Blizzard has a con and Sony signs a deal

October 15, 2008 on 4:16 pm | In News, PS3 | No Comments

And I’m back!

I apologize for my extended absence, but sadly, life demands responsibilities from me other than just playing video games and that pressure has been rather strong of late. Still, I have managed to snatch a spare moment from its chaotic midst and will now put forth some news and opinion.

Item #1: Lingering Questions
This weekend, Blizzard paraded its immense wealth and popularity in front of the video game industry during Blizzcon 2008. The company showcased new and upcoming content in all three of its massive franchises and still found time to coyly dodge questions about a yet-to-be-announced fourth project. My interest centered on new “Diablo III” information in particular. I have high hopes for the title, but I can’t help but wonder what place such a game has in an RPG world-made anew by MMOs. It was essentially a proto-MMO in its time, driven primarily by the desire for the best lootz and the most uber buildz. I’ll be interested to see if Blizzard can breathe new life back into the action-adventure genre without creating a dumbed-down WoW clone.

Item #2: A Big Idea for the Black Box
Sony recently forged a partnership with the ubiquitous video-sharing service YouTube to create an exclusive Playstation 3 channel on the ‘Tube’s site. Visitors can browse through videos and trailers for Sony’s latest offerings as well as developer interviews and the like. This in and of itself is not so exciting as one can already find such things online. The interesting tidbit is where Sony hopes to take the service, with PS3 users able to capture their own videos and upload them directly to the site. The first implementation of this is planned for “LittleBigPlanet,” combining custom-created levels with homemade videos.

The success of the endeavor will show itself in due time, but it’s good to see Sony is looking for more ways to enhance the online experience of their console, which of course still pales in comparison to the robustness of Live. Well, as long as the service isn’t down or your Xbox 360 bricked from the red ring of death, that is. However, it also strikes me as just another piecemeal attempt that fails to offer anything truly unique. Sony needs to stop adding an update here or there and go ahead and get Home out the door. Without a cohesive online support structure for the titles, they will allows stand a little bit behind the Xbox 360.