PES Chronicles

Another week and still no PES2008 demo for the PS3. Sony received a copy of a demo three weeks ago now, and I am starting to feel paranoid about why it has not appeared. Given the PS3’s ongoing growing pains, you would think that Sony would break their necks to publish a demo of the first PES game for its console. So what could be the reason(s) why it has been withheld?

The most likely reason is the quality of the demo. Reports about PS3 versions of the game from the time state that the game is bedevilled with slowdown and other random bugs. The 360 demo, although it had minor bugs, did not have slowdown (or if it did, I have not seen any reports about it).

The nightmare scenario for me as a PS3-owner, and for Sony as the PS3’s owner, is that the PS3 version could appear in the week of October 26th with slowdown. Three weeks is a very brief time to resolve issues like that and get the game published. It’s most likely that the PS3 demo, wherever it is and whatever it contains, is a representation of the final build we are going to get.

Should that happen (and I sincerely hope it does not), the PS3 will receive a justified kicking from a community whose forbearance has already been severely tested; it will also receive a gleeful, unrestrained kicking from the wider gaming community – and it will be justified in both cases.

But this is probably just random, paranoid talk born of frustration and impatience. Isn’t it?

The PES2008 demo has again failed to appear on the PSN store today, and there is nothing but silence from Sony. Other sources that I trust confirmed long ago that Sony was given the demo by Konami at the same time that Microsoft received the 360 version of it. The 360’s demo appeared for download on Friday 21st September, while PS3 users are still waiting, without a word of explanation.

I don’t know what to say. I’ve had my say over on pesfan. Suffice to say I’m disappointed, and let that understatement be an end to it here.

So, there is at least one more week to wait before I get to play PES2008 for the first time. (Or probably a few weeks longer, if this non-performance by Sony is anything to go by.)

I might have to get back into PES6 for a few weeks. Not the PS2 version. I’m talking about the PSP version. It’s the one version I’ve never absolutely beaten on all levels. In truth, I’ve never been motivated to persevere because PES on the PSP isn’t really all that great. Konami have had two goes at it now and failed on both occasions. While both PES5 and PES6 on the PSP are enjoyable, they have nothing like the ‘just one more game’ magic of the bigger consoles’ versions.

But enough of my vapid criticism of the games. That is not what this blog is supposed to be about. It’s supposed to be about chronicling my time playing the games.

I’ll dig PES6 out of the pile of PSP games on my shelf tomorrow and report back soon. Got to get these chronicles on the road.

Just over three weeks to the full release of the full game, and probably just over 24 hours to the release of the PS3 demo. If Sony let us down again this week I will certainly explode with righteous anger.

To while away the time I have been playing… FIFA 08.

Forgive me, Seabass.