If you have any other PS3 console than a PS3 Slim, DON’T TURN YOUR CONSOLE ON TODAY – 1st March 2010.

Sony has a problem. I’m not going near mine. There’s no way I’m screwing up my saved games. Nice one Sony. Check out what they had to say about it.

The full statement follows:

As you may be aware, some customers have been unable to connect to the PlayStation Network today. This problem affects the models other than the new slim PS3.

We believe we have identified that this problem is being caused by a bug in the clock functionality incorporated in the system.

Errors include:

* The date of the PS3 system may be re-set to Jan 1, 2000.
* When the user tries to sign-in to the PlayStation Network, the following message appears on the screen; “An error has occurred. You have been signed out of PlayStation Network (8001050F)”.
* When the user tries to launch a game, the following error message appears on the screen and the trophy data may disappear; “Failed to install trophies. Please exit your game.”
* When the user tries to set the time and date of the system via the Internet, the following message appears on the screen; “The current date and time could not be obtained. (8001050F)”
* Users are not able to playback certain rental video downloaded from the PlayStation Store before the expiration date.

We hope to resolve this problem within the next 24 hours. In the meantime, if you have a model other than the new slim PS3, we advise that you do not use your PS3 system, as doing so may result in errors in some functionality, such as recording obtained trophies, and not being able to restore certain data.

As mentioned above, Please be advised that the new slim PS3 is not affected with this error. We are doing our best to resolve the issue and do apologise for any inconvenience caused.

Update 2nd Mar 10: All fixed now! It was a problem with the PS3 incorrectly recognising 1st March 2010 as a leap year!!!

Just Add Water (Developments) Ltd have announced that the awesome looking old school shooter Gravity Crash will be released on the 24th Nov 09 on the PlayStation Store for the PS3. For the measly sum of £6.29 / €7.99 / $9.99 you get all this stuff in Gravity Crash:

• 35 Single player levels, including hidden and boss levels
• 12 Multiplayer levels
• 3 Multiplayer modes
• Different player ships
• Special weapons
• Weapon power-ups
• 20 devious Trophies
• Leaderboards
• Over 200 editor items

What’s also great is that you’ll be able to play 4 of the single player levels and 12 multiplayer maps of the full game in the demo. You also get to try out the level editor, but you have to buy the game to be able to upload them to the PlayStation Network. Add in the fantastic soundtrack from CoLD SToRAGE and this game is going to kick ass.

Check out these awesome looking screenshots:

See, looks cool doesn’t it. I love the little jetpack guys in the 2nd screenshot above.

Finally, here’s a developer diary video showing the level editor in action:

We’ve also got 2 Q&A posts coming up with the Gravity Crash development team so look out for them.

Gravity Crash is available from the 24th Nov 09 from the PlayStation Store.

Sony seems to be making a lot of good decisions regarding the PlayStation brand recently. Firstly, all the funky redesigned consoles (PS3 Slim and PSPgo) and secondly, better games. Further evidence of this good decision making is Gravity Crash from Just Add Water (Developments) Ltd. Not only will this excellent game be available for download via the PlayStation store but there’s a version being developed for the PSP. Yay.

I’m proud to announce that one of the contributors to this very website – Tikipod – is the graphics artist on Gravity Crash. Mmm, notice how he’s not written any posts for ages, yep, working hard on Gravity Crash. Definitely. Yeah, it takes time to create all those lovely light blurs, heat haze and refractions :-)

Back to Gravity Crash. Well, it looks quite a bit like Thrust crossed with Defender. In total there are 40 single player levels and 5 major boss battles and a level editor. I’m told the level editor is really easy and quick to use. Once your level is created you can upload it for others to play. Think of it like LittleBigPlanet’s level editor, just simpler.

Here’s a trailer for Gravity Crash, featuring awesome in-game music from CoLD SToRAGE.

You can also buy some of the music from CoLD SToRAGE’s band camp page for £1.59. Gravity Crash also features multiplayer modes including local split-screen so you can get your butt kicked by your boy/girlfriend.

Gravity Crash currently doesn’t have a release date or price for either the PS3 or PSP version. Boo!!!

Remember Motorstorm? It was the rather enjoyable off-roader and only Playstation3 launch game worth buying. Since its release there has been a steady stream on downloadable content to waste spend your cash on.

Well now there’s some more stuff to download, and this time it’s not just a new (and pointless) paint job or a rehash of the existing tracks. Nooooo, it’s 2 brand spanking new tracks, I tell ya. Check out the PR’d track descriptions:

Eagle’s Nest: mayhem in the clouds
Welcome to the Eagle’s Nest – a high-altitude track perched precariously on a remote mesa. It’s fast, tight and brutal – and the slightest wrong move can send you careering over the edge. Of course, this means all the more opportunity to send your rivals in the same direction. The stakes are high and so are the cliffs – have you got the nerves for it?

Diamondback Speedway: a racetrack with a bite
Who needs a purpose-built racetrack when you’ve got the natural desert amphitheatre of Yei Bichei – MotorStorm’s answer to a speedway circuit? The track’s banked corners mean that this track is all about speed – the tactics that’ll get you to the finish first involve putting your foot to the floor and holding on tight. Will you survive the deadly Diamondback tunnel and the infamous Sinkhole?

This double track pack costs £3.49 (price of a beer in central London, and it’ll last longer) and is available now on the Playstation network. I guess it’s time to dust off my copy of Motorstorm and power up the black monolith for some dirty fun.

Update 10th Jan 08: Fixed the typos and bought the tracks. Mmm, muddy, mud, mud.

Update 21st Jan 08: Err, how come the same tracks cost a paltry $2.99 (£1.54p) from the North American PSN store? Is bandwidth and hosting more expensive over here Sony? What a rip off.