Against All Odds

Sorry for the downtime. The server has had some issues. I can't assure you that this site won't go down again soon. But I assure you that it won't be down for a week again. Also, I'll be posting the top 10 games of 2006 soon. Just incase you're wondering why they aren't posted already...

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Well, I didn't think the day would come so soon, but it has. I just received a Playstation 3 (60gig) bundle including: Resistance, Fight Night Round 3, and Madden 07. This of course goes completely against my estimates of not owning a PS3 until mid 2008. It also makes my previous blog post moot.

It's arrival also coincides with the purchase of a new Samsung 1080p LCD that will be arriving soon. I look forward to checking out Blu-Ray. X-Men: The Last Stand and Underworld: Evolution are at the top of my list so far.

Well I took it out of the box. Read over the manual a bit. I was relieved to discover that the PS3 didn’t have a huge power adapter. All it needed was one simple power cord. I’m loving it already. It shames the Xbox 360 + HD-DVD clutter that its setup next to. Shames it.

Of course, simplicity can be anything but. I try hitting the power button. The manual states that I’m supposed to see a red light indicating its in standby mode. I don’t have a light. I fiddle around with the main switch in the back. Nothing. I then flip it around and see that the power cord isn’t plugged into the PS3 all the way. My rage subsides and I laugh a bit.

I plug in the controller via USB and scoot my recliner waaay close to the TV because the cord is only 3ft long. Nice. Next step: I find my mac address and enter it into my network. Search for my connect. Error. Hmm. I try it fifteen more times, still an error. I check my network mac address vs the PS3’s actual mac address. My bad again. I input the correct one.

Mistakes: Sony 0 | Phaethon 2. I might just walk away with this match. I go into the display settings (this should be good). I’ve the PS3 hooked up to my 37” LCD via Component Multi-out cables I used for my PS2. I notice its still in 480p. I search for the HD settings. None to be seen. I search, and finally I realize I have it set to “Multi-out” and not “Component.” I’m up 3 points now. I set it to supported resolutions of 720p and 1080i. Since my LCD doesn’t support HDMI and doesn’t support 1080p over Component, that’s as high as she goes. Sony doesn’t seem to be playing the blame game.

Ok. Now that I’ve got my PS3 hooked into the network, I decide to create a PS ID. Uh oh, gotta update. Half an hour later its installed and I can sign in to the network. Twenty minutes later (I filled in the questionnaire too), I’ve got it all setup, and have myself a cool Jak avatar to boot. I then checkout the Playstation Store. Tons of goodies. Demos for MotorStorm, Resistance, F1, Genji, Gran Turismo HD. I set it up to download the Genji 2 demo so I’m not out $60 if I don’t like it. Long story short, I didn't like it.

Resistance: Fall of Man really is all it's cracked up to be. The Wii and PS3 have both gotten killer apps out on day one. Resistance easily is the best launch title FPS I've played since Halo. The graphics are incredible for a launch title, and the presentation is extremely polished. I'll put up a full review of it. Me and my buddy played it for 8hrs straight so its very likely to get a good score.

MotorStorm is a huge surprise. I'm saying it now: It's the best racer I've played in the next-gen. I'll definately post some demo impressions of it. Good graphics, good controls, incredibly fun: must buy when it comes out.