As some of the people on our site have noticed, there seems to be a massive problem with PlayStation 3 systems worldwide.  The error code is 8001050F, and it has crippled non PS3 Slim systems everywhere.  This seems to be a calendar problem, as most of the affected systems seem to have been set back to 12/31/1999.  Not only is this error stopping people from connecting to the PSN, but it is also stopping people from playing certain games offline, including Heavy Rain and even games that are currently in development.  Sony says they are trying to narrow down the problem, but if you have a PS3 Slim, you should be fine.

[UPDATE - 12:15 PM EST] Sony has announced that this was indeed caused by the system's clock.  They have stated that a fix will hopefully be made available within the next 24 hours, and they warn users not to play on your system until the fix has been released, or the consequences could be DIRE.  Okay, not really, but you could corrupt a bunch of info.  Read the full announcement after the jump.

As you may be aware, some customers have been unable to connect to the PlayStation Network today. This problem affects the models other than the new slim PS3.

We believe we have identified that this problem is being caused by a bug in the clock functionality incorporated in the system.

Errors include:

• The date of the PS3 system may be re-set to Jan 1, 2000.
• When the user tries to sign in to the PlayStation Network, the following
  message appears on the screen; “An error has occurred. You have been
  signed out of PlayStation Network (8001050F)”.
• When the user tries to launch a game, the following error message appears
  on the screen and the trophy data may disappear; “Failed to install
  trophies. Please exit your game.”
• When the user tries to set the time and date of the system via the
  Internet, the following message appears on the screen; “The current date
  and time could not be obtained. (8001050F)”
• Users are not able to play back certain rental video downloaded from the
  PlayStation Store before the expiration date.

We hope to resolve this problem within the next 24 hours. In the meantime, if you have a model other than the new slim PS3, we advise that you do not use your PS3 system, as doing so may result in errors in some functionality, such as recording obtained trophies, and not being able to restore certain data.

As mentioned above, please be advised that the new slim PS3 is not affected with this error. We are doing our best to resolve the issue and do apologize for any inconvenience caused.