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Those that pre-ordered soccer management sim Football Manager 2014 can now access the game's beta version on Steam. Participating in the beta program gives players a head start on developing athletes in their franchises, as all progress made in players' management careers is saved, carrying over to the full version of the game.

Football Manager 2014 includes cross-save support for those that own a copy of the PlayStation Vita version. Additionally, the simulation game will launch for the first time on Linux and come with Steam Workshop support for players to create and share custom roster databases, graphics and skins.

Football Manager 2014 will launch on October 31.

The cross-play update for Dragon's Crown is live. If you purchased Dragon's Crown on either PS3 or PS Vita, you'll find you can now install the update and play on the other system at no extra cost.

Dragon's Crown is a 2D beat-em-up developed by Japanese outfit Vanillaware, the same studio who brought us Muramasa Rebirth. In our review, we said it just might be Vanillaware's best game to date - and "if you're committed to leveling up all six playable classes, you'll be playing Dragon's Crown for a long time to come."

The first episode of Telltale's The Wolf Among Us debuts on PSN today. Knack and Warframe, both PS4 launch games, are up for pre-order today, and there are several new PS3 games and bundles available.

Poker Night 2 is free to all PS Plus subscribers this week, and Valhalla Knights 3 and Angry Birds Trilogy are both up for grabs on PS Vita. Finally, there are several Capcom discounts to take advantage of this week, including deals on Okami HD, Remember Me, and Street Fighter X Tekken.

We get to see our favorite characters in their Halloween garb and on stages with extra spooky themes.

One of the villains hunting the Dark Knight in Batman: Arkham Origins must hate water. Revealed during the game's spotlight panel during this past weekend's New York Comic-Con, the Electrocutioner is one of the super-assassins looking to collect a bounty on Batman's head. It's a safe bet that some of that electrified villain tech will wind up in the shock gloves Batman uses later on in the game.Read more...

Skylanders Swap Force, out today on basically everything, is the week's heavyweight release. We're getting close to hunting season, too, and that means time for another Cabela's game; this one sends you to Africa.Read more...

Hello, PlayStation.Blog readers! I’m delighted to announce Surge Deluxe for PS Vita!

Surge was originally released on PlayStation Mobile and was well received by press and gamers, who took to the leaderboards (and NeoGAF) to show off their skills.

Surge Deluxe is FuturLab’s response to feedback received from top players on those leaderboards (and from the NeoGAF community). They demonstrated a deep understanding and appreciation for Surge that was way beyond anything we could have anticipated!

If you’re new to Surge, check out this trailer for the original game. The simple, block-chaining and screen clearing mechanics gradually reveal their tactical depth as special blocks get added to the mix. Advanced players won’t just vent pressure to stay in the game, they’ll utilize the vents at critical times to multiply their scores and create massive clearance combos.

So what can you expect from Surge Deluxe?

New Combiner Block

Our research has shown that Multiplier blocks are the most sought after for achieving big scores, but they rarely dropped in the right color or at the right time. We’ve removed the color requirement on the Multiplier block now and added a new Combiner block that allows players to create their own Multipliers. If you’re quick and careful enough you can create 5x, 6x, 7x and higher multipliers for use in strategic play!

New Chain Linker Block

The Chain Linker block allows you to connect different colored chains together. Simply connect a chain of blocks to the Chain Linker, and then connect to any other colored block to create a bridge between colors!

The whole chain is converted to the same color so you can use as many of these blocks as you can find to create MASSIVE chains!

Surge Deluxe 100% Color Blind Friendly

I’m color blind and acutely aware of the frustration that comes from trying to discern and match colors in games like Surge. FuturLab received a whole host of requests for a color blind-friendly version of the game, and with Surge Deluxe we’ll deliver just that.

Now each color is represented by a shape, and we’ve made sure that you only have to glance at two blocks to know whether they are a match or not. I’ll have to find another excuse for being beaten on the leaderboards…

Scoring System Reworked

When Surge was created, a score of around 4 million points was the highest FuturLab had achieved internally. When released to the public, the 10 million mark was broken within days.

The posts on NeoGAF from players competing for the top spot changed from talk about tactics and maximizing scores, to discussing the restrictive scoring system. Their feedback was enormously helpful, and we’ve used it to improve gameplay. The scoring system in Surge Deluxe has been redesigned to reward better players, increase the score spread, and remove any grinding. So thanks NeoGAF, this one is for you!

PSN Trophies and Leaderboards

Of course!

We are aiming to launch Surge Deluxe in 2014. You can keep up to date with FuturLab by signing up to the website newsletter, or by following @FuturLab on Twitter.

Thanks!

Curve Studios' "video dream" Proteus will launch this month on PS3 and Vita. The exploration game will include new world creation features on the Sony platforms. Players can generate their worlds using the Vita's location-tracking option and by using the current date on both PS3 and Vita. Also, players will have the chance to "remix" their worlds by using the Vita's back touch panel, and can still let the game randomly create their pixelated dreamscape.

Proteus first launched on PC and Mac in January. For those that can't wait for the PS3 and Vita versions, it is available on both Steam and DRM-free through the game's official site DRM-free for $10.

Square Enix has finally pinned a release date on Final Fantasy X and X-2 HD Remaster - in Japan, that is. The Vita and PS3 games just sneak in before the end of the year, hitting retail shelves across the country on December 26.

We'd like to think this means a western date is forthcoming. It's been a two-year wait to return to Spira, and the remakes are pinned to arrive on western shelves later this year. Surely it can't be much longer before we can laugh with Tidus again?

There's one other bit of news from Japan's announcement, and it's good news. Over there, Square Enix is releasing a twin-pack of the two separately packaged Vita cartridges of X and X-2, and it's priced the same as the single-disc PS3 version. Again, hopefully we'll see that same sense reflected when the remasters head west.

Before or after? Sure, what the hey. During? Nooooo. The intro sequence to a video game sets both the stage and the tone of what's to come, and Sen no Kiseki does it in a bad way.Read more...

Japanese Vita and PS3 players can now buddy up in Dragon's Crown, after Vanillaware added cross-play between the two platforms. The update looks to be restricted to Japan at the mo, so we've reached out to Atlus to see if it's headed for North America.

Cross-play for Dragon's Crown also came to Europe ... except it didn't, really. Just after Atlus' announcement about Japan we received a letter of apology from NIS America, the company that brought the game to PAL regions earlier this month. We'll let the letter do the talking, as written by Marketing Manager Ryan Phillips. "We wanted to let you know that there has been a printing error with the initial run of the PS Vita retail packaging for Dragon's Crown in the European/Australian regions. The back of the packaging indicates that the game supports Cross-platform Play with the PlayStation(R)3 console. However, this information is incorrect. The game supports cross-save functionality only. We sincerely apologize for any inconveniences this printing error may cause." For the record, NIS America didn't have any news to share with us about European or Australian versions getting the cross-play update. We suspect Atlus' announcement came as something of a surprise.

Disgaea D2: A Brighter Darkness headlines this week's PlayStation Store offering, which is bolstered by PS3 downloads of Sniper Elite V2, Just Dance 2014 and F1 2013. Atomic Ninjas, a cross-buy multiplayer brawler for PS3 and PS Vita, also drops on PSN alongside Worms Revolution Extreme and PS2 classic Heavenly Guardian.

There are also two game bundles up for grabs: A Dishonored Game of the Year bundle, which includes a smattering of DLC, and Dust 514: Tactical Edition, a version of the free-to-play shooter that tosses in some additional perks and gear.

Finally, PlayStation Plus members can download a free copy of Shadow of the Colossus this week, and try to make it through another year without its proposed follow-up, The Last Guardian.

When Xbox 360 launched the current generation of consoles in 2005, it was all alone on the market for a full year. But if Sony stuck to its original plans for PlayStation 3, Xbox 360 would have had some immediate competition.

Capcom announced today that it will publish Hitbox Team's custodial platformer Dustforce for the Xbox 360, PlayStation 3, and PS Vita in January.

Originally released for Windows in 2012, Dustforce is a side-scrolling platformer starring an acrobatic janitor who must scale walls, chain attacks, and air-dash across deadly chasms as he tidies up his surroundings. The game demands both precision platforming and an eye for cleanliness -- players can progress only after they have swept up piles of leaves scattered throughout each level.

The PlayStation 3 and PS Vita editions of Dustforce will be bundled together as a Cross-Buy release, and both will feature Cross-Play support. The Vita version also includes an ad-hoc multiplayer mode, while the PS3 gets an exclusive replay save feature. Dustforce will be priced at $9.99.

Learn what Telltale Games is bringing to a Big Bad Wolf that curses, and where the studio is with The Walking Dead: Season 2.

PlayStation Vita owners will receive a PlayStation 4 companion app after installing the portable's next firmware update, Sony Computer Entertainment's Worldwide Studios President Shuhei Yoshida revealed via Twitter.

The "PS4 Link" app will head up Sony's planned expansion within the mobile marketplace, which Yoshida detailed last week. A similar app will be released for iOS and Android devices at the PlayStation 4's launch.

Originally announced as "PlayStation App," Sony's mobile utility will give users access to supplementary material during gameplay, similar to Microsoft's SmartGlass initiative for the Xbox One. PlayStation App also allows users to purchase content online, browse status updates from friends, and watch streamed gameplay from a linked PlayStation 4 console.

Injustice: Gods Among Us Ultimate Edition, which includes last year's critically acclaimed fighter and all its downloadable content, will smash retail walls on November 12 and 29 in the Americas and Europe, respectively.

The super-powered spectacle is priced at $59.99 for PS3, Xbox 360 and PS4, $49.99 for PC and $39.99 for Vita. And yes, you saw that right: a PlayStation 4 version but nothing for Xbox One. Curious.

The extra DLC, valued at over $120 according to publisher Warner Bros., includes Lobo, Batgirl, General Zod, Martian Manhunter, Zatanna and Jim Lee's reimagined Scorpion from Mortal Kombat. There are also 40 more character skins, 60 S.T.A.R. Labs Missions and - for American copies - a soundtrack to boot.

Warner Bros' superhero-stuffed fighting game is getting one of those fancy collector's editions and a whole bunch of new platforms: Injustice: Gods Among Us will come to Vita, PS4, and PC on November 12. (November 29 in Europe.)Read more...

This week's big news is Beyond: Two Souls, the PS3 exclusive from Quantic Dream, on Tuesday, and Pokémon X and Pokémon Y on Saturday. Not interested in those? Some collections and GOTY editions—including Farming Simulator 2013 Titanium Edition!—round out the releases.Read more...

Borderlands 2's upcoming Loot Hunt competition will give you a shot at earning in-game and real-life prizes as you mow down the inhabitants of Pandora. Once players register at the event's site, they can enter themselves in the raffle by hunting Daily Targets within the game starting on October 11.

The prize pool will include loot chests filled with Nvidia Shield and Falcon Northwest Tiki PC combos, Nvidia GeForce GTX 660 Ti GFX cards, PlayStation Vitas with copies of Borderlands 2 Vita (once it's released), and lifetime passes to everything 2K ever has and will put out on Steam. One player will also win $50,000 in cash while four others earn scaled amounts from a second pool of $50,000.

If you don't win a physical prize, you'll still have a collective chance with other players at "unique in-game loot" by completing the loot hunt's Community Goals. The event's site describes these as daily campaigns of genocide against "a special type of enemy with that day's unique gun." If enough are slaughtered in the name of personal benefit, those involved will earn a special gun at the end of the week.

Only players in the US are eligible for the physical rewards, but the in-game rewards will be available to vault hunters worldwide.

Sony Worldwide Studios president Shuhei Yoshida notes that the iOS App Store and Google Play have "totally shifted our way of thinking," detailing the company's plans for mobile cross-promotion in a recent interview with GamesIndustry International.

"Lots of people don't seek out game-specific info -- they're busy," Yoshida explains. "But because they use social network services, App Stores... Let's push our info to them. That's why we are creating the hook, releasing the official PlayStation apps on Android and iOS at the launch of PS4."

Yoshida cites specific plans the company has in mind for the PlayStation 4 launch title Knack.

"We're releasing a puzzle game themed around Knack that you can play for free," Yoshida said. "It's fun, and by playing the game you earn some items that you can use on PS4. People might be motivated, because they've already unlocked some items, to take a look at what this Knack game on the PS4 is all about."

Keiji Inafune of Mega Man Mighty No. 9 and Soul Sacrifice fame is a man full of opinions. And today, you're going to hear his opinion on Rain. Rain? Yes, Rain.Read more...

Multiplayer brawl-'em-up Atomic Ninjas is on its way to the PlayStation 3 and PS Vita via PSN on October 8, developer Grip Games revealed today.

Announced earlier this year, Atomic Ninjas is a competitive platformer in which players must use trickery and trappery to murder their opponents. Direct attacks won't damage enemy ninjas - you'll need to use environmental hazards and power-ups in order to lead your friends to their doom, putting a unique spin on the proceedings. The game offers a variety of local and online multiplayer modes, along with a bot-based single-player story mode.

North American players will need lots of practice to keep up with the online competition next week, as Atomic Ninjas launches today in Europe.

Sony has issued its latest PlayStation Store update today, headlined by NBA 2K14. Sony's Japan Studio makes a splash with Rain today as well, and Fatal Frame 3 scares up a spot in the PS2 Classics section.

PS Plus subscribers can transport themselves to the kingdoms of Amalur this week with a free PS3 download of Reckoning. Discounts have been extended to select THQ games such as Darksiders 2 and Red Faction: Armageddon, as well as Rocksmith and Persona 4: Golden. Finally, rounding out this week's offerings is the chance to be Ellen Page in a free demo for Beyond: Two Souls.

Cosmic Star Heroine is a blatant homage to 90s-era roleplaying games with one key difference: Instead of playing the part of a plucky young boy cast into epic adventure, players assume the role of blue-haird secret agent Alyssa L'Salle.

"Alyssa L'Salle is one of the galactic government's top agents and always manages to save the day," states the game's official plot description. "But when she accidentally uncovers a dark conspiracy, her own government outs her as a legendary spy and the people's champion!"

"Sure, now she has hordes of adoring fans but every villainous organization she's ever crossed in her career knows who she is and is out for her blood! Can she save the day once more while she faces her greatest challenge... Everyone!?"

Developer Zeboyd Games is best known as the studio behind the third and fourth installments of Penny Arcade's On The Rain-Slick Precipice Of Darkness. With 29 days remaining in Zeboyd's Kickstarter effort, the game has attracted $7,075 of its $100,000 goal. Assuming this fundraising drive is successful, Cosmic Star Heroine is slated to make its debut on the PC, Mac, PlayStation 4 and Vita platforms at some as yet undetermined point in the future.

Vlambeer (Super Crate Box, Ridiculous Fishing) has changed the name of its upcoming project from Wasteland Kings to Nuclear Throne. Beyond being a better name, Wasteland Kings had the potential of getting confused with inXile Entertainment's Wasteland 2 and even Tribute Games' Mercenary Kings. In fact, inXile politely reached out to note the possible confusion.

"We've been through a lot of trouble with people riding on things of ours, and we understand that American trademark law is pretty strict in that not defending a trademark weakens it," wrote Vlambeer founder Rami Ismail on the studio's site. "Although we aren't sure Wasteland Kings and Wasteland are confusing enough for this to be an issue, both us and InXile really don't want to spend development time on arguing over trivialities."

As noted, Vlambeer has had its share of intellectual property issues, most famously for having Ridiculous Fishing cloned, with a similar incident happening again with the studio's Luftrausers.

Vlambeer is livestreaming the development of Nuclear Throne to give greater transparency to the development process. Nuclear Throne is planned for PS4 and VIta in the future, but is scheduled to be available as part of Steam Early Access and Humble Store in early October for $12.99.

The week's big console launches are NBA 2K14, also arriving for PC, on Tuesday followed by the physical HD release of The Legend of Zelda: The Wind Waker on Wii U on Friday.Read more...

Journey through a haunting city soaked in rain, or blaze across the courts with a cheering crowd in your ear — this week greets a number of thrilling new releases joining the PlayStation family.

In Rain, gamers will explore the streets, alleys, and awnings of a haunting city saturated by rain. As an invisible boy, players must use the rain around them to perceive their small hero running through the world, pursuing a similarly ghostly girl, while avoiding a malevolent force. Rain blends this adventure together with unique puzzles to create a wholly original experience.

But if you’d rather go hard and go loud, perhaps NBA 2K14 will be your preferred game for the week. The next entry in the long-running series, NBA 2K14 aims to bring you the best basketball you can find in gaming. Witness the return of the multiplayer Crew mode, the inclusion of Euroleague, a dynamic living roster, and a killer soundtrack.

PlayStation will also enjoy the arrival of another PS2 classic in the form of Fatal Frame III: The Tormented. Prepare to sleep with the lights on.

For a full list of games launching this week, check below, and enjoy The Drop.

New PlayStation Releases This Week Atelier Meruru Plus: The Apprentice of Arland Vita, PSN The colorful JRPG comes to Vita. Craft items, battle your enemies, and develop your nation of Arls as Princess Meruru. Expect to learn a lot about alchemy, too. Die!Die!Die! Vita, PSN Plunge into the human body and eliminate all the viruses, disease, and infections you can with PS Vita’s touchscreen. Fatal Frame III: The Tormented PS2 Classic, PSN Explore a cursed manor in this chilling horror game where your camera is your best chance at survival. Flashback PS3, PSN A modern remake of the 90′s platformer classic. Relive the sci-fi narrative and help Conrad save the human race. NBA 2K14 PS3, PSN, Retail The famed basketball series continues with Pro Stick control, improved player motion, and tons of upgrades. Pro Foosball PS3, PSN Bring the fun of a foosball table into your living room, and take up way less space in the process. Party-friendly play, with local multiplayer support. Rain PS3, PSN Traverse the rainy streets of a dark city in search of answers. Guide an invisible young boy, and avoid the dangers lurking beneath the drops. Skydive: Proximity Flight PS3, PSN Take flight and soar above sprawling environments, with only your wingsuit keeping you aloft in this basejumping, extreme sports simulator. Demos

• Beyond: Two Souls
• Flashback

Editor’s Note: the information above is subject to change without notice.

Sony revealed next month's PlayStation Plus lineup for North America, announcing that subscribers will receive free access to Dennatron's indie hit Hotline Miami and 38 Studios' action-RPG Kingdoms of Amalur: Reckoning, among other featured games.

October's free PlayStation 3 offerings include Reckoning, Telltale Games' Poker Night at the Inventory 2, and an HD remake of Shadow of the Colossus, pairing it with September's PS Plus release of Ico.

Hotline Miami joins PlayStation Plus as a Cross-Buy title, giving members free access to both the PlayStation 3 and PS Vita versions of the game. PlayStation Vita owners will also receive a free copy of the acclaimed shoot-'em-up Sine Mora as part of next month's PlayStation Plus lineup.

Sony previously announced that Far Cry 3, Dragon's Dogma: Dark Arisen, Giana Sisters: Twisted Dreams, Street Fighter x Tekken, and Touch My Katamari will join the PlayStation Plus program in Europe next month.

Japanese publisher Kadokawa Games launched a new trailer showcasing Natural Doctrine, a strategy-RPG slated for release as a PlayStation 4 launch title in Japan.

Outed as a member of the PS4's launch lineup earlier this month, Natural Doctrine is a turn-based strategy game in which battles take a traditional grid-based approach. Famitsu notes that the game features both a single-player campaign mode and a multiplayer component in which players send enemy creatures to do their bidding.

Natural Doctrine will also launch for the PlayStation 3 and PS Vita in Japan in February. A North American release has not been announced.