The strange Christmas at the PSX Gamer house

Well the strange part is no games were exchanged for Christmas.  I'm sure that you are all thinking "how does this guy call himself a gamer if he doesn't even give his son a video game for Christmas."  Well with the economy in the dumper and PS3 games generally running between $50 and $60 I decided that more practical gifts were the prudent option.

I know that you can find games for the PS3 for less that $50 but we have been enjoying COD:WaW and I didn't feel the need to take attention away from that game since it is still fairly new and my son has not grown bored with it.

Well during different Christmas celebrations [my family/her family] he received a large amount of cash gifts.  Obviously his relatives were feeling generous this year.  Three guesses what the boy wanted to buy with this windfall.

You guessed it... games.  Anyone hazard a guess what game(s) he ended up with?

My Internet problems

Recently I moved some stuff around in my kitchen. This is where my main computer is located and the move included the computer and all the associated peripherals. Two of the key peripherals are the cable modem and the router. I had coaxial cable running up through the floor at the computer's old location but the connector was to large to be pulled back through the hole.

Out came the drill to make a larger hole right next to the existing hole. In hind sight this was a bad idea. I nicked the coaxial cable when I drilled the new hole. Whoops.

After reconnecting everything in the new location the Internet connection was a bit unreliable. I attributed the issue to the nicked cable. Darn it! I moved the modem and router to the basement and connected to the cable down there. The PS3 [which is located in the basement] is now connected to the router by Cat5 cable instead of via wireless. The main computer is now connected by wireless and my daughter is without Internet on her computer that is in her room. Sorry missy.

COD : World at War

My son just had to have the new Call of Duty game. He saved his allowance and bought it a few days ago. One feature that I love is the coop game play. I can finally play with my son instead of against him. Very cool!!!!

COD 5 also has trophies. So far I've earned three of them. I was playing in solo mode and all of a sudden the trophy message popped up on the screen. This is the first game that we purchased that has the trophy system. I think that it will give the solo mode more meaning.

So far the online play has been pretty tough. I have worked my way up to level 10 though. So far I have enjoyed the new features on COD 5.

Mirror's Edge Demo

I down loaded the Mirror's Edge demo from the PlayStation Network and installed it on the PS3. The game play is a classic run, jump, leap format with stunning visuals that remind me of a comic book. You play as Faith who is a runner [an underground courier that carries information and documents across the cityscape.] The storyline is based on a conspiracy involving the death of the city's mayor and Faith's sister who was framed in his murder.

As Faith you will run across rooftops and along walls, leap between buildings, balance on pipes and elude the authorities as you work to deliver your packages and gain information about the murder plot.

Game play is tricky but fulfilling when you complete a tricky maneuver. I enjoyed the demo.


Rated T for Teen

Call of Duty : Level 50

Ok I've been playing Call of Duty 4 online since the end of June and I have just now reached level 50. Five more levels to go before entering the prestige levels. I've completed a lot of challenges along the way and hope to complete several more before I reach the prestige levels.

I realize many of my readers are now getting tired of reading about my Call of Duty experiences, so I've downloaded a new demo which I will review in the coming days. I'll bet you can hardly wait!!! ;-)

More domination

My son called me out the other day. We played a Call of Duty deathmatch with a max score of 20 kills. He dominated me mostly using a hand gun. Ouch.

The kills were 20-3 in his favor. The map we played on was one of the middle eastern maps and he obviously knew it very well.

He wanted to play again. We ended up on the chinatown map. In this match I did much better. When time ran out I still lost but only by the score of 12-11. I was about 12 seconds from claiming a tie. DARN!

COD 4 domination

Last night I was in the basement watching my son play Call of Duty. He trash talks with me all the time and tells me how good he is at the game. I tended to think that he was just a little better than me. But after watching him dominate the other online players last night I have to give him props.

In the deathmatch game that I watched, he had two different kill streaks of ten. Not only was he the high score for the game but his number of kills were more than double the next highest number. He also accounted for more than a third of his team's score.

Yes I am jealous. And I am no where near being in his league.

Top droppers for October

Politi-Gal	25
Income Alternatives	20
New Orleans Food & Fun	19
Dungeons and Dragons Corner	18
webomatik	16
Michigan Beach Bum	15
Poker Info Page	15
Albatross on the Horizon	15
Septagon Studios Inc News Blog	12
life together starts	10

Get Mint

I was listening to the radio on the way into work today and they had a story about a mint farm in Michigan that is on the verge of being in foreclosure. The farm is the oldest mint growing farm in the United States and has been in the Crosby family since its inception.

To get some additional information for this post I have visited their website, and it is running very slow. I hope that means they are having a successful campaign to sell drams of mint.

They are running a "Save the farm, Buy a dram" campaign where they need to sell a quarter of a million drams by November 1st. They have done pretty good so far and as of today are down to 71,000 drams to be sold. So if you like mint give some thought to buying a dram.

Disclosure: I have not been paid for this post. I have posted this out of the kindness of my heart.

Who knew I had kindness in there?

Soccer video

MLS goalie scores goal on a free kick.

No new PSP content packs since April

I was poking around the PlayStation Underground and decided to look for the newest PSP Content Pack. Imagine my surprise when I realized that they have not offered a new one since April. Bummer!!!

Have they cast the PSP aside in favor of the more exciting PS3? Otherwise why drop the Content Packs? Curious minds want to know.

Star Wars: The Force Unleashed revisited

On my prior post I received a comment from a reader who felt that parents should not allow children to play as a "bad guy." While I respect the opinion and certainly don't condone actual violence I believe that the choice to allow a child to play as a Sith apprentice should be made by each individual parent.

The game is rated T so the majority of game players will be 13 and above. In my case my son is a teenager and I feel that he is capable of knowing the difference between playing an evil character in a video game and living life and interacting with actual human beings.

I do feel that not every child is equipped to differentiate between video game violence and real world violence and parents need to know what level that their child is at developmentally and what content video games contain.

Star Wars: The Force Unleashed

I downloaded and installed the demo of Star Wars: The Force Unleashed yesterday. Apparently Darth Vader had a secret apprentice that the Emperor didn't know about. And he wants to keep it that way. The game takes place in the era between Episodes III and IV.

In the demo you get to play as the apprentice as he raids an outpost hunting down a Jedi Knight. Unfortunately the demo is rather short and ends after you defeat an AT-AT which for me required several do-overs.

According to LucasArts their new technology allows them to have glass break like real glass, wood to splinter like real wood and metal to bend and dent like real metal. The character AI is suppose to be reactive so that their behavior will be different every time you play it.

Rated T for Teen.

Intel talks about programmable matter

Intel is apparently working on technology that can change shape. An example would be a device that could fit in your pocket and then on demand shape shift into a smartphone or maybe a laptop. Intel claims that that technology is still several decades away but imagine the possibilities.

Another technology that they are working on is wireless transmission of power. They provided a demonstration that had only a 25% efficiency loss over two feet. Not great but give it time and I bet that efficiecies will improve to close to 99%.

Have you tried Swagbucks?

I thought that I would give Swagbucks a try. Once you have signed up and then do searches from their search site you can win Swagbucks that can be redeemed for merchandise. Pretty cool for not doing anything special. It could take a little bit of time to win enough Swagbucks to redeem for a nice prize but what the heck.

Click the search & win logo to join Swagbucks. They give you 5 Swagbucks to start.

This morning I am up to 12 Swagbucks. Not a bad beginning.

Bought another new game

This time the new game for the PS3 is Gran Turismo 5 Prologue. I've only run a couple of races and have won them all. The last version of this game that I had played was GT3 for the PS2. Obviously the graphics are much better on the PS3 but I am still trying to get the whole "upgrade the car to make it go faster so you can win races" mentality out of the way. It doesn't seem to me to be part of GT5. Am I missing it? Like I said I've only played it a little bit.

That aside the visuals are very cool. Much more realistic than Motorstorm and Burnout Paradise.

Some features:

• 60 cars are available to win or buy.
  
• 12 different race layouts.
  
• Online racing against up to 16 other players.

Rated E for Everyone

Upgraded to v2.41

As I have recently upgraded to PS3's version 2.41 without any difficulties I thought I would let everyone know. Two items that I noticed right away are the ability to shut down from the User menu and the trophy option in the Game menu.

That's all I know for now. I assume that the trophy option means that you can earn trophies somewhere somehow. I guess I'll look into that possibility.

My progress in CoD 4

I have decided that the weapons and perks that you unlock over time as you level up can make a significant difference in how well you do in the online game. The most recent game that I played online I did quite well. I set personal records for kills and had a kill streak of four in a row.

I know that all of you hardcore CoD 4 players may scoff at my delight in getting four kills in a row but I'm still learning.

PS3 System Software Update (v2.41)

Reported at Sony's Playstation web site....

Hi, everyone. As many of you know, we released PS3 firmware update v2.40 last week, but had to take it offline temporarily because, for a limited number of users, the XMB wouldn’t display after the update was installed. We’ve been able to fix the problem, and I’m happy to report that firmware update v2.41 will be released shortly.

We want to extend our apologies to the PlayStation community for any inconvenience. Now we’ll be looking forward to seeing everyone online and racking up those trophies!

I have not downloaded this update [or v2.40 thankfully] so I don't have any first hand experience to share but I'll pass along info as I learn it.

Playing lots of CoD:Modern Warfare

....and getting killed. Online play can be brutal. And I must not be that good. The most kills in a game that I've had was seven. The next highest was five. I usually get about two kills with two assists.

I have played enough to reach rank 9. I've unlocked several perks, new weapons, challenges and weapon upgrades....and I still get killed way more often than I get kills.

New Ad logo!

Thanks to everyone who commented on my post about my EntreCard ad graphic. I have finally found an appropriate image to modify and use as my graphic. I'm pretty happy with the results. It is NOT perfect...I'm not a graphic designer and only know enough to get what I got. So don't hate on me.

Bad Company

Have you seen the ads for Bad Company on TV? Obviously I did. So what did I do next? I downloaded the demo from Playstation Network.

After playing the demo for about an hour here are my thoughts. The controls really screw me up because they are a little bit different from CoD:Modern Warfare. I enjoy the humor that has been included in Bad Company. The missions that I have completed were a bit easy.

The thing that really sticks out for me is the lush colors. The greens really pop. Ok who really cares about colors?

I did have fun running stuff over with the personnel carrier. I knocked over quite a few fences and walls and killed an enemy or two or three by running them down. There are a lot of things that you can destroy which is cool.

Rated T for Teen

Completed Call of Duty

Well I spent to much time on the PS3 this weekend and completed the single player campaign mode of Call of Duty:Modern Warfare. I enjoyed the experience, the story was well told, the action was intense, the visuals were excellent.

After completing the campaign I decided to try my skills online. And as The Son was quick to point out... I got owned. No kills in my first game as I was dumped into a game in progress with very little time left. I did earn a kill in my second game but realized that I have a long way to go to become an expert. As of today I have leveled up three times and I'm averaging two kills per match. I'm thinking that I'll try the campaign again at a higher difficulty level in order to gain some practice.

The PS3 game collection grows

When I last posted about the PS3 The Son had purchased 2 games [MotorStorm and Burnout Paradise]. Since then we have added UEFA Euro 2008 and Call of Duty:Modern Warfare.

UEAF is your typical soccer game from Electronic Arts. If you already have FIFA 2008 I wouldn't bother buying UEAF as the two games are very similar. The Son was not happy when he discovered that the Netherlands team did not have his favorite player. Since it is the only soccer game that we have for the PS3 it will have to do. I've only played three games but I enjoyed the experience. I beat The Son 1:0 in the first, lost 2:0 in the second and lost 5:0 in the last one. I guess he has had more practice than I have.

Call of Duty:Modern Warfare, of course was named Game of the Year by many publications. I have to agree that the gaming experience is tons o' fun. I have only played in campaign mode so far, I thought I would get some experience before venturing online to battle all those hard core gamers.

UEAF is rated E for everyone
Call of Duty:Modern Warfare is rated M for Mature

New EntreCard ad

I was doing my daily EntreCard drops and ran across one of my own and decided it was time to make a custom ad. I've been using the generic orange and black with text ad that EntreCard has available if you don't have a 125 x 125 advertisement. Decision time should I make the advertisement PSP related or PS3 related. Any thoughts?

PS3 purchase Day 2

The second day having a PS3 was spent, in part, setting up the wireless connectivity. I didn't realize that I had my router locked down as well as I did. I spent quite a bit of time running up and down the stairs checking settings on both the PS3 and my router. I finally opened up the MAC filtering and it worked. I then closed the MAC filtering and it still worked. Must be something with the PS3 because I have never had to open and then close the filtering when adding laptops to the router's configuration.

It is Day 2 so there must be a second game. Courtesy of Wal-mart's gift card. The Son's choice was Paradise Burnout. Why another racing game? I don't know. I do know that Day 3 will not bring a third game because the gift card is all used up. I would like to get a second controller so more than one person can play at a time.

My brother was over and setup my main computer as a media server so we can stream music, pictures and video to the PS3. I don't know how he did it, I wasn't watching. But the album view for the pictures is pretty cool. The pictures scroll across the screen and you can use the controller to zoom in and out as well as move back and forth to see pictures you may have missed.

PS3 purchase Day 1

Well my son did it again. As you may recall in my first post on this blog he had purchased a PSP in December. This time he saved up and purchased a PS3 [the 40GB version] from Wally World [they had a $100.00 gift card which came with the purchase]. I wasted no time and attached it to our 42 inch plasma that is in the rec room in the basement. That first night was a MotorStorm race fest. Obviously MotorStorm was the first game purchased with the gift card.

After the MotorStorm racing came to a close [I did not do to well] we watched the Blue Ray trailer disc that came with the PS3. WOW!!! It really showed the visual capabilities of both the PS3's Blue Ray player and our Samsung TV. The word of the night was luscious. Quite a few of the game trailers had deep, rich graphics that we referred to as luscious.

Speaking of visuals, the MotorStorm game has some awesome graphics that really utilize the PS3 capabilities.

I decided to call it a night at 12:15 am. Day 2 will bring a new game and wireless configuration.

CentSports wagering contest

Ok this is a little off topic but I thought that I would share with everyone a sports wagering contest that is being held by a sister blog. Just follow the link for more information. You could win actual cash. The amount is unknown at this time but more participants means more money. As of right now there are three people vying to win the prize.

April 2008 PSP Content Pack

The April 2008 Content Pack contains 300: March to Glory - Videos, 300: March to Glory - Screenshots, Ratchet & Clank™: Size Matters - Exclusive Wallpaper, Full Auto™2: Battlelines - Trailer and March Wallpaper.

LEGO® Indiana Jones™: The Original Adventures Trailer

You can download the new LEGO® Indiana Jones™ game trailer at Sony's PlayStation web site. If you liked the LEGO® Star Wars games you will probably enjoy the Indiana Jones version. This trailer is for the PS2.

Rated: E+10 for cartoon violence.

February 2008 PSP Content Pack

The Feburary 2008 PSP Content Pack contains Killzone™: Liberation Playable Demo (latest system software is required), Syphon Filter®: Dark Mirror Playable Demo (latest system software is required), Chili Con Carnage™ - Wallpapers, PlayStation® February Wallpapers and PLAYSTATION®3 Wallpaper Bundle 1 & 2 for PSP® System.

I have not tried the demos so if you have let me know how they are.

Patapon™ Path of the Warrior Sweepstakes

Sony is running a promotion featuring Patapon.

Sorry for the late notice: Ends 05/07/08

I was able to get entered into the give away without downloading the game demo. I was lucky enough to guess my way through the 10 questions on my second try. I'm planning on downloading the demo in the next couple of days if I can borrow my son's PSP.

LocoRoco Demo

LocoRoco has a downloadable demo. The LocoRoco inhabit a peaceful world until the evil Moja Corps arrive and attempt to remove the LocoRoco from their home.

Game play: The player attempts to move the LocoRoco through the lands that they inhabit. Of course there are puzzling impediments that you must navigate them through, over or under. The LocoRoco have strange morphing, combining and dividing abilities that you will find helpful defeating obstacles. It kinda reminds me of the classic PC game Lemmings.

Demo info: The demo allows you to navigate the LocoRoco through one level.

Good for the kids. Rated E for Everyone

January 2008 PSP Content Pack

The January 2008 PSP Content Pack contains Ghost Rider screenshots, January's wallpaper, Star Wars Lethal Alliance - Trailer 2, Ratchet & Clank�: Size Matters - Trailer and SOCOM U.S. Navy SEALs Fireteam Bravo 2 - Trailer 2.

It looks like we have some game demos coming up in February's Content Pack. Yeah!

Content Pack Download Instructions

Sony has a webpage that gives you instructions on how to install their content packs. They make it very easy. Good luck!

December 2007 PSP Content Pack

The December 2007 PSP Content Pack contains: SOCOM U.S. Navy SEALs Combined Assault - Trailer, Star Wars Lethal Alliance - Trailer, ATV Offroad Fury® Pro - Music Tracks, Battlezone - Wallpapers and more.

Not the best content pack from Sony. Maybe the next one will be better.

Download the PSP Theme Creator and other extras

So you want to create your own PSP theme? PSP Theme Creator with the documentation will help you do just that. You will need an image editor like Photoshop or Gimp.

Another download is the October 2007 PSP Content Pack. This content pack includes: Gangs of London™ Launch Wallpaper, NBA 07 Trailer and Killzone™: Liberation G.A.P. Wallpaper Contest plus much more.

How to upload files to your PSP

It occurred to me after I had posted the link to the Quake2 port that people might need instructions on how to upload files to their PSP.

Step 1. Turn on your PSP and plug the USB cable into both the PSP and your computer. You will need to have your memory card inserted.

Step 2. Navigate to the USB Connection option within the PSP user interface and select it.

Step 3. Your PC will now recognize your PSP as a drive so you can copy files from your PC to your PSP. You will need to create a folder on your PSP called "Games"

1st post

PSX Gamer is a repository of Playstation related information. The reason I started this is because my son bought a PSP right before Christmas and we spent quite a bit of time looking for media and I thought I could make it easier for everyone when they want to find interesting things for their Playstation. We will bring you news, reviews, help, advice, cheats and links to media and software.

Today's link is a Quake2 port to the PSP. I remember playing Doom and then Quake on my PC and was excited to see this port. The development of this port was done by the Emergency Exit team.