SONY CEO STRINGER DEFENDS PS3 PRICING

Because it just wouldn’t be a complete week without some executive at Sony attempting to justify the pricing of the Playstation 3, Forbes.com is reporting that Sony CEO Howard Stringer stated that while the higher price point is certainly a risk, but that it’s one he feels will pay off in the long run;

“Obviously, it’s a higher-risk strategy–as all new inventions are–but if the PS3 lives up to its total potential, then I don’t think anyone will be worried about Nintendo or Xbox’s cheaper price.” -Howard Stringer

Unlike his fellow Sony executives, Stringer refrained from redefining what the Playstation 3 is supposed to be and simply focuses on the PS3’s competition;

“Do you go for a cheaper transitional [product], or do you take a chance on future-proof, higher technology which will keep you going for many, many years?” -Howard Stringer

While I certainly wouldn’t call the Playstation 3 future proof, especially not until the HD format wars are over, it is somewhat refreshing to hear a report of someone at Sony not talking like they’ve been hitting the happy juice a little too hard. Maybe they should let Stringer talk to the press exclusively from now on. Check out the Forbes.com article here and feel all business like.

MAME V.106U8 RELEASED

The Eighth beta update to MAME v.106 has been released to the public. If you like to keep up with the absolute latest version of MAME, head over to Mamedev.org and get the new files. As with the previous “U” releases to v.106, there are still a lot of changes going on with the MAME source code, so I’ll continue advising that unless you have feel the need to test the recent changes, stick with V.106 proper to be safe. Click here to see what’s new in this update.

CALL OF DUTY 2 INVASION PACK COMING THURSDAY

Team Xbox is reporting that sources inside Activision have advised them that the next map pack for the Xbox 360 version of Call of Duty 2 will be made available in the Xbox Live Marketplace this thursday at a cost of 800 points ($10) and will include 5 new multiplayer maps.

Check out the Team Xbox scoop here and ask yourself if five maps is really worth ten dollars.

XBOX LIVE DOWNTIME ANNOUNCED – 6/27/06

Major Nelson is reporting that Xbox Live will be down today for routine maintenance starting at approximately 5am EST and running through 9am EST. The Major stresses that the downtime is only for routine maintenance and no new features will be debuting. The full text of the Major’s message is as follows;

“On Tuesday June 27th from 0200-0600 PT Xbox Live will be offline for maintenance. As a result, the ‘My Xbox’ section of Xbox.com will be unavailable, and the Xbox forums will be in read only mode (you won’t be able to post.) The remainder of Xbox.com will be available.

Click this link to find out what time the maintenance will begin in your time zone

This is for maintenance, there are no new features that will appear when the service comes back online. This is all for server maintenance…nothing more, nothing less. “ -Major Nelson

Don’t believe me? Fine, check out the posting at Major Nelson’s blog here. Harumph.

ALONE IN THE DARK SITE LIVE

Many people may credit Resident Evil as being the first survival horror game, but those of us who were PC gamers back in the day know better as we got the first true taste of the genre with Infogrames 1992 release Alone in the Dark.

The series has had a rough go of it since that first release, but Atari is hoping to turn that around with the first next-gen offering of the series. They took another step towards that goal recently when they brought the Alone in the Dark official website online. Give it a check out here and keep telling yourself that Atari won’t screw this one up.

HALO 3 ASSAULT RIFLE NEWS

If you’re like me, you mourned the loss of your trusty Assault Rifle in Halo 2. If you’re also like me, you jumped for joy when you saw the E3 Halo 3 announcement and saw Master Chief come walking out of the distance carrying a version of the classic rifle in his hands.

In last weeks Bungie Weekly Update, resident content monkey Frankie let us have just a few more details about the return of the Assault Rifle’s triumphant return to the Halo universe;

“I am finally starting to love the Assault Rifle (the one from the trailer) in MP. It’s good stuff, although weapon balancing and tradeoffs may change its subtle variances between now and launch. And it could even be removed. Who knows? That’s the normal course of development, finding what works and what doesn’t. Right now, it works great.” -Frankie

Here’s to hoping they don’t change it too much from it’s original form. Check out the Bungie Weekly Update here for all your Halo 3 needs.

GEARS OF WAR PREVIEW AT PLANET XBOX 360

The kind folks over at Planet Xbox 360 have put together everything they know so far about Gears of War into one easy to swallow package for you. The article contains a wealth of information and is a perfect introduction to the game for the person who’s hasn’t been following Gears religiously over the last year.

For those of you who are as consumed with desire over Gears as I am, there’s still some new information to be had here, such as this little snippet about the weapons available to you in the game;

“Speaking of weapons, Epic has cooked up quite an exotic list for your destructing pleasure. During a few missions you’ll be able to use the Hammer of Dawn. This is a remote laser strike that is as easy as point and click. The next item on the list is the Torque Bow. This is a crossbow styled weapon that when shot will detonate in anything the arrow has plunged into. Are you tired of the rudimentary grenade throwing found in most games? The Bolo Grenades should answer that. These are sticky grenades on a sling that you twirl above your head until you have your perfect arc. Last but not least, the weapon that Epic says defines the Gears of War brand is the Lancer Rifle. This visceral beast is an assault rifle with a chainsaw as its bayonet. This allows you to shred through your opponents when they get too close.” -Planet Xbox 360

Definitely stop by Planet Xbox 360 and check the article out. Once you have, you can join me in packing for that inevitable midnight wait outside EB.

GEARS OF WAR LEVEL DESIGN

While we’re on the subject of Gamerscore Blog, they’ve got a link up to a video at The Ten Show that goes behind the scenes with Epic Games and takes a look at the process of how level designers weave their magic.

Even if you’re not into learning about game design, it’s still worth a look as you’ll get an early peek at one of the multiplayer levels in Gears of War. Stop off at The Ten Show to watch the video.

MICROSOFT SHOOTS DOWN 360 PRICE DROP RUMOR

Microsoft’s in house blog, Gamerscore Blog, posted a reply from John Porcaro to the recent holiday price drop rumors. For those who were thinking of holding off picking up a 360 in anticipation of a drop later this year, the news was not good;

“As you’re all aware, there have been rumors of a price drop for the Xbox 360 coming along later this year.   The official word from folks in the know is that there are currently no plans for a price drop this fall. “ -John Porcaro

Now while he did specify that there were currently no plans for a price drop, I’d probably also guess that it’s a safe bet things will stay that way for the foreseeable future. Simply put, unless Sony somehow magically drops the price of the PS3 or the Wii puts up unheard of sales numbers, Microsoft has no need to drop the price of the 360.

Porcaro’s advice for those sitting on the proverbial 360 fence?;

“Pick one up on the way home from work, and tell your S.O. that you got a killer deal that you just couldn’t pass up.   C’mon.  You know you want to…” -John Porcaro

Check out the full text of the Gamerscore Blog entry here and then figure out a good story to tell about how you got that 360 for free, but had car trouble…

TECHINCIAL DIFFICULTIES UPDATE #2

In the ongoing saga of the defective computer monitor, today saw my impression of Viewsonic’s customer service take a serious nose-dive. Looks like I now have to ship the monitor back to them at my expense and wait a bit longer for a replacement as I didn’t have $1,200 or so that they could put a hold on until they got their defective model back.

While I certainly understand the need to have collateral when they’re sending out a replacement before getting the defective unit back, it certainly doesn’t explain how my sending the monitor back to them first disqualifies me from free shipping.

SONY TO OPEN 2ND OLD SCHOOL EVERQUEST SERVER

It’s the server so nice, they’re doing it twice. Due to an apparent massive interest in their “old school” EverQuest servers, Sony Online Entertainment has decided to make a second “progression” server available to players. The new server, named The Sleeper, is currently taking name reservations and is expected to open along with The Combine on June 28th.

Check out our previous article on the progression servers for more information here.