PlayStation News Message Board older than one year ago

Anyone who's ever played LittleBigPlanet knows that the experience is enriched when played with friends -- but what if one of your "friends" was not a Sackboy in the context of the game, but rather, an invisible agent of divine intervention? Think of it: He or she could effortlessly lift objects through the air, discard obstacles, bridge gaps or, depending on their temperament, instantly murder you. Sony and Media Molecule are teaming up to incorporate this unsettling omnipotence into the customizable platformer with the launch of the PlayStation Motion Controller. You can check out a video of the motion-controlled LBP multiplayer demo (culled from Sony's Tokyo Game Show keynote) after the jump. Fans of the title might see this new functionality as a bold evolution Media Molecule's lovable game -- we see it as an unprecedented advancement in hilarious griefing technology. [Via Kotaku]

Given their line of work and generally suspicious behavior, deadly 15th-century assassins aren't likely to make many friends -- well, not unless the goal is to make them dead. Thankfully, Assassin's Creed 2 is cognizant of the power of influence and wealth. Should you encounter a group of mercenaries (usually loitering about in a dark alley or atop a beautifully tiled roof) while en route to an assassination target, you can hire them simply by stepping within range and pressing a button. It's an instant, intimidating posse that only a sophisticated hitman like Ezio could amass.Money buys a surprisingly strong sense of loyalty -- your hired goons will do what they can to battle pesky guards, or even attempt to take on your target if you're otherwise occupied. It's a useful advantage in the face of overwhelming odds and does much to prevent public battles from dragging on for too long. Aside from loyalty, your money also secures a level of patience usually reserved for a shopping spouse. Your assassination assistants have no qualms about idling while you stop mid-mission because you simply must have those shoes.

Hopefully, this redemption works a bit easier for you than today's LittleBigPlanet offer. Reebok is offering PS3 owners free DLC for Madden 10. The AFL Legacy Pack, which originally costs $7, adds eight original AFL teams and 15 AFL Legacy Game matchups. American PlayStation Network users will be able to register for this Reebok contest and get a free DLC code.Enjoy![Via Slickdeals]

Okay, so the PSP Go won't have any upgrade incentive programs for owners of older generation PSPs -- at least there will be plenty of purchasing options for those who still decide to make the switch. According to a Sony memo recently received by IGN, the PSP Go will have 16,000 pieces of digital content available for PlayStation Store perusers from the day the device hits store shelves. (Well, store shelves located inside stores that haven't boycotted it.) Sony broke this number down, claiming that the Store will house 225 full downloadable games (including PSP titles, PSN-exclusives, UMD Legacy titles and PSP Minis), 2,300 movies and 13,300 television episodes by October 1. Sony highlighted Gran Turismo PSP, God of War: Chains of Olympus and Soulcalibur: Broken Destiny as a few notable day-one downloadables. Those who rely on visits to their nearest gaming retailer for social interaction can purchase download codes for a number of other titles, including Daxter and Secret Agent Clank. See, retailers? The folks at Sony hasn't left you completely out in the cold. You can stop giving them the stink-eye now.

Hopefully, this redemption works a bit easier for you than today's LittleBigPlanet offer. Reebok is offering PS3 owners free DLC for Madden 10. The AFL Legacy Pack, which originally costs $7, adds eight original AFL teams and 15 AFL Legacy Game matchups. American PlayStation Network users will be able to register for this Reebok contest and get a free DLC code.Enjoy![Via Slickdeals]

If you're waiting on pins, needles and mercenary machetes for the film adaptation of Uncharted: Drake's Fortune, Sony and Naughty Dog have come up with a pretty clever way of biding your time -- sneak previews of Uncharted 2: Among Thieves will be given on the massive screens of four theaters in Bellevue, WA, Rosemont, IL, Thousand Oaks, CA and San Francisco, CA on October 5 and 6. SCEA reps and Naughty Dog developers will be around to answer your questions and give you a guided tour of the game. Tickets for the October 5 showings have already sold out -- so you'd better act quickly if you want to see what a two-story-tall half-tuck looks like. We imagine it's a life-changing experience.

Well, it's time to throw that Real Arcade Pro 3 joystick in the garbage, because it's obsolete and you should be ashamed to own it. At its booth in the Tokyo Game Show shopping area, accessories maker Hori handed out a pamphlet introducing its new Real Arcade Pro V and other joysticks. Few details are included in the pamphlet: we know it weighs 3 kilograms and features a Sanwa JLF joystick and Hori buttons, and that it should be in Japanese stores sometime this winter. The mock-up image even uses Roman numerals for the button labels instead of anything that would identify the platform. In addition, new mid-range sticks for PS3 and 360 are due out this winter for 5,500 and 6,980, respectively -- a price discrepancy that suggests that wireless technology is involved, based on the historical evidence of Rock Band guitars. See all three sticks after the break, along with some gigantic Taito-licensed stick that was on display at the Hori booth.

The latest Hot Shots title from Clap Hanz isn't about golf or tennis. Minna no Sukkiri is more Hot Shots ... baseball! And karate! And ... vegetable fighting! And book sorting! And other things that I didn't get to play in my short demo session! Sukkiri (something like Hot Shots: Refresh) is a minigame collection featuring twelve wildly different games. If the four I played are any indication, the descriptions for all of them would include the phrase "and that's it."

We can't be gaming all the time, despite our best efforts, and from time to time we'll actually take advantage of the movie-playing abilities on our gaming systems. JBO features our top picks for XBL, PSN, Netflix's Watch Instantly and Blu-ray each week. This week marks the start of Fantastic Fest at the Alamo Drafthouse in Austin, TX, where this writer will be embedded for the next week. It's a celebration of movies in the vein of geek: sci-fi, horror, anime, weird Asian cult movies and more. With that in mind, we're skewing this week's Joystiq Box Office towards the weird. Recommendation of the Week: Ong Bak 2 (Xbox Live Marketplace: 1200 ($15) HD, 800 ($10) SD to buy) How do you train an orphan to survive? By kicking him into a murky pit full of alligators. If he can survive that, he'll have no problem with the rest of life. That's just the opening scene. The rest of the movie is full of martial arts action, including stunts involving herds of elephants. It's beautifully shot, full of action set in ancient Thailand and goes above and beyond your typical Hollywood fare. Directed, written and starring Tony Jaa, it confusingly has nothing to do with Ong Bak: Muy Thay Warrior. Too bad they didn't give it another name, but rest assured you don't need to see that movie to enjoy this one. In fact, only see that before this if you want to confuse yourself. It's a bit more expensive because it's exclusive online to the Xbox 360 and just hitting theaters as well. Read for the full list on a system-by-system basis just after the break, where you'll also find a special trailer for Ong Bak 2 to help convince you that you need to give it a shot. As usual, we'll see you at the popcorn st -- well, actually, we won't see you at all. But you catch our drift. Plus, be sure to tell us what you'll be watching, or what you've seen recently that bowled you over.

We just got the first word on the latest Red Faction: Guerrilla DLC, the Smasher Pack, due October 1st. Included are eight new maps for the Wrecking Crew mode, and a new "Behemoth" mode that adds the giant robot walkers to the multiplayer action. Sounds cool, right? Yeah, we thought so. What we don't understand is why Volition would accompany the announcement with this video, which features the cast of Lord of the Rings in various stages of receiving their make-up prosthetics as they make bets that involve wearing silly hats. No, that's really what it's about. It's like watching a lady-free episode of Salute Your Shorts.

Remember when it was first announced that Resident Evil 5 wasn't coming to the Wii, and fans got really upset, because Resident Evil 4 on the Wii was totally awesome? It seems that decision wasn't made due to Capcom's oversight of said awesomeness -- rather, it looks like they chose to bring that experience to the PS3 with the ball-pointed PlayStation Motion Controller. Seriously, check out this gameplay sample (video posted after the break) from Sony's TGS keynote and tell us that doesn't look exactly like RE4 on the Wii. Okay, the PS3 version is significantly prettier -- and due to the fact that Sony's controller has no nunchuck (which forces the player to hold a SIXAXIS in one hand and the wand in another) the controls look a bit more awkward this time around. [Via VG247]

Ever wonder what makes someone become an assassin? It's really not the kind of job one finds at a career fair. No, it's really more of a vocation that one is compelled to do. For one Ezio Auditore di Firenze, lead character of Assassin's Creed II, the reasons are very, very personal. We'd hate to spoil it for you, so go ahead and watch the latest trailer, fresh from the Tokyo Game Show.

Earlier this week, we got our hands on a few European GameStop listings for 250GB PS3 bundles. Earlier today, SCEE and SCE UK confirmed the hardware packages and included games. Earlier this hour, we went to Whole Foods and purchased some really crisp bok choy. (Sorry. We got into a rhythm there.) Europeans will have their choice of two bundles, both of which will be made available throughout October. One of the collections includes Need for Speed: Shift, while the other includes FIFA 10. Needless to say, both bundles come with the recently GB-boosted console. A price point for these two bundles has not been specified, but we've contacted Sony for clarification. Bizarrely enough, the UK's getting a different set of bundles than the rest of the continent. On October 1, United Kingdomites will have their choice of a 250GB PS3 bundled with Infamous or two unnamed Platinum Hits. Their options will be further expanded on October 16 with the release of an Uncharted 2 bundle, and once more on October 19 with a bundle that includes the X-Men Origins: Wolverine and The Dark Knight films on Blu-ray and a film-friendly remote control.SCE UK has graciously provided a price for its bundles -- £284.99 ($450) -- making it our certified favourite European Sony chapter of the day. That's as legit as being knighted by the Queen, you know.

Sony director of hardware marketing John Koller mentioned shortly after the E3 "reveal" of the PSP Go that the company was considering a "good will program," which would allow UMD owners to trade in their physical games for digital versions. However, yesterday at the Tokyo Game Show, an SCEA spokesperson told Kotaku, "We were evaluating a UMD conversion program, but due to legal and technical reasons we will not be offering the program at this time." That's quite a blow to the base of American PSP owners with large libraries of UMD titles looking to upgrade to a PSP GO -- a blow significantly worsened by the European "PSP Go Rewards" initiative, which grants three free games to PSP Go purchasers who register for the promotion using an older PSP model. This same promotion will not be coming to the US. "SCEA region will not offer a UMD rewards program at this time," due to the fact that the company has a "dual-platform strategy," an SCEA spokesperson has explained to IndustryGamers. Ironically enough, we have a "we'd rather not purchase our PSP games again to play them on a new version of your handheld" strategy going for us. It's working out pretty well so far.

Even from our poorly lit offices, some 6,500 miles away from the Tokyo Game Show floor, we heard shouts of jubilation coming from the Koei stage. The reason for the uproar was due to the announcement made just moments before: Dynasty Warriors Online, an MMO-Samurai-Warfare-Sim for PC, will be making its way to PS3 next year in Japan. Wait. We hear those cheers again! Man, our windows are closed! What's going on? Details about the title are few, though the official DWO teaser site confirms that while the title will get a retail release, players won't have to shell out for any irksome subscription fees. Instead, Koei will be supported by the community's purchase of Musou Coins, which can be spent on special items and furniture. Furniture? Does this mean we'll finally be able to play as ... the Ottoman Empire?

Filed under: Microsoft Xbox 360 Terror. Is. Reality. Don't believe us? Check out the new trailer, which we just witnessed (and caught on camera) at Capcom's Dead Rising 2 event in Tokyo. You don't want to miss Keiji Inafune's posh yellow jacket as he introduces the clip.The event is a junket unlike any other at Tokyo Game Show this year. Capcom (with the help of Microsoft) took over a restaurant/bar in Ebisu, promising free food and drinks to all attendees -- with the promise of a two-of-a-kind yellow jacket at stake for the person who wins tonight's Dead Rising 2 mutliplayer tournament.Yeah, multiplayer. Long hinted at, we finally had a chance to play the game's competitive multiplayer mode. It certainly wasn't what we were expecting. You take control of one of four participants in a zombie-ridden game show called "Terror Is Reality." Players will compete in four different minigames, each of which takes a different spin on Dead Rising's zombie-smashing gameplay.

Sony may have been busy talking up the PSP Go (and its ridiculous accessories) during TGS, but it looks like the company hasn't forgotten the Go's older brother. Beginning October 1, the original PSP will receive a fifteen percent price drop in Japan, lowering the price to ¥16,800 (~$185). While it might seem a little strange for Sony to lower the price of the PSP just prior to the launch of the already overpriced PSP Go, Bloomberg rightly points out that the cut will place the PSP at a lower price than Nintendo's monstrously successful DSi. For now, the price cut remains exclusive to Japan. Joystiq has contacted Sony to find out whether it plans to share the love with the rest of the world. [Via Engadget]

“Emotional input is still not fully developed… I think the games industry can still develop even more. One of its unique characteristics is that as technology develops, the way you express things, the number of colours on the palette increases as technology develops. (Games can measure your) heartbeat or body temperature or sweat (but) [...]