At the beginning of the video, it says its all ingame footage.

And I'll be getting a 1080p TV as well, especially since it looks like plenty of developers are working towards that goal.

I'm continually adding media to my earlier posts as it pops up, FYI.

Dev kit in case you care. Looks like it weighs a ton!

http://www.watch.impress.co.jp/av/do...1/scei2_08.jpg

Two power supplies. Holy Crap!

IN-GAME and PLAYABLE demo from Mobil Suit Gundam:

http://media.ps3.ign.com/media/748/748465/vids_1.html

Ni-Oh Vid: http://media.ps3.ign.com/media/711/711566/vids_1.html

That Dev kit was the first. Developers already have a second, and here is the one coming in December:

http://www.watch.impress.co.jp/av/do...1/scei2_10.jpg

Notice how it says HDD!

I think the 1080p is a pipedream. There are way, like 2 1080p televisions out right now?

Unless 1080p is the official spec of HD-DVD I don't see much coming from that standard for the next 5-10 years.

Sharp has a 45" 1080p
Sony has a 32" Qualia 1080p
Westinghouse has 1080p
Sceptre has a 1080p
BenQ has a 1080p coming out (Fall)
JVC has a 1080p coming out (Fall)

And those are just flat panels. 1080p is the new standard that Blu-Ray will use. All TV manufacturers were displaying 1080p sets at the recent Consumer Products Expo. Its here!

Uh... gonna have to disagree with you on that one. Go look at Avsforum. Samsung itself has like 8 different 1080p sets out or coming out within the next few months with other manufacturers also soon to release 1080p sets.

As far as HD-DVD, most of the support and momentum right now is clearly for Blu-Ray (unless you are still delusional) which is a 1080p capable format. I don't think HD-DVD has the disc space for feature length 1080p.

That being said, unless you have a 50" or greater screen you probably wont see much benefit in going from 720p to 1080p.

Freakin josh beats me to every post!! :)

The HD segment is very small. The 1080p segment is miniscule. They should dedicate themselves to 720p or 1080i, which will not hog up as much resources as 1080p, look amazing, and everyone will enjoy.

First off, they can't. They need PS3 to have a Blu-Ray player so they can pimp their technology. It worked extremely well with PS2 and DVD, and they are going to try and acheive the same results. Second, they are future proofing the system. Adoption rates of HD are going to skyrocket in 2006 and 2007, and all the new TVs these people are buying are going to be 1080p. Third, everyone can enjoy 1080p... just not all of them will in all its glory. TVs of all types will down-scale to whatever, which is perferable to upscaling 720p to 1080p.

We'll see. I am interested in 1080p for movies. However 1080p for video games, although enticing, would probably be better used for more polygons. However if there are $500 1080p tvs I will stand corrected. I agree with you if your screen is smaller than 55 or 60 inches it really doesn't matter.

BTW, if the launch games aren't 1080p, then they shouldn't be boasting the feature except for movies.

Copyright 2005 Associated Press All Rights Reserved
Associated Press Worldstream
July 21, 2005

SECTION: FINANCIAL NEWS

Sony set to announce PlayStation video-game strategy

YURI KAGEYAMA; AP Business Writer
TOKYO

Sony showed parts of movie-like video games in the works for its next-generation video-game machine PlayStation 3 Thursday, vowing to position the PlayStation console series as No. 1 in the business.

Ken Kutaragi, chief executive of the Japanese electronics and entertainment company's game unit, said the plan is to focus on PlayStation 2 and handheld PlayStation Portable to lay the foundation for PlayStation 3 that will go on sale next spring. PlayStation 3 is compatible with earlier PlayStation games.

"PlayStation 2 and PlayStation Portable make the most vibrant platform in the business," Kutaragi said at a Sony Computer Entertainment Inc. strategy event at a Tokyo hotel.

The company said more than 192 million PlayStation machines have been sold worldwide since the original model went on sale 11 years ago, and 5 million PSP machines have been sold. Rival Microsoft has sold about 20 million Xbox machines so far.

Kutaragi was evasive about giving hints about a price on PlayStation 3, which is likely to be key in determining how well it will sell.

"I am not going to talk about the price today," he said to a packed hall. "It will be expensive."

PlayStation 3, which is almost certain to be decisive in Sony Corp.'s efforts to stage a comeback amid faltering sales and intensifying global competition, is loaded with expensive technology, including the "cell" the super computer chip that is promised for other key consumer electronics products in the works from Sony.

Sony officials said a PSP software upgrade will go on sale next week in Japan that includes a Net browser to allow users to surf the Web and also download video to watch on PSP through a service offered by a Sony subsidiary. A white version of the PSP will go on sale next week, but only in Japan.

Thursday's event included first-time showings of PlayStation 3 video games in which skin textures down to tiny pores and light shimmering on stone pavement were stunningly realistic.

Kutaragi said PlayStation 3 graphics were superior to those for PlayStation 2 because the cell allows for smoother movement and finer texture for various surfaces like water and fire to deliver lifelike images.

Kutaragi said the company will boost production of PlayStation 3 "tools," with which designers make games for machines, and make sample codes available soon to give aggressive support for companies that want to make games for PlayStation 3.

How PlayStation 3 fares is critical for Sony, which is facing the threat from relative newcomers such as Samsung Electronics and Sharp Corp. Sony has fallen behind in hits like liquid crystal display TVs and portable music players.

The PlayStation series is Sony's forte as No. 1 in the video-game sector - outselling rivals Xbox from U.S. software company Microsoft Corp. and GameCube from Nintendo Co., the Japanese company that makes Super Mario and Pokemon games. Sony's PlayStation 2 controls more than half the world's video game market, while Xbox and GameCube split the rest.

But Microsoft is beating PlayStation 3 to the stores with its own upgrade, delivering Xbox 360 by the end of the year, although it hasn't yet announced a price either.

PlayStation 3 will also play the next-generation DVD format that Sony is backing called Blu-ray Disc. Xbox 360 will run the current DVD standard, although Microsoft says that could be expanded to next-generation versions in the future.

Sony is also hoping that people will use PlayStation 3 and PSP to watch movies as well as play games. Sony is unique among electronics makers in owning a major Hollywood movie studio. Sony said Thursday that video and music sales for PSP were going well in North America with more than 4 million UMDs, or PSP discs, already sold.

Lol, I'm glad everyone can see the future... Seriously though, HD-DVD is not dead by a long shot, if you think Blu-ray has it "locked-up" you are the delusional one.

Blu-ray requires massive retooling and more expensive players, HD-DVD does not. Simply put HD-DVD can be had at a very minor increase in cost where as Blu-ray is expensive for everyone. There is still much debate on the issue, the recent "study " released has been found to have been funded by Sony and the other Blu-ray folk, not surprisingly the study was highly misleading and favorable towards Blu-ray (surprise). I have seen no real significant support for Blu-ray over HD-DVD as of yet.

I agree Sony is "smart" to include Blu-ray drive in the PS3 for marketing reasons, and it will likely win in the long run. (A first for Sony. ;)) However, it is not "locked up" and Hi-Def movie format has a way to go before being settled.

"New" demo's on ign:
http://media.ps3.ign.com/articles/63...25/vids_1.html

The Alfred Molina demo impressed me much more this time around. The skin and eyes are creepy!

The unreal demo is cool too when they turn the shader routines off to show the difference between this gen of consoles and the next gen.

I really don't want this to turn into a Blu-Ray discussion, but the only added costs to Blu-Ray over HD-DVD is the initial set-up costs, which get paid for by the corporations, not consumers. Everything else, from production to materials, is similar in costs. HD-DVD benefits movie studios because of less upfront costs, and the ability to increase profits. Blu-Ray benefits consumers by giving them more storage and faster data speed. Once consumers realize that Blu-Ray is better for them - nail in coffin.

I personally hope blu-ray makes it and 1080p is the future of Hi Def DVD. But I'm not sold on 1080p gaming. It sounds great, but I have a feeling the trade off in polygons isn't worth it.

Josh, per request this will be my last post on the issue. As usual, you have failed in considering a fundemental law in economics, the increase in cost will be passed to consumers, where do the corporations get this money to eat the cost?

The "initial set-up" cost is quite significant and not small change, this is obvious, otherwise there would be no debate. If Blu-Ray truly was the miricle solution you have been lead to believe and are now preaching the debate would have died years ago. Yes, this debate is more then a cost issue, but it is the cost that gives the oncoming battle fuel; it is not simple format politics like previous media wars.

I am posting not to argue, or try and "prove" that you are wrong, rather, I want people to know the truth. They should not expect that if they buy a PS3 for it to play all Hi-Def movies in the future. It's not true and perpetuating Sony propaganda to the effect that its a done deal and Blu-Ray wins is hazardous hype.

Regards.

I will respond, to close the issue (and hopefully not warrant a response). If you would like to dispute it, I suggest we take this over to the DVD Hardware Forum. I agree that the costs will be passed to the consumer, somewhat, but I also believe that HD-DVD will be priced the same as Blu-Ray regardless of costs differences. If these companies are choosing a format based on costs, then they will no doubt choose higher profit margins over consumer benefit.

Another law of economics you forget is economies of scale - the more of something that get produced, the cheaper they are to produce. Sony will already be making the discs for millions of games, lowering the costs for putting out movies.

As you mentioned, it is not set in stone. It one of those issues that will be decided years after PS3 has launched. I do believe Blu-Ray has the edge right now, but that could change.

I really hope BlueRay wins out, it looks like better technology to me. Ideally 360 would also ship with BR but we have to be realistic. If its between HD-DVD or normal DVD then I really don't care that 360 only has normal DVD.

Of course we shouldn't expect to buy a PS3 and be guaranteed to be watching HD movies on it even in a couple of years with a firmware update (of course most probably will expect exactly that). If only due to some of the funky copy protection stuff that studios are likely to require (at the hardware level).

Still, if anything will tip the scales in BR vs HD-DVD, it will be the PS3, no doubt.

That's what I don't understand about the XBOX360's media choice. They tout the HD-generation of consoles, but then used a last gen media format that developers were complaining about. The DOA guys (Itakgi?) was complaining that they can't encode the CG game movies in HD because of space limitations on the DVD format.

Anyway, enough of the format discussion. I still can't get over the eye of the dragon in that Lair video.

I actually broke down and got myself an IGN Insider account just to watch those videos over and over in larger format. The colors are all wrong, but they just look so good.

A single sided DVD can fit around 90 to 120 minutes of HD WMV. That doesn't sound like a limitation issue to me?

Compression leads to degregation of video quality.

Can we move on please? There is freaking 5 amazing videos that just came out yesterday, and all anyone on this forum can talk about is Blu-Ray vs. HD-DVD?