Here’s the excellent Final Fantasy XIII-2 trailer in English, with high-quality audio. This is way better than the trailer that leaked earlier in the week. Check it out and let me know what you think (please)! I’m still really high on this game. Lightning got hot!
Category: PS3
Coffee Talk #287: Cutting the Cable Cord with Consoles
“Cutting the cord” was a popular phrase among tech nerds in 2010. The practice of cancelling cable or satellite service and relying on streaming television will become even more popular in 2011. There are several reasons for this…
Welcome to Coffee Talk! Let’s start off the day by discussing whatever is on your (nerd chic) mind. Every morning I’ll kick off a discussion and I’m counting on you to participate in it. If you’re not feelin’ my topic, feel free to start a chat with your fellow readers and see where it takes you. Whether you’re talking about videogames, who should replace Regis Philbin, HP’s upcoming WebOS press event, or if Lance Armstrong is a cheater (or not), Coffee Talk is the place to do it.
“Cutting the cord” was a popular phrase among tech nerds in 2010. The practice of cancelling cable or satellite service and relying on streaming television will become even more popular in 2011. There are several reasons for this. A lot of people are still struggling financially and it’s cheaper to go with streaming. It’s fashionable among hipster douchebags to rely on modern services. And most importantly, streaming movies and TV shows has gotten really, really good.
A person can subscribe to Hulu Plus and Netflix, as well as rent movies on Vudu, for less than the cost of cable service with a premium channel. The offerings have gotten so good that many consumers are able to watch their favorite TV shows and new movies for a fantastic price. I’m super tempted to cut the cord, but that would leave me without live HBO boxing, live WWE Monday Night Raw, and original HBO shows (Entourage, Curb) when they premiere. Streaming services have gotten pretty excellent…but they’re not quite there yet for me. (To be completely honest, I might have to cut the cord whether I want to or not. Ha!)
How about you? Are any of you considering cutting the cord in 2011? Does the combination of Hulu Plus, Netflix, and Vudu provide you with enough entertainment? Why do cable companies suck so hard? Leave a comment and let me know (please)!
Buy Portal 2 PS3, Get PC/Mac Version for Free
Valve Software has announced that customers that purchase the PlayStation 3 version of Portal 2 and tie their PSN ID to their Steam account will get the PC/Mac version for free. Additionally, the game will feature cross-platform multiplayer and chat between Mac, PC, and PS3 players. In today’s press release, Valve president Gabe Newell said:
We made a promise to gamers at E3 that Portal 2 for the PlayStation 3 would be the best console version of the product. Working together with Sony we have identified a set of features we believe are very compelling to gamers. We hope to expand upon the foundation being laid in Portal 2 with more Steam features and functionality in DLC and future content releases.
This is a really exciting development for Portal fans…except for those that only play games on an Xbox 360. In light of today’s announcement, that version looks kind of crap in comparison, don’t you agree?
Final Fantasy Versus XIII Leaked Trailer
You want to check out this trailer for Final Fantasy Versus XIII for PlayStation 3. Why? Because it’s the frickin’ hotness! The graphics are expectedly gorgeous, while the real-time gameplay looks super sharp and very different for a Final Fantasy game.
Kindly check out the clip and share your thoughts! As for me, I admit that the trailer is ridiculous, but I’m still more interested in Final Fantasy XIII-2.
Square Enix Announces Final Fantasy XIII-2 + Leaked Trailer
Last week’s rumors were true! Square Enix has officially announced Final Fantasy XIII-2 for PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360. Coming “next winter”, the game is a direct sequel to the hugely popular Final Fantasy XIII. Here’s a snippet from the press release:
Production on Final Fantasy XIII-2 is underway, and builds upon the best aspects of Final Fantasy XIII. In particular, a brand new story and evolved battle system promise to stand out markedly against the standard for high-quality content established by the previous title.
I was psyched when I first heard rumors about this game. I was super psyched when a few unnamed sources told me that they’ve seen it. Although Square Enix has been getting a ton of buzz from its latest Final Fantasy Versus VIII trailer, I’m actually more interested in this game (for now).
Be sure to check out the leaked trailer above. What do you think?!? Happy? Sad? Meh?
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This Week’s Videogame Releases
January 2011 continues to be a surprisingly strong month for videogames. Leading the way is Media Molecule’s LittleBigPlanet 2. The PlayStation 3 gets a graphically boosted version of Mass Effect 2 that’s available on disc or digital download. Last, but not least, is Square Enix’s Mindjack.
Any of you picking up new games this week?
Kevin Butler Plugs LittleBigPlanet 2
The excellent Kevin Butler returns in a commercial plugging LittleBigPlanet 2. It’s not a sharp as some of his previous spots, but it’s a cute commercial that clearly communicates one of the game’s key selling points. Bask in Kevin’s awesomeness and let me know what you think (please)!
NPD 2010 Console Sales Figures (Flame On!)
NPD Group has released its December console sales figures, giving flame warriors some nice 2010 numbers to play with. I haven’t been able to track down the PSP year-end totals yet, but I’ll add them as soon as I do. Here are the total U.S. console sales in 2010 according to NPD Group:
- Nintendo DS: 8.56 million
- Nintendo Wii: 7.07 million
- Xbox 360: 6.76 million
- PlayStation 3: 4.33 million
While most of the numbers were lower than 2009, Microsoft had a tremendous year with the Xbox 360, selling more than 40 percent more units in 2010 than 2009. The new model combined with Kinect made the Xbox 360 a huge winner in America.
What do you guys and dolls make of the 2010 console wars (in America)?
Final Fantasy XIII-2 Announcement Next Week?
A curious domain name registration and a Square Enix event in Tokyo point to a possible Final Fantasy XIII-2 announcement next week. The Unofficial Final Fantasy Site has done some sleuthing and discovered that the domain name “finalfantasy13-2game.com” has been registered by a company that has filed paperwork for other Square Enix titles.
Superannuation noted that the domain had been registered by “Corporation Service Company” — the same company that has registered domains for other Square Enix titles, including the official website for upcoming third person shooter MindJack, MindJackGame.com.
We’ve done a little extra investigation on top, and the same company has recently been used to register domains for Front Mission Evolved, Nier and Gun Loco, all major recent or upcoming Square Enix releases.
The last direct Final Fantasy sequel, Final Fantasy X-2, was an okay game that didn’t match up to its fantastic forerunner. If this FFXIII-2 rumor pans out, I’m hoping that Square Enix does a better job following up. Hell, with critics polarized by Final Fantasy XIII, there’s a chance that it could score better than the original.
Personally, I’m totally down with more FFXIII graphics and gameplay. A sequel would totally win me over if it featured more Reona Rewis songs and centered on Sazh’s adventures as a single parent. And you? Would you be down with FFXIII-2? What would you want the game to be?
Sony Pursues Legal Action Against PS3 Jailbreakers
In what appears to be a preemptive legal salvo, Sony Computer Entertainment America has filed a complaint for injunctive relief and damages against various PlayStation 3 jailbreak coders. According to Engadget managing editor Nilay Patel, the complaint is likely a prelude to a formal lawsuit. Dude went to law school, so he’s as good a person to quote as anyone:
This isn’t a “lawsuit” in the traditional sense, since Sony hasn’t filed a complaint for copyright infringement or whatever against Geohot and friends. Instead, the company appears to be trying to shove the genie back in the bottle and have the jailbreak and any information about the jailbreak removed from the web by filing a temporary restraining order. That might work in the short term — Geohot’s already pulled his pages down — but history suggests that the forces of paperwork rarely triumph over the righteous anger of nerds, and that this code is out there for good. That said, we’ll see what the court says tomorrow; although we very much doubt Sony’s melodramatic proposed motion and order will be granted as written, we wouldn’t be surprised if some sort of order is eventually granted — and then from there a formal lawsuit is likely just a few days away.
In the past, Sony has responded to various hacks with software updates. The most recent round of jailbreak solutions by coders like Geohot and the fail0verflow group appear to have found a method that can’t be countered by software. Since a hardware change to combat piracy would be costly and take time, legal action seems like the only card Sony has left.