No More Heroes: Red Zone

Marvelous Entertainment has finally released a new trailer for the PS3 version of the former Wii exclusive 'No More Heroes' titled No More Heroes: Red Zone.

The HD version of the ridiculously awesome Grasshopper action game comes with improved graphics and new features which are shown off in the video.

The new features include the new Z-Rating, online rankings, a boss rush mode, 5 bosses from No More Heroes 2, 10 new missions and PlayStation Move support.

From the looks of it, the motion gimmicks with the Move support will be just like the Wii version, gesture prompts will only appear when pulling off finishing moves such as decapitating sword strikes to wrestling suplexes which were very satisfying on the Wii.

The game is set for release in Japan on 7/21/2011.

[youtube http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DSsAbALP0Ok&w=640&h=390]

And the PSN Outage’s First Class-Action Lawsuit is Already Filed - 4/28/2011

All I can say is... wow. Great job Sony.

From; Kotaku

If the Great PlayStation Network Blackout is going to cost Sony $24 billion, as some estimate, you bet some hunk of that is going to be paid to lawyers, and already they are lining up. A California law firm today filed a lawsuit that seeks class action status, alleging Sony didn't follow industry practices to protect its 77 million PSN customers, who were harmed by "one of the largest data breaches in the history of the Internet."

The Novato, Calif.-based Rothken law firm brought the suit on behalf of plaintiff Kristopher Johns. The 22-page complaint (read it here, .pdf). It alleges Sony violated the Payment Card Industry Data Security Standard, which is meant to protect credit card data, and didn't follow legal requirements to protect customer records.

Sony's early public statements concerning the outage, followed by the revelation of the security breach five days later, also constitute a failure to appropriately warn customers they were at risk.

No dollar figure is cited in the complaint, but it seeks the full range of damages - compensatory, statutory, and punitive. And lawyers' fees, too.

Class Action Lawsuit Brought Against Sony Over PSN Data Breach [Gamasutra]

Hideki Kamiya plays Bayonetta

"That ASS!"

Last year's over the top action brawler featuring the titullar Bayonetta is being played by the director of the game itself, Hideki Kamiya. We watch him play the game as he talks about the game's development and scenes during the gameplay.

Full English subtitled commentary videos will be posted on Platinum Games' site twice weekly.

The commentary videos can be found here.

[youtube http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LdMr-uVzxuU&w=640&h=390]

[youtube http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iZFLYO1UKwY&w=640&h=390]

[Updated- 04/27/11]PlayStation Network is still down

Well Sony has announced that they have nothing to announce concerning the status of the PlayStation Network. Obviously its still down.

Update[04/27/11] - Sony really messed up big time. Sony believes that whoever hacked the Playstation Network a week ago has stolen user data. Personal information like name, address (city, state, zip), country, email address, birthdate, PSN password and login. Worse part is, they believe people who provided credit card information have also been obtained.

They believe between April 17 to April 19 is when user information was compromised. They will be sending an email to each PSN user  informing them about this incident and to be aware of possible scams and encourages people to review their credit account statements for possible identity theft or any financial loss.

"We have a clear path to have PlayStation Network and Qriocity systems back online, and expect to restore some services within a week. We will keep the service down to allow us to conduct a thorough investigation to ensure smooth operation of our network services when they return; we are working hard to resume the services as soon as we can be reasonably assured our security concerns have been addressed."

Sony has a lot to do for the next few weeks. Even if PSN gets online soon, Sony will have to ensure people that something like this won't happen again and that their personal information is secured.  Check the PlaystationBlog to see the latest information given. They have provided a FAQ to provide more information about the intrusion.

"I know you are waiting for additional information on when PlayStation Network and Qriocity services will be online," said SCEA's Patrick Seybold. "Unfortunately, I don’t have an update or timeframe to share at this point in time.

"As we previously noted, this is a time intensive process and we’re working to get them back online quickly. We’ll keep you updated with information as it becomes available. We once again thank you for your patience."

PSN failure goes mainstream

Uh oh. Looks like the situation has gone on for so long that it attracted the mainstream news. FOX news and CNBC have jumped on the story and CNN.com covered the story on their front page.

Strangely enough, Connecticut Senator Richard Blumenthal has written to Jack Tretton, Sony President and CEO, demanding to know why consumers were not fully informed about the details surrounding PSN's downtime.

"Although the breach occurred nearly a week ago," wrote Blumenthal, "Sony has not notified customers of the intrusion, or provided information that is vital to allowing individuals to protect themselves from identity theft, such as informing users whether their personal or financial information may have been compromised."

Here is the full letter in case you were interested.

April 26, 2011

Mr. Jack Tretton

President and CEO

Sony Computer Entertainment America

919 East Hillsdale Boulevard

Foster City, CA USA 94404

Dear Mr. Tretton:

I am writing regarding a recent data breach of Sony's PlayStation Network service. I am troubled by the failure of Sony to immediately notify affected customers of the breach and to extend adequate financial data security protections.

It has been reported that on April 20, 2011, Sony's PlayStation Network suffered an "external intrusion" and was subsequently disabled. News reports estimate that 50 million to 75 million consumers – many of them children – access the PlayStation Network for video and entertainment. I understand that the PlayStation Network allows users to store credit card information online to facilitate the purchasing of content such as games and movies through the PlayStation Network. A breach of such a widely used service immediately raises concerns of data privacy, identity theft, and other misuse of sensitive personal and financial data, such as names, email addresses, and credit and debit card information.

When a data breach occurs, it is essential that customers be immediately notified about whether and to what extent their personal and financial information has been compromised. Additionally, PlayStation Network users should be provided with financial data security services, including free access to credit reporting services, for two years, the costs of which should be borne by Sony. Affected individuals should also be provided with sufficient insurance to protect them from the possible financial consequences of identity theft.

I am concerned that PlayStation Network users' personal and financial information may have been inappropriately accessed by a third party. Compounding this concern is the troubling lack of notification from Sony about the nature of the data breach. Although the breach occurred nearly a week ago, Sony has not notified customers of the intrusion, or provided information that is vital to allowing individuals to protect themselves from identity theft, such as informing users whether their personal or financial information may have been compromised. Nor has Sony specified how it intends to protect these consumers.

PlayStation Network users deserve more complete information on the data breach, as well as the assurance that their personal and financial information will be securely maintained. I appreciate your prompt response on this important issue.

Sincerely,

/s/

Richard Blumenthal

United States Senate