Anybody who thought that the PSN-friendly nature of LittleBigPlanet meant the game could be offered as a downloadable title will probably dash that dream when they find out the game takes up 40GB. In an interview with GI.biz, developer Alex Evans explains the game will be "filling up" the Blu-ray disc.
Evans explains there's a lot of tutorial content in LittleBigPlanet, narrated by Stephen Fry for English audiences. As we've learned in the past from Heavenly Sword and Ratchet, it's the (uncompressed and/or multi-region) audio that takes up a significant amount of space on the Blu-ray. Evans expresses that thanks to the Blu-ray, file size hasn't been a concern. This loose attitude to size for the disc's contents will not be applied to the player-designed content, however, which Evans says is "relatively compact."
Samsung UK consumer electronics boss Andy Griffiths doesn't see a lengthy lifespan for the Blu-ray format. Speaking to Pocket-lint, he said, "I think it [Blu-ray] has 5 years left, I certainly wouldn't give it 10." 10 years as in the product cycle Sony has mapped out for PS3, which features Blu-ray as a core technology?
Griffiths' prediction could very well be accurate, but consider DVD, a format that is still going strong 12 years after the first player launched in Japan in 1996. To put things in perspective, Blu-ray players only hit the scene two years ago. With adoption of HDTVs continuing at a steady pace and that whole victory over HD-DVD thing, the format (for video, at least) has to have at least six years left in it.
Despite the fact that Sony has previously listed LittleBigPlanet as a disc-only affair, there continue to be doubters. The crew at Bits Bytes Pixels Sprites decided to end any debate as to whether or not LBP would be a BD and/or PSN release. Being in the northern bit of North America, it rang up Sony's Canadian PR crew, who replied that "The game will be available at retail. The user [generated] content will be available on the PSN." Okay, Canada's covered.
We got in touch with LBP's US PR manager, Scott Goryl, who had this to say: "LittleBigPlanet is a Blu-ray Disc product exclusively for PS3," adding, "LBP will utilize much of PlayStation Network's vast functionality for online and community features, but the game will indeed be distributed as a Blu-ray Disc." Sorry folks, but you'll totally, absolutely, definitely have to tack on the price of gas to that $59.99 as you trudge down to one of those old-fashioned "game stores" to pick it up.
How many DVDs does it take to screw in a light bulb? ... Are we talkin' a Mega Texture light bulb that casts penumbra shadowing?
In an update to id Software's data dilemma, John Carmack tells Tom's Games, "We're pretty much resigned to the fact that we're going to make [Rage] fit onto two DVDs on the 360." In other words, Microsoft isn't about to write off the steep royalties that allegedly add up with each additional game disc. The good news is you'll only have to whine for mom to swap your Xbox 360 discs once. The bad news, as headlined last week, is that Rage for Xbox 360 will supposedly look worse than the PlayStation 3's Blu-ray version due to data compression. But how much worse?
"All of the key scenes, the things anyone is going to take a screenshot of are going to look exactly the same on both platforms," Carmack explains. "They'll get the high quality compression. But if you go into some areas in the wasteland, like behind a fence where nobody will typically go and explore, this is where the 360 version may look a little blurry compared to the PS3." We hear id's been sweeping some artifacts under the rug too. And watch out for those jaggies hiding beneath the bed!
Square Enix revealed both film (titled Advent Children Complete) and demo at their DKΣ3713 event, with a Japanese release date of March 2009. The demo will also include video previews of Final Fantasy Agito XIIIand Versus XIII (which they took care to mention is still a PS3 exclusive). Squeenix also announced a new PS3 SKU that will include the Blu-ray directors cut. What they didn't announce, however, was the American release date of the film -- and whether the demo and bundle will even make it to American shores.
We know what you're thinking, and we're right there with you. The absolute best way to capture the intense horror and gore of EA's upcoming Dead Space for a direct-to-DVD (and Blu-ray) movie is with a cartoon. Oh, that wasn't what you were thinking? C'mon – as if the age gate on this trailer for the flick wasn't enough indication, it's not exactly a kid-friendly affair. No sir. It's nice and gory (as gory as cel animation can get, at least).
Set for release on October 28 (hey, that's right around when the game's hitting ... coincidence?) the film follows the events that occurred on the mining ship Ishimura (the game's setting, in case you're just joining us) and the planet it's lifelessly orbiting (and why it's orbiting said planet lifelessly) before the outset of the game. Think of it kind of like Enter the Matrix in reverse. On second thought, don't think about Enter the Matrix.
Dual-layer Blu-ray discs are so 2006. The new hotness is Pioneer's just-developed, 16-layer Blu-ray disc (pictured above) with a whopping 400GB of writable storage space. For reference, that disc could hold roughly eight copies of Metal Gear Solid 4, 187 copies of Final Fantasy VII, or 1.25 million copies of the original Super Mario Bros.
The new discs require a special "wide-range spherical aberration compensator and light-receiving element" to detect the weaker laser signal, so don't plan on sticking one of these data-bloated monstrosities into your existing PS3. That said, the next generation of game consoles could support this new disc system, which is fully backward-compatible with existing Blu-ray discs. Of course, by the next generation, game systems might not be using optical discs at all, so who knows what the future will hold.
Well, it's tomorrow, and despite yesterday's rumor that Microsoft would be announcing a Blu-ray equipped Xbox 360 today (that's yesterday's tomorrow, for those of you confused by that first clause), so far we've so far heard bupkis. In fact, we've heard less than bupkis if you take into account the San Francisco Chronicle interview with Robbie Bach, in which the Microsoft Entertainment & Devices president downplays disc-based movie formats and stresses Microsoft's HD video downloads.
"Xbox 360 has a great ability to deliver [high-definition experience] through the Xbox Live (online download) service," Bach said. "It's a great way to get the high-definition concept because it's right there. There's no additional media. There is nothing you need to purchase ... You have to look at how fundamentally compelling the difference is between a progressive scan DVD player and the picture that it can produce and what you get on a high-definition player. The reality is there is some difference, but most people look at it and say, 'I am not going to pay extra for that.'"
The full interview also includes Bach's thoughts on in-game ads, the next-next-gen Xbox, and motion-sensitive controllers. Check it out.
Tech blog CrunchGear is reporting that an inside source at Microsoft who was a former member of the company's HD-DVD department has confirmed that the company will announce that the "Xbox 360 will get Blu-ray before Christmas" via a press release set to go out at 9 a.m. PDT. Details about the supposed system are slim, though the tipster confirmed that the new model will cost less than an Elite model ($449.99).
The announcement is supposed to drop one hour before the opening of the Worldwide Developer's Conference in order to steal the spotlight from Apple's annual event. Kind of a bizarre move on Microsoft's part -- we doubt announcing a new model of your gaming console will overshadow an entire conference-worth of Apple-related news stories. As per usual with rumors (especially ones involving Blu-ray 360s), we'll keep our standard level of skepticism at heart as we refresh our mailboxes tomorrow morning.
The UK's "semi-official" PlayStation blog, ThreeSpeech, has posted up an interview with SCEI head honcho Kaz Hirai, covering a range of topics including those little things that make a console stand out to consumers: exclusive games.
Hirai says it's no longer a question of paying publishers for exclusives, but rather whether third-parties can afford to release a game on only one platform, period. Sony's role, according to Hirai, is to work with publishers to make the PS3 releases of their games "more compelling for the consumers than any other version." Hirai says that Blu-ray Disc is the key to this, since its capacity for huge amounts of data makes it perfectly suited for movie-style bonus features and "maybe additional levels."
With third-parties "going wide" with their biggest releases, Hirari believes that internal dev teams will play a pivotal role in defining the overall PlayStation experience with "envelope-pushing, genre-defining content." Bring it on, Kaz.
We've absolutely lost count of how many times Microsoft has had to deny rumors of an Xbox 360 with Blu-ray drive, but here's another one. Following a resurgence in the rumor last week, GamePro was told today by a Microsoft official that the company continues to have no plans of introducing a Blu-ray drive for the Xbox 360.
The statement goes on to say that "games are what drive consumers to purchase game consoles, and [Microsoft] remains focused on providing the largest library of blockbuster games available." OK, that's good and all, but if the Blu-ray thing is out, could the NetfliXbox 360 idea still be on the table?
Here we go again! This time around we've got the Chinese-language Economic Daily News reporting that Pegatron (an OEM subsidiary of Asus that handles "motherboard and component OEM manufacturing") has been tapped to assemble "Xbox 360 consoles equipped with a Blu-ray Disc ROM drive." The admittedly unreliable language indicates an internal drive as opposed to another external attachment but, with shipments expected to begin in Q3 of this year, we'll now soon enough: internal or external; true or false.
Microsoft has again flipped the 'light off' on the glowing promise of Blu-ray for Xbox 360. Of the latestreports spread from Digitimes that Lite-On would begin shipping Blu-ray drives for Xbox 360 later this year, Microsoft told Techradar: "Lite-On is not manufacturing Blu-ray drives for Xbox 360. As we have stated, games are what are driving consumers to purchase game consoles and we remain focused on providing the largest library of blockbuster game available."
Additionally, Microsoft used its swift denial as an opportunity to plug Xbox 360's Video Marketplace, saying, "For our customers who want a premium movie experience we offer the largest library of on-demand HD content available" ... and oh, don't forget, a budget-priced HD-DVD player! (While supplies last.)
[Update: Sounds like Microsoft still isn't having any of this "Blu-ray on Xbox 360" nonsense, despite the ever-churning rumor mill's insistence to the contrary. In a prepared statement, Microsoft stated (rather unequivocally we must say), "No. Lite-On is not manufacturing Blu-ray drives for Xbox 360." Speculation over? Something tells us that's unlikely.]
If you believe yesterday's rumor from Digitimes that Microsft is looking to integrate a Blu-ray drive into future revisions of the Xbox 360 console, then you'll want to hear their followup: their source claims that "Sony, as a main global producer of BD-ROM pick-up heads, may decide to combat the market competition by selectively reducing the supply of key BD-ROM components to OEM makers partnering with Microsoft on the new Xbox 360 drives."
What does this mean? Since the BD-ROM drives are roughly $95-100 "according to industry sources," and since the current DVD-ROM drives in the Xbox 360 are only $18-20, Microsoft would ostensibly be selling the console at a loss or risk selling a Blu-ray equipped 360 for more than a PlayStation 3. (Here, we'll do the math for you: $350 Xbox 360 Pro + $80 price delta > $400 PS3). So what happens if Sony jacks prices or withholds components, making that margin even less palatable to Microsoft? We're really not sure ... competition is always good for consumers, but Sony controlling the means of production is certainly an x-factor. Oh yeah, that is if Blu-ray is coming to Xbox 360 at all.
According to Digitimes' sources, the BD-ROM drives are due to ship out to Microsoft in the second half of this year. Lite-On has previously developed internal DVD-ROM drives for the Xbox 360, leading us to believe that Microsoft may plan to include internal BD-ROM drives in future 360 iterations (such as those including the Jasper, Opus and Valhalla chipsets). No need to fear, however: Such an inclusion would likely be solely for Blu-ray disc playback, and not for Xbox 360 games pressed on BD-ROMS (we hope).
