You’ve purchased your PS3, and you don’t live in a country on the list of supported countries when you sign up for your Playstation Network Account.
To fully enjoy the Playstation Network, it is recommended that you have a US account, and the following ways of purchasing from PSN are a general update to the previous post on GamerSpire:

1.) Entropay still works as an option for persons who had used Entropay on the Playstation Store prior to Sony blocking said Entropay cards.

2.) If you have a US or Canadian account, there is NO possible way to use a local credit card. Must have a Credit Card authorised by a US bank/Canadian Bank with the associated Billing Address.

3.) PSN Prepaid Cards are now readily available in the US for those with USA accounts. Trinis with US accounts can obtain these codes numerous ways:
i. Ask a relative to purchase one from a store in the US and send you the code.

ii. Purchase one from an online retailer at a markup price:
- www.MaximusCards.com
(accepts all credit cards worldwide, sells numerous gaming prepaid cards, safe - purchased here already.)

- Ebay Seller iTunes Express
(Uses Paypal, sells PSN & iTunes Cards, safe purchased from here before.)

4.) Local Options (Trinidad & Tobago) - Carigaming - a new local option by GATT member: daniel1908
(Best for persons without access to Credit Cards, have not personally tried this option)

Local Gaming Stores may stock these (If anyone knows some names, please message me.)

Sony announced this morning at its annual Destination Playstation Event, a slew of PSP support.
Here’s the details:

- New PSP bundles coming in 2009, including an Assassin’s Creed PSP Entertainment Pack and a Hannah Montana PSP Entertainment Pack, which includes a new Lilac PSP.

- Exclusive PSP editions: MotorStorm Arctic Edge (also coming to PS2), LittleBigPlanet, Rock Band, and the Petz series.
The Warhawk Command Center launches in PlayStation Home this week.

Hit the jump for the full press release:
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Loco Roco 2 has finally been given a release date!
On February 10th 2009, PSP gamers will gain hands on with the sequel to the 2006 hit, Loco Roco.

Sony today announced 2 major Firmware updates that will be hitting their platforms very soon. (I’m guessing by Tuesday evening, in line with every other update…could be next Tuesday though…We’ll see.)

The first is 5.00 for PSP, this update adds signing in onto the Playstation Network using your current PS3 PSN ID. You are now able to access the Playstation Store from your PSP also.

And the highlights on the PS3 update 2.50 are:

Support for the PS3 Official Bluetooth Headset - we’ve told you about the upcoming Bluetooth Headset and SOCOM: U.S. Navy SEALs Confrontation Bundle on the Blog. This latest firmware installment enables High-Quality (HQ) mode, which delivers clear and wide-band online voice chat. On top of that, an added on-screen indicator shows battery status, volume level and use of HQ mode.

PlayStation Trophies interface enhancements - I know that many of you are busy collecting trophies and raising your PlayStation Trophy level. This update makes sharing and comparing your trophies with your friends even easier. On 1st part of the profile page you’ll see a symbol under level that represents level and the actual percentage towards the next level along with the existing level meter. The level symbol carries over to the trophy comparison screen where you will now be able to see your level, your friend’s level and the percentage towards the next level for both users along with all of the game by game comparison information you see today.

Friend status – Offline friends on your Friends list will have information below their avatars that will indicate how long it has been since they were last online.

Video – This update adds the Scene Search feature similar to the feature on the PSP. Activating this feature while viewing a video on the PS3 will break the video up into scenes that you can quickly access by pressing the X button. You can break the videos into one, two or five minute intervals. In addition, you can now choose to have all of the videos under the video section of the XMB play in sequence. Go to Settings then Video Settings to turn this option on.

PlayStation Store – We’ve added a redeem codes option right on the store to make it easier to redeem your PlayStation Network Cards and promotion codes. In addition, PlayStation Network Sign Up and Account Management have been redesigned.

Power Save Settings – You can now set your PS3 and wireless controllers to turn off automatically after set periods of inactivity. Go to Settings then Power Save Settings to turn on these features.

Background Downloading - You now have the option to set the PS3 to turn off automatically after a background download or installation of content has completed. This option is available when you turn off the system from the button under [Users] while content is being downloaded or installed.

In-game Screenshots - this tool will allow everyone to capture, share and in other words, immortalize their favorite gameplay moments. This will be supported on a game by game basis. Please check back to find out which games will support this feature.

Read more bout these updates here:
http://blog.us.playstation.com/2008/10/13/firmware-updates-ps3-v250-psp-v500/

So you live in Trinidad or any other country not on the Country List when you go to register for an account.
What to do? What to do?

So how important is this online service?
I can honestly admit to you that the online experience on PS3 is 50% or more the overall PS3 experience.

1.) Broadband Internet
So to get online, yes you need a broadband connection.
For the best experience you’ll want to get a Blink Internet package of 2mbps. which is $350 per month.
If thats a bit costly, the 1Mbps connection for $250 will do the job.
If Flow is in your area, I’d highly recommend their 6mbps connection for $350… Its what I use and online games do not lag.

You see what is most important here is “ping”. that is response time in games. The ping on both Flow and Blink are generally really good so it doesn’t matter which carrier you go to. But for downloading files from the Playstation Network. a faster connection would be really nice.
From experience I download a 1.5GB file from the Playstation Network in about 30mins with my Flow connection.
Thats an hour, 30mins on a 2mbps connection.
So do you need more speed? or can you wait the extra time…

You’re also gonna need a wireless router to get your PS3 online.
Using this router your connection could be wireless or wired.
With the internet connection plugging into the router and you running a cable to the ps3 or setting up the wireless on the ps3.
I won’t go into all the networking in this post, unless someone requests that.

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Its no secret that Harmonix and MTV Games will be releasing a sequel to last year’s juggernaut entry into the rhythm game market. Rock Band 1 introduced drums and vocals to the music fray and the develoment team intend on improving upon their successful formula.

With games like Guitar Hero - World Tour and Konami’s Rock Revolution all set for FALL 2008, Rock Band 2 is required to come big if it it wants to be the king of the genre and they’ve already started with their uncomparable setlist…

Full set list after the jump:

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E3 is less that a week off…
Sony is riding big this year with a tonne of first party exclusives….All amazing in their own right…
Here are the games expected to be shown as well as the rumored:

Expected:
LittleBigPlanet
Killzone 2
Resistance 2
inFamous
SIREN Blood Curse
The Agency
MotorStorm: Pacific Rift
PixelJunk Eden
The Last Guy
Flower
SOCOM Confrontation
WipeOut HD
L.A. Noire
Rock Band 2 (Multi-Platform)
Guitar Hero: World Tour (Multi-Platform)
Call of Duty: World at War (Multi-Platform)

Rumored:
God of War 3 (Possible Announcement)
Twisted Metal (Possible Announcement)
Final Fantasy XIII (Trailers? Gameplay not expected at all. We could be wrong)
Afrika
White Knight Chronicles
Heavy Rain
Ratchet & Clank Future: Quest For Booty

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Does anyone else think that Mortal Kombat vs Dc universe is a dumb idea?
I’ m  trying to make sense of it but all i could think is…why?
I mean its just so stupid it sounds like a joke from a bad sitcom, “Hey man who do you think would win in a fight? Indiana Jones or Ted Koppel?”

I mean I’m all for cross-over games but come on. This is like putting Gran Turismo against Motorstorm or making Sam Fisher fight Marcus Fenix. They are two completely different styles of existence. For them to cross or one of them is going to have to change to the point where they become something they aren’t and then whats the point of a cross-over like that. You need cross-overs where the contributing elements compliment each other not cause conflict.

Either Mortal Kombat gets a tone down in the violence and becomes just another fighting game with the Mortal Kombat characters ie. not Mortal Kombat or DC comics gets dark and violent and little kids get scarred by images of Batman stabbing Sub-zero in the eye with a bat-a-rang or Superman just actually
killing somebody. Or maybe they find a middle ground, in which case the game becomes dull and standard with nothing really standing out leaving the novelty of the cross-over being the only selling point.

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Coming from a gamer that has never played a previous Metal Gear title,
basically jumping on the hype train that engulfed the launch of the
title on Playstation 3.

What can I say about MGS4?

This title is simply one of the best or the best ever story told in a
video game.
Hideo Kojima and his team crafted an incredible story, beautifully
told through engaging gameplay and lengthy but captivating cutscenes.
I recommend you do a bit of googling if you haven’t played the Metal
Gear Series. You’ll especially need to know about the Shadow Moses
incident which is referenced numerous times in the game.
The story is laden with twists and turns, emotional moments that tug
at your inner feelings and times where you really need to stop playing
and wonder if you’ve ever played a game with so much character
involvement and story telling.
I won’t go into plot details as they need to be experienced by
yourself and so as to avoid ruining any aspect that could be
considered spoiler.

Story aside…From the trailers the graphics looked darn good. The
actual game looks even better. And I tell you right now, there are
gameplay sequences in this game that will blow your mind away. In
terms of graphics and exactly what you are doing.
MGS4 has simply the best Graphics on any console game to this date.

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Today in San Francisco Microsoft is taking the time to draw attantion to their really solid line-up of titles scheduled for Fall 2008.
Games mentioned at the event include:
1.) Ninja Gaiden II
2.) Gears of War 2
3.) Fable 2
4.) Too Human

As well as lesser known titles like Banjo-Kazooie: Nuts & Bolts, Viva Piñata: Trouble in Paradise, and Penny Arcade Adventures: On the Rain-Slick Precipice of Darkness, Episode One.

We’ve got the full press release from Microsoft regarding this major event,
Read it all after the jump:
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