Sony has announced via the PlayStation Blog that PS3 firmware 3.61 is now available for the PlayStation 3.
This update sees the first step in restoring the PlayStation Network and is a mandatory update for all PlayStation 3. The new firmware requires all PSN users to change their password once PSN comes back online.
Sony Ireland confirmed through its Facebook page that "some PSN services, including online gameplay, will indeed go live later today (Sunday).
Now that PlayStation Network is back up in the United States, here are some helpful tips for PS3 gamers in places like the UK, Ireland, India and Canada where PSN isn't back online in full. Changing your PSN password is going to be your first order of business after downloading PS3 firmware 3.61, the latest system update for the console. In fact, it's your only order of business. Sony has made changing your password a requirement as soon as you attempt to log into PSN for the first time.
"To thwart the hackers, all you have to do is follow the on-screen instructions. A notification will pop up that reads "Your password is no longer valid. You must change your password." No please or thank yous, Sony isn't messing around in this very frank message. Pressing the X button will take you past this initial box to the next screen."
Second screen is where you'll enter you new password. You do not need to remember your old password. We know, it's been three long weeks and you may have forgotten what it is. Simply type out your new password (a combination of numbers and letters) in the first dialogue box and re-enter that same password in the second dialogue box. If it meets Sony's security standards, you'll be able to press X and proceed.
If you are done successfully, the third message box will read: "Update complete." This is the message we've all been waiting for during the past 24 days of the online outage. Hitting the X button to get beyond this screen will send you back out the the XMB where you'll still be logged out, but officially signing back to the PSN is a piece of cake.
Logging into PSN for the first time in 24 days is exactly like you remember it. The familiar sign-in opaque dialogue box appears with your user ID and new password information already saved to the system. Simply hitting the X button brings you and PSN back together for the first time since April 20.
***We wait for PSN to come back***
