PS Fanboy Week in Review: 4/7 - 4/13
by Andrew Yoon 
{ Apr 13th 2008 at 8:45PM }
Previews
- Warhawk: Operation Broken Mirror (PS3)
We get our hands on the upcoming multiplayer expansion. - NovaStrike (PS3)
We play the upcoming PSN shooter. Impressions and screens. - R-Type Command (PSP)
Irem's space shooter gets tactical. Hands-on impressions.
- Joytron's PSP skin case
Easy to install peripheral does the job. - Nyko's FrontMan guitar
Great guitar works on both Rock Band and Guitar Hero III.
PS3 Headlines
PSP Videos
- PSN to experience 'scheduled maintenance' on April 14
To accommodate for the upcoming Store redesign. - Take 25% off used games at GameStop
Good way to get games on the cheap. - Clean your PS3 fan with quick-n-easy test
Video shows you how. - Over 2 million PS3s sold in Japan
Still a long way to go before it catches up to Wii. - BBC iPlayer comes to PS3
So you can watch BBC any time on PS3. - Best-selling PS3 exclusive ranks 51st in overall 2007 sales
Top PS3 games rank low in overall sales. - New Blu-ray tech supports enhanced iPhone integration
Who doesn't want a $600 remote for their PS3? - Home client downloadable via proxy but servers are locked
Don't expect to get on Home yet. - Firefly being prepared for Blu-ray
Watch one of the best series ever, now in HD. - CryENGINE 2 port 'challenging' on PS3, but will look like high-end PC
Crytek works magic on consoles.
- Survey says: Sony fails to capture female gamer market
They still prefer the DS. - PSP software holds no place on 2007 bestseller list
Why are sales so poor on Sony's handheld? - 'Why are you hacking your PSP?' asks Sony
Do you feel like a rebel? - Killzone Liberation joins the Greatest Hits lineup
Now only $20. - Hilariously large PSP battery
The idea of "portable" gets lost. - Super Hind flies to PSP in May
First screens and details.
PSP Videos
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 2)
theturtle363 @ Apr 13th 2008 8:52PM
What the hell is that supposed to symbolize?
Psaakyrn @ Apr 13th 2008 8:57PM
It's not entirely clear from the shrunk image, but they are holding Sixaxis/Dual Shock 3 controllers.
Other than that... we'll prob need a translator.
DangerMouse @ Apr 13th 2008 9:05PM
10 Year life span.
LaughingTarget @ Apr 13th 2008 9:10PM
Sony is going to enslave humanity with Orcs and the SS. Playstation is but the beginning. And people thought Microsoft wanted to be the evil empire.
PSN: KillaKornbread (the shirt is a lie!) @ Apr 13th 2008 9:11PM
my guess is that it's showing people worshiping the PS3 gamer and building a shrine to them. thats why the statues look like normal people and not godly figures as you would expect to see in a scene like that. well thats what i take from it anyway.
i like it though, it's alot better than some of the old stuff (im talking about the launch ads with the baby)
Maverick Saturn @ Apr 13th 2008 10:08PM
Buying PS3 will destroy humanity and create civil war? Dunno, just a random guess :)
Epsilon @ Apr 13th 2008 11:59PM
Heil Sony?
Matt B @ Apr 14th 2008 12:09AM
To me, it symbolizes a work in progress. Not too much more to read into IMO.
GRANTED @ Apr 14th 2008 10:09AM
The gamer is the hero in an apocalyptic future. I think the ad is saying "be great, experience heroism, save the world... you can have such an experience on the PS3."
It also has a nationalistic, "viva la revolucion" symbolism to it. PS3 as revolutionizing the gaming culture.
I'm not saying the PS3 can do this exclusively, I'm just trying to explain idea behind the marketing. You can save the world with an xbox too, and the wii is also revolutionizing gameplay, clearly.
Ombre @ Apr 13th 2008 8:58PM
I think Sony just compared either themselves or their fanbase to Nazis.
el serpiente @ Apr 14th 2008 2:10AM
ZEE VII UND ZEE ECKS BOXEN MUST BE DEZTROYED, SCHNELL!
playwhutyalike @ Apr 13th 2008 9:02PM
So this is what "hardcore" gamers look like?
Just kidding, digging the pics.
Whocares @ Apr 13th 2008 9:07PM
My guess is they are trying to relate the player as the god of the game worlds. The only problem is it depicts the players as both the god of the Nazis and Middle Earth. Its once again one of those screwed up campaigns that were not thought out, or was and is in place purely for shock value. Either way Sony Fails.
Whocares @ Apr 13th 2008 9:14PM
Which follows their previous work for the PS2
http://www.bbdo.cl/new/ads/sony_1.htm
http://www.bbdo.cl/new/ads/sony_2.htm
Only those don't portray you as a war mongering asshole.
PSN: KillaKornbread (the shirt is a lie!) @ Apr 13th 2008 9:18PM
yea even if they didnt intend for it to look like Nazi-ish, people are certainly going to automatically make that connection. im a graphic design major and i just designed a logo for class and when the class critiqued my preliminary drawings, one in particular got a mass amount of "it looks like a swastica" comments. i never noticed this when i drew it but from other people looking at it, they saw it (needless to say, im not doing that one lol). im not suggesting that their ad guys didnt notice it with all the approval these things go through but everyone else is going to certainly make that connection.
but honestly though, i didnt even notice it until i read all the comments on here. maybe im just not tuned to notice Nazi symbolism.
Whocares @ Apr 13th 2008 9:22PM
It follows the traditional WWII theme, so my eyes moved towards the banners and plaques. They look much like the Nazi banners only the Swastica is replaced by the controller buttons. The other evidence that points to the intention is the use of LOTR evil characters in the depiction with the girl. So put two and two together they were making you the god of the evil guys. Now the logic behind this still evades me.
Psaakyrn @ Apr 14th 2008 2:38AM
I'd say it's because evil is often shown to be aggressive and powerful. I mean, in LOTR, evil was the world conquering army, and good was dependant on 2 hobbits to save them. (sure they won some battles, but without the ring thing, they'd have no chance in an all out War)
Still, they could probably have used a better example.
Kujel @ Apr 13th 2008 9:36PM
Well obviously this will phail not just because Sony sucks chesticles but also because most people alive today don't like the Nazis.
Matt B @ Apr 14th 2008 12:13AM
Last gen, Sony paved the way for devs to make games you play today from the money they made for the ps/ps2. there are 100x the amount of devs today because of the PS brand. Too many people are ignorant of this fact.
el serpiente @ Apr 14th 2008 2:45AM
Is sucking chesticles a good thing or a bad thing?
Kujel @ Apr 14th 2008 2:48AM
Well chesticles are a sack and balls growing in a odd place so no it's not a good thing.
el serpiente @ Apr 14th 2008 2:51AM
But is the act of sucking these chesticles good or bad?
Kujel @ Apr 14th 2008 2:55AM
Well if sucking balls has always been considered a bad thing, chesticles can only be worse as they are a mutant form of balls.
el serpiente @ Apr 14th 2008 2:57AM
So, if you had to either suck normal balls, or chesticles, you would opt for the normal balls?
Kujel @ Apr 14th 2008 2:59AM
No, I'd cut them off, toss them in a blender and feed the shake to the Sony board of directors.
el serpiente @ Apr 14th 2008 3:04AM
I thought sony just sucked chesticles, and didn't drink chesticle shakes? Which is worse, to suck a chesticle, or to drink it in liquified form?
Kujel @ Apr 14th 2008 3:11AM
I guess that depends one whether cannibalism or homosexuality (not in the case of women, that's more a matter of their preferences) is worse. I personally would be much more comfortable having a steak from a Sony Executive's leg/arm over sucking chesticles or balls. Though I'd pass on chesticle shakes, I don't want semen breath.
el serpiente @ Apr 14th 2008 3:31AM
This has been informative, thanks.
Kujel @ Apr 14th 2008 3:32AM
Anytime :D
xFenixKnightx @ Apr 14th 2008 8:42AM
What the hell was going on HERE? o_O
Anyway, the first time I heard the phrase "chesticles" was on the movie Knocked Up and I thought they were just referring to boobies. So now youve ruined that...thanks, thanks alot! >:(
David @ Apr 13th 2008 9:38PM
I honestly thought FALLOUT until you guys said Sony. Then I looked at it again and was like "wait, wat?"
Whocares @ Apr 13th 2008 9:38PM
BTW its apparently a Korean site, Google is mediocre at translating the site but here it is anyway.
http://translate.google.com/translate?u=http%3A%2F%2Fruliweb.empas.com%2Fruliboard%2Fread.htm%3Ftable%3Dgame_ps04%26num%3D40633%26main%3Dps&langpair=ko%7Cen&hl=en&ie=UTF8
LiqwidZero @ Apr 13th 2008 9:41PM
So Sony is a bunch of Nazis?
I knew it.
Maverick Saturn @ Apr 13th 2008 10:10PM
That sign on the left looks more like the soviet union flag then the Nazi flag :S
How did Nazis get into this?
Maverick Saturn @ Apr 13th 2008 10:15PM
Its mother Russia!
Whocares @ Apr 13th 2008 10:21PM
How do you suppose???
http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/1/11/Banner_of_Germany_1933.svg/180px-Banner_of_Germany_1933.svg.png
Compared to
http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/1/13/Flag_of_the_Soviet_Union_1923.svg/600px-Flag_of_the_Soviet_Union_1923.svg.png
Clearly the Nazi banner.
Maverick Saturn @ Apr 13th 2008 10:22PM
Although, its an 'X', so its clearly not either of the two :S
Maverick Saturn @ Apr 13th 2008 10:24PM
Click on the high resolution link above if you don't believe me for a better view :)
Sir Fidlious Wong (Zeon Defense Force) @ Apr 13th 2008 10:30PM
Yeah but the Square arm sashes don't exactly pull away from implied nazism...
But as Sony ads from the past, I don't expect this to blow up in it's home country, just abroad.
They do love arming the console warriors though.
RichChap @ Apr 14th 2008 7:23PM
I think it looks really sweet. I don't know how effective it will be, but it looks pretty cool.
Poisoned Al @ Apr 13th 2008 10:33PM
Cool images, but unless you told me, I wouldn't know it was a PS3 ad.
Seriously, why can't Sony get the same guys that sell their TVs to push their games machine?
el serpiente @ Apr 14th 2008 2:48AM
Really? The words 'Playstation 3' in the corner, and the controller in the statue's hand didn't clue you in?
Poisoned Al @ Apr 14th 2008 6:55AM
The whole part of a static ad campaign is that your product should be obvious straight away, because no one is going to look at it for more then a few seconds.
If I have to stair at the bloody thing to "get it" then it's just another pretentious failure by Sony's marketing team.
Whocares @ Apr 13th 2008 10:36PM
It does not matter that its an x, if you thought my argument was that it was a swastica your an idiot. The imagery is clear, and most probably intentional. This is a symbolic representation of WWII Nazi rule. Do you know what the definition of symbolism is? If the definition evades you here http://www.answers.com/Symbolism.
Maverick Saturn @ Apr 13th 2008 10:47PM
My bad, I realise the picture depicts a standard of war and in any circumstance gaming's relation to it, what I couldn't understand is how Nazi-ism came into it. Apart from Sir Fidlious' indication of the squares on the hand.
Theres an X and a Triangle flag, so was wondering how Nazis got into it, that could have been any war period.
Maverick Saturn @ Apr 13th 2008 10:47PM
Obviously not modern day of course, but any country at any stage during that particular time period.
Whocares @ Apr 13th 2008 10:53PM
Actually the red flag, with the white circle is quite indicative of Nazism. If you look at the plaque on the statue, its the same character of plaque found around Nazi territory. Not only that but the setting is clearly European, so its not like you can say its an Asian, South American, or African. Judging by the weapons its also safe to say thats its not any of the wars that happened in North America, as those wars were predating the era portrayed. So unless you can inform me of some other big war, of that era, with those types of banners, and in the area its safe to say its representing Nazi rule. Which was either done accidentally or intentionally.
Maverick Saturn @ Apr 13th 2008 11:09PM
True, but then again, the fact its based on games counters that argument while it is very true, as games aren't meant to have a set period, they can happen anywhere at any time.
If this were based on reality, then from a factual and artistical standpoint you would be correct, but for all we know, this could symbolise Resistance, meaning that the very same scenes seen in there may not be anything concerning Nazi's but instead aliens. Kinda out of context, but you see what I mean :)
But I get your point none the less.
Psaakyrn @ Apr 14th 2008 2:20AM
Actually, nope.
Just because games can be based on any time period, doesn't negate the fact that games can also be symbolic of certain time periods/events, especially when care appears to be taken to be at least somewhat faithful to said time periods, even if lore states it to be otherwise (see example: Red Alert, Tiberian Sun, Bioshock). Even if this is based off a game, it'd be based of a game based of Nazi influence, which doesn't alter much.
el serpiente @ Apr 14th 2008 2:49AM
Wow, whocares actually really cares! That's sweet...