Sony placing PS3 slim manufacturing orders for delivery in July?

July 1st, 2009, 17:39 Posted By: wraggster

We haven't heard much about the PS3 slim since E3, but that doesn't mean it's been entirely quiet out there -- the hot rumor today is that Sony's signed manufacturing agreements with both Foxconn and Pegatron to build the revised model in time for July delivery. That much we believe, since it's been backed up by a couple different credible reports, but here's where it gets totally insane: there's a suggestion that the slim will be the last PS3 model of this generation, and that a next-gen console based on Sony's motion controller is due in spring 2010. We don't buy that at all, since the PS3 is just entering its prime and Sony was clear that the motion controller was for the existing console, so we think this rumor is getting garbled down the wire -- it's far more likely that the slim is being prepped for an August launch to coincide with those rumored price cuts, and that new PS3 bundles that include the motion controller are set to drop next year. That's just our take on the matter, though -- we'll see how things shake out.

http://www.engadget.com/2009/06/30/s...ivery-in-july/

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BD+ Resealed Once Again

July 1st, 2009, 18:25 Posted By: wraggster

It's been a few months since we last checked in on how the Blu-Ray group was doing in their fight against piracy. In December 2008, a new generation of BD+ programs had stopped both SlySoft AnyDVD HD and the open source effort at Doom9. At the start of January, SlySoft released an update that could handle the new BD+ programs, meaning that Blu-Ray discs could not be decrypted for a period of time about the same length as SlySoft's worst case scenario. The BD+ retaliation was swift, but largely ineffective, consisting of a unique program for every Blu-Ray master. Users had to upload log files to SlySoft for every new movie/region. They would then support that unique variant in their next update, usually released a few days later. Despite that, the open source effort never did manage to progress beyond the Winter 2008 programs and is currently stalled completely; SlySoft is the only group remaining. This situation remained for several months, but starting around the same time as Paramount joined Fox in licensing BD+, a new set of programs came out which have once again made Blu-Ray discs unrippable. There are currently 19 movies that cannot be decrypted. It appears neither side is able to decisively gain the upper hand, but one thing seems clear — only full-time, for-profit professionals are able to consistently beat BD+.

http://it.slashdot.org/story/09/07/0...led-Once-Again

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Sega sees "land grab" opportunity with new motion controllers

July 1st, 2009, 18:42 Posted By: wraggster

Sega has said that there's a real opportunity for the publisher to make a "land grab" in the newly emerging motion controller space, ahead of rival companies.

According to European development MD Gary Dunn, the company already has extensive gestural gaming experience through its success on Nintendo's Wii, which can quickly be built upon for new products for Sony's PlayStation 3 wand and Microsoft's Project Natal.

"Being the largest third-party publisher on Wii we obviously have good gestural experience so for us I can see an opportunity to get a land grab on some of our competitors by taking our head start in gestural gaming and evolving it," said Dunn in an exclusive interview published today.

"I was blown away by it, both systems offer us so many opportunities to do great things with videogames," said Dunn of the competing technology unveiled at E3 for the first time this year.

"I immediately now want to make another Virtua Tennis. There's so many games and possibilities. I want to go away and lock myself in a dark room with some of our cleverest chaps and see what we can do with it. We've got to look in different directions to almost throw history away and it requires a whole new way of thinking. We've got to ask what can we do with this, because completely different genres of games could open up."

Dunn sees two immediate opportunities – apply the motion technology to existing franchises and genres, or throw out the rule book and build products from scratch for the systems.

But he also noted that along with three home consoles comes three separate motion control technologies, increasing workload and requiring new development solutions.

"It's going to be an issue but it comes down to how we deal with it. It's too early to say what those issues might be.

"There are two possible routes. You can opt to design a system around commonality so you have efficiency when you grow out your game design across platforms, or you can develop a different development process for each system," he concluded.

http://www.gamesindustry.biz/article...on-controllers

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PS3 Slim manufacturing contracts signed - report

July 1st, 2009, 18:45 Posted By: wraggster

Taiwanese website UDN is reporting that Sony has signed production contracts to begin manufacturing a new model 'PS3 Slim'.

Companies Foxconn and Pegatron are working towards delivery of the remodelled system for July, says the report, translated by Engadget.

Earlier this week, a report suggested that Sony will introduce a slim PlayStation 3 this August, along with price cuts on low-end hardware.

The PS3 Slim is expected to be a redesigned, smaller home console, with only marginal technical changes, similar to cosmetic changes made to the PlayStation 2 and the PSP Slim & Lite.

http://www.gamesindustry.biz/article...-signed-report

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Uncharted 2 will get another MP demo

July 1st, 2009, 19:00 Posted By: wraggster

Naughty Dog co-president Evan Wells has promised another Uncharted: Among Thieves multiplayer demo before the game's autumn launch - a date for which we'll have "very soon".

"Yes, we're going to have another multiplayer demo before the game hits shelves," said Wells during a live chat on the US PlayStation blog. "The exact timing isn't finalised yet, but it should be available to an even wider group this time, so if you missed the last one I don't think you'll have any problem getting in this one."

And there is still plenty left to test, as Wells said many more competitive and co-operative multiplayer modes will make the final cut.

"We haven't announced all of the multiplayer modes yet, but I can tell you that you have several more competitive modes than we tested in the beta and at least two more co-operative modes (that are actually some of my favourites)," he said.

"We also have variations on all the competitive modes that focus on specific kinds of weapons," added Wells, name-dropping the Cinema mode that allows match-recordings to be stored, uploaded and shared.

On top of the multiplayer, Wells revealed that Uncharted 2: Among Thieves will feature a longer single-player campaign than Drake's Fortune, which we thought was excellent anyway.

"The single-player campaign is definitely going to be longer than Uncharted: Drake's Fortune," offered Wells. "We have over 90 minutes of cinematics alone!"

And, added Wells, "We were very conscious to make sure that Uncharted 2 was a standalone experience. There is no expectation that you played the first game to enjoy the second." Although, he said, there will be some returning characters to meet such as Elena and Sully.

Naughty Dog's movie approach to making Uncharted resulted in the announcement of a big-screen adaptation last week. This will be lead by Marvel bosses Avi and Ari Arad.

"We're really excited about the development of Uncharted: Drake's Fortune as a movie," said creative director Amy Hennig. "We've been working with Arad Productions for the last year-and-a-half or so, and couldn't be happier about their enthusiasm for the project."

http://www.eurogamer.net/articles/un...nother-mp-demo

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Vandal Hearts for PSN/XBLA this winter

July 1st, 2009, 19:00 Posted By: wraggster

Konami plans to release Vandal Hearts: Flames of Judgement on PSN and XBLA this winter.

This is a revival and prequel to the turn-based tactical RPG series that began years ago on PSone - 1997, if you're asking. The story follows Tobias Martin, a young man caught in the middle of a war. He and his friends fight for peace, apparently, and revenge - but have an uphill struggle ahead of them.

Flames of Judgement will have better presentation and a more accessible interface, plus multiple endings and a deep character customisation portion, which develops certain skills the more they are used, says Konami.

There's no word on price.

http://www.eurogamer.net/articles/va...la-this-winter

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Hunt monsters in Namco Bandai's 'God Eater'

July 1st, 2009, 19:07 Posted By: wraggster

Famitsu scans have revealed the God Eater project whose title was trademarked by Namco Bandai a couple of months ago. It's a multiplayer action game for PSP that appears aimed at the Monster Hunter market (which, let's be honest, every Japanese developer probably should be trying to do on the PSP). God Eater trades out the fantasy setting of Monster Hunter for a more futuristic, industrial venue. It features a mix of mythical creatures and big, robotic monsters.

According to Siliconera, God Eater will be out this fall in Japan. The existence of that US trademark suggests that the company will be releasing it here as well.

http://www.joystiq.com/2009/07/01/hu...ais-god-eater/

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428 Breaks Wii Barricade, Escapes To PSP And PS3

July 1st, 2009, 19:18 Posted By: wraggster

Chunsoft’s is porting their critically acclaimed sound novel 428: Fusasareta Shibuya de to the PlayStation 3 and PSP. In 428 players are locked in Shibuya and switch characters to solve a mystery behind a kidnapping.

Famitsu broke the news about the port, which is scheduled to come out in Japan this September. 428 was first released on the Wii in December 2008. This isn’t the first sound novel port from Chunsoft. Last year, the PlayStation 3 game Imabikisou and its creepy eye was ported to the Wii.

The most interesting detail about the port is Sega isn’t handling it. Sega published Imabikisou and the Wii version of 428 in Japan. Spike, notable for the Way of the Samurai games and handling 2K Sports titles in Japan, will publish 428 on PlayStation platforms.

Since Sega isn’t involved there’s a small very small chance 428 could get localized as a downloadable PSP or PlayStation 3 game. Capcom, UFO Interactive, and Atlus are some of the publishers that localized Spike’s games for North America. Atlus also has a relationship with Chunsoft from Shiren the Wanderer.

http://www.siliconera.com/2009/07/01...o-psp-and-ps3/

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428 Breaks Wii Barricade, Escapes To PSP And PS3

July 1st, 2009, 19:18 Posted By: wraggster

Chunsoft’s is porting their critically acclaimed sound novel 428: Fusasareta Shibuya de to the PlayStation 3 and PSP. In 428 players are locked in Shibuya and switch characters to solve a mystery behind a kidnapping.

Famitsu broke the news about the port, which is scheduled to come out in Japan this September. 428 was first released on the Wii in December 2008. This isn’t the first sound novel port from Chunsoft. Last year, the PlayStation 3 game Imabikisou and its creepy eye was ported to the Wii.

The most interesting detail about the port is Sega isn’t handling it. Sega published Imabikisou and the Wii version of 428 in Japan. Spike, notable for the Way of the Samurai games and handling 2K Sports titles in Japan, will publish 428 on PlayStation platforms.

Since Sega isn’t involved there’s a small very small chance 428 could get localized as a downloadable PSP or PlayStation 3 game. Capcom, UFO Interactive, and Atlus are some of the publishers that localized Spike’s games for North America. Atlus also has a relationship with Chunsoft from Shiren the Wanderer.

http://www.siliconera.com/2009/07/01...o-psp-and-ps3/

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PSP/PS3 to Take 31% of all Software Sold

July 1st, 2009, 19:32 Posted By: wraggster

Although Wedbush Morgan analyst, Michael Pachter, predicts PS2 will become somewhat irrelevant in 2009, he doesn't discount the combined strength of the PlayStation brand. He remains optimistic for the entire PlayStation family as he expects "software sales for Sony consoles to account for 31% of all game software sold worldwide."

Pachter indicated in Wedbush's annual Interactive Industry Report that, while the numbers have been dwindling for PS2, overall worldwide software sales for PS3 titles have more than doubled within the last year. In 2008, 62.4 million units of PS3 software titles have been sold -- a huge step up from the 29.6 million units sold in 2007. The momentum of this growth will carry into 2009, according to Pachter, who believes PS3 and PSP titles (the latter of which only saw a 15% increase in worldwide sales last year) will pick up PS2's slack.

PS3 titles will be the top sellers, despite the fact that Pachter predicts Sony won't "secure significant third party exclusivity" as it continues "to focus its internal development efforts on blockbuster games." It's interesting to note, in light of another report, this strategy hasn't really worked out for Sony.

http://www.joystiq.com/2009/07/01/pa...for-31-of-all/

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PSP/PS3 to Take 31% of all Software Sold

July 1st, 2009, 19:32 Posted By: wraggster

Although Wedbush Morgan analyst, Michael Pachter, predicts PS2 will become somewhat irrelevant in 2009, he doesn't discount the combined strength of the PlayStation brand. He remains optimistic for the entire PlayStation family as he expects "software sales for Sony consoles to account for 31% of all game software sold worldwide."

Pachter indicated in Wedbush's annual Interactive Industry Report that, while the numbers have been dwindling for PS2, overall worldwide software sales for PS3 titles have more than doubled within the last year. In 2008, 62.4 million units of PS3 software titles have been sold -- a huge step up from the 29.6 million units sold in 2007. The momentum of this growth will carry into 2009, according to Pachter, who believes PS3 and PSP titles (the latter of which only saw a 15% increase in worldwide sales last year) will pick up PS2's slack.

PS3 titles will be the top sellers, despite the fact that Pachter predicts Sony won't "secure significant third party exclusivity" as it continues "to focus its internal development efforts on blockbuster games." It's interesting to note, in light of another report, this strategy hasn't really worked out for Sony.

http://www.joystiq.com/2009/07/01/pa...for-31-of-all/

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Pachter: PS2 software sales to become 'almost irrelevant' in 2009

July 1st, 2009, 19:46 Posted By: wraggster

espite the fact that the PS2 saw a sizable price cut just three months ago, Michael Pachter is claiming that the system is nearing the point of complete insignificance. In Wedbush's "2009 Interactive Industry Report," Pachter explains that he expects "PS2 software sales to decline sufficiently (around 64%) to be almost irrelevant to overall software sales growth, with PS2 software comprising less than 4% of overall software sales in 2009."

Sony's probably not ready to give up on its most cost-efficient console, but as history has prov

http://www.joystiq.com/2009/06/30/pa...levant-in-200/

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Call of Juarez: Bound in Blood

July 1st, 2009, 19:56 Posted By: wraggster

Newly released today:



features
Harness a variety of weapons from various pistols to heavy-caliber cannons and machine guns. Every accurate shot increases your concentration, which allows you to unleash deadly shooting modes when outnumbered and even deadlier ones when the brothers work together
Choose to embody Ray or Thomas, each with a distinctive gameplay style (close or long range), specific abilities (lasso, dynamite, etc.) and arsenal of deadly weapons (dual guns, long-range carbine, etc.). Take advantage of each of their strengths and join in the fiercest fights imaginable
The McCall brothers face a renegade Apache Chief, a greedy Mexican bandit, and a vindictive Colonel, all driven by greed with moral disregard. Enjoy a wide variety of situations, using horses, canoes and wagons to explore the open natural landscapes of the mythical Wild West and its legendary period
Gunslingers, bandits and marshals struggle online for the bounty. Multiple characters are unlocked for team-based objective modes or the straightforward team deathmatch. Call of Juarez: Bound in Blood introduces a Bounty system, which sees players increase the bounty on their head with more kills. Get rid of the deadliest among you to increase your bank roll!

description
Call of Juarez™: Bound in Blood, is the prequel to the Wild West action shooter Call of Juarez. As the McCall brothers, players enter a doomed quest for the legendary Gold of Juarez leading them from a ravaged Georgia during the Civil War to the Aztec ruins of Mexico. They make their lawless trail into the wildest West ever depicted, using their gunslinging skills and killing all of those that stand before them. But when the brothers face lust, their bond of blood feels thinner than ever…

http://www.play-asia.com/SOap-23-83-...j-70-3ck0.html

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Harry Potter & The Half Blood Prince

July 1st, 2009, 19:59 Posted By: wraggster

Newly released today:



In "Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince", Voldemort is tightening his grip on both the Muggle and wizarding worlds and Hogwarts is no longer the safe haven it once was.

Harry suspects that dangers may even lie within the castle, but Dumbledore is more intent upon preparing him for the final battle that he knows is fast approaching.

Meanwhile, the students are under attack from a very different adversary as teenage hormones rage across the ramparts.

He is determined to make his mark, albeit a dark one. Love is in the air, but tragedy lies ahead and Hogwarts may never be the same again.

See Harry and friends in action before the movie hits the cinema.

http://www.play-asia.com/SOap-23-83-...-22z-84-n.html

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Grand Theft Auto Liberty City Stories & Vice City Stories 2 Pack

July 1st, 2009, 21:53 Posted By: wraggster

Newly released today:



description
Liberty City Stories:
There are a million stories in Liberty City. This one changes everything. Once a trusted wise guy in the Leone crime family, Toni Cipriani was forced into hiding after killing a made man. Now he's back and it's time for things to be put right.

The streets of Liberty City are in turmoil. Warring mafiosi vie for control as the town begins to self-destruct under waves of political corruption, organized crime, drug trafficking and union strikes. No one can be trusted as Toni tries to clean up the mess of the city's chaotic underworld. Deranged hit men, morally depraved tycoons, cynical politicians and his own mother stand in his way as Toni tries to bring the city under Leone control.

Forced to fight for his life in an odyssey that will shake Liberty City to its foundations, Toni must use any means necessary to secure his place in the leadership of the Leone family in a town up for grabs.

Vice City Stories:
Grand Theft Auto: Vice City Stories is a new game in the Grand Theft Auto series with an entirely new storyline, new missions and gameplay. Grand Theft Auto: Vice City Stories features the interactive, open environment of Vice City with professional voice talent, a diverse soundtrack and high production values that have become trademarks of this landmark series.

http://www.play-asia.com/SOap-23-83-...j-70-3fpf.html

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Fight Night: Round 4

July 1st, 2009, 21:58 Posted By: wraggster

Newly released today:



EA SPORTS Fight Night Round 4 is truly the Return of the Champ. Building off EA SPORTS Fight Night Round 3, one of the best-selling and most critically acclaimed games to come out at the onset of the Playstation 3 hardware launches, EA SPORTS Fight Night Round 4 promises to be equally as ground-breaking and revolutionary. With an all new gameplay engine, truly unique and differentiated boxer styles, and the most impressive boxer roster ever including the return of the legendary Iron Mike Tyson, EA SPORTS Fight Night Round 4 takes video game boxing and fighting to an entirely new level.

http://www.play-asia.com/SOap-23-83-...j-70-2rbk.html

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Ice Age: Dawn of the Dinosaurs

July 1st, 2009, 21:59 Posted By: wraggster

Newly released today:



features
For the first time ever, play as 6 of your favorite characters from the Ice Age movies
Explore the all-new Dinosaur World!
Compete with your friends and family in fun multiplayer mini-games!

description
Join Ice Age's unlikely herd of prehistoric pals for their most exciting adventure yet!

Embark on a rescue mission across melting snow to the mysterious Dinosaur World - an all new, fur-raising jungle of carnivorous plants, lush foliage and fierce dinosaurs!


http://www.play-asia.com/SOap-23-83-...j-70-3cta.html

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Alpha TrIs v1.0

July 1st, 2009, 23:33 Posted By: wraggster

News via pspita

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DayPR Rev.5.1-- BETA MINOR BUG FIX

July 1st, 2009, 23:39 Posted By: wraggster

News/release from lilmnm

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fxPRMKULTRA Mod

July 1st, 2009, 23:40 Posted By: wraggster

News/release from NoEffex

Despite the "mod" title, I recoded a pretty good portion of the actual "engine" per se, what loads the cheats, what applies the cheats, what saves, and so on, rather than just editing the looks and calling it my own.

It also uses a custom malloc set that, even though it's a kernel module, it uses user space for saving cheats, which there is an abundance of, as opposed to the 4 or so mb of kernel ram.

I also removed the search, decoder, and browser as usually it's unused, and a huge chunk of memory.

I don't have any screenshots on hand, and there's no readme. If you need a readme, it works the same exact way as NitePR, except it loads infinitely quicker, and when you save it rids of all your foolish little comments that wreak havoc on the memory and it saves the addresses in "%X" as opposed to "%08lX", thus it can take up to 14 bytes out of every line of cheating, and with that, I had to recode the loader, which instead of

load 2 bytes->parse->load 2 more

it does

load whole thing->parse

and it works fine.

Download Link:
Here

If you wanna screenshot it, go for it. I just put this out there so people who want HUGE databases for those small offline games can whack away instead of being limited to ~30kb.

It's the only one of it's kind, and probably the most extensively modified, rather than a couple changed colors, which I didn't even bother with.

Also, I included a 3.71 module in there, too.

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Hulu still silent on PS3, Windows Mobile blocking - but there's a free solution

July 2nd, 2009, 17:09 Posted By: wraggster

A few days after blocking PlayStation 3 users, Hulu has yet to respond to questions concerning the change which has only helped to fuel rumors it is related to the Microsoft ad campaign currently featured on the site, but that seems less likely now that we've confirmed it also began blocking the Flash-enabled Skyfire browser on Windows Mobile devices at the same time. Whatever the cause is, if you prefer a homegrown hack over something like PlayOn or TVersity, Eric over at ypass.net has put together a simple enough walkthrough for creating an "unblockable" workaround by setting up a locally connected PC running Linux or Windows with the freely available Squid proxy server software that will make your PS3 look like appear as a PC running a Firefox (or whatever you prefer) browser to any website that asks. Of course, just like the other solutions your computer will need to stay running to keep you connected, but we figure it's a small price to pay for enjoying relatively low res Flash video running on an HDTV.

http://www.engadget.com/2009/07/01/h...ng-but-theres/

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Sony planned UMD-less PSP 'from the beginning'

July 2nd, 2009, 17:24 Posted By: wraggster

Platform holder was simply waiting for digital market to mature, says head of product planning
Sony had planned to release a 'network centric' model of the PSP ever since the beginning, according to an interview on website GameBusiness.jp.
In an interview with the head of SCE's product planning division, Naoya Matsui, it has been revealed that the company was simply waiting for the digital pipeline to reach a mature-enough state to sustain such a device.
"We'd planned to release a PSP model without a UMD drive since the very beginning," says Matsui. "But if we'd simply released the hardware, there wouldn't have been much for everyone to enjoy. We needed to prepare the right environment for it first - things like the transferral of content with the PS3 and PSN, and PC software to manage content like music and movies such as 'Media Go'.
"We wanted to release it when the delivery of digital content was on par with the delivery of physical media. Thats what we've been working on these past two years. We'll be selling the PSPgo alongside the existing PSP models, because it's a product targeted at those people who are more accustomed to digital content."

http://www.develop-online.net/news/3...-the-beginning

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Dizzee Rascal joins DJ Hero

July 2nd, 2009, 17:25 Posted By: wraggster

Actual real life DJ hero, Grandmaster Flash, has told Rolling Stone that DJ Hero will be the "most popular thing to do in gaming on the planet."

The old skool DJ has been involved with the game for over a year now and has contributed in all areas from mixes, voiceovers to type of language to use. We hope it's in English.

The confirmed track list has also grown:

David Bowie - "Lets Dance" vs. KRS-1 - "Jack Of Spades"
Nirvana - "All Apologies" vs. Rick James - "Give It To Me"
Zombies - "Time Of The Season" vs. Chuck Brown - "Bustin Loose"
Grandmaster Flash - "Here Comes My DJ" vs. Gary Numan - "Cars"
Herbie Hancock - "Rockit" vs. N.E.R.D. - "Lapdance"
Jay Z - "Izzo (H.O.V.A.)" vs. Eminem - "My Name Is"
Marvin Gaye - "I Heard It Through The Grapevine" vs. Gorillaz - "Feel Good Inc"
Dizzee Rascal - "Fix Up, Look Sharp' vs. Justice - "Genesis"
Gwen Stefani - "Hollaback Girl' vs. Rick James - "Give It To Me"
Jurassic 5 - "Jayou" vs. Herbie Hancock - "Rockit"
Tears for Fears - "Shout' vs. Eric Prydz - "Pjanoo (Radio Edit)"
Black Eyed Peas - "Boom Boom Pow' vs. Benni Benassi - "Satisfaction"
Beastie Boys - "Sabotage" vs. Foo Fighters - "Monkey Wrench"

If you're mad about Grandmaster Flash, then you might like to throw OXM a few questions as they'll be interviewing him soon.

http://www.computerandvideogames.com....php?id=218737

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Two new GTA IV DLC episodes due next year - analyst

July 2nd, 2009, 17:47 Posted By: wraggster

Take-Two and Rockstar are expected to release two brand new downloadable episodes for Grand Theft Auto IV in fiscal 2010, and release GTA V the following financial year.

That's according to analyst Todd Mitchell, who told GamesIndustry.biz that following the release of Xbox 360 exclusives The Lost and the Damned and The Ballad of Gay Tony, two all-new episodes are due – possibly across both the Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3 platforms.

"I would expect that there would be two more pieces of downloadable content for GTA IV, that's what has been indicated to me, although formats are unsure. It's been indicated to me to me that would be the case," said Mitchell, of Kaufman Bros. Equity Research.

Mitchell also stated that he's expecting Grand Theft Auto V to be released in the 2011 financial year, and there's also the possibility of a new GTA title for the PlayStation 2 next year.

"Coming out of E3 there was no commitment to a new Grand Theft Auto, and I think that's because of Rockstar's track record with delivering on time," said Mitchell.

"Of the three, I'm least confident in saying for sure there will be a new GTA for PlayStation 2, but the track record shows that PSP titles have been repositioned [on PS2]," he said, referring to the recent announcement of GTA: Chinatown Wars for the PSP.

Despite all the talk of Rockstar's biggest franchise, Kaufman Bros. has upgraded Take-Two to a 'buy' rating because the publisher is demonstrating that it no longer needs to rely on GTA to score blockbuster hits.

Newly announced Rockstar title Agent will be released in 2010, said the company, along with an as-yet unannounced title from 2K Games

"We believe Take-Two has a solid line-up for fiscal 2010 even without a GTA V release," noted Kaufman Bros.

"Our outlook includes expected strong sell-through of Bioshock 2, and the release of two 'AAA' titles, each from Rockstar (Red Dead Redemption and Agent) and 2K Games (Mafia II and TBD), reiterations of 2K Sports and 2K Play's annual line-ups, an expected GTA title for the PS2, expected strong sell-through of GTA: Chinatown Wars for the PSP, and new GTA DLC for the Xbox 360 and PS3.

"We now look for the release of GTA V in fiscal 2011, and believe IP introduced in fiscal 2010 can be turned into iterative franchises that will improve Take-Two's long-term earnings profile by lessening its dependence on GTA," said the firm.

Mitchell added: "What we're saying is Take-Two is now becoming a proper company rather than a one hit wonder. After GTA V in 2011, they can come back with more franchises and not be forced to rely on that every other year," he said.

Kaufman Bros. expects fiscal 2010 revenue for Take-Two to hit USD 1.3 billion, and USD 1.6 billion in 2011 with a GTA V release.

"Now that this shoe has dropped, and a case can be made for solid profitability in fiscal 2010 without GTA V, and the follow-on of higher earnings in fiscal 2011 with a GTA V release, we believe the investment case for Take-Two has improved and investors can begin to get more constructive with the name."

http://www.gamesindustry.biz/article...t-year-analyst

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PS3 Media Player Blitzes Blu-ray Specs

July 2nd, 2009, 18:00 Posted By: wraggster

A couple of days ago, I noted on the Digital Foundry Twitter feed that enterprising coders had found a way to make the PlayStation 3 significantly outperform the Blu-ray spec by enabling video playback of 1080p material at 60 frames per second. The average Blu-ray movie runs at 24FPS while the system's 1080i conformity gives it a notional top-end of 30FPS. But PlayStation 3 goes way beyond that, seemingly without breaking a sweat. The story kicks off with the release of the Sanyo HD2000 camera. Capable of recording 1080p60 video directly into MP4 files, enterprising souls on the Doom9 video forum set about getting clips from this camera to play on standalone BD players, despite the fact there was little hope of it actually working. However, for a while now hackers have been working on reverse-engineering the AVCHD format – the consumer-level sibling to full Blu-ray used by a multitude of HD video cameras. Coder "DeanK", author of the MultiAVCHD authoring tool found that with some effort, clips from the Sanyo camera would work within his tool when played back on PS3. Seeing as my company creates a 1080p60 capable capture system, this proved to be intriguing for me, especially seeing as we can produce this exquisite level of video, but have no consumer-level platform on which to play it! The PS3 XMB held some promise, but despite some efforts at 1080p60 encodes to promote WipEout HD, actual picture quality was distinctly mediocre and higher-end encoding would cause plenty of hiccups. Using DeanK's tools, I found that the PS3's Blu-ray/AVCHD decoder had a clear performance edge over the XMB, allowing for smoother playback of more ambitious files.

The encoding required is somewhat specialist and I had to get it done out of house, but regardless, there's now a downloadable demo you can try for yourself – assuming you have a 1080p screen of course. So, if you have 857MB of bandwidth to spare, go here, download, unzip and copy to a USB flash drive (burning to optical disc won't work without patching some files) making sure that the AVCHD folder is on the root of the drive. Put the drive into the PS3, click on the AVCHD icon on the XMB in the video section, sit back and watch Capcom's excellent Devil May Cry 4 intro play out at native 1080p running at 60 frames per second. The video itself was captured by our TrueHD system hooked up to an i7 PC with a top-of-the-line NVIDIA GTX295, allowing us to run the game effortlessly with all settings maxed out. For content producers eyeing up PS3 for further Blu-ray defying tasks, it has to be stated that there are limitations. Some of the key techniques h264 implements to exact maximum quality use way too much processing power to be effective running at 60FPS in this extreme resolution. At the same time, the AVCHD and Blu-ray standards have inherent limitations in themselves compared to the full unfettered power of the core compression technology. Bottom line: you need to throw a lot more bandwidth at the problem to maintain picture quality, and in the case of pristine game video, you need a ton more compared to the average "real life" camera shot. Even the download here could do with a fair bit more bandwidth to match the original capture. Regardless though, it remains the case that for PS3 to be able to do this at all is an excellent achievement, and brings home a hugely important factor about the console's long term future. In the fullness of a time, a smaller, slimmer PS3 will be one hell of a powerful – and hopefully cheap – media player, also capable of playing some damn good games too. With DivX adopting the Matroska (MKV) file format for its HD files, realistically it's only a matter of time before PS3 offers native support, making the console invaluable for playing just about any kind of media thrown its way.

http://www.eurogamer.net/articles/di...ecs-blog-entry

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Sony polling for PlayStation Home ideas

July 2nd, 2009, 18:09 Posted By: wraggster

Sony is testing the water on various ideas for PlayStation Home, in a survey that asks, among other things, whether you would like to see stand-up comedy as a type of streaming media for the theatre area.

There's talk of the PlayStation Home space within PlayStation Home and what should be there, which hurts our brain, plus priority ratings for content like video sharing, music sharing and viewable Trophy collections - features PS Home was built around.

A full roundup of features can be found on Triplechat (pointed out by Joystiq)

Some of the more interesting ideas are game-launching and full-length feature films, as well as collectable statues and figurines.

http://www.eurogamer.net/articles/so...for-home-ideas

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The Following, Old Capcom Games Will Soon Be Available On The PlayStation Network

July 2nd, 2009, 18:13 Posted By: wraggster

The days of people whining "where are my old-timey games on the PSN?" appear well and truly over. You've got Final Fantasy VII, you've got Metal Gear Solid, and soon you'll be getting a ton of Capcom classics as well.

Tomorrow, for example, Capcom will be releasing the "Capcom Classics Collection: Remixed", which includes:

• 1941: Counter Attack
• Avengers
• Bionic Commando
• Black Tiger
• Block Block
• Captain Commando
• Final Fight
• Forgotten Worlds
• Last Duel
• Legendary Wings
• Magic Sword
• Mega Twins
• Quiz and Dragons
• Section Z
• Side Arms: Hyper Dyne
• The Speed Rumbler
• Street Fighter
• Strider
• Three Wonders
• Varth

Then later in the year, there'll be this mix of PS1 and PSP re-releases:

• Mega Man Powered Up
• Dino Crisis
• Power Stone Collection
• Mega Man Maverick Hunter X
• Resident Evil 2
• Darkstalkers
• Street Fighter Alpha 3 Max
• Resident Evil 3: Nemesis
• Capcom Classics Collection Reloaded

Thanks Capcom!

http://kotaku.com/5305868/the-follow...tation-network

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The Following, Old Capcom Games Will Soon Be Available On The PlayStation Network

July 2nd, 2009, 18:13 Posted By: wraggster

The days of people whining "where are my old-timey games on the PSN?" appear well and truly over. You've got Final Fantasy VII, you've got Metal Gear Solid, and soon you'll be getting a ton of Capcom classics as well.

Tomorrow, for example, Capcom will be releasing the "Capcom Classics Collection: Remixed", which includes:

• 1941: Counter Attack
• Avengers
• Bionic Commando
• Black Tiger
• Block Block
• Captain Commando
• Final Fight
• Forgotten Worlds
• Last Duel
• Legendary Wings
• Magic Sword
• Mega Twins
• Quiz and Dragons
• Section Z
• Side Arms: Hyper Dyne
• The Speed Rumbler
• Street Fighter
• Strider
• Three Wonders
• Varth

Then later in the year, there'll be this mix of PS1 and PSP re-releases:

• Mega Man Powered Up
• Dino Crisis
• Power Stone Collection
• Mega Man Maverick Hunter X
• Resident Evil 2
• Darkstalkers
• Street Fighter Alpha 3 Max
• Resident Evil 3: Nemesis
• Capcom Classics Collection Reloaded

Thanks Capcom!

http://kotaku.com/5305868/the-follow...tation-network

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Online MMO PlayStation 3/PSP Game

July 2nd, 2009, 18:16 Posted By: wraggster

Sony Computer Entertainment Taiwan is funding first party titles and they commissioned Yeck Entertainment for PSP and PlayStation 3 work.

Specific details about the titles are scarce, but an interview with Impress Watch reveals the genres. The PSP game is a casual title and the PS3 title is an online game.

Yeck Entertainment’s work includes Legends of Glory (pictured), a MMO with player vs. monster and player vs. player combat for PCs, and Cubee Cubee, a tilt controlled iPhone puzzle game.

Gaming in Taiwan is quite different from Japan and North America where PCs and free online RPGs dominate the market. There is a console scene, but its much smaller — even smaller than South Korea. While a local PSP or PS3 game could expand Sony’s market share in Taiwan, I think this project will expand beyond Sony Computer Entertainment Asia even though SCEJ and SCEA are not involved with its development. Taiwan’s console market just isn’t big enough to justify localized games yet.

http://www.siliconera.com/2009/07/01...tation-3-game/

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Marvelous Considering Wii To PlayStation 3/Xbox 360 Ports

July 2nd, 2009, 20:43 Posted By: wraggster

Marvelous Entertainment backed the Wii in a big way with new series like Little King’s Story, No More Heroes, Arc Rise Fantasia, and Muramasa: The Demon Blade. However, sales of these games in Japan (Little King’s Story excluded, of course, since it’s only out in Europe) haven’t been stellar.

In a financial presentation Marvelous has a new plan for their rich library of properties. First, is moving into multi-platform PlayStation 3 / Xbox 360 development. I can confirm that Rainy Woods, Marvelous’ first title specifically made for the PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360, is still in development. Their other strategy is porting some of their Wii titles to the PS3 and Xbox 360.

Muramasa: The Demon Blade and Arc Rise Fantasia aren’t heavy on motion control so I imagine these would be prime candidates to port. I’d welcome ports of either of these games too since more people would get to play them.

Enough about me. Which Marvelous games would you like to see on high definition consoles? I’ll start counting the votes for No More Heroes and No More Heroes: Desperate Struggle…

http://www.siliconera.com/2009/07/02...box-360-ports/

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Ubisoft Announces Heroes Over Europe for Xbox 360, PlayStation 3, and PC

July 2nd, 2009, 23:16 Posted By: wraggster

Today Ubisoft announced it will be publishing Heroes Over Europe, a flight combat game designed for the Xbox 360 video game and entertainment system from Microsoft, the PLAYSTATION 3 computer entertainment system, and Windows-based PC. The sequel to Heroes of the Pacific, the World War II flight combat game, Heroes Over Europe builds on the game's impressive legacy with intense dogfights, a highly detailed realistic visual presentation and even more online options.

"We are pleased to be bringing Heroes Over Europe to retailers worldwide," said Tony Key, senior vice president of sales and marketing, Ubisoft. "The action-packed gameplay and realistic imagery in Heroes Over Europe will help bring some of history's most exciting air battles to life for an experience that gamers will enjoy."

Developed by Transmission Games in Melbourne, Australia, and powered by an all-new engine, Heroes Over Europe is set to raise the bar for flight combat games with the all new "Ace Kill" close combat action, four online modes supporting up to 16 players and fully customizable aircrafts with localized damage. Visually, the game takes no prisoners with meticulously rendered environments including faithful recreations of London, Berlin and the French Alps, and ultra-realistic iconic warplanes of the era, all presented in stunning high definition graphics.

Heroes Over Europe is scheduled for worldwide release in September 2009. For more information about Heroes Over Europe, please visit: http://www.heroesovereurope.com

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JPCSP 0.2 revision 1083 - PSP Emulator for Windows

July 2nd, 2009, 23:44 Posted By: wraggster

News via emurussia

The JPCSP Team have released a new version of the PSP Emulator for Windows written in Java:

Heres whats new:

- Added basic GE capture support, tested on cube sample. Until we record persistent GE state (texture on/off, etc) for best results replay captures in the same game it was recorded in.
- Fixed a refresh bug. Open menu trick should no longer be needed (click on File menu, it overlaps the display area and forces it to redraw, sometimes making something appear).
- fixed wait umd stat.

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Custom Firmware 5.50GEN-B Released

July 3rd, 2009, 00:36 Posted By: wraggster

News via pspita/pspgen

As announced a few days ago, was finally released from GENyUS and his team to update the B Custom Firmware 5.50GEN. I remember that is only compatible with PSP-1000 and PSP-2000 (TA-088v3 excluded).
More to follow.

Quote:

.: Installation Requirements:.:
- PSP-1000 or PSP-2000 (except TA-088v3)
- CF-A 5.50GEN

.: Install:.:
- Copy the 5.50-folder-update ġenb in PSP / GAME
- Start the application

.: Changelog:.:
• Fixed the bug that prevented disabling the VSH Menu
• The SELECT button can now start the VSH menu, the Recovery, or anything. The choice may be in recovery through the appropriate option
• Off the M33 network update
• The game Evangelion: Jo is now launched successfully
• The options Pandorizzazione are both in that the VSH Recovery Menu
• Three new features in VSH Menu: Shutdown Device (turn off the console), Make Pandora Battery, Battery Make Normal
• Option Flash1 Format: added a check that prevents you to format the Flash1 via VSH

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Bookr Mod 2009-07-01

July 3rd, 2009, 00:41 Posted By: wraggster

News/release from silver_surfer

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DJ Hero: Two new videos

July 3rd, 2009, 15:53 Posted By: wraggster

Activision's passed laong us internet folk two new DJ Hero videos, showing oldschool mix man Grandmaster Flash at the decks.

The publisher's also responded to retail rumours that the music effort will carry a rather large RRP of £108.

"We don't comment on our product pricing strategies, however, we believe that DJ Hero will provide tremendous value for our consumers by delivering an all-new interactive music experience with over 100 individual songs that are highlighted in over 80 unique mixes, a wide variety of music from some of the biggest artists including Jay-Z, Eminem, Benny Benassi, Gwen Stefani and Black Eyed Peas among others," a spokesperson told CVG.

A partial track list for the music effort emerged yesterday. Take a look, it's got Beastie Boys, Dizzee Rascal and all sorts.

http://www.computerandvideogames.com....php?id=218781

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Sony patents more motion tech

July 3rd, 2009, 15:56 Posted By: wraggster

Motion control mania continues as a new patent from Sony shows the firm's experiments with a scanning system that lets players use everyday objects to control their games (quiet at the back).

According to the recently published patent, a camera (presumably the PS Eye) scans an object in by having the user rotate it to essentially show it to the PS3 from different angles. This is then mapped into the game and its movements tracked by the camera.


Illustrations show a user holding a U-shaped object, but it explains that this could otherwise be any everyday object including, but not limited to, a mug, books or bottles. Other pictures show a person using baseball bats, a golf club and other objects. Good luck to ornaments and pets if Sony launches this.

Siliconera has the pictures.

Also, we notice in the pictures that the camera appears to be wireless - new PS Eyes, anyone?

Sony at E3 showed off new motion controllers that use the PS Eye to accurately track illuminated orbs on the end of the baton-like units.

http://www.computerandvideogames.com....php?id=218789

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JAPAN: GTAIV goes budget

July 3rd, 2009, 15:58 Posted By: wraggster

Price drop to YEN 3,990 scheduled for August 27th
Rockstar’s next-gen opus Grand Theft Auto IV is getting the budget treatment in Japan with news that the Capcom published title is to be ushered in to the PlayStation Best discount range.
Kotaku reports that that the new version will be released on August 27th and will cost YEN 3,900 – around £24.
The GTA series, which alongside titles such as Halo is in many ways the very essence of Western gaming, has never traditionally performed well in the East.
However, GTAIV was the title that seemed to reverse that trend. Upon its release last October it managed to outpace rival debutant LittleBigPlanet, with sales bettering Sony’s title by a ratio of 3:1.

http://www.mcvuk.com/news/34924/JAPAN-GTAIV-goes-budget

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Tecmo Koei: "Please cut the price" of PS3

July 3rd, 2009, 18:30 Posted By: wraggster

CEO of the newly-formed publisher Tecmo Koei, Kenji Matsubara, has said he "would welcome a price cut for PS3", and has made his request known to Sony in past meetings.


"Whenever I discuss this with Sony reps I always ask them: 'Please cut the price', but I don't have a clear view on Sony's situation," Matsubara told CVG during an interview.

"Yes, from a publisher's point of view we would welcome a price cut for PS3, and we are waiting, definitely," he added.

"It's definitely a way of boosting the PS3 market, but it's Sony's strategy and I don't know their cost structure. Sony introduced cutting-edge technology in the PS3, that's why people in the industry accept that the PS3 cost is so high, but we'd welcome a price cut."

http://www.computerandvideogames.com....php?id=218823

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Dissidia Final Fantasy dated in UK

July 3rd, 2009, 18:32 Posted By: wraggster

September 4th is the day that Square Enix’s PSP outing arrives in PAL territories
The long-awaited arrival of Final Fantasy XIII may still be some way off, but fans of Square Enix’s popular series will be able to get their teeth stuck into a brand new outing in the shape of Dissidia Final Fantasy this September.
The PSP-only title boasts the largest ever cast in a FF game, bringing together some of the most popular characters from the series’ rich history in an unusual one-on-one fighting game.
A limited edition collector’s version will also be available at launch, including a soundtrack CD, 48 page hardback artwork book, Brady Games miniguide and two lithograph prints

.
“With so many favourite heroes and villains contained in one game, Dissidia Final Fantasy is certainly going to appeal to fans of the series,” Square Enix’s president and chief executive officer John Yamamoto stated.
“The action-packed experience is a real showcase for the PSP and is set to become an instant classic on the system.”

Those worried that Dissidia Final Fantasy would follow in the footsteps of FFVII: Dirge of Cerberus, which received an exceptionally harsh critical reception, should take comfort in the incredibly positive talk emerging from Japan, where the game has already been released.
Dissidia Final Fantasy will be released on September

http://www.mcvuk.com/news/34928/Diss...sy-dated-in-UK

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Sony patents motion control using ordinary objects

July 3rd, 2009, 18:45 Posted By: wraggster

Following its unveiling of a new EyeToy-compatible motion controller at this year's E3, Sony has patented more motion control related technology which lets users dynamically map everyday items for use in a game.

The patent details a system where a camera can map in any real world item, reports Siliconera. Examples given include a coffee mug, drinking glass, books and bottles, however the mapping system is expected to be able to identify any three dimension object.

Sony uses a U-shaped block to show how the technology will work, explaining the player must show the object to the camera, rotate it and save it to a file. The system can then analyse movements and transfer them into in-game actions.

During Sony's E3 press conference, the publisher demoed its new motion controller being used to control a range of in-game items, including a sword, a torch and a fan. While the player holds the new PlayStation 3 'wand', in the game the wand is transformed into a different object.

This new item-scanning patent could easily be planned to tie-in with what Sony has already announced, although comparisons to Microsoft's Project Natal are bound to be made.

Sony has confirmed its new PlayStation 3 motion controller will be released in spring 2010.

http://www.gamesindustry.biz/article...dinary-objects

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PSPgo packs a 480MHz processor, probably not crossing 333MHz mark

July 3rd, 2009, 18:54 Posted By: wraggster



Officially, Sony's PSPgo is only clocking in at 333MHz like the rest of its brothers and sisters, but as the gang at Sony Insider found out in the FCC filing, the internal processor actually maxes out at 480MHz. What that means for gamers is probably nothing in the near future, since the firmware'll underclock it to standard speeds and we've seen absolutely no sign Sony's interested in releasing software exclusively for the UMD-less iteration at this point. Of course, the opportunity to capitalize on the upped hardware is gonna be there, and we still remember a noticeable difference in the technical quality of games released after Sony bumped its original PSP's clockspeed from 266MHz to its max 333MHz, but for now, it's just something to keep in the back of your mind.

http://www.engadget.com/2009/07/02/p...ng-333mhz-mar/

Wow think of the emulators and how fast they will run on a 480MHz processor, full speed N64?, full speed Snes and a full speed non Sony PSX Emulator ?

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Frozenbyte: Trine project "a big mess"

July 3rd, 2009, 19:11 Posted By: wraggster

Frozenbyte has told Eurogamer that Trine as a project is "a big mess", and that the disparity between prices and the platforms the game is released for are issues the studio will be better prepared to handle next time around.

Developer spokesperson Joel Kinnunen was reacting to fans who are frustrated that Trine will cost twice as much on PC (USD 40 / GBP 20) as on PS3, where the game will be around 20 dollars - Kinnunen didn't want to guess at a GBP or EUR price.

"We are happy with this price point, and we don't think anyone will be disappointed by the PC version or its value for money," he said.

"We would love to have the game sold at the same price point across all platforms and methods, but these things are sometimes unbelievably complex when there's so many partners involved. The same goes for the EUR/USD disparity, it's just out of our hands.

"We never had the same problems in this scale with our Shadowgrounds games so this whole situation caught us by surprise. We'll be better prepared in the future," admitted Kinnunen.

Trine is a side-scrolling platformer based around three heroes with unique skills that must be interchanged to overcome puzzles and scenarios.

"As for the PSN release date, I think your guess is as good as mine," he offered. "It's in the process of going through all the checks and such, so right now I'm not sure how long it's going to take or if we have to do some final fixes. If it gets through OK, then I'm sure the release date will be announced shortly."

There's been confusion over an Xbox Live Arcade version of Trine recently, too. US publisher Atlus confirmed it at E3, but this was later dubbed "speculation" by Frozenbyte. Is it or isn't it coming to XBLA?

"Well do you think we want to do things the easy way? Hah," quipped Kinnunen. "Seriously, we want Trine to be on XBLA but it, too, is out of our hands. We're working with Atlus to make it happen but it depends on so many things again."

"You know, at one point Trine was a PC-only game. That's how it started. We're really happy that it's coming to PSN and if we get it to XBLA, then we're even happier. The problem is that this is not really the optimal way to do a game (or a game launch).

"Trine as a project is a big mess," he rued, "as opposed to Trine as a game, which is pretty sweet. Ultimately it's the game part that really matters and helps us sleep at night, though."

Trine is released on PC next Friday, 10th July, in Europe. And it's very good, as our freshly minted Trine review points out.

http://www.eurogamer.net/articles/fr...ect-a-big-mess

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Telltale engine doesn't support PlayStation ... yet

July 3rd, 2009, 22:56 Posted By: wraggster

Telltale has been churning out some fantastic adventure games as of late. The team responsible for Sam & Max, Strong Bad's Cool Game for Attractive People and Wallace & Gromit has found its games on both WiiWare and Xbox Live Arcade. But why no love for the PlayStation Network? It's "easy," explains Dave Grossman to The Guardian. "Our engine doesn't run on the PlayStation yet."

We'd like to think that the developers are working on making the engine that powers these games fully multi-platform. We don't see why Telltale couldn't handle the PS3, especially considering the success found by the folks behind Penny Arcade Adventures.

http://www.joystiq.com/2009/07/03/te...aystation-yet/

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God Eater Preys On Monster Hunter With A Slick Trailer

July 3rd, 2009, 23:02 Posted By: wraggster

I know God Eater is probably going to be like Monster Hunter, but I’m psyched for it after seeing this movie. The art style and morphing chainsaw sword oozes with coolness. It’s hard to tell because this is a trailer, but God Eater looks faster paced than Monster Hunter too. Perhaps, this PSP game is a mix of loot collecting, Shin Megami Tensei, and stylish action games like Devil May Cry.

God Eater comes out in Japan this fall and it could fill the Monster Hunter needs for PSP Go users if Namco Bandai releases it as a digital download. A North American release hasn’t been announced, but the first trailer has a lot of English…

http://www.siliconera.com/2009/07/02...slick-trailer/

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See Some Kratos-Less Soulcalibur: Broken Destiny Screens

July 3rd, 2009, 23:03 Posted By: wraggster

Namco Bandai sent a batch of Soulcalibur: Broken Destiny screenshots featuring their new, spring loaded knife wielding character Dampierre.

Even though we don’t have a specific release date, Soulcalibur: Broken Destiny is coming out soon. The game is slated to come out this summer, perhaps closer to the launch of the PSP Go.

http://www.siliconera.com/2009/07/02...stiny-screens/

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Alpha Protocol Hits Oct. 6

July 3rd, 2009, 23:10 Posted By: wraggster

Spy role-playing game Alpha Protocol will be hitting the PC, Playstation 3 and Xbox 360 on Oct. 6, according to Sega.

I took the game for a spin during the lead up to E3 and was quite impressed with how well the game blended the best elements of shooter, action and adventure. I'm hoping my time playing the final game will live up to my new, heightened expectations.

http://kotaku.com/5307101/alpha-protocol-hits-oct-6

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Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince

July 3rd, 2009, 23:45 Posted By: wraggster

Newly released and on worldwide import from Divineo China



In Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince, Voldemort is tightening his grip on both the Muggle and wizarding worlds and Hogwarts is no longer the safe haven it once was. Harry suspects that dangers may even lie within the castle, but Dumbledore is more intent upon preparing him for the final battle that he knows is fast approaching. Together they work to find the key to unlock Voldemort's defenses and, to this end, Dumbledore recruits his old friend and colleague, the well-connected and unsuspecting bon vivant Professor Horace Slughorn, whom he believes holds crucial information. Meanwhile, the students are under attack from a very different adversary as teenage hormones rage across the ramparts. Harry finds himself more and more drawn to Ginny, but so is Dean Thomas. And Lavender Brown has decided that Ron is the one for her, only she hadn't counted on Romilda Vane’s chocolates! And then there's Hermione, simmering with jealously but determined not to show her feelings. As romance blossoms, one student remains aloof. He is determined to make his mark, albeit a dark one. Love is in the air, but tragedy lies ahead and Hogwarts may never be the same again.

In the game, players will return to Hogwarts to help Harry survive a fraught sixth year. They will also have a chance to engage in exciting wizard duels, mix and brew magical ingredients in Potions class and take to the air to lead the Gryffindor Quidditch team to victory. Players may even get sidetracked by Ron’s romantic entanglements as they journey towards a dramatic climax and discover the identity of the Half-Blood Prince.

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Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince

July 3rd, 2009, 23:46 Posted By: wraggster

Newly released and on worldwide import from Divineo China



In Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince, Voldemort is tightening his grip on both the Muggle and wizarding worlds and Hogwarts is no longer the safe haven it once was. Harry suspects that dangers may even lie within the castle, but Dumbledore is more intent upon preparing him for the final battle that he knows is fast approaching. Together they work to find the key to unlock Voldemort's defenses and, to this end, Dumbledore recruits his old friend and colleague, the well-connected and unsuspecting bon vivant Professor Horace Slughorn, whom he believes holds crucial information. Meanwhile, the students are under attack from a very different adversary as teenage hormones rage across the ramparts. Harry finds himself more and more drawn to Ginny, but so is Dean Thomas. And Lavender Brown has decided that Ron is the one for her, only she hadn't counted on Romilda Vane’s chocolates! And then there's Hermione, simmering with jealously but determined not to show her feelings. As romance blossoms, one student remains aloof. He is determined to make his mark, albeit a dark one. Love is in the air, but tragedy lies ahead and Hogwarts may never be the same again.

In the game, players will return to Hogwarts to help Harry survive a fraught sixth year. They will also have a chance to engage in exciting wizard duels, mix and brew magical ingredients in Potions class and take to the air to lead the Gryffindor Quidditch team to victory. Players may even get sidetracked by Ron’s romantic entanglements as they journey towards a dramatic climax and discover the identity of the Half-Blood Prince.

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Ice Age: Dawn of the Dinosaurs

July 3rd, 2009, 23:47 Posted By: wraggster

Newly released and on worldwide import from Divineo China



The Ice Age: Dawn of the Dinosaurs video game reunites fans with Scrat, Sid, Manny and Diego in an all-new quest based on the upcoming film from Twentieth Century Fox. As the unlikely herd travels across the tundra and beyond, they stumble upon another world - a lush Dinosaur World teeming with jungles, mysterious plants, fierce dinosaurs, wild new adventures and several new friends. Taking on the role of more than six playable characters, including everyone's favorite Ice Age friends and newly introduced characters, players master their unique skills and abilities across more than 15 action-packed levels.

In addition to the expanded features of the single-player gameplay, for the first time in an Ice Age game, players can team up with friends and family in eight competitive multiplayer mini-games.

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Call of Juarez: Bound in Blood

July 3rd, 2009, 23:50 Posted By: wraggster

Newly released and on worldwide import from Divineo China



Call of Juarez: Bound in Blood transports players from a ravaged Civil War-era Georgia to the Aztec ruins of Mexico. In the wildest West ever depicted, players can embody both McCall brothers in an intense Wild West storyline full of greed, lust and lawlessness that takes place during a legendary period of American history.

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Blazblue

July 4th, 2009, 00:16 Posted By: wraggster

Newly released today:



features
aka. BlazBlue: Calamity Trigger
Experience the beauty of high-resoluti on, hand-drawn sprites on 3D backgrounds, all in glorious high-definition
Get ready to take the action online and battle the best players from all over the world!
BlazBlue features the following console-only modes: Arcade, Vs, Practice, and a completely fleshed-out Story Mode that tells the tales of each character
Choose a character that represents your own fighting style, like the lightning-fast Taokaka or the wickedly powerful Tager
Use the unique “Drive Attacks” specific to each character to decimate your opponent. Depending on the character, control the elements like wind and ice, or even absorb the life force from your opponents
Take advantage of Barriers, Counter Assaults, Rapid Cancels, and Distortion Drives to turn the tide of battle!

description
In the 13th hierarchical city, Kagutsuchi, the Librarium regulates the amazing power of “Armagus”, a fusion of magic and technology. Currently they are after a wanted criminal named Ragna The Bloodedge, also known as “Death”, who wants to destroy the Librarium. Due to Ragna possessing a powerful form of Armagus known as the Azure Grimoire, people far and wide are after not only his bounty, but his grimoire as well. This is where our story begins…

http://www.play-asia.com/SOap-23-83-...j-70-3ck4.html

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Project Artemis News - Functional memory dumps :)

July 4th, 2009, 01:31 Posted By: wraggster

LBGSHI has posted an update on his Project Artemis:

Project Artemis is an endeavor to create an open-source, free PS2 application, using the PS2Dev.org unofficial PS2SDK (a pre-built version of which can be found at GSHI.org , entitled, “Win32 PS2SDK”), that will allow a user to dump PS2 memory repeatedly during game play (either to a USB flash drive, or remotely via a network cable to a PC), so as to compare these dumps (either on the PS2 itself, or remotely via a network cable to a PC, using a compare utility), and the ability to force specific memory addresses to hold specific values (in order to test results of searches). The end product will be a fully-fledged RAM-hacking system and remote debugger, which will allow users to create their own cheat and enhancement codes for games, and debug games and applications.

Thanks to Jimmikaelkael (and to several others, including ffgriever, misfire, and Polo, for providing useful information and source), we now have functional in-game memory dumping capabilities (dump to PC), for about 50% of all games (and increasing rapidly). Check out the SVN repo for details and downloads

https://artemis.bountysource.com/news/show/511

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SDL_rwlib psp port

July 4th, 2009, 01:35 Posted By: wraggster

Heres a release for Developers only from kehon:

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PsPlugin Manager

July 4th, 2009, 01:39 Posted By: wraggster

News/release from thecraziness1

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Fractal Universe V3

July 4th, 2009, 05:23 Posted By: Art

Fractal Universe V3 for Sony PSP by Art 2009







Hi Guys,
This is my third release of Fractal Universe for the PSP.
Fractal Universe is a relatively fast Mandelbrot set fractal explorer.
You can move left, right , up, down, and zoom in & out of the image you see at any time.

An overlay viewfinder window has been implemented that lets the user zoom into any
particular spot in the image they want. This saves a lot of rendering time.

Fractal Universe now has a high quality mode that will let you zoom in further,
and an auto mode that will create frames for the fractal growth effect like this one:



Change log:
Cheers, Art.

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Hot Shots Game for PSP Details

July 5th, 2009, 01:25 Posted By: wraggster

The next entry in Sony’s Hot Shots series deviates from the single sport games Clap Hanz usually releases. Minna no Sukkiri, which I imagine will be called something like Hot Shots Party or Hot Shots Festival, is a compilation of twelve mini-games ranging from boxing to book organizing.

On the official site Daisaku Ikejiri, the Hot Shots series producer, explains these are supposed to be quick play games. Things you can enjoy in three minutes or so. Here’s the list of games in Minna no Sukkiri:

Clean Sweep
The Great Georama Battle
Vegetable Chopper
Home Run
Karate
Book Organizing
Soccer
Boxing
Racing
Pie Toss
Hikko Nuki
Crazy Farmer

A demo for the book organizing game is now on the PlayStation Store in Japan from now until July 30. It’s just what it sounds like — you organize books. Sony plans on releasing other mini-game demos in the future.

Minna no Sukkiri will bring the thrill of mini-games and “crazy farming” to the PSP this fall.

http://www.siliconera.com/2009/07/03...nizing-to-psp/

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SONY surfs on a PS3 patch wave?

July 5th, 2009, 20:19 Posted By: wraggster

News via streetskaterFU:

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gpSP Mod 20090703 - GBA Emulator for PSP

July 5th, 2009, 20:25 Posted By: wraggster

News via PSPitalia

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[Information Only] Recovery LE is compatible with CF 5.00M33

July 5th, 2009, 20:33 Posted By: wraggster

News from PSPitalia

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CFWEnabler 3.51 released.

July 5th, 2009, 20:36 Posted By: wraggster

News via sceners

New update for Custom Firmware Enabler application designed by Becus25 and Xenogears, which allows you to enable, through the ChickHEN Firmware 5.03 Some forms of M33 Custom Firmware PSP-2000 with TA-088v3 and the latest PSP-3000.

Changes?
- Fixed a bug when playing within Infraestructure
- New system version
- Improved the Pops flashing system
- New update server.

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Hold+ v3.8

July 5th, 2009, 20:43 Posted By: wraggster

News via pspita

New update from the coder Torch for his plugin Hold +, prx useful to preserve battery life, which leads to version 3.8.
Then the full changelog and download link.

Changelog v3.8:

Quote:

- The fifth level of brightness is now activated correctly on PSP-3000

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The PSP Show #97: Buzz Brainbender & Brain of the UK

July 5th, 2009, 20:47 Posted By: wraggster

New podcast released from TPN heres the details:

The PSP Show #97: Buzz Brainbender & Brain of the UK (MP3 7.92 mb 11 minutes 27 seconds)
DOWNLOAD the podcast by right clicking on this link or press play and listen in your browser.

http://psp.thepodcastnetwork.com/aud...0090625_97.mp3

A double header review in this show, as master quizmaster Buzz comes back to the PSP with both the classic quiz style Brain of Britain, and the Brain Training style of Buzz Brainbender. Can they get through the starter for ten in the review?

Add to that a round up of the latest news and views from the PSN network, PSP Go thoughts and Monster Hunter bundles around the world and you’ve got your bite sized PSP Show!

http://psp.thepodcastnetwork.com/200...ain-of-the-uk/

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The PSP Show #98: Rock Band Unplugged

July 5th, 2009, 20:47 Posted By: wraggster

New podcast released from TPN heres the details:

The PSP Show #98: Rock Band Unplugged (MP3 8.83 mb 12 minutes 46 seconds)

http://psp.thepodcastnetwork.com/aud...0090703_98.mp3

The rhythym games, such as Rock Band and Guitar Hero, are one of the big success stories in the last few years of gaming (and have helped music labels find a way to reach out to music lovers). So how well does Rock Band Unplugged work on the PSP? The honest answer is… very well. Find out why in the latest PSP Show, along with the latest news and views in the world of the Sony Playstation Portable.

http://psp.thepodcastnetwork.com/200...and-unplugged/

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New Exploit: MOHH (Medal of Honor Heroes) [THIS VERSION DOESN'T WORK]

July 6th, 2009, 02:31 Posted By: kgsws˜™

This can be new exploit for Medal of Honor Heroes (ULUS-10141), but it needs to be tested.
Download: http://zdoom.ic.cz/psp/moh-exploit.zip - read file "info.txt"
More info: Do not change room name to "lb" manualy, use nitePR cheat to do it.

tested on: (and works)
- PSP-1000 (M33)
- PSP-3000 (CFW enabler)

EDIT:
It was tested on PSP-1000 with official firmware 5.51, it works.
It should work on PSP-3000 too.

Thanks <PSPdemon>, he tested it with me.

EDIT Video:

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Tecmo Koei "concerns" over MS, Sony motion control

July 6th, 2009, 16:32 Posted By: wraggster

Tecmo Koei president Kenji Matsubara doubts the hardcore appeal of Sony's new motion controllers and Microsoft's Project Natal technology, saying they will be "more suited to casual games".

"We are very excited about the future with Project Natal and Sony's motion controllers. At the same time, we have some concerns over the fact that we specialise in making action games, so we have to explore whether we can achieve real-time response from a controller-free system," Matsubara told CVG.

"We understand that, for casual gamers playing dance games or some sort of fishing game, this controller-free system can be popular. But for hardcore gamers who like actions games, we have to research and develop games that satisfy our core gamers," he added.

"I expect that, from the beginning, both these types of controls will be more suited to casual games, and later go into more hardcore oriented experiences. That's how, in my understanding, most companies' strategies will apply."

Sony confirmed it will show more of its motion tech at the Develop Conference, which runs from July 14-16.

http://www.computerandvideogames.com....php?id=218876

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Sony Ericsson’s Android phone allegedly leaked

July 6th, 2009, 16:37 Posted By: wraggster



Images of Sony’s 8 megapixel camera, full touchscreen device reportedly leaked
Though Sony has kept its first ever android-based mobile device a well-guarded secret, news site mobile.nu claims to have acquired info and images of the smartphone.
The device, given the codename ‘Rachael’, is allegedly powered by a Qualcomm Snapdragon chip, allowing it to run at 1 GHz.
It is also said that the phone will use hi-def video decoding and what is believed to be an 8 megapixel camera with auto-focus and flash.
Allegedly pictured above, the unit will also feature a large touch-screen which will be pressure-sensitive.

http://www.pcr-online.biz/news/31914...legedly-leaked

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Sony to release new 80GB PS3 bundle - report

July 6th, 2009, 17:35 Posted By: wraggster

US retailer Best Buy is set to offer a new PlayStation 3 bundle made up of the 80GB console and best-sellers Metal Gear Sold 4 and Killzone 2 for just USD 400 - the same price the PlayStation 3 hardware alone would normally retail for.

The bundle will go on sale this Sunday, according to several Best Buy employees talking to Kotaku, and could put Sony in a better position to compete with the Xbox 360 over the US holiday season.

Best Buy currently sells the Xbox 360 Elite game of the year bundle - the 120GB console with Fable II and Halo 3 - for USD 399.99, and the Xbox 360 Elite bundle - the same hardware with Lego Indiana Jones and Kung Fu Panda - also for USD 399.99.

The move seems to tie-in with recent speculation that Sony could be planning to sell through its stocks of the 80GB PlayStation 3 using bundles as incentives in order to replace it with the 160GB model.

Some sources have predicted Sony will then drop the price of the PlayStation 3 towards the end of the year prior to the release of new slimmer hardware.

http://www.gamesindustry.biz/article...-bundle-report

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SCE: PSPgo's 480MHz clock speed references USB, not CPU

July 6th, 2009, 19:09 Posted By: wraggster



Looks like all that excitement over PSPgo's faster (but likely to be underused) 480MHz processor is all for naught. Our friends at Engadget Japan have gotten in contact with Sony Computer Entertainment and been informed that the Maximum clock frequency mentioned here is for the USB device, not the CPU. All those dreams of hacked firmware to unlock more power? Better hold that thought for now.

http://www.engadget.com/2009/07/06/s...s-usb-not-cpu/

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Sony Promotional Image Shows Some Dangerous Behavior

July 6th, 2009, 19:15 Posted By: wraggster



Sony's new press image is all fun and cheeky until that model drops his PSP into the tub and ends up with a seriously embarrassing obituary.

http://gizmodo.com/5308398/sony-prom...erous-behavior

- Personally i would be more worried about getting the PSP wet through with my hands

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Shadow of Memories Destined For PSP

July 6th, 2009, 19:18 Posted By: wraggster

Konami is porting their “time limit adventure” PS2 game, Shadow of Memories (aka Shadow of Destiny domestically) to the PSP.

Shadow of Destiny stars a Eike who suddenly gains the ability to time travel after he dies. Initially, the goal of the game is to prevent his own death and somehow this involves rewinding the clock back to the 1900s. As the story unravels the plot bends and players are presented choices that lead to different endings.

Japan gets the PSP port on October 1st. As of now, Konami hasn’t announced any plans to publish it internationally.

http://www.siliconera.com/2009/07/06...tined-for-psp/

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Monster Hunter to get weekly DLC

July 6th, 2009, 21:16 Posted By: wraggster

Capcom plans to offer new and free content for Monster Hunter Freedom Unite every Friday over the coming months.

Last Friday saw the arrival of the first batch of DLC, which adds a Triumvirate of Sands quest where Daimyo Hermitaur, Tigrex and Plesioth monsters lurk in a desert locale.

Monster Hunter Freedom Unite began its Western campaign earlier this month.

http://www.eurogamer.net/articles/mo...get-weekly-dlc

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Battle Fantasia Mystifies PlayStation Network This Fall

July 6th, 2009, 21:40 Posted By: wraggster

Aksys only released Battle Fantasia on Xbox 360 last year. This fall Marco and Watson, the game’s mandatory magical mascot character, battle on the PlayStation 3. Arc System Works developed this fighting game and gave it a fantasy storybook setting.

Unfortunately, we won’t get a retail version of the game like Europe did. Battle Fantasia will only be available as a PlayStation Network download in North America. A release is currently slated for this fall and a representative from Aksys said there will be some surprises.

If you haven’t heard about the 2.5D fighting game before flip over to this interview we did with Bo deWindt, the Producer of Battle Fantasia.

http://www.siliconera.com/2009/07/06...ork-this-fall/

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You Don't Have As Many PS2 Games As This Guy

July 6th, 2009, 21:48 Posted By: wraggster



The PS2 has been out for a while now. Most of you probably have a few games for the system still lying around the house. Reader Syd doesn't have a few. He has a lot.

Syd - a collector who runs...The Personal Computer Museum- is on a bit of a PS2 bender at the moment, and flushed with pride, sent us this snap of his library. Over 1200 games. And Syd would like you all to know that number's not being padded with Greatest Hits variations; he only picks those up when they include worthwhile, additional content (like his Devil May Cry special edition).

For reference, his first game was the original Jak & Daxter in 2002, while the 1000th game was...Chicken Little: Ace in Action. Hey, you collect, you collect the good and the bad.

http://kotaku.com/5307967/you-dont-h...es-as-this-guy

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Steambot Chronicles: Battle Tournament

July 6th, 2009, 22:01 Posted By: wraggster

Newly released today:



features
You control your adventure—Mission-based gameplay puts you in the driver's seat: you choose what you do and say. Take on missions ranging from cross-town delivery to mining in a canyon to defeating bandits. The money and fame points earned can be used to upgrade your Trotmobile and enter arena battles.
Complete freedom to build—The cardinal rule of Trotmobile design is that there is no ideal design. Instead, there are tons of options to change out arms, legs, heads, bodies, and more that change the nature of how you battle! Then, personalize your vehicle with color and emblem to make it distinctively yours.
Four-player competition mode—Clash with your friends' Trotmobiles in 4 player ad hoc multiplayer! Set each player against the others battle royale style, or pair up for tag team action.
One UMD, four players—Only one UMD disc? You can still compete! Activate "game sharing" to enter multiplayer mode with standard Trotmobiles, or use multiple UMDs to have access to your customized battle vehicles!

description
A young Trot driver comes to Orion City with one dream in mind: to win the prestigious Orion City Trotmobile gladiator tournament. However, you'll quickly learn that it takes more than pluck and optimism to earn victory in the coliseum. With the help of a spirited mechanic named Venus, you'll have to take on a series of jobs to earn the money and fame required to make a name for yourself about town as a skilled Trotmobile operator. When a series of bandit attacks begins to affect the city's economy and distress the citizens, who will have the mettle and the metal to put a stop to it?

http://www.play-asia.com/SOap-23-83-...j-70-3d76.html

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Dragons of Rage

July 6th, 2009, 23:04 Posted By: wraggster



Matman has posted a new version of Dragons of Rage Beats of Rage Mod that should be compatible with PSP, Dreamcast and GP2x:

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PSP Firmware v5.55 spotted on demo unit

July 6th, 2009, 23:18 Posted By: wraggster

News via exophase

An eagle-eyed attendee of the Paris-based Japan Expo happened to notice that one of the PSP demonstration units on display to showcase Soulcalibur Broken Destiny was running a yet-unreleased firmware 5.55. No visible changes were observed, so if we had to wager a guess, this is another minor update. Nevertheless, it piques our interest, leading us to believe that the update could be game-specific or was designed to further patch up security holes that have cropped up within the past couple months, much to Sony’s dismay.

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PSP 2 (not PSPgo) graphical specs leaked?

July 6th, 2009, 23:40 Posted By: Darksaviour69

Posted on the Eurogamers Spanish site, translated poorly by google:

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LittleBigGhostbusters?!

July 6th, 2009, 23:42 Posted By: wraggster

As if the Blu-ray release of the movie, a brand new videogame, and some original toys weren't an awesome enough way to celebrate the 25th anniversary of Ghostbusters, it appears that some kind of Ghostbuster content is coming to LittleBigPlanet. On Friday, the game's developer, Media Molecule, posted a simple black screen with white text reading "WHO YA GONNA CALL?" Today, that text remains but an image of Sackboy in a ghost suit has been added.

Sadly, there are no details available as to whether this is a sticker pack, a bunch of costumes, or (please, God) new levels. A message left with Sony wasn't immediately returned, but when the publisher gets back to us, we'll update this article.

Until then, wait for the sign.

http://uk.ps3.ign.com/articles/100/1001213p1.html

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Atlus Officially Announces Demon's Souls for North America

July 6th, 2009, 23:43 Posted By: wraggster

Atlus U.S.A., Inc. today revealed that Demon's Souls, a groundbreaking action RPG experience for PLAYSTATION 3 system, is to become the newest entry in the Atlus Spoils fan appreciation program. In addition to the standard version of the game, which now features new North-American exclusive box art, there will also be a deluxe edition. For less than it costs to import the game, fans will receive a 150+ page strategy guide (only available as part of this deluxe version, not for sale anywhere else) and a collectible outer slipcase, in addition to the game itself.

Moreover, fans who pre-order either version will receive a free bonus art book with designs and concept sketches from the world of Demon's Souls (only at participating retailers, while supplies last).

"Atlus Spoils is all about giving back to our fans and thanking them for their support, and we're excited to be able to do something very special for Demon's Souls," stated Tim Pivnicny, Vice President of Sales and Marketing at Atlus. "On October 6th, PLAYSTATION 3 system owners will be treated to the definitive release of what many consider to be the most innovative action RPG in recent memory. With both the standard and deluxe versions of the game accompanied by irresistible North American exclusives, like a special pre-order bonus art book, we hope this is an offer patient Demon's Souls fans will be hard-pressed to resist."

Demon's Souls for PLAYSTATION 3 system is scheduled for North American release on October 6, 2009. The standard version will retail with an MSRP of $59.99, and the deluxe edition with an MSRP of $69.99. Pre-orders for the deluxe edition are scheduled to begin on Wednesday, July 8th.

VISIT THE OFFICIAL WEBSITE: WWW.DEMONS-SOULS.COM

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Slim Colours Patch (Revision: v2)

July 6th, 2009, 23:48 Posted By: wraggster

An Updated release from Bubbletune:

This is a quick update to the Slim Colours Patch which adds support for 5.02, 5.03 and 5.50 firmwares.

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JPCSP 0.2 revision 1087 - PSP Emulator for Windows

July 6th, 2009, 23:55 Posted By: wraggster

The JPCSP Team have released a new build of the PSP Emulator written in Java that plays some commercial games and Homebrew, heres whats new:

Log last changes rev1086-1087
Quote:
Implemented VSGN instruction (VFPU), it was previously misinterpreted as VSRT3
( Issue 94 ). Tested with VfpuTest.

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Unofficial gpSP kai compatibile with CF 5.50GEN-B

July 6th, 2009, 23:58 Posted By: wraggster

News via pspita

The coder Takk Releases Update to its Unofficial gpSP Kai Game Boy Advance emulator for PSP, based on work originally developed by Exophase. This update is currently only for FAT PSP, solves the problems of compatibility with the latest 5.50GEN CF-B. I look forward to a version for PSP Slim & Lite.
A changelog and follow the link to download.

Changelog:

Quote:

- Compatible with CF-B 5.50GEN
- It 's not recommended to use the button to exit or enter the dall'emulatore menu.

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PCE for PSP v0.81a3 - PCEngine Emulator for PSP

July 7th, 2009, 00:13 Posted By: wraggster

News via pspita

E 'disponibile a new update of PCE for PSP, PSP emulator for the PC Engine was developed by an anonymous coder Japanese. The program comes as the version 0.81a3.

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Appzer RC 0.01

July 7th, 2009, 00:20 Posted By: wraggster

News/release from FaT3oYCG

Hi, this is the first release of the browser that I am making for the PGE version of Lua Player. At the moment it is quite simple and hasnt got any majorly breath taking graphics, but if you want to make a background for this then feel free and if it's any good I'll add it into the next release and add you to the credits.

Here are the features taken from the Changelog.

Appzer RC 0.01:
- Displays current directory.
- Displays up to 18 files at a time.
- Scroll bar to show current position in overall items.
(this is more useful for when you have more than 18 files in a directory.)
- Selected item indicator.
- Colour coded squares next to item names.
-- Green is a folder that has an index.lua file in it.
(Appzer will try to launch that file if you click on the folder.)
-- Orange is a normal folder that has no index.lua file inside it.
-- Blue currently means any file that Appzer can open.
-- Black is for anything else.
- Displays some basic file information about each file on the right hand side.
- Browser status is displayed at the bottom, this currenly does not change.
- Enable / Disable USB mode.
- Take multiple screenshots.
- For other features reffer to the controls in the Readme.txt file.

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PSP Clone with 8GB On Board Memory NES/GBC and Megadrive Emulator Installed

July 7th, 2009, 00:37 Posted By: wraggster





Today over at Ishopvideogame a new PSP Clone has been released with 8gb of memory built in and Camera and MP3/MP4/MP5 Playback, and plays Not Only NES but Gameboy, Gameboy Colour and even Megadrive Games, heres the full specs:

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Fractal Universe V5 - Final

July 7th, 2009, 08:30 Posted By: Art

Fractal Universe V5 - Final






Hi Guys,
This is my fifth release of Fractal Universe for the Sony Playstation Portable.
Fractal Universe is a fractal explorer that supports both Mandelbot and Julia sets.
You can move left, right , up, down, and zoom in & out of the image you see at any time.

An overlay viewfinder window allows the user zoom into
any particular spot in the image they want. This saves a lot of rendering time.

The last feature to be implemented for V5 is colour cycling.


YouTube Demo Video:


Download Backup link:
http://www.sendspace.com/file/vwjpd9

Cheers, Art.

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OPPO's long-awaited BDP-83 universal Blu-ray player now shipping

July 7th, 2009, 17:50 Posted By: wraggster



t's been a long (long!) time coming, but we're thrilled to finally be able to say that OPPO's multifaceted BDP-83 is shipping en masse to those willing to part with five bills (or $500, for those working without conversion tables). During our time with the player, we were duly impressed with most every aspect, and if you're still on the hunt for a Blu-ray player that can spin DVD-Audio and SACD on the side, you'll be hard pressed to find a better option than this. So, who's taking the plunge?

http://www.engadget.com/2009/07/07/o...-now-shipping/

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Killzone 2 / Metal Gear Solid 4 PS3 bundle hitting Best Buy now

July 7th, 2009, 17:51 Posted By: wraggster

As Sony shoves one more PlayStation 3 bundle down our throats while we anxiously await the appearance of a slimmed-down version of the console, we have to admit that the game choices here are really top shelf. After catching wind of the Killzone 2 / Metal Gear Sold 4 PS3 bundle yesterday, we now have all the confirmation we need to believe that such a bundle is indeed filtering out to Best Buy stores. The image above shows an internal memo sent out to alert employees that the new package could start arriving as early as July 6th, with the official announcement coming in the July 12th ad. If you're actually in the market for a non-discounted, thick PS3, we'd say a phone call or two is in order, no?

[Thanks, Anonymous]

Update: The $399.99 bundle is now live on Best Buy's website and available for in-store pickup in select locations.

http://www.engadget.com/2009/07/07/k...-best-buy-now/

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Two Worlds II not a rehashed expansion

July 7th, 2009, 20:52 Posted By: wraggster

TopWare has explained that elements of scrapped expansion Two Worlds: The Temptation will appear in recently-announced sequel Two Worlds II, but made it clear that the latter is "for sure a different title and not a simple rename".

"After Two Worlds the dev team started an add-on. Later this was too huge and became a full product (Two Worlds: The Temptation), but in the last year as the development went forward, we found the technology outdated and started a new engine generation from the scratch. Now it is a real Two Worlds II with state-of-the-art technology," TopWare boss Dirk Hassinger told Joystiq.

"Of course some ideas and story partly developed in the last couple of years, which could have been a part of Two Worlds: The Temptation (PC/360) and Revelation (PS3), will be used for TWII, but it is for sure a different title and not a simple rename."

Two Worlds: Temptation was announced in November 2007 for release the subsequent year, but obviously this never happened. Two Worlds II apparently makes "quantum leaps" over the original role-playing game, which wasn't very good. There's a new combat engine, new AI, new script and new visuals.

Whether these will add up to the "breathtaking experience" promised in the press release we'll have to wait and see.

http://www.eurogamer.net/articles/tw...shed-expansion

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Spike Working On Way of the Samurai 2 PSP Port

July 7th, 2009, 22:02 Posted By: wraggster

Last year Spike released Way of the Samurai Portable (aka Samurai Dou Portable in Japan) on the PSP. Guess what’s coming out later year!

Way of the Samurai 2 Portable is scheduled to come out in Japan on September 3 for the budget price of 3,990 yen ($42). The PSP version has new modes, but Spike hasn’t revealed what they are yet.

Just for reference, ad hoc support for versus mode and extra swords were added to last year’s Way of Samurai PSP port.

So far no publisher has announced plans to publish Way of the Samurai Portable or Way of the Samurai 2 Portable. The now defunct Bam! Entertainment had the rights to Way of the Samurai on the PS2 and Capcom published Way of the Samurai 2

http://www.siliconera.com/2009/07/07...ai-2-psp-port/

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SOCOM 4 Is Apparently "In Development" For PS3

July 7th, 2009, 22:04 Posted By: wraggster

A listing for "SOCOM 4" for the PlayStation 3 at production studio PCB Productions might be a good indicator that somewhere, in some capacity, someone is working on another SOCOM game. Wouldn't that be surprising?

After the listing was dug up by PS3 Center, the digital audio recording facility pulled the SOCOM sequel mention—but not before Google cached it—along with one for Syphon Filter 5.

Yes, the same rumored Syphon Filter we posted about in February (from the same source), which must have lead someone to believe that Syphon Filter 5 was also in development at Sony Bend. Potentially another massive megaton that another entry in a very successful series of shooters would get another iteration.

PlayStation marketing honcho Peter Dille indicated to us way back in 2007 that the multiplayer-focused SOCOM Confrontation wasn't the only entry in the series we'd see on the PlayStation 3. If SOCOM 4 is it, we'd expect a return to some of the single-player story driven campaigns seen in previous entries.

Of course, PCB Productions may have gotten the naming of these sequels off. That "in development" status could be old (see the "in development" notation for Frame City Killers). And how this entry could possibly be referred to as the fourth entry in the series is a bit confusing, since SOCOM: Combined Assault followed SOCOM 3. But we just work here.

SOCOM developer Zipper Interactive is hard at work on MAG right now, but if it didn't have another SOCOM in development, you could knock us over with a feather.

http://kotaku.com/5308608/socom-4-is...opment-for-ps3

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Atlus Brings High School Brawler Kenka Bancho Stateside, Needs Help

July 7th, 2009, 23:33 Posted By: wraggster

Publisher Atlus will be bringing the PSP brawler Kenka Bancho 3 stateside in "early 2010," the company announced today, giving English speakers a chance to emit intimidating eye-lasers at lesser foes while sporting awesome haircuts.

The third in Spike's series of bad-ass brawlers, Kenka Bancho 3 will take players on a high school class trip to a historic Japanese city where people will be punched and kicked in the face. Hands will be kept coolly in pockets until such time as someone needs a good beating, then said beatings will ensue, all for good reason. There's a story woven in between all that hand-to-hand violence, as well as great eyebrows, afros, and other choice grooming options.

Atlus is also soliciting help in choosing a Western appealing name for Kenka Bancho 3 via online survey. The options include Badass and Bancho Royale but should really stop and start with Badass Rumble. Unfortunately, it doesn't appear potential customers can suggest their own names, including my own, My Eye-Laser Training Coach.

Granted, I've never played one of the Kenka Bancho games on the PlayStation 2, due to the language barrier, but I'm still recommending that you pay attention to it. Why? Well, why not?

Here's a trailer of the Japanese release that might give you a better idea what this whole thing is about.

http://kotaku.com/5309332/atlus-brin...ide-needs-help

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The Bigs 2

July 7th, 2009, 23:46 Posted By: wraggster

Newly released today:



features
Larger-than-life gameplay, stadiums and player models provide a truly heroic baseball experience
Pitches thrown into the Batter’s Wheelhouse are more likely to be launched into the next time zone, but sneaking a pitch past the hitter will shrink his wheelhouse for the rest of the game. Do you have the guts to pitch into the Batter’s Wheelhouse?
Unique story mode allows users to pit their created player against MLB legends past and present as they strive for a World Series™ championship and MVP trophy

description
It’s the last stop. The final destination. The BIG SHOW. It’s where dreams born in backyards are finally realized. Where the fences are FARTHER. The grandstands are LARGER. And the spotlight is BRIGHTER. It’s where thieves run FASTER, pitchers throw HARDER and the sluggers go DEEPER. Where the bats are BIGGER, the spikes are SHARPER and the comebacks are harder to swallow. It’s where home runs are RUTHIAN and fastballs CATCH FIRE. It’s where a monster lurks in left. Where bombers terrorize the night. And where the confines aren’t always so friendly. It’s THE BIGS. And come July, everything about them is about to get BIGGER.

http://www.play-asia.com/SOap-23-83-...j-70-3g02.html

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PSPgo Preorders Begin

July 8th, 2009, 01:10 Posted By: wraggster

If you're like the IGN PlayStation Team, you've got a big red circle around Oct. 1, 2009 -- the launch date of the PSPgo -- on your calendar. Well, if you don't feel like hitting up an electronics store at 12:01 a.m., Amazon.com has begun selling preorders for both the black and white versions of the PSPgo. Oddly, as of the writing of this article, the white PSPgo is priced at $249.99 while the black PSPgo is for sale with a $248.99 price tag. Other than that, everything looks kosher for the UMD-less system's launch.

http://uk.psp.ign.com/articles/100/1001658p1.html

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Psp Power Saver v.0.1.1

July 8th, 2009, 01:14 Posted By: wraggster

News/release from Warlock:

Don't you hate when you are playing a game and about to beat the level and your psp power is low and you have to run to go get the charger? Well that is no more because with the Psp Power Saver
you can now play for longer periods time.Just enable the prx and viola. This is just a beta release so you probably wont notice the power increase because its only about a 15% increase.
In later revisions i will attempt to amp it up to about 50 or 100%. So enjoy... Any questions comments or bugs? Email them to me at TshWarlock@gmail.com Or aim me at Tsh SlipKnot
I am not responsible for your psp blowing up when you use this This project is closed source for now... (Long story...)


How it works:
=============

This turns off the umd driver when you are not using it (iso/cso, Homebrew,internet,music ect.) In turn this will save you power and the app conserves power whenever it can, ie. when you arent using it.

THIS DOES NOT TOUCH YOU BATTERY! I am tired of people saying I ****ed up their batteries but it turns out it was human error because they tried to open it or dropped it ect.
I do not want a billion emails saying "Dood wat happenz it doznt work" -.- It works its just in really early stages...


Installation:
=============

Put the PspPowerSaver.prx in your seplugins folder
And add ms0:/seplugins/PspPowerSaver.prx to your game.txt
Add ms0:/seplugins/PspPowerSaver.prx to your vsh.txt


Changelog:
==========

v.0.1.1
-Fixed compatability issue with the 5.03 Gen-A firmware, some funky shutoffs were going on
-Cleaned the source up (NOW CLOSED SOURCE, due to a certain someone that I thought I trusted, modifying it and causing a rukus)
-Added vsh support

Download and Give Feedback Via Comments

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[WIP] HackLink - Rule The World

July 8th, 2009, 14:43 Posted By: yonaba

Hi all,
i've been recently started working on a new and original Homebrew game for Sony's PSP.Basics are entirely implemented, only remains some cleaning stuff, optimizations before i start writing scenarios for playing.

Thus I can show the game concept.

Name: HackLink - Rule The World

Based On: Uplink-Hacker Elite (Chris Delay's PC Game)

GamePlay: Really simple. You're a Hacker.You enjoy breaking the law on the Net.Your dream is to become a free-lance agent working for HackLink, a worldwide corporation and become a Leader in computer crimes.

Programming Language: Lua - Using LuaPlayerHm7 and LuaPlayerWindowsR3 for debugging


More Screenshots via comments

Thanks for reading.

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Sony's Stringer dismisses PS3 price-cutting threats by noisy Activision CEO

July 8th, 2009, 16:54 Posted By: wraggster

We can attest that Howard Stringer, CEO of Sony, is a pretty nice guy. But all the PS3 price-cut chatter from industry analysts and gaming execs seems to have the man riled as he tries to keep Sony afloat. Responding directly to Robert Kotick's threat to stop developing Activision titles on the PS3 (and PSP) due to the console's relative high price, Stringer told Reuters, "He likes to make a lot of noise. He's putting pressure on me and I'm putting pressure on him. That's the nature of business." When asked about the logic of not cutting prices, Howard said, "I (would) lose money on every PlayStation I make -- how's that for logic." True, until the 45nm Cell processor launches allowing for a cheaper, cooler running slim PS3 later this year, right Howie... wink, wink?
http://www.engadget.com/2009/07/08/s...-by-noisy-act/

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Dragon Age pre-launch demo "not likely"

July 8th, 2009, 17:11 Posted By: wraggster

The RPG nature of Dragon Age: Origins means there's not likely to be a demo for the game before it's out, BioWare co-founder Greg Zeschuk has told us.

"The way the game's set up actually makes it hard for a demo because there are six origin stories and we don't know whether to just pick one or a couple," he explained.

"It's not likely that we'll have a demo ready for release, but very shortly after we'll probably figure out some parameters where we chop the game into pieces and make them available for people to experience."

The game's due out on PS3, 360 and PC on October 20.

http://www.computerandvideogames.com....php?id=219115

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Sony: We're no longer playing catch up with Xbox Live

July 8th, 2009, 17:15 Posted By: wraggster

The PlayStation Network offers a lot of things Xbox Live doesn't and is no longer playing catch up with the Microsoft online service, according to Sony Computer Entertainment America's director of PSN Operations, Eric Lempel.

"I don't think there's a lot of 'catch up' [with XBL] any more. In some cases, I think we've got more, and we've got some other things they don't have," he said in an interview with Industry Gamers.

"In terms of strengths, of course we're still free, and we're giving you a lot for free. It's not just free online gaming, but we've got PlayStation Home, which is a massive community and application that's totally free to use.

"I think there's a lot we're doing that in some cases they're not doing, and I don't see a lot of things they're doing that we're not," he added.

Touching on the subject of the types of software that could be offered over PSN - specifically for the PSP - Lempel said the company didn't want to go down the same route as the App Store.

"Right now our free catalogue consists of demos, wallpapers, themes and videos about games. I don't think we want to degrade the experience you get from a PSP. Because [iPhone] is not a gaming-centric device, I think a user picks it up and says, 'This is kind of dumb, but I don't care because I know this device wasn't intended for games.'

"I want to make sure we uphold the quality of games on PSN; that doesn't mean they can't be shorter or quirky but we don't want to see a bunch of little things that don't quite make sense or provide a good experience because I think that takes away from what the device is intended for."

Lempel went on to say Sony has no immediate plans to offer a PlayStation 3 games-on-demand service similar to the one Microsoft unveiled for the Xbox 360 at this year's E3 due to the sheer size of its Blu-ray discs.

He also poured doubt on Microsoft's plans to let users stream films at 1080p, saying similar examples he's seen of this technology have produced results that are "a little grainy" and not on par with what the PlayStation 3 and big television can currently deliver.

http://www.gamesindustry.biz/article...xbox-live-sony

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Sony: We're no longer playing catch up with Xbox Live

July 8th, 2009, 17:15 Posted By: wraggster

The PlayStation Network offers a lot of things Xbox Live doesn't and is no longer playing catch up with the Microsoft online service, according to Sony Computer Entertainment America's director of PSN Operations, Eric Lempel.

"I don't think there's a lot of 'catch up' [with XBL] any more. In some cases, I think we've got more, and we've got some other things they don't have," he said in an interview with Industry Gamers.

"In terms of strengths, of course we're still free, and we're giving you a lot for free. It's not just free online gaming, but we've got PlayStation Home, which is a massive community and application that's totally free to use.

"I think there's a lot we're doing that in some cases they're not doing, and I don't see a lot of things they're doing that we're not," he added.

Touching on the subject of the types of software that could be offered over PSN - specifically for the PSP - Lempel said the company didn't want to go down the same route as the App Store.

"Right now our free catalogue consists of demos, wallpapers, themes and videos about games. I don't think we want to degrade the experience you get from a PSP. Because [iPhone] is not a gaming-centric device, I think a user picks it up and says, 'This is kind of dumb, but I don't care because I know this device wasn't intended for games.'

"I want to make sure we uphold the quality of games on PSN; that doesn't mean they can't be shorter or quirky but we don't want to see a bunch of little things that don't quite make sense or provide a good experience because I think that takes away from what the device is intended for."

Lempel went on to say Sony has no immediate plans to offer a PlayStation 3 games-on-demand service similar to the one Microsoft unveiled for the Xbox 360 at this year's E3 due to the sheer size of its Blu-ray discs.

He also poured doubt on Microsoft's plans to let users stream films at 1080p, saying similar examples he's seen of this technology have produced results that are "a little grainy" and not on par with what the PlayStation 3 and big television can currently deliver.

http://www.gamesindustry.biz/article...xbox-live-sony

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Monster Hunter Freedom Unite breaks retail records

July 8th, 2009, 17:16 Posted By: wraggster

Monster Hunter Freedom Unite has become the first PSP game to ship over 3.5 million units, according to Capcom.

Released in Japan in March 2008, Monster Hunter became the best selling PSP game of 2008. In October, an enhanced 'Best' version of the game was released and shipped a further one million copies. The 3.5 million figure takes into account both versions of the game.

Following its popularity on PSP, Capcom will release a new Nintendo Wii instalment to the series on August 1 entitled Monster Hunter 3(tri-).

The game will be the first third-party title to be bundled with the Nintendo Wii and sold as a special pack. In addition, Capcom is planning a series of special preview events in July and 'Monster Hunter Festa '09' in August, where fans will take part in Monster Hunter themed celebrations.

http://www.gamesindustry.biz/article...retail-records

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Blood Bowl dated for UK/US

July 8th, 2009, 17:22 Posted By: wraggster

Focus Home Interactive has said Blood Bowl will not appear in English-speaking regions until much later this year.

"Blood Bowl will be released end of Q3/beginning of Q4 in UK and North America," a spokesperson told Eurogamer, apologising that no "more detailed" information could be offered. That makes September or October the likely months of arrival, then.

Blood Bowl is a DS, PC, PSP and Xbox 360 take on the Games Workshop tabletop sport of the same name. As such, Blood Bowl is turn-based, bloody and steeped in rules and lore - all of which has been tastefully and faithfully recreated by French studio Cyanide.

http://www.eurogamer.net/articles/bl...ated-for-uk-us

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XMB battery meter glitch 'definitely being corrected'

July 8th, 2009, 17:24 Posted By: wraggster

PSN's Eric Lempel is doing the interview rounds, talking up the PlayStation Network and how far it has come over the last few years. Obviously, people tend to be more interested in the service's future and what's coming in future firmware updates. Lempel remained tight-lipped, but let slip a few interesting nuggets of info -- such as the fact that he's as angry as consumers about the XMB battery life meter bug. You know, the way the battery meter covers the clock when you press the PS button in-game. Annoying, right? That's "definitely being corrected," so you can check that one off your list.

Lempel also said that he feels PSN is no longer playing catch-up with Xbox Live: "I don't think there's a lot of 'catch up' [with XBL] anymore. In some cases, I think we've got more, and we've got some other things they don't have." He confirms that in-game voice chat is in the works. No release date, but they're working on it. Lastly, Lempel expects that "PSN would be great" for the upcoming motion controllers. Hopefully, more support than the PlayStation Eye's meager offerings.

http://www.joystiq.com/2009/07/08/xm...ing-corrected/

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Sony: We Could've Come Out With PS2.5, But Didn't

July 8th, 2009, 17:30 Posted By: wraggster

There's been a lot made recently about the PS3's price point. Some say it's too expensive, some want a price cut. But for Sony exec Jack Tretton, those folks are not thinking long term.

"We could've come out with a PlayStation 2.5 for $299 or less, and in the first two or three years it would sell extremely well," he explains. "But there would be a point where people would be going, 'I am not really seeing the incremental leap.'"

For Tretton and Sony, they're "sacrificing the short term to pay dividends in the long term." Not sure how that works for Sony's bottom line, but hey, their company!

"People are having short-term thinking—the platform is not even three years old," Tretton adds. "It was $599; it's now $399." He goes on to say that Sony isn't planning to snare all customers in day one, but over a ten year period.

We're just glad that Sony didn't put out a PS2.5 so we have to buy another console. We're not made of money, you know.

http://kotaku.com/5309820/sony-we-co...ps25-but-didnt

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Downloadable Manga Coming To PSP

July 8th, 2009, 17:31 Posted By: wraggster

Sometime this year Sony will start selling manga on the PlayStation Store. The announcement assures current PSP owners will be able download manga since it’s compatible with all PSP models. Specific titles and pricing were not announced.

Currently the news is just for Japan, but Sony could work with manga or comic book companies domestically.

Third parties offer similar services on the Wii and Nintendo DS. Sunsoft’s digital manga service is particularly interesting since it gives users an option to read manga with English subtitles even though it’s only out in Japan.

http://www.siliconera.com/2009/07/08...coming-to-psp/

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Final Fantasy II Lands On PSN Game Archives

July 8th, 2009, 17:34 Posted By: wraggster

If you have a Japanese PSN account you can download Final Fantasy II. The PsOne remake is available on the PlayStation Store for 800 yen ($9).

Final Fantasy II tells the story of four orphans that are wiped out by Black Knights in the game’s opening sequence. The team, minus Leon, awaken in Fynn and join the resistance against the Emperor.

While Final Fantasy II is often thought as black sheep of the Final Fantasy series it introduced elements like a rich story (for a NES game!), transient party members, dragoons and evil empires.

The PsOne version has new sprites, which are from the Wonderswan release and FMV sequences. It’s missing the Soul of Rebirth dungeon in the GBA version and the extra Arcane dungeons from the PSP remake. On the plus side you can abuse the canceling bug and blaze through the game.

Gaia Seed, a side scrolling shmup, and Deron Dero Dero, a Puyo Puyo style puzzle game from Tecmo, are the other PsOne games out this week.

http://www.siliconera.com/2009/07/08...game-archives/

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Final Fantasy II Lands On PSN Game Archives

July 8th, 2009, 17:34 Posted By: wraggster

If you have a Japanese PSN account you can download Final Fantasy II. The PsOne remake is available on the PlayStation Store for 800 yen ($9).

Final Fantasy II tells the story of four orphans that are wiped out by Black Knights in the game’s opening sequence. The team, minus Leon, awaken in Fynn and join the resistance against the Emperor.

While Final Fantasy II is often thought as black sheep of the Final Fantasy series it introduced elements like a rich story (for a NES game!), transient party members, dragoons and evil empires.

The PsOne version has new sprites, which are from the Wonderswan release and FMV sequences. It’s missing the Soul of Rebirth dungeon in the GBA version and the extra Arcane dungeons from the PSP remake. On the plus side you can abuse the canceling bug and blaze through the game.

Gaia Seed, a side scrolling shmup, and Deron Dero Dero, a Puyo Puyo style puzzle game from Tecmo, are the other PsOne games out this week.

http://www.siliconera.com/2009/07/08...game-archives/

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The Bigs 2

July 8th, 2009, 21:18 Posted By: wraggster

Newly released today:



features
As requested by fans, enjoy a new Season Mode featuring full MLB schedules, stat tracking and roster management
Bigger and better arcade baseball action, featuring Legendary Moves, Batter’s Wheelhouse & a more powerful Big Slam
Enjoy exciting single player or co-op action in Times Square or three new environments
Test your hitting, fielding, running and throwing skills against MLB stars in several all-new mini-games
New & improved story mode, picking up at the end of the “Rookie Challenge” mode from The BIGS. Create a player and progress your career from a Mexican league to the Majors and, eventually, the Hall of Fame. Along the way, compete in boss battles against MLB legends

description
It’s the last stop. The final destination. The BIG SHOW. It’s where dreams born in backyards are finally realized. Where the fences are FARTHER. The grandstands are LARGER. And the spotlight is BRIGHTER. It’s where thieves run FASTER, pitchers throw HARDER and the sluggers go DEEPER. Where the bats are BIGGER, the spikes are SHARPER and the comebacks are harder to swallow. It’s where home runs are RUTHIAN and fastballs CATCH FIRE. It’s where a monster lurks in left. Where bombers terrorize the night. And where the confines aren’t always so friendly. It’s THE BIGS. And come July, everything about them is about to get BIGGER.

http://www.play-asia.com/SOap-23-83-...j-70-3f2b.html

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The Bigs 2

July 8th, 2009, 21:19 Posted By: wraggster

Newly released today:



features
Larger-than-life gameplay, stadiums and player models provide a truly heroic baseball experience
Pitches thrown into the Batter’s Wheelhouse are more likely to be launched into the next time zone, but sneaking a pitch past the hitter will shrink his wheelhouse for the rest of the game. Do you have the guts to pitch into the Batter’s Wheelhouse?
Unique story mode allows users to pit their created player against MLB legends past and present as they strive for a World Series™ championship and MVP trophy

description
It’s the last stop. The final destination. The BIG SHOW. It’s where dreams born in backyards are finally realized. Where the fences are FARTHER. The grandstands are LARGER. And the spotlight is BRIGHTER. It’s where thieves run FASTER, pitchers throw HARDER and the sluggers go DEEPER. Where the bats are BIGGER, the spikes are SHARPER and the comebacks are harder to swallow. It’s where home runs are RUTHIAN and fastballs CATCH FIRE. It’s where a monster lurks in left. Where bombers terrorize the night. And where the confines aren’t always so friendly. It’s THE BIGS. And come July, everything about them is about to get BIGGER.

http://www.play-asia.com/SOap-23-83-...j-70-3eoc.html

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Sekai wa Atashi de Mawatteru: Hikari to Yami no Princess

July 8th, 2009, 21:21 Posted By: wraggster

Newly released today:



The most willful princess ever graced the earth is here to lead you through a world infused with self-centered-ness.

This game is about a princess who has to shed her lovely clothes and hair for an armor, all in the name of love. Don't worry, Angela is no doormat.

Make use of the “wagamama command” to customize the field and gameplay experience. Use the command to increase rewards from defeating monsters or lower the powers of the opponents, do it anyway you like, after all, it's your world, your way!

Not only can you modify your experience, you can even modify Angela's character, depending on your choices, you can switch her to the light side or the dark side.

The different sides of Angelas have different powers. Never in the RPG world have players been so encouraged to practice their willfulness. Be yourself for once and change the world around you to your liking.

http://www.play-asia.com/SOap-23-83-...j-70-3cg9.html

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Media Molecule Talks LittleBigPlanet 2

July 8th, 2009, 22:01 Posted By: wraggster

Media Molecule's Alex Evans has begun talk of LittleBigPlanet 2 – although it seems that any potential sequel is still some way off from an official reveal.

In an interview with gamesindustry.biz, Evans spoke of how the wealth of user generated content for LittleBigPlanet could be accessed in a sequel. When asked to confirm LittleBigPlanet 2, however, Evans was more coy. 'I'd love there to be a sequel, put it that way,' he said, 'But that's not an announcement - although I will say that the entire team is working on LBP.'

Media Molecule has previously been reticent to talk about a new game, instead putting their energies into supporting the original game. 'We're putting all the creative ambition of a sequel in,' Evans told IGN about Media Molecule's approach to downloadable content, 'but we might not end up calling it a sequel.'

Sony's Cambridge studios are currently working with Media Molecule to bring the game to the PSP, while the support for the original game continues apace with the latest download introducing Ghostbusters themed content to LittleBigPlanet.

http://uk.ps3.ign.com/articles/100/1001884p1.html

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Tales of Vesperia Demo Incoming

July 8th, 2009, 22:05 Posted By: wraggster

Get your Japanese PSN accounts ready! There's a new Japan-only demo on the way that we're certain you'll want to download -- if not for your love of RPGs, then for the inevitable system wars bickering that will ensue.

Over in Japan today, Namco Bandai announced a demo for Tales of Vesperia. The PS3 version of last year's Xbox 360 RPG hit will be available for early play on July 13. The game won't hit retail until a distant September 17, so we're sure PS3 and RPG fans alike are pleased with this news.

It's unclear what will be playable, but, as part of this update, Namco Bandai shared a few screens with local media showing off newcomer Patty. It's possible that we'll get a first look at the new character in action.

As far as we know, the Vesperia demo will be downloadable exclusively from the Japanese PlayStation Store, so if you want to see what a Tales game looks like on PS3, be sure get a Japanese account set up.

http://uk.ps3.ign.com/articles/100/1001903p1.html

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CTFTool GUI for 5.50

July 8th, 2009, 22:09 Posted By: wraggster

News via pspita

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CFWEnabler NetUpdate Fixer v1.01

July 8th, 2009, 22:12 Posted By: wraggster

News via pspita

Becus25 and Xenogears, the authors of the Custom Firmware Enabler, release a plugin that enables the network to update the previous versions of (3.10, 3.20, 3:30, 3.50, 3.51).
More to follow.

Information:

Quote:

- The installation of this plugin is needed for those who want to make updates to the PSP directly from CFE. The creation of the prx is also due to the exchange server.
- It 's also recommended for those who use the CFE v3.51

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Naruto (Contra Edition) v1

July 8th, 2009, 22:20 Posted By: wraggster

News/release from aznag88

Hi !
I have came to this forum to post my first homebrew game for the PSP.
I hope you like it and i am waiting for comments/opinions about the game.

For those who know, this game is based on one of the most amazing and addicted game for Super Nintendo, "Contra"! In my country, naruto anime is very in fashion and its great, so i have decided to do a naruto version of the "contra" game. Naruto in this game has to run through many levels, killing enemies and survive until the final boss wich he has to defeat and gather points.

This is the first version of the game so it contains bugs and many improvements to do such as :

-Better AI.
-More levels.
-Items.
-Platforms.
-Score.
-Etc.



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Medal of Honor Heroes (MOHH) second exploit

July 9th, 2009, 08:00 Posted By: kgsws˜™

There is new version of old exploit ...
What's new?
Now you don't need WiFi connection and CFW PSP.
It also take much less time to run.

Download here: http://zdoom.ic.cz/psp/moh-exploit-v2.zip
Mirror by n00b81: http://upsp.ws/moh-exploit-v2.zip
... and read info.txt ...

Tested on PSP-1000 with official FW 5.51, again thanks to PSPdemon for testing.

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Team 17 confirms Alien Breed remake

July 9th, 2009, 15:16 Posted By: wraggster

Title to be digitally distributed, powered by Unreal Engine 3


UK-based Worms developer Team 17 has confirmed it will be taking its old Amiga shooter Alien Breed to the next generation with an Unreal Engine 3-powered remake. 


Continuing Team 17’s current distribution strategy, the game will be released digitally, though it’s not confirmed whether it will be found on platforms such as XBLA, PSN or Steam.
The news of Team 17’s return to the Alien Breed series first appeared on Develop last October, with studio director Martyn Brown revealing: 

"It's something we've always wanted to do, and despite being exceptionally close on a number of occasions to getting the right deal on various platforms, it never worked out. Fortunately sci-fi action is back in fashion, and we look forward to delivering Alien Breed - the details of which may surprise a few eople when we cough them out."


Brown recently praised Sony’s switch to digital titles for the upcoming PSPgo, telling Develop that “UMD never really got going”.

http://www.develop-online.net/news/3...n-Breed-remake

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EA doubles server capacity for Battlefield demand

July 9th, 2009, 17:09 Posted By: wraggster

Electronic Arts has doubled the server capacity for the online title Battlefield 1943 less than 24 hours into its release.

The game released on Xbox 360 yesterday, but with servers quickly reaching capacity some users were unable to play the multiplayer-only title, forcing developer DICE to scramble to meet demand.

"Good news, the game is incredibly successful beyond even my expectations. We have reached server capacity, but the bad news about this now some people can't join unless someone leaves," admitted Greg Van Dyke, of DICE, on the official forums.

After adding more servers, particularly in Europe, DICE said it hoped to double the capacity for users, ahead of its release on Sony's PSN service later today.

"We are working to increase our server capacity to almost double what it is currently. This will be complete today West Coast time."

The title costs GBP 9.99 on PlayStation 3 and 1200 MS points (GBP 10.20) on Xbox Live.

http://www.gamesindustry.biz/article...lefield-demand

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Nippon Ichi Composing A Musical RPG For PSP

July 9th, 2009, 17:15 Posted By: wraggster

Like Rhapsody: A Musical Adventure? Princess Antiphona’s Hymn: Angel’s Score Op.A follows in its footsteps.



Both games have musical events and puppets. In Princess Antiphona puppets take care of chores and lack the ability to sign. In our world this wouldn’t be an issue, but music is power in Princess Antiphona’s world.

Tenpei Sato, the composer from the Marl Kingdom games, is working on the music for Princess Antiphona. The PSP game also has full voice acting, which could be an issue if NIS America decides to pick this up and wants to retain the original voice track.

Princess Antiphona’s Hymn is slated to come out in Japan this October.

http://www.siliconera.com/2009/07/08...l-rpg-for-psp/

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Action Oriented Fullmetal Alchemist Game Coming To PSP

July 9th, 2009, 17:19 Posted By: wraggster

And no, this isn’t a port of Fullmetal Alchemist and the Broken Angel. A brand new Fullmetal Alchemist title is coming to PSP on October 15.

Fullmetal Alchemist: Senaka wo Takuseshi Mono (loosely translated as Fullmetal Alchemist: Trust the Person in the Back) is a two on two “bonds battle” game. Players form teams like Edward and Alphonse or Hawkeye and Mustang and battle each other. Weak attacks are mapped to X and strong attacks are on circle. Teammates can also link up for a powerful combination attack when the bond gauge is full.

Square Enix owns the rights to Fullmetal Alchemist, but Namco Bandai is developing this game. In the past Bandai handled some FMA games like Fullmetal Alchemist: Dream Carnival, a PS2 fighting game, and Fullmetal Alchemist: Dual Sympathy for the Nintendo DS.

It’s too early to determine if this will get picked up, but we’ll keep an eye on Homie Rollerz publisher Destineer. They picked up Dual Sympathy and independently developed Fullmetal Alchemist: Trading Card Game.

http://www.siliconera.com/2009/07/08...coming-to-psp/

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Sony: "Hopefully last year is as bad as it gets"

July 9th, 2009, 17:25 Posted By: wraggster

Sony Computer Entertainment president Jack Tretton has described fiscal 2008 as stormy, saying the period was a very challenging one for selling high-end, future technology.

While the company met its hardware sales targets for the year, Tretton told Fast Company it had been a tough year but that people are getting the message that the PlayStation 3 offers value for money.

"Hopefully last year is as bad as it gets. I think all indicators are that 2009 is going better than 2008. In 2008, we had a 38 per cent increase in sales and we hit our ten million-units-worldwide goal for PS3 sales... At the worst possible time, if you're hitting numbers and delivering success... my hope is that as our production efficiencies improve and more great games come to market, the horizon has got to be better for 2009 and 2010.

"It's like being out there in a storm - it does cause you to question your conviction, and tie yourself to the mast and weather the storm," he continued. "We have hit a very challenging period of trying to sell future technology, a high-end device, but is on the high-end retail pricing spectrum, at a time when people's disposable income is limited. But I think the fact we were successful in that says people are getting the message, that you get tremendous value when you buy a PlayStation product. Yes there are cheaper machines out there, but not ones that deliver the degree of value for the money that ours does."

Following Sony Corporation president Sir Howard Stringer's comments last week dismissing a PlayStation 3 price drop, Tretton relayed a similar message. "We could've come out with a PlayStation 2.5 for USD 299 or less, and in the first two or three years it would sell extremely well. But there would be a point where people would be going, 'I am not really seeing the incremental leap,'" he said.

"We feel that we're sacrificing the short term to pay dividends in the long term. People are having short-term thinking - the platform is not even three years old. It was USD 599; it's now USD 399. The focus on pricing is something we appreciate, but you have to have the conviction and the confidence that you are on the right path for the long term and ultimately you'll get all the consumers you want. You won't get them all day one, but we're looking to get them over a ten year period. It's going to take different things to get different consumers."

http://www.gamesindustry.biz/article...bad-as-it-gets

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FUEL demo today on PC, PS3, 360

July 9th, 2009, 17:29 Posted By: wraggster

Codemasters will offer a post-release demo of FUEL for PC, PS3 and Xbox 360 today.

The PC version will be available from the FUEL website at 2pm BST (UK time). The console versions may not pop up until later.

The demo opens Ocean Rush career event and Blitz Challenge. The former is a race for seven people and the latter is a race for one person and their clock.

Console versions will also have online play for two weeks from launch, either on the Tsunami Reef course with up to 15 others or on the Ocean Rush career event.

FUEL is set in a post-apocalyptic future where racers risk life and limb to win fuel, ironically. The game came out in early June but unfortunately we weren't massive fans.

http://www.eurogamer.net/articles/fu...-on-pc-ps3-360

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UFC quitters will be punished

July 9th, 2009, 17:33 Posted By: wraggster

THQ has trumpeted the arrival of a UFC patch that will punish online match-quitters, among other things.

This is "the biggest online issue", according to producer Neven Dravinski, and any future cheaters will be awarded a Loss, a Did Not Finish flag and have winning streak set to zero. Only the disconnecting party suffers, by the way.

The patch arrives "soon" and has other numerous tweaks, including a matchmaker for gamers with stable, fast connections. Coo. It's like Christmas.

Also, max points awarded online will be increased tenfold, the level cap boosted to 200, winning streak bonus lowered to three, a CAF cheat addressed and a PS3 auto-save bug solved.

There are some other minor tweaks besides. Look out for a full list when the patch arrives.

http://www.eurogamer.net/articles/uf...ll-be-punished

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Capcom: Marvel vs Capcom 2 on XBLA July 29, PSN date coming 'soon'

July 9th, 2009, 17:36 Posted By: wraggster

The Capcom Unity twitter account revealed something interesting this morning: Marvel vs Capcom 2 will be gracing Xbox Live on July 29 -- and Capcom PR separately confirmed a 1200 ($15) price. For those of you wondering about its arrival on PSN, Capcom promises an announcement "soon." So sharpen those claws (and those Hadoukens), because it's about to be on

http://www.joystiq.com/2009/07/09/ca...n-date-coming/

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PCSX2 beta 1474 - PS2 Emulator for Windows

July 9th, 2009, 22:40 Posted By: wraggster

News via emurussia

New beta version of Sony Playstation 2 emulator for Windows has been released. Changes:
- We now have a beta installer. It is highly recommended you use that, as includes the new w32pthreads.dll, it installs a new dependency and also it installs all the new plugins (too many changes to list).
Old zips are still available, but don't complain if you can't make it work.
- Microsoft Visual C++ 2008 SP1 Redistributable Package (x86) now required. Use the installer, it will install it automatically.
- Many changes to VIf/Gif, resulting in more accurate emulation. Bugs fixed in many games.
- Gust games workaround implemented. The Gust games now work again
- Too many microvu changes to list. Let's simply say, most bugs have been solved, and speed has improved. Test it out please if you will
- Usual cleanups and optimizations
- A lot of progress on both wxgui branch and R3000air branches. Nothing normal users can see for now though.

And, too many plugins changes to list, mostly to gsdx.

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JPCSP 0.2 revision 1094 - PSP Emulator For Windows

July 9th, 2009, 22:51 Posted By: wraggster

News via emurussia

Emulator of Sony PSP for Windows has been updated. Changes:
- r1094 Small fix for __sceSasCore, I'm not sure if this matters
- r1093 Better debugging information for compiler.
- r1092 Capture GE list: display warnings and stop list scanning on JUMP, RET, CALL.
- r1091 Fix to avoid ConcurrentListModificationException when exiting Jpcsp
- r1090 Improved implementation of PSP memory allocation to allow reallocation from released blocks r1089 Save the textures as images (in tmp/*.bmp) when capturing a GE list. Set the VideoEngine log level to TRACE when capturing (might be useful when debugging)
- r1089 Save the textures as images (in tmp/*.bmp) when capturing a GE list.
Set the VideoEngine log level to TRACE when capturing (might be useful when
debugging).
- r1088 updated event flag manager to yield to higher priority threads (untested)

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87 Percent of PS3 Owners Watch Blu-ray Movies

July 9th, 2009, 23:15 Posted By: wraggster

Unlike Spider-Man 3, this is an example of a symbiotic relationship at its best.

Some might say Sony’s gamble has paid off. Suffering some slower game system sales in order to cement their place in the high definition disc wars has had a tremendous benefit. While as recently as last year NPD polls showed that 60% of PS3 owners didn’t know about its Blu-ray capabilities, the Entertainment Merchants Association revealed recently that the Playstation 3 is the driving force behind Blu-ray sales.

According to the report, 87% of PS3 owners play Blu-ray movies on their console. While the EMA does expect much lower priced standalone players to outpace the PS3 this year, this is certainly a strong showing for Sony. It’s clear that quite a few PS3s have been sold based on Blu-ray alone, so we have to wonder how many people actually use it for playing games!

http://www.highdefdigest.com/news/sh...ay_Movies/3018

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Disgaea 3: Absence of Justice Trophies

July 10th, 2009, 01:36 Posted By: wraggster

Who said old games can't learn new tricks? Yes, after being on shelves for nearly a year, Disgaea 3: Absence of Justice is getting Trophies. Thursday, July 16, 2009 is the day fans of this NIS strategy RPG have been waiting for because at 1 a.m. PST 50 spanking new Trophies will become available via a downloadable patch. The downside? If you install the patch, your previous save will be unplayable. That's right; if you've put in a million hours, kiss that progress goodbye.

However, if you are game, a bunch of bronze, silver, and gold Trophies -- a long with one Platinum one -- are waiting for you. Want to see what we thought of the game way back when? Check out Clements' review. Want to see what it'll take to win the big ones? Look below…

http://uk.ps3.ign.com/articles/100/1002075p1.html

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Dynasty Warriors 6: Empires Gets Free Content

July 10th, 2009, 01:37 Posted By: wraggster

Starting this week, KOEI will begin offering new character armor sets for the game's Edit mode, plus additional music tracks. All DYNASTY WARRIORS 6 Empires add-on content is free-of-charge on PlayStation Network and Xbox LIVE.

This week's downloadable content sets include:

Kempo Armor Set (for men)

Artemis Armor Set (for women)

Royal Armor Set (for men)

Queen Armor Set (for women)

Additional BGM Track Pack #1

http://uk.ps3.ign.com/articles/100/1002111p1.html

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PS3SDK collaboration invitation

July 10th, 2009, 01:42 Posted By: wraggster

MC posted this:

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PSPVC v3.73

July 10th, 2009, 01:45 Posted By: wraggster

Nick Swardh has released a new version of the PSP Video Encoder, heres whats new:

Here's another minor release with a few improvements

Added an updated version of DirectShowSource.dll to AviSynth
Updated Mediainfo and DGIndex tools
Fixed a bug when joining videos
Fixed another full-preview bug causing AviSynth to fail

Download Here --> http://pspvc.nswardh.com/download.php

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Bookr Mod 20090709

July 10th, 2009, 01:51 Posted By: wraggster

News via pspita

Yet to release a modified version of the Bookr, homebrew that will allow you to read on your PSP multiple text files such as PDF and TXT.
Then the full changelog and download link.

Changelog:

Quote:

- Fixed a bug related to the line in plain text files
- HB compiled with the latest version of psp toolchain
- Fixato a bug that caused a crash program to the press at the first initiating
- Optimized use of memory
- The zoom and rotation are faster if enabled Fast Image

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R.E.M., Stevie Ray Vaughan, Dixie Chicks, and More Come to Rock Band Upnplugged

July 10th, 2009, 01:54 Posted By: wraggster

Harmonix and MTV Games today announced five new tracks available for download in the Rock Band Unplugged in-game music store for the PSP (PlayStation Portable) system. These additions bring the current total number of songs available in the Rock Band Unplugged music store to 19.

This latest update brings another wide variety of musical genres to the game, including country music trio The Dixie Chicks, electric blues guitarist Stevie Ray Vaughan and alternative rock groups R.E.M. and The Pixies.

Rock Band Unplugged features the first in-game store for downloadable content on the PSP system in the North American and European markets, leveraging the PSP system's wireless capabilities. The in-game store is powered by the PlayStation Network. Players can simply sign in to the in-game music store using their existing PlayStation Network account to purchase and download new tracks straight on their PSP system. PSP system owners can also purchase tracks via the PlayStation Store on their PC and then download them to their device.

Tracks:

Dixie Chicks "Sin Wagon"
GLaDOS and Jonathan Coulton "Still Alive" *
The Pixies "Here Comes Your Man"
R.E.M. "Losing My Religion"
Stevie Ray Vaughan "Pride and Joy"

(All tracks are original master recordings)

Price:
$1.99 per track
* Denotes free track

Location:
In-game Rock Band Unplugged music store.

Rock Band Unplugged is available for the PSP (PlayStation Portable) system.

Rock Band Unplugged is rated "T" for Teen (lyrics, suggestive themes) by the ESRB. The ESRB does not rate online downloads.

For more information on Rock Band Unplugged and Harmonix Music Systems, please visit www.rockband.com/games/unplugged and www.harmonixmusic.com.

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Warriors Orochi 2 PSP Coming August 25, 2009

July 10th, 2009, 01:55 Posted By: wraggster

KOEI, recognized worldwide as the premier brand of strategy and action games, today announced that the best-selling WARRIORS OROCHI 2 is coming to PSP (PlayStation Portable) system on August 25, 2009.

With four different storylines featuring characters from SAMURAI WARRIORS and DYNASTY WARRIORS, WARRIORS OROCHI 2 includes three new game modes: Dream, VS and Survival, as well as "Tag Team"-style matches that pit fighters in head-to-head arena combat.

A star-studded lineup boasts 96 playable characters from the DYNASTY WARRIORS and SAMURAI WARRIORS series including the massive boar-like Gyuki and the faceless Dodomeki. New playable characters not found in the original console release include the graceful San Zang and the warrior-monk Benkei.

New features exclusive to the PSP system also include: 2-Player VS mode plus Co-op play in Story, Free and Dream modes, 12 new scenarios in Dream mode, and a Japanese and English voice option.

Gamers can pre-order the game now from Amazon.com, GameFly, and GameStop.

For the latest updates, follow @KOEIcorp on twitter or visit www.koei.com.