Here is a trailer for the next round of DLC for LA Noire. By now you probably need some new cases to crack and Rockstar is going to give it you with the Reefer Madness DLC on July 12th. The trailer is short, but it’s to the point. Cole Phelps is probably the guy who started D.A.R.E., spoilers.

Embed via Joystiq

NeoGaf found this image of a Resistance 3 PS3 bundle and right on the front is a logo for a PSN pass. With the cryptic warning “Network features only available in countries that have PlayStation Store”. While Sony hasn’t announced the PSN Pass us and everyone else is taking a wild guess that this will be a license code that lets you play Resistance 3‘s multiplayer or you can buy it should you purchase the game used. Hence the need for the PlayStation Store.

This of course is nothing new and is almost the norm at this point. Do PSN passes, and online passes turn you off from games? Does it actually encourage you to buy games? Or does it not even matter as much as we’d like to think it does?

The “Welcome Back” program from Sony that we’ve previously reported on is now live in the U.S. It’s a bit bumpy out of the gate, kind of like the PlayStation Store has been, but just keep trying. The program is only available to those who were members of PlayStation Network before April 20. Bad news for everybody who bought their system while the network was down. You have 30 days to claim your free games, so be sure to get on it sooner rather than later. There are some free movies up for grabs as well, but those will only be available through the weekend, so be sure to get them now. For a full FAQ, click the title to see what Sony has to say.

Q: What’s in the Welcome Back Program?
A: To start, all PSN members who had signed up before the outage (April 20, 2011) will be able to select two games for the PS3 and two games for the PSP systems.

For PS3 owners, go to the ‘Welcome Back’ section in the PlayStation Store, and select 2 titles from the following list:

• Dead Nation
• inFAMOUS
• LittleBigPlanet
• Super Stardust HD
• Wipeout HD + Fury

For PSP owners, go to the ‘Welcome Back’ section of PlayStation Store on your PSP system and select 2 titles from the following list:

• LittleBigPlanet (PSP)
• ModNation Racers
• Pursuit Force
• Killzone Liberation

Select your first game from “Game 1”, then return to the Welcome Back page and go to “Game 2” to select your second game out of the remaining choices available. This goes for both PS3 and PSP.

In addition, we’re giving access to our premium subscription service, PlayStation Plus, which includes games, huge discounts, exciting exclusives and added features like online storage and automatic downloads, to all PSN members for 30 days at no charge, requiring no long term commitment. As with the games above, go to the PlayStation Store and under the ‘Welcome Back’ section, select ‘PlayStation Plus: 30 Days Free’, and you’ll be given access to all of the benefits of PlayStation Plus. Note that this will not auto-renew and simply expires 30 days after activation.

Current Plus subscribers receive an extra 60 days added to their existing subscription at no charge. For current Plus subscribers, no action is needed as the 60 days are automatically added to your subscription.

PlayStation Network users will also get 100 virtual items in PlayStation Home as a show of appreciation for your patience while Home was inaccessible. Additional content is coming soon, including the next addition to the Home Mansion personal space, and Ooblag’s Alien Casino, an exclusive game.

A selection of “On Us” movie rentals are currently available to PlayStation Network customers this weekend only, where Video Service is available.

Finally, current Music Unlimited Premium subscription members will receive an additional 30 days of premium subscription plus days lost due to the outage.

Q: When will I have access to the Welcome Back Program?
A: The content offered as part of the Welcome Back Program is available for download today and will be available through July 3.

Q: I have both PS3 and PSP. Does this mean I will get 4 games all together?
A: Yes, as long as you were a PSN member before April 20, 2011, you’ll be able to receive up to 4 games based on the titles listed above; 2 on each platform.

Q: Are there any limitations to the PS3 and PSP games we are receiving as part of the Welcome Back Program?
A: None. These games are yours to keep.

Q: How long do I have to get into the PlayStation Store and receive my content for Welcome Back?
A: Access to the Welcome Back content will be expiring on July 3. Once this date has passed, the Welcome Back section in the PlayStation Store will be removed.

Q: When does the 30 days of my PlayStation Plus access expire?
A: Your PlayStation Plus 30-day access will expire 30 days from the date you activated it in PlayStation Store.

Q: When will (insert game here) be published?
A: Look forward to posts over the coming days that will show what content will be available at that point, or coming soon. We’re planning frequent store publishes offering lots of new content for everyone to enjoy.

Q: I’m getting 30 days of access to PlayStation Plus; can you refresh my memory on what I get with this service?
A: From the time you activate your 30 days of PlayStation Plus, you’ll be able to download games and game related content, purchase select store items at a discount, and have access to the exclusive features of Plus. You’ll also be able to get early access to any Plus exclusive Demos and priority Beta invitations that might be scheduled during your 30 days.

Q: Do I get to keep the games in PlayStation Plus forever?
A: Content that is free in PlayStation Plus will not be available after your PlayStation Plus time has expired. However, if you decide to join PlayStation Plus, you’ll have access to all of the content you downloaded during your 30 day access for as long as you are a subscriber.

Q: Do I get to keep any games or content I purchased with the PlayStation Plus discount?
A: Yes. Any content you purchase at a discount is yours to keep, regardless of your subscription status.

Q: Aside from the games and discounts; does PlayStation Plus offer anything else?
A: Yes! PlayStation Plus includes the Online Storage for Game Saves feature, allowing you to backup treasured game saves or access them from another PS3. In addition, you get the Automatic Download feature, which automatically updates your 10 most recently played games while the system is in stand-by mode so you don’t have to wait for updates before playing your games.

Q: What content will be in PlayStation Plus when I activate my 30 days?
A: PlayStation Plus content and discounts are regularly updated throughout the month. For up-to-date information on content within PlayStation Plus, please visit the Plus homepage.

Q: Where can I find the Welcome Back content in Home?
A: The 100 virtual items can be found in the kiosk in Home’s Central Plaza along with two personal spaces – Dragon’s Lair and the Mansion Garage. A new game – Ooblag’s Alien Casino – will be released soon (June 2011). This game will be 100% free-to-play. As an added bonus, players that access the Ooblag Alien Casino space will be rewarded an active item version of the Ooblag game that can be played in your personal space(s).

Remember, if you didn’t see your question answered above, drop us a line below and we’ll do our best to answer it. Welcome Back!

If there’s one thing that I love more than video games, it’s heists. Not that every taken part in a heist per se, but the idea of a good heist really gets my blood going. So, when I saw the trailer this morning for PAYDAY: The Heist, I nearly passed out. I mean, it’s got heist right there in the title. In the game from OVERKILL Software, you and three of your buddies (or AI controlled teammates if you have no friends) set out through “six high-stake heists, including bank robberies, prisoner extractions and armored car hijackings.” I’m in. Along the way, SWAT, FBI, bank security, and a number of other obstacles get in the way of your crew as you try to pull off the perfect job. The game is a downloadable title that will be available through the PlayStation Network and on PC. No word yet on pricing or release date, but the game will be at the Sony Online Entertainment booth at E3.

Source PlayStation Blog IGN

As we reported earlier in the week, Sony planned to have PlayStation Network fully restored by the end of the week. We can now report that they have achieved that. The PlayStation Store, which was the last big piece of then puzzle, is now functioning. Although it did take me a couple of attempts and error messages to get into it, it is working. So if you’ve tried it unsuccessfully, just keep trying. There are a slew of new titles available on the store for PlayStation owners to check out, along with the fact that gamers will now be able to redeem codes for games such as L.A. Noire or Portal 2.

Again, no word on when we will be getting the “Welcome Back” package, but I would say we can expect it very soon now that the store is back up. Who knows, maybe Sony is waiting until their press conference at E3 next week to unveil all the details. The service is still not fully back up for those Asian territories that we mentioned earlier, but I’m sure that it will be soon. It will be interesting to see how things play out now after Sony’s service has been down for over month. Will gamers just go back to business as usual or will we see any backlash?

Sony has officially announced today that full restoration of the PSN service will be back up by the end of the week in most territories. The Americas, Europe, and Asia excluding Japan, Hong Kong, and South Korea will have service restored. Rejoice! By the end of the week gamers will have access to the PlayStation Store, in-game commerce, and will be able to redeem vouchers and codes. All other music and media services will be up as well. Hopefully, this will put an end to PSNgate for a while. Sony has yet to detail the “Welcome Back” package completely, but I’m sure that with the store being back up, we will hear more on that soon. With some of the negative backlash, I hope that Sony will include the entire series of Welcome Back Kotter. Click the title to read the full press release from Sony.

Sony Corporation

Sony Computer Entertainment Inc.

Tokyo, May 31, 2011 - Sony Corporation and Sony Computer Entertainment (SCE) announced today that Sony Network Entertainment International (SNEI, the company) will fully restore all PlayStation®Network services in the Americas, Europe/PAL territories and Asia, excluding Japan, Hong Kong, and South Korea by the end of this week. The company will also resume Music Unlimited powered by Qriocity™ for PlayStation®3 (PS3®), PSP® (PlayStation®Portable), VAIO and other PCs. Details for Japan, Hong Kong, and South Korea as well as the remaining services on Qriocity will be announced as they become available.

The company implemented considerable security enhancements to the network infrastructure, as well as conducted testing of the payment process and commerce functions. The first phase of PlayStation Network and Qriocity restoration began on May 15 in the Americas and Europe/PAL territories, followed by Japan and Asian countries and regions on May 28, when the company brought partial services back online. With this partial restoration users were able to access to some of the services such as online game play, account management, friend lists and chat functionality were restored. The full restoration of PlayStation Network as well as part of services to become available on Qriocity will include:

• Full functionality on PlayStation®Store
• In-game commerce
• Ability to redeem vouchers and codes
• Full functionality on Music Unlimited powered by Qriocity for PS3, PSP, VAIO and other PCs
• Full functionality on Media Go

Customers can now purchase and download games and video content from the PlayStation®Store on PS3 or PSP. In addition, consumers will have full access to Music Unlimited powered by Qriocity through PS3, PSP, VAIO and other PC’s. Service restoration of Video on Demand powered by Qriocity™ and Music Unlimited powered by Qriocity for a variety of network-enabled Sony devices will be announced later.
“We have been conducting additional testing and further security verification of our commerce functions in order to bring the PlayStation Network completely back online so that our fans can again enjoy the first class entertainment experience they have come to love,” said Kazuo Hirai, Executive Deputy President, Sony Corporation. “We appreciate the patience and support shown during this time.”
The company will be offering customers a “Welcome Back” package of services and premium content to all registered PlayStation Network* and Qriocity account services. The details of this program will continue to be detailed regionally.

 

Are you bored of the same old maps in Dead Space 2 multiplayer? Well, then do I have news for you. Starting May 31st on Xbox Live Marketplace and June 3rd on PlayStation Network you can download two brand new maps for free. That’s right I said free. It’s called the Outbreak Map Pack and features The Academy and The Concourse. I imagine The Academy is the uber-creepy school you go through towards the beginning the single-player campaign. Also, The Concourse is probably a concourse somewhere on the Sprawl. Let’s not worry about it, you get to play in the creepy school, and that’s all that matters really.

There is still no solid information on when the PlayStation Network will be up and running again, even though it’s been almost three weeks since the attacks that caused Sony to say their online service would be down for one week.

So, does this mean that the PSN is the new vaporware?

Source: Venture Beat

• Cyber monitoring and surveillance of the Internet to detect exposure of an AllClear ID Plus customer’s personal information, including monitoring of criminal web sites and data recovered by law enforcement. If his/her personal information is found, the customer will be alerted by phone and/or email and will be provided advice and support regarding protective steps to take. The customer will also receive monthly identity status reports. Debix works with an alliance of cyber-crime experts from the government, academia and industry to provide these services.
• Priority access to licensed private investigators and identity restoration specialists. If an AllClear ID Plus customer receives an alert, or otherwise suspects that he/she may be the victim of identity theft, the customer can speak directly, on a priority basis, with an on-staff licensed private investigator, who will conduct a comprehensive inquiry. In the case of an identity theft, the customer can work with an identity restoration specialist to contact creditors and others, and take necessary steps to restore the customer’s identity.
• A $1 million identity theft insurance policy per user to provide additional protection in the event that an AllClear ID Plus customer becomes a victim of identity theft. This insurance would provide financial relief of up to $1 million for covered identity restoration costs, legal defense expenses, and lost wages that occur within 12 months after the stolen identity event.

So this is Sony’s first step to making amends. How many more do you think they will make after this one, if any?

Source: PlayStation.Blog