Sony’s Playstation 4 will be available in white this September, comes with Destiny and 500GB
Not only did Sony just announce that the beta of Bungie’s next title, Destiny, is coming as a beta next month, it also let the cat out of the bag that you’ll be able to get the game bundled with a “glacial white” Playstation 4 on September 9th. The new-hued console will come with 500GB of storage and a free 30 day membership to Playstation Plus.
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Sony announces ‘Little Big Planet 3’ with loads of new characters and abilities
You know you want it. We don’t even have to ask, and Sony is delivering! Little Big Planet 3 is coming. The most immediately notable change is the slew of new characters, like the quadrupedal Oddsock and the flying Swoop. Flying is an obvious new trick, but there’s also a the ability to wall jump and a larger character that can shove obstacles out of the way and generally hurl his girth around the level. The idea is that multiple character can cooperate to extend the world of Little Big Planet in interesting ways. And don’t worry, if you and your friends have invested countless hours crafting levels for the first two titles, they’ll actually be playable in the newest installment — complete with automatically upscaled graphics! There’s also sorts of great new mechanics and beautiful new graphics to enjoy. Though, you’ll have to be patient, Little Big Planet 3 won’t hit the Playstation 4 until the holiday season.
PS4 owners will be able to play ‘FarCry 4’ with friends who don’t own the game
Looking forward to playing FarCry 4 with your friends? Sony says if you buy it for the PlayStation 4, you’ll only need one copy between you. Taking the stage at the company’s E3 2014 PlayStation event, Sony VP of developer relations Adam Boyes explained that folks playing the game on PSN will be able to invite their friends to play with them even if they don’t own the game. How is this possible? Boyes didn’t say, exactly, but it sounds like an ideal use case for PlayStation Now — Sony’s Gaikai-sourced cloud streaming service.
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Got PlayStation Plus? You’re now getting two games every month
Now that Microsoft is offering free games each month to Xbox One owners with Live Gold subscriptions, Sony is in a tough spot — how does it get you to buy a console and sign up for PlayStation Plus? By giving you more games, that’s what. As of June, Plus members get two games per month for every PlayStation platform they use, whether it’s a PS3, PS4 or Vita. Availability will also be more consistent as of July. From then on, you’ll see the new Plus titles arrive (and old titles phase out) on the first Tuesday of a given month.
The usual gotcha for Plus applies. Unlike Microsoft’s program, which lets you hold on to games even after your subscription lapses, Sony’s service requires that you keep shelling out to continue playing any giveaways. It’s not a perfect deal, then, but it’s hard to object to getting additional games at no extra charge.
Source: PlayStation Blog
Playdate: We’re livestreaming Watch Dogs for PS4!
Welcome, ladygeeks and gentlenerds, to the new era of gaming. The one where you get to watch, and comment, as other people livestream gameplay from next-gen consoles. Because games! They’re fun!
What would you do if you could control your hometown with nothing more than a smartphone? That’s what the world of Watch Dogs asks. Here, escaping the cops (and Big Brother) takes a little more than fancy driving skills and sheer firepower; it takes brains and creativity. We’ve been itching to get our hands on the game since its show-stealing debut back at E3 2012 and now that wait is over — we’ll be streaming live at 4PM PT/7PM ET! Feel like hacking the planet along with us on PS4 before picking up your copy? All it takes is a press of the button below. If you’ve already grabbed your copy, let us know what you think of Watch Dogs in the forums; we’ve set up a thread and everything!
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Filed under: Gaming, Home Entertainment, HD
PlayStation 4 to get pre-loading of all pre-order games starting with Destiny
Tired of making sandwich after sandwich, idly waiting while the ol’ PlayStation 4 downloads Metal Gear Solid: Ground Zeroes? Though we’d never encourage you to stop making delicious sandwiches, we do sympathize with the situation. Thankfully for you, Sony’s adding pre-loading of all pre-ordered upcoming games to the PlayStation 4 starting this fall with Bungie’s next big game: Destiny. That means you can download the whole shebang ahead of the game’s “official” launch on September 9th, and when midnight strikes, you’re ready to go. Bizarrely, the news comes via PlayStation Network message from Ubisoft; as seen above, Watch Dogs (which launches this Tuesday) won’t have pre-loading. Sorry Charlie! Come September, however, you’re good to go.
Filed under: Gaming, Software, HD, Sony
Source: NeoGAF
Recommended Reading: will.i.am’s Beats payday and bringing The Last of Us to PS4
Recommended Reading highlights the best long-form writing on technology and more in print and on the web. Some weeks, you’ll also find short reviews of books that we think are worth your time. We hope you enjoy the read.
Behind the Scenes, a Frontman Awaits a Payday
by Daniel Roberts, Fortune
By now, you’ve heard about all the money that Dr. Dre stands to pocket when the alleged Apple buyout is announced. What you may not know is that another popular musician stands to pocket a handsome sum as well. William Adams, aka will.i.am, is an equity partner in Beats Electronics and has lent a hand toward the brand’s rise over the last few years. Fortune’s Daniel Roberts takes a look at Mr. Adams’ tech ventures and his relationship with the headphone maker — the latter of which could spell a big payout for the artist/businessman.
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The Last of it: Naughty Dog on Bringing The Last of Us to PS4 The Last of Us made its debut on the PS3, built using a custom-tailored engine for that console and with the know-how that Naughty Dog picked up during years of developing for it. That said, bringing a visually improved version of the game to the PlayStation 4 presented a unique set of challenges. Edge takes a look at the process, from tackling a new controller to 1080p and more. Pocket!function(d,i)if(!d.getElementById(i))var j=d.createElement(“script”);j.id=i;j.src=”https://widgets.getpocket.com/v1/j/btn.js?v=1″;var w=d.getElementById(i);d.body.appendChild(j);(document,”pocket-btn-js”); |
Michael Jackson Hologram Rocks Billboard Music Awards: Watch & Go Behind the Scenes In case you hadn’t heard, Michael Jackson returned in hologram form last weekend at the Billboard Music Awards. Billboard offers up details on how the performance was produced after several months of development. “We’ve been talking about it for the last five months and while we were talking about it, they were still inventing the process,” said BBMA director and producer Larry Klein. Pocket!function(d,i)if(!d.getElementById(i))var j=d.createElement(“script”);j.id=i;j.src=”https://widgets.getpocket.com/v1/j/btn.js?v=1″;var w=d.getElementById(i);d.body.appendChild(j);(document,”pocket-btn-js”); |
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Is For-Profit the Future of Non-Profit? Companies like Warby Parker and TOMS shoes have been outfitting shoppers with the aim of providing support around the globe for those in need. But at what point does philanthropy become outmatched by consumerism? The Atlantic’s Amy Schiller asks just that, looking to tackle the issue of whether or not “it is our own humanity that gets lost in the process.” Pocket!function(d,i)if(!d.getElementById(i))var j=d.createElement(“script”);j.id=i;j.src=”https://widgets.getpocket.com/v1/j/btn.js?v=1″;var w=d.getElementById(i);d.body.appendChild(j);(document,”pocket-btn-js”); |
An Exclusive Look Inside ESPN’s Cutting-Edge New SportsCenter Studio It took ESPN three years to complete its new SportsCenter studio that’s packed full of all sorts of new tech tools for even more captivating visuals. Just as 2014 FIFA World Cup coverage commences, the network will begin work in its new office, and Fast Company took a look inside. |
[Image credit: Getty]
Filed under: Misc
Minecraft arrives on Xbox One and PlayStation 4 this August
Look, playing Minecraft on a console is really great. It’s basically the same delightful/terrifying experience from PC, albeit in the comfort of your living room. What’s not to like? Well, on last-gen consoles, there was at least one unfortunate side effect of the platform: the procedurally generated world of Minecraft was significantly smaller than what could be done on PC. With Xbox One and PlayStation 4 versions arriving this August, that changes. As development studio Mojang puts it, “It brings significantly bigger worlds and a greater draw distance than Xbox 360 Edition.” Hot dog!
Of course, should the more bite-sized world of last-gen Minecraft suffice (and believe us, it’s plenty big), the PlayStation Vita version also arrives this August. Here’s even better news: if you already bought the game on PlayStation 3, you own it on Vita. A similar deal applies to folks converting from PS3/Xbox 360 versions to PS4/XB1 versions: if you already own the prior version and you want to upgrade to current-gen, it’s just $5. The latter deal only applies for the first year of availability, so you’ll wanna upgrade soon-ish to snag it on the cheap.
To sweeten the deal even further, saved games from last-gen/Vita will scale up to current-gen consoles (though it’s not possible to go back — beware!). All the updates to last-gen versions will come packed in to this August’s version, and the whole package goes for $20. Oh, and the creepers are still super, super creepy.
Filed under: Gaming, Software, HD, Sony, Microsoft
Source: Mojang
SingStar for PS4 employs your smartphone for belting off-tune renditions
When SingStar arrives on PlayStation 4 consoles later this year, it won’t require shelling out extra dough for a shiny new microphone. Instead, the title will allow you to use your smartphone or tablet as the mic thanks to a free app for iOS and Android. The newfangled software will play nice with both PS3 and PS4 versions of the game with support for custom playlists built in. There’s also improved social sharing and song downloads from the SingStore. Heck, they’ve even added Bruno Mars tunes, so get your pompadour wig ready.
Source: PlayStation Blog
Virtual Joey app arrives with satellite TV for your PS3
Dish Network earned one of our Best of CES trophies a few months ago for its Virtual Joey app, and now PS3 owners (with the satellite TV service and Hopper DVR) can try it out. Instead of plugging in yet another set-top box, just open up the app and watch live TV, video on-demand or recorded programs, all through your console. You can even control the experience with your regular Dish Network remote — all without changing inputs away from your gaming / Netflix / Blu-ray machine. A PS4 version is still waiting in the wings, which is fine if you prefer extending the life of older consoles. It should be available under the My Channels section on your PS3 right now, download it and see if you liked it as much as we did.
Filed under: Home Entertainment, HD, Sony
Source: PlayStation Blog
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