Unreal Tournament III Gives Us 16 New Screens

Unreal Tournament III is coming at you faster than you think. Thats with these 16 new images we have curtsy of CVG. View the images at the link.

[View Unreal Tournament III Images]

Petition to Remake Final Fantasy VII Sent to Square-Enix

Well, the Remake Final Fantasy VII has been rising and rising. So they shipped it off to Square Enix. Here’s their response:

Thank you for contacting SQUARE ENIX Customer Support,

We hope this letter answers your questions.

Our parent company, SQUARE ENIX of Japan, has no current plans to create a sequel or remake to that particular title at this time. This is not to say that it will never happen, it’s just that their development teams are currently focusing on numerous other projects.

We hope this information has been of assistance.

Thanks,
Neil- SQUARE ENIX Customer Support
www.square-enix.com

I was hoping for something more "not computer response look a like" if you catch my drift. But it seems Square is getting the message, and hey, you never know if they are just hiding the big announcement for the Tokyo Game Show 2007.

[Via FileFront]

Heavenly Sword: New CG Commercial

A new commercial has appeared for Heavenly Sword. It's in it's CG glory and shows Nariko fighting off many soldiers starting with a drop down. Enjoy.

[Via GameTrailers]

Ratchet & Clank Future EU Release & Boxart Revealed?

Over at Play.com, on their page listing for Ratchet & Clank Future: Tools of Destruction, they have a new boxart and a release date for the game. The release date is 26/10/2007 which is 3 days after the North American release. The boxart is shown above. Don't mind the stretched-out-ness of it, because thats how all Play.com boxarts are, so this may be genuine.

[Via Play.com]

PlayStation 3 Releases for the Week of September 9, 2007

Prepare for a great week for PlayStation 3 gamers. Next week, we have one of the PlayStation 3's most anticipated titles releasing. Here is the list:

US Releases
∙ NHL 2k8 - September 10, 2007
∙ DiRT - September 11, 2007
∙ NHL 08 - September 11, 2007
∙ Heavenly Sword - September 12, 2007

EU Releases
∙ Heavenly Sword - September 12, 2007
∙ DiRT - September 11, 2007

ASIAN Releases
∙ Megazone 23: Aoi Garland
∙ Megazone 23: Aoi Garland Limited Edition

With Heavenly Sword coming out, you know the PlayStation community is going to be buzzing with thoughts, reviews, and remarks.

We also have Collin McRae's DiRT being released. Another anticipated PlayStation 3 dirt racing game. Alongside that is two NHL games, one from EA and one from 2K Games. Which one will be better? Only the releases will tell.... or the reviews, either one.

PlayStation Store: The True Story [Update 9/9/07]

Note: This article has had a major rehaul, and has been bumped to the latest news.

PSN // OPENING STATEMENT

The PlayStation Store is the center of the PlayStation Network. Users look forward to a one day a week update. When that Thursday arrives, it usually results in disappointment.

Let's take a look at Xbox Live. They receive content whenever it's ready. They receive many multi-platform demos. Each demo they receive are about 2-3 days apart. Other than demos, they have a video marketplace, which also has streaming previews. When one logs on to Xbox Live, it feels like the ultimate experience. There is unlimited possibilities of the things they can do and you feel like you can play, and watch media all day. The browsing is very easy and simple to find what you want, and descriptions are right there when you highlight the content.

Now let's look at the PlayStation Network. We receive content one day a week, while the rest of the week is just constant waiting for the next update. Each demo we receive are 7 days apart. When we log-on to the PlayStation Store, we are faced with a bland design built on a webpage, bad for archived content. When your on the Network, your interface is an XMB, with sections for videos, music, and games. Under the games, all the demos are listed also, which can be quite annoying. A section for demos under games would be nice. But when your on the Network, you can't stay on for long, it gets boring and tiresome, compared to Xbox Live's fun.

PSN // DESIGN

The current PlayStation Store design kind of bland. And it being on the browser really makes it worse. Currently, two really good designs have been made for the PlayStation Store. Check out this link:

http://www.ps3forums.com/showthread.php?t=90482

A very crafty member named Cruzader made his view of what the PlayStation Store should like look. And sorry to say Sony, his is much better than the current. Now, I'm not saying we should use this specific design, but I'm saying Sony, you should get working on a new one, that is not built into a webpage. It should be a built in program on the PLAYSTATION 3, so that it launches better, and goes faster.

The other one, is made by us at onAXIS:

http://onaxis.blogspot.com/2007/09/onaxis-playstation-store-design.html

This one is Sony's with a nice twist. Sony, you should check these out, maybe contact onAXIS or Cruzader and try to work on that design. Maybe even make up your own new one. But not one that is in the web browser and looks different on SDTV's. It should be one that loads up from the PlayStation 3, not web based.

PSN // DEMOS

Now lets look at the demos section, here are all the current multi-platform demos that Xbox Live has, and the PlayStation Network does not. You'd think 11 months into the game, the company would see whats going on, guess not. Check out the list:

• Sonic The Hedgehog
• F.E.A.R.
  
• Tony Hawk's Project 8
• NBA Street Homecourt
• Monster Madness Ex
• Fatal Inertia
• The Bigs
• Surfs Up (odd they got it and we didnt seeing as the movie was made at Sony)
• Vampire Rain
• Pirates of the Caribbean: At Worlds End
• Blacksite: Area 51
• Medal of Honor: Airborne
• Madden NFL 08
• TimeShift
• Eternal Sonata

Sony said they stopped the Official Playstation Magazine because they can provide demos on the PlayStation Network. Though that hasn't been working out well.

But, what about the PlayStation 2 demos? We can’t even get those anymore thanks to the cancellation of the Official Playstation Magazine. I’d understand if no new games come out for PlayStation 2 anymore, but new games do come out. We should of seen demos on the PlayStation Network for PlayStation 2 games like:

• God of War II
• Final Fantasy XII
• Okami
• Shin Megami Tensai: Persona 3
• Winning Eleven: Pro Evolution Soccer 2007
• Wild ARMs 5
• Naruto: Uzumaki Chronicles 2

I'm pretty sure we would of seen these if the Official PlayStation Magazine was not canceled. And we should be seeing upcoming demos on the network for upcoming games like:

• Dragonball Z: Budokai Tenkaichi 3
• Manhunt 2

PSN // GAMES

With the PlayStation Store also comes games. Most people would like to test play the game since you cannot rent them. How come we don't receive demos/trial versions of each arcade game so we can see if we like it before we buy it? Every Xbox Live Arcade game has a trial version.

XBOX Live gets 1-3 arcade games a week. So far we get around 1 game every 2-3 weeks. Start getting those indie and even lower unknown developers to start developing games for the network.

Now as you can see, only a few of the PlayStation Store exclusives are retro remakes. Though we do have a few, such as Rampage, Joust, etc. A quote from Peter Dille, the SCEA Head of Marketing explains why:

"Whereas our competition takes a bunch of old content and catalogs content from previous generations and offers that in a download fashion, our development organization are making games specifically for PS3."

But Peter, is that really a bad thing? Does seeing games like Sonic the Hedgehog be released on the Xbox Live Arcade make you want to play it? It sure does make me. I would love to play all the retro games Live received on the PlayStation 3, along with these new games Sony wants to bring out too.

PSN // PSONE GAMES

With the PlayStation Store currently also home to downloadable PSone games, how come we aren't seeing any? Japan just received 14 PSone games a few weeks ago, and we haven't received any PSone games since that Castlevania update. Sony, look at Wii's Vitrual console, they have over 120 old games, we only have around 15 PSone games.

PSN // ACCOUNT MANAGEMENT

Also, on the PlayStation Network, the ability to change our country would be nice. I have a friend, Joseph, who is moving to Europe and he does not want to make a whole new PlayStation Network ID, as he likes his online ID. And thanks to not being able to change his country, he will have to make a whole new account.

PSN // ACROSS CONTINENTS

I've noticed the updates for countries like Europe and such hasn't been as "good" as North Americas. You need to start making it fair for everybody else. Or else corruptions will erupt, kind of like this article here.

PSN // CONCLUSION

The conclusion of this article, is that Sony is really losing it in the online marketplace right now. Xbox Live is the ultimate experience, Wii is home to 120+ Virtual Console games, and the PlayStation Store is a big flunk.

Thats only for the moment. Maybe if Sony sees this article, they will hear me, not only me, hear the PlayStation Community. Only time will tell.

SONY // FURTHER NOTES

There is more going wrong with you guys besides just the messed up PlayStation Network. There is also the matter of exclusives and your touch with third-parties. You let all your exclusives go to third-parties. Look at Virtua Fighter 5, they got it on the Xbox 360, but with online. Look at Assassin's Creed, Devil May Cry 4, etc. Come on Sony, I say it all the time, STEP YOUR GAME UP.

Madden 08 Roster Update: Vick Disappears

Today is the start of the NFL Season (Eagles vs. Packers 1PM EDT), and EA has released a roster update for Madden 08 on all next-gen consoles. That includes the PlayStation 3.

With that update came the removal of Atlanta Falcons quarterback Michael Vick. Poor little Vick. Here is a tip from PS3Fanboy:

"Vick's departure makes cover boy Vince Young the fastest QB in the league, making him your best choice for running the "bootleg every down and hope to catch the defense sleeping" offense."

Well, I guess you Vick fans will have to play without him.

[Via PS3Fanboy]

Game Informer: Heaveny Sword Scores an 8.75 and a 9

Yes, the game got another terrific score. Game Informer has reviewed it and here are their final thoughts:

CONCEPT:
A cinematic tale of courage and vengeance, plus lots of fighting

GRAPHICS:
If you can tear your eyes away from the swirling blades and dazzling CG, you’ll see some pretty environments, too

SOUND:
The voice acting brings the characters to life, and a wonderful score fuels the story and the action

PLAYABILITY:
ulling off combos and switching among the styles works well, but the lack of an active block is a pain. Also, some of the button-press minigames seem designed for you to fail the first time

ENTERTAINMENT:
Combat is fluid, and the story takes some unexpected twists. Be aware that the fun won’t last forever, though

REPLAY:
Moderate

NOTE:
The first reviewer Joe Juba has given Heavenly Swordan 8.75/10
The second reviewer Andrew Reiner has given Heavenly Sword a 9/10

Read the full review at the link.

[Read Heavenly Sword Review]

Nihilistic Speaks of Conan the Barbarian

Conan the Barbarian borrows a bit from God of War in terms of gameplay style and presentation. Combos are promised to be varied and easy to pull off, and the fighting looks pretty intense judging from what's in the clip.

[Via QJ.NET]

onAXIS: PlayStation Store Design

I thought I'd give it a shot at my own store design. But before I get critisized, it's based off of the Xbox Live Marketplace.

The highlighted Killzone 2 Demo is the selection thing, when you click down it will highlight Assassin's Creed Demo. This design is also a program built into the PlayStation 3, not a webpage. When it's launched it fades in the screen. No mouse is used on the page, and when loading it shows a PlayStation 3 bar filling up.

Here are some more images:

DiRT: OPM Reviews an 8 and PSM3 an 8.8

Two new reviews surfaced on Metacritic today for Collin McRae DiRT, and they are from the UK gaming magazines, Official PlayStation Magazine and PSM3. PSM3 gave it an 8.8 out of 10 stating:

Excellent graphics, sound and handling make this a great choice for newbies and purists alike.

And the Official PlayStation Magazine gave it an 8 out of 10 stating:

Easily one of the greatest racers on PS3 to date, both in terms of addictiveness and broad, crowd-pleasing appeal.

Two good reviews if you ask me.

[Via MetaCritic]

IGN Skate for PlayStation 3 Review Biased?

Yesterday, we posted the Skate review from IGN, who gave the Xbox 360 version a 9.0/10 and the PlayStation 3 version an 8.8/10 the only difference being the Xbox 360's graphics got an 8.0 while the PlayStation 3's got a 7.0. St0 over at the PS3Forums brought up a point I brought up while posting the article, the graphics on the PlayStation 3 are better. Lets take a look at a a comparison.

As you can see, the Xbox 360 version is more pixelated in the area circle. We have many more comparison screenshots that are pretty self-explanatory. Take a look.

[Via PS3Forums]

Confirmed: Killzone 2 Supporting SIXAXIS, 720p 30FPS

In an interview that Kiziko had with Guerrilla Games dev, some new details were uncovered. They confirmed that the title will be supporting SIXAXIS (although they will go into the specifics at a later date), it will be running at 720p at thirty frames per second (they were seeking the correct balance) and that being part of Sony's family has been very helpful for development (although credit must be given to their own development team of course). Here it is:

Kikizo: And finally, will you be supporting Sixaxis?

Heide: We will be supporting Sixaxis, but we'll be saving the specifics for a later date.

Kikizo: ...but to achieve it, you must have had a lot of special help and kind of special favours from Sony's hardware people, could you describe what advantages you've been given in order to get to this position?

Heide: Well, I think first and foremost I have to compliment our own tech team, because this is our proprietary engine, something that we've built on our own from scratch. And of course we're working with Sony's tech guys as well. We've got their Advanced Technology Group in London, and they're developing something called the Edge Toolset, which is providing some base level techniques that we need. So we're using Edge animation and Edge geometry for instance, those are two particular suites that we're using, to help accomplish some of these things; our animation system is driven by Edge and our geometry processing is partly handled by Edge as well. So those are the two big things that as part of the Sony family is very helpful.

Kikizo: I have to say that for thirty frames per second this somehow moves more smoothly than expected. But would you like to have reached 1080p or sixty frames per second?

Heide: It's always a balancing act. We're running at 720p, thirty frames per second, and of course one of the issues with the original Killzone was framerate. We wanted to make sure that we always maintain our framerate this time and that is a balancing act, how much can you throw on screen. We've got a very, very powerful machine, with its SPUs it's taking care of physics, some of the AI processing, a lot of the rendering, so basically we can do a lot more than we could originally.

Read the full interview at the link.

[Read Kiziko Interview]
[Thanks MAXCONSOLE]

Time Crisis 4: Pre-Order at FRY's for $74.99

The retail price for Bandai Namco's upcoming game, Time Crisis 4 is $89.99. Pre-Order it at FRY's and you can save $15.00 and go buy yourself and friends some ice cream. The game features:

• New Guncon - The new Guncon is compatible with all TVs and has been enhanced with 2 analog sticks that will allow you to move freely in FPS mode.
• Free Roaming FPS Exclusive to the console, you are able to roam freely in FPS style through various stages. Change your camera angle, move while crouching, standing and more!
• Multiple modes Along with Story and Arcade mode, destroy biological weapons in Crisis Mission mode, test your sharp shooting skills or go head to head with your friend in various mini games.
• Downloadable content! Extend your gameplay by downloading additional Crisis Missions.

If your liking these features, you should head over to FRY's and pre-order this anticipated title.

[Pre-Order: Time Crisis 4]

Heavenly Sword: Kai Gameplay

Here is some gameplay of Heavenly Sword with that crazy girl who moves her hands around and looks psycho, Kai (Nariko's sister). Her attacks are mainly arrows, and it's pretty cool, you can steer them and get any headshot you want.

[Via GameTrailers]

Game Head: New Weapon Premiere for Ratchet and Clank

In the latest episode of Game Head, after the Guitar Hero III preview, they reveal a new weapon for Ratchet and Clank Future: Tools of Destruction. Watch and enjoy!

[Via GameTrailers]

GamePro: New GTA IV Information

In the latest issue of GamePro Magazine, they reveal some new details about Grand Theft Auto IV. Here are some of the details from their "Grand Theft Auto IV Does Not Pass Go" section:

There is a billboard for such things as "Shark Credit Cards," "Pirate Music," and for "The Whiz," which is the type of phone Niko uses.

In a caption the HUD is described as "minimalist to its core" they say there is a mini-map, a "low-key" cash counter, and that it is more clean making GTA IV more immersive.

It says that Ammu-Nation does not exist.


It is confirmed that the rocket launcher will return

On his way to meet Lil' Jacob it says that Niko "passes by shivering bums, and chain-smoking punks who group in nearby doorways."

A random woman yells "This shit is bananas" from her car.

A real-time fare meter pops up when Niko enters the cab.

As the cab drives the camera pans around it.

Booming radio music (courtesy of a well-known classic act we cant yet name) pumps from the taxi.

The little green guy on crosswalks is crisp and clear

GTA has received a "massive combat overhaul."

Every location in GTA has an address.

Pedestrians are described as "A woman holding a grocery bag, street urchins smoking cigarettes, and a power-exec barking impatiently into a cell phone."

GamePro confirms that the Sanchez, and the PCJ are returning.

In the new wanted mode, the dots with swirls around them are cops in cars.

Clothing in GTAIV is described as "customizable, and also realistic."

Shooting: The cover system borrows elements of Gears of War, and Rainbow Six: Las Vegas. It also says that the aiming is a Resident Evil 4, over the shoulder style.

Also with this article a few speculations are made about the delay of GTA IV. Here they are:

• PS3 Problems: Developing for the PS3 was harder then they thought.
• Online Tuning: Rockstar wants to get this just right. It is their first time.
• The Halo 3 effect: It could be more effective to launch a game early next year.
• ESRB Crackdown: Rockstar needs time to make sure that the content is not too much.
  
• It Simply Wasn't Ready: They just weren't ready to release the game.

That seems to be all, more info to come when it reaches.

[Via GTAForums]

Iron Man: Sega Releases New Concept Art

Sega and Activision have finally got to work on their upcoming game, Iron Man. This will be his second appearance on a next-gen console following his appearance in Marvel: Ultimate Alliance.

The only new concept art is the picture above. And looking at it tells me that there will be no doubt that Iron Man will definitely catch the eyes when it hits the shelves.

[Via Sega]