Sid Shuman (he/him)
Senior Director, Sony Interactive Entertainment Content Communications
5Author Replies
It’s another lazy spring Saturday, and once again I’m battling hay fever — as well as a few rampaging supervillians, now that I’ve found some time to catch up with Batman: Arkham City. This week saw a smattering of interesting developments: I spoke with NIS America about three upcoming PS3 exclusive RPGs, MLB 12 The Show served up a fresh set of fantasy predictions, Assassin’s Creed III’s creative director answered our questions (and guest starred on PlayStation Blogcast!), MLB.TV gave an opening-day update, BioShock Infinite unleashed the Siren, and the team behind Wheels of Destruction showed off a new multiplayer class and the game’s weapon loadout.
In other news, PAX East kicks into gear late next week! And while Jeff, Rey and I won’t be on-site this year, we will be keeping close tabs on any pertinent new game details that may slip out of the community-focused event.
Most-Watched Video of the Week: No Man’s Land in PlayStation Home
The 10 Most-Viewed Posts of the Week
PlayStation Store Update — Spring Fever brings puzzle-platformer Closure and Tom Clancy discounts, FIFA Soccer 12 comes to PS3 full games, Supremacy MMA hits PS Vita, the PlayMemories Studio app launches for PS3 and more.
I’m playing: Resistance 2, League of Legends
I’m watching: Mad Men season 2
I’m reading: Diablo 3 – Book of Cain
I’m listening to: PSN Blogcast, Beastie Boys
Great week! I’m looking forward to the next Uncharted 3 patch (1.08)!!
have you heard about the orbis rumor? exciting but used games may not exist in the result o f it and the next xbox. oh well, playstation 4 (so called orbis) should impress us since the ps3 “does everything” lol. we’ll see.
Hey Sid, can you look into why X-Men First Class is missing from the Canadian video store? It hasn’t been there for weeks. It even shows up as a link in some ad screens but the link doesn’t go anywhere. I want to rent it!
I’m a rent-to-buy guy myself. I rent games, play them for several days, and then buy the ones that have a long enough shelf life for my liking. The problem with the Orbis’s rumored game-locking feature is that it would not allow me to rent games before spending $60 for a purchase. If I am unable to try games in some substantial way before I buy them, there is no way I can justify buying Sony’s next console, particularly for the exorbitant amount that it will surely cost for that level of bleeding-edge technology. And that’s absolutely tragic, since I have been loving the PS3.
Thats a fake rumor. Its a lie. If sony or MS EVER did that it would be suicide. No used games would mean the death of consoles, as NOBODY is gonna pay retail for EVERY game, plus if it has that, it would mean you MUST have internet. If this is real, PS4 and Xbox 720 will flop 100% surely.
actually the rumor is that players wont have full access to the game if its rented or borrowed. kind of like a lot of games out right now where u have to buy the online pass if u rent it or buy it used. i don’t get why people are making a big deal. its been like this for a while. as for me, i cant wait for what new features the next generation PlayStation will bring. PS. Are there people with no internet? really?
i see your point crogers and hope it is fake but i’ve been suprised before so be prepared for the unexpected. companies such as gamefly will have some trouble too if this rumor is true. i hope the best for the next generation consoles because i’m content with this generation’s consoles (ps3). we’ll have to wait and see. i expect ps4/orbis to be out with 2013-2015 which isn’t too far off!!
I am Playing: Yakuza Dead Souls, I am not sure why it got bad reviews. I think some of the people who review these games, just aren’t any good. How hard is it to adapt to a new control scheme?
I am Watching: Grimm, Fringe, and a few others
I can’t wait for the Doctor Who game. I hope it comes out soon, and that they offer a bundle for both
PS3/PS Vita.
Yeah, haven’t heard an update from the Doctor Who guys recently, but last I heard it was tracking for April. I’ll connect with James Gallagher from our EU Blog to try and get to the bottom of it!
Understandable policy on rumors and speculations aside, a system that utilizes a preowned software countermeasure as described in the rumor would be a system I would not be interested in purchasing, even with the bulk of my gaming library having been purchased new.
Such disenfranchising of the poorer or thriftier persons in the playerbase smacks of a flavor of greed I won’t abide in any product feeding on the electrical supply of my home.
I will take all of my business to Steam and not think twice about it. They’re very good folks, there. Lots of sales. Great software support. Better pricing across the board.
The rumor that worries me most its the lack of PS3 BC compatibility….if thats true.. then the PS4 will flop. I bough My ps3 with BC bc its important. I wont change my fatty Lovable ps3 for any slim.
On the PS4 rumors, my thoughts:
1) No used games. I personally support this idea, gamestop makes a huge profit margin off of what is essentially a Sony (or microsoft or activision or whoever) product.
2) No backwards compatibility. From what i understand the PS4 is using a core processor in order to make multi-platform games run better. The Cell type processor in the PS3 is so different from the xbox 360 that when games are made on 360 and ported to ps3, lazy developers don’t make them run properly. They are changing to a core processor, which will not run the games made to work on cell, ergo back campat, it impossible.
My 2 cents
There has always been a second-hand market and any company that attempts to count those products as lost sales is cooking their numbers. You don’t get to lose money you never had.
The problem isn’t the second-hand market, it’s that games of dubious quality insist on being $59.99 across the board. The modern problem also involves a lack of price adjustment for non-resalable, non-physical digital media. It seriously takes some stones to tell anyone that they should be paying the same price for a digital product as they would for the same physical product in a store, when the digital product is nigh infinitely reproducable, involves no substantial shipping and handling, and no physical product, involving the storage media production, disc printing, or packaging materials such as box copy, inserts, and cases.
And I am so, so freakin’ sick of Sony for refusing to acknowledge this. They are straight up gouging their customer base.
I’m more excited for Lazy Sunday – http://www.thelonelyisland.com/video/lazy-sunday
I’m playing: Resistance 2, League of Legends
I’m watching: Mad Men season 2
I’m reading: Diablo 3 – Book of Cain
I’m listening to: PSN Blogcast, Beastie Boys
Great week! I’m looking forward to the next Uncharted 3 patch (1.08)!!
have you heard about the orbis rumor? exciting but used games may not exist in the result o f it and the next xbox. oh well, playstation 4 (so called orbis) should impress us since the ps3 “does everything” lol. we’ll see.
*typo*
used games may not exist in the near future because of the ps4 & the next xbox
Hey Sid, can you look into why X-Men First Class is missing from the Canadian video store? It hasn’t been there for weeks. It even shows up as a link in some ad screens but the link doesn’t go anywhere. I want to rent it!
Weird. Wish I knew how to pass this info along, other than this: http://www.playstation.ca/contact.aspx