The cloak of uncertainty surrounding the console is finally beginning to fall aside now, with chief Phil Harrison's speech at the Game Developers Conference in San Jose lifting the lid on many details of the system previously ambiguous.

No prices or exact dates were revealed by Harrison used the platform of his keynote speech to reiterate Sony's commitment to launching the system worldwide in November, covering North America, Europe, Japan, Australasia and other Asian nations besides. The Worldwide Studios head also announced that the PS3 network will boast the ability to distribute full games via the net, making them playable from the hard-drive... a step-further than has so far gone with their 'Marketplace' for the 360. Talking of a downloadable future, Harrison also promised full downloadable titles for the handheld later this year, promising new and PSone-emulator games.

In-game shops will offer gamers the opportunity to purchase items related to particular games, taking the opposite approach to the 360's Marketplace, whilst video chat, messaging and more was also demonstrated. Harrison's talk included real-time footage from games, and he confirmed that the system will be playable at E3 in May. Focussing to a large extent on the PS3's online prowess, Harrison mooted a new edition of Singstar, featuring downloadable songs, and the ability to share tracks, videos and photos across the net.

A technology demonstration showing a car besieged by bullets was revealed to be from an announced game developed by Sony's London studio, whilst Harrison promised HiDef support in both PAL and NTSC regions for all titles. Connectivity between the PSP and the PS3 was also discussed, with the PSP being capable of viewing contents stored on the console wirelessly. The big cheese concluded his speech promising continued support for the PS2, and pointing to 2's early 2007 launch as an example of this. We'll keep you posted as we learn more.

By Luke Guttridge