The Metal Gear Online Beta, which started last week, has received an update. The update adds a new map, Midtown Maelstrom, and gameplay mode, Sneaking Mission, to the beta. The Midtown Maelstrom map is set in the Middle-Eastern town that also serves as Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of the Patriots’ setting. Midtown Maelstrom promises to be a paradise for the more tactically-oriented players, offering a lot of narrow alleys and passages.

In the new gameplay mode, Sneaking Mission, one player plays as Snake, while everybody else gets divided into Red and Blue teams, with each of the three groups having their own paths to victory. For Snake to win, he must get a set number of dog tags from other players. For the teams, whichever side takes Snake out first wins. If nobody manages to kill Snake, the side with the most number of kills once time runs out wins.

Konami also announced that starting with this update, rankings will be updated after each maintenance session. The update also includes fixes to the following Community Support Page problems:

• In-game mail couldn’t be read.
• Clan Emblems couldn’t be displayed.
• Posts by KP and GM accounts were very difficult to read.

The PlayStation Store has been updated today, bring lots of new content. Europe has received a new Playable demo and three new PlayStation One titles. Also, Europe get a map pack for Call of Duty 4, new game trailers and three new themes. The US has received a massive update (no surprise there!) with two new playable demos, loads of new game add-on content, including the Call of Duty 4 Map pack, as well as lots of trailers, XMB wallpaper and themes.

European Additions:

• Playable Demos
  • Rocketmen: Axis of Evil demo
• PlayStation One Titles
  • Bishi Bashi Special (£3.49/€4.99)
  • Command & Conquer (£3.49/€4.99)
  • flOw PSP compatible version (£4.99/€7.99)
  • God of War: Chains of Olympus demo
• Add-on content
  • Call of Duty 4 Variety Map Pack (£6.99/€9.99)
• Game Videos
  • Resistance 2 announcement trailer
  • Warhawk: Operation Broken Mirror trailer
  • Two Viking trailers
  • Three Timeshift "FPS Differently" trailer
• Themes and wallpapers
  • Metal Gear Solid 4 "Sneak Out" PS3 theme
  • Dark Sector wallpaper
  • Seven Motorstorm wallpapers

US Additions:

• Playable Demos
  • Echochrome
  • Iron Man
• Add-on Game Content
  • Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare Variety Map Pack ($9.99)
  • The Eye of Judgment: Biolith Rebellion 2 Expansion Set Two ($14.99) – 100 new creatures, spells and abilities.
  • Rock Band
    
    • Saints of Los Angeles – Motley Crue ($0.99)
    • Screaming for Vengeance – Judas Priest ($1.99)
    • (Take These) Chains – Judas Priest ($1.99)
    • You ve Got Another Thing Comin – Judas Priest ($1.99)
    • The Hellion/Electric Eye – Judas Priest ($1.99)
    • Riding on the Wind – Judas Priest ($1.99)
    • Pain and Pleasure – Judas Priest ($1.99)
    • Fever – Judas Priest ($1.99)
    • Devil s Child – Lanyard Skynyrd ($1.99)
    • Bloodstone – Judas Priest ($1.99)
    • Screaming For Vengeance Album ($14.99)
  • Guitar Hero III – Def Leppard Track Pack ($6.25)
  • Army of Two SSC Challenge Map Pack ($7.49)
  • Karaoke Revolution Presents: American Idol Encore songs ($1.49 each)
• PS One Classics
  • R-Types ($5.99)
• Game Videos and Trailers
  • Resistance 2 teaser trailer
  • GT5 Prologue techno video
  • Army of Two SSC Challenge teaser trailer
  • FIFA 08 features video
  • Iron Man action trailer
  • Prototype teaser railer
  • Interview with Wyclef Jean part 1
  • Interview with Wyclef Jean part 2
  • Behind-the-Scenes of Fast Car
  • Coachella Music Festival
• Movie and Blu-ray Disc Trailers
  • 88 Minutes
  • The Water Horse
• PS3 Themes
  • The Eye of Judgment Theme 2
• PS3 Wallpaper
  • Gran Turismo 5: Prologue Wallpaper (4)

SCEE has confirmed that Europe will be getting a Grand Theft Auto IV PlayStation 3 bundle in a press release today, which will be available to purchase from April 29th 2008. The game will be bundled with a 40GB PlayStation 3 and a SIXAXIS controller. The bundle will retail for approximately £349 or €439. "We are delighted to offer the millions of PS3 and GTA fans the
ultimate gaming package," said David Reeves, President, Sony Computer
Entertainment Europe.

Press Release:

"Grand Theft Auto IV to be bundled with 40GB PLAYSTATION 3

April 23rd 2008: Sony Computer Entertainment
Europe (SCEE) today confirmed the release of an official Grand Theft
Auto IV bundle exclusively for PLAYSTATION 3 (PS3).The bundle,
available on April 29, 2008, will consist of a PLAYSTATION 3 40GB
model, a SIXAXIS wireless controller and a copy of Grand Theft Auto
IV, the latest title in the genre-defining Grand Theft Auto franchise,
all for just €439 (RRP).

‘We are delighted to offer the
millions of PS3 and GTA fans the ultimate gaming package,’ said David
Reeves, President, Sony Computer Entertainment Europe.

Grand Theft Auto IV (GTA IV) is the eleventh, upcoming installment of the best-selling Grand Theft Auto video game franchise."

In a press release this morning, Sony Computer Entertainment Inc. announced that the closed beta testing for PlayStation Home will be extended, allowing new registrants to join the online community. Following the expansion, the PlayStation Home Open Beta will commence Fall 2008. "We understand that we are asking PS3 and prospective PS3 users to wait a bit longer, but we have come to the conclusion that we need more time to refine the service to ensure a more focused gaming entertainment experience than what it is today," said Kazuo Hirai, President and Group CEO, Sony Computer Entertainment Inc.

Details of the Closed Beta testing features, registration for the test
and the opening of the service will be announced as they become
available.

This is the second time PlayStation Home has been delayed since it was first announced over a year ago. The original Open Beta was originally scheduled to start in Fall 2007 but was delayed to Spring 2008. Today’s announcement pushed Home further back to Fall 2008. Those waiting for PlayStation Home will definitely be disappointed.

Kaz Hirai:

"We understand that we are asking PS3 and prospective PS3 users to wait a bit longer, but we have come to the conclusion that we need more time to refine the service to ensure a more focused gaming entertainment experience than what it is today. Our overarching objective is to provide users with new gaming experiences that are available only on PLAYSTATION Home. Spending more time on the development and on the Closed Beta testing reaffirms our commitment to bringing a quality service, maintaining the PlayStation tradition."

Konami have put the Metal Gear Online Beta on hold, which started today, due to high levels of traffic. The beta has only been delayed for the US, and is still accessible for Europe and Japan, according to the official response from Konami. Konami will make another announcement regarding the beta test tomorrow (April 22nd) at 11:00 PM (PDT) regarding the US beta. The online beta has also been extended from May 6th 2008 to May 11th 2008. The start date for the US is yet to be determined. See the official announcement below.

"IMPORTANT NOTICE for all
METAL GEAR ONLINE PREMIERE BETA players

We would like to thank all players for their keen interest in taking part in the beta test. However, we regret to inform you that due to extraordinary levels of traffic from all around the globe, we have been unable to run the service to the level we expected. As a temporary measure, we will be deferring the start of the US public beta test until we are able to stabilize our server.

We would like to apologize for all inconveniences as well as confusion caused. We would like to add that due to the above reasons, we will be making the following changes to the schedule:

1) Starting date: TBA. We will be making another announcement on 22/4/2008 23:00(PDT)
2) Beta Test closure: This will now be on 11/05/2008 at 24:00(PDT) rather than 06/05/2008 at 24:00(PDT)

IMPORTANT: Please note that your voucher code will only be valid up until 05/06/2008, so please make sure to register them by then."

[Via: MGO Official Site]

[Originally Posted On: 21/04/08 08:48 AM]

UPDATE:

Konami has suspended the beta in Japan and Europe following the announcement above due to server problems. The good news is that the beta will now begin on April 24th at 24:00 (April 25th at 00:00), just in time for the weekend. You should be warned that while this date is official, unforeseen circumstances could delay it further.

­

According to a reliable source, SCEE will be holding an invite-only media event in London on Tuesday, May 6th 2008. Unfortunately, we do not have exact details of where and when the event will be taking place but our source did say "many of your
questions will be answered at that event, so keep an eye on the games
press the following day." SCEE will release a number of press releases after the event, and the event itself can be streamed live from the Virtual Press Office. We speculate that SCEE will reveal the release schedule for PlayStation Home at the event and possible details about other upcoming titles.

We will update this article once we have more information on when the event will take place. We cannot reveal our source so it is likely some of you may not believe this story.

We wrote:

"It would be great if you could clear up a few details. A approximate release date for PlayStation Home would be great. Any idea when the open beta will begin or is SCEE planning to launch without a public beta?"

Source wrote:

"We are holding a media event in London on 6th May and many of your questions will be answered at that event, so keep an eye on the games press the following day."

UPDATE (April 18th 2008, at 14:00 PM):

Event is Sony Gamer’s Day 2008

We just got another email from an anonymous source stating the Media Event is "strictly press and developers, and press badges are being sent out." Further more, the event "will be similar to the Sony Gamers Day hosted last year."

"The event will be hosted in London, with all the major Developers for
Sony, including first party and second party developers will be there.
Showcasing future titles and much more. The event is strictly press and
developers, and press badges are being sent out. Furthermore the event
will be similar to the sony Gamers Day hosted last year."

The PlayStation Store has been updated today with some great new content. For Europe, the Metal Gear Online Beta is now available to download and so in the new Warhawk booster pack, Operation: Broken Mirror. The US has received Gran Turismo 5: Prologue as well as the MGO Beta and Warhawk booster pack. A great update for everyone indeed, though the US also benefits from additional Rock Band content and more videos. Check out the list of additions below.

European Additions:

• Playable Games
  • Metal Gear Online Beta
• Game Add-on Content:
  • Warhawk Operation: Broken Mirror booster pack (£3.99)
  • Lair Deadly Dragons booster pack
• Videos
  • GTAIV Trailer 4 – ‘Everyone’s a Rat’

US Additions:

• Playable Demos
  • UEFA Euro 2008
• Playable Games
  • Metal Gear Online Beta
  • Gran Turismo 5: Prologue
• Game Add-on Content:
  • Warhawk Operation: Broken Mirror booster pack ($7.99)
  • Warhawk Booster Pack Combo: Omega Dawn and Broken Mirror ($11.99)
  • Rock Band
    
    • "Still Alive" – GLaDOS and Jonathan Coulton (free)
    • "Sprode" – Freezepop ($0.99)
    • "Shake" – Count Zero ($0.99)
    • "Rock Rebellion" – Bang Camaro ($0.99)
    • Harmonix Pack 1 ($2.99)
    • "Call Me" – Blondie ($1.99)
    • "Simple Man" – Lynyrd Skynyrd ($1.99)
    • "Message In A Bottle" – The Police ($1.99)
    • "Classic Rock Pack 1 ($5.49)
• Videos
  • Warhawk Broken Mirror Trailer
  • Condemned 2: Bloodshot Making Of The TV Spot
  • HAZE Mantel Corporate Vision
  • This is Vegas Annoucement Trailer

With the release of the new PlayStation Store, we took a look at now the two stores now compare. While the interface and navigation has certainly improved, there are till major differences between the US and European PlayStation Stores. The US store is better organized and as we all know, they get better updates then the Euro PSN Store. Here is what we found out.

First off, the PlayStation Store loads a lot quicker though the icons do take a while to load up. Navigating is a lot easier too, and works much like a menu. You press to select items and to move up one level. The categories are only visible on the top level but there is a button on the top left of the screen that will take you straight there. The new Store looks the same on both SD and HD resolutions, unlike the old store layout.

There are more categories available so it makes finding what you want a lot easier. But this is where the US and Euro stores are different. The US store is much better organized with content much easier to find. For example, Demos can be found in the "Demos" category, but for Europe, you will have to first look in "Latest" and then "All Games" if you can’t find it. There is no "Demos" category in the European Store. And what’s with the "Family Games" category? The "Other Media" category contains Themes and Wallpapers to why not name it that (like the US store)?

After the icons have loaded, the store is much quicker to navigate. You can easily see information about an item without clicking on the item itself. A smaller icon within the item icon indicates whether the item is in your basket (basket icon) or if you have already downloaded (shown by a red PlayStation Bag icon). Some games have a "Preview" button which launches a video player so you can watch a video related to the item. SCEE states that the slow loading of icons is a temporary issue and should be resolved within a few days (see below).

The store is much better that the previous version and Sony have done a good job in improving the interface and navigation. The interface is still blue but looks cool. We were a bit disappointed with the poor categorization of the European store but hopefully Sony listens to the feedback and improves this. We’re now looking forward to the new store additions coming this Thursday (Metal Gear Online Beta, Warhawk: Operation Broken Mirror and Gran Turismo 5: Prologue).

Lestrade, Community Team Leader at the SCEE PlayStation Forums wrote:

"We are aware that many of you have experienced delays whilst the PS Store’s thumbnail icons are being downloaded. This is a temporary consequence of a new system implementation and high global traffic levels, and will be resolved within the next few days."