According to Sony’s VP of Technology, Paul Holman, there will be a PS4, only, not until at least 2010. Contrary to popular belief Sony aren’t giving up on gaming hardware after the PS3, as many would hope. Among some of the revelations from Holman was Sony’s plans on adding more media center capabilities to the hybrid gaming console, while allowing for more third party applications and hardware to be developed, including the possibility of interactive controllers similar to Nintendo’s Wii controller. He also goes on to talk about how powerful the PS3 is, blah blah blah, but didn’t seem to mention at all how Sony is addressing their deadly supply shortages, which are most definitely attributing to their slow start in this generations console war.

Update 1: Journalists rule, bloggers drool!

Read more: PS4 definitely, but after 2010

GTtv recently trapped God of War creator David Jaffe at the Playboy mansion and hammered him with questions about the future of God of War, more specifically, when is part 3! Jaffe seemed to be hammered enough on his own, but he did let go some interesting tidbits of information. Like, he agrees that he fucked up God of War on the PSP and that he’s just started the design process for God of War 3, though he’s quick to point out that they aren’t in development yet.

I particularly enjoy the many times Jaffe takes the EXTREMELY desperate Sony marketing shill to task as he tries to break into Jaffe’s interview and pimp-up Sony with terms he thinks will connect with the kids. Jaffe seems like quite the level-headed individual, I’m pleasantly surprised considering the bad rap he gets on all the gaming forums, but, video game designers drunk at the Playboy mansion…console manufacturer marketing shills….game developers taking part in possibly nude poker game…where is this industry heading?

Favorite quote:
Jaffe to desperate marketing guy during one of his many attempts to break into the interview.

oh my god…go fuck your self in the grotto cause we…no one else is going to fuck you in there…gogogo..

Wow, no matter what Sony does, it really seems like they want the upcoming PS3 launch to fail miserably. With more and more worries being expressed throughout the industry regarding the PSP’s slow decline and the upcoming PS3 launch, one would think Sony would have already locked-in their united message for the future of their gaming division. Not the case it seems, since everytime a Sony rep opens their mouth they somehow end up with their foot placed firmly inside. This time it’s SCE Worldwide’s European VP Jamie MacDonald, whose recent interview with GamesIndustry.biz brought this pleasant little nugget out for the Europeans:

Q: What would you say to consumers who like Sony and want to buy your products, but perhaps feel that because they’re in Europe they’re always last in line?

A: European consumers have shown that historically they don’t mind that, because they end up buying as many PlayStations, if not more, than the US and Japan. In Europe, it doesn’t seem that the release of our platforms after the US and Japan - in the long run - affects how consumers feel.

So, let me get this straight, because the demand is actually there for the product and consumers go out and buy your product when it’s available, that must mean that they must not care that your company constantly treats that region as if it’s a small town in North Dakota? Hmmmm, never, ever have I heard someone say straight out, “yeah, I don’t mind that we’re screwed on release dates here in Europe”, but then again, I’m obviously out of touch and Sony’s marketing analysts really have their fingers to the pulse of the EU market. Shall I go ahead and point out how much more appealing the Wii60 combination is sounding everyday?

Read more: Interview with SCE Worldwide Europe VP Jamie MacDonald

In a recent interview over at GamesIndustry.biz, one of the directors of NCsoft Europe, Thomas Bidaux, spoke of bringing NCsoft MMOs to consoles and the difficulties that are present in creating a viable persistant online world and supporting the community via a console. Though I’d rather NCsoft finally come out with their one-price-play-all stucture, I’d certainly love to be able to play Auto Assault or Tabula Rasa via the Xbox 360, or dare I say, Nintendo Wii. Unfortunately, it seems Nintendo will continue to be as unfriendly as possible in their support of online gaming, so it seems the Xbox 360 is the perfect candidate to see console-version MMOs in the future. Thinking of the different NCsoft properties, I’d love to be able to play City of Heroes and Lineage II via a console, but, there will be some massive hurdles to overcome from a design perspective.

Read more: GamesIndustry.biz interview NCsoft’s Thomas Bidaux

IGN’s RPG Vault caught up with Eve Online’s Chief Marketing Officer, Magnus Bergsson, for a short interview and retrospective on the little MMORPG that could. Covering everything from how they gracefully handled the fallout that ensued after Eve publisher, Simon and Schuster’s demise, to their slow growth into one of the more successful massive multiplayers on the market, with over 170,000 subscribers, no small feat for an Icelandic games developer who self-publishes and only distributes their game online. Bergsson also touched upon the future of Eve, such as the upcoming factional warfare which is following the storyline towards war between the various races in the game, as well as the new invention system, which will allow players to invent new items in-game, complementing the completely player-driven economy quite nicely.

Read more: IGN interviews Eve Online creators about it’s future and growth| 14-day free Eve Online trial

The crazy Texans who run Phenix Rising and the Armadillo Podcast (an iTunes favorite of ours) conducted a short interview with celebrity games producer Richard “Lord British” Garriot, covering his penchant for haunted houses and talking about his upcoming MMOFPS for NCsoft, Tabula Rasa. Richard is probably most well-known for creating Ultima, the epic and influential RPG as well as for sometimes getting up on stage during performances of Riverdance.

[Interview with Richard Garriot | Richard Garriot @ Wikipedia]

A few years ago, super hip community blog and reviews site Millionaire Playboy posted a short interview with Vivendi Universal game test Jen Johnson, discussing her career and experience at Fox and Vivendi. A bio-piece, the interview asks Jen the basics, such as how she got into the industry, her hobbies, some of her favorite games, whether being a game tester is the dream job that everyone thinks it is, and her experiences on testing games such as No One Lives Forever 2 on PC and MAC and Buffy the Vampire Slayer for Xbox.

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