Missing PS3 trophies? Recover them
After yesterday’s worldwide PS3 glitch that deleted trophies, denied gamers access to PSN and rendered some games unplayable, affected non-slim consoles are functioning as normal again.
However, “It is possible that some users who experienced the connection problems yesterday and tried unsuccessfully to access a game (online or offline) may find that trophy data for that title is no longer displayed,” a statement from Sony reads.
“To resolve this issue, the user will need to re-access the game to reinstall the trophies, then exit the game and sync their trophy collection to the server in order to regain previous achievements.”
The glitch was a result of the console recognizing 2010 as a leap year, and reset the system clock to January 2000.
The error has now corrected itself, with no patch needed.
Activision shuts down King’s Quest fan project
Boy oh boy does that picture bring back some memories. Some brutal, unforgiving, yet hilarious memories. If you love adventure games, then you’re probably familiar with Sierra’s King’s Quest series, which were known for their snappy writing and punishing difficulty. The last entry in the series was King’s Quest VIII: Mask Of Eternity back in 1998, and the series has remained dormant ever since, and thanks to current property holder Activision, it’s going to stay that way.
Back in 2000, a group of fans, realizing they had probably seen the last of King’s Quest, started to make their own game, entitled The Silver Lining. In 2005, after negations between the team and Vivendi Universal (formerly Sierra), Phoenix Online Studios was granted a “fan license” that allowed them to continue the project as long as it was not for profit. After years of development and a switch to an episodic delivery format, Activision has ordered a cease and desist just before the first episode was to be released.
I cannot for the life of me understand why publishers continue to shut down development of freeware fan games if they’re not making a game themselves. Why not let the fans have a chance to revisit a world that many gamers hold very dearly?
Brink’s September release is “speculative”
Despite a GameStop sweepstakes hinting at a concrete September 7 release date for Splash Damage’s Brink, along with other retailers pinning a September release on the shooter, publisher Bethesda has said that the official word is still ‘fall 2010′ and that all other dates should be treated as “speculative.”
“Often times retailers will assign a release date for a game that falls within the game’s announced launch window,” a Bethesda rep explains. “While we have announced that Brink is due out in Fall 2010, we have yet to announce an official release date for the game. Until we have announced the release date, all other dates can be considered speculative.”
So the September release may well be correct, Bethesda just doesn’t want us to know for sure quite yet.
Bad Company 2 launch trailer is a class act
Anyone watching the first 10 seconds of the Battlefield: Bad Company 2 launch trailer above knows they’re going to be in for a treat for the next minute or so. So I’ll refrain from trying to put the sweet, sweet beauty of the digital warfare witnessed there into words and simply direct viewers to click the play button.
The game launched in North America today and has been racking up some pretty impressive review scores so far. Europe gets it later in the week.
Infinity Ward CEO no longer with the studio
The second of the two Infinity Ward bosses suspected to be under investigation for breaches of contract and insubordination, CEO and Studio Head Vince Zampella, is no longer employed by the studio, his professional LinkedIn profile reveals.
The reason behind his and president Jason West’s departures remain unconfirmed for now, though it’s being reported that the studio was in secret talks with a competing publisher. Something, if true, Activision probably didn’t take kindly to.
Both Infinity Ward and Activision continue to remain quiet on the matter and haven’t released any official statements.
Worms 2: Armageddon XBLA to get DLC
Team17 has announced via their Facebook page that some more Worms 2: Armageddon goodness will be hitting Xbox Live Arcade soon. The Battle Pack DLC will bring our tiny fighters “new missions, weapons, features, game modes, 10 new Forts, more voices, new personalisation items and much more…”
No deep details or screenshots are available but that should be rectified as soon as the official press release hits our inboxes.
Sony Japan trademarks “PlayStation Arc”
Sony Motion Controller’s rumored “Arc” name may just become its official designation, a trademark filing suggests.
Following execs’ repeated references to the controller as Arc and despite being called “a rumored codename” by Sony itself, a Japanese “PlayStation Arc” trademark filed by Sony (unearthed by Siliconera) leaves little to the imagination.
Sony Computer Entertainment America’s David Coombes (Platform Research Manager) and Kirk Bender (Developer Support) will be holding an hour-long lecture on the device at the Game Developers Conference next week. Here’s hoping the official name will be revealed then, too.
Portal update adds achievement, and weirdness
Valve are keeping their hands busy now that Left 4 Dead 2 is out the door. Of all the games to update, Portal has received a little patch that according to Steam’s patch notes ”changed radio transmission frequency to comply with federal and state spectrum management regulations.”
Sounds like pretty boring stuff, but now hidden away at the start is an intriguing little easter egg; placing the radio in the first room on the red button plays morse code. All the possible translations are all equally confusing and amusing, “interior transmission active,” “the quick brown fox jumps over the lazy dog,” “password back up active” and “beep beep beep beep lol.”
Yeah, don’t really know what’s happening here, but at least you can earn a brand new achievement for doing all this. Perhaps this will all amount to a Portal 2 reveal? Episode 3? Let’s hope so.
A penny for your thoughts, Tim Schafer
Brütal Legend mastermind Tim Schafer has thrown in his two cents on the unfolding drama between Call of Duty developer Infinity Ward and publisher Activision.
“Getting mad at Activision for this kind of thing is like getting mad at an ape for throwing feces,” wrote Schafer — whose Double Fine studio has had his own issues with the publishing giant — on Twitter. “It’s just how the beast communicates.”
According to an SEC filing made on Monday, two Infinity Ward senior staffers were under investigation by Activision’s human resources. The two, believed to be studio heads Vince Zampella and Jason West, were being looked into for “breaches of contract and insubordination.”
PlayStation Network fully restored
PlayStation Network’s day-or-so-long woes are over. Sony’s official PlayStation.Blog informs that the service has been fully restored and the PS3 “fat” discriminating errors are a matter for the history books.
What exactly was the problem then? Sony’s very own Y2K bug, it appears.
“We are aware that the internal clock functionality in the PS3 units other than the slim model, recognized the year 2010 as a leap year,” reads the service update post. “Having the internal clock date change from February 29 to March 1 (both GMT), we have verified that the symptoms are now resolved and that users are able to use their PS3 normally.”
Those whose time and date settings have been affected, Sony recommends adjusting them either manually or via the internet.
Updated / Ubisoft confirms 250GB Splinter Cell bundle
Update: $399 it is. It’ll be available in North America, Europe, Australia and New Zealand.
Original story: Ubisoft has announced a US Limited Edition Xbox 360 bundle for Splinter Cell: Conviction; packed in with the Elite system are a 250GB hard drive, two wireless controllers and a standard edition copy of the title. A price went unmentioned, though it’s expected to retail at $399.
The game will hit North America on April 13th and Europe on April 16th.
Tony Hawk RIDE a “retail success”
Developer Robomodo’s Tony Hawk RIDE has been deemed a “retail success,” a release announcing the studio’s growth today says.
Since the game’s release last year, the company has grown by 20 percent and is looking to add an additional 17 percent on top of that by increasing personnel “in all areas across the company.”
“Our culture is focused on enabling game designers and artists to innovate, while providing them with proper management oversight and technology support,” Robomodo president Josh Tsui says. “As evidence from our recent game release, Robomodo supports out-of-the-box thinking and new creative ways to approach gameplay.”
A Robomodo-developed sequel to Ride has already been confirmed by Tony Hawk himself, as well as publisher Activision. It should arrive later in the year.
Odd things happening at Infinity Ward. President fired?
Something strange is happening at Modern Warfare 2 developer Infinity Ward. G4 reports via a source that a “bunch of bouncer”-types appeared at the developer’s offices unannounced a few hours ago. When asked by employees why they were there, no answer was given.
“Everyone is on edge,” said the source at the studio.
At the same time, studio bosses Vince Zampella and Jason West reportedly met with Activision in the morning and mysteriously haven’t been seen since. According to his LinkedIn profile however, West, IW’s president, is no longer employed; the profile states that he was with Infinity Ward up until “March 2010″.
West’s Facebook page also states he is “no longer employed”.
The G4 source describes the relationship between the Call of Duty developer and mothership Activision as “tense” of late. “Freaked out” and “confused” was how the current mood at the studio was described. “We just wanna make our games,” the source said.
Yeah, we’ll stay on this.
Split/Second is the Call of Duty of racing games, say Black Rock
Black Rock Studios have claimed that their forthcoming racing title, Split/Second, is closer to the likes of Modern Warfare and Uncharted than it is to boring snoring old racing games.
Speaking to CVG, Split/Second producer Jason Reid responded to a question about the game’s natural competition by saying, “It’s a tough one. Blur is obviously competition - it’s racing and it’s doing things slightly different as well. But we almost feel we’re closer to Call of Duty or Uncharted in what we do than other racing games.”
“Animation-wise, Split/Second is the most ambitious thing that’s ever been done in a racing game. So that is where we come down to the Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2, Uncharted 2 comparison - because of these huge set pieces.”
Split/Second mixes up the standard racing formula by throwing some pyrotechnically insane destruction into the mix. It looks like it could be a wonderful combination of Gran Turismo, Mario Kart and dirty great big ’splosions. We likey.
Split/Second, or Split/Second: Velocity, to quote its full, silly European name, is due out on Mar. 18 in the US and the Mar. 21 in Europe.
Epic Mickey to reach “Nintendo levels,” say Disney
Disney believe that the (currently) Wii-exclusive Epic Mickey will reach “Nintendo-like” levels of quality.
Executive VP and general manager Graham Hopper told Gamasutra that Epic Mickey will rise above all other third-party Wii titles, thanks to the time, money and talent involved with the game.
“I think we’ve tried to learn from the things Nintendo does well,” said Hopper. “One of the things that Nintendo does on their own platforms is they give their projects the time and appropriate resources to be successful, and they iterate until they get there. And I think we’re doing the same with Epic Mickey, giving it the time and resources to be successful.
“I’ll tell you that I don’t think all other third parties are approaching the Wii in the same way. If there’s a third-party game that I think has potential to be as successful on the Wii to Nintendo levels, I’d like to think it’s Disney Epic Mickey. We’re following the same playbook.”
Hopper also revealed his dissatisfaction with previous Mickey Mouse titles. “This has been a conscious approach, to try to withhold Mickey from the marketplace a little bit,” he said. “I didn’t feel that we’ve been doing him justice in the games business. Simply using him as an icon or an avatar in a game really doesn’t do a whole lot for us, and it doesn’t agree with the value of who Mickey is as a character.
“We came up with the idea a few years back for Epic Mickey, and have been assembling the right creative team. It took us a while to find the right creative team and visionary to put behind it. Warren Spector has taken that idea and really evolved it.
“I think it’ll be an awesome game.”
Epic Mickey is set for a Q3 2010 release.
