Sony and Microsoft continue to experience problems with their hardware and networks. Who knows, maybe Wiis explode after being played for 5,000 hours and no one has reached that point yet.

News Blips:

Sony’s problems continue with a password exploit and overheating consoles. To be clear, PSN has not been hacked again. The exploit entails the details required for a password reset. If a PSN user forgets his password, then the service asks for the user’s email address and date of birth. Of course, both of those pieces of information were compromised and are likely known to the PSN hackers. Sony has shut down access to their website while they apparently make changes to the reset system. But wait, it gets worse! Sony’s silver-bullet 3.61 update, which was designed as a response to the initial hacking fiasco, is reportedly causing older 60/80GB PlayStation 3s to overheat. The problem is being reported by L.A. Noire players on Rockstar’s message boards, who claim that the system is turning off after a period of time. But hey, at least they don’t have to switch discs like those suckers with an Xbox 360. [GamePro]

Microsoft is giving away free Xbox 360 systems -- if your system can’t read discs due to the latest update, that is. Apparently, around 10,000 Xbox 360s have been affected by the update that will prevent the console from reading retail discs. Microsoft can remotely confirm if your system is affected, so don’t think you can call them up and say, “Hey! Lego Pirates of the Caribbean won’t work and I need my Depp!” Microsoft will send out a brand new Xbox 360S with a 250GB harddrive, and once they receive the user’s affected Xbox, they will send out a code for a free year of Xbox Live. Need my Depp! [Reddit]

Valve won’t be showing any games at the upcoming E3. The developer-turned-online-retailer sent a notice to journalists that there would be no need to schedule appointments for the industry’s biggest trade show, because Valve wouldn’t be bringing any games to Los Angeles. Are we facing a future where children will grow up never knowing that Valve used to make games? I’m sure this isn’t the first time in history a company started making one thing and then realized they could make a lot more money by selling other people’s work instead. Still, it is sad for Valve’s fans. This doesn’t mean there is zero chance for a Half-Life or Counter Strike to pop up on the release list for later this year, but it doesn’t bode well.

Activision CEO believes they turned the Modern Warfare 3 leak into an opportunity. In an interview with Joystiq, Activision Publishing CEO Eric Hirshberg explained how they “woke up with a marketing crisis” and went “to bed with a marketing win.” Hirshbergh said that the board room was filled with diverse assortment of opinion about how to handle the leak, but in the end they decided to take the conversation public. “Through our various channels, through Robert Bowling at Infinity Ward, through Facebook, and through our YouTube channel,” Hirshberg said, “we reached out to our fans and we said, ‘Look, we didn’t schedule this. This wasn’t something we had planned. But everyone seems excited, so we’re just going to roll with it.” Activision lost control of their marketing vehicle, and insted of slamming on the breaks, they turned this wipeout to their advantage by releasing promotional content ahead of schedule. It worked. A series of teaser videos on YouTube collected nearly 3 million hits in 48 hours.

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