It’s hard to believe that Resistance 3 is coming out next week! It’s been an amazing journey for those of us at Insomniac Games, we’ve spent the last three years ensuring this is our most polished, focused, and consistent entry in the Resistance franchise. We’re very excited to share it with you. As we get close to release, it’s time to show you our very last Dev Diary – this one focused on the high-tech weapons created or influenced by the Chimeran invaders. We were extremely pleased to work in collaboration with the PlayStation.Blog on these diaries, and we hope you love them as much as we do.

As you may know by now, the Resistance 3 Multiplayer Beta is winding down on September 4th, but we wanted to get one last blast of testing on our servers, so we’ve made the beta available to all on the PlayStation Store. We also wanted to acknowledge that while the R3 beta wasn’t always smooth sailing, we totally appreciated those of you who helped us test the game and stuck with us through the rough patches. We’ve announced a Beta Player Appreciation program – if you download and play a few rounds of the Resistance 3 Beta before it ends on September 4th, you’ll receive a couple of cool rewards for the final game. Check out our announcement about the Beta player appreciation program for more details. We’ll be continuing to update and tweak Resistance 3 with new patches and updates, as well as DLC in the coming weeks, so stay tuned.

That’s all for now, we have a few more exciting things to show you here on the PlayStation.Blog in the next couple of days, so keep coming back for more. And in the meantime, check out all the latest breaking news on Resistance 3 by following Insomniac Games on Twitter, Liking us on Facebook, or joining the conversation at MyResistance.net.

In celebration of our gold announcement, we wanted to give you the first look at a brand new gameplay trailer from Resistance 3. For those of you who have followed R3 since the announcement of the game at GamesCom last year, this trailer brings things full circle. I don’t want to spoil it, so take a look below:

Hope you enjoyed the trailer, and now that we’ve gone gold, we thought this would be a good time to mention that we’ve packed the disc full of extra goodies. When you pick up your copy of Resistance 3, you’ll also be getting access to playable PlayStation demos for titles like Killzone 3, MotorStorm Apocalypse (both in 2D and 3D!) and inFAMOUS 2, as well as a host of trailers and developer videos from some of your favorite PlayStation titles, including UNCHARTED 3: Drake’s Deception, Starhawk, God of War: Origins, and SOCOM 4. We’re also sprinkling in lots of content from our friends over at Sony Pictures and Sony Music, including movie trailers and music videos from leading artists like Ozzy Osbourne, Incubus, Foo Fighters, and AC/DC. So lots of good stuff to check out.

We hope you’re ready for the game’s launch on 09.06.11 and have got your copy pre-ordered! In the meantime, to stay up to date on all the latest news and updates about Resistance 3, be sure to follow us on Twitter or join the conversation at MyResistance.Net.

See you in the beta!

Many of you have been getting very excited about the chance to play Resistance 3′s competitive multiplayer modes online when the Resistance 3 Public Beta launches. Today, we’re happy to give some additional info about the launch dates for the beta.

For those of you who have received Early Access to the Public Beta via specially marked packages of SOCOM 4, we will be opening the beta to you at some point on Thursday, August 4th. Your existing codes will be able to be redeemed via the PlayStation Store and the Redeem Code button. PlayStation Plus subscribers in the U.S. will also be invited to join the beta beginning on August 23rd. If you’re a subscriber, all you’ll have to do is navigate to the PlayStation Plus section of the PlayStation Store to download the beta.

The Resistance 3 Beta includes two of our major maps in the game, the Seaside of Glamorgan, Wales, as well as a Trainyard in Bogota, Colombia. The Public Beta includes two of our five multiplayer modes, Team Deathmatch and Chain Reaction (the other three are Deathmatch, Breach, and Capture the Flag). You can level your character up, buy and upgrade weapons and abilities, customize your loadouts and unlock new character skins. We have capped the level in the beta at 20, so you won’t be able to get the full range of abilities, modes, maps, and weapons until the game launches in September, but we hope you enjoy this taste of the experience while helping us test our online infrastructure.

The beta will continue beyond the Early Access period, and we’ll be announcing additional ways to get in as we get closer to Resistance 3′s launch date. Can’t wait for Early Access? Some of our media partners will be giving out codes next week that will let you join the beta a couple of days early. We’ll also be giving out some early codes on our Twitter and Facebook account, so follow or Like us!

That’s all for now! We look forward to playing against you in the Resistance 3 Multiplayer Beta next week.

Wow, this was a massive week for UNCHARTED 3! We kicked off the week on Monday by updating the available gametypes in the UNCHARTED 3 Multiplayer Beta to provide more variety from the prior week.

Then, starting Tuesday, the UNCHARTED 3 Multiplayer Beta was opened up for wide PSN access. The Beta is totally free and available from now until July 14th – there’s no excuse not to hop in and play at least a few matches!

One day after the Beta went fully public, we passed one million unique players in the UNCHARTED 3 Multiplayer Beta. Not only that, but the player count is growing with each passing day! We couldn’t be prouder of our community coming out in such numbers to play in the Uncharted 3 Multiplayer Beta.

Next week is the FINAL week in the Beta – we’ll be shutting down the servers on Thursday, July 14th – so be sure to get your fill of UNCHARTED 3 before it goes away for a few months. This will also be your last week to hit the requirements to receive the rewards we’re offering that will be active for the retail version of UNCHARTED 3 — rewards such as UNCHARTED 3 PSN Beta Tester Avatar, Treasure Hunter’s Starter Pack, in-game cash on day one and more.

On Sunday, July 10th, we’ll be updating the available gametypes and maps in the UNCHARTED 3 Multiplayer Beta according to the schedule we released. We’ll be adding the never-before-seen Yemen map and it will be your first opportunity to play Co-op Adventure!

Don’t forget to visit the UNCHARTED 3 Multiplayer Beta feedback forum and leave us your thoughts on the Beta and any issues you may have encountered. We’re counting on you to help us make the UNCHARTED 3 Multiplayer experience the best it can be!

Plus, head to your local SUBWAY restaurant in October for an exclusive opportunity to get access to the FULL UNCHARTED 3 Multiplayer experience BEFORE UNCHARTED 3 is released! We’ll give you full details here on the PlayStation.Blog closer to October.

We’re exceptionally excited as today is the day the UNCHARTED 3 Multiplayer Beta becomes available to everyone on PSN! By the end of today, anyone and everyone with access to the PlayStation Store should be able to view and download the UNCHARTED 3 Multiplayer Beta – no codes required!

As we head into the second week of the UNCHARTED 3 Beta, we’re updating the available gametypes to the following:

July 4 to July 9

Gametypes: Team Deathmatch, Free For All, Team Objective, Hardcore, Co-op Hunter Maps: Airstrip, Chateau

You’ll notice Team Objective and Co-op Hunter as new additions for this week. I’ve been liking the Co-op Hunter gametype lately – the twist of adding in human players into what seems to be a Co-op mode is quite intriguing. You can catch some clips of Co-op Hunter in action in the video below, or on our YouTube channel:

Along with the update to the available gametypes, we’ve updated the video playlist for UNCHARTED TV to add one awesome fan created video. We’re always on the lookout for great fan created content – if you’ve got something in the works, drop us a line on the UNCHARTED 3 Fan Created Content forum on NaughtyDog.com.

You’ll also want to check out yesterday’s IGN article as they caught up with Robert Cogburn, our multiplayer game designer, to get a temperature check on the first week of the Beta – and what’s the deal with players leveling far beyond the level cap of 25 originally mentioned back when the Beta started. Robert also revealed the astounding 600,000 unique players that participated in the first week of the Beta – we’re looking forward to seeing that number grow quite a bit now that the Beta is available as a public download!

If you didn’t catch the patch notes last week and were wondering what was contained within the UNCHARTED 3 Multiplayer Beta 1.01 patch, we’ve listed all of the updates below:

Relevant minor updates prior to 1.01

• Temporarily removed Plunder gametype from matchmaking
• Added in Free For All to replace Plunder
• Temporarily disabled Facebook integration

Gameplay

• Removed Yemen from map rotation in Free For All. Yemen will return during its regularly scheduled week.
• Temporarily removed Cursed from Power Play rotation.

Technical

• Fixed issue where a crash would occur when backing out of multiplayer.
• Fixed frequent slowing of framerate that could lead to the Beta freezing.
• Fixed a crash involving Emblems.

Don’t forget to leave your feedback on the Beta in the UNCHARTED 3 Multiplayer Beta Discussion forum – we want to hear your likes, your dislikes and any issues you have experienced. We’re counting on our community to be extremely vocal to help us shape the UNCHARTED 3 Multiplayer experience to be one of the best!

When can I start playing?
Tuesday, June 28, for all inFAMOUS 2 and current PlayStation Plus members, who all get early access to the UNCHARTED 3 Multiplayer Beta.

If you’re not an owner of inFAMOUS 2 or a current PlayStation Plus member, we’re opening the floodgates to the UNCHARTED 3 Multiplayer Beta for EVERYONE on Tuesday, July 5.

What time EXACTLY can I start playing?
When the PlayStation Store updates today. While we can’t guarantee an exact time the UNCHARTED 3 Multiplayer Beta will likely start propagating on the PSN Stores around the world at around 2:00 PM PDT (what time is that in my city?).

It may not be available right at that time, as there are a lot of things involved into making this happen, so please be patient if you don’t spot it immediately. Keep an eye out on the Naughty Dog Twitter and we’ll update as soon as we know it’s gone live.

When does the Beta end?
The UNCHARTED 3 Multiplayer Beta will end on Thursday, July 14.

What modes and maps are available?
Throughout the three weeks of the Beta, we’ll be rotating through a variety competitive and co-op gametypes, along with access to three different maps.

Wait, what’s the Hardcore gametype and why haven’t I heard about this yet?
We’re revealing a brand new competitive gametype with today’s update – one that has been specifically requested by many members in our community!

The Hardcore gametype is Team Deathmatch stripped down to the core basics – no Boosters, no Medal Kickbacks, and no Power Plays. Weapon Mods are still available – be sure to head to the UNCHARTED 3 Multiplayer Beta discussion forum and let us know what you think about how Weapon Mods feel within this gametype, along with anything else that you want to tell us!

Can you tell me more about a specific gametype or map?
Since we revealed our first look at UNCHARTED 3 multiplayer back in April, we’ve put together a bunch of videos that provide a good sneak peek at the majority of what is included in the Multiplayer Beta. We’ve compiled those videos into a handy UNCHARTED 3 Multiplayer YouTube playlist embedded below:

Can you tell me about any of the Boosters, Medal Kickbacks, and Weapon I can expect in the Beta?
Sure thing! Here goes…

Weapon Mods

• Accuracy
• Blindfire Accuracy (Co-op only)
• Call Out
• Clip Size
• Max Ammo
• Reload Speed
• Scope Zoom (Co-op only)

Will Power Plays be active? What weapons will I have? What characters can I choose to play with? Will I be able to customize them? And Emblems?
Power Plays are active, so if you’re in a match that is decidedly lopsided, you’ll get to experience it. As far as weapons, we’ve got a good range of sidearms and long guns to use and unlock in the beta, such as the AK-47, G-MAL, Para – 9, M9 and more! You’ll only get to choose between a few characters, but you’ll have access to a limited set of customization options to personalize your character on both the Heroes and Villains team. You can also check out our Emblem editor and create your own custom emblems.

Can I play in Stereoscopic 3D and/or use split-screen?
YES! Yes, you can. But not at the same time.

Can I see my Facebook Friends list?
Yes, all of your Facebook Friends that have linked their Facebook account via their PS3 will appear on the Facebook Friends list in our multiplayer menu. Feel free to send them an invite to play the UNCHARTED 3 Beta!

Can I upload videos and photos to Facebook or YouTube?
No, that functionality is not available during the Beta.

Will my Beta progress or unlocks carry over to the final game?
No, what happens in the UNCHARTED 3 Multiplayer Beta stays in the Beta, however we’ve lined up some killer rewards for the retail version of UNCHARTED 3 if you keep playing in the Beta:

• Download the UNCHARTED 3 Beta and receive the exclusive UNCHARTED 3 PSN Beta Tester Avatar!
• Complete 10 matches in every mode of Competitive Multiplayer and receive the Exclusive Beta Decal Pack 1!
• Complete 5 matches in every mode of Co-operative Multiplayer and receive the Exclusive Beta Decal Pack 2!
• Complete 4 Treasure Sets and receive the Treasure Hunter’s Starter Pack!
• Rank up to level 25 in the Beta and receive a handsome reward of in-game cash on day one!

Is there a level cap in the Beta?
Yes, it’s currently set to level 25.

Can I check my UNCHARTED 3 Multiplayer Beta stats on NaughtyDog.com?
Stay tuned – we’ve got some cool things in store for NaughtyDog.com real soon. We’ll keep you updated on the Naughty Dog blog as soon as we can reveal more.

I like/hate something in the Beta OR I think I found a bug – where do I tell you about this?
Let us know on the UNCHARTED 3 Multiplayer Beta forum in the NaughtyDog.com Community Forums.

We can’t stress this enough – please, please, PLEASE post in the UNCHARTED 3 Multiplayer Beta forum with your thoughts, complaints and suggestions! Your forum feedback was critical in finalizing the UNCHARTED 2 multiplayer modes between Beta and the final retail version. We absolutely want your feedback this time around as well. You will help us make a better multiplayer game.

UPDATE: We’ve made a temporary change the to the gametypes – we’ve taken out Plunder to investigate an issue and replaced it with Free For All

Hope you’re all enjoying the final stretch of the SOCOM 4 Multiplayer Beta! Just a little over a week until SOCOM 4 hits store shelves on April 19th, and the excitement continues to build. To heighten the anticipation, we’ve got some equally exciting news to share—by picking up a specially marked copy of SOCOM 4, you’ll get early access to the Resistance 3 Public Beta! That’s in addition to the full breadth of single player, 32-person multiplayer, and five-player co-op gameplay you’ll get with SOCOM 4.

To get early access to the Resistance 3 Beta, keep your eyes peeled for the callout included on the front of all eligible copies of SOCOM 4 (see above). Every specially marked box will include a voucher with a unique code you can redeem for early access to the Resistance 3 Beta. If you’re going big with the SOCOM 4 Full Deployment Edition, every one of these limited edition bundles will come packed with a voucher as well. To find out when the Resistance 3 Beta begins, be sure to check the details on the included voucher once you get your hands on SOCOM 4 starting April 19th.

If you want to ensure your early access to the Resistance 3 Public Beta, pre-ordering your copy of SOCOM 4 at one of the following participating retailers is the way to go. In addition to early beta access for Resistance 3, you’ll also get a pair of slug-ammunition shotguns, as well as the classic Abandoned Map if you pre-order at GameStop.

The SOCOM 4: U.S. Navy SEALs testing pool is about to get even bigger! Starting tomorrow, at 12:00am Pacific, the SOCOM 4 voucher codes that were included as giveaways with Killzone 3 (and at our PAX East 2011 booth) become active. This new influx of players will join the existing crowd of previously introduced PlayStation Plus and Private beta testers, and will have all the same privileges as the one-week and two-week vets.

If you didn’t receive an early access voucher or don’t have a PlayStation Plus account, don’t fret! Starting April 5th, the all-access beta will be openly available for download through the PlayStation Store. While the beta download will be removed from the Store with the April 12th PlayStation Store publish, SOCOM 4 Beta servers will be up and running until April 13th.

Though our servers are open all day, every day we do limit what modes are available so that we can keep our testing focused. Here’s how the schedule looks this week:

• Tuesday (3/29) – Uplink, Classic Uplink, Suppression, Classic Suppression
• Wednesday (3/30) – Last Defense, Classic Last Defense, Uplink, Classic Uplink
• Thursday (3/31) – Bomb Squad, Classic Bomb Squad, Last Defense, Classic Last Defense
• Friday (4/1) – Sniper Alley (Custom), Last Defense Run ‘n Gun (Custom), Bomb Squad, Classic Bomb Squad
• Saturday (4/2) – Scrum (Classic), Sniper Alley (Custom), Last Defense Run ‘n Gun (Custom)
• Sunday (4/3) – Suppression, Classic Suppression, Scrum (Custom)
• Monday (4/4) – Uplink, Classic Uplink, Suppression, Classic Suppression

As always, our multiplayer beta includes two maps, Port Authority and Assault & Battery, and offers a variety of built-in game-types and custom game-types. Here’s a reminder of what’s what:

Suppression: SOCOM 4’s version of “team deathmatch.”

Last Defense: Capture controls points, discover the enemy base and destroy it.

Uplink: Steal enemy data and deliver it to your base.

Bomb Squad: Defend your bomb technician while he disarms enemy explosives.

Sniper Alley (Custom): An 8 vs. 8 version of Classic Suppression with higher damage. Weapons are limited to sniper rifles, shotguns, smoke grenades and poison gas.

Last Defense Run ‘n Gun (Custom): Faster movement speed and reduced damage are applied to 16 vs. 16 Last Defense with weapons restricted to only shotguns and SMGs.

Scrum (Custom): Suppression is given rule tweaks of no respawn, faster movement and higher damage, while sniper rifles, frag grenades, concussion grenades and poison gas are disallowed.

As seen in the schedule above, all built-in game-types (i.e. anything not listed as “Custom”) are playable in both the Standard and Classic variations. Standard mode is similar to the single-player experience, while Classic mode is similar to older SOCOM titles with increased movement speeds, round-based play, no player respawns and the lack of health regeneration. Our Custom types mix and match a number of game settings, delivering fresh takes on our core rule sets.

As before, after you’ve had a chance to play the beta, we’d love to hear your feedback! Once you’ve downloaded the beta and played a complete match, you’ll then gain access to our private beta forums on SOCOM.com where you can share your stories with other players and leave us your feedback. SOCOM has always been a very player-driven franchise and your opinions are very important to us, so please let us know what you think! We’ll see you again next week on the SOCOM blog with an updated schedule, or you can keep updated on our latest agenda through our in-game news feed.

In the video below, Zipper Interactive’s Seth Luisi shares some of the nuances of the new Bomb Squad mode, and how the multiplayer beta will help make the finished product that much better:

Not a PlayStation Plus member or a Qore subscriber? We’ve got you covered. We’ve secured a secret cache of 150 SOCOM 4 beta codes for a Twitter giveaway later today at 3:00pm Pacific Time / 6:00pm Eastern Time. Follow PlayStation’s Twitter now and keep your eyes peeled for full details. In the meantime, watch the video above for clues, and refresh yourself on key details found in the last few SOCOM 4 PlayStation.Blog posts.

Good luck!

Our first week of private beta testing for SOCOM 4: U.S. Navy SEALs has been incredibly helpful. Though the participants were limited to the “invite only” crowd, their feedback has been phenomenal — with tens of thousands of posts filled with opinions, suggestions, comments and more pouring into our beta forum.

Starting today, it’s time for PlayStation Plus members to get their turn as they join the existing testers for the next phase of our pre-release examination. Though similar to last week’s schedule, this week’s agenda is a bit different. Here’s what game types you can expect to see starting today:

· Tuesday (3/22) – Suppression, Classic Suppression, Scrum (Custom), Community Day Classic (Custom)

· Wednesday (3/23) – Uplink, Classic Uplink, Suppression, Classic Suppression

· Thursday (3/24) – Last Defense, Classic Last Defense, Uplink, Classic Uplink

· Friday (3/25) – Bomb Squad, Classic Bomb Squad, Last Defense, Classic Last Defense

· Saturday (3/26) – Sniper Alley (Custom), Last Defense Run ‘n Gun (Custom), Bomb Squad, Classic Bomb Squad

· Sunday (3/27) – Scrum (Custom), Community Day Classic (Custom), Sniper Alley (Custom), Last Defense Run ‘n Gun (Custom)

· Monday (3/28) – Suppression, Classic Suppression, Scrum (Custom), Community Day Classic (Custom)

If you missed last week’s post, the multiplayer beta includes two maps, Port Authority and Assault & Battery, and offers a variety of built-in game-types and custom game-types:

Suppression: The SOCOM take on team deathmatch.

Last Defense: Capture controls points, discover the enemy base and destroy it.

Uplink: Steal enemy data and deliver it to your base.

Bomb Squad: Defend your bomb technician while he disarms enemy explosives.

Sniper Alley (Custom): An 8 vs. 8 version of Classic Suppression with higher damage. Weapons are limited to sniper rifles, shotguns, smoke grenades and poison gas.

Last Defense Run ‘n Gun (Custom): Faster movement speed and reduced damage are applied to 16 vs. 16 Last Defense with weapons restricted to only shotguns and SMGs.

Scrum (Custom): Suppression is given rule tweaks of no respawn, faster movement and higher damage, while sniper rifles, frag grenades, concussion grenades and poison gas are disallowed.

Community Day Classic (Custom): A medley featuring Classic versions of all four game types (Suppression, Last Defense, Uplink and Bomb Squad) with increased speed and weapon restrictions placed on ranged explosives. Each game type is played over 11 five-minute rounds.

All built-in game-types (re: not “Custom”) will be playable in both the Standard and Classic variations. Standard mode closely mimics the single-player experience, while Classic harkens back to older SOCOM titles with increased movement speeds, round-based play, no player respawns and the lack of health regeneration. Our Custom types mix and match a number of game settings, delivering fresh takes on our core rule sets.

As before, after you’ve had a chance to play the beta, we’d love to hear your feedback! Once you’ve downloaded the beta and played a complete match, you’ll then gain access to our private beta forums on SOCOM.com where you can share your stories with other players and leave us your feedback. SOCOM has always been a very player-driven franchise and your opinions are very important to us, so please let us know what you think! We’ll see you again next week on the SOCOM blog with an updated schedule, or you can keep updated on our latest agenda through our in-game news feed.