Heavenly Sword: IGN UK Rates 7/10

Well, IGN UK reviewed Sevenly Sword, I mean, Heavenly Sword today. Guess what it received? It received a 7/10. The IGN UK critics have much to love about the game's visual presentation, noting its great graphics:

"Everything from the beautifully designed, slickly animated characters to those magnificent, omnipresent sweeping vistas is a glory to behold."

But from there, the review goes down a bumpy road and the tires break. The combat system is called "tiresome and, to be blunt, incredibly boring." The story goes through a "hopelessly hackneyed, melodramatic script."

A very disappointing review indeed.

[Via IGN UK]

North American PSN Update for August 23, 2007

Well, Europe isn't the only one getting a limited time Folklore demo (I seen no point in the limited time). The North American update brought that with it too. Lets see what else we got:

• Folklore "Sneak Preview" demo (free)
• Heavenly Sword "Making of" No. 3 (free)
• Heavenly Sword Anime No. 3 (free)
• Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of the Patriots "Beast Corp" trailer (free)
• Haze trailer (free)
• TimeShift trailer (free)
• Movie trailers: Things we Lost in the Fire, Vantage Point, National Treasure: Book of Secrets
  

Still not happy? Neither am I. I played that demo months ago, and beat it twice, so whats the point of playing this one? Sony has the demo for skate in their hands, why not release? Whats going on Sony?

[Via PS3Fanboy]

Street Gears: Suitable for PSP?

I came across this game while on the OnRPG Forums, and it looked a lot like Jet Set Radio Future to me which was a really good game and I enjoyed playing it. Now, a new MMO called Street Gears is on it's way to release, and it looks like it'd be a great game for the PlayStation Portable, or even the PlayStation 3, with added things of course over the PlayStation Network. I don't know, watch the video, and you make your own opinion.

[Via Street Gears]

GC 2007: Full MGS4 Trailer

There it is, in all it's 4:21 seconds of glory. Enjoy it, hopefully it won't crash like it did at the convention. View it at the read link.

[Via Konami JP]

GC 2007: Really New Metal Gear Solid 4 Screens

Here are some new screenshots of the PlayStation 3 game, Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of the Patriots. They are all just high res shots from the new trailer, but still, they count as screenshots.

[Via Kotaku]

Final Fantasy VII Petition Almosting Reaching 20,000

It was ignored when AnimeArtist sent it off to Square after collecting 10,000 signatures. Two days later Square wanted to make it clear that they are not "secretly" developing Final Fantasy VII for the PlayStation 3 and have no plans right now to do so.

Interestinglyenough, Kitase said how the team developing Final Fantasy XIII would love to remake Final Fantasy VII saying "oh, am an Final Fantasy VII fan".

I guess with double the amount, it wouldn't hurt to try once more would it? I'm all for it.

[Via Remake Final Fantasy 7]

GC 2007: Sony wants Free Play for The Agency

Sony Online's latest massively multiplayer online game, The Agency (which has not yet been dated), will feature a number of differences from other MMOs currently on the market. Firstly, it will not be an "orcs and elves"-style game within a fantasy universe, but a modern-day universe featuring two different factions of spies.

Read the rest at the read link.

[Via GameSpot]

GC 2007: Ninja Theory hoping for Heavenly Sword 2

Ninja Theory, the developers of Heavenly Sword are already brainstorming ideas for a sequel to their upcoming hit game.

"We'd certainly like to do the sequel with Sony but nothing's been set in stone," chief development ninja Nina Kristensen told CVG this afternoon. "We're looking to expand and do new things but certainly we want to continue the Heavenly Sword franchise."

So far, this game has received a rating of 8/10 from PSW, a rating of 10/10 from PLAY Magazine, and a 9.7/10 from NextGenIreland. Has Ninja Theory already got sequel ideas on the table then?

"Yes and we can't talk about them."

Damn. Looks like we will have to wait.

[Via CVG]

GC 2007: Sony Revevals 275 Games By Christmas

David Reeves, president of SCEE, has announced that 275 new titles across all of Sony's platforms are in the pipeline for launch by this Christmas.

The chief, who received rapturous applause after his announcements at the Leipzig Games Convention, also said he expects Sony to have sold 140 million PlayStation consoles in Europe by 2010.

Reeves added that the PlayStation 3 is on track to match early sales of PS2, claiming that 1.3 million had been sold in Europe with Resistance: Fall of Man the top selling title with 531,000 copies sold.

Forthcoming games include PS3 title Buzz! Quiz TV, which will utilise the PlayStation Network allowing gamers to play each other online.

The title, due out next March, will include 5,00 questions divided into music, movies, sports, knowledge and lifestyle and will also be supported with downloadable and user-generated content.

Other PS3 titles highlighted include Heavenly Sword, Ratchet and Clank Future Tools of Destruction and Uncharted.

[Via DigitalSpy]

GC 2007: The Metal Gear Solid Press Conference

Well, the Metal Gear Solid Press Conference came and went. And were hear to give you the essential information you need to know thank's to N4G's Satanas. Here are the key facts of the conference:

- MGS4 will not have rumble.
- Weather/humidity will affect gameplay.
- MGS4 is not confirmed to be separate from Metal Gear Online.
- There may be a special feature where you can play your own music.
- MGS4 is reconfirmed to not be on 360.
- The AI, stealth suit, drum cans and other elements are being adjusted to make gameplay more difficult.
- The first trailer shown is the 4 New Bosses trailer, and the gameplay is the same as the Metal Gear Anniversary.
- Sixaxis control will have more, yet-to-be-detailed use in the game.
- The 4 new bosses are all beautiful women within "beasts," transformed by war trauma. Their unit is called the "Beauty and the Beast Unit."

For more screenshots on the event, visit the read link below at IGN.

[Via IGN]

GC 2007: 17 Minute Metal Gear Solid 4 Demo

Here it is, Kojima's 17 minute demo from Leipzig Game Convention 2007. It may be a little slow because JeuxFrance always has many hits. When a GameTrailers version is uploaded, I will be sure to switch the video.

[Via JeuxFrance]

MGS4: Kojima Reveals Bosses

Hideo Kojima revealed today at Konami's Metal Gear Solid 4-only press conference the "Beauty and the Beast" story theme for Kojima Productions' next. The game will feature a number of characters and bosses based on real-life actresses and models, all of whom were motion captured by Kojima Productions to lend an extra dose of reality to their virtual characters, a first for the series.

Kojima explained that the wild looking bosses shown in the newest Metal Gear Solid 4 trailer—Laughing Octopus, Raging Raven, Howling Wolf and Screaming Mantis—are not monsters, but beasts "more machine than man", a group of shellshocked soldiers "transformed by battle."

These casualties of war use, as Kojima explained, "real life beauties" for their inspiration.

In addition to Tokyo based DJ, actress, and Hidechan Radio host Yumi Kikuchi, models Scarlett Chorvat, Mieko Rye and Lyndall Jarvis will all appear, in some form, in Metal Gear Solid 4.

Kojima's newest tragic characters are expected to be sympathetic, as the Metal Gear director explained that "War created these ugly beasts, but beneath they are beautiful women." He asked the audience rhetorically "Can these beautiful ladies return to human form?" We'll surely find out when we play the game next year.

[Via Kotaku]

GC 2007: PlayTV In Action!

Now that you read how the new upcoming PlayTV works, don't you want to see it in action? Well luckily Kotaku has a video of it and it's looking great. View the video at the read link or clicking the above image.

[Via Kotaku]