MAG Message Board older than one year ago

Let's face it -- some of MAG's factions know how to build strongholds better than others. Many of the game's players have argued that the layouts of Valor, Raven and S.V.E.R.'s respective maps in the "Sabotage" gametype have given distinct advantages to ... well, whichever faction they don't belong to, most likely. Now, that argument has been rendered pointless -- Zipper Interactive recently made all three maps for the gametype "Faction Neutral."

So, what does that mean? Well, the map which two teams are playing on will no longer determine who is attacking and defending. Zipper community manager Jeremy Dunham explained, "if you choose to play Sabotage and you're on Valor, you'll be able to defend SVER and Raven's map in addition to your own. On the flipside, you'll also be able to attack you're own map with another PMC defending it." But ... that's treason, isn't it? We're pretty sure that's light treason.

#inquiringminds It has been six months since Sony launched their massively multiplayer online shooter MAG and as with many online games, time has started to dwindle their numbers. More »

It’s been almost six months since our massive online shooter, MAG, was released to stores all over the world, and the team here at Zipper Interactive is celebrating by giving something back to fans who continue to support our game and its community.

That “something” we’re passing along is also something that many of you have been asking us for with great enthusiasm for months. And so, it is with great pleasure, that I announce that starting today — right this moment in fact — that all maps in our “Sabotage” game mode are going “Faction Neutral!” If you ever wanted to play against the Valor PMC as a member of the competing Raven Industries on a map that belonged to the third faction, SVER, that option is now yours! We’d like to think of it as a way to experience existing content in an all-new way, and we hope you feel the same.

The best part? You don’t have to download a thing to do it. We’ve already set everything up so that all you have to do is log on to the game, select the Sabotage game mode with whatever your PMC of choice may be, and have fun. It’s just that simple.

We hope you enjoy this gift to you as much as we enjoy giving it, and once again, want to thank each and every one of you who have supported MAG in its first half-year. Hopefully, you’ll like what we have in store for the second-half just as much.

#thefuture I really enjoy playing old games. This will come as no surprise to readers that keep up with our Friday Old Games series. But when I do get in the retro mood, I almost always play on the real console. More »

As you probably already know, Sonic the Hedgehog turns 19 years old this week. As a celebration for Sega's mascot's one-year anniversary of being able to buy pornography, smoke and vote, a number of Sonic titles and DLC for said titles have had their prices reduced for one week only. Check out these offers, as well as some other highlights (new MAG DLC! Monkey Island!) in the full list posted after the jump.

Choose your platform to view the corresponding release list:
(Note: Continue past the break to view both release lists.)

Battlefield: Bad Company 2's "Onslaught" mode (a de facto PSN timed exclusive) and MAG's "Interdiction" DLC are both available today on the PSN. So, squad up and get out there, solider!

Check out the full update after the break.

Choose your platform to view the corresponding release list:
(Note: Continue past the break to view both release lists.)

Today is the day that MAG fans have been waiting for as our first major DLC, “Interdiction,” is now available for purchase from the PlayStation Store for $9.99 US (prices in other regions may vary)!

If you missed our post detailing Interdiction a few weeks back, allow us to sum it up for you:

MAG Interdiction is a brand new game mode built for 128 players. In it, two rival attacking factions fight to gain control of three different command posts while using armored convoys for every squad on the map (that’s right, 16 APCs onscreen at once!). To earn the victory, teams must capture and hold as many objectives as possible to increase their score while simultaneously decreasing their opponents’ score across three all-new “faction neutral” maps (Iron Creek Quarry, Lake Bayano Spur, and Sovot Motorway).

In addition to the new maps and gametype, Interdiction will also include the most powerful protection in the game, the “Heavy Improved” armor set, as well as a number of new in-game ribbons, medals and trophies. Here’s a reminder of what you can expect:

Ribbons

• Jump Start – Capture 2 Command Posts in a round of Interdiction
• Mowing the Grass – Get 10 kills with a vehicle turret in one round
• Dashed Hopes – Destroy 2 mines with gunfire in one round
• Cannonball Rally – Become an MVP (1st, 2nd, or 3rd) in a round of Interdiction

Medals

• Roadside Assistance – Capture 10 Interdiction control points over your career
• Landscape Architect – Get 50 kills with a vehicle turret over your career
• BOD – Destroy 20 mines with gunfire over your career
• Designated Driver – Earn 5 Interdiction MVPs over your career

Trophies

• King of the Hills (Bronze) – Earn the Roadside Assistance medal while playing Interdiction
• Red Ball Express (Silver) – Earn the Designated Driver medal while playing Interdiction
• Road Runner (Gold) – Capture 3 Interdiction control points in a single round

As a special “thank you” to everyone who’s playing MAG this week, we’re also bringing back our popular “Double XP” promotion over the weekend. That means that whether you purchase our new Interdiction DLC or not, you can expect to grab twice as much experience for your battlefield efforts starting Friday, June 25 at 12:01am Pacific Time (3:01am Eastern, 7:01am GMT). Just be sure to finish any game you start in order to benefit from the additional XP, as folks who leave a game early won’t receive the bonus. Our Double XP Weekend ends on Sunday, June 27 at 11:59pm Pacific Time (2:59am Eastern, 6:59am GMT).

Oh, and one final note: All MAG players will have to download a small “Interdiction Activation Patch” starting today. It’s only 4MB in size and prepares your copy of MAG to be compatible with the Interdiction game mode. Again, Interdiction itself can be downloaded later today from the PlayStation Store for $9.99 US and weighs in at 440MB.

Thanks to all our fans for keeping us going these past five months – see you on the Sovot!

As hinted at by a Sony survey distributed last month (and then a rash of recent unintentional Trophy unlocks), the world of MAG will soon expand rather drastically with the June 22 release of the Interdiction DLC pack. The bundle, which will cost $9.99, includes the titular Interdiction gametype, where two factions storm one of three brand new, completely neutral maps, vying to control three command posts. Each post your team holds adds to your score while depleting your enemy's, which could lead to some lengthy tug-of-war encounters.

In addition to the new gametype and maps, the pack includes a "Heavy Improved" armor set for each faction, which promises to turn an ordinary soldier into a "walking tank." (Hardly sounds fair, does it?) Players will also be able to unlock a selection of new medals and Trophies -- if they haven't done so already. Click past the jump to see the full list of available accolades.

It’s been just over four and a half months since MAG released worldwide and 930,000 battles, 1.7 million players, and 1.1 billion kills later, the time to expand is now.

Yes friends, everyone here at Zipper Interactive is proud to announce that beginning June 22, our first expansion pack, dubbed “Interdiction,” will be available to players all over the world for $9.99 US (prices in other regions may vary).

“But what’s in it,” you say? Well, for starters, we’re introducing a brand new gametype that we’re calling (what else?) “Interdiction.” Built for up to 128 simultaneous players, Interdiction challenges two rival factions to be attackers and seize control of three command posts with the aid of several heavily-armed convoys on three brand new maps (Lake Bayano Spur, Sovot Motorway, and Iron Cree Quarry). To make it even more interesting, we’ve made all three maps completely faction neutral – allowing all sides to play any map whenever they want – in addition to supplying every squad with their own APC vehicle (that’s 16 APCs on the map at once!). To win, players must capture and hold as many objectives as possible to increase their score while concurrently depleting their enemy’s. In short, Interdiction mode = crazy battlefield mayhem.

A new gametype and three new maps isn’t all we’re packing either. As an extra bonus, we’re also adding the ultimate in MAG protection, our “Heavy Improved” armor set. Trust us when we say that it doesn’t matter if you’re Raven, Valor, or SVER — if you don the Heavy Improved armor consider yourself a walking tank.

Oh, and one other thing, to reward you for spending your hard-earned dollars on our new DLC, we’ll also be including a handful of brand new in-game medals, ribbons and trophies! What are they? Glad you asked!

Ribbons

• Jump Start – Capture 2 Command Posts in a round of Interdiction
• Mowing the Grass – Get 10 kills with a vehicle turret in one round
• Dashed Hopes – Destroy 2 mines with gunfire in one round
• Cannonball Rally – Become an MVP (1st, 2nd, or 3rd) in a round of Interdiction

Medals

• Roadside Assistance – Capture 10 Interdiction control points over your career
• Landscape Architect – Get 50 kills with a vehicle turret over your career
• BOD – Destroy 20 mines with gunfire over your career
• Designated Driver – Earn 5 Interdiction MVPs over your career

Trophies

• King of the Hills (Bronze) – Earn the Roadside Assistance medal while playing Interdiction
• Red Ball Express (Silver) – Earn the Designated Driver medal while playing Interdiction
• Road Runner (Gold) – Capture 3 Interdiction control points in a single round

And that’s the Interdiction Pack. Again, you can pick it up for $9.99 starting June 22, but don’t think that we’re stopping there – we still have a lot planned for MAG in the coming months. In the meantime, check out gaming sites like IGN for more on what we have in store!

The hardcore are getting a new way to play MAG.

Accidental self-healing and friend-stabbing rates are expected to drastically decrease in the world of MAG on June 8 -- the recently announced release date for Update v1.06. In addition to changing the credit costs of a number of weapons and accessories, the patch will map the "heal self" and "heal ally" functions to two different buttons on the controller, making the act of battlefield triage much less frustrating for folks who subscribe to the Medic archetype. Also, your friends won't accidentally stab you in the head anymore, which is always nice.

Check out the update's initial announcement to see all the changes that will come to MAG next Tuesday.

One of the most frustrating things for us players of MAG's most altruistic self-defined class, the Combat Medic, are those times when we make a heroic dash through raging crossfire to reach a downed ally, only to accidentally heal ourselves instead. Even worse: those times when we're knocking on death's door, but accidentally heal an adjacent, barely wounded friendly. It's happened to all of us -- but thanks to the v1.06 patch due out "sometime next month," according to the game's official blog, it will never have to happen again.

The update will map self healing and ally healing to two separate buttons (genius!) and will enact a whole slew of other minor (but oft-requested) changes. For example, you can now no longer accidentally stab members of your PMC. Nor can you purposefully stab them, if you happen to be a team-killing bastard. For the full list of changes, just click past the jump.

A handful of tipsters recently sent in a link to a survey currently being distributed by Sony, which appears to test the waters regarding two updates considered for Zipper Interactive's big ol' shooter, MAG. The first article of interest in the survey is a reference to an "Interdiction" mode, in which 128 players from two factions would fight over three neutral objectives, removing the attacker/defender dynamic of the game's other main modes. The survey also inquires whether we'd purchase this content for a cool $12.99.

On the very next page, the survey mentions an offer which would give MAG players an extra character slot (presumably opening up the option to belong to more than one faction at a time) for a fee of $.99 per month. If this subscription plan is actually being considered, we don't know how popular it would be. We couldn't imagine cheating on our beloved PMC. (S.V.E.R. Forever!)

Zipper community manager Jeremy Dunham has addressed these potential changes on the MAG forums, stating, "we haven't announced any DLC details whatsoever. Nothing is official unless it comes from us." While these details may not be "official," it's worth noting that the survey was distributed by an official Sony email address. Food for thought!

[Thanks, Steve and Logan!]

You know how you were going to drive upstate to attend your sister-in-law's wedding this weekend? Forget it. There's a MAG double XP weekend going down and you've been drafted for duty.

According to the missive on the MAG site detailing this weekend's operations, the promotion is currently underway and will last until 11:59PM PT Sunday night. Veterans who already have an XP bonus need not worry: this stacks on top of their current modifier. Also, a word of caution: make sure you complete every match, because the modifier isn't applied until the end. We wouldn't want you evacuating the battlefield, leaving all of those delicious points behind.

So ... what are you still reading this for? Go get yourself some points! For S.V.E.R.!

Once again, MAG developer Zipper Interactive plans to release another free chunk of content to its hugely huge multiplayer FPS. Fans of long-range weaponry and loose-fitting clothing will be delighted to learn the "Fast Attack Pack" DLC, which will hit the PSN next Thursday, April 29, includes new "Special Edition Sniper Rifles" and "Improved Light Armor" for all three of the game's factions.

Then again, fans of shotguns, medical kits, light machine guns and repair tools probably won't be thrilled to learn that snipers will soon be faster and more accurate. Oh well! You win some, you get shot in the brain from 300 meters away ... some.

#dlc Zipper Interactive unzips its second free downloadable content for massive multiplayer shooter MAG next week, with a trio of special edition sniper rifles ready to make life more difficult for players with a love for wide-open spaces. More »

Mark April 29 on your calendars now, because it’s the day you’re going to see our next 100% Free MAG DLC add-on! Known as the “Fast Attack” Gear Pack, our latest downloadable extra will likely cause marksmen to swoon.

Why? Two big reasons. First, we’re adding three brand new Special Edition Sniper Rifles (Raven’s HM 90 SE, SVER’s SASR M, and Valor’s MK 14 Mod 1 EBR) that include a number of performance adjustments and visual variations to our already-popular long-range weapons. Second, you can expect to get your hands on a collection of new armor types! All three factions can now choose to equip Improved Light Armor in their loadouts for the bargain price of just 400 in-game credits.

Oh, and did we mention that the “Fast Attack” Gear Pack is free? Yes, we did, but we’re saying it again anyway. Look for it to appear in the PlayStation Store the afternoon of April 29, alongside all other scheduled PSN updates.

For more MAG-related news and updates, be sure to visit the Official MAG Blog or check out our Official Zipper Interactive Twitter and Facebook pages.

We’ve had a lot of requests from our diehard MAG fans to release “birds-eye view” shots of our detailed and expansive maps – and now we’re pleased to say that we’re giving them to you. Starting right now, we’re releasing ultra hi-res imagery of every competitive map in the game so that you can meticulously plan your attack routes, defensive maneuvers, and leadership tactics before the next time you set foot on the battlefield.

Below is a link to each Suppression, Sabotage, Acquisition, and Domination map that MAG has to offer. Download them, share them, do whatever you want with them – they’re all yours. Enjoy!

[Note, to see the highest-res version of these maps, click on "All Sizes" above the image in the Flickr Page, and then choose "Original"]

• Coming to PSN this Week: Hamsterball — Seriously, with a name like Hamsterball, what could possible go wrong?
• BUZZ! Quiz World Delivers PS3’s First In-Game Facebook Publishing Features — The first to offer direct Facebook publishing from in-game, check out these brand new BUZZ! features.
• LittleBigPlanet: This Week in DLC — It’s all about Sonic this week in LBP DLC. Get a Sonic Costume pack, or pick and choose the Sonic costumes you want!
• Coming to PSN this Week: High Stakes Poker Add-On — High Stakes Poker adds 30 Trophies, plus a host of other news you’re going to want to check out.
• Coming to PSN this Week: ZEN Pinball: Earth Defense Table — The newest in ZEN Pinball tables has a lot to offer. Check out the brand new Earth Defense table!
• ModNation Racers PS3: Bringing Back the Split-Screen — You’ve asked for it. And now you got it. ModNation Racers for PS3 is bringing back the split-screen…and big time. Check out why it’s going to rock your couch in May.
• Get Ready for Opening Day, Win A PSN Voucher Code for MLB 10: The Show PSP — The 2010 MLB season is about to kick off. To celebrate, check out the trailer for MLB 10 The Show on PSP, and a handful of vouchers were given away.
• Groovin’ Blocks Out Now on PSN — Groovin’ Blocks is right up my alley. Looks like a really cool play on games like Lumines and Tetris.
• Happy 5th Anniversary PSP! — The first 5 flew by. Check out the pic to see just how far the PSP has come.
• Meet The Tester Cast Members Big D and Nauseous in PlayStation Home Tonight — Home-bodies. Lots of cool events are happening in PlayStation Home. So make sure to go bug the tester cast as much as possible!
• Coming to PSN this Week: Blue Toad Murder Files — We’ll excuse Jeff for almost saying “Blue Turd” on camera. But this is a game you definitely want to check out. See the walkthrough video in the post.
• This Week in PlayStation Home: Assassin’s Creed II Space, Aliens vs. Predator, SingStar VIP Room Opens for Stereophonics, and More! — Is it me, or is the weekly list of new stuff in Home getting bigger every Wednesday. This time you get Assassin’s Creed II space, AvP, SingStar VIP room and more.
• Spring Fever Returns on PlayStation Network! — Get in the spring spirit with huge PSN game sales throughout the spring season! This week, it’s shooter mayhem with Everyday Shooter and Gravity Crash!
• Fat Princess PS3: Fat Fan Fare with Patch 1.05 — A fat patch for a phat game (yes, I went there). See what’s included in patch 1.05!

The Tester – Episode 6 Available Today — Things are heating up if you’re been following along. Check out episode 6 free on PSN! 3D Dot Game Heroes Trailer! — Yes, it’s EPIC! This game is really shaping up to take off. See the official trailer, massive sword play and all… PlayStation Comics Store Update — Lots of great new comics this week. The list is growing by the week. PlayStation Store Update — Wakeboarding HD hits PSN, along with Blue Toad, Hamsterball, LBP DLC for PS3 and PSP, and much more! PlayStation Network Video Content Update — We know a lot of you are closet Twilight fans, or at the very least were forced into the theater by a significant other. So get your fix on PSN now. ModNation Racers PS3: Bringing The BOOM with Weapons! — ModNation Racers is going all out with weapons. Nick from United Front Games stops by to give you the in-depth info on all things booming! Warhawk Tournament 2010! — Mr. Warhawk Dylan Jobe swings by to let you in on the Warhawk Tournament 2010 PlayStation Move Sweeps the Northeast — Jeff and SCEA brought move out east! See how it all went down in New York City and PAX East in Boston!

Courtesy of Jeremy Dunham

• MAG Skills Explained: Electronics – How does your high-tech skill tree really work? We explain!
• Free MAG DLC and Double XP All Weekend – You can’t beat getting new stuff for free.

Greetings, PlayStation Nation! It’s time for a proper introduction. I’m Sid Shuman, and I’m the newest recruit of the PlayStation.Blog team! You might know me from my 11 years with GamePro, where I served as writer and senior editor covering my favorite topic in the world: video games!

In my new role with the PlayStation.Blog, I’ll be working with fine folks like Jeff Rubenstein and Chris Morell (a fellow partner-in-crime from my GamePro days!). My day-to-day focus will be updating and maintaining PlayStation’s official Twitter account (Follow us: Twitter.com/SonyPlayStation) and Facebook page (Facebook.com/PlayStation), as well as helping moderate and maintain our new PlayStation.Blog Share, where you can submit your own great ideas to the PlayStation team. We read every one of them!

I’m proud to be a part of a PlayStation team and, especially, to be serving you. So without further ado, let’s take a closer look at the week’s posts on the PlayStation.Blog. See you on the internets!

• Wakeboarding HD Coming to PSN March 25 — If you love Jet Moto, Hydro Thunder, SSX, or Crazy Taxi, you owe it to yourself to check out this gorgeous hi-def PSN title. Dodging sharks while busting monster wakeboard trick combos: yeah, I’m pretty sure that’s a win.
• ModNation Racers Release Date, Pre-Orders and Box Art! — Zoom, zoom, zoom! I played this nimble kart racer at GDC 2010 for the first time, and was pleased by the tight controls (epic drifting!) and the adorable character designs. Better yet, the track creator is one of the best user creation tools I’ve ever seen. This one deserves your attention.
• God of War III Launch Special Tonight on SPIKE TV + Midnight Launch Events! — The Game To End All Games is (finally) here, and the midnight launch festivities couldn’t have been more epic. Catch up on the Spike TV special, too, hosted by GameTrailers’ Geoff Keighley and featuring a special appearance by God of War III director Stig Asmussen.
• PlayStation.Blog God of War III GDC 2010 Meetup Recap — Epic game + epic fans = epic community meetup. San Francisco will never be the same after our record-shattering God of War community event, featuring a blistering Challenge of the Titans competition, countless raffle prizes, and a special God of War III play session. Intense!
• Coming to PSN this Week: Patchwork Heroes — In this charming PSP game, you carve pieces off gigantic airborne battleships using a saw. Epic AND cute: what’s not to like? The theme song deserves extra points, too.
• God of War III Out Today! — The wait is over: Kratos will have his revenge. The first level alone is enough to take your breath away. What are you waiting for?
• New Limited Edition Metal Gear Solid: Peace Walker PSP Entertainment Pack — This limited edition PSP Entertainment Pack is a killer deal. Fully loaded with a 2GB Memory Stick, free PSN movie voucher (US only), exclusive DLC, plus the slick “Spirited Green” PSP-3000. And, of course, Metal Gear Solid: Peace Walker, the latest chapter in Hideo Kojima’s powerful series.
• Meet The Tester Cast Members Luge and Doc in PlayStation Home Tomorrow — Regular viewers of The Tester might have wondered whether Doc and Luge had “a thing” for each other. If you made it to our in-Home meetup with these popular contestants, you’d have gotten the chance to ask them for yourself!
• 3D Dot Game Heroes Walkthrough — If you’re elderly enough to remember the 8-bit and 16-bit generation, 3D Dot Game Heroes will be right up your alley. It’s both a tribute to, and a parody of, the Golden Age of Gaming. Let Atlus’s Aram Jabbari give you the full tour!
• Introducing PlayStation.Blog Share — Since starting with the fine folks of the PlayStation.Blog, Share has been a near-obsession of mine. The concept of fans contributing fresh ideas to PlayStation, and voting on them, is a powerful one. Have you Shared today?

This Week in PlayStation Home: Twisted Metal, Resistance, inFAMOUS Content + Musicality Apartment, PlayStation.Blog Meetup and More!!! — Home gets hotter with a slew of content updates. And in another first for the PlayStation.Blog, Chris, Jeff, and I held a virtual meetup in the Central Plaza and Theater to meet and greet fans and give out sweet exclusive items. We hope to make these Home meetups a more frequent event — stay tuned! UNCHARTED: Eye of Indra Motion Comic Bundle, Rika and Pinkerton Skins Launch on April 1 — Readers have long clamored for access to the Rika Raja and Daniel Pinkerton skins for Uncharted 2’s multiplayer mode. The wait is over! Read how to claim the booty in this blog written by Arne of Naughty Dog! echoshift Add-on Levels Free Through April 1 — There’s still time to grab seven free add-on levels for this brain-twisting PSN puzzler, but only if you act fast. make.believe: thatgamecompany — thatgamecompany is famous for introducing Flower and flOw to gamers worldwide. But where did this innovative independent game studio come from? How did they get started? All secrets are revealed in this short, beautifully shot documentary video. PlayStation Comics Store Update — Comic geeks, rejoice! The PlayStation Comics Store grows ever-larger: highlights include Dragon Age # 1, Star Trek: Nero # 3, and The X-Men (1963) # 6 through #10. Remember: reading is fundamental! The Tester – Episode 5 Available Today — With only three episodes left, The Tester is heating up! If you’re a newcomer to the show, there’s never been a better time to check it out. There’s only three episodes left! No spoilers! PixelJunk Racers 2nd Lap Coming to PSN this Spring + PixelJunk Monsters Deluxe on UMD — Dylan “Mr. PixelJunk” Cuthbert gives the skinny on eagerly anticipated updates to the smash-hit PSN game series. With PixelJunk Monsters Deluxe hitting the PSP on UMD for only $20, and PixelJunk Racers 2nd Lap getting a beefy upgrade on PSN, now’s the time to dive into this celebrated retro-styled series. First MAG DLC free, coming next week — Zipper Interactive wasn’t kidding when they said their support for MAG had only just begun. Rejoin the fight with potent new Flashbang Grenades, new Light Machine Guns, and a double-XP weekend starting March 25th. All hail MAG! PlayStation.Blog Moves East next week. Come Meetup with us! — Meet Jeff and the PlayStation.Blog team in Boston and New York next week! Of course, we’ll have cool prizes and gaming swag to hand out. But the real attraction will be hands-on sessions with PlayStation Move, our state-of-the-art motion controller coming later this Fall! PlayStation Network Video Content Update — Lots of scrumptious new video content to peruse this weekend on the PSN Video Store, including Twilight Saga: New Moon, Ninja Assassin, Universal Soldier: Regeneration, and my personal favorite History Channel TV show, MonsterQuest (This week: Sasquatches!). No April Fool’s Joke – Heavy Rain Taxidermist DLC Available April 1 — Gain a different perspective on Heavy Rain’s storyline with this standalone side story set in a very bad part of town. Can you evade certain death while hiding in an urban den of horrors? ModNation Racers: Redesigning Kart Racing — Building a Better Kart Racer: Get a better ‘handle’ on ModNation Racers’ controls and feel with this informative new video. Fat Princess: Fistful of Cake Trailer and Interview — Learn more about the exclusive new content planned for the PSP version of this team action-RPG, including new modes, new maps, and a beefier (cakier?) story mode. Viva la girthiness! LittleBigPlanet: Sack It To Me – The Hedgehog Edition — Holy crap! Sonic the Hedgehog is hitting LittleBigPlanet and we’ve got the full scoop straight from the developers.

Courtesy of Jeremy Dunham

• MAG Free DLC and Extended Double XP March 25 – Flashbangs are coming.
• Patch Alert: MAG v1.04a – We’ve updated the Syr Daria Uplink map and nerfed spawn campers!
• SOCOM 4 and PlayStation Move Reactions – The video game media’s thoughts on our game and new peripheral.

Courtesy of Arne Meyer

• Eye of Indra Bundle with Rika and Pinkerton skins to be released in North America – Covered in full detail on the PlayStation.Blog, the Eye of Indra motion comic bundle will be available for purchase on April 1 in the US, Canada and Mexico. You can get the Rika and Pinkerton multiplayer skins by purchasing the bundle and we’ve made sure that anyone who has purchased all the individual episodes also get the skins.
• Player spawn point updates being rolled out – Over the past couple of weeks we noticed that our spawn points needed some tweaking. We announced this week that we’re rolling out updates to UNCHARTED 2 over time to our multiplayer maps to alleviate unfair player spawning during matches.
• UNCHARTED 2 wins 4 awards at the GAME British Academy Video Game Awards – Evan and Christophe were on-site at the awards ceremony in London, United Kingdom, to accept four BAFTA awards for Action, Original Score, Story and Use of Audio.
• The Art of UNCHARTED 2: Among Thieves – out in April 2010 – Ballistic Publishing, SCEA and Naughty Dog are pleased to reveal the upcoming 272-page art book of concept art, production art and character models. The art book will come in three flavors for collectors of all kinds. You can pre-order now, and there’s even a limited release pre-order bonus – a 15 minute video walkthrough of 3 concept pieces.

Ten-hut, soldiers! HQ has just sent word that some new gear will be shipping to the front lines of MAG next week, free of charge: the Trooper Gear Pack. In this parcel, we'll finally get access to the Flashbang grenade -- which should help us confuse and outwit the enemy. But, that's not all: our supplier, Zipper Interactive, also reports it's bundled in some new LMGs (Raven's APEX 100SE, S.V.E.R.'s RTK-74 Vla, and Valor's Mk 46 Mod 1) and uniforms.

The full rundown is available via Zipper's site, where it's also revealed that next weekend (March 25 - 28) there will be double XP out on the battlefield. It's a nice bonus for our continued service, however we feel it's bad timing. Operation PAX East will be in full effect by the 25th, so we doubt we'll find time to benefit from the extra incentive to hoist the S.V.E.R. flag.

#zipperinteractive The first batch of downloadable goodies for owners of the PlayStation 3 massively multiplayer shooter MAG will arrive next week, according to Zipper Interactive, bringing fresh outfits, disorienting grenades and all-new guns guns guns! That new stuff is all free. More »

On behalf of everyone here at Zipper Interactive, I’m pleased to announce that beginning March 25, our first official MAG downloadable add-on will be made available to players worldwide absolutely free of charge!

Dubbed the “Trooper Gear Pack,” our first DLC addition to the MAG universe will offer a number of cool goodies for veterans and first timers alike. Out of everything in the pack, the most popular will likely be the oft-requested “Flashbang Grenade” that can be used to confuse, disorient or distract your enemies in a single throw.

Of course, there’s more to the Trooper Gear Pack than Flashbangs. We’ll also be including new special edition Light Machine Guns for each PMC. Raven’s APEX 100SE, SVER’s RTK-74 Vla, and Valor’s Mk 46 Mod 1 weapons will provide both a new look for your favorite LMGs and a number of performance adjustments as well.

The last element of the pack will be two additional uniforms – “Trooper Dark” and “Trooper Light.” Available to all three PMCs, these uniforms are specifically designed for urban and interior combat situations and give you two more aesthetic options to diversify your character with.

The best part of the Trooper Gear Pack? It’s just the beginning of our ongoing commitment to MAG. In the coming months, you can expect to see plenty of other add-ons and goodies that we can’t quite tell you about yet (but know you’ll enjoy).

But that’s not all. To commemorate the release of our DLC, we want to throw in a little extra. And so, as a thank you to all of our fans, we’re offering Double XP to any and all MAG players starting March 25. Simply log in at 12am Pacific/ 3am Eastern/ 8am GMT and play MAG as you normally would. Every time you complete a game your experience doubles, and yes, this bonus stacks for Veterans who already have an XP bonus to begin with! Just make sure you actually complete the games you play – if you quit early, your bonus won’t apply.

Expect the Double XP promotion to run until 11:59pm Pacific time on Sunday, March 28. Be sure to take advantage of it as much as you possibly can until then.

For more MAG-related news, don’t forget to visit the Official MAG Blog on a regular basis, or check out our Official Zipper Interactive Twitter and Facebook pages. Enjoy your weekend everybody!

On behalf of everyone here at Zipper Interactive, I’m pleased to announce that beginning March 25, our first official MAG downloadable add-on will be made available to players worldwide absolutely free of charge!

Dubbed the “Trooper Gear Pack,” our first DLC addition to the MAG universe will offer a number of cool goodies for veterans and first timers alike. Out of everything in the pack, the most popular will likely be the oft-requested “Flashbang Grenade” that can be used to confuse, disorient or distract your enemies in a single throw.

Of course, there’s more to the Trooper Gear Pack than Flashbangs. We’ll also be including new special edition Light Machine Guns for each PMC. Raven’s APEX 100SE, SVER’s RTK-74 Vla, and Valor’s Mk 46 Mod 1 weapons will provide both a new look for your favorite LMGs and a number of performance adjustments as well.

The last element of the pack will be two additional uniforms – “Trooper Dark” and “Trooper Light.” Available to all three PMCs, these uniforms are specifically designed for urban and interior combat situations and give you two more aesthetic options to diversify your character with.

The best part of the Trooper Gear Pack? It’s just the beginning of our ongoing commitment to MAG. In the coming months, you can expect to see plenty of other add-ons and goodies that we can’t quite tell you about yet (but know you’ll enjoy).

But that’s not all. To commemorate the release of our DLC, we want to throw in a little extra. And so, as a thank you to all of our fans, we’re offering Double XP to any and all MAG players starting March 25. Simply log in at 12am Pacific/ 3am Eastern/ 8am GMT and play MAG as you normally would. Every time you complete a game your experience doubles, and yes, this bonus stacks for Veterans who already have an XP bonus to begin with! Just make sure you actually complete the games you play – if you quit early, your bonus won’t apply.
Expect the Double XP promotion to run until 11:59pm Pacific time on Sunday, March 28. Be sure to take advantage of it as much as you possibly can until then.

For more MAG-related news, don’t forget to visit the Official MAG Blog on a regular basis, or check out our Official Zipper Interactive Twitter and Facebook pages. Enjoy your weekend everybody!

• PlayStation Network Status Update — Thanks for bearing with us. We’re back to business as usual.
• Latest info on PlayStation Network Status — Did you follow us on Twitter for news Monday?
• PlayStation Network Service Restored — And we’re back! Commence marathon MAG and Heavy Rain sessions!!
• Score Tickets to the Final Fantasy XIII Launch Event in San Francisco! — You wouldn’t even believe how many submissions we had for this. Seriously, you really wouldn’t. Apparently Square Enix has a popular game on its hands. Who’da thunk?
• Media Molecule Officially Joins the PlayStation Family — And we welcome SackBoy with open arms! In all seriousness, how could you not be stoked about this? Mm does some absolutely amazing work.
• It Only Does The Show — This is definitely one of my favorite Kevin Butler segments yet. My question: What do you have to do to get banned from Mexico?
• LittleBigPlanet: This Week in DLC — The Canyons costumes and pack hit LBP PSP, plus a couple last chance offers that you don’t want to miss!
• God of War III Blood & Metal EP Out Now — I’ve got less than a year left until I hit the big three-zero. But until then, I can destroy my ears with a little metal.
• New PlayStation Pavilion at Disney’s ESPN Wide World of Sports Complex Provides the Ultimate Gaming Experience — Get your PlayStation fix at the PlayStation Pavilion in Orlando, FL!
• Pillar of the Skies – A New World of Topatoi on PSN Tomorrow — Topatoi expands into a completely new world. Take a gander at the gameplay video for a peek into the new episode.
• Patching You Through – Patchwork Heroes Demo Out This Thursday — Free demo? Where do I sign? Check out Patchwork Heroes, another incredibly unique title out of Japan.
• Coming to PSN Next Week: Rocket Racing PSP mini — Phil Larson from Halfbrick drops by with all the details on Rocket Racing, hitting the PlayStation Store this Thursday.
• New Star Wars Content Comes to PlayStation Home + IREM Seaside of Memories, Two New Personal Spaces + More! — Locust_Star knows that opening with Star Wars is a smart move. But that’s not all that’s new to Home. You also get a couple new personal spaces and more!
• God of War III Interview with Design Director Todd Papy — At the God of War III media event in LA, I sat down with the incredibly cool Todd Papy to talk “wow moments,” collaborating with Naughty Dog, what it’s like to be done with the game and much more.
• Naughty Dog at GDC – We Want Your Questions! — Naughty Dog is all about GDC. So much, in fact, that they’re going to take your questions during a Thursday, March 11 session!
• The Tester Episode 3 Available Today — Things are heating up in the game-testing battle. Jaffe returns this week!
• PlayStation Comics Store Update — Over 50 new comics hit the Comics Store this week including Star Trek Nero and much more.
• SOCOM 4: It’s Official! — You’ve been waiting. Well, here’s the official word from Zipper on SOCOM 4!
• Want to Play God of War III Early? Come to our GDC San Francisco Meetup! — As of today, well over 200 yes’s. Wednesday will be a very fine day, indeed. See you on Wednesday!
• PlayStation Store Update — The Tester Ep. 3, Just Cause 2 demo, MLB 10: The Show add-on content, RE5 add-ons, new Pulse, The Show on PSP, 5 minis and a lot more!
• PlayStation Network Video Content Update — Another huge update of TV shows, trailers and movies, including Where the Wild Things Are. Anybody catch it? Started slow for me, but really picked up in the second half.
• Coming to PSN: Joe Danger — I am really, really impressed with this gameplay trailer. Seriously, looks right up my alley.
• God of War Unearthing the Legend Winners! — Here is the official list of winners and the video proof that you’re forever stamped on the God of War franchise.
• SOCOM 4 Teaser: Director’s Commentary — If you didn’t catch the SOCOM 4 teaser trailer, you can watch it here! Plus, Zipper does a special bit of developer commentary over the trailer.
• Gran Turismo Does NASCAR – Polyphony Digital At Texas Motor Speedway — NASCAR coming to GT5. Plus, video proof that Kazunori-san and company do their research in the real world!
• Become the Ultimate MAG Solider on GameBattles.com — Pwn in MAG? Head over to gamebattles.com and sign up for the MAG tournament!
• Lights, Camera, Play Ball! Create Your Own Highlight Reel with MLB 10: The Show’s Movie Maker — Psh, Sportscenter…that’s so yesterday. Make your own highlight reel wit this amazing feature in MLB 10: The Show!
• ModNation Racers PS3: Dynamic Props – More than Just Speed Bumps — United Front Games’ Mark Riddell is back! This time he’s talking about dynamic props. And oh yeah, a new trailer…

Courtesy of Jeremy Dunham

• SOCOM 4 – It’s Official - The world’s great tactical shooter is back, and Zipper’s making it!
• SOCOM 4 Teaser: Director’s Commentary – Creative Director, Ed Byrne, drops some inside information.
• MAG on GameBattles.com – Become the ultimate soldier, win prizes!
• MAG.com Leaderboard Beta – Start tracking your status as a killing machine right now.

Courtesy of Arne Meyer

• UNCHARTED 2 Title Update 1.06 and Multiplayer Updates – We released an update to the multiplayer modes of UNCHARTED 2 earlier this week. The Title Update and live updates we pushed performed some additional balancing to player hitboxes, some weapons and one Booster that we felt was warranted after Title Update 1.05 was released. As part of these updates, we also pushed some geometry updates to prevent intentional glitching.
• “Unleashed: The Art of Naughty Dog” art show opens this weekend – Twenty Naughty Dog (and UNCHARTED 2) artists are doing a group show of their art work at the Gnomon Gallery in Hollywood, California. The opening reception for the show is on the evening of Saturday, March 6, and will run for at least a month.

• PlayStation Network Status Update — Thanks for bearing with us. We’re back to business as usual.
• Latest info on PlayStation Network Status — Did you follow us on Twitter for news Monday?
• PlayStation Network Service Restored — And we’re back! Commence marathon MAG and Heavy Rain sessions!!
• Score Tickets to the Final Fantasy XIII Launch Event in San Francisco! — You wouldn’t even believe how many submissions we had for this. Seriously, you really wouldn’t. Apparently Square Enix has a popular game on its hands. Who’da thunk?
• Media Molecule Officially Joins the PlayStation Family — And we welcome SackBoy with open arms! In all seriousness, how could you not be stoked about this? Mm does some absolutely amazing work.
• It Only Does The Show — This is definitely one of my favorite Kevin Butler segments yet. My question: What do you have to do to get banned from Mexico?
• LittleBigPlanet: This Week in DLC — The Canyons costumes and pack hit LBP PSP, plus a couple last chance offers that you don’t want to miss!
• God of War III Blood & Metal EP Out Now — I’ve got less than a year left until I hit the big three-zero. But until then, I can destroy my ears with a little metal.
• New PlayStation Pavilion at Disney’s ESPN Wide World of Sports Complex Provides the Ultimate Gaming Experience — Get your PlayStation fix at the PlayStation Pavilion in Orlando, FL!
• Pillar of the Skies – A New World of Topatoi on PSN Tomorrow — Topatoi expands into a completely new world. Take a gander at the gameplay video for a peek into the new episode.
• Patching You Through – Patchwork Heroes Demo Out This Thursday — Free demo? Where do I sign? Check out Patchwork Heroes, another incredibly unique title out of Japan.
• Coming to PSN Next Week: Rocket Racing PSP mini — Phil Larson from Halfbrick drops by with all the details on Rocket Racing, hitting the PlayStation Store this Thursday.
• New Star Wars Content Comes to PlayStation Home + IREM Seaside of Memories, Two New Personal Spaces + More! — Locust_Star knows that opening with Star Wars is a smart move. But that’s not all that’s new to Home. You also get a couple new personal spaces and more!
• God of War III Interview with Design Director Todd Papy — At the God of War III media event in LA, I sat down with the incredibly cool Todd Papy to talk “wow moments,” collaborating with Naughty Dog, what it’s like to be done with the game and much more.
• Naughty Dog at GDC – We Want Your Questions! — Naughty Dog is all about GDC. So much, in fact, that they’re going to take your questions during a Thursday, March 11 session!
• The Tester Episode 3 Available Today — Things are heating up in the game-testing battle. Jaffe returns this week!
• PlayStation Comics Store Update — Over 50 new comics hit the Comics Store this week including Star Trek Nero and much more.
• SOCOM 4: It’s Official! — You’ve been waiting. Well, here’s the official word from Zipper on SOCOM 4!
• Want to Play God of War III Early? Come to our GDC San Francisco Meetup! — As of today, well over 200 yes’s. Wednesday will be a very fine day, indeed. See you on Wednesday!
• PlayStation Store Update — The Tester Ep. 3, Just Cause 2 demo, MLB 10: The Show add-on content, RE5 add-ons, new Pulse, The Show on PSP, 5 minis and a lot more!
• PlayStation Network Video Content Update — Another huge update of TV shows, trailers and movies, including Where the Wild Things Are. Anybody catch it? Started slow for me, but really picked up in the second half.
• Coming to PSN: Joe Danger — I am really, really impressed with this gameplay trailer. Seriously, looks right up my alley.
• God of War Unearthing the Legend Winners! — Here is the official list of winners and the video proof that you’re forever stamped on the God of War franchise.
• SOCOM 4 Teaser: Director’s Commentary — If you didn’t catch the SOCOM 4 teaser trailer, you can watch it here! Plus, Zipper does a special bit of developer commentary over the trailer.
• Gran Turismo Does NASCAR – Polyphony Digital At Texas Motor Speedway — NASCAR coming to GT5. Plus, video proof that Kazunori-san and company do their research in the real world!
• Become the Ultimate MAG Solider on GameBattles.com — Pwn in MAG? Head over to gamebattles.com and sign up for the MAG tournament!
• Lights, Camera, Play Ball! Create Your Own Highlight Reel with MLB 10: The Show’s Movie Maker — Psh, Sportscenter…that’s so yesterday. Make your own highlight reel wit this amazing feature in MLB 10: The Show!
• ModNation Racers PS3: Dynamic Props – More than Just Speed Bumps — United Front Games’ Mark Riddell is back! This time he’s talking about dynamic props. And oh yeah, a new trailer…

Courtesy of Jeremy Dunham

• SOCOM 4 – It’s Official - The world’s great tactical shooter is back, and Zipper’s making it!
• SOCOM 4 Teaser: Director’s Commentary – Creative Director, Ed Byrne, drops some inside information.
• MAG on GameBattles.com – Become the ultimate soldier, win prizes!
• MAG.com Leaderboard Beta – Start tracking your status as a killing machine right now.

Courtesy of Arne Meyer

• UNCHARTED 2 Title Update 1.06 and Multiplayer Updates – We released an update to the multiplayer modes of UNCHARTED 2 earlier this week. The Title Update and live updates we pushed performed some additional balancing to player hitboxes, some weapons and one Booster that we felt was warranted after Title Update 1.05 was released. As part of these updates, we also pushed some geometry updates to prevent intentional glitching.
• “Unleashed: The Art of Naughty Dog” art show opens this weekend – Twenty Naughty Dog (and UNCHARTED 2) artists are doing a group show of their art work at the Gnomon Gallery in Hollywood, California. The opening reception for the show is on the evening of Saturday, March 6, and will run for at least a month.

Attention, private military operatives. Brian Gauld here providing you with vital information on how you can become the Ultimate MAG Soldier. Between now and May 29, compete in the MAG online ladder on GameBattles.com for your chance at prizes valued at over $15,000 including Sony Style Gift Cards and MAG PlayStation Home virtual items. Every month there’s a new challenge and with each challenge comes another chance for you to win prizes from your friends here at SCEA. At the end of each of the three months, prizes will be awarded to the top 10 challenge finishers.

In order to participate, you’ll need to authenticate your PlayStation Network ID on GameBattles in your Profile. Not a GameBattles member? Sign-up here. Registration is open so join the shadow war, and sign-up quickly to become the Ultimate MAG Soldier.

Attention, private military operatives. Brian Gauld here providing you with vital information on how you can become the Ultimate MAG Soldier. Between now and May 29, compete in the MAG online ladder on GameBattles.com for your chance at prizes valued at over $15,000 including Sony Style Gift Cards and MAG PlayStation Home virtual items. Every month there’s a new challenge and with each challenge comes another chance for you to win prizes from your friends here at SCEA. At the end of each of the three months, prizes will be awarded to the top 10 challenge finishers.

In order to participate, you’ll need to authenticate your PlayStation Network ID on GameBattles in your Profile. Not a GameBattles member? Sign-up here. Registration is open so join the shadow war, and sign-up quickly to become the Ultimate MAG Soldier.

Attention, private military operatives. Brian Gauld here providing you with vital information on how you can become the Ultimate MAG Soldier. Between now and May 29, compete in the MAG online ladder on GameBattles.com for your chance at prizes valued at over $15,000 including Sony Style Gift Cards and MAG PlayStation Home virtual items. Every month there’s a new challenge and with each challenge comes another chance for you to win prizes from your friends here at SCEA. At the end of each of the three months, prizes will be awarded to the top 10 challenge finishers.

In order to participate, you’ll need to authenticate your PlayStation Network ID on GameBattles in your Profile. Not a GameBattles member? Sign-up here. Registration is open so join the shadow war, and sign-up quickly to become the Ultimate MAG Soldier.

#gameannounce Sony's premier tactical shooter series is back in the hands of Zipper Interactive and ready to redeploy this fall with SOCOM 4. Featuring 32-player multiplayer, what does SOCOM 4 mean for the future of Zipper Interactive's MAG? More »