Crave Online's weekly gaming news returns in glorious high-definition! The goal of this feature is to update gamers on a weekly basis with the news that's important, none of the fluff. Every week there is a multitude of gaming news that hits the net. Most of it sucks ass. Who really reads gaming news to find out when the new Barbie game is getting downloadable content? I sure as hell don't, and I'm guessing you don't either. Therefore it's the job of this column to round up the best, most awesome news in the gaming industry, the stuff that makes us excited to be gamers, and condense it into one eatable, bite-size tablet of awesome. So open wide, this pill gets inserted straight up the back-end..
PS3 Firmware Update 3.0 Could Be Last of Year
Eric Lempel, the Playstation Network operations director, has come out and said that most likely Firmware Update 3.0 for the Playstation 3 will be the last major update of the year. "You know, I wouldn't say that for sure just yet because we are working on some things," Lempel told G4. "But this is a big and significant update, so you would be correct to assume that [it's the last major update for 2009]." If you are unfamilar with the additions coming in update 3.0, check them out here, taken straight from the Playstation Blog.
“What’s New” – The “Information Board” will be replaced with a “What’s New” section, which allows you to enjoy interactive PlayStation news every time you start the PS3 system. Located under the PlayStation Network icon, “What’s New” displays the latest and greatest game, video, PlayStation Network and PlayStation news and releases, as well as your recently played games, in a sleek, new animated format.
Status Indicator – In the top right corner we’ve added an indicator bar, which displays your user icon, friend icon, the number of friends you have online and a small message icon to let you know if you have any new messages. The indicator also includes a scrolling ticker that features the latest news from PlayStation Network. In addition, when you press the PS button, the battery life indicator will no longer cover up the clock.
Friends List – Now your PlayStation Network friends will appear in a slightly redesigned format on your Friends List. Also, messages will now be viewable from each of your friends’ respective profiles.
PlayStation Store Shortcuts – We’ve added a handy shortcut icon to the PlayStation Store under both the Game and Video categories so you can access the latest content quickly and easily.
Personalization – Personalize your PS3 with new dynamic custom themes and avatars. Dynamic themes as well as free and premium avatars will be available through PlayStation Store. A dynamic theme takes your screen to a whole new level as it incorporates animated objects into the background.
Trophies – Showcasing your hard earned trophies just got better. Update 3.00 gives game developers the ability to modify how they display trophies for add-on content. Base and add-on game trophies will continue to be combined into a single list so you can see where you stand in a game as a whole. Within that list, trophies will be broken out into subcategories—base trophies and add-on trophies—that way, you can easily view the percentage of your base game trophy collection, and separately track your trophy progress in add-on packs. Look for this enhancement to be included in upcoming games.
But that doesn't mean there won't be some smaller updates later this year, or maybe even a surprise large one, anything is possible.
Gran Turismo 5 By Year's End?
If you attended Gamescom in Germany last week then you might have received a pamphlet for Gran Turismo 5. On this pamphlet you might have noticed that it said (in German) "4. Quartal 2009" on it. That isn't too hard to figure out in English.
Now the question remains, is this accurate? Or better yet, will gamers in the States see Gran Turismo 5 before the year closes. My guess is on "no," seeing as how the Gran Turismo 5 demo shown as last week's Gamescom didn't even have the full damage system implimented. But here's hoping.
