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#soundshapes Just like an all-star music festival where awesome acts keep announcing that they'll be showing up to play, upcoming PlayStation Vita game Sound Shapes keeps pulling in top-notch talent to its creative roster. Game-loving celebrity DJ Deadmaus is contributing to the game and now he'll be joined by some bonafide indie gaming superstars. More »

The full PlayStation downloads list for April - as opposed to the sneak peek we got thanks to Pulse earlier this month, where the list is not segregated by platform - has been released and Ubisoft's I Am Alive was indeed the top download. On the PS3 and PSN list, thatgamecompany's Journey followed Ubisoft's long-awaited title. Reverge Labs' debut Skullgirls managed to snag the third spot.

On the PS Vita side, Escape Plan continued to dominate - no surprise since there's not much else for the PS Vita right now, though that changes today. Modern Warfare 3's Content Collection #1 drop on PSN also did well, topping out the PS3 add-on category. Finally, Final Fantasy VII was the top PSOne Classic, but then again you already knew that because it's always Final Fantasy VII.

Grandma sure did like playing Rainbow Six: Vegas on that old PSP when you'd make your weekly homage for family dinner, didn't she? "Blap! Blap! Blap!" she'd shout. And things really haven't been the same since you traded up to a Vita, what with its lack of support for many PSP titles. We understand.

Thankfully, so does Sony. This morning, the US PlayStation blog announced today's launch of several PSP games on the Vita (including Grandma's fave), as well as a variety of PSP Minis (full list after the break). As usual, if you already own the games digitally for your PSP, all you'll have to do is re-download the files to your PSN-tied Vita. If not, well, you'll have to pony up some virtual cash.

Interestingly, Sony also mentioned "improved playability" for some titles beyond the up-res'd graphics - we're checking to see what exactly that means. The line has since been removed from Sony's blog post.

Capcom is revising its DLC strategy to include less content on-disc at launch, senior vice president Christian Svensson writes in a post in the Capcom forums. "We would like to assure you that we have been listening to your comments and as such have begun the process of re-evaluating how such additional game content is delivered in the future," Svensson says.

This introspection follows vicious complaints about Street Fighter X Tekken's on-disc DLC, to which Capcom responded that it sees no distinction between on- and off-disc DLC. A few titles currently in production will ship with on-disc DLC, including Dragon's Dogma, Svensson writes.

Capcom decided to add DLC on Dragon's Dogma discs "at the beginning of the game's development cycle as at the time this was determined to be the most efficient way of ensuring certain content was made available," according to Svensson. "You are being heard," Svensson concludes.

Traverse the depths of Hell once again in Diablo 3...

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#theweekingames Diablo III is this week's long-anticipated release, but it is not the only one. Max Payne 3 also arrives on consoles, as does the Game of Thrones adaptation. It's a busy mid-May for both physical releases and downloadable titles. More »

Sega's earnings are down in the year ended March 31, 2012, which shouldn't come as a surprise given the company's recent extreme restructuring measures. Sega reported net sales of 395.5 billion yen ($5 billion), down 0.3 percent from 2011; net income dropped 47.4 percent to 21 billion yen.

In the "consumer business" division (the one that deals with home video games), Sega reported a year-over-year drop in unit sales. Its best-performing game was Mario & Sonic at the London 2012 Olympic Games, of course, at 3.28 million copies. Sonic Generations followed at 1.85 million; Virtua Tennis 4 sold 1.04 million across five platforms. Sega listed sales for Football Manager 2012 (710,000) and Yakuza: Dead Souls (550,000), but nothing else -- so we don't know how well Binary Domain did, except to guess that it probably didn't do very well.Sega earnings down in fiscal 2011, Mario & Sonic sell 3 million

Shares of Sony stock have dipped to their lowest number in 31 years in Japan and to a 19-year low in the US, following a dismal earnings report for the previous fiscal year. Sony shares dropped 7 percent in Japan, to 1,135 Yen ($14), and 2 percent in the US, closing at $15.37.

Sony CEO Kaz Hirai plans to lose 10,000 employees in a company-wide reorganization effort. Sony reported a net revenue loss of 9.6 percent for fiscal year 2012, dropping from $89 billion to $79.1 billion year-over-year.

Sony's financial results for the fiscal year ending on March 31, 2012 are in, with the Japanese giant reporting year-over-year losses in revenue and operating losses that it attributes to "the unfavorable impact of foreign exchange rates, the impact of the Great East Japan Earthquake and the floods in Thailand, and deterioration in market conditions in developed countries."

Sony's fiscal 2012 ran from April 1, 2011 through March 31, 2012, with the company reporting net revenue of ¥6.49 trillion ($79.1 billion), down 9.6 percent year-over-year from the ¥7.18 trillion (approx. $89 billion) reported at the end of fiscal 2010. After expenses, Sony reports an operating loss of ¥67.3 billion ($820 million), which is actually a smaller loss than that reported at the end of fiscal 2011 (¥199.8 billion/approx $2 billion).

Year-over-year sales decreases were primarily due to Sony's Consumer Products & Services (CPS) and Professional, Device & Solutions (PDS) divisions, with CPS sales down 18.5 percent at ¥3.13 trillion ($38.2 billion) in 2012 vs. ¥3.84 trillion (approx. $48 billion) in 2011, resulting in an operating loss of ¥229.8 billion ($2.8 billion) - more than a 2,000 percent decrease from 2011's operating income of ¥10.8 billion (approx. $135 million). CPS encompasses Sony's consumer electronics sectors, including LCD TVs, PCs, photography solutions and, of course, gaming.

Sony partially attributes CPS' decline in sales to "lower sales of PlayStation(R)3 hardware due to a strategic price reduction and lower sales of PlayStation(R)2 due to platform migration," among other reasons like deteriorating conditions in North American and European TV markets.

The results for April are in, and things are looking a little rough out there in consumer video-game electronics land. As a whole, the gaming industry (which for our purposes includes all hardware, software and accessories sales between April 1 and April 28, 2012) brought in $630.4 million, a 32 percent decrease over the same period last year, where its various machinations resulted in collective sales of $930.9 million.

Breaking the industry down into its three major components, hardware sales accounted for $189.7 million (down 32 percent year over year), while software sales contributed $292.1 million to the cause - a 42 percent decrease year over year. Accessories, on the other hand, posted a 1 percent increase year-over-year at $148.6 million in 2012, as compared with $147.8 million in 2011.

The average amount of money spent on hardware increased year-over-year, however, due in part to the 360 Star Wars Kinect Bundle, according to NPD analyst Anita Frazier. Generally though, the period's lackluster performance is due to the month's release schedule: "Last April, the top seven titles outsold the top-selling title this year, and, simply stated, there were notably fewer new market introductions. I think it's a simple as that because when we see compelling content come into the market, the games are still selling as well as ever - we just saw a lot less this April as compared to last."

The list of April's top 10 best-selling titles can be found after the break as per usual, with newcomers Prototype 2 and Kinect Star Wars leading the charge ahead of Modern Warfare 3, Mario Party 9 and Mass Effect 3.

#soulsacrifice Coming to the PS Vita this winter from developer Marvelous AQL, Soul Sacrifice is a dark fantasy action game (with an emphasis on the "dark"), that focuses on power, and the costs to obtain it. More »

#soulsacrifice In upcoming PS Vita game Soul Sacrifice, you stick your hand in the mouth and yank out your vertebrate, which turns into a sword. More »

Sony will stream its E3 2012 press conference through the internets in a little under a month, having already established the obligatory site with a large countdown clock. Be sure to have a Big Gulp and popcorn ready on Monday, June 4, for all the highs and spectacularly awkward lows.

Nintendo has yet to announce its streaming plans for the show, but Microsoft will have its press conference broadcast on the Spike TV network in the States and distributed through Xbox Live streaming. So, watch along at home, and join us on here as we deliver the sights, sounds and smells not fit for screens.

Update: US network G4 informs us it will broadcast Sony's 2012 E3 press conference "live and commercial free."

Ubisoft's post-apocalypse third-person-survivor I Am Alive apparently struck a chord with PlayStation 3 owners last month, topping the PlayStation Network's download charts for April 2012, even edging out March's big PSN release, Journey.

The Walking Dead's game adaptation from Telltale managed more than a shambling start as well, taking up two spots on the top 10 with the season pass and first episode in third and fifth place, respectively. Just one Vita title landed on the list, Escape Plan, in the number 10 spot. All of this information - and more! - can be found in the latest PlayStation "Pulse" video, which we've dropped just below the break.

If you like atmospheric adventure games starring a disembodied hand, you'd best swing by the PlayStation Store to see Datura. It leads Sony's weekly content dump today, and is joined by the PixelJunk series sale and full PS3 game trials for Saints Row: The Third and Need for Speed The Run.

And if you're a PS Plus member, don't forget to snag all of your May freebies. The full list of this week's content can be found over on the PlayStation Blog.

Sony will stream its E3 2012 press conference through the internets in a little under a month, having already established the obligatory site with a large countdown clock. Be sure to have a Big Gulp and popcorn ready on Monday, June 4, for all the highs and spectacularly awkward lows.

Nintendo has yet to announce its streaming plans for the show, but Microsoft will have its press conference broadcast on the Spike TV network in the States and distributed through Xbox Live streaming. So, watch along at home, and join us on here as we deliver the sights, sounds and smells not fit for screens.

#soulsacrifice The PS Vita wants its pound of flesh. And you are going to give it. In return, you will get some wicked power weapons and spells. More »

#soulsacrifice Soul Sacrifice is an upcoming brand new PS Vita game, and details about it first hit last month. Butoday, Sony teased the game's upcoming reveal (full reveal, rather) on May 10. It clocks in at just over 36 seconds. More »

#psvita One of the PlayStation Vita's most interesting features is "rear touch"—the Vita's backside touchpad controls. This newly announced, limited edition PlayStation Vita features virtual idol Hatsune Miku on the Vita's back, which is prime touch real estate. More »

Build, fight, and conquer this week with Starhawk...

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#theweekingames Mother's Day isn't typically a huge sales weekend for video games and the upcoming launch schedule reflects that. Minecraft's console release is the week's only highlight. More »

#ragnarokodyssey Publisher XSEED Games will bring Ragnarok Odyssey to the PlayStation Vita this year, it said today. More »

Avengers, roll out! ... Go,go gadget Avengers! ... Avengers, SPOON! Fine, fine, Avengers assemble to check out this trailer and screenshots of the upcoming pinball table from Zen Studios.

The Avenger pinball pack, coming this spring, includes four tables: Marvel's The Avengers, World War Hulk, The Infinity Gauntlet and Fear Itself. World War Hulk was shown off last month. Give us Infinity Gauntlet now!

#psvita Given recent sales trends, Nintendo probably isn't that worried about the PlayStation Vita posing any kind of a threat to their own 3DS. But that doesn't mean that haven't thought about Sony's device. More »

Avengers, roll out! ... Go,go gadget Avengers! ... Avengers, SPOON! Fine, fine, Avengers assemble to check out this trailer and screenshots of the upcoming pinball table from Zen Studios.

The Avenger pinball pack, coming this spring, includes four tables: Marvel's The Avengers, World War Hulk, The Infinity Gauntlet and Fear Itself. World War Hulk was shown off last month. Give us Infinity Gauntlet now!

#gravityrush Raise your hands if Gravity Rush is the reason you got a PlayStation Vita or plan on getting one. Wow, that's a lot of hands! More »

#littlebigplanet "You have to make games for someone you love," says William, "because that way you can imagine who you're making it for. More »

#persona Good news, Japanese game fans! Persona 4 Golden is getting an official Western release. It will be out this fall in North America. More »

#mortalkombat It has occasionally felt like a dirty secret that Mortal Kombat 9 was one of my favorite games of last year. But there it is. It hit just the right blend of punchy violence, imaginative special moves and accessibility, and it got me invested in the (silly) Mortal Kombat universe and its (ridiculous) characters all over again. More »

Nothing can prepare you for this week's nostalgic update on the PlayStation Store ... save for a succinct summary such as this one. Awesomenauts brings a faux-retro flair to the MOBA genre today (for free, if you're a PlayStation Plus subscriber), while Mortal Kombat reduces its depraved fighting to more diminutive form on Vita.

PlayStation Plus subscribers receive some other freebies this week, including Trine 2, Castlevania: Symphony of the Night and Castlevania Chronicles. The PS One Classics lineup is bolstered with The Legend of Dragoon, and moving up a generation to PlayStation 2 gets you the original Max Payne.

Check the PlayStation Blog for a full list of new store items, if you please.