Call of Duty: Ghosts 'Clan Wars' metagame starts Monday

November 21st, 2013, 23:36 Posted By: wraggster

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Next-gen console wars continue in last night's South Park

November 21st, 2013, 23:30 Posted By: wraggster

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Gran Turismo 7 next year in 'best-case scenario,' developers say

November 21st, 2013, 23:26 Posted By: wraggster

Gran Turismo 6 won't hit retail until December 6, but the developers at Polyphony Digital are already planning Gran Turismo 7 – and they don't want it to take forever.

"We don't want to take too long on Gran Turismo 7," series creator Kazunori Yamauchi told Top Gear. "Best-case scenario? Next year. In GT6 we really had to tune the software 100 per cent to maximise the PS3's architecture, but of course the PS4's hardware is much better, so I think the overall quality of the game across the board will be boosted when you come to play it."

Releasing Gran Turismo 7 a year after its predecessor would be an impressive feat for Polyphony. We waited for three years between Gran Turismo 5 andGran Turismo 6, while the delay between Gran Turismo 4 and its sequel was nearly six years long.

http://www.joystiq.com/2013/11/21/gr...evelopers-say/

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Trade in your PS3 or Xbox 360 this week, get at least $100 at Best Buy

November 21st, 2013, 00:36 Posted By: wraggster

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eBay sees huge next-gen console sales

November 20th, 2013, 23:24 Posted By: wraggster

Over 10,000 PS4 consoles were sold on eBay last weekend.
A rep from the auction site told GameSpot that between November 15^th and 17^th over two PS4s were sold every minute and that over 15,000 of Sony’s next-gen machine have been sold since November 1^st.
A quick look on the site now shows lots of day one launch stock for the machine – although the scarcity of such hardware on the High Street is leading to some quite elevated prices.
There’s been lots of eBay activity for current-gen (or last-gen?) hardware too, with gamers presumably selling off their current wares in the hope of upgrading.
Over 14,000 used consoles have been sold on the site since November 15^th – that’s up ten per cent on the day days immediately beforehand.

http://www.ebay.co.uk/sch/i.html?_tr...at=0&_from=R40

http://www.ebay.com/sch/i.html?_trks...at=0&_from=R40

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Sony revises PS4 defect rate

November 20th, 2013, 21:58 Posted By: wraggster

Prior to the PS4 launch, Sony responded to reports ofdefective units among contest-winners and the pressas "isolated incidents," saying they affected .04 percent of systems shipped. They later amended that figure, saying the original statement was intended to say .4 percent of systems experienced errors, but even that bump didn't seem to cover it. An SCEA representative provided a further revised defect rate in a statement forTechRadar yesterday.
"There have been several issues reported, which leads us to believe there isn't a singular problem that could impact a broader percentage of PS4 units," Sony told the site. "We also understand that some units were reportedly damaged during shipping. The number of affected PS4 systems is less than 1 percent, which represents a very small percentage of total units shipped to date and is within the expected range for a new product introduction. We understand the frustration of consumers that have had a problem and are working with them and our retail partners to help troubleshoot issues and ensure affected units are exchanged."
While there have been a variety of issues, one frequently complained about on the company's customer support forum is known as the "Blinking Blue Light of Death," in which the system fails to output an audio or video signal to a TV while the power light blinks blue. As of this writing, the troubleshooting forum thread for that issue is nearly 500 posts long, and includes suggestions from Sony that some TVs may be incompatible with the PS4,systems may have improperly seated hard drives, or that users might have faulty HDMI cables. As of yesterday, Sony was still reporting trouble with latency issues on the PlayStation Network brought on by the high volume of users on the service.

http://www.gamesindustry.biz/article...s4-defect-rate

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Sony nearly breaking even on PS4 hardware

November 20th, 2013, 21:56 Posted By: wraggster

IHS teardown of new console puts Sony's cost of goods and assembly at $381 per system
Sony


The gaming industry is officially through the looking glass. Nintendo, a long-time advocate of turning a profit on its hardware, is selling every Wii U at a loss, while Sony is just about breaking even on the PlayStation 4.
According to an AllThingsD report, market research firm IHS has conducted a teardown of the PS4 and estimated Sony's cost of parts plus assembly on the hardware to be $381, while the console itself retails for $399. That's a far cry from the PS3's launch economics, when IHS estimated Sony manufacturing cost for each machine at $805, far exceeding even the system's already steep $599 retail price.
Most of Sony's PS4 costs are accounted for by the system's CPU and memory. The AMD chip at the heart of the system is estimated to run Sony about $100, while another $88 was attributed to 16 separate memory chips in the system. The Dual Shock 4 controller was pegged at an $18 build cost.
"If your cost is within $10 to $20 of the retail prices, there's very little chance you're making a profit on the console," IHS analyst Andrew Rassweiler told the site.
The IHS estimate falls in line with comments Sony Computer Entertainment Worldwide Studios head Shuhei Yoshida made to GamesIndustry International prior to the PS4 launch last week.
"In a sense, we're doing great because we're not losing billions with the launch of PS4," Yoshida said. "In fact, we're pretty much breakeven in this launch year of PS4..."

http://www.gamesindustry.biz/article...ardware-report

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PS4 system update 1.51 coming soon

November 20th, 2013, 21:54 Posted By: wraggster

Sony will release PS4 system update 1.51 imminently.
According to Eric Lempel, VP of Sony Network Entertainment, the mandatory update improves system software stability and makes small UI refinements "such as clearly indicating when a user downloads a game and a game patch at the same time".
Lempel also notes that automatic downloads for system and game updates are enabled by default when PS4 is in stand-by mode.
PS4 launched in North America on November 15 ahead of the European and Latin American PS4 release date of November 29. PS4 sales hit one million units in the console's first 24 hours of availability.

http://www.computerandvideogames.com...1-coming-soon/

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Assassin's Creed 4 DLC: Blackbeard's Wrath outed

November 20th, 2013, 21:53 Posted By: wraggster

An upcoming Assassin's Creed 4 DLC pack entitled Blackbeard's Wrath has been leaked.
According to the game's trophy list on PS3Trophies, Blackbeard's Wrath will be a new expansion offering three silver trophies and a bronze one.
Of greater note are the trophies' descriptions, which reveal that players will be able to play as Blackbeard, The Jaguar and The Orchid. They read as follows:

• Sacred Land - Playing as The Jaguar, be the highest scoring player of a Domination game session.
• Queen Anne's Revenge - Playing as Blackbeard, perform an acrobatic kill and a gun kill in less than 10 seconds.
• Preemptive Strike - Playing as The Orchid, block 10 abilities from opponents with Sabotage.
• Elevator to the Gallows - Kill a player using a lift that has been trapped with Booby Trap

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EU PS Store: RPG sale offers discounts on Skyrim, Deus Ex, Defiance

November 20th, 2013, 21:52 Posted By: wraggster

Sony has kicked off a role-playing game sale on the PlayStation Store, offering discounts on PS3 titles including Demon's Souls and Deus Ex: Human Revolution, and Vita offerings such as Rainbow Moon and the RPG Classic Collection.
Here's the full list of discounts:

• Atelier Ayesha: The Alchemist of Dusk - Was €49.99/£39.99, now €19.99/£15.99
• Dead Island (Game of the Year Edition) - Was €19.99/£15.99, now €9.99/£7.99
• Defiance - Was €39.99/£29.99, now €19.99/£14.99
• Defiance (Deluxe Edition) - Was €69.99/£55.99, now €25.19/£20.15
• Demon's Souls - Was €19.99/£15.99, now €9.99/£7.99
• Deus Ex: Human Revolution Complete Edition - Was €24.99/£19.99, now €19.99/£15.99
• Deus Ex - Was €9.99/£7.99, now €3.99/£3.19
• Dungeon Defenders - Was €9.99/£7.99, now €4.99/£3.99
• Faery: Legends of Avalon - Was €7.99/£6.49, now €3.99/£3.24
• Game of Thrones - Was €19.99/£15.99, now €9.99/£7.99
• Of Orcs and Men - Was €19.99/£15.99, now €9.99/£7.99
• Rainbow Moon - Was €12.99/£9.99, now €4.93/£3.79
• RPG Classic Collection (PSP/Vita, inc. Half Minute Hero and Blazing Souls Accelate) - Was €24.99/£19.99, now €14.99/£11.99
• The Elder Scrolls V: Dawnguard - Was €16.99/£12.99, now €7.98/£6.10
• The Elder Scrolls V: Hearthfire - Was €4.99/£3.99, now €2.49/£1.99
• The Elder Scrolls V: Dragonborn - Was €16.99/£12.99; now €7.98/£6.10
• Two Worlds II (VELVET Game of the Year Edition + Defense DLC) - Was €34.99/£28.49, now €19.94/£16.23

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Customers buying PS4 with an average of 3 games, says EA exec

November 20th, 2013, 21:50 Posted By: wraggster

Customers purchasing PS4s are buying the console with an average of three games, according to Electronic Arts CFO Blake Jorgensen.
Speaking at the UBS Global Technology Conference on Tuesday, Jorgensen said one third of those games are EA titles.
"We had a great weekend relative to the console," he said, accordingGamasutra. "It looks like the average consumer tie-ratio was about three pieces of software per console, which is exactly what we [projected]... And it looks like one out of every three pieces of software was coming out of Electronic Arts."
EA's next-gen launch window games are FIFA 14, Madden NFL 25, NBA Live 14, Battlefield 4 and Need for Speed Rivals.
Jorgensen went on to say EA's primary concern "is making sure there's enough product in the stores" because "obviously consumers want to buy software to go with the new boxes".
During the same presentation, Jorgensen said he expects Titanfall to become a series of games, but that it has yet to be decided which platforms potential sequels will be released on.

http://www.computerandvideogames.com...-says-ea-exec/

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Vita TV and God Eater 2 boost Sony handheld sales in Japan

November 20th, 2013, 21:46 Posted By: wraggster

Vita shot to the top of the hardware sales rankings in Japan during the week ended November 17.
Weekly sales of the handheld more than quadrupled, driven by the release of popular new software and Vita TV, which accounted for around half of all Vita sales, according to Media Create data republished on NeoGAF.
The Vita version on Namco's God Eater 2 stormed the software chart with 265,000 sales. The PS3 subtitled edition of Call of Duty Ghosts debuted at No.2 with 190,000 sales, while the PS3 version of PES 2014 entered at No.3 with 150,000 sales.

http://www.computerandvideogames.com...ales-in-japan/

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Call of Duty: Ghosts is 'best-selling PS4 game at US retail', claims publisher

November 20th, 2013, 21:40 Posted By: wraggster

Activision has claimed that Call of Duty: Ghosts is the best-selling PS4 game "in retail sales" in North America.
In an announcement on Wednesday, the publisher said the game has topped "retail sales on the new platform", which launched November 15.
CEO Eric Hirshberg goes on to say, more specifically, "Call of Duty: Ghosts is the No. 1 best-selling game on PS4 in North America at Best Buy, GameStop, Target and Walmart."
The firm held off releasing hard sales figures, and it's unclear if its claim of being the top-selling game in "retail sales" accounts for all retail across US or specifically just the aforementioned retailers.
It also doesn't account for digital sales via the US PlayStation Store, which has offered the full game - and most of the PS4's launch titles - since November 15. A digital version of CoD: Ghosts is also offered viaSony's cross-gen upgrade program to those who purchased a PS3 version of the game.
Activision also reports that the game is the "no. 1 pre-ordered Xbox One title in North America" at the same retailers, again not accounting for complete pre-orders across all outlets. The Xbox One version arrives alongside the console this Friday.
The company said earlier this month that retailers spent over $1 billion worldwide to secure Call of Duty: Ghosts stock for launch day. While Activision Blizzard CEO Bobby Kotick said it was "too early to assess" sell-through to consumers, he suggested the game's release came at a time "when the franchise has never been more popular".

http://www.computerandvideogames.com...ims-publisher/

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One in three PS4 games sold is made by EA

November 20th, 2013, 21:13 Posted By: wraggster

One game in every three sold for PS4 is made by EA, neighed the EA horse itself.That's either Battlefield 4, FIFA 14, the excellent Need for Speed: Rivals, Madden NFL 25 or NBA Live 14. Not a bad spread, really."We had a great weekend of sales relative to the console that looks like the average consumer tie ratio is about three pieces of software, which is exactly what we thought, and because our super-slate that we've got out there looks like one of every three pieces of software was coming out of Electronic Arts," whinnied chief financial officer Blake J. Jorgensen at the UBS Global Technology Conference, transcript by Seeking Alpha."So we're really excited. And essentially [our] biggest worry now is making sure there is enough product in the stores, because the consumers obviously want to buy a software to go with the new boxes."This is a smug horse.

On the topic of the "Gen4" consoles - the new ones - as he called them, Jorgensen remarked that people don't really understand how powerful they are yet."The market is very excited but I still think the consumer doesn't fully appreciate the power of the new consoles," he said. "They're 10-times more powerful than the last consoles, and until you actually get on and play a game like Battlefield, where you've got the depths of the game and the multiplayer component playing against 64 other people... It's an exciting experience."And I don't think the consumer really appreciates that yet because they haven't had a chance to do it. And so you'll see over the next six months consumers gravitating to the new consoles because of that excitement."This excitement will be multiplied in the years to come as developers start to really understand and push the new hardware.But Jorgensen was clear that EA will not give up on "Gen3" - current generation - consoles in the process, and will make games for PS3 and Xbox 360 for "many years to come"."Clearly the excitement and challenges are having to do both last-generation and new-generation at the same time," he said. "Doing a new-generation set of titles is always going to be a challenge, but we're trying to also produce Gen3 titles and we'll be producing Gen3 titles for many years to come."And we think that the consumer will continue to buy. And we don't know what the prices of Gen3 boxes will be after the new console roll-out, but I'm assuming that they'll start to come down over time and that may bring new people into the market."You can't put all your talent on Gen4: you've still got to develop good Gen3 games, and we're trying to make sure that we have a great experience for consumers across all platforms."

http://www.eurogamer.net/articles/20...-is-made-by-ea

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Thanksgiving-themed Borderlands 2 DLC arrives next week

November 20th, 2013, 20:52 Posted By: wraggster

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Does the Call of Duty: Ghosts PS4 patch fix everything?

November 20th, 2013, 20:50 Posted By: wraggster

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New software 'enhances' PS4 Camera's full-body motion tracking

November 20th, 2013, 01:02 Posted By: wraggster

New middleware from gesture recognition software firm SoftKinetic is said to "enhance" the full-body motion tracking capabilities of the PS4's PlayStation Camera, allowing it to "compete directly with Kinect".
The 'iisu' development package is capable of tracking the movements of four players at once, and is the tech powering Ubisoft's dance game, Just Dance 2014, on PS4.
Just Dance 2014 is "just the beginning of the types of games that can be created using iisu in conjunction with the PlayStation Camera", said a rep speaking with CVG.
"The 3D gesture recognition capabilities provided by iisu give PS4 game developers the ability to create a wide variety of virtual and augmented reality games, and allows PS4 to compete directly with Kinect yet at a better price point," they added.
Sony's sold-separately PlayStation Camera for PS4 features two camera lenses in a stereoscopic array, and serves as an upgraded version of the single-lens PlayStation Eye sold for PS3 and PS2. It detects body motion as well as pin-point detection of the lightbar across the top of the PS4's DualShock 4 controller.
Microsoft's Xbox One console will come packaged with a new Kinect sensor bar, which features a more sophisticated array of motion-detecting sensors and cameras.
Sony has reported sales of 1 million PS4s in its first 24 hours on sale in North America and Canada, where it launched on November 15. The console launches in EU on November 29.

http://www.computerandvideogames.com...tion-tracking/

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Sony details PS4 digital upgrade instructions

November 20th, 2013, 01:00 Posted By: wraggster

Sony has provided detailed instructions on how to upgrade select PS3 titles to their PS4 equivalents.
Owners of the PS3 version of Assassin's Creed 4: Black Flag, Call Of Duty: Ghosts and Battlefield 4 are able to upgrade to the digital PS4 versions for a heavily discounted price.
The upgrade offer applies to both disc-based and digital versions of the games in question. Players with the disc version will need to put the PS3 disc in the PS4 console in order to play the next-gen version of the game. The full instructions are as follows:

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Broken PS4s exchanged immediately via Sony support line

November 20th, 2013, 00:59 Posted By: wraggster

All faulty PS4 exchanges conducted through Sony's official support line are made immediately with expedited shipping, Sony confirmed on Tuesday.
Though the company has said less than 1 percent of all systems are suffering from "Blue Light of Death" or other issues which render them unusable, Sony told Game Informer that it is working quickly to rectify any issues customers may encounter.
It's good news for owners who may have difficulty exchanging the systems at retail, where record-breaking PS4 sales have left many stores' shelves bare. Sony Computer Entertainment CEO Andrew House believes PS4 will be back in good supply throughout the holiday season.
The next-gen system launched in the US and Canada on Nov. 15 for $399.99. Sony's North American arm said on Monday that one million PS4 consoles were sold to consumers within 24 hours of release, andthat it recorded "by far the largest launch in gaming history in Canada".
PS4 will hit Europe, Australia, and Brazil on Nov. 29.

http://www.computerandvideogames.com...-support-line/

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PS4 biggest launch in Canadian gaming history, says Sony

November 20th, 2013, 00:44 Posted By: wraggster

Sony Canada exec Steve Turvey also notes importance of maintaining brand loyalty for "extremely small" number with defective PS4s
Sony Computer Entertainment

Sony Computer Entertainment is a Japanese videogame company specialising in a variety of areas in the...
playstation.com


Last Thursday night, Sony Computer Entertainment Canada VP and GM Steve Turvey was in Toronto to officially sell the first PlayStation 4 in Canada. As he told GamesIndustry International, it was just the first of many that night.
"The launch was a huge success by any standard of measurement. It was by far the largest launch in gaming history in Canada, and we were really thrilled by the execution, but mostly the response by PlayStation fans and consumers," Turvey said.
Turvey might have a unique perspective on that "largest launch in gaming history" issue, having been a part of numerous big ones himself. He's been at Sony for the launches of the PS Vita, PS3, and PSP, but his experience goes back even further than that. In the mid-'90s, he worked at Sega of Canada during the launch of the Sega Saturn, and moved to Nintendo of Canada in time for the Nintendo 64 to hit shelves. That said, he's confident he'll be able to back that "largest launch" claim with numbers instead of anecdotal evidence pulled from his career history.
"We launched more units than we have ever in any console launch across any platform at any time, and by far the most," Hervey said. "Three times, four times as much as we've done historically, and still demand seems to be unsated."
"When you have 1 million-plus people hooking up within a very small window of time, I think there are some inevitable hiccups that will occur."
Steve Turvey

Outside of a few reserved consoles that had yet to be picked up, Turvey said PS4s were completely sold through in Canada. And while the executive would love to see that demand continue to exceed the supply for a long time to come, Turvey said Sony Canada is working to make sure there are more systems hitting shelves on a weekly basis.
"We have a nice healthy supply of inventory that we'll continue to flow into the marketplace, and we hope that demand continues," Turvey said.
Turvey wouldn't break out attach rates for games or accessories, but he did say both have been strong. Sony is "excited" about the performance of Killzone: Shadow Fall, while fellow first-party title Knack is off to a solid start, Turvey said, with expectations that it will gain momentum heading into the holidays as a family friendly title well suited to gift-giving. DualShock 4 controllers have also been attaching well, and while he didn't discuss its performance, the PS4 camera peripheral impressed Turvey on a personal level.
Steve Turvey with Erin Harewood, the first person in Canada to buy a PS4.

"I was not dismissive of the camera," Turvey said, "but it wasn't something I particularly thought I really needed. But now that I've had the camera hooked up, I love it and I think it's pretty integral to the experience. And I think more and more consumers will figure that out for themselves."
Not everything went smoothly at launch, however. The PlayStation Network struggled under the user load for a portion of the launch weekend, and reports of defective hardware have not been difficult to find.
"Day One is certainly very important, but maybe too much emphasis is placed on it. The long-term success is built over time."
Steve Turvey

Of the network performance, Turvey said, "We're never entirely satisfied when you have any hiccups. But when you have 1 million-plus people hooking up within a very small window of time, I think there are some inevitable hiccups that will occur. But when you look at the amount of people going online at once compared to those who had any issues, it was a very small percentage. And the network seemed to handle the additional volume really very well."
As for the hardware issues, Turvey didn't believe they were widespread problems.
"You never want to make it inconsequential, but if it's a problem at all, I think it must be extremely small," Turvey said. "Of course, we always do our best to rectify any issue and have a large customer service team on standby taking calls...Brand loyalty is not something we take lightly, and much of that comes from how we handle our issues with our customers."
As happy as he was with the PS4 launch, Turvey said that when you're hoping to have a system around for the long haul, the importance of launch day is somewhat diminished.
"It's great when something is received well by your customer base on day one and out of the gate," Turvey said. "And when you have day-one demand, it's exciting to be a part of. But as we've been through other iterations of PlayStation, the lifecycle is a long one. We've prided ourselves on sort of future proofing many of our consoles and building future technology into them so that it is in your living room and capable and functional seven to 10 years from now. So while launch is important, it's not everything...Day One is certainly very important, but maybe too much emphasis is placed on it. The long-term success is built over time. You see PlayStation 3, many would suggest it struggled out of the gate, and yet 80 million homes worldwide now are enjoying it, so it would prove to be a success."

http://www.gamesindustry.biz/article...gaming-history

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