Hope you didn’t all go rushing to update your PS3s to firmware version 2.40, lured in by the promise of the Achievement-esque Trophy System, larger friend list and in-game XMB. There are 73 pages of consumer complaints on the official Sony PS3 forums all report the same thing – the firmware update ruined their hard disks. The XMB will not boot and games will not play. Instead, users will be met by the wave pattern.

Sony has immediately pulled the firmware update, as reported on the official Playstation.Blog. Joystiq writer Randy Nelson surveyed the massive list of complaints to report a possible solution found by users to restore their PS3s. If people with affected PS3s can remove the hard disk and reformat it on their computers. Of course reformatting means losing everything – downloaded files, add-ons and games, your profiles, movies, games saves, music, etc.

The July 2, 2008 release of PS3 Firmware 2.40 is going to be a major, mandatory update for PS3 users thanks to three crucial features it will include. Sony really listened to PS3 owners, because 2.40 is comprehensive. It ups the friends list count, allows XMB (Xross Media Bar) access in games and a Trophy system.

That’s right, PS3 owners will no longer have Achievement envy. The Trophy system will act in a similar manner, rewarding players for performing certain feats and allowing them to brag about it. So far Super Stardust HD, Buzz!, LittleBigPlanet, Warhawk, Resistance 2, SOCOM: U.S. Navy SEALs Confrontation and NBA 09 are a few games which will have Trophies.