May 3, 2012May 3, 2012

PlayStation Blogcast 023: Top Marks for God of War: Ascension and Black Ops 2

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Did you know that many of the most creative, influential people in gaming are named “Mark?” Neither did I… until this week. In this episode, we dive deep into God of War: Ascension‘s multiplayer and gameplay innovations with Sony Santa Monica Studio Lead Designer Mark Simon, and then get the lowdown on Call of Duty: Black Ops 2‘s surprising new direction with Treyarch‘s studio head Mark Lamia.

We’ll also talk PlayStation All-Stars: Battle Royale, for we have beheld it, and are already formulating strategies. Then we cast Nick off with a tearful, beardy goodbye, as he’s undertaking a month-long pilgrimage to his South African homeland.

As always, we’ve got the facts you crave: new PSN releases, user questions and tips, and which PlayStation game character Rey is dating now. Do join us!

The Cast

Sid Shuman – PlayStation Sr. Social Media Specialist

Jeff Rubenstein – PlayStation Sr. Social Media Manager

Nick Suttner – PlayStation Sr. Product Evaluator

Rey Gutierrez – PlayStation Sr. Social Media Specialist

[Editor’s note: PSN game release dates are subject to change without notice. Game
details are gathered from press releases from their individual publishers and/or ESRB rating
descriptions.]

Thanks to Cory Schmitz for our beautiful logo and Dormilón for our rad theme song and show music. Special thanks to Astro Gaming headsets for providing audio gear.

Comments are closed.

30 Comments

13 Author Replies

yazter
May 3, 2012 at 3:28 pm PDT

Any news on the Firmware to fix the Stereo Headset white noise? :/
- Jeff Rubenstein
  May 3, 2012 at 10:54 pm PDT
  
  Not since our most recent update, but when we have a final update, you’ll read it here.
C_Y_P_H_E_R
May 3, 2012 at 3:31 pm PDT

When it comes to Call of Duty, I’m only interested in the zombies on Black Ops 2. Funny how Activision/Treyarch leave that information out. Even funnier how it doesn’t have it isn’t a full fledged game itself sold separately. I totally broke my rule of not buying any more games for awhile and preordered a small list of them, God of War Ascension, The Last of Us, Starhawk, and Dragons Dogma (that being the only one I’m worried about since it’s by Capcom). I wish God of War had some looting by the way….orbs just aren’t enough.
- Jeff Rubenstein
  May 3, 2012 at 10:55 pm PDT
  
  They indicated to me that Zombies would be bigger in this game than in any previous Treyarch title. Expect to hear much more.
SolduNuts
May 3, 2012 at 3:45 pm PDT

Hey guys great job like always. I was wondering if SCEA was ever going to make an app for Android that would have everything to do with PlayStation in one easy to access place?

I also have a tip for Vita owners that also own an Android smart phone. Anybody who has both needs to go to the Android market and download Brian Wilson’s Vita AR Card app. Just search Vita AR Cards and you should find it. This app is exact replicas of the six cards that came with your Vita. Now you don’t have to carry the physical cards with you, just use your smart phone. It works just like if you have the cards and I have played the diving game and the fire works game using the app with no problems what so ever, but it does look funny using one piece of electronic to play another. Try it out guys and let me know if you like using the app better than the physical cards on the next podcast. Keep up the great work. This podcast makes doing chores a breeze.

Sold.
- Jeff Rubenstein
  May 3, 2012 at 10:55 pm PDT
  
  Nice tip, I’ll check out the app, thanks.
SolduNuts
May 3, 2012 at 3:47 pm PDT

Andrew Wilson not Brian… Sorry.

Sold.
LilWayneSuckz
May 3, 2012 at 3:51 pm PDT

Love the Podcast
- Jeff Rubenstein
  May 3, 2012 at 11:00 pm PDT
  
  I’m glad that you like us more than Lil Wayne.
RE_Player
May 3, 2012 at 4:02 pm PDT

Thanks for the podcast fellas. I’ll listen to it later while playing MK on Vita.
- Jeff Rubenstein
  May 3, 2012 at 11:00 pm PDT
  
  Well played.
Akibara12
May 3, 2012 at 4:04 pm PDT

Just finished listening to last week’s podcast and it was awesome. Apologies to Sid for giving him a hard time on pronouncing Rey’s last name :P

I have a question about Playstation All-Stars Battle Royale. Since we are going to see more PS1 one 1st party characters running around in the game like Parappa, what are chances of seeing third party exclusives from the PS1 era? I really want to see FF characters and Wanzers from Front mission duking it out :)

Hope to enjoy this new podcast :D
- Jeff Rubenstein
  May 3, 2012 at 11:02 pm PDT
  
  You know that Sid is very paranoid about saying Gutierrez now, right?
  
  Unfortunately, I’m not at liberty to even hint about other characters you’ll see in PS All-Stars. But the game, as I’ve played thus far, is quite awesome.
Kchow23
May 3, 2012 at 4:27 pm PDT

“We are pushing it as far as it can go, Captain! It can’t take no more” Great episode so far :)
- Jeff Rubenstein
  May 3, 2012 at 11:03 pm PDT
  
  :D
vanwinkle
May 3, 2012 at 4:51 pm PDT

Another great week full of content for Vita! Great job, guys!
martin29110
May 3, 2012 at 4:58 pm PDT

seen that your avatar was sly so got a question when will the release date be released and black ops 2 is going to suck because they are just trying to make money off the name and not even trying to make a good game i think that mw2 is the best COD game there is .. byut i stopped playing so i could beat infamous and the assians creed collection
- Jeff Rubenstein
  May 3, 2012 at 11:03 pm PDT
  
  I’ll be honest – I was cynical going into the Black Ops 2 session, and came away very, very impressed.
jbritt665
May 3, 2012 at 5:01 pm PDT

Hey Blogcast, I have listened to every episode so far and enjoying it. Several months ago, you mentioned the PlayStation iTunes app coming to iOs. What is the status of this release?
- Jeff Rubenstein
  May 3, 2012 at 11:04 pm PDT
  
  I haven’t been able to get a straight answer on a date. I apologize for saying it was a few weeks away and it didn’t happen. That was the info I had at the time.
JOKER909
May 3, 2012 at 5:04 pm PDT

WHATS UP WITH THE SONY 7.1 HEADSET BACK GROUND NOISE???
- Jeff Rubenstein
  May 3, 2012 at 11:05 pm PDT
  
  https://blog.playstation.com/2012/04/05/regarding-your-feedback-on-the-wireless-stereo-headset/
StealthReborn--
May 3, 2012 at 7:19 pm PDT

Jeff,

You’re not leaving Sony to become a model are you? =P
- Jeff Rubenstein
  May 3, 2012 at 11:04 pm PDT
  
  Not in this body.
fultz7
May 3, 2012 at 7:59 pm PDT

I have a question. I’ve noticed that platinum trophies for some games are much easier to get than others, some even taking significantly less time. While I get why they’re different for games geared towards kids (Hannah Montana and the like) versus a major title, but why does the discrepancy exist between two AAA titles? I know Sony doesn’t decide what the trophies are, but I’m just interested to know the developers’ thought process when deciding on trophies and thought you my could provide some insight.
- Jeff Rubenstein
  May 3, 2012 at 11:06 pm PDT
  
  That’s a good question for devs, and possibly a deeper story to write. I’ll keep it in mind for a future feature.
DazeOfWar
May 3, 2012 at 9:19 pm PDT

Really been loving the podcast. Last week you had pick Lead & Gold for the game of the week to check out. So I decided to redownload it since I got it form PS+ and give it another try. Well that pretty much fell flat because the online community is dead. I found one room with 5 people in it.

No big loss though as I have plenty of other games to play but at least I tried to check it out again. I’ll be listening to this show tomorrow. Can’t wait to hear about the great stuff you have listed.
- Jeff Rubenstein
  May 3, 2012 at 11:06 pm PDT
  
  Sorry to hear about that. I wonder if the other 5 people also listened to the podcast? We’ll be more careful about picking MP games moving forward.
Akibara12
May 4, 2012 at 5:57 am PDT

@Jeff: apologies again to Sid lol. Thanks for answering my question though. Guess all I have to do is be more hopeful that the characters I want will join the fray. Hell, 6 of them are already there :D. I do have one last question and it is regarding God of War Ascension. I love the fact that it is an origin/prequel story because we are seeing the human side of Kratos. I was wondering what are your comments on that? Do you guys like the idea? Do you guys feel like it would have been better if they just went with a direct sequel to 3 (since there was a huge cliffhanger)? Sound off Playstation Blogcast Crew!
LokeSTL
May 4, 2012 at 6:59 am PDT

Um….PSone Classics are still not working on my Vita! You guys getting close on this or what? Also, are we going to see more compatible PSP games added to the list soon? Would like to play some games I like while I’m waiting for devs to create/port new RPGs to this killer portable. I love this friggin’ thing, but I need more games. Know what I’m sayin’?
DZORMAGEN
May 4, 2012 at 7:24 am PDT

Jeff can you ask the people at Sony how they want us to play the games you and your wife make (Minis) if we can’t play them on the Vita? ;)
LilWayneSuckz
May 4, 2012 at 8:24 am PDT

The podcast will always be better than Lil Wayne
GreyLynx
May 4, 2012 at 12:10 pm PDT

Legend of Legaia
after HOURS of listening to that theme
Youtube watch?v=I0h1rw8wY0g
GreyLynx
May 4, 2012 at 12:12 pm PDT

Blah after HOURS of listening to that theme I know IT ANYWHERE
is what I meant to say`
Nick1228
May 4, 2012 at 2:09 pm PDT

Hi guys, Dormilon’s theme for the podcast is pretty awesome but the bass just blew out one of my speakers in my car coming back on from the ending God of War Ascension interview. I turned the bass to a minimum too knowing it has been like this each Podcast for me since I started listening. I’m not sure if it has this effect on other users but would it be possible to turn it down? Thanks for your time.
lPHOENIXZEROl
May 4, 2012 at 4:18 pm PDT

So Jeff, what happened the addition PSP games that were supposed to be added to the Vita? As you said in bold on February 9th, “more PSP titles will be made available for PS Vita play in the coming weeks.” Well, we’re well past the “coming weeks” point and into months now, almost three months since that post. It’s annoying to know that a lot of PSP games simply can’t be moved, not because the PSV’s emulator can’t play them as we know they can because other regions have access to them or some could be moved through the PS3 but because they’re not seen by the PITA that is Content Manager they’re unusable. Take for example Ys I&II which could be moved from PS3 to Vita if you bought it before the game’s price update, after that the store ID apparently changed you’re out of luck..

I know you’re just a PR guy and have no control over what actually happens but an update would be nice.
pa101902
May 4, 2012 at 4:34 pm PDT

Is it best to email a tip or can I submit in the comments. Wouldn’t mind trying to win something from the PSN store.
tinlun
May 5, 2012 at 9:56 am PDT

You guys mentioned an event in Toronto during the podcast and that you guys were going to be there. But all you said that it was happening in “Central Toronto”, that is a pretty vague description. I’ve tried checking facebook for details but can’t seem to find it on any official Playstation facebook pages (including Playstation Canada). What are the details on this event? I want to know if I’ll be able to go sometime after work. (Granted, if your event is taking place in Downtown Toronto)
TUSTIN1
May 5, 2012 at 11:08 am PDT

@25 Top right hand corner of the blog, there’s a search feature.

Step one: Type ‘Canada’
Step two: press .
TUSTIN1
May 5, 2012 at 11:09 am PDT

^ that should say press enter, LOL…
taurse
May 5, 2012 at 7:58 pm PDT

Love the podcast. Any thoughts to a space on the store to hilite you gem of the week?
ToKKeNbL00dMoNeY
May 6, 2012 at 3:38 pm PDT

god of war looks great but when i say the call of duty black ops 2 trailer i pretty much laughed myself to death lol, cod 4 was very good, world at war was ok, mw2 rocked, black ops was the bomb and still is, and mw3 is pretty fun, but black ops 2 is just a joke, i seriously cant see this series going any further cuz their definitly scraping the crums off the floor for this game.
killyscg
May 7, 2012 at 10:38 pm PDT

i’m a little nervous about black ops 2 this will be the first call of duty title to be based in the future im really happy to hear they kept zombies…new people or the good ol gang from WAW, i hope the campaign will be better than black ops 1 i guess the whole brain washing thing isn’t my idea of a cod game it just seemed wierd. world at war was their best campaign online was better than black ops because it felt like i was playing MW2 just with different weapons and on different maps sure waw has it’s flaws my big thing is the tanks WHY??? weapon damage was ok made it more realistic and now sadly of course all the hackers.