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A hero returns this week in Halo 4...

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#theweekingames Halo 4 isn't the only one coming out of hibernation this week. It's the biggest video game doing so, as you can see by the fact the only other first-run console release is NASCAR The Game: Inside Line Also of note: anthologies for Saints Row: The Third (comprising all DLC) and Mass Effect (all three releases) arrive on Tuesday. Angry Birds Star Wars is another name to look for, on Thursday. More »

This developer video for NBA 2K13 elaborates on the Facebook, Android and iOS apps that expand the game's "My Player" career mode. The initiative, known as NBA 2K Everywhere, allows players to build up their characters' skill ratings through mini-games and unlock collectibles on the go.

Last week, Cave Story's ESRB rating was updated to include new platforms: PS2, PS3, Vita, and Xbox 360 in addition to the existing 3DS, DSi, Wii, and PSP ratings. We contacted developer and publisher Nicalis to determine whether to expect Cave Story on even more platforms than it's already on.

In short, no. The ESRB ratings are not indication of definite plans. "We submitted all the consoles so that we wouldn't have to resubmit in the future," producer Tyrone Rodriguez told Joystiq, "IF [emphasis his] we ever decided to bring to those consoles."

The good news is that you are very likely to already have a platform to play Cave Story on.

Sony made a net loss of ¥15.5 billion ($198 million) in its second fiscal quarter, while its gaming division saw year-on-year declines in profit. The Q2 figure represents year-on-year reduction in loss of 42.6 percent, and improvement from the $312 million loss made in Q1.

Games-wise, the PlayStation division's operating income in Q2 was ¥2.3 billion ($29 million), a year-on-year decline of 23.3 percent. Sony shifted 3.5 million PS3 and PS2 units across the quarter, compared to 4.9 million last year. Vita and PSP sales came in at 1.6 million.

The company has lowered end-year projections of Vita and PSP sales significantly, now down to 10 million from an initial figure of 16 million. In May, Sony CEO Kaz Hirai indicated a fiscal year estimate of 10 million for Vita alone. The PS3 and PS2's combined fiscal-year estimate remains at 16 million.

In contrast, software performance saw slight growth across the quarter. PS3 and PS2 sales rose year-on-year to 41.4 million, up from 40.2 million. Vita and PSP figures also climbed, up from 8.2 million to 8.7 million.

Sly Cooper: Thieves in Time's latest trailer has the thievius raccoonus putting on the best outfit for the job. Pirate garb, Robin Hood-esque green tunics, every infiltration has the right look. The adventure begins February 5, 2013, simultaneously on Vita and PS3.

You can buy all the Assassin's Creed you can handle on PSN today. Both AC3 and Liberation are available for download, separately or in a $120 bundle that also includes the AC3 Season Pass. Need for Speed: Most Wanted is also available digitally, as is Sports Champions 2. And Okami HD is ready to dazzle you with new graphics.

On Vita, along with Assassin's Creed 3 Liberation and Need for Speed, you can download Lego Lord of the Rings, Ragnarok Odyssey, and Smart As. Find the full listings of new releases, DLC, and sales on the PlayStation Blog. There's kind of a ton.

You can buy all the Assassin's Creed you can handle on PSN today. Both AC3 and Liberation are available for download, separately or in a $120 bundle that also includes the AC3 Season Pass. Need for Speed: Most Wanted is also available digitally, as is Sports Champions 2. And Okami HD is ready to dazzle you with new graphics.

On Vita, along with Assassin's Creed 3 Liberation and Need for Speed, you can download Lego Lord of the Rings, Ragnarok Odyssey, and Smart As. Find the full listings of new releases, DLC, and sales on the PlayStation Blog. There's kind of a ton.

PlayStation Mobile gets an infusion of procedurally generated explosions today, with Sixty Second Shooter Deluxe by Happion Laboratories. It's an upgraded version of Sixty Second Shooter, a game that's terribly easy to explain because we can just tell you to go play it for free in Chrome.

Essentially, it's a faster-paced Asteroids style game with a strict time limit. You blow up large cubes into tiny cubes, attempting to keep a combo going, pick up power-ups, and build your score as much as possible in one minute. The $2.79 PlayStation Mobile version adds additional enemies and items, and removes one permissive aspect of the original: death now means game over, not a respawn.

Lego The Lord of the Rings is now available for a handheld fellowship of Vita, 3DS, and DS. It shall not pass onto Xbox 360, PS3, Wii, and PC until November 13.

If you're unsure about blocking it in your holiday purchasing schedule, check out our recent preview of the latest entry in Travellers Tales' Lego-thon.

Need for Speed: Most Wanted is Criterion's second crack at the Need for Speed series, EA's biggest racing brand. Unlike 2010's Need for Speed: Hot Pursuit, Criterion's first shot at the series, Need for Speed: Most Wanted is a game very much rooted in Criterion's past - not EA's.

Need for Speed: Most Wanted is an open-world racer akin to Criterion's last effort for its most well-known series, Burnout: Paradise. Paradise's world felt larger than Most Wanted's city of Fairhaven, but Most Wanted is a more learned execution than Paradise, a game that doesn't take your time for granted and never takes you out of the driver's seat - literally and figuratively.

You may only pay 60 percent of the price this week, but you'll get the whole piece. One Piece Pirate Warriors, the PSN-exclusive mashup of One Piece characters and Dynasty Warriors gameplay, is $29.99 this week for PlayStation Plus members.

The Wonder Boy deals continue as well, with Wonder Boy in Monster World for $1. That's the fourth in the series, if for some reason you have trouble keeping all those Wonder Boy games straight.

Other discounts include half off the WWE 13 "Fan Axxess" pass, and the "complete" DLC set for Vita's Super Monkey Ball: Banana Splitz for just 40 cents.

#hurricanesandy Worried that a power outage might prevent you from playing video games? Worried you might have to do something unimaginable, like talk to other people? More »

Explore the New World one kill at a time with Assassin's Creed 3...

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#theweekingames If Hurricane Sandy doesn't wipe out their releases in the American northeast, Tuesday will see two heavily anticipated arrivals on retail shelves: Assassin's Creed III and the reboot of Need for Speed: Most Wanted. There's also Assassin's Creed: Liberation on the Vita, starring a completely different protagonist. For pro wrestling fans, WWE 13 brings the Attitude Era to life. More »

NIS America is aiming to bring Persona 4 Golden and Hyperdimension Neptunia Victory to Europe on February 22 and March 15 respectively. Though the official release windows for both remain Spring 2013, a PR representative for NIS America confirmed to Joystiq these are the dates being aimed for, and each game will be released "around that time." Official dates will be announced nearer the time, we're told.

Golden, the Persona 4 re-release on Vita, is unlikely to come to Europe in more than a standard release, according to the PR rep. In contrast, North America is getting the Solid Gold limited edition set when the game releases on November 20.

Regarding Victory, the third Hyperdimension Neptunia entry, North America has the same Spring 2013 official release window as Europe. We wouldn't be surprised if the North American date NIS has in mind for the PS3 game is in the same week.

Finally, we learned The Witch and the Hundred Knights "should" also be coming to Europe. The PS3-exclusive action RPG is confirmed as heading to North America, but following its delay in Japan there isn't an official release window for its arrival here. We were told we'd know whether or not it's coming to Europe when the NA release date is announced.

The game features the art style of Takehito Harada, of Disgaea and Phantom Brave fame, which can probably be deduced from the cover art alone. As for what's going on in that cover art, your guess is as good as ours.

Ratchet and Clank: Full Frontal Assault will bare all on PSN November 27 for $19.99. The "fun size" adventure, which is similar in scope to Ratchet and Clank: Quest for Booty, is said to actually have more junk in the trunk than the previous bite-size experiment, according to the PlayStation Blog. It will also be released at retail for the same price.

The Ratchet & Clank Collection, HD updates of the first three PS2 games, launched in late August to celebrate the series' 10th Anniversary, occurring next month. We should also probably note that, in case you never played them, the full-blown Ratchet and Clank PS3 adventures, Tools of Destruction and Crack in Time, are both available at retail for about the same price as this amuse-bouche.

Ratchet and Clank: Full Frontal Assault will bare all on PSN November 27 for $19.99. The "fun size" adventure, which is similar in scope to Ratchet and Clank: Quest for Booty, is said to actually have more junk in the trunk than the previous bite-size experiment, according to the PlayStation Blog.

The Ratchet & Clank Collection, HD updates of the first three PS2 games, launched in late August to celebrate the series' 10th Anniversary, occurring next month. We should also probably note that, in case you never played them, the full-blown Ratchet and Clank PS3 adventures, Tools of Destruction and Crack in Time, are both available at retail for about the same price as this amuse-bouche.

We've seen nearly a dozen games spawned from the revived Lord of the Rings franchise: action games, strategy games, adventure games, RPGs, MMORPGs ... a lengthy list that only grows longer when you take various expansions and add-ons into account.

Next up is Lego The Lord of the Rings from TT Games, a studio that has been pumping out Lego games at a rate of roughly two per year. It makes a certain amount of sense, what with The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey hitting theaters in December 2012. Not to mention the fact that few understand how to navigate a saturated market better than TT Games, which continues to find success with its family-friendly Lego adventures.

Lego The Lord of the Rings appears to take very few chances, based on what we saw during a recent hands-on preview session. All of the familiar bits and bobs work just the way they always have. The backpack-equipped Fellowship can now store an inventory of useful items, but you're still busting up Lego objects, collecting tons of Lego studs, and rolling your eyes at goofy Lego humor.

#japan One of the more noticeable differences between the East and the West is the prevalence of the handheld console. The popularity of handhelds in Japan is fairly understandable. For one thing, the high population density makes open space one of the island country's most precious commodities. Also, the widespread use of public mass transit leads to people having to spend lots of time among strangers in crowded train cars. All this leads to more opportunities to play handheld games in general. That, added with the introverted nature of most Japanese, makes it hardly surprising to me that Japan sells 20 percent more handheld consoles than the US with less than half the population. More »

Command the Third Army in this historic strategy RPG.

#orgarhythm More »

Warfighter. You'll get caught up in the ... Warfighter! Another Day 1 Digital game launches on PS3 today, along with Killzone HD, the Starhawk single-player campaign, and former retail exclusive The Darkness 2.

If you missed them last week because you're not a Plus member, you can now get the free PlayStation All-Stars Battle Royale beta and the less free Unfinished Swan. Perhaps most importantly, the Salaryman character is available in Tokyo Jungle.

On Vita, Street Fighter X Tekken is now available for download, along with the weird (and free) Frobisher Says, Zero Escape: Virtue's Last Reward, and a lot of other stuff. See all the deals on the PlayStation Blog.

When you think about it, this was a predictable step from the creators of last year's "Michael' commercial for PS3. After successfully expressing the thoughts of live-action PlayStation characters, this ad for PS All-Stars Battle Royale shows the time for talking is over. Maybe because the budget was blown on fancy special effects; Nolan North doesn't come cheap, you know.

Though it doesn't quite match the brilliance of last year's ad, it's another imaginative and fun effort for what will hopefully be a game with similar qualities. On a side note, live-action ads seem to be the rage at the moment. Last week Need for Speed: Most Wanted and Halo 4 got their real on, and now All-Stars Battle Royale follows suit. If only Nintendo would join the club.

#persona Here's a new trailer for the Vita remake of Persona 4, which Atlus will release on November 20. Anyone buying a Vita just for this? I'd totally consider it if I didn't have one already. More »

When you think about it, this was a predictable step from the creators of last year's "Michael' commercial for PS3. After successfully expressing the thoughts of live-action PlayStation characters, this ad for PS All-Stars Battle Royale shows the time for talking is over. Maybe because the budget was blown on fancy special effects; Nolan North doesn't come cheap, you know.

While it doesn't quite match the brilliance of last year's ad, it's another imaginative and fun effort for what will hopefully be a game with similar qualities. On a side note, live-action ads seem to be the rage at the moment. Last week Need for Speed: Most Wanted and Halo 4 got their real on, and now All-Stars Battle Royale follows suit. If only Nintendo would follow suit.

Become an elite soldier this week with Medal of Honor: Warfighter...

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Corpse Party, the most surprisingly disturbing PSP game, is getting a sequel in North America this winter, and Europe "shortly thereafter." Corpse Party: Book of Shadows is a collection of eight self-contained scenarios in the Corpse Party universe, also for PSP, and also released exclusively as a download.

"Some of them help fill in the blanks of what happened during crucial off-camera scenes from the original game," XSEED localization specialist Tom Lipschultz said on the PlayStation Blog. "Others go into the back-story of various characters, helping to flesh them out and make their roles in the series mythos a bit clearer. Still others ask 'what if?,' presenting an alternate version of events from the first game in which characters who previously died are kept alive and given a fleeting chance to stay that way." One final chapter acts as a direct sequel to the events in the previous game.

Speaking of the previous game, XSEED is putting Corpse Party on sale for $9.99 for two weeks starting with tomorrow's PS Store update. If you're looking for spooky (Vita-compatible) adventure this Halloween, we recommend it.

#senrankagura Senran Kagura Shinovi Versus is bringing its jiggly ninja to the PS Vita. The 3DS game is getting an upcoming PS Vita title, out next year. While Shinovi Versus starts off a new series, the ridiculous breast motif should be familiar to those who remember the original game. More »

#theweekingames What is this week's biggest release? Is it Forza Horizon or Street Fighter X Tekken on the Vita? Is it The Unfinished Swan or Skylanders Giants? Is it Medal of Honor: Warfighter?. Or is it the game that feeds a land, raises a hard-working generation, and bestows upon a nation the greatness it needs to be ... great. Or something. Whatever, here's this week's list of major releases. More »