Modern Gaming Hobbyist

Sony will be finally adding XMB access in-game. This means you can message people on your friends list to join a game you’re in, or play music off your hard drive, or do a google search. All while in-game. These changes will make the PS3 a much more socially friendly experience. It also looks like Sony will be hopping on the achievement train and will adding in “trophies” along with this firmware update as well. Trophies work much like achievements do on the popular Xbox 360 Live system. They let the player try different ways of playing the game or simply provide bragging rights for higher gamerscores.

Sony’s trophy system works similar. You are awarded bronze, silver, or gold trophies depending on the difficulty of the task. Each player will be ranked based on how many of each type he/she has unlocked. The social aspect is stressed here, as you can compare your Trophies with friends, and you will be given a level based on the number of Trophies in your collection. You’ll be able to track how many points you need before you unlock the next level, as well as your overall ranking as compared to other players online.

Super Stardust HD will be the first game to include trophies but many upcoming games will have them at release, including, LittleBigPlanet, Resistance 2, and Motorstorm Pacific Rift. Existing games can have the feature patched in as well. Expect the trophies to be featured in Home as well as objects that you can display in your virtual dwelling. US Playstation Blog has a good walkthrough of the feature as well.

The new firmware will be released July 2 for the Sony Playstation 3.