PSN Members Hit 20 Million Users Worldwide

A press release from Sony has proudly announced that since November 11 2006, when the Playstation Network was launched, worldwide Sony now has 20 Million registered users of the Playstation Network. in their press release, Sony has broken down some numbers of what these users are doing.

• It took 1 year 2 months to reach 5 Million Users
• 10 million in 1 year 8 months
• 20 million in 2 years, 3 months.
• the ps3 has over 600 titles that incorporate the PSN
• PSN Store offers more than 14,500 individual pieces of content
• Home was launched in December 2008. it now has over 4 million users
• 2.6 Million users now use Life with Playstation
  

Someone Replied!

As crazy as it sounds, but apart from signing up to press releases from various publishers, i finally had someone reply to a email i sent.
i've been trying to find out what happened to Blast Factor, Echochrome, and Bionic Commando Rearmed trophy patches. so far i've tried contacting Sony Europe, Sony America, and Blue Point Games (the developer of Blast Factor) and had no replies from either. However, when i contacted Grin Studio's (the developers of Bionic Commando Rearmed) they replied. it was very polite, but they couldn't answer where the patch was. they informed me i would have to go to Capcom to find out what happened....
Still awaiting a reply...

Apologies For The Ad's

As you may have noticed, i have added ad's to the site. it wasn't a easy choice but i feel i need to.
just so my readers understand, at present the ad's are not relevant, but they should change to something more relevant to this blog.
Please don't think that you have to click on them, i'm not making anyone do that.
in the future, the aim is to have ad's from actual game companies on both the twitter site and this blog, but for now this is the best i can do

What Have You Played This Week?

What have you guys/gals played this week?
Feel free to add your thought about it, like whether you enjoyed it, had a frustrating time, as it would be interesting to know. for example, this week i've played...

• Burnout paradise - 360 - it was ok, but didn't take long to get annoyed with it. i honestly feel it's a step backwards and they should make another like burnout revenge
• Noby Noby Boy - ps3 - if it wasn't for sites telling me what the trophies were, i don't think i would've ever done anything with the game, it really is strange and open ended, and for the £3 i paid, i can't really complain.
• Astro Tripper - ps3 - one of the hardest games i play, i die all the time and yet i keep going back to it. it could be casue its £3, or it could be really good. i'm not too sure, but at least now i've finally got to the end boss of the game....just got to beat it.
• Street Fighter IV - ps3 - i haven't played a street fighter since the mega drive, so i was really lost when i started. the tutorial is average, but i still struggled to pull of moves. graphics are lush, i just need more practice before i take it online and play others i feel.
• Folklore - ps3 - i rented this game not really knowing what to expect. intial feelings are good graphics and interesting story line, but i feel i've got a long ways to go yet.

Wells thats it for me, so how about you?

Noby Noby Boy - WTF!?!?!

I thought that i would do a review of Noby Noby Boy, but it turns out i can't. i fall into a group, inbetween those who don't "get" the game and those that do. it's a awkward place to be, to love some parts, but really hate others, the main exmaple being the camera controls, unfortunately, it is a game that will polarise to those extremes. The graphics are not stunning, the music is pretty non-existent, which is a shame cause i think clever use of music like Flower would really help the game.

there is no story, no goals, your just Boy and you have to make Girl grow. what you do with boy inbetween is entirely up to you, and it's this that really stumps me cause so little is told of what that is. thankfully there are trophies, and if anyone gets the game i recommend they look at a site and the trophies for this game, as they are all blank on the console bar one, as they act as a good basis for what you can do in the game. most games use trophies to show what else can be done, but here they are done in such a way that they are a manual for what you should try.

And yet, it's these sort of games that i want more on the PSN, these games that try to change the definition of what a game is. Flower, which was released the previous week, was another game that showed us another way a game could be made, played...and to be honest, i really did enjoy flower. these games are really unique to the PS3, sure the 360 has had some interesting games but they were more safe, more likely to sell than say Noby Noby Boy, and it's these risks, these "games" which Sony is prepared to put on th e PS3 that makes me more interested in the PSN, interested to see what else is coming, to try something new.

So in the end, no review just some ramblings and thoughts.

Star Trek Online Update [Updated]

Cryptic has uploaded another "ask Cryptic" section, and this one has some rather interesting points. catch the full article at http://www.startrekonline.com/node/176 .
here though are some interesting comments when asked about ship customisation that i personally find quite interesting.

• The vessel you choose will have a familiar silhouette, for example a Miranda class or a Centaur class. you won't be able to add say more warp engines to it, the vessel has to look like it's silhouette, but that still means you "...will be able to modify all the parts – the saucer, the nacelles, the pylons, the primary hull, etc. You will also be able to modify colors, decals, and other bits."Basically creating a viariant of the main design, like the Enterprise B Variant of the Excellsior deisgn (with the extra impulse engines)

• You can upgrade internal parts of your vessel. However, the upgrades are specific depending on your Vessels Class, Nova Class, for example, would be more scientific. all sorts of upgradable parts are available however "....rimary items like your weapons, shields, deflector dish, impulse and warp engines, etc. You will also be able to add lots of enhancements to your systems, such as targeting computers for better accuracy, EPS conduits upgrades to improve power transfer rates, better biobeds for your sick bay..."

• The final thing which can be customised is your bridge crew. "...Your Bridge Officers will come with unique skills that can only be used if they are at a duty station." An example which they mention earlier in the article would be the chief engineer, "... your engineer’s skills will determine your maximum warp speed."

Some interesting stuff. i like how the studio is continuing to maintin interest in thier game by slowly divulgeing information about it, pictures. but what impresses me the most is how they are involving the community. they offer contests like thier Kobsyashi maru contests or thier Planet Exploration stories with prizes like Beta Slots and Forum Slots. They have already begun to develop the community, meaning when the game is released they will have greater numbers in the game from the off, and good day 1 sales of course.
They have even worked with the new Star Trek Movie and incorperated some of those story lines into the games, making both as Cannon as each other. a known example is the uniforms, the left is from the book tie in, the right being from the game. expect information on Data later?!

[picture from http://trekmovie.com/images/merchandise/idwcrypsyn.jpg ]

[Update]
Looks like IGN has got some more screen shots for the game that aren't even on Star Trek Online's website. Click on IGN Star Trek Online Pic's to have a look at them.

UK PSN Update 19/02/09

Todays PSN Update was released pretty late. but now it's out and it's a big release with some PSP love also.

PSN Games
Street Fighter 2 Turbo HD Remix [£11.99]
Noby Noby Boy [£3.19]

PS3 Games
Little Big Planet - Wipeout Costume Kit [£2.39]
Naruto Ninja Storm - Storm Pack 7 [Free]
Skate 2 - Dyrdek's Fantasy Plaza Pack [£3.19]
Mirror's Edge - Pure Time Trails [£6.29]
Burnout Paradise - Jansen 88 Special [£3.19]
Burnout Paradise - Hunter Manhattan Spirit [£1.59]
Burnout Paradise - Hunter Cavalry Bootlegger [£1.59]
Burnout Paradise - Carson GT Nighthawk [£1.59]
Burnout Paradise - Time Savers Pack [£3.99]
Burnout Paradise - Legendary Cars Collection [£6.29]

Guitar Hero - World Tour
"hi,hi,hi" by Wings [£1.59]
"Jet" by Wings [£1.59]
"Junior's Farm" by Wings [£1.59]
Wings Track Pack [£4.39]

Rock Band
"Black Sunshine" by White Zombie [£0.99]
"More Human Than Human" by White Zombie [£0.99]
"Pick Up The Pieces" by Average White Band [£0.99]
"Wasted Again" by Turbonegro [£0.99]

Video
Mini Ninja's - Announcement trailer
Flower - Behind The Scenes

Theme
Magic ball
Cuboid
Mahjong Tales - Ancient Wisdom Theme
LocoRoco 2 - Planet Theme
Flower Theme

Wallpaper
Flower

PSP
Internation Athletics [£11.99]
Stateshift [£9.99]
Spectral vs. Generation [£9.99]
World of Pool [£7.99]