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In-game XMB accesses

PS3 game Trophies
2.40 firmware bricks some PS3 consoles

Many rejoiced late last night when Sony posted the 2.40 firmware update for the Playstation 3. The 2.40 brought a number of improvements to the platform including in-game XMB accesses, a new Trophy system similar in concept to Xbox 360 Achievements, and the ability for gamers to use music playlists within games (provided that the game developers provides a patch to support the feature).

Shortly after the update went live, many users began reporting problems with the update. A thread over at the official Playstation 3 forums is currently up to 61-pages and is filled with a number of irate owners.

According to Kotaku, the update is causing some controllers to malfunction, and in many cases, it bricks the system altogether. All Playstation 3 systems -- 20GB, 40GB, 60GB, and 80GB -- have an equal chance in having problems with the update, so no one is safe.

There are currently numerous theories and workarounds being proposed by forum-goers, but no one fix has been found to fix everyone's 2.40 firmware woes.

Because of the widespread problems, Sony decided to pull firmware update. In a statement released this afternoon, the company said, "In order to further assess the issue, we have temporarily taken the firmware offline for further testing. We are working diligently to isolate the problem for those few consumers and to identify a solution before we put the firmware back up."

No other details were provided on when the "fixed" 2.40 firmware will be uploaded or if a 2.41 firmware will simply be issued to address the problems at hand.

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This blows!
By nerdye on 7/2/2008 7:20:02 PM , Rating: 3
Sometimes these things happen, xbox 360 had a bad firmware update like this in the past, and Sony has now repeated the unfortunate. I'm sorry for all the users that have bricked ps3's, I've had a red ring of death so I understand the pain for the most part. This blows!




RE: This blows!
By Odysseus145 on 7/2/2008 7:23:27 PM , Rating: 3
I too have experience the ring of death. I'm glad I was lazy and didn't update my brother's ps3.


RE: This blows!
By Nyamekye on 7/2/2008 7:25:47 PM , Rating: 2
Seems like they forgot to run the update thoroughly through quality control.


RE: This blows!
By bplewis24 on 7/2/2008 7:47:24 PM , Rating: 2
I've put in 2 hours of movie watching and several hours of gaming on the PS3 with no problems with 2.4.

Brandon


RE: This blows!
By mmntech on 7/2/2008 9:08:08 PM , Rating: 5
If your system wasn't bricked right away, it should be fine. I guess it happens when the PS3 tries to reboot after the update. Sony has to be more careful in the future. The build quality was one of the things that turned a lot of people on to the PS3 when Microsoft was having all the RRoD issues with the 360.

2.4 isn't that stellar anyway. The in-game XMB certainly wasn't what I thought it would be, or even what the video on the official PS blog claimed it would be. Sony claimed you could change sound output in game, it won't let me. They claimed I could play custom sound tracks, it won't let me do that either. I guess the game has to support it but they never explicitly said that. The in-game XMB also doesn't work for PS2 and PS1 games.


RE: This blows!
By StevoLincolnite on 7/3/2008 12:57:30 AM , Rating: 4
I find it rather frustrating personally, My Xbox 360 was only 6 weeks old before it started playing up to the point where none of the wireless controllers would work besides the Silver Home Button.

People have also had issues with bricked Wii's in the past.

All I have to say is... Where is the reliability that was in consoles that we were enjoying years ago with the NES and SNES? (Both of those consoles are still working perfectly here).

When I buy a Consoles, I hope for it to last for for 15+ Years like all the previous Machines I have, (NES, Snes, N64, Sega Master System, PS1 etc)
But now I'm actually worried that as soon as my warranty runs out, that will be the end of it.

Comon, Nintendo, Sony and Microsoft! Bring reliability back for peace of mind!


RE: This blows!
By MamiyaOtaru on 7/3/2008 2:02:00 AM , Rating: 2
hah right when consoles are getting formerly PC exclusive stuff like online play and mods, they pick up some of the downsides too, like higher prices (than older consoles) and the occasional brick. Are we going to meet in the middle?


RE: This blows!
By StevoLincolnite on 7/3/2008 3:21:21 AM , Rating: 3
So your saying, as technology improves, reliability decreases?

The Dreamcast had online play, Used Discs and what not, and it's still going to this day, My Xbox 1 console had the Hard Drive, Online play and what not and it's still going to this day, the only difference is the more powerful hardware, and extra features, but from what I can gather increasing performance or adding features should never come at the price of stability.


RE: This blows!
By EnzoFX on 7/3/2008 3:29:06 AM , Rating: 5
Maybe he's saying that's its progressed too fast, only in the sense that they're not taking the time to make things reliable. Everyone is in a hurry to rush out the next great set of features. We as customers are also to blame.
=P


RE: This blows!
By Ticholo on 7/3/2008 6:36:24 AM , Rating: 3
Actually I share his sentiment.
But the problem isn't the hardware, the consumers or even the manufacturers.
PS3 and XBOX360 are more like PCs than any console before. One big factor in that is a mindset for more updates and patches. Where the PS2 and the XBOX were fairly static devices, these new ones are constantly evolved through software much like PCs or PC hardware drivers.
I think this has more cons than pros. It adds a layer of complexity that on a PC, as an open platform that you may even have built yourself, is fairly easy to resolve even if you have to re-install your OS. But on a console, the manufacturer wants to control what you can do, so you are given less options to resolve these issues.
And then you don't expect to have to deal with things like these on consoles. Claiming hardware/feature progress isn't an excuse. If those things progress so should the way these problems are dealt with or anticipated.
Taking PC practices to consoles isn't a good idea. If people wanted PCs they'd buy PCs!


RE: This blows!
By StevoLincolnite on 7/3/2008 7:30:35 AM , Rating: 2
Well Personally there are ways to add functionality other than performing a firmware update, for instance they could just install the update onto a storage device like a HDD, or a Memory card, and when the console boots up it checks for these "Patches" and applies them.
Then if a patch goes wrong, it would be simple enough to just wipe the device and start again.

Or perhaps have a dual firmware system, where you can boot the console into sort of a "Safe Mode" and revert it back to it's original state.

Yes the Xbox and PS2 were "Static" devices, but calling the xbox 360 more of a PC than the original Xbox is not fairly accurate, hardware wise the Xbox 1 was more of a PC than the 360 thanks to the use of an x86 processor, plus it had down-loadable content from Xbox Live! Software updates and all that extra Jazz.

All I want is more reliability and Peace of mind, so far all companies have been guilty of the bricking, Including the Wii, 360 and the PS3.


RE: This blows!
By wallijonn on 7/3/2008 12:20:21 PM , Rating: 2
quote:
Taking PC practices to consoles isn't a good idea. If people wanted PCs they'd buy PCs!


Imagine what would happen if your standalone BD player automatically updated its firmware and it bricked? People may expect that from a virus infected PC but not from a DVD player.

And yet that is exactly what will be happening - your phone, TV, PC, DVD, cable box, etc., will probably all one day have wireless Ethernet ports built in which will be automatically updated.

But all it really means is that we have all turned into beta testers. Unfortunately that may not be tolerated when it comes to stand alone players. In the past if it didn't play a movie you'd have to buy a new player (APEX days). Now with the Internet the news will be flashed around the world and will likely make the 5 o'clock news. Then sales will plummet.


RE: This blows!
By BansheeX on 7/3/2008 9:28:27 AM , Rating: 3
quote:
So your saying, as technology improves, reliability decreases?


No, as technology progresses, complexity increases. Higher complexity generally means more opportunities for bugs to occur and greater manpower needed to prevent them. The NES and SNES didn't even have a BIOS, so there was no chance that a firmware update could brick the system. Now we have that chance.

That said, I wonder why the first PS3 article we've had in months on DT is a negative one. There were numerous DT articles surrounding the Halo 3 release, but not a PEEP about MGS4, blu-ray, or recent sales numbers. No, let's instead report the first slip-up of the year. Sorry to sound like a conspiracist...


RE: This blows!
By Aloonatic on 7/3/2008 9:50:13 AM , Rating: 2
I didn't want to be the first to mention the lack of a "Metal Gear Solid 4 Day" as we usually get for long anticipated releases, e.g. Halo 3 and GTA4.

Especially as it is a major exclusive. Or maybe, if I may join you in conspiracists (or is that conspirators? We're not conspiring tho? I don't know) corner (?) it's this very reason why it didn't get much notice on here.

By the way, MGS4 is an awesome game, and the cut scenes aren't too bad either (maybe because you can pause them now) though reading up on the MGS history is a must before starting the game to get the most out of it I think.

It is, however, let down a little by the on-line play. Only a small hand full of maps and the servers don't seem to be up to the job. Does sometimes make you wonder if the £5/month xBox Live charge is worth it. I've lost count of the times I've been lining someone up in my sights only for them to disappear and the reappear a second or so later.

When it works it is great fun though, don't get me wrong.


RE: This blows!
By BansheeX on 7/3/2008 12:12:51 PM , Rating: 2
Wait, I almost forgot, Anandtech did review Haze! Yes, let's ignore ten far better exclusives including MGS4 and cherrypick the disappointments for front page reviews. That'll make Sony look bad! </conspiracy>


RE: This blows!
By sweetsauce on 7/5/2008 1:30:13 PM , Rating: 1
or it could be that all you idiot fanboys bitched at them for reviewing that retarded game so they decided not to review games anymore. That was pretty much a test review and you fanboys came out in great form to pretty much confirm what they suspected, that maybe they should just stay out of the game review business.


RE: This blows!
By StevoLincolnite on 7/4/2008 12:03:26 AM , Rating: 2
quote:
No, as technology progresses, complexity increases. Higher complexity generally means more opportunities for bugs to occur and greater manpower needed to prevent them. The NES and SNES didn't even have a BIOS, so there was no chance that a firmware update could brick the system. Now we have that chance.


Exactly, so you are saying "As Technology improves, reliability decreases". - No amount of fancy wording will hide that statement.