Mass Effect 3 Gameplay is up!

I have tried uploading the gameplay video about 3-4 times. It kept on being rejected by the server for no reason. It finally went through when I changed the file name. I guess it was too long or something. Anyways, here is the gameplay video from my youtube channel.

This is my first time going through the missions. I am trying to get used to the controls and such. Going from playing first person shooter frequently then to a TPS/OTS one is a big deal for me. I have to get used to the camera angles as well. Gah, sometimes it gave me headache to play this game.

Enjoy!

Dark Souls Shield Design Contest

Hey Demon Souls fans who are looking forward for Dark Souls, there is a contest right now in regards to shield design. Here is my entry:

Link to vote for this entry : http://darksouls.fb-apps.namcobandaigames.eu/medias/502676446/thumbnails/502676446_1_x147_y184.jpg

I call this the Omega shield. I accidentally made an omega sign with letter R.

I am not sure what I are my chances to winning this competition. I think the gallery will open once the design competition design is done. Can't wait for other entries.

This shield is designed with minimalistic approach. I had fun designing the shield myself. I am a huge fan of RPG games. It took me about 2 hours to play around with this sheild lol. Made a doodle yesterday and it does not look right. I have two more entries to go.

If you see my shield in the gallery, please vote! I call it the Omega shield. I know - it is such a corny name lol.
Here is a copy pasta from the ToS from the competition:

Schedule:

- Phase 1:  Post  and  vote  Phase.  From  June  27th to July 13th

. The contestants will post their 

drawings and will vote for the best ones.  

- Phase 2: Vote only phase. From July 14th to July 20th

. The drawing upload section of the application is closed and only the vote section remains active. 

- Phase 3:  July 20th. The most voted drawings for each of the 3 shield templates are selected 

and submitted to Dark Souls Development team (Fromsoftware) for selection of the winners. 

- Phase 4: The winners are announced on the Facebook application Skin Design Contest by July 28th

.

Prizes:  

For the winners 1, 2 and 3:  Custom shield design in game + name in the game credits + 1 Limited 

Edition signed by Dark Souls Director, Hidetaka Miyazaki. Value 80€ 

For the winners 4 to 10: 1 Standard Signed Edition by Dark Souls Director, Hidetaka Miyazaki. Value 

70€. 

The winners will be contacted by NBP on the e-mail address recorded on his/her Facebook page. 

PS3 Firmware 3.66

A new firmware has just came out now. I just been kicked off PSN lol and forced to update. Anyways, there are no info in regards to this patch. According to the playstation blog, it is a minor patch and just fixing some stability and improved network services. Downloading the update though takes longer...so maybe there is more behind this update that Sony is keeping for themselves until it get's checked by hackers out there.
Anyways, I am installing the update now...it is going to take a few minutes. I will update this post when I find more information.

Oh yea, I have not post anything new for a looooong while. I have been busy.

Update(1)
Apparently, someone figured out the button combination that the QA testers uses. According to some people, this patch is suppose to prevent regular players to access the QA mode.

Welcome Back Package now live!

Ohhh yeaaa finally! It is up. Free 30day trial for PS+ and other goodies that comes with it. Activate your PS+ now I don't know what to say. I already downloaded a bunch of free stuff that you can keep even after your free PS+ subscription is done.

Your chance to get your PS+ package is only available until July 3rd!

If you have 2 or more accounts, you can download pretty much all the games for both PS3 and PSN. However, those accounts should be registered prior to April 20 2011.

Game list vanished from PS Store? Don't worry! It is still there! Go to your "Account Management" then hit "Transaction Management" then to "Services List" and finally to "SCEA Promotion".

PS Store to be Restored

Hello, there is a press release that was just posted by Sony. All PSN (including PS Store) will be back online worldwide with the exception of Japan, Hong Kong, and South Korea. It will resume all services on June 2, 2011 which is tomorrow.

Update(1): Welcome Back package will not be available until sometime later. Expect some delays and errors when you try to access PS Store as many will be trying to access it at the same time.

To see the press release yourself click : Sony Press Release PSN Restoration"


"Tokyo, June 2, 2011– Sony Corporation and Sony Computer Entertainment (SCE) announced today that Sony Network Entertainment International (SNEI, the company) will fully restore all PlayStation®Network services today June 2, 2011, in the Americas, Europe/PAL territories and Asia, excluding Japan, Hong Kong, and South Korea. The company will also resume Music Unlimited powered by Qriocity™ for PlayStation®3 (PS3®), PSP® (PlayStation®Portable), VAIO and other PCs."
- Sony Press Release

Oh the Similarity!

Watch the new Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3  Am3rica teaser.

Then here is a link directly on that scene where MW3 : Am3rica teaser looks like without the technical stuff matrix look alike : Red Alert 2. That video is the first thing that came into my head when I saw that trailer. I am pretty sure some of you guys have played RA2.

Yes! The Russians are back in MW3. This time it is a total world war. A continuation of the story from the last one. Are you getting it or are you getting bored of Call of Duty coming out every year only bringing small changes everytime it comes out. I'm up for Battlefield 3 though.

Portal 2 Music for Free

Hey Portal fans! Maybe some of you don't know that the music for portal is available for download for free from their website. I have downloaded the album and so far I am amazed how good this album is. It also comes with the album cover. Also, they have free ringtones for android phones as well as for iPhone. Check it out! Reminds me of my first play through when I listen to some of the tracks.

http://www.thinkwithportals.com/music.php

New PS3 7.1 Headset

7.1 Goodness

Few days ago, Sony announced a new headset designed for the PS3. It is wireless and offers 7.1 surround sound. I wish I have waited for this to come out before I bought a PS3 bluetooth headset. The current headset is uncomfortable but it is nice because of it's minimalistic design. I think I will pick this new peripheral and then a surround sound system sometime in the future.

Oh and yes, that is a mic sticking out of that thing :)

L.A Noir : Too Hot for PS3

L.A Noir just came out and it not only sets up a new bar for facial animation but also causing a problem for PS3. So far Sony has confirmed that they have not yet determined what is causing the PS3 to overheat or shutdown. They are not sure if it is the new 3.61 firmware update or the game.

It's a crime scene alright

Recently, my PS3 has been freezing too. I am not sure what is causing it. I keep my vents clean and everything and it does feels hotter than before. However, I think it might be the game as it seems like will require tons of resources and processing power of the PS3. Is the PS3 pushed to its limits by this game or is it the 3.61 update?

PS3: Firmware Update 3.61 is Up For Grabs! SOE and PSN Back Online Today!

That is right! 3.61 firmware upgrade for PS3 is now live. Like I stated in my old post, it is a security update that forces you to change your password. I think we are nearing the end of the dark times. Turn on your PS3 and get your update :) Also, PSN is coming back online now for North America - "state by state" as we speak.

* Not confirmed but just rough estimates/predictions. It could be some of their surrounding states as well. Thanks :)

Update(9): Playstation Network is online for North America 12:00am Pacific May 15, 2011. WOOT! See you guys online!


Canada is also back online. You can request your change of password now using your PS3. It is faster than PC. I highly recommend using the PS3 to change your password. Remember, only the PS3 you always log-on into will work for the password change.


If you are going to try to change it through your PC, you have to wait for an email that could take 24 hours to arrive. The email will provide you a link so that you can verify that it is you and update your password.This is what you would see from your PC if you try to log in:

"To sign in, an update of your account information is required. An e-mail message with instructions has been sent to Your_Email. It may take up to 24 hours to receive this message."

Update(8): West coast and mid-west U.S.A is now back online. Also some Central parts, Alaska and Hawaii as well. Every state in U.S will be back sometime in the morning. Welcome back guys! Now we look forward for our "Welcome Package". 11:00pm PST. Congrats!

Update(7): Michigan, Indiana, Ohio, West Virginia, Virginia, and Pennsylvania are up and running! (Officially confirmed) 10:30pm PST

Still coming up next few hour or so*:
Washington State (Possibly next)
Texas and surrounding states- Louisiana, Mississippi, Alabama, and Oklahoma (Possibly next)
North/South Dakota(2-3 hours or so)
and Oregon (in about 2-3 hours or so)

Update(6): Florida, South/North Carolina,and Georgia are now online 9:00pm PST (officially confirmed) Enjoy guys!

It seems like they confirm states every hour. Please be patient.

Still waiting for Washington state(trying to confirm right now), Louisiana, Dakota, Texas, Michigan/Ohio (trying to confirm as well), possibly Oklahoma as well as Alabama, Illinois and their surrounding states to come up next hour.* One of these should be officially confirmed as well as some of their surrounding states

Germany (Will be back on soon as well).

Update(5): Florida, Louisiana, Washington State, and Dakota coming up next. In addition, Texas and Michigan/Ohio area are coming up too. Alabama will join shortly.

Update(4): State of California is now on as of 8:11pm PST. Europe servers are still down but has updated their blog post. PlayStation Network Restoration Begins - Sony UK


Update(3): Seems like the official site is having trouble loading. Probably the server is being overwhelmed. Nothing has changed so far from the map. 7:51 PST

Update (2): New York are and entire far North East of U.S is now officially back on. Still no word for Canada. You can now access your PSN and online multiplayer if you live in NY, Connecticut, Vermont, New Hampshire, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, and New Jersey area.

Update(1): People are reporting that they are having trouble downloading the new update probably due to the amount of people downloading it. So just keep trying and you will download the update successfully. The PSN is still down in my region as we speak.

"An error occurred during the download operation. A connection to the server cannot be established. (80710101)"

____________________________

PSN is going back on today state by state. Maybe by tomorrow, the whole North America will be back online.

"Please note that these services will take a bit of time to be turned on and rolled out to the whole country. The process has begun and some states are being turned on now, so please be patient as we reach your city and state."

They kindly put up a map on which state is currently on. To see the official blog. Click :

http://blog.us.playstation.com/2011/05/14/play-on-%E2%80%93-psn-restoration-begins-now/

"We strongly recommend that all PSN account holders with PS3s update their systems to prepare for when PlayStation Network is back online. The release of this update is a critical step as we work to make PlayStation Network significantly more secure. Thank you for your continued support and patience."

 -  Eric Lempel - VP, Sony Network Entertainment

It is quite a big update. I am pretty sure there is more behind this update other than just forcing you to change passwords of course. There was no noticeable changes made but we will find out once the PSN gets back on.


However, PSN is still down but I think it will come back soon. I expect another firmware update once before the whole service is back up since PS Store will be disabled up until the end of the month.


For full official blog post:
http://blog.us.playstation.com/2011/05/14/ps3-system-software-update/

Also, a welcome message from Kaz.
Kaz Hirai - PSN Relaunch Announcement


SONY ONLINE ENTERTAINMENT

In addition, GOOD news for SOE PC gamers! Your service is coming back on today! Still no words for PSN though. Happy hunting!

"Sony Online Entertainment LLC (SOE) announced today that restoration of its game services will begin today. The phased restoration will include the return of nearly all of SOE's portfolio of online games, the reinstatement of SOE's game forums and websites, and added functionality to require players to reset their passwords."

 For the official announcement :

http://www.soe.com/securityupdate/restorationannouncement.vm

Medal Of Honor(PS3)

Since I just started blogging recently, I just want to say something about Medal of Honor. The funny thing is that I just heard Linkin Park's "Catalyst" (I'm a big fan of LP!) which reminded me of MoH. That just proves that music is important to the identity of a game. I will not discuss this in depth due to it being out there for a long time. I just want to say a couple of words about it.

Medal of Honor tried to compete with Modern Warfare and it did created its own fanbase. It still remains active as we speak. Pretty fun game. It kept me busy during the winter. I got the highest levels on each type. Graphics and sound is awesome (a sneak peek to BF3 style graphics). Similar to Bad Company 2 but hella better. Sometimes there is lag but the hit detection is  not a problem in this game. Guns are accurate and attachments are pretty cool. I think the shotgun is too over powered in this game. No matter what distance.

Game modes can get intense. Some game modes like mission type of game will require communication and great team work in order to win. Team deathmatch can be a little boring sometimes but the "Clean Sweep" can really test your skill.

The kill streaks are something that I have not seen before. It is not linear (sort of) because once you get a certain amount of kills, you can choose between a defensive or an offensive kill streak. An example of defensive kill streak is match ammo - which increases the damage of your weapons. Offensive kill streak is like hell fire missile strike with the ability to control it. Sometimes, I do wish that there should be more kill streaks but oh well.

Single player is action packed. The story follows a real-life story but not accurate. It is like you are playing a documentary. Voice acting is superb and the helicopter missions are very satisfying so as the sniper missions. Very linear since you follow a path most of the time.You don't have freedom to choose what path to take.

The timed challenges is something that I am having hard time to finish. About a couple more to complete and I can will get my platinum trophy.

I just wish there are more guns in the game, more kill streaks, more maps, and other goodies. However, this game is like a buffer. A peek to what is really coming. Battlefield 3. Oh yea, the limited edition includes the redemption code for BF3 beta. Expect that to come soon :) Too bad, I don't think EA will put extra stuff out for MoH. The bottom line is, it kept me busy and focused to the game for quite a while.

SOCOM Pro Code - No scratching needed anymore

So, I did you rip your code up?

New copies of SOCOM 4 contains a redemption code as an incentive for buying a new copy. So for those who are buying SOCOM 4 used will have to spend another 15$ to get SOCOM pro. For those who don't know, SOCOM pro will have an exclusive content for download (free) such as new weapons that were not included in the stand alone game.

Many players had issues trying to obtain their code from the back of their manual booklet for those who got it the week it came out. To obtain the code, you have to scratch the protective layer util the code is visible. However, some players think that they have to peel off that protective tape. That tape provides protection to the code for those who might scratch too hard. The new copies now has no protective layer that covers the code. It is now completely exposed.

The thing about having it exposed like that is anyone can see it. Gamestop sometimes leave the manual with the box. Anyone can take a look at the manual and take a photo or even take it with them to get the code for free. The customer that picks up that brand new copy will end up paying for extra 15$.

For those who has ripped their codes due to improper way of obtaining it, call customer service and they will ask you to provide reciept (scan it) and a copy of that ripped voucher. They will send you a new one.

Well, they made life easier for everyone.

Update (1): Since the PS store is down, you can still enter the code via your web browser on your computer. Go to the playstation store website and log in. Once you log in, go to account management and then redeem code. If the log in system is down, then there is no way to redeem it.