Yesterday, many PS3 owners were frozen out of online — and offline — games due to a glitch that knocked down online hub PlayStation Network. Sony told PS3 owners not to turn on their consoles in the mean time. Curiously, the glitch only seemed to be affecting owners of the old, ‘fat’ PS3s.
PlayStation Network is back up now, fortunately, and Sony has confirmed what some on the Internet were speculating yesterday: the glitch was due to a Y2K-like calendar bug that made fat PS3s ‘think’ 2010 was a leap year.
From PlayStation’s official blog:
We are aware that the internal clock functionality in the PS3 units other than the slim model, recognized the year 2010 as a leap year. Having the internal clock date change from February 29 to March 1 (both GMT), we have verified that the symptoms are now resolved and that users are able to use their PS3 normally.
If the time displayed on the XMB is still incorrect, users are able to adjust time settings manually or via the internet. If we have new information, we will update you through the PlayStation.Blog or PlayStation.com.
We apologize for any inconvenience this may have caused.
