation platforms are an outstanding choice for their gaming and home entertainment needs. Just as PlayStation 2 is delivering on a 10-year lifecycle and helped expand and solidify the DVD format for home entertainment along the way, we believe PLAYSTATION®3 offers the same promise by helping secure the Blu-ray format and delivering unprecedented value as the total home entertainment solution for the next decade.”

SCEA will continue to support PlayStation 2 system with new titles that appeal to families and casual gamers looking for social entertainment experiences. First-party games such as MLB® 09 THE Show™ and MotorStorm®: Arctic Edge as well as major franchise titles from SCEA’s publishing partners demonstrate the continued growth of the platform’s library of content. In addition, more than 250 best-selling PlayStation 2 titles have achieved “Greatest Hits” status, providing consumers with plenty of games to choose from at value pricing.

PlayStation 2’s impact on the industry is unmatched, as the platform played a key role in establishing the popularity of the most recognized and beloved franchises in history, including Guitar Hero® from Activision, Metal Gear Solid® from Konami Digital Entertainment, FINAL FANTASY® from Square Enix, Grand Theft Auto™ from Rockstar Games, as well as Gran Turismo™ by Polyphony Digital Inc. and Sony Computer Entertainment Worldwide Studios titles, including God of War® and Ratchet & Clank®. In recent years, this stellar lineup has expanded to include an extensive list of social games and family-friendly titles such as Buzz! ™ and SingStar®, which have helped usher in new types of consumers into the world of gaming.

During its lifespan, PlayStation 2 system not only has pushed video gaming to the forefront of entertainment, but it also introduced the concept of an entertainment system becoming a hub in the living room. PlayStation 2 was the first home computer entertainment system to integrate DVD technology, and the rapid growth of the install base helped establish DVD as the standard optical disc media format worldwide. Featuring both DVD and CD playback capabilities, PlayStation 2 system has served as the entertainment centerpiece in many living rooms.

PlayStation 2 remains the most played computer entertainment system on the market, according to a December 2008 report from The Nielsen Company. Last year, PlayStation 2 became the first system in history to reach the 50 million sell-in unit sales milestone in North America, making it one of the most successful technology products ever. PlayStation 2 system was previously available for $129.99 (MSRP).

※ Sell-in numbers as of the end of December 2008

Source: www.scei.co.jp

The XBOX 360 Tinted Blue Developers Edition: Unveiled

Mysterious, dark and gorgeous. That's the new Xbox 360 Tinted-blue Developers Edition Kit unveiled this week at the Game Developers Conference. The new kit will be available only to game developers (for now at least, time to start saving for this one). More important than the new color is that it doubles the memory of the standard Xbox 360 to 1GB, making life easier for game creators trying to tweak their software.

See more shots of the system below.

NVIDIA and Sony to Bring PhysX to PS3

NVIDIA announced recently that it will provide the binary version of the PhysX software development kit (SDK) to all registered PS3 developers. The software package, which contains an API, a "robust" physics engine, and associated tools, can be downloaded from the SCEI Developer Network. Developers who choose to leverage the kit, according to NVIDIA, are able to "author and preview physics effects in real time." The GPU maker also boasts that "the continued adoption of NVIDIA PhysX technology by the world’s leading content developers is resulting in games that not only look as realistic as possible, but also provides gaming experiences where the world’s literally come to life."

PhysX technology is already supported in over 150 games and is supported on PCs, Xbox 360 and the Nintendo Wii. Nvidia did not release any terms of the deal with Sony.

It looks like Sony has a change of heart and tries to make the PS3 easier to develop to appease some recent critical comments.

Source: ars technica.