Wednesday, October 3, 2007

Star Wars PSP Retailing on October 9, 2007

The special edition Star Wars PSP is going to retail starting October 9, 2007 according to my friend who works at GameStop.

The package includes a special edition Star Wars PSP, Star Wars: Renegade Squadron, a charger, and a 3.6v battery.

[Via GameStop]

Gran Turismo 5: Prologue New Features & PSP Version Still In Works

GamePro sat down with Kazunori Yamauchi for some information on the upcoming PlayStation Network title, Gran Turismo 5: Prolgue. They start:

GP: How much more realistic can you make the graphics in Gran Turismo, further than GT5? How do you define the next bar? Because GT5: Prologue already looks so realistic...

Under limited conditions, we are just now finally at a stage where it [GT5] looks almost photorealistic. But things of nature - sunshine, rays of sun coming through the clouds, rain falling, wet textures on the street, things like that - are so indescribably beautiful sometimes. We are not at that level yet. Obviously we are trying our best in terms of replicating weather conditions and landscape, but there is also the human element. We've brought that pretty far, but there is a lot of room for improvement. There are still many, many areas where we can make improvements [visually].

Read the full interview at the link below.

[Read: GT5:P Interview]

PLAYSTATION 3 40GB Unofficially Confirmed By Australian Retailer

The 40GB PlayStation 3 has been quite the buzz lately, is it coming? You bet it is, it's a little to obvious to be denied. Gizmodo posts on the 40GB PlayStation 3 situation:

(UPDATE - Wed, 4.59pm: A reader called up their friendly neighbourhood JB Hi-Fi and had the price and date confirmed by two separate members of the floor staff. So we're willing to call next Thursday a very safe bet for a new PS3.)
Just another reassuring to all the people who don't have a PlayStation 3 and is looking forward to this new one.

Star Ocean PSP: New Scans Reveal Release Date



This week's Famitsu issue features two pages with information on Square Enix's Star Ocean remake that is headed to the Sony PSP. The issue reveals the release date of the game in Japan, which is December 27, 2007.

The Famitsu issue also reveals that a Star Ocean bundle that includes the game and a Sony PSP will be available by the end of the year.

[Via Famitsu]

Soldier of Fortune 3: First Screenshots

Activision has revealed the first ever screenshots of Soldier of Fortune 3: Pay Back, the long-dormant, ultra-violent first-person shooter for PC, PlayStation 3, and Xbox 360.



[Via GamePlanets]

Unreal Tournament III: Two New Screens



Thanks to Ruliweb, we have two new screenshots of Unreal Tournament III, and I can describe them as... devastatingly nuclear.

[Via Ruliweb]

NBA 2K8: PlayStation 3 vs. Xbox 360 Comparison


Is the graphical divide between PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360 games becoming less and less? Or is 2K Sports just dedicated to make all console owners happy? Take a look for yourself.

[Via GameTrailers]

Kiziko: Ratchet & Clank Future: Insomniac Interview

In this new interview with Insomniac Games, Kizko talks to Insomniac's Ryan Schneider to learn how Mario Galaxy draws inspiration from the Ratchet games, and chat about the series' PlayStation 3 debut, Ratchet & Clank Future: Tools of Destruction.

Read the interview at the link below.

[Read: Insomniac Games Interview]

Toy Home Developers Reavealed: Game Republic

Hmm, we never noticed that the developers of Toy Home were never mentioned, but now we know. The developers behind Toy Home are the same people who made Folklore and Genji, and thats Game Republic.

The game is planned as a Japanese-exclusive download for now, has SIXAXIS support for steering the cars, but also will include support for rumble. No word on a US release.

[Via IGN]

US PlayStation Store Update for October 4, 2007


Well, guess there is no need for us to speculate anymore, Sony just announced what is coming to the PlayStation Store this Thursday.
Games
  • Go! Sports Ski (2.99 US)
Demos
  • Bladestorm: The Hundred Years’ War demo
  • The Simpsons demo
Tutorial Videos
  • Eye of Judgement tutorial video
  • NBA 08 key control play calling tutorial video
Game Videos
  • Haze Developer interview
  • Metal Gear Online trailer
  • Surf’s Up Blu-ray Disc trailer
  • Tekkonkinkreet video
  • Uncharted: Drake’s Fortune BTS
[Via PS.Blog]

TGS 2007: Metal Gear Solid 4 Take Down Shakey Cam Gameplay HD


Snake stealthily sneaks across the battlefield to get the jump on the opposing forces. Enjoy.

[Via GameTrailers]

IGN: Folklore Scores a 9/10

IGN reviews Folklore today in what seems to be an outstanding score, they give the game a 9.0 out of 10. After a whopping four pages of reviewing, they sum it up with their scores:

Presentation - 9.5
Incredible. Everything from the cutscenes to the falling leaves in the menus work together to create a very enthralling experience.

Graphics - 9.0
While not superb in a technical sense, the artistic direction and execution of what's there are top notch.

Sound - 8.5
Solid voice acting and a vividly atmospheric score demand you to turn the volume up.

Gameplay - 8.5
Very fun combat with great motion controls, but a few key issues end up doing a bit of damage to the experience.

Lasting Appeal - 9.0
A haunting adventure (that will take fifteen hours at least) worth coming back to.

OVERALL - 9.0 Outstanding [EDITOR'S CHOICE AWARD]
(out of 10 / not an average)
Read the full review at the link below.

[Read: Folklore Review]

Uncharted: Update With Demo Details

Naughty Dog is almost finished with the upcoming Uncharted: Drake's Fortune. They say they are in beta and it's great to finally be able to sit down and play the game after doing so much work on it.

A member commented on whether or not we are getting a demo, and Evan Wells responded:

"Yes, we will be creating a downloadable demo for the PSN. We don’t have a final date on when it will be up, but it will be before our release date."
Thats some good news that we can test play it before it comes out. I'll be looking forward to that demo.

Games Radar: Ratchet & Clank New Weapons & Levels

Don't want to see some Ratchet & Clank Future weapons and levels you've never seen before? Then ignore this posts, because that is what it shows.

First, you'll see the planet Viceron and the start of your break-in run on the intergalactic jail. Then you'll see the into-the-screen flight section as you make your way towards the space pirates' base.

After that, Games Radar take you to the arena where we deal some swift death to Crushto - a giant cyborg shark (don't you just love Insomniac's imagination?). Finally, we head for the Iris supercomputer on the Kreeli comet, with some more space pirates attempting to block our way.

[Via Games Radar]

OPM November: Team ICO Talks


A couple of Team ICO fanatics sent a couple hundred of e-mails in to OPM about Team ICO, and they stalked the team for them:

"Me: "I have just read the PlayStation Legend page on Ico at the back of OPM, issue nine and can't stop wondering what Fumito Ueda and the rest of the team will come up with on PS3. I'm a big fan of ICO and Shadow of the Colossus, like many others in the PlayStation community, and we're all waiting impatiently for the day when the next game will be announced. It's pretty unnerving that the only thing we know about Team ICO's next effort so far is that there is going to be one. Any chance of some inside info, OPM?"

Them: "We asked Sony boss Kaz Hirai what was going on with Team ICO a couple of months back. As he was pleading ignorance, one of the other execs present blurted out. "I'm pretty sure they're doing the sequel." Our fearless reporter immediately asked. "What, the sequel to ICO or Shadow of the Colossus?" Then the room filled with knockout gas..."
Nothing is set in stone so far, it may be a sequel of some sort.

[Via Team ICO Gamers]

Sony Denies "Big Bang" Announcement Rumor

After rumors about a "Big Bang" announcement from Sony came about late last month, the whole Sony community has been in speculation. Will it be about the rumored core 40GB PlayStation 3 SKU? Will it be about a price drop? Or perhaps something PSP related?

Right now, it looks like it will be about nothing. According to Europe video game news site Eurogamer, Sony Computer Entertainment Europe (SCEE) has categorically denied that they have a press conference scheduled for next week. Eurogamer reports that according to a SCEE spokesperson, Sony "has not announced anything and has nothing of the sort planned".

The "Big Bang" announcement was supposedly going to happen on October 12. There's still plenty of time for late-breaking updates to come about, so keep checking back here for more news.

[Via EuroGamer]

Famitsu Reviews Lair: 9/7/8/9

DuckRoll from the NeoGAF forums has provided us with the latest Famitsu details. Nothing seems to be PlayStation 3 related, but they did review Lair:

Lair - 9/7/8/9
Pretty good scores if you ask me, no?

[Via NeoGAF]

Kane & Lynch: Dead Men or Bastards?


In this new Kane & Lynch video, the game's director Jens Peter Kurup talks about how the game and the characters evolved. He also mentions, he doesn't really like the characters.

[Via GameSpot]

Söldner-X: Himmelsstürmer In Action


SideQuest Studios has released a trailer for Söldner-X: Himmelsstürmer on the games official website. Söldner-X: Himmelsstürmer is an upcoming game for the PlayStation Network. View the video at the link below.

[Watch: Söldner-X: Himmelsstürmer In Action]