scattered technology news

November 2009 Game Releases 1

This November will be an exciting month for gamers, especially those who have a PS3 or Xbox 360. Highly anticipated games on all three consoles release this month, including Assassin’s Creed II, CoD4: Modern Warfare 2, and New Super Mario Bros. So get out your cash, and get ready to buy these games!

Netflix Finally Reaches The PS3 0

Since launch, Sony has advertised the PlayStation 3 as a household center for entertainment. In addition to Blu-Ray playback, Sony soon took it a step further with a few software updates giving it access to tons of Movies and TV Shows through the PlayStation Network Store. It even supports DLNA streaming to share music, photos, and videos between computers on your home network. Despite those features, it lacked something that Microsoft was able to put into the Xbox: Netflix Streaming.

Fortunately Sony has caught up with the times and has partnered with Netflix. They plan to offer PS3 owners and Netflix subscribers streaming access to their library as early as next month at no additional cost. This will be a great complement to their snail mail Blu-Ray rental service.  To enable your PS3 for the service, you’ll need to get a special free disc from Netflix that will enable the service. Let’s hope there will be more features such as this one coming down the line. Hulu please?

Links: Netflix.com/PS3

Most Exciting Games of E3 2009 0

As many of you have already heard there was a torrent of game announcements that came out of E3 that just gets our hearts pumping. So, without any further adieu here are the games that I personally am most excited for on each the following consoles.

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November 2008 – Wii/PS3/360 Games 1

With the sleuth of new games this month, it appears as though the holiday season is upon us and game publishers are starting to let loose all of the major titles. With the PlayStation 3 and the Xbox 360 with major titles coming out: Resistance 2 and Gears of War 2, respectively, it looks like this is going to be another exciting holiday season for gamers.

Nintendo Wii:

• Shaun White SnowBoarding – Ubisoft
• Cooking Mama: World Kitchen – Majesco
• Need for Speed: Undercover – Electronic Arts
• Rayman Raving Rabbids TV Party – Ubisoft
• WordJong Party – Destineer
• Animal Crossing: City Folk – Nintendo
• Mushroom Men: The Spore Wars – Gamecock Media Group
• Star Wars The Clone Wars: Lightsaber Duels – LucasArts
• Imagine Party Babyz – Ubisoft
• Candace Kane’s Candy Factory – Destineer
• Rock Revolution – Konami
• Tales of Symphonia: Dawn of the New World – Namco Bandai
• Pet Pals: Animal Doctor – Legacy Interactive
• Mortimer Beckett and the Secrets of Spooky Manor – RealNetworks
• PopStar Guitar – XS Games
• WWE Smackdown Vs Raw 2009 – THQ
• Madagascar Escape 2 Africa – Activision
• James Bond 007: Quantum of Solace – Activision
• Kung Fu Panda: Legendary Warriors – Activision
• Monster Lab – Eidos Interactive
• Alien Crush Returns – Hudson Entertainment
• Home Sweet Home – Big Blue Bubble

Play Station 3:

• Resistance 2 – SCEA
• Tom Clancy’s EndWar – Ubisoft
• Valkyra Chronicles – Sega
• Quantum of Solace: The Game – Activision
• Naruto: Ultimate Ninja Storm – Namco Bandai
• WWE Smackdown Vs Raw 2009 – THQ
• Mirror’s Edge – EA
• Pro Evolution Soccer 2009 – Konami
• Call of Duty: World at War – Activision
• Shaun White Snowboarding – Ubisoft
• Mortal Kombat Vs DC Universe – Midway
• NCAA Basketball 09 – Electronic Arts

Xbox 360:

• Gears of War 2 – Microsoft
• Call of Duty: World at War – Activision
• Command and Conquer Red Alert 3 – Electronic Arts
• Mirror’s Edge – Electronic Arts
• Mortal Kombat Vs DC – Midway
• Shaun White Snowboarding – Ubisoft
• Naruto: The Broken Bond – Ubisoft
• Need for Speed Undercover – Electronic Arts
• Left 4 Dead – Electronic Arts
• The Last Remnant – Square Enix
• Quantum of Solace – Activision
• Tom Clancy’s Endwar – Ubisoft

Games List: Nintendo Wii | Sony PS3 | Microsoft Xbox 360
Purchase Games: Amazon’s Selection (ships free + no tax)

Nvision 08: A Future Of 3D Gaming 5

In this day and age, it has been painted loud and clear that videogames have become a widespread epidemic that everyone’s getting in line for. With interactive entertainment becoming more affordable, it is becoming quite common for each family to have at least a single console in their household along with their Television. Whether it is a handheld or a console, videogames have been spreading and feeding on our desire to simulate our ideas to a palpable form of art and entertainment.

The latest wave of gaming consoles to hit our local retail shelves are Sony’s PlayStation 3 and Microsoft’s Xbox 360. While these two push the limits of graphic capability for a console, the lovable Nintendo Wii that has pushed on human interactivity in gaming. Gaming technologies continue to have the potential to keep advancing and impressing us. But what is in store for the PC will once again dominate all gaming consoles. Three Dimensional PC gaming has been introduced, once again, as the next advancement for this generation’s gamers to take bliss in.

Although 3D gaming has been mentioned over and over, this might truly be the year where it becomes widespread. At Nvision 08 I was able to sit down and enjoy a few upcoming PC games. Out of the five game demos available at Nvision, I was able to test out a few: Grid, Spore, and Unreal Tournament 3.  I can safely say that playing a shooter in 3D was an experience I will not forget. A whole new rush comes over a gamer when he or she jumps into an online shooter match in 3 Dimensions. It is quite exciting to experience and see the depth of bullets now literally flying by or the narrowness of halls closing in. Having a chance to play these games in 3D offers a fresh new experience and allows gamers to feel that they are a part of the game more than ever before. Read More

The Official PS3 Wireless Keypad 0

During the Games Convention in Leipzig, Sony announced a new accessory for the PlayStation 3. This little keyboard snaps onto any SIXAXIS or DUALSHOCK 3 controller to make inputting text easier. The Wireless Keypad accessory is quite similar to what Microsoft rolled out for their Xbox 360 controller over a year ago, however it’s got a few extra features. In addition to making it easier to chat with others and use the browser, it also features a few shortcuts and a special touchpad mode. The shortcuts allow quickly accessing the friends list and message box through the XMB while in games. And the touchapad mode turns the entire face of the keypad into a touchpad to control the pointer when using the browser.

The Wireless Keypad doesn’t seem to communicate with the controller at all, but rather just clips onto it. It has to be paired directly with the PS3 using a USB cable the same way a controller is. And it’s just using the standard Bluetooth 2.0 technology that’s built into the PS3, so no additional equipment is necessary. One bummer might be that this QWERTY keyboard doesn’t seem to be backlit, which the Xbox accessory does. According to the press release the keyboard will become available in North America in November, however pricing hasn’t yet been mentioned.

Links: PlayStation 3 Wireless Keypad

Sony Unveils The PSP-3000 5

There have rumors flying around regarding a possible upgrade to the Sony PlayStation Portable for the past few weeks. Sony finally put those to an end by announcing the third revision of the PSP at the Games Convention in Leipzig. So what’s new? Not much actually, the PSP-3000 is essentially the same as the 2nd revision, however it has a few two new hardware enhancements.

While retaining the same slim size, it now has a new LCD display with a better contrast ratio and can produce more vibrant colors. One major problem with the previous PSPs was reflectiveness of the glossy screen. Seeing anything out doors was almost impossible. The PSP-3000 now has “anti-reflection” technology to make it easier to view under direct sunlight. The other hardware feature that’s been added is the built-in microphone. Previously you had to purchase an accessory to be able to speak to others when using Skype or in a game. With this upgrade, you’ll have a fully functioning VoIP device at all times without any extra cables or headsets. (Just waiting on the webcam at this point!)

It is also expected that Sony will be rolling out some new firmware upgrades with new features in the near future. Unfortunately some new features will probably not be entirely backwards compatible. Sony has officially stated that the the price of the new version will be kept the same, $169 (MSRP). Some new PSP Entertainment Packs with a movie, a game, and a 1GB Memory Stick will become available later this year. This isn’t really that great of an upgrade, but it’s worth mentioning since it’s retaining the same price!

Links: US PlayStation Portable
Related: PSP-2000 Info

July 2008 – Wii/PS3/360 Games 0

It seems that July will be yet another slow summer month as developers are biding their time until the holiday season to release their triple A titles.

Nintendo Wii:

• Summer Athletics: The Ultimate Challenge – dpt entertainment AG
• Order Up! – Zoo Games
• NCAA Football 09 – Electronic Arts
• Rock Band Track Pack Volume 1 – MTV Games
• Wonder World Amusement Park – Majesco Entertainment
• Final Fantasy Fables: Chocobo’s Dungeon – Square Enix
• SPOGS Racing – D2C Games
• Freddi Fish Kelp Seed Mystery – Majesco Entertainment
• Purr Pals – Crave Entertainment

PlayStation 3:

• Beijing 2008 – The Official Video Game of the Olympic Games – Sega
• NCAA Football 09 – Electronic Arts
• Soulcalibur IV – Namco Bandai Games

Xbox 360:

• Golf: Tee It Up – Activision
• Schizoid – Microsoft
• NCAA Football 09 – Electronic Arts
• Soulcalibur IV – Namco Bandai Games
• Spectral Force 3 – Atlus

Games List: Nintendo Wii | Sony PS3 | Microsoft Xbox 360
Purchase Games: Amazon’s Selection (ships free + no tax)

June 2008 – Wii/PS3/Xbox Games 0

Nintendo Wii:

• Top Spin 3 – 2K Sports
• Rock Band – MTV Games
• Blast Works – Majesco Sales Inc.
• The Incredible Hulk – Sega

Play Station 3:

• Kung Fu Panda – Activision
• Robert Ludlum’s The Bourne Conspiracy – Sierra
• LEGO Indiana Jones: The Original Adventures – LucasArts
• Race Driver: GRID – CodeMasters Software
• The Incredible Hulk – Sega
• Dragon Ball Z: Burst Limit – Atari
• NASCAR 09 – Electronic Arts

Xbox 360:

• Ninja Gaiden II – Microsoft
• Kung Fu Panda – Activision
• LEGO Indiana Jones: The Original Adventures – LucasArts
• Alone in the Dark – Atari
• Race Driver: GRID – CodeMasters Software
• Robert Ludlum’s The Bourne Conspiracy – Sierra
• The Incredible Hulk – Sega
• NASCAR 09 – Electronic Arts
• Dragon Ball Z: Burst Limit – Atari
• Don King Presents Prizefighter – 2k Sports
• Command and Conquer 3: Kane’s Wrath – Electronic Arts
• Hail to the Chimp – Gamecock Media Group
• Hellboy: The Science of Evil – Konami
• Operation Darkness – Atlus
• Guitar Hero: Aerosmith – Activision
• Command and Conquer 3: Kane’s Wrath – Electronic Arts
• Hail to the Chimp – Gamecock Media Group
• Hellboy: The Science of Evil – Konami
• Operation Darkness – Atlus
• Guitar Hero: Aerosmith – Activision

Games List: Nintendo Wii | Sony PS3 | Microsoft Xbox 360
Purchase Games: Amazon’s Selection (ships free + no tax)

May 2008 – Wii/PS3/360 Games 0

After last month’s launch of Grand Theft Auto IV for the Xbox 360 and the PlayStation 3, which seems to have received best score of all time for both consoles, these new games are probably going to go unnoticed. And Wii users are still probably rejoicing with Super Smash Bros. Brawl and Mario Kart.

Nintendo Wii:

• Emergency Heroes – Ubisoft
• Wii Fit – Nintendo
• DECA Sports – Hudson Entertainment, Inc
• We Ski – NAMCO Bandai Games America, Inc
• Castle of Shikigame III – Aksys Games
• Blast Works – Majesco Sales, Inc
• Bloom Box – Electronic Arts
• Iron Man – Sega

Play Station 3:

• The Chronicles of Narnia: Prince Caspian – Disney Interactive Studios
• UEFA EURO 2008 – Electronic Arts
• SlingStar – SCEA
• Enemy Territory: Quake Wars – Activision
• Monster Madness: Grave Danger – Southpeak
• Haze – Ubisoft

Xbox 360:

• Iron Man – Sega
• Wits & Wagers – Microsoft
• The Chronicles of Narnia: Prince Caspian – Disney Interactive Studios
• UEFA EURO 2008 – Electronic Arts
• Enemy Territory: Quake Wars – Activision
• Lost Planet: Extreme Condition Colonies Edition – Capcom

Games List: Nintendo Wii | Sony PS3 | Microsoft Xbox 360
Purchase Games: Amazon’s Selection (ships free + no tax)