PS3 Fanboy

We've recently had the pleasure of trying out the new Eye of Judgment: Biolith Rebellion 2 expansion -- that very same expansion set to hit the US PSN this Thursday, March 27. Right away, we were excited to test out our new holo-cards and so we immediately began installing the new expansion.

We eagerly waited for the install to go through, though we soon realized it was taking longer than we expected. It was roughly about a fifteen-minute waiting period for a near two gig install. Keep in mind, however, we were told that the final update hitting the PSN should only be one gigabyte, so we assume gamers won't be experiencing the same sort of downtime we went through.

Once the install was finished, we immediately noticed some new changes. For one, the start up screen now displays "Set 2" in the lower right corner. Soon after, we began a battle with the sample cards we were given. Out of the 100 new spells and creatures promised in Set 2, we've tested out about 26 new creature and spell cards. The new character models and their animations look wonderful. We're sure fans of the game will like the new units like the Biolith War Chariot -- a tank-like summoned creature that can attack two adjacent enemy squares simultaneously.

There's a lot more to see in the game, yet we've only scratched the surface. From what we've seen thus far, we can deduce that Set 2 is something fans will be pleased with. We do have one indirect gripe though; to use your new Set 2 cards you'll need to purchase the expansion software on the PSN for $14.99. Now, why still charge gamers for functionality when they'll already be spending a fortune on cards? Oh well, c'est la vie. In any case, have a look at some shots of new cards and in-game battle animations in the gallery, then let your eyes be the judge of things.

Sony is announcing today that structural changes will be occurring within the company, effectively merging the Sony Computer Entertainment and Sony Online Entertainment departments. (Sony Online Entertainment has been run by Sony Pictures.) While the two will remain largely separate Kaz Hirai, President of SCEI, will now be the head of both companies, with SOE President John Smedley reporting to him from April 1st onwards.

Both SOE and SCEI seem excited by the opportunities this brings, with Hirai stating that he is "excited to be able to work with SOE even more closely, as online games and services become a more integral part of the PS3 entertainment experience. This new structure will allow us to take full advantage of the extensive breadth of expertise of the two companies and increase our range of exciting entertainment offerings to our consumers." Smedley shares these sentiments, adding that he is "thrilled to become a part of the incredible team that has made PlayStation 3 the premier platform for next generation online gaming."

This all seems to make sense, considering how much energy SOE is putting into PS3 projects over the next frew years. We can't wait to finally starting seeing the fruits of their labor later this year.

[Via press release]

Click for high-resolution image.

Every time we get a glimpse of GT5, we can't help but feel overly giddy for more. Luckily, Sony's Three Speech blog really cranked out the Gran Turismo 5 Prologue screens today with more shots of tracks, cars, and the pit. The environments look so spectacularly life-like it's almost scary. We wouldn't want to crash in such a real simulation; it's just simply too much of a scary thought.

Despite our crash-phobia, we're really looking forward to getting in this game's driver's seat and burning up some rubber. GT5's March-April release is just too far away.

[Thanks Clayton!]

As of June 19th, the man behind the Spider-Man font, behind the PlayStation 3's slick design, behind the massive damage control Sony is still trying to get a hang of will be retiring. Yes, Krazy Ken Kutaragi will be stepping down from his position as CEO at Sony Computer Entertainment. He will be replaced by the less krazy Kaz Hirai -- he doesn't get the capital letter yet.

The following are excerpts from a press release from Sony detailing the resignation: "Kutaragi has said that he has been considering this decision for some time. He stated that, in the six months since the appointment of Kazuo Hirai as President in December, the new generation of management, led by Mr. Hirai, has continued to develop...Sony and SCE will continue to seek Mr. Kutaragi's input and ideas from a broad perspective, while continuing to support him as much as possible in the realization of his dreams." He's passing on the torch to Kaz Hirai and the new, fresh, young management team! Good. It's a good thing to know what's best for the company, even at your own expense. We salute him for that. But... what are his dreams? The PS3 Grill?

While this is heartbreaking news for those who think Kutaragi was doing a stellar job with the PS3, recall that he was given a promotion recently that consequently took him out of most day-to-day operations of Sony and the PlayStation 3. As a parting farewell to all the shoddy promises given by Kutaragi, as well as a few things to make us giggle, we're sticking some famous quotes from the man, the legend, the mystery: Ken Kutaragi. Goodbye, Krazy Ken. You had a good run, but it's time to step aside. Have a great retirement!

• "[We want] consumers to think to themselves 'I will work more hours to buy one'. We want people to feel that they want it, irrespective of anything else."
• "The PS3 will instill discipline in our children and adults alike. Everyone will know discipline."
• "The PS3 is not a game machine "
  

[Via Joystiq]

Looking ahead, I have a lot of exciting news for you guys today! I'll get it all typed up now, before 1PM, but it's all set to publish throughout the day (one of the reasons it seems we're slow, actually... got to spread out the news. Tossin' it all out in a two hour timeframe really doesn't make much business sense). First up is this, our follow up to the announcement that Sony will release a new version of the PS3 in Europe, sacrificing some backwards compatibility temporarily as well as our other post describing how this is just temporary but may be indicative of a price cut next year due to decreased manufacturing costs.

Sony Computer Entertainment Europe's big brother, SCEI, has issued a statement regarding the backwards compatibility software stuff. Really, they should've just quoted us. I think we made a pretty decent rational appeal. What was told/confirmed (even though it pretty much was already) is that "Sony is including hardware of some form that will take the place of the Graphics Synthesizer graphics chip. The Emotion Engine CPU functionality will be replicated entirely through software emulation." Still no word on actual percentages of games playable from the past, but we've said enough on this topic. Let's all collectively shrug, keep our PS2's in a closet for when we want them, and move on. This isn't good news, but it's in no way "OMFG liek boo sONy!" news.

Our two favorite people, Ken Kutaragi and Kaz Hirai, Krazy Kaz and Ken if I may, have moved up in the world! Maybe not the world as a whole, but the world of Sony. The two men, who have a tough time not making fools of themselves (a few exceptions, but they elude me), have indeed garnered new seats in Sony. Kutaragi, formerly the President and Group CEO of Sony Computer Entertainment Inc., is now the Chairman and Group CEO. Kaz Hirai was formerly President and CEO of SCE America is now President and COO of SCE Inc. At least he's not in charge of Sony America anymore? Whatever. You can check out other managerial movements if you'd like, but really, it's interesting how people more or less mocked by the public continue to move up in the world.