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#playstationstoreupdate This week, Ubisoft Shanghai's I Am Alive finally comes to the PlayStation 3, which is cool. I liked that game, as did Tina in her review—it's its own thing, and worthy of your time. More »

You won't need plastic instruments to jam along to Harmonix's latest Rock Band game. Revealed on G4 today, Rock Band Blitz turns players into a one-man band, making them play all the instruments with a gamepad in a song in an arcade-style experience that harkens back to the dev studio's Frequency and Amplitude games. More »

#playstationstoreupdate Sony's "Spring Fever" promotion comes to an end this week with the IGF award-winning (and very cool looking) Closure releasing as a downloadable game, as as Fifa 2012 coming as a full downloadable game for the PS3. More »

#playstationstoreupdate A sizable update for the PlayStation store, as new Vita content continues to roll out. But who am I kidding? The coolest thing on the store is ThatGameCompany's highly anticipated (and seriously splendid) new downloadable game Journey. More »

#playstationstoreupdate Things have settled down a bit at the PlayStation store after the Vita-Bonanza of the last few weeks. This week, we've got a few new demos for Vita games, along with full-game downloads of Deus Ex: Human Revolution, Storm, and the new Move game Medieval Moves: Deadmund's Quest. More »

#awards Last year, Sony piloted their PSN Gamers' Choice Awards, and they apparently liked the results enough to repeat the endeavor this year. More »

#playstationstoreupdate The PS Vita rollout continues with another stacked week of new digital content at the PlayStation store. Vita owners get access to all manner of stuff, from a few free augmented reality games to apps for Netflix, Flickr and Twitter, demos for a few more titles, and several new digital-only games including Plants vs. Zombies, Hustle Kings and the (highly enjoyable!) Tales From Space: Mutant Blobs Attack! More »

On-rails arcade shooter House of the Dead 3 is coming to the PlayStation Network on Valentine's Day, according to the official Sega blog. Just in time for you and your sweetheart to blow apart a few zombie heads, the game will be available for $6.99. For the next two weeks following its release, a free avatar will be included with purchase, making it a little like getting a Kit Kat bar with your very own Whitman's Sampler.

PlayStation Plus members have an even better deal: They'll be able to get House of the Dead 3 for 30% off until February 28, and will also get an exclusive theme and a few more avatars with the title. And starting today, PS Plus members can download the demo of the game, an exclusive that lasts until February 21.

As part of Sony's efforts to phase out the Qriocity brand and replace it with the all-encompassing Sony Entertainment Network, Sony will be phasing out the term "PlayStation Network account" and will instead be using "Sony Entertainment Network account," beginning next Wednesday, February 8.

The change, however, is purely cosmetic. Your account will still function in an identical fashion and it will not be necessary to change your username or password; the PSN itself remains unaltered.

"The goal is for there to be one networked log-in for all Sony services," a Sony spokesperson told us after news of the switch made its way to neoGAF. "Changing the name 'PlayStation Network account' to 'Sony Entertainment Network account' helps clarify the unity between PSN and other Sony Entertainment Network services." The change does not apply to the PSP, so users will still see "PlayStation Network account" when logging on with that device.

There've been betas and release date push-backs but the game that lets you be a violent devotee of Batman or his crazy archenemy will finally hit platforms next week. The downloadable FPS will be available on February 7 for PlayStation Network and Windows PC users in the Americas and on February 8 for PSN users outside of the the Americas. The Xbox Live version comes out on February 8th as well. Gotham City Impostors. More »

Susan Panico is no longer Sony's North American PlayStation Network Senior Director, a title she's held for the past five years -- basically since the launch of PSN in November 2006. Since then, PSN has garnered more than 77 million users worldwide, introduced PlayStation Plus, and now offers original content, TV shows, movies and even games.

Panico oversaw the implementation of all these features, consistently emphasizing the larger entertainment scope of PSN and attempting to expand its audience base with original programming such as PULSE and The Tester.

Panico also ran damage control during 2011's PSN hack, after which Sony gave away free games and a massive amount of apologies.

Sony Computer Entertainment America's Patrick Seybold confirmed Panico's departure, but there is no word yet on a replacement or Panico's own future plans.

The ESRB has rated crime epics Grand Theft Auto 3 and Vice City for the PlayStation 3. Considering the blockbuster third entry in the series is available on iOS and Android, word of it coming to the PS3 isn't the craziest news we've heard about the classic title in recent memory.

The third entry in the GTA3 series, Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas, still doesn't have a PS3 listing from the ESRB, so we aren't sure if it's just cruisin' in later for a drive-by or not part of what's likely Rockstar adding the two other titles to PSN for digital distribution. Of course, if you own a first-gen PS3, your system is backwards-compatible and should have no issue playing the original PlayStation 2 discs (chances are you already own them).

The PlayStation Network will undergo "routine scheduled maintenance" today from 8AM until 9PM Pacific (that's 11AM to Midnight for those on the Atlantic).

#playstationstoreupdate Some good stuff in this week's PlayStation store update. We've got full-game downloads for a number of solid titles, including Crysis 2, Rainbow Six: Vegas, and individual downloads for the HD versions of both Ico and Shadow of the Colossus. That latter one, in particular, is certainly worth $20, even if you played it on PS2. More »

After the 2011 holiday spending frenzy, many folks may find themselves in a period of early 2012 belt-tightening. If you'd like to make those gaming dollars stretch a bit further, you might want to check out the PSN 12 for '12 sale, as in "12 games for 2012" (hence the apostrophe). The list includes plenty of favorites like PixelJunk SideScroller, Dungeon Defenders, Bloodrayne: Betrayal, Rochard, Street Fighter III: Third Strike Online Edition and many more.

From January 17 through 23, each game will be available for 30 percent off its usual price. Meanwhile, PlayStation Plus subscribers can nab any game on the list for a full 50 percent off. Check out the full list of available titles after the break.

If the PlayStation 3 marked your introduction to the Killzone series, it looks like you'll finally get a shot at trying the original. After spotting a listing for the first Killzone on the ESRB, Game Informer has confirmed with Sony that the 2005 Helghast extermination simulator is indeed headed to PSN. The title will be a port of the original PlayStation 2 Killzone, so we wouldn't expect any extra bells or whistles.
Killzone will hit PSN on January 24 for $10.

#playstationstoreupdate Plenty of updates as usual to the PlayStation online store, with full downloadable games Choplifter HD, Crazy Machines Elements, Toy Story 3: The Video Game (There's a Toy Story 3 video game? Hmm.), as well as the earlier-than-expected demo for Capcom's Asura's Wrath. More »

Folks looking to re-visit where Square's big-deal JRPG franchise started—or encounter it for the first time—can do so today. Final Fantasy Origins bundles the first two Final Fantasy games in a downloadable package that can be had for $9.99 on the PlayStation Network. More »

#scarygirl Borne out of mishmash of Eastern European fairytales, pop art and fatherhood, Nathan Jurevicius' Scarygirl's one of those indie art success stories that manages to warm the coldest of hearts. Scarygirl started off as cartoon strips chronicling the the adventures of a monstrously adorable girl who washes up on a remote peninsula as she tries to hunt down the man who haunts her dreams. It's since become a graphic novel, a series of collectible vinyl toys and a Flash game (which Luke Plunkett loved when he played it a while back). There's a feature film reportedly in the works, too. More »

#playstationstoreupdate It's slim pickings this week for new additions to the PlayStation store, with a full-game download of the often-overlooked but quite enjoyable Darksiders leading the way for full retail releases. Rock Band 3 gets some good-times pop rock tunes, and Rocksmith gets a whole bunch of Black Keys DLC, which I would imagine is a lot like Jimi Hendrix DLC only not quite as good. (Zing!) More »

#playstationstoreupdate While the final PlayStation Store update of 2011 might not be the overstuffed smorgasbord of new content Sony fans are used to, it makes up for its short stature with the star power of Sam Fisher and the Stranger. More »

#asuraswrath They crank out a lot of Street Fighter and Resident Evil but Capcom also has a history of putting out weird, unique games like Okami, God Hand and Viewtiful Joe. Rageaholic adventure Asura's Wrath seems to follow in the legacy of such idiosyncratic games. We've written a bit about the mythological sci-fi action brawler, but those of you curious about what it plays like only have to wait a little longer to sample it. More »

#playstationstoreupdate This week on the PlayStation store, the pickings are slimmer for new games than they've been, but there is still some fun stuff to be found. Alice: Madness Returns arrives as a downloadable game, with a full-game trial for PlayStation Plus users. Rocksmith owners will have a chance to download some killer Megadeth tracks, which is never a bad thing, and there are a whole grip of game videos (yay!) to tide you over through the holidays, including the trailer for Naughty Dog's just-announced The Last of Us, which beats trying to watch it on YouTube. More »

#playstationstoreupdate This week on the PlayStation store, we've got new full-game downloads for Dragon Age II and Need For Speed: Hot Pursuit, as well as the PSN game Wanted Corp. Plenty of games get DLC content, including Batman: Arkham City, which gives purchasers all of the skins that were initially offered as various pre-order bonuses. (Including the Batman Beyond skin, which I believe makes you 45% more attractive while playing.) More »

As promised, EA and DICE are delivering Battlefield 3's first expansion, "Back to Karkand" in December, though today we learned from the Battlefield blog that there's a specific date: December 6. Given that all of Battlefield 3's expansions will arrive one week early on PlayStation 3, the Xbox 360 and PC versions of said DLC won't arrive until December 13.

If you've missed the variety of videos showcasing Back to Karkand, the pack is comprised of four maps from previous Battlefield games, all remade in Battlefield 3's "Frostbite 2.0" game engine. Put more simply: there's gonna be a few more places to murder folks online, as well as a variety of new vehicles with which to do so.

The pack will be free for folks who picked up the "Limited Edition" version of BF3 at launch, and will cost $15 for the have-nots.

#playstationstoreupdate After last week's big fall sale, this week's PlayStation Store update is a bit more chilled out. A full-game download of Sly Cooper Collection is now available for $29.99, or you can download any of the three Sly Cooper games included in the collection for $9.99 each. Gonna have to play one of those, finally. More »

#playstationstoreupdate This week, Sony has begun its fall sale at the PlayStation Store, with oodles of discounts on all manner of games, add-on, theme, and bundle. Notable new full games include Call of Duty: Modern Warfare for just $20 as well as the just-released Ratchet & Clank: All 4 One. The Robin DLC for Batman: Arkham City is also now available, and hopefully more substantive than the Nightwing DLC released a few weeks back. More »

#motorstorm The next MotorStorm won't take place in the Pacific Rim or during an apocalypse; instead it's a shrunken down version of the game, now starring remote controlled vehicles played on the PS Vita or as a Playstation Network download. More »

As prognosticated by the ESRB, Darkstalkers is indeed headed to PlayStation Network. Capcom has confirmed that its monster-infused fighter should arrive on PSN later this month, with the release currently slated for November 29.

Readers may remember that the road to Marvel vs. Capcom 3 was paved with downloadable releases of Marvel vs. Capcom 2. We've said before that this PSN release probably doesn't mark the beginning of a Darkstalkers revival, but there's always hope.

A quick reminder for all the PS3 players out there: PlayStation Network will be down for maintenance for most of today. Account management, account registration and the PlayStation Store will all be unavailable during the maintenance. PS Blog does note that "some users may be able to play online during the maintenance," presumably those who were signed into the network before the maintenance began.

PSN should be back online by 10pm Pacific (1am Eastern) tonight.