It's now Monday, May 2nd. The PlayStation Network has been down since April 20th. Over the past twelve days and some odd hours (it was taken offline some time that Wednesday evening), some details have surfaced over what happened. It was determined that there was an external attack (hackers hacking) on Sony's online networking platforms (the PlayStation Network, their Qriocity music store, and recently, the Sony Online Entertainment...thing. Are they still calling it portal or hub?) There were some *ahem* liberties taken with the sparse information Sony has given the public and many conclusions were jumped to. This one I saw repeatedly: "Sony should burn because it in no way protected customer information at all and I'm going to sue them."
At the time, there was no evidence that the good folks at PlayStation hadn't protected customer's private information. From what Sony has said (and big companies never, ever mislead the public. Ever.), credit card data was/is encrypted and it does not appear that it was pulled in the "external attack." Then there came the reports that Sony's list of "77 million user's" credit card data was being sold off in chunks. Well, the problem with that statement (and the reason it's in quotes) is that only about 10 million users had active credit cards attached to their profiles. Also, on average, well over 25,000 people in the US alone are victims of identy theft daily. So the couple of people (and not saying it isn't related, but it could be a freaky coincidence) that have come forward with fraudulent charges being made around the time of the "external attack" very well could've had their credit card info nabbed in some other way.
And let's be real, if not for the credit card thing, what's on someone's profile that isn't, say, on Facebook or on one of a dozen data aggregate sites (once I found out that my cell number and home address was on these sites, I had it removed. It's a bit time consuming, but relatively easy.)?
Someone rudely accused me of defending big business, and that really isn't me. Rather than pointing fingers at Sony when there wasn't a whole lot of info to go on (there still isn't and we may never know just how beefy or not Sony's security was), I think that the gaming community would've been better served uniting in common desire to see justice served against the person(s) who hacked the system and caused such a lengthy blackout.
The only thing I really need the PSN for right now is to sync my trophies to my user profile so I can switch out hard drives (I purchased a much larger HDD without realizing that 1) the system was down and 2) that it required a connection at all), so the PSN being down isn't a big loss for me.
And I still blame this mess on that shmuck who thought it would be a good idea to release the PS3's root key online and didn't expect any retaliation in return. Yeah, you hacked the unhackable system, opened the floodgate for others to do with the system what they will, and you didn't expect anything bad to happen? Either to you (Sony has been accused of drawing the legal battle out in order to ramp up legal fees) or to your fellow gamers (who were the real victims in all this)? Good job there, guy. (And do you really think for one second this was just about Sony removing the ability to install another OS?)
And to those who say that Sony either should have had better security (still don't know how good it was) or that they deserve this, let me say this: If I were to break into your house, steal your wallet and computer, kick you in dangly bits, and run away, shouldn't I be the one getting the blame? This hypothetical you wouldn't say, "well, I guess the locks weren't good enough. I deserved to have all my stuff stolen and my dangly bits kicked in." No. That wouldn't happen.
To sum it up: I'm not pro-Sony (or big corporations), I'm pro-going after the person who perpetrated the attacks.
Showing posts with label Playstation 3. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Playstation 3. Show all posts
Monday, May 2, 2011
Thursday, January 20, 2011
Sackboy's Odyssey
Every so often I fall into the hype of an upcoming video game and rush out to snatch it up the second it's released. It happened to me with Goldeneye (Wii), CoD: MW2, Batman: Arkham Asylum (though that was an early birthday present), and others. The results have varied: Goldeneye was a total meh, MW2 was great for a couple of months until the hackers really took over and Activision stopped caring, and B:AA might still be my favorite game of all time.
So I was a bit apprehensive when Kelly pushed me to pick up LittleBigPlanet 2 (LBP2) the first day it dropped (this past Tuesday). What's more, she wanted to get the Collector's Edition, an extra twenty dollars. The package includes a 7-inch plush replica of SackBoy, the game's main character (kind of) and Sony's would-be mascot (as adorable and awesome as he (it) is, he (it) never really caught on), book ends (they've been advertised as "game ends" and it even puts "game ends" in parentheses on the box), all of the DLC that was offered by various retailers as a bonus for pre-ordering the standard edition, and the game itself.
After watching a trailer for the game and a couple of reviews, I decided I had to have this game and that the CE was probably worth it just for the extra DLC stuff alone (each DLC costume runs 1.99-2.99, so that alone "justifies" the extra cost). Plus, it comes with a SackBoy. It was time to hit up local retailers to see if they had the CE in stock.
First, I started with Best Buy because I had some credit left over on a gift card (that I got for Xmas, but was labeled as Kwanzaa). The closest store was out of stock, but the next closest (almost equal distance from my house) Best Buy said they had some left. While placing a pick-up order, that Best Buy apparently sold off the last one.
Next, I tried looking at Wal-Mart since there's a Wal-Mart superstore that recently opened in the city I live in, but, like with Mario All-Stars, the WM website was less than forthcoming about which stores carried the product. So Wal-Mart was a no-go.
After that, I tried GameStop. Because the inventory on their website doesn't update until the next morning, the site listed every store as having the game. But, again, the ability to place a pick-up order was cut off while I was trying to set one up, so I had to call. It was either that or run from GameStop to GameStop to try to find one that had the game. The first two stores were sold out and were very apologetic. As an aside, there's about five GameStop stores within a 15-mile radius of my house.
The third GameStop I tried, however, was the real winner (read that as sarcastic as any teenager. Ever). Even though the store is just off a main road, it isn't very popular. Now I know why. It took about a minute for someone to answer the phone (I wasn't being impatient. As a comparison, the busier stores picked up on the first couple of rings). The employee who answered asked if I had pre-ordered it and I said that I had not, and she replied that she'd have to check to see if they had gotten any extra.
And she never came back.
I was on hold for over twenty-two minutes before I hung up. Seriously? It takes 22 minutes just to check to see if you have one item? I've had less of a wait time hold for tech support. I could see them not having any, but to take 22 minutes to check and then not bother to tell the customer who is on hold is unacceptable.
My theory is that the employee had figured that after ten minutes or so of leaving a customer on hold, it was probably unwise to pick the phone back up at all. Like poking an already angry bear. I shot off a complaint to GS' customer service department (I still haven't heard back from them, not that I expect to) and went back to searching for LBP2.
While I was on hold, I looked at Target's and Toys R Us' websites and both only had the standard release listed.
I double-checked with Best Buy and finally found one at a store that was a little further than I had wanted to drive, but since there was no guarantee there were going to be second shipments of the CE (also, I have a short attention span and would not have the patience to place an order), I placed the order and then sat there for another half hour until I got the OK to go pick it up (that's not complaining. I know that pick-up orders are something that sometimes take time to fulfill).
The drive there was painless (I've seen so much shit lately that I've been tempted to record my driving just as proof it really happens) and I even got a chuckle when I asked the greeter where to go and he pointed me towards customer service and added, "...where there's no one standing..."
Someone was there, but with the way the store was laid out, the employee could not be seen from the entrance. The whole process was very quick and pain-free (kudos to BB for once).
The game required a small installation, which I was worried about since I have a 60GB PS3 and a lot of games require 4-5 GB for installation. But, no, LBP2 was quick and easy. That's 1 point for MM and LBP2.
I don't know about anyone else, but my experience with the first game was a mixed bag. The single player (or more with more controllers and online friends) game seemed more or less a showcase of what could be done with the level editor. The problem with that was that I found good player made levels to be few and far between. I heard from other users to look for this or that but rarely found the levels they so lauded.
So how is the setup for this game? Exactly the same. It's the same adorable little customizable SackBoys running around collecting stuff in levels loosely connected together as a showcase for what you can do in the level editor. I've been told that the new level editor is a bit easier to use, but found the first's to be so daunting I haven't yet gathered up the courage or patience to give this one a shot.
So is the game worth it? Were you a fan of the first one? If you answered yes to the second question, then the answer to first is yes. The new elements (like the grabber and the grappler) are hilariously entertaining and the side-bits are a bit more varied (like the button tap mini game I've found in numerous Mario Party's and a literal Rat Race), and I hope people can find excellent uses for them in the custom levels (which can now be strung together to create whole games).
LittleBigPlanet 2, like LittleBigPlanet, is a platformer (think Mario for the NES). The platformer to end all platformers even.
The controls are a mixed bag, as I found them to be in the first game. And some of the new gadgets just compound the problems. Like when trying to grab onto something and you latch onto the other player instead. Yeah, imagine that with a grapple gun. Don't get me wrong, like I said above, it can be hilarious. It can also be very frustrating.
I loved the first game, it was an intelligent platformer (even if we weren't so smart when playing it) with a few bugs (unfortunately, a lot of those bugs are still present) but was still good fun for most of the family (I could see little kids or grown-ups getting frustrated at the difficulty level of the end portions of the game). Hopefully, this time there'll be more to keep me around once the story-mode is finished...
So I was a bit apprehensive when Kelly pushed me to pick up LittleBigPlanet 2 (LBP2) the first day it dropped (this past Tuesday). What's more, she wanted to get the Collector's Edition, an extra twenty dollars. The package includes a 7-inch plush replica of SackBoy, the game's main character (kind of) and Sony's would-be mascot (as adorable and awesome as he (it) is, he (it) never really caught on), book ends (they've been advertised as "game ends" and it even puts "game ends" in parentheses on the box), all of the DLC that was offered by various retailers as a bonus for pre-ordering the standard edition, and the game itself.
After watching a trailer for the game and a couple of reviews, I decided I had to have this game and that the CE was probably worth it just for the extra DLC stuff alone (each DLC costume runs 1.99-2.99, so that alone "justifies" the extra cost). Plus, it comes with a SackBoy. It was time to hit up local retailers to see if they had the CE in stock.
First, I started with Best Buy because I had some credit left over on a gift card (that I got for Xmas, but was labeled as Kwanzaa). The closest store was out of stock, but the next closest (almost equal distance from my house) Best Buy said they had some left. While placing a pick-up order, that Best Buy apparently sold off the last one.
Next, I tried looking at Wal-Mart since there's a Wal-Mart superstore that recently opened in the city I live in, but, like with Mario All-Stars, the WM website was less than forthcoming about which stores carried the product. So Wal-Mart was a no-go.
After that, I tried GameStop. Because the inventory on their website doesn't update until the next morning, the site listed every store as having the game. But, again, the ability to place a pick-up order was cut off while I was trying to set one up, so I had to call. It was either that or run from GameStop to GameStop to try to find one that had the game. The first two stores were sold out and were very apologetic. As an aside, there's about five GameStop stores within a 15-mile radius of my house.
The third GameStop I tried, however, was the real winner (read that as sarcastic as any teenager. Ever). Even though the store is just off a main road, it isn't very popular. Now I know why. It took about a minute for someone to answer the phone (I wasn't being impatient. As a comparison, the busier stores picked up on the first couple of rings). The employee who answered asked if I had pre-ordered it and I said that I had not, and she replied that she'd have to check to see if they had gotten any extra.
And she never came back.
I was on hold for over twenty-two minutes before I hung up. Seriously? It takes 22 minutes just to check to see if you have one item? I've had less of a wait time hold for tech support. I could see them not having any, but to take 22 minutes to check and then not bother to tell the customer who is on hold is unacceptable.
My theory is that the employee had figured that after ten minutes or so of leaving a customer on hold, it was probably unwise to pick the phone back up at all. Like poking an already angry bear. I shot off a complaint to GS' customer service department (I still haven't heard back from them, not that I expect to) and went back to searching for LBP2.
While I was on hold, I looked at Target's and Toys R Us' websites and both only had the standard release listed.
I double-checked with Best Buy and finally found one at a store that was a little further than I had wanted to drive, but since there was no guarantee there were going to be second shipments of the CE (also, I have a short attention span and would not have the patience to place an order), I placed the order and then sat there for another half hour until I got the OK to go pick it up (that's not complaining. I know that pick-up orders are something that sometimes take time to fulfill).
The drive there was painless (I've seen so much shit lately that I've been tempted to record my driving just as proof it really happens) and I even got a chuckle when I asked the greeter where to go and he pointed me towards customer service and added, "...where there's no one standing..."
Someone was there, but with the way the store was laid out, the employee could not be seen from the entrance. The whole process was very quick and pain-free (kudos to BB for once).
The game required a small installation, which I was worried about since I have a 60GB PS3 and a lot of games require 4-5 GB for installation. But, no, LBP2 was quick and easy. That's 1 point for MM and LBP2.
I don't know about anyone else, but my experience with the first game was a mixed bag. The single player (or more with more controllers and online friends) game seemed more or less a showcase of what could be done with the level editor. The problem with that was that I found good player made levels to be few and far between. I heard from other users to look for this or that but rarely found the levels they so lauded.
So how is the setup for this game? Exactly the same. It's the same adorable little customizable SackBoys running around collecting stuff in levels loosely connected together as a showcase for what you can do in the level editor. I've been told that the new level editor is a bit easier to use, but found the first's to be so daunting I haven't yet gathered up the courage or patience to give this one a shot.
So is the game worth it? Were you a fan of the first one? If you answered yes to the second question, then the answer to first is yes. The new elements (like the grabber and the grappler) are hilariously entertaining and the side-bits are a bit more varied (like the button tap mini game I've found in numerous Mario Party's and a literal Rat Race), and I hope people can find excellent uses for them in the custom levels (which can now be strung together to create whole games).
LittleBigPlanet 2, like LittleBigPlanet, is a platformer (think Mario for the NES). The platformer to end all platformers even.
The controls are a mixed bag, as I found them to be in the first game. And some of the new gadgets just compound the problems. Like when trying to grab onto something and you latch onto the other player instead. Yeah, imagine that with a grapple gun. Don't get me wrong, like I said above, it can be hilarious. It can also be very frustrating.
I loved the first game, it was an intelligent platformer (even if we weren't so smart when playing it) with a few bugs (unfortunately, a lot of those bugs are still present) but was still good fun for most of the family (I could see little kids or grown-ups getting frustrated at the difficulty level of the end portions of the game). Hopefully, this time there'll be more to keep me around once the story-mode is finished...
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