Video game consoles left running round-the-clock can send your annual electricity bill soaring. That's probably no surprise for most gamers. But the Natural Resources Defense Council, a New York-based conservation group, has conducted a study of gaming machine energy use to raise awareness among gamers and pressure manufacturers into making more energy-efficient machines.
The NRDC's study found that Xbox 360, PlayStation 3 and Wii machines in the U.S. use about as much electricity in a year as every home in San Diego combined. Much of the energy comes from machines that are left on, but not in use, the NRDC said.
Of the three consoles, Sony's PS3 was the biggest energy hog, followed by Microsoft's Xbox 360. Nintendo's Wii is by far the most energy efficient-and even uses less electricity than its predecessor, GameCube.
To quote: With more efficient devices and by utilizing existing power-saving features, consumers ... More »
It’s a great time to be a Street Fighter! It’s with great pleasure that I announce that HD Remix will arrive on the PlayStation Network real soon! Now you have the chance to debate which legs are more appealing, the turkey leg you’re about to have or the ones on Chun-Li.
Here are the details:
Release date: November 25, 2008 (I know, finally, right?)
Price: You’ve heard it here first! Only $14.99!
Trophies: Not at launch
Online Play: Of course
Graphics: 1080p baby
Gameplay: Two types – Original and Rebalanced
Here are some videos that will get you hyped for the game and will make you say, “Put him in a body bag!”
But wait, there’s more! Exclusive to the PlayStation Network, fans will have the opportunity to download the Street Fighter Underground Remi... More »
Looks like the New Xbox Experience dashboard update is experiencing some not-so-new Xbox woes. November 19: launch day for the NXE update. Not 24 hours after it went live, complaints
are already piling up.
Various forums online (such as the one linked above) have threads and threads of people reporting anything from connection freezes, slow downs, lock ups, broken TV connections, and so many other different numerical errors that, if all of them were strung together, could potentially measure all the way from Earth to the moon (and back).
There are even reports of brickage - yes, the famed red ring of death is back. Some say it's limited to modded consoles only (no surprise there) but other untainted units seem to be affected by the same problem too.
We've yet to hear any official response from Major Nelson or any of the Microsoft staff. Some say the slow downs are caused by the simple fact of surging traffic accessing XBL, but the oth... More »
SCEA Associate Producer Chris Hinojosa-Miranda shared the following via PS Blog today:
Happy Friday Hot Shots Golfers! It’s been a while since our last HSG post, but we’ve been busy testing new features, new costumes and some very special items for a holiday surprise!
As you might have noticed, we’ve started to roll out some new costumes for the wonderful cast of Hot Shots Golf: Out of Bounds. The first batch was a hit, but with the second batch we wanted to throw in a little something extra.
Something that had a little more kick. Something that could be heard above the chatter... something like VOICE CHAT.
Yes, your eyes do not deceive (and pretty soon your ears, too): the Clap Hanz team has been arduously devoting their time to make sure that Voice Chat, a feature you the fans have been asking for, was flawlessly implemented into Hot Shots Golf: Out of Bounds.
So now all users, for the low price of FREE, ... More »
A Nintendo rep has said that the only way gamers will be able to download the Wii Speak Channel is with a "Wii Download Ticket Number" that is printed in a pamphlet that comes with the Wii Speak microphone.
This apparently means that if you buy the peripheral it used, you won't be able to use it as you can't download the Wii Speak Channel.
To quote: But there’s a catch, a fine print surprise. There is a pamphlet packaged with the peripheral that includes a 16-character code, a “Wii Download Ticket Number,” to be used for downloading the Wii Speak Channel.
According to the pamphlet, this code “cannot be replaced by Nintendo or your retailer if it is lost or stolen.”
Many people have been wondering exactly what the differences are between Development and Retail PlayStation 3 Systems, and we figured now would be a great time to clarify these along with reporting some new findings.
Aside from the different hardware revisions of the PS3's motherboard, the systems are virtually the same as mentioned in previous posts. We have examined multiple PS3 TEST's, Retail PS3's, Demo Unit PS3's, and even Factory Mode PS3's, and found that there are no hardware differences between them at all.
Mind you, there are differences, but they are due to the hardware revision, not due to the systems themselves. To make that more clear, the units are identical to their counterparts of the same hardware revision.
So, the question is- what's the difference? Software!
We all know the difference is in the software, and after examining countless dumps from these systems, on top of flash dumps given to us by you, our loyal re... More »
This Christmas, both Sony and Microsoft are placing their bets on a bunch of ugly aliens and a couple of anti-heroes who are almost as ugly.
The massive gaming companies are going head-to-head in the build-up to the crucial holiday sales season with two much anticipated and very similar titles, Resistance 2 and Gears of War 2.
The games, both sequels, are first-person shooters, in which the player assumes the role of the man behind the big gun and the main antagonists are sharp-toothed aliens. Both games were released this week.
In Resistance 2, the invading creatures are called the Chimera, horrific beings that have the ability to turn mankind into disfigured slaves. In Gears of War 2, the focus shifts to stopping the evil Locust Horde, a subterranean race trying to exterminate the human race. In both titles, it's up to the dysfunctional hero to save the day.
But a far bigger battle is going on behind the scenes, where executives be... More »
By now, the term 'Next-gen' has transformed itself into 'Current-gen' in the minds of videogame enthusiasts. Gamers all across the world have seen what the consoles are capable of, played the cream of the crop, bickered about which version has more Trees, etc.
While there have been a few flops this Gen (Yes, we're looking at YOU Too Human & Lair) there have certainly been plenty of hits. With excellent software having been released for all 3 platforms, we turn our attention to the teams behind the software.
#5- Nintendo EAD (Mario Galaxy, Wii Sports, LOZ: Twilight Princess)
Nintendo's dramatic shift into casual gaming caused a lot of anger and complaints: "Why all the casual games?!?", "Do they even care about core gamers?!! "What The heck is WiiFit?", all these were questions thrown at the Japanese video game juggernaut.
While it's clear the 'Old Nintendo' is long gone, the 'new' Nintendo still has the most valuable feature of... More »
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