The PS3 is here

It arrived.  Like the large metal monolith from 2001: A Space Odyssey, it is a gleaming tower of ominous beauty.

The monolith from 2001: A Space Odyssey

Sony PlayStation 3

First thoughts: It’s pretty.

Second thoughts: It didn’t take me long to set up, except for learning how to type with the game controller.  It must have taken me 20 mins of trial-and-error to type out my user name correctly.  Getting it on my wireless network was a breeze, as was downloading/updating the firmware.  The internet browser is meh, but the game demos available online on the PlayStation Network are neat.  I’m downloading a number of them now, including Metal Gear Solid 4 and Bioshock.  I like the XMB interface.

I tried playing Half-Life 2, but using the controller is taking some getting used to.  I’ve also died a few times in the first 20 mins of the game, and am a bit lost on what to do next.  Looks like I need to research online, including cheats…. maybe. I haven’t played a first-person shooter in a while, so the atmosphere (and my initial difficulty with the controller) is giving me anxiety as I try not to die.   I kinda miss the warm, familiar, comforting keyboard and mouse of PC gaming.  I’ll slug through it, as it’s just the first day.  I think I want to pick up LittleBigPlanet, as that should be challenging without all the anxiety.