Hasta La Gadget!

After failing to find success in the massively multiplayer online game Final Fantasy XIV, Square Enix is now preparing to launch a sequel that addresses gamer complaints and hopes to make a much bigger splash in the admittedly competitive MMO community. While Final Fantasy has always been one of the great RPG franchsies, its attempts to bring the world of moogles and phoenix downs to the online world haven’t risen to the same level.

But that isn’t stopping Square Enix. Enter Final Fantasy XIV: A Realm Reborn. That’s right; don’t call it Final Fantasy XIV-2. It is going to carry on the Final Fantasy XIV torch but with a whole slate of new improvements and enhancements. It also seems to carry on with the trend of Square Enix continuing its titles with sequels. First it was Final Fantasy X-2, then Final Fantasy XIII-2, and now Final Fantasy XIV: A Realm Reborn.

In a press release, producer and director Naoki Yoshida said, “Since announcing our plans for the future of the title last October, we have been working tirelessly to include all of the elements that we have promised in FINAL FANTASY XIV: A Realm Reborn. This new title not only becomes a symbol of a completely new FINAL FANTASY XIV, but also marks the beginning of a new stage as the latest title in the FINAL FANTASY series. I hope you’re looking forward to it!”

[via Joystiq]

Square Enix’s Final Fantasy XIV: A Realm Reborn revealed is written by Mark Raby & originally posted on SlashGear.
© 2005 – 2012, SlashGear. All right reserved.

While a lot of people want to throw the PS4 in with the rumors and speculation about Microsoft’s new Xbox, Sony isn’t having any of that. Such is demonstrated with the rumored “super slim” PS3 that’s on the way. It will reportedly have Bluetooth and 802.11b/g, and will come in models all the way up to 500 GB. It’s also believed to be priced at around $150.

It could very well be Sony’s way of saying that its console is still alive and kicking, and that gamers should not begin thinking about the PS4. “A dramatic price reduction to $150 for PS3 would be terrific for Sony and for the industry overall. A value-priced PS3 could rapidly increase the base and would free up more consumer revenue for higher software sales volume,” said Pidgeon.

Of course, very few details about the PS3 successor are known at this point. Frankly, it’s kind of hard to figure out what to make of the state of the gaming industry right now. “Microsoft is less likely to reduce console prices this year with already strong hardware sales and Halo 4 coming out in Q4, but should Sony price PS3 at $150 this year, Microsoft could see stronger incentive to cut Xbox 360 prices sooner in retaliation,” Pidgeon said.

[via GamesIndustry]

New super slim PS3 poised to shake the market is written by Mark Raby & originally posted on SlashGear.
© 2005 – 2012, SlashGear. All right reserved.

Just how cheap do you expect a revised version of the Sony PS3 to go for in the market? Well, if we are talking about the upcoming super slim PS3 that is also known by its model number, CECH-4000, then rumor has it that it will retail for just $150 a pop – but that relatively low, low price would mean cutting corners somewhere, and it would be the amount of onboard storage that will be affected this time around, where it will come with just 16GB of storage space.

That is certainly not much at all in this day and age, especially when you consider the amount of data required in modern day games (Blu-ray sized here). It will still take some time before the 16GB PS3 is released though, and do not expect it to be announced at the Gamescom event which is happening next month since Sony’s current model inventory is still way too high in terms of stock count to flood the market with yet another piece of hardware.

Still, this rumored model will most probably be a direct competitor to the 4GB Xbox 360 from Microsoft. I guess there really is a market for consoles on the low end spec after all.

By Ubergizmo. Related articles: Scarlet Red PS3 arrives in the UK, PS3-4000 will not be announced this August? ,

Bethesda has revealed the details of its next major update to the game The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim, which will be making its way to the PS3 and Xbox 360 but of course is already available on the PC through Valve’s digital distribution Steam platform. The update is mainly a functional one, fixing various bugs and optimizing performance, as opposed to one filled with new features.

Among the updates are what Bethesda calls “general memory and stability optimizations.” More specifically, it fixes the following: crashes related to new water shaders, a rare crash event related to dragon landings, and problems with the loading screens on Xbox 360 that occurred after players purchased an add-on. Other Xbox 360-specific tweaks include Kinect patches for international languages as well as improved English recognition.

In addition, Bethesda said, “Using vampiric grip and swimming no longer prevents swimming animation from playing afterwards.” This update is now in queue for the PS3 and Xbox 360. There is a queue of game patches, and the console manufacturer needs to verify the file before it pushes it to system owners. Now it’s just a matter of playing the waiting game.

[via Examiner]

Bethesda Skyrim 1.7 update detailed is written by Mark Raby & originally posted on SlashGear.
© 2005 – 2012, SlashGear. All right reserved.

A day before the Samsung Galaxy Note 2 is announced to the masses, Sony will be holding its Gamescom press conference on August 14th, and originally, many people thought that this is the date to circle on your respective calendars as Sony prepares to announce its next iteration of the Sony PS3 to the masses, better known by its model number as PS3-4000. Well, a source of VG247 has touted otherwise, saying that the PS3-4000 will still remain in hiding when the Gamescom press conference rolls around this August 14th.

I guess it will still be some time before the slimmest PS3 model to date (obviously the PS3-4000) is announced. While the announcement was originally planned to happen on that date, it seemed that current stock levels of existing Ps3 builds are still way too high for Sony to risk what many deem as their last improvement on the PS3′s design before the fabled PlayStation 4 rides to the forefront of our consciousness on a unicorn across a rainbow bridge.

By Ubergizmo. Related articles: Slim PS3 spotted in the wild, PS3 System Software Update 4.20 to arrive tomorrow,