Ny Playstation3

Sony kunne her til morgen bombardere Facebook og andre sociale medier med billeder af den nye Playstation3. Designet har fået en overhaling, og konsollen er blevet mindre og lettere. Harddisken er kommet op på 500gb, og alt dette lyder fint på papiret, men spørgsmålet er: Hvad tænker Sony på?

Hvorfor blive ved med at udgive nye og opdaterede udgaver af den samme konsol? Mindre og lettere? Har vi virkelig brug for det? En bruger på Facebook bemærkede i denne sammenhæng, at han ikke just vader rundt med sin konsol under armen så ofte, så dens størrelse har ikke den store påvirkning på hans hverdag. Den er heller ikke blevet voldsomt billigere, så skal vi skifte vores "PS3-second model" ud med PS3-third model" pga. størrelsen på harddisken? Det er det eneste, som giver mening. Men her er tricket: Min PS3 bliver næppe skiftet ud med en, som ikke tilbyder bemærkelsesværdige ændringer andet end større harddisk og mindre design. Min kører med en 250gb. harddisk og har ikke rørt sig i måneder. Personligt ligner dette et forsøg fra Sonys side at holde liv i en konsol, som i allerhøjeste grad ikke har haft det nemt sidens dens oprindelige udgivelse. PS3 er en fin maskine, men nu er det på tide, at vi ser noget nyt. Det gælder også for Microsoft! Bring os PS4 og Xbox720! Vi orker ikke at se flere udgaver af samme konsoller. Det er ved at blive en vittighed. En ringe vittighed.

Men har man brug for en ny PS3, som ligeledes tilbyder en større harddisk, så kan man lige så godt købe den nye, da den faktisk allerede udkommer inden for en måned. Jeg har på fornemmelsen, at Sony ikke ligefrem fik den reaktion, som de havde forventet med den nye konsol. Og det er kun forståeligt. Men nedenfor kan du tjekke bæstet ud og se, om den er det værd. Den kommer næppe på min hylde. Men jeg må indrømme, at den har et ret lækkert design.

English version:

Sony hit Facebook and other social media platforms hard with images of the new PS3 model. The design got an overhaul and the console is now lighter and smaller. The hard drive has reached 500gb. and all of this is very nice on paper but the real question is: what is Sony thinking?

Why do they continue to make new and supposedly upgraded versions of the same, old console? Smaller and lighter? Do we really need that? A Facebook user noted that he doesn't exactly travel with his PS3 that often so a lighter and smaller model won't change his day to day life. It hasn't gotten notably cheaper either so are we supposed to change our PS3-second model with the PS3-third model just because of the hard drive? That's the only thing that makes sense. But here's the thing: I probably won't be making that change. The new model, in my oppinion, doesn't offer anything notably new. Mine is the second model and has a 250gb. hard drive and I don't have any problems with its size. Personally I think that this looks more like Sony trying to breathe life into a console that hasn't had it easy since its original release. The PS3 is a nice piece of hardware but it's had its rather troublesome run and now it's time to see something new. And that goes for Microsoft as well! Stop releasing updated versions of old consoles. Bring out the PS4 and the Xbox720! This has become a joke. A bad joke, sadly.

But if you're in need of a new PS3 or just want to buy one then you should wait for the new one as it will be available within a month. I get the feeling that Sony didn't receive the reaction that they had hoped for when they revealed the new PS3. And that is only understandable. You can check it out above and see if it will find its way to your home when it's released. It will hardly reach my door step. But I have to admit that it does have a pretty cool looking design.

Arma-udviklere arresteret

I sidste uge kom det frem, at to ansatte hos Bohemia Interactive, som står bag Arma-serien, blev arresteret i Grækenland for spionage. De to udviklere, Ivan Buchta og Martin Pezlar, er mistænkt for at have rejst til Grækenland for at tage billeder af en græsk militærbase, som de så kunne bruge som reference i Arma III. Naturligvis benægter både studiet og de to, at dette skulle være tilfældet. Snarere skulle de være blevet inspireret til at tage til Grækenland og opleve det land, som de i de sidste to år har arbejdet på at genskabe i en fiktiv kontektst. Forståeligt?

Ganske vist! Det er da intet nyt. Når man tilbringer meget tid med et værk, henholdsvis film, bog eller spil, som finder sted i et fremmed land, får man formentlig lyst til at opleve landet på egen hånd. Assassin's Creed II: Brotherhood inspirerede således mig til at tage til Italien for at opleve både Firenze og Venedig! Jo mere tid man bruger på det, jo mere magisk bliver det på en måde. Men lande har regler, og disse skal man følge. At tage billeder af en militær base er muligvis ikke den bedste ide nogensinde men i følge den officielle udtalelse fra Bohemia Interactive, så er der altså tale om en absurd fejltagelse. Personligt hælder jeg også mere til, at der er tale om en misforståelse. De har formentlig bare være inspireret til at se Grækenland, men det vil tiden vise. Læs den officielle udtalelse nedenfor.


English version:

Last week it surfaced that two developers from Bohemia Interactive, who is known for the Arma series, were arrested while visiting Greece. The two, Ivan Buchta and Martin Pezlar, were arrested for spying, taking pictures of a military installation, which the authorities believe they would use as a reference in Arma III. Naturally both Bohemia Interactive and the two deny that this is the case. They claim that the two went to Greece because they were inspired after having spent countless hours on making a fictional representation of it. Is that likely?

Of course it is! That's nothing new. When one spends much time with a book, movie or a game that takes place in a foreign country, one might actually want to go see the place. After playing Assassin's Creed II: Brotherhood I went to Italy to see both Florence and Venice. However taking pictures of a military installation might not be the best idea but this is all an absurd misunderstanding according to an official statement by Bohemia Interactive. Personally I believe that they were just inspired to see Greece for themselves but time will show why they really went. You can read the official statement below.

"Since last Sunday, when two Bohemia Interactive, a.s. employees, were arrested on the Greek island of Lemnos, much speculation about what happened has circulated online. It’s been rumored that they entered restricted military areas or gathered photographic references of military bases in order to improve the visual fidelity of Arma 3, a PC game currently under development by our company. Far in advance of any formal charges - only hours after they were detained by the local police - many media outlets immediately suggested spying and, only one day later, specifically referenced Arma 3.

Having traveled there, and after meeting personally with them both, as well as their lawyer who is fully acquainted with the Greek authority’s investigation file in detail, we can assure you that these insinuations are completely false and without substance. These employees - our friends, Ivan Buchta and Martin Pezlar - visited the island as tourists. Their holiday was a product of their interest in the island, triggered by their work on Arma 3 over the past two years of development.

They took photographs and videos in public areas, as countless tourists arriving to enjoy the beauty and hospitality of Greece may well do. These included a short video as they drove through the main road passing around the international airport, where in one short part of the video off in the distance some hangars and other buildings of the complex can be seen. It's very likely that many tourists may have pictures similar to those taken by Ivan and Martin in their own family albums, without being aware that they put themselves or their families at risk.

We sincerely hope that the whole situation is no more than an unfortunate and deep misunderstanding. The in-game Limnos is close to completion, and it’s far from an identical replication of the real place. It was heavily modified to fit the game’s backstory, a purely fictional 2035 setting. It was rescaled to only 75% of the real island, and it does not attempt to display any real world military installations situated on the island of Lemnos.

To summarize the situation:
They visited Lemnos on their holiday as tourists.
They did not enter any military area.
They did not take any pictures of any military objects to be used in Arma 3.

Martin and Ivan, currently being detained in Mytilene, relayed this message to their friends and family:

"The conditions are tough, but the people we meet treat us fairly and correctly. It is all a completely absurd misunderstanding that will certainly be quickly explained. We mainly think of you, our families; you have to stay calm and not to worry about us. We hope we will meet soon."

We apologize for any possible delay or lack of communication regarding this important matter. At present, all and every possible effort goes towards supporting Ivan and Martin, their families, and to getting the guys safely back home. Any form of support for our imprisoned colleagues and friends will be more than welcome."

Star Wars: TOR: Terror From Beyond

BioWare har ikke just haft held i sprøjten med hensyn til deres MMO: Star Wars: The Old Republic. Spillet har nemlig ikke klaret sig forfærdeligt godt rent kommercielt, og nu bliver det tilmed snart endnu en MMO, som må lide skæbnen af at gå Free2Play. Men man må ikke kimse af denne basis! Mange mennesker har en tendens til at tro det værste om de spil, som går F2P, og jeg er en af dem, men faktisk viser det sig at være en mere holdbar løsning. Det giver spillerne mulighed for gratis og lovligt, vel at mærke, at prøve spillene og selv vurdere, hvor mange penge de vil skyde i projektet ved at købe diverse opgraderinger. Faktisk kan denne form for betaling vise sig at generere en større indtægt end ved månedlige betalinger.

Men nok om det! BioWare forsøger nu at holde liv i sin MMO ved at udgive updates til spillet hver 6. uge, hvor spillerne kan finde nyt og spændende indhold til deres spil. Næste udvidelse går under navnet Terror From Beyond, og på papiret virker det ganske fint og som en holdbar udvidelse. Så hvis du stadig har en Jedi eller Sith Ridder gemt inde i dig, som blot venter på at vende tilbage til den gamle republik, så bør du muligvis tjekke Terror From Beyond ud! Se videoen for udvidelsen nedenfor, hvor designerne fortæller lidt om de ting, som man kan forvente!




English version:

BioWare hasn't exactly been lucky with their MMO: Star Wars: The Old Republic. The game hasn't been doing all that well in eyes of the public, and very soon it'll go Free2Play as many other MMO's has done before it. F2P isn't a bad basis, not at all, in fact! Many people have a tendency of thinking the worst about the games going F2P, and I am one of them, but it turns out that it's often a better solution regarding financing the game than monthly subscription. It gives the players the opportunity to try out the game and get relatively far in it before donating their hard earned cash to the game on various upgrades and add-ons. This can, at times, generate a higher income than monthly subscription.

But enough about that! BioWare is trying to keep its MMO afloat by releasing updates every 6 weeks or so, where the players can find new and interesting stuff to add to their gaming experience. The next add-on for the game is called Terror From Beyond, and on paper it looks quite decent. So if you still have a Jedi or maybe a Sith Knight roaming inside just waiting for a chance to return to the old republic, you might want to check out Terror From Beyond. You can watch the official video above where the designers are talking about some of the things that you can expect from the release.