Zombies Could Have Been In Modern Warfare 2

Zombies and Aliens crossed Infinity Wards mind. The game mode, Nazi zombies was a huge success for Call Of Duty: World At War, people were wondering where the feature was in Modern Warfare 2.

According to Modern Warfare 2 writer, Jesse Stern, it could’ve happened. In a discussion with Gamepro he said the following:

"In the beginning we talked about having things in Modern Warfare 2 like outbreaks, viruses, chemical warfare, and even outlandish things such as aliens and the living dead," he revealed.

"We worked our way through it before we finally ended up with a more grounded version of the real world as it's depicted in Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2. And as we were kicking around scenarios for conflict, we kept stumbling into things that were happening in real life, which was honestly unintentional."

Zombies are great, if Modern Warfare 2 had them it would rock even more, however there is a spec-ops mode which is a pretty good replacement. It's just not the same without them.

NOV 22 European PS3 Owners Can Now Download Movies

From today on, Playstation 3 users in Europe will be able to download movies straight onto their PS3 as Sony continues it's battle with Microsoft. Sony and Microsoft are competing to make their consoles more and more of an entertainment machine which will become a part of every living room.

Source : http://www.ps3news.eu

Banned Resistance player turns his sights on Microsoft and Nintendo, sues them after Sony

Erik Estavillo is one avid gamer. So avid in fact, that he will not hesitate to take you to court if you get in the way of his pursuit of happiness with his games. The folks he's taking to court: Sony, Microsoft and Nintendo.

Yep, Erik is obviously not happy. Why should he be? First, PlayStation Network bans him for his hateful comments on the Resistance community online. He brought it up with the court, suing Sony for allegedly infringing on his "first amendment rights." In our July coverage of that story, Eric was seeking for US$ 55,000 in punitive damages.

Would you believe it, the judge actually shot down his case! For what justification? Judge Ronald Whyte claims that "Sony is not part of the government." Oh, really? Are they not? Nonetheless, by October, he was back in court to appeal the decision of the judge, and in the meantime contented himself with playing Metroid Trilogy on the Wii and MK vs. DS on the Xbox 360. They, too, would offer him pain and suffering, as it would turn out.

Microsoft causes him "undue stress" and "sadness" because his Xbox 360 unit RROD'd on him. And Nintendo, don't think the family-friendly console company goes away scot-free. They have unduly interfered with Erik's "pursuit of happiness" by "deleting, blocking, or prohibiting the Homebrew Channel and Ocarina applications" with their system update! The audacity for these companies to hinder one gamer's source of joy and entertainment.

Serves them right, Erik's slapped them with their own respective lawsuits as well. Microsoft, get ready to shell out US$ 75,000 for relief to Eric.

Somehow though, I smell another dismissal coming on. Maybe Eric should go hire a lawyer now (yes, he's been representing himself all this time)? What say you to our fallen brother?

PlayStation platforms dominate in Japan.

Sony platforms dominated hardware sales in Japan during the week ended November 15.

PSP-3000 sales rose by 5,000 units week-on-week to head the rankings, although sales of the company's latest handheld, PSPgo, more than halved to an underwhelming 6,427 units.

Despite a 10,000 units sales drop PS3 only narrowly missed out on the top spot, while DS and Wii, in third and fourth, saw weekly sales fall by around 3,500 and 5,000 units respectively.

DS Lite, Xbox 360 and PS2 sales saw marginal sales declines.

Hardware sales (last week)

PSP - 38,770 (33,784)
PS3 - 38,498 (48,925)
DSi - 33,749 (37,421)
Wii - 26,764 (31,810)
PSPgo - 6,427 (13,992)
DS Lite - 5,036 (5,515)
Xbox 360 - 4,124 (4,679)
PS2 - 2,031 (2,066)

On the software front, a football title claimed the top spot for the second week running, with Sega's J-League Soccer for PSP racking up 85,000 sales in its debut week.

Pokemon Heart Gold/Soul Silver for DS sold 63,000 copies to finish second, ahead of new entry Dragon Ball: Raging Blast for PS3 in third.

The week's other new entries were Final Fantasy Crystal Chronicles: Crystal Bearers for Wii and Mega Man Battle Network: Operation Shooting Star for DS, which placed eighth and ninth respectively.

01. J-League Pro Soccer Club o Tsukurou! 6: Pride of J (Sega, PSP) - 85,000 (New)
02. Pokemon Heart Gold/Soul Silver (Pokemon Co., DS) - 63,000
03. Dragon Ball: Raging Blast (Namco Bandai, PS3) - 58,000 (New)
04. Tomodachi Collection (Nintendo, DS) - 56,000
05. Wii Fit Plus (Nintendo, Wii) - 53,000
06. World Soccer Winning Eleven 2010 (Konami, PS3) - 49,000
07. Inazuma Eleven 2: Threat of the Invaders (Level 5, DS) - 37,000
08. Final Fantasy Crystal Chronicles: Crystal Bearers (Square Enix, Wii) - 35,000 (New)
09. Mega Man Battle Network: Operation Shooting Star (Capcom, DS) - 23,000 (New)
10. Persona 3 Portable (Atlus Co., PSP) - 17,000

Sources: Media Create / El33tonline

Free Batman: Arkham Asylum DLC coming next week

We haven't spent much time at the main menu of Batman: Arkham Asylum, largely because those are precious seconds we could spend actually playing. But if you can hold out for just a few moments and watch the news ticker at the bottom of the screen, you'll see the totally exciting news that free DLC for the game is coming in 9 days (or Sept. 17 by our count).

We're trying to find out what, exactly, this content infusion entails, but in the meantime we'd like to know what you're hoping for. Will you be satisfied if it's just another challenge room?

Source : www.joystiq.com

Braid Coming To PS3?

A listing on Germany's USK game ratings website has indicated that Jonathan Blow's inspired platform game Braid could be winging its way to the PlayStation 3.



The USK site is usually a reliable source for picking up game releases before their formal announcements, with listings for Guitar Hero: Van Halen and The Secret of Monkey Island: Special Edition surfacing on the site before publishers could sort out the publicity.

Let's just hope that this latest listing is accurate as Braid is one title that no gamer should be forced to miss out on. Having originally been released on Xbox Live Arcade last August, Braid then made the jump to PC earlier this year.

PS Store access, virtual pets and TVs demoed in PlayStation Home

Sony have been showing off what they could have in store for the PS3’s PlayStation Home at Japan’s CESA Developers Conference.

Although they were just demos, they did demonstrate what sort of content the company are looking at for the service in the future.

First of all, SCE’s Masami Kando presented a demo of net radio, podcasts, and television commercial broadcasts on a virtual Bravia TV, and all of this can be synchronised with other users – so far so good.

A second demo that was made in just five days showed a virtual pet that lives in people’s apartments that could move freely across the floor and react to your calls.

Finally, Kando announced that a future update will allow users to jump straight into the PlayStation Store where they can download content and then play online.

The streamed media content and access to the PlayStation Store impress us the most and will certainly appeal to many users.

Source : www.ps3atitude.com

Hidden Feature in PS3 Firmware 3.0

I’m sure many of you PS3 gamers out there have had experiences online where some users microphones have given terrible feedback, well now, help is at hand from Sony’s latest Firmware update in the shape of an Echo Canceller.

Head over to the settings section of the XMB and scroll down to Accessory Settings, and then choose Audio Device Settings. Move the cursor down to your headset, and hit Triangle. From there, choose Settings off the menu, and you can then use the Echo Canceller.

It’s strange to think a feature like this was left off any changelogs for 3.00, as it could be a Godsend for many online gamers, and may be particularly good for those of you who use the PS Eye as a mic.

GT5: Best Looking Game of All Time?

We've seen racing games approach photo realism in the past. Certain shots during replay modes in Gran Turismo Prologue, for instance, can temporarily trick the eye into thinking you are seeing the real thing. The images below also illustrate exactly how close Gran Turismo 5 has come to matching the real thing. Can you pick the two apart?



Now that Gran Turismo 5 is right around the corner, it seems as if they are about to redefine what a good looking racing game is supposed to look like. Not only are we getting crisp, amazingly detailed graphics, but some brand new technologies are now making their way into what could amount to the most immersive, realistic visual experience ever delivered in a video game.


First of all, there is the full head tracking offered by PlayStation Eye. Move your head forward while in cockpit view, you see more of the car around you, as if you are looking through a window rather than a flat screen (see the video below for an example). Turn it to the side, look out your side window. This alone brings the level of visual realism miles beyond what has ever been done in a videogame before. We've seen tech demos, like the one below (bear in mind that PSEye doesn't require the glasses), but this is the first time an actual console videogame has been confirmed to be using such technology.



But, it gets better. Not only do you get a 3D-like view with the head tracking, but if you have a 3D capable TV, you also get to see the image in full 3D. Gran Turismo 5 Prologue has already been shown running in 3D, with stunning results described as "like looking through a window". With a sense of depth being so important to driving, this is sure to add a lot of overall immersion to Gran Turismo 5's visual experience.



So there you have it. A nearly photo realistic game featuring full head tracking, and also displaying in 3D. Imagine flying around corners, turning your head to the left while leaning forward to look out your side window and see an opponent racing past you (and actually being able to accurately judge in 3D how far he is from you, letting you known exactly how much room you have to work with before bumping into him), all in near photo realistic quality graphics. How much better can it get? Not all that much, until we figure out how to make (and until you can afford) a holodeck.

Rumour - LA Noire slated for release on PS3, 360 and PC

Treat this as rumour for now, but if a LinkedIn CV of Senior Lightning Artist at Team Bondi Carl Ross is correct, it seems that the long overdue LA Noire is slated for release on PlayStation 3, Xbox 360 and PC.

This is what it says on his profile:

“Team Bondi - August 2007 - Present
LA Noire - Senior Artist, Lighting.
PS3, 360, PC”

We’ll check in with Rockstar about this and see if they will bite on this one.

Official FIFA 10 Shooting Tutorial

Master Your FIFA10 Skills with this Tutorial for Xbox 360, and PS3 even before the release date!

Fifa 10 gameface beta now available.

The new gameface beta is now available on the EA Sports website for FIFA 10.
The link is included in the forum post made at the FIFA 10 forums.
Gameface beta is the new and improved version of gameface for EA titles and has yielded remarkable results so far so give it a try for yourself in preperation for FIFA 10 and upcoming EA sports titles.

-Beta-

PS3 Slim Sells 500,000 units worldwide in the first week

In what is probably the most successful console re-launch in history, around half a million PS3 "slims" were sold last week worldwide according to our preliminary data - this represents over a 400% increase week on week (and a number of retailers in the US had already started selling the new model PS3 last week).

In Europe, some regions saw as much as a tenfold increase in PS3 sales (admittedly, sales had been low the previous week as consumers anticipated the new model launch) - over 200,000 units were sold in "other regions" (Europe, Asia, Africa, Australia etc) according to our preliminary data. In Japan, reports have already been independently confirmed from Famitsu magazine of over 150,000 units sold - twice as much as the previous best week for PS3. Sales in Americas also saw a large increase, over 125,000 units according to preliminary data (although this could be higher as more info comes in).

PS3 software also saw significant increases - many PS3 versions of multi-platform titles comfortably outselling their 360 counterparts this week. The big question will be how long can this bump be sustained for.

Stay tuned for more data as it comes in... and please note that this data is still preliminary at this stage. We can say with a fair amount of certainty that between 450,000 and 550,000 units were sold but will not know the exact figure until all of the finalised data is in.

FIFA 10: Improved Player Control

"Electronic Arts today unveiled a new video showcasing the improvements of player control in FIFA 10 over the game's last iteration, with FIFA 10 now featuring a 360 degree dribbling system."

Playstation 3 Slim sells big in Japan

The Playstation 3 has its biggest week in terms of hardware sales this past week in Japan. According to the Japanese video game website Famitsu, the system has sold 150,832 units in that region from August 31 to September 6. A vast majority of the units sold (150,252) could be attributed to the launch of the Playstation 3 Slim and its new lowered price tag of 29980 yen on September 3.

That is quite an impressive and much-needed performance for Sony, especially considering that the Playstation 3 sold fewer than 15,000 units in all of August. In total, the Playstation 3 has sold 3,431,964 units so far in Japan.

It would be interesting to see how the rest of the world reacts to the new Playstation 3 model.

QJ.NET Special Report: Impressions from the Assassin's Creed II live demo at PAX 09

PAX 2009 will play host to demonstrations of quite a few big-name titles coming out. Among them is Ubisoft's Assassin's Creed II (PS3, Xbox 360, and PC), the follow-up to last year's Jade Raymond-advertised original. This time, Altair's out of the picture and stepping out of the shadows is another of Desmond Miles' uniquely skilled ancestors, Ezio.

On the scene at PAX 09 were the merry band of men called Left4Friends, and they've let us in on the goings-on that happened in the Assassin's Creed II live demo. Read on for their thoughts on it.




The trailer for Assassin's Creed II came shortly after the Conviction demo. The live demo was supposed to follow shortly afterwards. Due to restrictions in the area, we could not record any footage of the trailer, so we'll describe it to you.

We start off with a king of some sort; a very important man with 4 guards around him at a party in the town. This takes place in the 1400s in Venice, Italy. It moves on to everyone in masks dancing around, and some mysterious girl comes in and dances with him, and in a heartbeat our nameless hero comes in for the kill and stabs him right in the neck.

Now you may be wondering: was this the demo? No, that was just the trailer we saw before the demo that was just epic as hell. The real demo starts out with our hero hanging above a tower, on a pole getting ready to jump. Viewing the city the man controlling the demo talks about how there is full exploration in the city, and that every building is climbable.

We were shown as our hero fell from the top and landed in, yes, the old school haystack in the middle of nowhere. After landing, there was a guard right next to the haystack. He grabbed him from behind and killed him in the haystack. Somehow it seems he also took some clothing. It's hard to remember, he was white then he had brown clothes on.

We were then shown a side mission where our hero was to assassinate a certain somebody without getting caught. The demo showed us as he walked through crowds, pickpocketing every person he touched, and buying two vials of poison. Apparently, the guy he has to kill had a buddy with him so by poisoning him, he got confused and went in a berserk rage. He ended up killing the target. Problem solved!

As an added bonus, the guy from Ubisoft Montreal decided to have fun and threw money on the floor. Tons of people dove to get it and with the poisoned guy still berserk, the poor innocent people risked their life for 10 gold as the guy attacked them.

We were then shown another side mission where our hero was to obtain an artifact or rare item of some sort (I have no clue what's it called. I barely played the first game) by going into a church and using a secret entrance. Halfway into that hidden pathway, he runs into a few guards which he took out with an aerial strike from above -- do I dare say... DEATH FROM ABOVE! -- then using a smoke bomb to escape the remaining guard nearby.

When faced with an important person from the church, he splits out of there and you end up pursuing the man until you can kill him. Again, the Ubisoft guy playing the demo decided to play around a bit and chase him for how long. When he kills him near the end, he gets the treasure and ends the demo. Much epicness to be truthful.

Oh, and here's a bit more of Assassin's Creed II from before Ubisoft showed off Conviction. First starting off, walking into the giant room with the screens hanging from above, we saw 6 girls on both our right and left handing books. Quoting, "The first one is always the hardest." Upon opening that book, you hear a rip. The page shows a head on the left, a decapitated body on the right. Following that, "Congratulations on your first kill."



Source : http://ps3.qj.net

Sony explains PS3 Slim's loss of Linux option

After Sony's PS3 slim announcement last week, many fans were dismayed the new model would no longer include backwards compatibility and the option to run Linux as an alternative operating system.

Sony stated the console's ability to run PS2 games wasn't a major "purchase intent driver" and therefore not worth the cost of including, yet remained relatively silent on the missing "OtherOS" option.

A forum response on Sony's official Linux for Playstation 2 developer community sheds some new light on the feature's removal. A Sony rep explained the company is simply unwilling to bear costs of maintaining the hypervisor used for OtherOS support across major hardware revisions.

From the horse's mouth:

The reasons are simple: The PS3 Slim is a major cost reduction involving many changes to hardware components in the PS3 design. In order to offer the OtherOS install, SCE would need to continue to maintain the OtherOS hypervisor drivers for any significant hardware changes - this costs SCE. One of our key objectives with the new model is to pass on cost savings to the consumer with a lower retail price. Unfortunately in this case the cost of OtherOS install did not fit with the wider objective to offer a lower cost PS3.

Playstation 3 slim

While Sony's official line of software-related costs is reasonable from a corporate standpoint, others have speculated the company isn't pleased with the handful of private research labs, companies, and individuals using racks of PS3s as a relatively inexpensive Cell cluster node or workstation. Because Sony sells the PS3 at a loss, any customer who doesn't buy games for the console is bad for the bottom line.

That had some worried Sony intended to remove OtherOS compatibility from the original fat PS3 in a future software update. Fortunately, a report on the blog GamesILike indicates old models will keep the functionality. Another Sony rep wrote on a developer mailing list that: "SCE is committed to continue the support for previously sold models that have the 'install Other OS' feature and that this feature will not be disabled in future firmware releases."

If it's a truly a software cost issue, it seems Sony could just slap an extra fee on those who want the OtherOS option. The cost could probably be up there before it came close to the cost of buying specialized Cell hardware.


Source : http://www.theregister.co.uk

Sony rolls out PSP firmware 6.0 beta for developers

With the PSP Go release date just around the corner, it seems Sony is pretty determined to prevent the hacking community from tinkering their brand new handheld by releasing various firmwares. Now PSPGen is reporting that Sony has already released a brand spanking new beta version of PSP firmware 6.0 for official developers to test their games and adapt with the brand new firmware.

Last time we check, Sony included a mandatory install of OFW 5.55 for some titles that prevents custom firmware users in playing the game. Then, during last week's GamesCom, another firmware 5.70 was spotted inside the PSP Go during a testing event. And now this? According to PSPGen, they're still on the process of learning the changes of the OFW 6.0 so stay tuned.

PS3 Weekend Warrior: PS3 Slim still flying high

Fallout from GamesCom's big PS3 announcements continued to rain down on the PS3 blog this week. The PS3 Slim was still high in the jump counts, thanks to Sony putting its whole weight behind getting the word out to the masses with rebranding, ad campaigns, the works. It seems to be working too, as the Slim has reportedly sold out in some retailers even before the console's official launch. Yep, I bet Sony guys are flying pretty damn high right now.

If You Could Own Only One Console, What Would It Be?

We made it. You and me. We made it to Friday. And more importantly, we made it to TELL US DAMMIT.

Here's how it works: We ask a question, you answer it. Simple and no strings attached! This isn't some marketing survey or whatever. It's an emotional investment in you. Yes, we're interested in knowing you, reader person.

You probably know oodles about us - more than you even want to, we're sure. But, hey, we'd like to know about you. That way you won't be some faceless blob - and we might feel a tinge of guilt when we ban ya. Or not, because really we're incapable of human emotion.

Question: If You Could Own Only One Console, What Would It Be?



Source : http://kotaku.com

Madden NFL 10 Online Numbers Go Through The Roof

We all know that Madden NFL 10 has already sold about a gajillion copies (that's an actual number now, by the way). But perhaps what's more telling in this new generation is just how many people have flocked to indulge in some online pigskin fun.

According to statistics located by Koku Gamer, the latest Madden installment has reached several online multiplayer milestones. Firstly, EA Sports boss Peter Moore has revealed that they've already managed to get 100,000 players online at once, which Moore reminds us is many more than can fit into an NFL stadium. Furthermore, in the opening week alone, there were 5.6 million matches played online, which Moore says "is the equivalent of over 21,000 NFL regular seasons." And while we know that number likely includes all the games that were merely started but never completed, it's still pretty damn impressive. As a side note, Moore said he's happy with the recent PS3 price cut, just because "we know titles like Madden and NCAA Football have always had a very strong base of fans on Sony hardware." ...not like Madden needs more help in the sales department, but even so, a lower price point on PS3 hardware benefits everyone.

So anyway, if you haven't yet gone online with Madden NFL 10, you're apparently missing out. Don't you want to get involved in one of the millions of matches...?

Going green? Get a PS3 Slim!

According to a power consumption test conducted by the guys at CNET, Sony's new slimmed down console generally uses less than half the power of the original 60GB PS3, no matter what task it performs. Now that's impressive!



CNET has conducted a test to prove Sony's claim that the new PlayStation 3 Slim is more energy efficient than the previous models and according to their power consumption test:

The PS3 Slim still uses much more power than a typical standalone Blu-ray player like the Samsung BD-P3600, so if you're going to do mostly Blu-ray playback, the PS3 Slim is a real power hog. On the other hand, the Xbox 360 uses about 187 watts while playing a game, which makes the PS3 Slim look like the HD game console for the environmentally conscious. The Nintendo Wii uses a paltry 19 watts, but is standard-def only.


If you've got an older PS3, you might be wondering how much this extra energy consumption is going to cost you over the course of a year. Unless you're playing a lot of video games, the difference isn't that much. If you generally play for about 20 hours a week, you'll save US$13.74 per year using a PS3 Slim vs. an older model. If you're hardcore enough to rack up 50 hours of gaming per week, you'd still only save about US$ 100 over a three-year period. In other words, the PS3 Slim may make you feel better, but it won't make much of a difference in your bank account.

Source : http://ps3.qj.net

Lombax-Lovers ‘Tweeted’ to Release Date for A Crack in Time

According to a recent Twitter post by Insomniac Games, North America will see Ratchet and his mechanical companion Clank return in their newest adventure, A Crack in Time, on October 27th. An EU release is anticipated days later on October 30th.

Be prepared for more of the same engaging and dynamic gameplay that put this pair on the map: epic exploration, peculiar puzzles, quirky characters, and a megaton of out-of-this-world weaponry.

Our friends at Joystiq.com have kindly detailed the various pre-order packages currently being offered by a handful of retailers. Why not have a quick look – maybe even spoil yourselves? Go on, it’s Friday!

Rock Band Store, Coming To PS3

Everyone likes a custom soundtrack, right? Right. Well, although PS3 users won't be getting the tools to create their own custom music in Rock Band, they will be getting a lot. As of November, the Rock Band Store is going to be available on the PlayStation 3, and although we won't be able to upload our own songs, we will be able to download those created by our Xbox 360 friends. So don't fret fanboys, the boys in charge of Rock Band are doing the best they can.

On a side note, the Rock Band Store will also be updated with song demos, meaning you don't have to guess how a song is going to play out anymore. A feature that should have been implimented from the start, yes, but a good feature to have regardless. Look for the update this November!

Source : http://www.ps3center.net

ALL - Sony Announces Big Line Up For Fan Expo Canada

PR Specialist for Sony Computer Entertainment Canada, Kyle Moffatt made a huge announcement via the PlayStation Blog indicating that the Fan Expo is scheduled this weekend and will serve as the premier destination where you can play anticipated PS3 and PSP games.

Included in the list of PS3 games
featured in the said event are Uncharted 2: Among Thieves, Buzz Quiz World, Ratchet & Clank Future: A Crack In Time, and God of War III. For the PSP, Jak & Daxter: The Lost Frontier has been confirmed as well. Just make sure to check out the booth for PlayStation Canada on the venue.

In addition to that, Kyle Moffatt has also announced that Sony will be handing out for free lots of PlayStation goodies. So, all you PlayStation gamers in Canada, don't waste this opportunity.


Source : http://news.absolute-playstation.com

No Vehicles For Call Of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 Online

Robert Bowling
of Infinity Ward has confirmed that there will be no vehicles featured for PS3, Xbox 360, and PC's Modern Warfare 2 during multiplayer. They stated the reason behind this was to focus on a fast-paced infantry combat that does not rely on transportation. Bowling explains:

“We never put vehicles in multiplayer. Our focus is on fast-paced infantry combat, where you're never reliant on transportation. We do have expanded Killstreak Rewards now, some of which are user-controlled. For example, where you previously could call in UAV, Airstrikes, and Helicopter Support but had no control on how helpful they were, there are many more options which allow you to take control of the gunner or control its success a bit more for a limited time. Such as the AC130 gunship where you can fire any of the three weapons on it during its limited time in the air.”

Look out for Modern Warfare 2 to release worldwide for the PS3, Xbox 360, and PC on November 10, 2009.

Firmware 3.0 Now Out For Debug PS3's

We’re not saying that Sony are planning on pushing out firmware 3.0 before the scheduled 1st of September date, but we’ve heard this afternoon that debug PlayStation 3 consoles can now download firmware 3.0 as they’d normally do. Of course, for the 99.9% of the population this means very little, but everyone’s expecting a huge amount of stealth updates and secret things from 3.0, so with the software revision ‘out there’ in the wild we’re hoping to hear about some of this year’s big update’s hidden features any time now.

When we do, we’ll pass them on.

Capcom Teases Big Software News For Tokyo Game Show

We're just starting to come down from the high generated by Sony's GamesCom 2009 press conference where they announced the long-awaited PlayStation 3 price cut and PS3 Slim. But hey, we're only a few weeks from an even bigger event...

Going strictly by attendance numbers, the Tokyo Game Show is almost always the most popular industry show on earth every year. We believe we're in store for even bigger announcements and revealings, and there should also be plenty of new software announcements, too. The first teasing has come from Capcom's camp, as according to a recent Twitter update, they're "hard at work on Tokyo Game Show plans." They do plan to release fresh news for Lost Planet 2, Tatsunoko vs. Capcom and Dead Rising 2, and we're hoping that release dates for each will be announced. For our part, we're still hoping to see an unveiling for Devil May Cry 5; we absolutely refuse to believe they're not working on a new installment in that franchise, and we want it. We're also interested to learn more about Dead Rising 2, which is coming to the PS3 and should be a bunch of bloody fun; a guilty pleasure that could be well worth the price of admission. Capcom also mentions some "new games for Japan." What might those be...?

The Tokyo Game Show runs from September 24 - 27 and there's every possibility that other big software news is coming our way. At the top of our list is the announcement of a 2009 launch date for Gran Turismo 5...

Convert of NES Classic Thexder Coming to PS3 and PSP?

It’s not every day word comes that a 1980s NES title is to grace the PS3, so now that we’ve learned one might we’d like to make a small song and dance about it.

The ESRB website it seems is pre-empting a re-release of Game Arts classic Thexder NEO, which may also reach the PSP. In this old school 8-bit side-scroller, players controlled a robot likened to a Transformer, tasked with battling persistent waves of enemies as they navigated a series of maze-like levels. It was popular enough to prompt a sequel in 1989, but disappeared thereafter.

ESRB states that Square Enix Inc. will be its publisher, ‘Fantasy Violence’ will be its genre, and ‘Everyone’ will be its target audience. There’s even a game summary, for the rare few who might find our above synopsis unsatisfactory.

Admittedly, there isn’t much to go on at present. Our guess is that this title will be available via the PlayStation Store, and will undoubtedly undergo a much needed HD revamp. Until we unearth more credible details, however, it would be wise to treat the above as rumour until proven fact.


Source : http://www.ps3vault.com

Map Pack 4 for World at War?

Rumour has it that Call of Duty: World at War may be getting a fourth Map Pack! The tip-off comes from Alan Ng’s article on the Product Reviews website, written earlier this month. We can only offer our sincerest apologies for not finding this sooner.

During Map Pack 3’s Der Reise zombie level, a radio transmission can be heard delivering an ambiguous message from a Dr Maxis regarding ‘The Giant Project’, the future mass production of the Wunderwaffe super weapon, and ‘matter transference’ experiments – which can only continue with a regular supply of mysterious element ‘115’. It is here Maxis talks of his American operatives having significant resource at their Nevada base. Generally, what springs to mind at the mention of Nevada? Area-51. Could this allude to the location of a future Zombies map?

And there’s more. Hidden in one of Der Riese’s factory rooms is a calendar on which four very specific dates have been marked by a red ring and a question mark: the 3rd, the 10th, the 17th and the 24th. Now, find a calendar and look at next month. Notice anything? Both calendars are identical, with the 3rd, 10th, 17th and 24th all being Thursdays. Coincidentally, in the world of PlayStation, what tends to happen on Thursdays? New content arrives on the PlayStation Store.

Still not convinced? Then take a look at this Easter Egg footage, submitted on YouTube by a group of overexcited American players (please be aware: this footage does feature some strong language). Taking all into consideration, there’s enough evidence here to imply that World at War’s Zombies mode might not end with Der Riese. Call us fools, but we’re convinced!

Quantic Dream considering DLC sequels, prequels for Heavy Rain's characters

Don't fret -- Quantic Dream founder David Cage isn't planning on charging you for the ending to the studio's upcoming Heavy Rain. In a recent interview with VideoGamer.com, Cage explained that the game's eight to ten hour story was "a self-contained experience," but that Quantic is "talking with Sony at the moment about having maybe extra downloadable content, maybe with prequels or sequels about the characters." He added that players will most likely "get attached to some of them and will want to know them even better."

We don't doubt Quantic Dream's proven ability to tell captivating stories, but we have one qualm with this statement -- what if all our characters get offed by the Origami Killer? Sure, the prequels could ostensibly still work, but sequels starring corpses probably wouldn't be that interesting.


Source : www.joystiq.com

Square president doesn't expect 'big impact' from PS3 price cut until 2010

Speaking to reporters on Wednesday, Square Enix president Yoichi Wada offered a reserved but hopeful response to Sony's recent PlayStation 3 redesign and accompanying price drop. "In terms of the impact (the PS3 cut) will have on this financial year's earnings, I don't think there will be a major difference," he told Reuters. "But I expect there to be a big impact from next year."

If that seems like oddly hesitant approval, it's because Square Enix has been oddly hesitant in producing PlayStation 3 content up until now, instead placing its eggs in other, distinctly portable baskets. The company's first big hit on Sony's console looks to be derived from its purchase of Eidos, which netted the critically acclaimed Batman: Arkham Asylum, and Final Fantasy XIII isn't due to arrive in Japan until the end of the year. While Square Enix has forecast a doubling in operating profit within the current fiscal year -- ending next March -- it seems prudent of Wada to hold off on financial celebration until the effects of a cheaper PlayStation become apparent and Final Fantasy XIII's reach extends beyond Japan.


Source : www.joystiq.com

SmackDown VS Raw 2010 Release dates!

Wrestling enthusiasts have had quite a fight on their hands trying to determine when exactly they’ll have the chance to ‘Lay-eth The Smack-eth Down’ in WWE SmackDown vs Raw 2010. Just as fans were about to tap out, THQ revealed those long-awaited release dates.

Expected October 23rd in the EU, and November 10th in the US, the 11th edition to the franchise promises a wealth of creation, customisation and sharing possibilities. The introduction of an improved Create-a-Superstar Mode allows players to create wrestlers of comparable quality to that of in-game WWE Superstars and Divas, thanks to advances in 3D modelling. A new Paint tool can be used to fashion unique tattoos and logos, and the Superstar Threads option facilitates the design of alternative ring gear for all members of the SmackDown and Raw rosters.

Probably the most noteworthy addition is the Story Designer, whereby players are at liberty to build their own individual career campaign: events can be created, cut scenes can be directed, locations and wrestlers can be swapped and changed, animations can be programmed, dialogue can be written – in fact, almost every aspect can be customised to suit. This time around, it really is ‘all about the game, and how you play it’, as THQ’s Vice President of Global Brand Management Brian Coleman emphasises:

‘WWE SmackDown vs. Raw 2010 will put the power of created freedom and shareable, user-generated content directly into the players’ hands, giving them the ability to control the action beyond anything ever witnessed in WWE programming.’

And then there are online activities to consider, which are summed-up quite nicely by JAKKS Pacific’s Senior Vice President Nelo Lucich:

‘The vast array of [...] online options allow players the ability to create their own unique Superstars [...] formulate original finishing moves [...] craft their own storylines and then to share it all through the WWE Community Creations interface. The possibilities for total distinctive gameplay are endless for our tremendous fan base around the world.’

We have a strong feeling that WWE SmackDown vs Raw 2010 could be the greatest wrestling title in the history of gaming. Add this to your VGReleases calendar now!

Sony Entertainment Online Looks To PS3 For 50% Of Business

As PlayStation 3 sales continue to grow, Sony Online Entertainment is looking for the console to account for a larger proportion of their total business.

And by a heftier portion of the pie, SOE President John Smedley is thinking right down the middle.

"I think PS3 will be close to half our business. There's an audience now waiting for online games on the PS3. I believe PSN has over 15 million users today. It's growing so quickly, we see a great user base potential there," he told GameDaily.

"I think a lot of the people who play PlayStation 3 games right now aren't the same people playing MMOs right now. I think (MMOs) going to bring in a lot of new players. There are certainly people who have consoles and PCs in their house. The difference is what they actively play. PlayStation 3 gamers are used to playing Resistance 2 instead of a shooter on the PC. I think we can bring this kind of gaming to this audience and I think it's going to be huge."



Source : www.ps3news.ca

Home to have huge update!

We learned today that PlayStation Home is getting more than 100 new pieces of content this Thursday, making it the biggest virtual item content release since launch. Some of the biggest additions include the new Killzone 2 Visari Throne Room, a Post-Apocalyptic Apartment, and animated T-shirts that show-off your hometown.

The KZ2 Visari Throne Room is based on the final stage in the popular PlayStation 3 shooter. Releasing with the space are a variety of virtual items including the Helghan Defense Painting.



The new Post-Apocalyptic Apartment will launch with a bundle of furniture. There are roughly 70 items that will be released with this personal space alone.

Finally, one of the more intriguing updates is the addition of new animated T-shirts that broadcast your hometown pride. Look for these updates and more this Thursday for the PlayStation Home.