The real secret in PS3 firmware 2.80 [UPDATE]

The optional PS3 firmware update 2.80 actually included a very important improvement for game developers.

When PS3 firmware 2.80 came out it was unclear what had actually been included. The update was optional with the common and only log inclusion of "The playback quality of some PlayStation 3 format software has been improved."

Our friends at PS3Attitude discovered an increased character limit in chat, and TheSixthAxis found that the update was actually required for the console's music video application, VidZone. This was the first clue as to what the update actually included for PS3 developers.

It's now clear what was involved with the update; more RAM memory was made available, most likely due to the reduction of memory consumption for the console's Operating System (OS). How do we know? This information was provided by Sam Thompson, the producer of Uncharted 2: Among Thieves, during an interview at this year's San Diego Comic-Con.

When asked what improvements had been made to Uncharted 2 since the game's multiplayer beta, Thompson told TQcast:

"Naughty Dog is constantly working to improve every aspect of the gameplay; be it animation, lighting, sound, texture fidelity. You know if you look at the game itself with the 2.80 engine update, you know we're adding more memory, so we get a lot more utilisation of the SPUs, so we increase our optimisation of the Cell processor as well."

"So we've got from the engineering side all the way up to texture fidelity, artists adding in even more...I mean there's really not a singular aspect that's not been improved in the game," Thompson added.

It's presumed that the 2.80 engine update Thompson refers to is Naughty Dog's improvements after the PS3's 2.80 firmware update, with the coincidence being too significant to ignore (though we're sure Naughty Dog has also gained back memory from their own engine optimisation). A reduced OS memory footprint is a common inclusion with PS3 updates and it's good to know that it's making such a positive impact with developers and their games.

For reference, the PS3's memory footprint was reduced to 74mb at firmware 1.80, so who knows what it is now. Sony might even be closing in on the Xbox 360's 32mb's.

[UPDATE] - SCEE has denied that a secret update was included in PS3 firmware 2.80 after a slight slip up by Naughty Dog.

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