Gobama. he gonna win =D. hellz yeah

LittleBigPlanet

What started out as a cute, simple, side-scrolling platform game from a small start-up studio has somehow snowballed into the game that Sony hopes will define the next stage of the PlayStation 3's life.

The aesthetics of LittleBigPlanet are astounding; the scanned-in charity shop wool textures, sock toy characters, pink Helvetica and deeply comforting Stephen Fry voice-over are so well-executed and contemporary cool that they make every other game look a bit like Dungeons and Dragons.

Then we have ideological 'play, create, share' journey that sits at the experience's core, allowing players to utilize the same tools Media Molecule used to create the main experience and share their levels with the world, ensures that the game rides the crest of a user-generated wave only just coming in to land.

But zoom right in past these bigger issues and ambitions and, at its heart, this is a cute, simple, side-scrolling platform game from a small start-up studio. You control a little toy character, move from left to right through a level using just two buttons: jump and grab. What on paper sounds almost inescapably limited translates to a wide-ranging experience in practice thanks to the ingenious environments.

Levels, selected from a straightforward, easy-to-use start screen, are themed by nation from Africa to India to Japan to South America and beyond. This framework means you'll be leaping across spiky chasms, climbing the bowed necks of giraffes and rolling down hills on skateboards. There's a sticky-back plastic sense to levels (albeit one juxtaposed by precise lighting and rock solid 3D objects) which lends the game a Blue Peter make-one-yourself feel.

Each of the main game's 20-odd levels is curated by its 'creator' character who tells the story of the level and sets myriad challenges as you progress from start to end point. It's emphatically straightforward and accessible. Up to three other players can join you (and they will be required to help access some levels' nether regions) and together you rush, help and compete against each other to reach the goal. Along the way you collect stickers, items, textures, soundtracks and so on: building blocks for the creation suite also bundled on the disc.

There are two roles you can play in this area of the game: consumer or contributor. As the former you get to pluck the best user generated levels from Sony's servers, playing through the ever-more ingenious creations of the wide world. Over the next few months the game will continue to blossom and evolve as its players broaden its horizons and borders with their unfettered ingenuity. As the latter you're given the keys to a playground of dizzying potential and no doubt this will be the game that inspires and launches many a game design career.

As a result LittleBigPlanet does defy its beginnings; it is a little game but it's also a very big deal, an experience that points the way to where games are headed while keeping one felt foot firmly in the solid ground of side scrolling Mario games past.

Sony has seen the future and its name is Sackboy.

5 out of 5

What makes a game easy? How about an unlimited amount of lives? How about an unlimited amount of continues after you lost all your lives? How about a seemingly never ending amount of energy? There is something noticeable about all these traits that make a video game easy. All these traits are embodied in most new video games that are released. Gone are the days of working hard to beat a game. Sure, you could beat Contra in ½ an hour, but achieving the skill level of mastering the game took months, if not years. Today's games are long, and require no mastery to accomplish. With what seems like an unlimited amount of life for the protagonists of new games, comes a gaming disposition that is ubiquitously lazy and lacking in patience. Fight your way to the end of the game without focusing on anything specifically.

http://old-wizard.com/?p=1526-

Toshiba claims that Sony's victory in the high definition disc format war will be short lived due to the rise of HD digital video downloads over broadband, which the company claims was one of the key reason for abandoning HD DVD.

In a press conference this morning, Toshiba Australia general manager, Mark Whittard (pictured), said that while the US film and retail industries' recent shift to support Blu-ray sealed HD DVD's fate, other factors played a role in Toshiba's abandonment of its high definition video disc business.

However, while Toshiba is now moving towards a business model which will see it place more emphasis on other HD video delivery platforms, it has not ruled out joining the Blu-ray camp.

Sorry for the huge break. I will return on making blogs.

That's right folks, wrap your minds around this - a phone that features Playstation buttons, has a Microsoft Windows operating system, and plays Nintendo games. Confused yet? How about the fact that the phone was made in "Koera" - No, that's not a typo, that's what is printed on the phone.

Sound to good to be true? That's because it is. The Chinese made phone is very much illegal, and will probably never make it across the ocean. Even still, one can't help but wonder what a phone with multiple emulators would be like. After doing a little research, I came up with an NES emulator for mobile phones called VNES, which claims to allow 8 bit Nintendo games to be playable on most newer series Nokia phones.

SPOnG writes:
"The most important thing to do when making a blatant rip-off of Tomb Raider is to find a reason to be raiding tombs. Lara clearly has laid claim to the bored aristocrat hobbyist territory so, in Drake's Fortune, a familial connection to famous slave-trading pirate, Sir Francis Drake, is concocted."

Just bought a Sony PlayStation 3? Then you've not maxed out the power of your new uber-console until you've downloaded the latest firmware and dabbled with the following techniques... Following on from our previous 10 PS3 tricks Sony doesn't tell you article, Digital Home brings you another batch of tips.

1) Customising your PS3

Try Googling 'PS3 .p3t theme' to find downloadable examples of PS3's new Themes - the alternative desktops, menus and fonts for your PS3 that have been enabled since the recent 2.0 firmware update. Read on through this article for our tips on how to transfer them to your PS3. You can even make your own Themes. All you'll need is Sony's PC-only design software, which is available for free here.

2) Make thousands of new PS3 Friends

Taken a shine to someone you've played against online? They'll be in your Players Met menu. Or if you just want to make loads of new friends fast, then go to www.gamewith.us/ps3 and to find thousands of names to hit up and try.

3) Mastering removable media

The PS3 is compatible with many different file types, playing and displaying just about anything you can throw at it. The full list is as follows: (video) MPEG-1, MPEG-2, MPEG-4, AVI, Motion JPEG, AVCHD, H.264/MPEG-4 AVC - DivX and Xvid coming soon; (audio) MP3, WMA, WAV, Audio CD, SACD (60GB version only); (photo) JPEG, PNG, TIFF, GIF, BMP.

Whatever format you want to access, the trick is to put your files in the right place so that your PS3 can actually see them.

Take any removable media - be it a USB stick, Memory Card or CD-R with files on it - and lace music, pictures and videos in folders called 'MUSIC', 'PICTURE' and 'VIDEO' in the root directory of the storage device. The caps are important. The quote marks aren't.

More PS3-based files need to be in a folder called 'PS3' in the root directory of the storage device. Then, inside this folder make sub-folders called 'EXPORT' (this is the folder to put PS1 and PS2 game saves in that you find on the net), 'SAVEDATA' (for your PS3 game saves), 'THEME' (for Themes) and 'UPDATE' (see tip 8).

4) Boost your WiFi

Slow downloads and dodgy PS3 connections? Try this... Firstly let's start with a bit of wireless networking 101. Try getting a direct 'line of sight' between your wireless router and your PS3. Pull them out both out from alcoves and behind dense furniture and try to minimise the number of obstacles between both boxes. (Nothing degrades your Wi-Fi signal like a nice stone fireplace....)

Next, stand your PS3 on its on end. The PS3's antenna is located in the right hand side so standing it up on its left-edge gives it a bigger spread. Ideally put your router up on a high shelf.

Finally - and this is the clever bit - take a Coke can (other soft drinks are available) and cut the top off. Cut down the sides of the cup-like can and fan out the divisions slightly so it looks like a weird metal flower. Now make a hole in the bottom and place your new 'high-gain antenna' over your router's stubby aerial so it pokes through. Now point it at your PS3. Sounds mad, looks awful, but you could see a 10% boost in signal strength.

5) PSP and PS3 Remote Play

One of the best features of the new firmware is the ability to turn your PS3 on and off remotely, via the internet, with your PSP. Sounds like a tiny detail, but it finally opens up Sony's Remote Play feature fully.

First get yourself a PSP. Go into the System option, select Remote Play and pair your PSP with your PS3. This used to be a slightly complex process but now it's a cinch. Once both devices are paired together they'll 'look' for each other automatically.

Leave your PS3 on standby and just go on holiday - taking your PSP with you. Find a Wi-Fi hotspot near the beach. Connect your PSP to your PS3 using the Remote Play option. Your PS3 will switch on and its menu will appear on your PSP's screen. You can now listen to your music, look at photos or watch any videos stored on your PS3's hard disk. When you're done, switch off your PS3 and go back to sunbathing.

6) Play PS3 games remotely on your PSP

OK, so your PSP hasn't got any 'tilting' capability like the Sixaxis and Lair is pretty much unplayable on the PSP. But, in tech terms at least, it's a great indicator of the possibilities on the way. Engage Lair's Wireless Play option and you can wirelessly link your PSP to your PS3 and play (a cut down, worse looking version of) the PS3 game on your PSP.

7) Those secret button features

PS3 not behaving itself? Then give it a prod. The most common causes of PS3 crashes are during PS2 play. Or your PS3 might hang while waiting for a network disconnection to be resolved. In either scenario press and hold the power button for five seconds to force a system shutdown.

Finally, have you ever been caught out moving your PS3 from an HDMI TV to the one in the bedroom, only to find that you're not getting any SCART output when you get there. Here's the fix: Turn on your PS3 as normal but keep your finger on the Power button. You'll get the first beep, as normal, then about eight seconds later a second beep and your PS3 will restart - this time defaulting to the most basic, lo-res, SCART friendly TV output.

8) Do your system updates at work

With system updates clocking in around the 200MB mark (and set to get bigger) it can be a pain to have to download updates when you're stealing a quick five minutes for a game. Instead, download the updates at work and take them home on a USB stick or CD for instant installation on your PS3.

Make a folder called 'PS3' on your disc/stick and inside that one called 'UPDATE' (see tip 3). Go to http://uk.playstation.com/help-support/ps3 and find the System Software Updates box. Download the latest update and put it in your 'UPDATE' folder. When you get home choose to update your PS3 from whatever storage medium you've chosen instead of via the internet.

It "appears" as if the release of PS3 exclusive Haze hadn't been delayed, but in fact, moved up. On the Official Playstation website of the U.S., Haze has been added to the Upcoming Games section with a December 4th release. Is there any truth in this? If so, this is all the sweeter for the gamers anticipating this title's release.

As part of what we presume is some Thanksgiving-related promotion, Sony has stuck a $4.99 price tag on Calling All Cars, Everyday Shooter and Pixeljunk Racers - but only until November 29, when they'll go back to their full price.