Hey, PlayStation gamers! Nikko from Cipher Prime here. We’re super excited and honored to announce that Splice­­, our award-winning, experimental and artistic puzzler is making its way to PSN for PS3! Splice has been showcased in the 2012 PAX 10 Selection and was a Finalist at IndieCade 2012. This year, Splice is part of the PlayStation booth at E3!

Splice was born in a fever dream that designer Dain Saint had on a flight back from a previous IndieCade. The goal of Splice is to rearrange binary branchings of cells to match the target outline of each puzzle (or “strand”) within a limited number of moves (called “splices”). You’re able to reverse time and scrub forward again to step through your simulations. The game consists of more than seventy puzzles, introducing special types of nodes and new mechanics over the course of the game. Keep in mind, the key to success is exploration and experimentation.

Splice has a very “sciency” and biological feel to it. No matter where you are in the game, it seems as though you’re looking through a microscope at microbes and particles suspended in fluid. This was the inspiration for much of the design for the game. We decided to keep the interface simple, minimalistic, and in most cases limited to iconography. When text is used, it’s highly stylized and integrated into the game environment.

These sorts of visuals are very characteristic of the design stylings of our creative director, Will Stallwood. We initially mocked up a ton of ideas for the interface, and then one by one removed elements that weren’t absolutely necessary for the gameplay. If it didn’t add to the theme or support functionality in some fundamental way, it was out. We use this same process of design by subtraction for most of our games. We end up with a more elegant product and a more usable interface; one that doesn’t distract the user from the gaming experience. The HUD interface in Splice, for instance, disappears from the edges of perception. This allows the player to focus on the strand being solved, drawing the player further into the gameplay.

The soundtrack to Splice, composed by Dain Saint, is also a key part of the immersion. For a long time we tested the gameplay without it, and as a result fumbled with the design a bit. As soon as we added in the initial track, there was an immediate tonal shift to the game. The tranquil music becomes a welcome break from the challenge of some of the more difficult puzzles. It also brought harmony and helped serve as another guiding line for the game’s look and feel. There are eleven tracks in total, one for each sequence of strands.

If you like puzzles, and are intrigued by games that deviate from the norm, Splice might be the game for you. We’re aiming for a late summer to early fall release on the PSN. The game is single ­player, and might even feature PlayStation Move support. We hope you’re as excited as we are to see Splice on the PS3. Feel free to reach out to us with any questions or comments you have about the game!

*The release in Asia has not yet been confirmed.

When the PlayStation®Store updates in your region, if you were wise enough to purchase a copy of “God of War: Ascension”, you’ll be able to pop that disc into your PlayStation®3 and download “The Last of Us” demo. Instructions for installation came with your voucher code so find that flyer and get to downloading! If you’re having any trouble finding your flyer, just insert your “God of War: Ascension” disc into your PS3™, navigate to the “Launch The Last of Us Demo” options on the main menu and you’ll be taken to the PS Storewhere you can download the demo. Once downloaded, simply find it on your XMB™ and install it to start playing.

The demo features the Outskirts level of “The Last of Us” in which Joel and Ellie, along with Tess, will encounter multiple Infected enemies. Runners and Clickers have distinct behaviors and methods of attacking you. You’re going to need to explore the environment and scavenge your surroundings for items and objects that might give you the kind of offensive or defensive advantage that suits your play style. Here’s a look at the tense situation Joel and Ellie will be in:

If you’re already sold, we think this demo will sate your hunger for the full game until it launches in just a few weeks. If you haven’t read or seen much about “The Last of Us”, hopefully this demo will pique your curiosity to pre-order “The Last of Us” today. “The Last of Us” will be available June 14, 2013.

When pre-production started in earnest on “The Last of Us” there was a folder of music files featuring work by some of the preeminent musicians in video games, television, and film. These tracks held a sampling of the ideal musical quality, direction, and tone we wanted to have for the project. The Academy Award winning work of Gustavo Santaolalla appeared multiple times. Being that he had never composed for video games before the thought of getting him to work on “The Last of Us” seemed a bit farfetched. He was approached by our music group at Sony and, well, this video will tell you the full story about the man himself and how he came to work on “The Last of Us”:

We are honored to have Gustavo’s music and talents in our game. The texture of Gustavo’s musical score serves the game’s narrative and the music is rife with poignant, descriptive and intimate sounds. His work is unlike anything heard in a video game before. It’s a beautiful, haunting, sonic landscape that makes the game’s themes more emotionally resonant and emphasizes thoughtfully how Joel, Ellie, and all the characters in the game perceive the world around them. It’s a masterful musical score.

Want a sampling of the sonic delight Gustavo crafted for “The Last of Us”? If you pre-order the game, via the Sights & Sounds DLC pack, you’ll get full access to the official digital soundtrack. “The Last of Us” arrives June 14th, 2013.

The Last of Us™ is a genre-defining experience blending survival and action elements to tell a character driven story about a population decimated by a modern plague. 20 years after a pandemic has radically changed known civilization, cities are abandoned and being reclaimed by nature, infected humans run wild and survivors are killing each other for food, weapons; whatever they can get their hands on.

Developed by Naughty Dog, creators of the critically acclaimed UNCHARTED franchise, The Last of Us™ is being made exclusively for the PlayStation®3 system.

The Asian release date is June 14th (simultaneous with US and EU regions). Do you want to take the lead in knowing the first-hand game news and Asian pre-order information?

Starting from today till May 15th, you can register online to receive the most up-to-date game information in advance, plus a special DLC* for free!

Register Now!

* For details about the delivery date and methods of the free DLC, please refer to the Terms & Conditions on the online registration form

The DUST 514 Journey Continues

  We have learned a great deal throughout last year, both from the perspective of what works and what does not with regards to the progression system itself and more importantly how you are using the items to advance through the game. This is all thanks to the terrific amount of player feedback we’ve received during the beta period.

As we started re-aligning the progression tree we realized that trying to map the new skills, bonuses and requirements to your existing items was not only complicated on the technical side, but also likely unfair to you, in that you may have committed to a certain play style, and with the new layout and skills you may find yourself regretting some of your prior choices. We have thus decided that it is far better to re-spec not only the skills but items as well. In short, you will get your skill points (SP) back and the ISK and AUR (in-game currencies) value of any item that is removed from your inventory. Below are more details on how this works.

Simpler. Deeper. More powerful.

We have removed the secondary and tertiary skill requirement from all skills. This means that while skills may have multiple parent skills in a linear succession, they will not have multiple direct prerequisite skills. We are also introducing a brand new node based view of the skill tree, and you are able to upgrade a skill multiple levels at a time provided you have the skill points to do so. This is a major improvement from the old list approach. We are retaining the list view in another section of the menu, for the nostalgia and for those that simply like lists (you know who you are).

How Will it Work?

When the upcoming Uprising build is released on May 6, your character(s) will be reimbursed all the skill points that they have earned and used to date, for redistribution under the new schema.

Note that this re-spec only applies to your current skills, and items that you have in your inventory. The refund value of ISK and AUR items will be based on the market value at the time of the re-spec.

Details on the specifics of what the changes will be are covered in a separate dev blog and will contain a list of changes expected, as well as additional info about the revamped tech tree and a full list of in-game items for the Uprising update.

More to Come

Along with the skill tree layout changes, we are constantly balancing items based on your feedback and our own findings from our captures and databases. You will notice that some items have changed attributes, including removal or change in color schemes of certain drop-suits and other items.

  In addition to this skill system evolution, the Uprising release will bring many more upgrades, advances and balances. In short, you can expect a lot more new content to play with. We are very excited and proud of the Uprising release and we couldn’t have done it without our dedicated beta testers. With all the improvements and new things coming with our next release, there is no better time than now to join DUST 514 and experience the immersive world of New Eden.

CCP Praetorian

If you have already opened “God of War: Ascension” and are playing hard, have you ever wondered the identity of the mysterious man in jail seen by Kratos when he broke out of a cell in the beginning of the game?  After this man was attacked, why did he cry out “Glory be to Olympus!” in a handsome manner and then vanished in a beam of light? Well, you may still be wondering about the identity of this man but let’s now jump to the online multiplayer! Now you know it, don’t you? Right, this man is no other person, but the playable character in the multiplayer online mode!

If you are captivated by the story and battle system of “God of War: Ascension”, then you should never miss the online multiplayer mode. Without the burden of the story setting of the single player mode, the online multiplayer mode comes with a condensed battle system concept. It realizes an impressive and exhilarating multiplayer gaming experience through an interactive cooperation or slaughter among players.

If you want to play the multiplayer mode, find the ““God of War: Ascension” Online Pass” on the back of the user manual inside the package game, select “Multiplayer” inside the main game menu and you will be asked to enter your online pass code. Enter the alphabets printed on the manual correctly, making no mistakes of spacing and capital letters, then choose “accept” and download the online pass on the download screen, go to the next page to return to the main game menu to access Multiplayer.

The online mode is nothing simple at all but is comprehensive. It offers a series of game modes playable with different number of players, including “Favor of the Gods”, “Capture the Flag” , “Match of Champions” and “Trial of the Gods”, allowing a minimum of 1 player and up to 8 players, as well as 2v2 and 4v4 team play.

As the core of the online multiplayer mode, you will have to select which god you would like to pledge your loyalty to when you first enter this mode. The “specialties” of the four Olympian Gods can be grouped briefly as Physical Power (Ares), Stealth (Hades), Magic (Zeus) and Support (Poseidon).

If you immediately go online to study which skill gives you an edge as you finished reading this line, no worries, different allegiance offers different set of stats, magic and abilities, but you can change your allegiance whenever you want later. Each allegiance allows you to accumulate different XP, unlock various skills and equipment. The choice is yours. Points obtained from supporting the allegiance can be used to unlock and enhance exclusive magic, items and relics of that particular allegiance. What you need to note is that weapons and items under the name of the four Gods cannot be used for other allegiance and should be taken into consideration when you level up the weapons.

You can choose to equip whatever skills you like, as well as customize your character with different helmet, upper armor, lower armor and weapon. Apart from the equipments available at the beginning, you will need to find special chests or achieve certain conditions in the game to unlock the others. While equipping your character is important, if you can time well when unleashing different kinds of attacks, you still have a chance to take the risk to become a heartless character that deserves no underestimation.

The stages of the Multiplayer Mode are hidden with ingenious ideas of the development team, such as the teleport locations, traps that can be used as an attacking point when everyone is caught up in a fight; as well as the heavy weapons used for defense in “Capture the Flag” or the floor that falls apart all of a sudden in a certain maps.

Because of the bountiful map elements, even if your battle ability is average, unexpectedly excellent performance is not impossible as long as you make a grasp of the characteristics of the map. In the same way, even if you are not good at close-range battles, but if you manage to take yourself away from the confusion and obtain  items such as the Chalice that earns you favour (score) and appears at irregular times; you have the chance to win over and make good scores.

Also, apart from the stages that focus on multiplayer competition, the single play “Trial of the Gods” is highly recommended for those who prefer going solo or want to challenge one’s own limits. Within the time limit of less than 2 minutes at the beginning of the fight, you will have to rely on your own to take down waves of enemies that come in your way to win more battle time, at the same time scratch your head to make good use of items in the stage for a chance to survive. Seeing the character taking on solo brutal battles, unleashing exhilarating and deadly techniques, Champions,  if you want to rise and prove yourselves, grab the controller and delve into the multiplayer mode of “God of War: Ascension” now!

More information:

Digital Manual of "God of War: Ascension"

Frequently asked questions on the Multiplayer mode

Two weeks ago, Oscar-nominee Willem Dafoe was added to the cast of “BEYOND: Two Souls”, and we announced pre-order bonuses for North America. Today, we’re talking about how “BEYOND” is blurring the lines between film and gaming – “BEYOND” has been chosen as an Official Selection by Tribeca Film Festival, the first such selection of this kind for a video game.

On April 27th, we will be hosting a screening at the festival where we’ll show a new one-hour scene from the game, debuting a major trailer and a new behind-the-scenes look, alongside a Q&A panel with Ellen Page and director David Cage discussing the way “BEYOND” is pushing the boundaries of storytelling. The entire team here is hugely excited that Tribeca is recognizing the powerful story of “BEYOND”, its star-studded cast, and the stunning visual technology that have contributed to the game’s uniquely cinematic experience. We’ll also be live-streaming the event right here on PlayStation.Blog (US PS Blog).

Earlier this week, 100 journalists from around the world visited Quantic Dream’s studio in Paris for an exclusive “BEYOND” event. In the surrounds of the very motion capture room where Ellen’s and Willem’s performances were recorded, writer and director David Cage showcased several new scenes from the game, featuring both the Jodie and entity gameplay.

Press were shown the Aiden entity gameplay in a scene featuring a young Jodie taking part in a scientific experiment under the watchful eye of her mentor Nathan Dawkins (Willem Dafoe). And then they were treated to a full playthrough of what promises to be one of the most powerful scenes in gaming, which sees Jodie living on the streets, fighting for her life and those of the homeless people around her. David Cage also unveiled the brand new in-game user interface, which provides an even more immersive and seamless experience than the game’s predecessor “Heavy Rain”.

The new user interface allows for promptless contextual control in both general navigation and action sequence controls, while increasing the level of direct control the user has and opening the door for far more exploration than players experienced in “Heavy Rain”. To end the day, press were invited to be the first to play the game, and try out the new UI and gameplay for themselves.

All of the press write-ups should be going live, so keep an eye on the web for their reactions to “Beyond”’s new gameplay from this event.

Last year at E3 we announced the much anticipated title from Quantic Dream, the makers of “Heavy Rain”. “BEYOND: Two Souls” is a psychological action thriller starring Oscar nominee Ellen Page (“Inception”, “Juno”) in the lead role of Jodie Holmes.

“BEYOND” tells the story of Jodie, a young woman who’s known since birth that she is different from everyone else. She possesses supernatural powers through her psychic link to an invisible entity she calls Aiden, and this gift has changed her life forever. In ”BEYOND” you’ll play through 15 years of Jodie’s story, experiencing the most striking moments of her life, in what promises to be one of the most thrilling and emotional journeys on PlayStation®3.

Today we’re very pleased to announce that Ellen will be joined by another Oscar nominee in Willem Dafoe (“Platoon”, “Spider-Man”) who will star as Nathan Dawkins, a government scientist who works with Jodie to analyse her powers.

At a later stage we’ll have lots more to reveal on the interplay between Nathan and Jodie in the game (no spoilers today!), but suffice to say they form a compelling bond and together deliver some of the most unique and powerful scenes yet seen in gaming.

We’ve got a gameplay trailer for you today showcasing an early scene from the game in which Nathan first meets a young Jodie (played by a child actress, not Ellen), and including some sneak peeks at other scenes from the game:

And we’ve got an interview with Willem talking about his role in the game:

Willem’s exciting inclusion in the cast is just the tip of the iceberg for our announcements today though, as we are also pleased to announce that “BEYOND” will be coming to PS3™ October 2013. So we’ll have plenty of news and videos to share with you in the coming weeks and months.

A few weeks ago we revealed the Infected and let select media get some hands-on time against these unpredictable, fungus-infested humans. The responses were tension-filled and fantastic. We’re excited to share more information with you about The Last of Us and the Infected.

Starting with this video we’re kicking off a series that will pull back the curtain on our design, our technology, and our ideas that shape The Last of Us. We want to give you a straightforward look at our development process and the work we do here at Naughty dog. We invited Area 5 to visit the studio and capture the development process. Along the way we’ll be unpacking the many different aspects of the game and its development with a documentarian’s approach. 

This first video is just a taste of what’s upcoming. Extended cuts of these videos will be available via the game disc. We’ll have more behind-the-scenes access and content as we march toward June 14 and the launch of The Last of Us.

Six months have passed since Kratos stood over the bodies of his wife and daughter, his hands stained with their blood – tricked by Ares into murdering the only people he ever loved. Swearing to avenge them, Kratos broke the blood oath that bound him to Ares, but oaths to Olympus are not so easily broken. This is where your journey in the story of God of War: Ascension begins…

…It has been well over six long, enduring months you’ve waited since your first look at our Ascension single-player campaign at E3 last year. So, as we have closed our multiplayer beta early next week, the time has come to focus on where Ascension and its story will take you this March. Here’s your first glimpse:

  The trailer above is only a quick taste. You didn’t think Ascension was only 30 seconds long, did you?! We have more single-player details to unravel and showcase as we rage towards our launch on March 12th. Most importantly, in late February, we’ll be bringing you a full-fledged single player demo! We’ll be announcing details in the coming weeks, so stay tuned.

Notice from SCE Asia PSN team,

“Journey” is discounted 30% off until Jan 8^th – If you haven’t already, now is your chance to get it!

As 2012 prepares to come to a close, many of us have taken a step back to reflect on the amazing game experiences we’ve enjoyed throughout 2012. One game in particular stands out above the rest: “Journey”. Since it was announced in June two years ago, critics and fans alike have been praising “Journey”’s heartfelt narrative, incredibly memorable visuals and emotional score. Once it launched back in March, it quickly garnered the attention and admiration of many, ultimately resulting in three big wins at the recent 10th Annual Spike TV Video Game Awards, including Best PS3 Game, Best Independent Game and Best Original Score. In addition, “Journey”, still the fastest-selling PlayStation®Network game of all time, has earned the first-ever Grammy nomination for a video game in the Recording Academy’s 55-year history, in the category of best score soundtrack for visual media, placing us in the ranks of legendary composers John Williams and Hans Zimmer.

“Journey” also recently received the following nods so far this year. And while it’s such an honor to just be nominated for such prestigious awards, I wouldn’t be surprised to see this list grow even more over the course of the upcoming months:

• IGN Best of 2012 – Game of the Year, Best Overall Graphics, Best Overall Music, Best Overall Story, Best PS3 Graphics, Best PS3 Sound, Best PS3 Story, Best PlayStation Network Game, Best PS3 Game nominee
• Machinima Inside Gaming Awards 2012 – Best Art Direction winner
• X-Play Best of 2012 – Best Art Direction winner, Best Original Game winner

Today, on behalf of the entire PlayStation Nation, I’d like to extend my congratulations to the extremely talented development team at thatgamecompany, including “Journey” composer Austin Wintory, whose brilliance and creativity has truly inspired us all. Thank you to the team at Santa Monica Studio and everyone else that has had a hand in bringing this transcendental and astonishing game to life. “Journey”, for many, remains one of the most amazing game experiences of our lives — one that we may never forget.

Please join me in congratulating the team by sharing your most memorable “Journey” moment.

In the August of 2011, Chaos Code, an arcade 2D fighting game from a Taiwanese developer, created a buzz in Japan, the mecca of this game genre. And this December, the acclaimed title hits PlayStation®Store. The game has 3 new playable characters for PlayStation®3–including the addition of a much-anticipated boss character–and features a number of additional play modes.

Chaos Code is set in the near future where people live on newly discovered energy called “Chaotics.” The story unfolds around the disappearance of the inventor of Chaotics and the mysterious words he left–“Chaos Code.”

While acknowledging the traditions and the simplicity of the genre, the game boasts the features necessary to be a good fighting game of recent years. It has anime-inspired dynamic characters,chain combos, extra special skills “Destruction Chaos,” extra boost “Exceed Chaos,” cancellation of opponent’s special skills “Chaos Cancel,”amongst others. The flashy special blows and combination system make it possible to execute infinite number of combo sequences. Moreover, the game’s unique “Select System”(2 additional skills chosen from a skill tree) and “Dash Select” (“speedy” or “light-footed”) allow users to create their own individual strategies and dig deeper to achieve mastery.

A total of 16 characters have their unique personalities, which leads to different stories and endings in the StoryMode. There is a ninja, otaku, cosplaying transvestite, cyborg princess, gothic Lolita girl from outer space, treasure hunter, devil summoner, combat cook, etc.

Got your attention? Well, select your favorite character and pursue the path to be the master of Chain Combo!!

It has been a big weekend for us here at Naughty Dog. We revealed a brand new trailer for The Last of Us at the Spike Video Game Awards 2013 on Friday along with the most important news for any fan – that The Last of Us will be released on May 7, 2013!

This is our second trailer release and our first since announcing The Last of Us at last year’s VGA show. We’ve tried to keep the trailer as spoiler-free as possible, while giving you some hints at the tense, emotional narrative the development team has crafted for The Last of Us. Enjoy!

More photos & Trailer (Chinese Subtitles) can be viewed at PlayStation HK Facebook:
http://www.facebook.com/PlayStationHK

Yes, We recently confirmed that we are working on including multiplayer in The Last of Us. We’re still not quite ready to talk about it yet, but stay tuned as we’ll be revealing more details on multiplayer before The Last of Us is released on May 7, 2013.

  The team here is pumped to head into the home stretch to finish The Last of Us. We can’t wait to show you more in the coming months!

     Becoming a Champion of the Gods in our new “God of War: Ascension” multiplayer mode requires a Warrior's knowledge of the strengths, weapons, armor, and magic of the God they align with, knowing the depths of your strategic options, and executing them on the battlefield. Don’t expect to just hack and slash your opponents.

     You've had a taste of what the Warriors of Zeus are capable of, but now it’s time to divert your attention, and consider aligning with the God of War himself.

    If sheer offensive strength is your preferred style of play, harness the ferocious might of Ares! We have debuted his trailer on SPIKE TV, if you missed it, then don’t miss it now.

     Warriors who align with Ares are brute force tacticians dealing a devastating array of up close attacks. These Warriors will also harness magic abilities that unleash a fiery rage, great for close quarters combat. Warriors of Ares are juggernauts who excel in close-range combat and employ powerful items that can boost their attacks, or cripple the defensive capabilities of surrounding enemies. In other words, if you like “jumping into the fire”, then aligning with Ares should be your first step.

     In “God of War: Ascension”'s Multiplayer, it’s crucial to combine the right weapons, armor, magic, and items bestowed from the God you align with, to find your best strategic play style.

     Here are a couple key strategic tips for Ares' warriors to refer back to during our upcoming Beta:

• Find two or more enemies in a concentrated area. Use Ares' inferno magic to leap sky-high and slam down with [R2] to knock them into the air. The moment you land, wield your weapon immediately with a series of brutal combo attacks on your enemies while they are stunned to earn a quick victory.

• Ares' War Hammer is great against groups of enemies as well. The weapon’s special attack executes a long range wave of fire that will knock back every enemy in its path, and also has an area of effect slam to knock everyone nearby up into the air. A great tactic is combining these two attacks for some wicked air juggle combos.

     Finally, the more XP you earn in Multiplayer, the more opportunity you will have to purchase and upgrade powerful Relics. Relics will enhance your weapons and armor, and generally improve (and reward!) your mastery over close-quarters combat. Replenish your health after a successful throw, or increase your damage after every brutal kill. Choose Relics that reward your style of play to become a true warrior of Ares.

Urban dwellers lead a busy life- they have irregular dining habits and suffer from stomach unwell; they also don’t have the time to meet up with friends and family. On weekends, you can choose not to lock up yourself inside the room to play online shooting games, but instead take a step out to the living room to play a video game that is for all ages with your family.

The freshly-released “Toy Story Mania 2” sees a collection of cute characters and is packed full of simple, fun games. PlayStation®Move is also supported, so it’s perfect for her who is yet to be able to tell the difference between the square, triangle, R1 and R2 buttons. With patience and guidance, success is just around the corner and your future lies right in your hand!

Don’t mix up- this title is not the action-puzzle “Toy Story 3” released two years ago, which is more difficult for female beginners. “Toy Story Mania 2 retains the features of the prequel with loads of spoof and interesting mini-games. Based on Pixar animation “Toy Story”, you’ll see beloved characters from the movie such as Woody, Buzz Lightyear, Mr. Potato Head and Slinky Dog. As the distant release date of the 4^th movie is yet to be known, why not convince your girlfriend to relive the story with this fabulous game and control the group of familiar toy friends in her own hands? Of course, not only female gamers, this title would appeal to guys who love mini-games, too.

With mini-games as its core, “Toy Story Mania 2” has a touch that is anything but totally carnivalesque. The controls are simple and puzzle-related to test your reactions; and you feel like you were inside a theme park. Next time if someone’s nagging about going to Disneyland, inviting her to game at home would be a more manageable way. The in-game background is our familiar theme park, with some parts based on a real theme park. Some are original landmarks of the game, including the Army Challenge Zone, Balloon Park Zone, Animals & Friends Zone, Space Galaxy Zone and Wasteland Pioneer Zone.

Both single and two-player modes are supported. If you win in the mini-games you play, you can obtain different awards- though virtual; it’s still an award to appreciate your achievement. The games made especially for PS Move are not to be missed- they are perfect for non-core gamers. Simply hold the PS Move controller and move the way you want to embrace yourself for the game world without breaking a sweat, as well as taking your first step towards becoming a game lover.

If last month was the month of zombies, then this month is undoubtedly the month of assassins. Working as an assassin is even busier than killing zombies, because at home you got to play “Assassin’s Creed III” on PlayStation®3 and you will be playing “Assassin’s Creed III Liberation”on-the-go or at Mcdonald on the portable PlayStation®Vita. With one male and one female protagonist, the two versions have different stories, gameplay and missions; but Cross Play between them is possible. As you see Connor and Aveline fight on the same line, you cannot help but feel a rush of passion bursting inside you; well but before you begin the missions, you’ll have to first splash some cash and purchase the two titles.

One vs a Million

Still remember how I first put the game disk into the console to play the 1^st installment of “Assassin’s Creed”, for one minute I was greeted by an opening scene of westerners clad in historical costumes. I thought what I bought was “Assassin’s Creed”? In fact that was just a cutscene. To someone like me who didn’t know the storyline, I did suspect that there was something wrong with the game at first. The gameplay revolves around a story that travels between past and present and has players carrying out assassinations with stealth actions that do not catch your foes’ attention. You will have to lock down the location of your target from high above and close in with slow movements; once you’ve tried it you won’t be able to take your mind off the actions and thrill.

The 2^nd installment has an addictive single-play and a sophisticated online multi-player mode that calls for more hours of playing. As in this newest title, the highlights are Cross Play feature and fighting alone against a million.

The Best Deal: PS3™ Version Exclusive Contents + Figurine 

The PS3™ version also has a PS3™ bundle pack that includes the newest PS3™ entertainment system, a limited version Assassin Jacket and exclusive SP missions and additional DLC; indeed something to consider for those who want to change to a new console. 

The game itself also has a Collector Edition priced at $528- including the game, a Connor figurine- a simple calculation tells us that the figure and the Uplay leaflet only cost more than a hundred- and three additional DLCs: “Special Mission: Lost Mayan Ruins”, “Special Mission: Ghost of War” and “Multi-player Package: Sharpshooter Package”, what a deal!

Gamers opting for the Assassin’s Creed®III standard edition can also receive three DLCs- PS3™ exclusive “Benedict Arnold Pack” and Captain of the Aquila, Colonial Assassin and Red coat MO Package.

The Two Protagonists Work Together in Assassination Missions

The “Assassin’s Creed III Liberation” for PS Vita is such a masterpiece that attracts people buying PS Vita- apart from the touchscreen controls, the bundle pack comes with a protection film for you to give your console an assassin theme that represents your assassin identify and  unparalleled taste, perfect for those assassin fans who haven’t got a PS Vita yet!

The game also brings you special additional DLC “Mysteries of the Bayou Pack” which includes “Ceremonial Dagger”, “Upgraded Poison Dart Pouch”, “Mackendal Bodyguard Multiplayer Character“ and "Alligator Hunter Hat”. As for Cross Play, buy these two titles to challenge “New York” exclusive mission as Connor in “Assassin’s Creed III Liberation” and take on missions with Aveline. Oh, any possibility of sparks between the two of them?

From the gargantuan, larger than life battles with Zeus, Cronos, and Poseidon, to the brutally intimate no-holds-barred fight with Hercules in “God of War III”, to fighting alongside his brother, Deimos, in “Ghost of Sparta”, there have been plenty of epic moments in Kratos’ journey.

But what, ladies and gentlemen, Spartans, warriors and champions, reigns supreme as the #1 most epic “God of War” moment of All Time?

If you ever doubted Kratos’ ultimate arch-nemesis, the true evil that propelled him into an unstoppable rage, the original “God of War” — who emblazoned the Blades of Chaos upon Kratos, as he swore an oath to serve his new master — then by the Gods, this moment is bound to get you fired up.

As voted by the God of War Facebook Community (http://www.facebook.com/godofwar), the #1 “God of War” Epic Moment of All Time takes us back to a moment you should never forget…

“God of War”’s Most Epic Moments Ever

1. The Death of Ares 
2. Kratos vs. Hercules
3. The Brutal Death of Poseidon
4. Brothers in Arms
5. Destroying Zeus and Cronos

If “God of War” were “Game of Thrones”, then the House of Kratos would be absolutely decimated by now…not counting our fearless Spartan, that is (though that’s debatable at the end of “God of War III”). Aside from being deceived into tragically murdering his wife and daughter in a moment of uncontrollable rage (“Ares!!!!”), Kratos has quite literally destroyed every bit of his lineage: Cronos (grandfather), Zeus (father), Callisto, (mother), Athena (sister). And, in what is our #2 most epic “God of War”moment of all time as voted by the “God of War” Facebook community, his brother Hercules.

The battle with Hercules in “God of War III” was not about a titan-sized boss encounter. However, you can’t deny the crushing blows and empowering strength you felt as Kratos pummeled his brother in his own arena. “God of War” is as much about power as it is about scale and spectacle, and this moment had it all. Agree? Disagree? Let us know in the comments below.

If you missed the previous epic moments, hit the links from the list below.

God of War’s Most Epic Moments Ever

1. ???????
2. Kratos vs. Hercules
3. The Brutal Death of Poseidon
4. Brothers in Arms
5. Destroying Zeus and Cronos

Master-Produced Pop Culture

     With American rapper Jay-Z as its executive producer and the gameplay content re-interpreted, more groundbreaking creativity can be expected from the music and cutscenes of “NBA2K13”. For instance, you will see Jay-Z giving an introduction as you enter the game, accompanied by the music produced by him, slam dunks and shoots by numerous NBA stars, all of which form an intro with a rather rich Hip-Hop flavor. Apart from this, MVs of Jay-Z are played as loading cutscenes before the start of each game mode, showing the executive producer’s existence in almost everywhere in the game.

New Controls

     What’s surprising is the player default control, which consolidates all common actions such as “spin move” and “penetrate” to the right control stick; and just a single square button to intervene/shoot. This may be hard to get used to at first for longtime players who are accustomed to using the right stick to do fake shots, but the situation would improve after playing for a few dozens of minutes. As the producer said, “This can let players use quicker, more direct and accurate controls to perform all kinds of extraordinary moves.” If you do not wish to achieve a better performance with the new control system, you can still return to the old controls in game settings.

All-new My Team Mode

     The newly-added My Team mode satisfies those who love collecting basketball players or prefer forming a Dream team. With the brand-new game currency “VC” (Virtual Currency), you can purchase player cards and item card bundles. These cards are divided into three classes; as long as you have enough VC in your account, you can go for the player card bundle of the highest class. Gamers may even get a chance to get player cards that NBA fans long to own, such as Michael Jordan and Karl Malone.

Launched as Chinese and English Version

  The PlayStation®3 version of “NBA2K13” will be in Chinese and English, instead of a Chinese version released through update like “NBA2K12”; so gamers who can’t read English can directly set the game language as Chinese.

Here is also an interview video of the producer of “NBA2K” series. Apart from telling us how he feels about the production of this title, he also explored the “Linsanity” phenomenon (The fame of Jeremy Lin) in Hong Kong and Taiwan.

Hey Vault Hunters, the wait is nearly over! You’ve seen all the gameplay videos, you’ve read all the previews, you’ve possibly even played our demo at PAX, now it’s time for you to finally get your hands on Borderlands 2 for PlayStation 3 when it hits store shelves everywhere and PlayStation Network in Asia Thursday, September 27th! The development team at Gearbox Software has worked tirelessly over the last few years to make this game live up to the mantra “bigger, better, and more badass,” and we’re all so excited for you to experience the shooting and looting mayhem for yourself.

Borderlands 2 has 870 bazillion guns! According to our team’s math wiz, that’s approximately 800 bazillion more guns than the 17,750,000 that the Guinness Book of World Records said was in the first game!

From everyone at Gearbox Software and 2K Games, we’d like to thank you for your support, enthusiasm and encouragement while we developed this game. It’s been a wild ride and this Tuesday the mayhem begins — bring some friends!

Follow @Gearbox and @2K Games on Twitter, and check out Borderlands 2 on Facebook.

One of the best things about working with a vibrant and productive community, such as the one attached to the “Hitman“ is that you can learn a lot by just watching people play. Going back to the previous games in the “Hitman” series, we’ve always enjoyed watching videos of how the fans tackle the different levels; both in terms of strategy and approach to the emergent systems within the game but also in terms of how they change the rules by going against the core of the level.

A great example is when we see people trying to set up mission parameters all by themselves. The previous games didn’t really support this – you were supposed to play a level in one of several different ways but targets always remained the same – but the fans pretty quickly started setting up conditions for completion themselves. Kill everyone with a particular weapon. Don’t get spotted by anyone. Only wear the chicken outfit. Kill that waiter in the bar at the Meat King’s party. Sometimes these conditions would be extremely hard to fulfill but equally satisfying when they did get completed. So for “Hitman: Absolution”, we decided to formalize a lot of that. The result – Contracts mode.

In Contracts, players get to create challenges for themselves and others through the creation of custom hits. All a player needs to do is choose a level, an outfit and a load-out, and, as he or she plays through the level, tag and assassinate up to three different targets – chosen from anyone within the level. The player is free to use any weapon or disguise brought in or found in the level but he must be able to complete the contract himself in order to save it and share it with the world. Contracts, then, is first and foremost a play to create experience where a player can play, create and share a hit and enter into competitions and tournaments (official or unofficial). Players can continually try to one-up their rivals and fight for the top slot on the global, local or friend leader boards attached to each individual contract. Because it’s asynchronous, Contracts can be enjoyed across time zones, and it isn’t dependent on having friends online.

By playing and completing contracts, players will earn in-game currency (amount depending on performance in each individual contract), which can be used to unlock more disguises, weapons and upgrades for specific weapons. IO will set up a number of featured contracts, select ‘best of the week’ contracts and feature those through the in-game notification system, and drop in once in a while to create some fun IO-made contracts as well. But what we’re really excited about is seeing the flood of user-made contracts as people start to wrestle the systems in “Absolution” to bring out some real brain teasers for us all to enjoy.

So, we’ve basically sat down and looked at how players were crafting new missions out of the ones that already existed in the game, and we’ve built the tools to let them do this in a formalized, organized and rewarding way. It’s going to be a grand experience seeing how much creativity the players can inject into the game once it comes out.

Hitman: Absolution is out on November 20th, 2012.

As a Japanese combat title, “AQUAPAZZA” is not only about a dream line-up of characters; it also has an attractive 2 vs 2 battle system. This title is rarely seen in game arcades in Hong Kong, so now that it is finally launched on PlayStation®3, we can enjoy all the fun we want in the comfort of our homes.   Needless to say, there are new characters and game modes, but there is also an ultimately appealing LIMITED version. Fans are certainly not immune to the word “limited”, and that’s before they see the exclusive card sets and BGM disc that come with it... luckily, official stocks for both standard and limited version will be available on 30^th August, so at least I am relieved!

                 “AQUAPAZZA” Original Soundtrack              “AQUAPAZZA” Exclusive Card Sets 

A Grand Party of Popular Voice Actors

This title was released in arcade in 2011, when Hong Kong gamers could do nothing but yearning for it. Now with a PS3™ version, gamers can enjoy this game in the comfort of their homes without the hassle of running around. Produced by Examu, the biggest feature of this title is the popular characters of AQUAPLUS titles, including characters from “ToHeart”, “ToHeart2”, “Tears to Tiara”, “Utawarerumono”, and you will find loads of new characters in this PS3™ version, such as Oboro from “Utawarerumono”, Llyl from “Tears to Tiara”, Ayaka Kurusugawa from “ToHeart” and even Chizuru Kashiwagi from “Kizuato” produced by Leaf also joins the battle! The line-up of voice actors is just as charming, including popular singer Yuki Morikawa (Voice: Aya Hirano) from “White Album”, Ulthury (Voice: Sayaka Ohara) from “Utawarerumono Chiriyukumono heno Komoriuta”, Morgan (Voice: Mai Nakahara) from “Tears to Tierra: Earth’s Wreath”, Konomi Yuzuhara (Voice: Yurina Hase) from “ToHeart2” among others.

Packed with New Game Modes

The 2D visual style of the title allows the looks and actions of the characters remain loyal to the original designs, so fans should have nothing to complain about. Players have to choose one character as their partners in the 2 vs 2 battle and unleash combos together among a variety of attacks. Those who have tried the game know that the cut-in scenes during battles are overwhelming and impressive. With deadly moves easy to be unleashed, veterans have their blast while beginners manage to have a great time. Apart from new characters, this PS3™ version also comes with new elements- in addition to the story mode found in the arcade version, a new scenario mode, online battle mode, challenge mode, a revamped training mode and a Gallery to view in-game CG animation are also included.

I really like playing flight games, but I haven’t played them in recent years not because I didn’t want to but there are too few of them in the market compared with all those shooting and action games. “Damage Inc.” is a brand new flight game with 23 playable stories based on true wars from the Attack on Pearl Harbor to the Battle of Iwo Jima. Various online multiplayer modes are also available. Have a grip on the exclusive flightstick designed for “Damage Inc.”, fight with your friends as enemies or co-operate with them as teammates. Takeoff now and enjoy this epic game before your hellish school days begin.

Historic Missions with Solid Contents

Which would you prefer? A game with nice packaging and ubiquitous advertisements, but a couple of times of playing is enough to bore you and the game ends up gathering dust in a corner of your room; or an ordinary-looking game packed with addictive elements for you to savor over time?  The summer vacation will be over soon so it is wise to be practical when choosing a game before the new school term starts. Even if you already own a PlayStation®Vita, there are still two days to go before “HATSUNE MIKU” comes out, so why not let “Damage Inc.” accompany your wait!? This title may not appear attractive on its outside but it surely does on the inside. It is the product born out of the serious attitude of the production team and comes with packed contents. The story includes 23 real missions in history from Pearl Harbor to Iwo Jima, all with English subtitles to ensure that you are not lost and be able to participate in the battlefields while learning some history. More than 100 missions including stealth, reconnaissance, ground attack, escort, dog fighting, ground defense, carrier takeoff and landings are available to ensure that all you do in this game is not limited to shooting. Try playing each mission one by one and you will find yourself getting so addicted to it that going to bed has become an option that you least feel like to take.

When Night Falls, You Feel a Tickle of Battling Online

This happens every night. You want to fly a fighter, but don’t feel like flying it alone, so the best way out is the online mode. You can form a team with friends to complete multi-player missions (up to 4 players) as well as forming two teams in the unique multi-player system “Scratch One Flattop” to take down the carrier of the other team! As you fight in bloody battles till the very end in Survival Mode, you will emerge as a master pilot!

Pacific AV8R Flightstick Only for the Masters

You need a steering wheel for racing games, so a flightstick is undoubtedly necessary if you wish to brace yourself for flight simulation shooting games.  This Pacific Av8R flightstick is also available for “Damage Inc.” with pretty good button designs and grip. Its oversized flat base means stability on your table, bringing you a grip like no other as you ascend or descend. Experience it yourself and you will know that it is way simpler and easier to control than a traditional controller. Imagine playing shooting games with a controller or with a keyboard and mouse, you can’t beat the latter.

《Damage Inc.》/ Release Date: 28 Aug / SRP：HK $ 298

Pacific AV8R FlightStick for PS3™/ Release Date: 28 Aug / SRP：HK $ 538

Available at PlayStation®Platinum Shop: http://asia.playstation.com/hk/en/support/p/RetailStores

At E3 2012, Capcom offered a glimpse of the three different scenarios we’ll be playing in “Resident Evil 6”. Players could enjoy a co-op between Leon Kennedy and newcomer Helena Harper in classic survival-horror style in a Tall Oaks full of zombies, face a boss battle with Jake Muller (son of longtime series baddie Albert Wesker) and Sherry Birkin (aka the little girl from RE2), or battle across the rooftops of China with Chris Redfield and his partner Piers Nivans. But the company also revealed a new feature behind closed doors: the Crossover system, an evolution of the dual-threaded Scenario mechanic from “Resident Evil 2”, this time not only intersecting the story of different characters but also bringing their gameplay together in four-player co-op situations.

To demonstrate Crossover, Capcom’s developers played a scene where Leon and Helena meet with Jake and Sherry in China. En route via airplane, the US agents are attacked by a B.O.W. (that’s Bio-Organic Weapon for the uninitiated) and crash. Wesker’s son and his young partner are already on the ground when they cross paths with the crash survivors, and the four of them are then attacked by a huge creature known as Ustanak. Each of the four characters is controlled by an online player, and they must cooperate to take down the beast, which can hold and punish a character with his claw and hold another one at the same time in a cage on his back.

Eventually, the pairs get separated and switched, and players are stuck with a different partner – Leon is thrown with Sherry to one side of a wall, and Jake has to cooperate with Helena on the other side as the battle with Ustanak rages on.

Producer Yoshiaki Hirabayashi tells us that the Crossover system brings together random pairs of friends who are simultaneously getting to the same section where different scenarios crosses in the storyline. Sounds like an unusual concept for online co-op matches, so we took the opportunity to get more details from Hirabayashi-san about this new feature of “Resident Evil 6”, which is coming out for PlayStation®3 this October.

With Euro 2012 getting underway and the latest version of the beautiful game on PlayStation®3 mesmerising crowds at E3 2012, it was the perfect time to catch up with EA Sports “FIFA 13” producer David Rutter. Here, he explains how this year’s online offering is second to none.

How has “FIFA Street” impacted on “FIFA 13”?

David Rutter: The Precision Dribbling 2.0 – that’s the glamorous name for it – did owe something to that game, yes. We were looking at improved dribbling overall as a big holistic feature, we wanted the ability to move in 360 degrees, we wanted fidelity of distance and we also wanted face angle. That was a big thing for us, the ability to have the player’s face pointing in the right direction no matter which way they’re going.

 

After that was achieved it became obvious that another cool part of it would be the ability to take defenders on using skill moves. We’ve had some skill moves in FIFA before, but the key lesson we learned from the FIFA Street guys was that level of immediate control on the ball. It was really fun, something we thought would fit in nicely with what we were trying to achieve. They’re our sister team so we brought their code into our game, messed around with it a bit and we now have an equivalent feature in our game.

 

Is it a conscious decision to make each iteration more attacking or defensive in scope?

David Rutter: Not at all. What happens is we have a long list of things we want to do, like adding a defender to the defensive wall – that’s been on the list for a few years – but the idea that we’re consciously walking this five-year roadmap of “this year is dribbling, this year is defending” and so on, it doesn’t exist.

 

What ends up happening is, to give you last year’s example, we realised we need to work on, say, homing missile defenders. We felt that particular feature ended up not meaning anything. So what could we do? Well, we came up with a system that changes defending completely. And then we spoke to the fans and the community and we watched people play, and it dawned on us that the attacking play in the final third of the pitch was a bit lame. We had to enliven the action there.

How do you react to things like online players finding early exploits?

David Rutter: We get the most feedback from our demo. That has near final gameplay going into it, it goes from the development team to the testers and from many hundreds of our guys playing it, millions of people then get in on it. At that point you take a big gulp and see videos popping up of things like player impact engine bugs and then it’s a scramble to fix things. There was an issue a few years back where there you could score a goal every time from the halfway line, for instance.

 

So the game we release is solid, but things crop up. This year we have significantly more post-launch support than ever before. EA Sports Football Club has been releasing weekly, sometimes twice weekly scenarios for the game and that’s a big drive towards what we’re trying to achieve.

 

Last year in “FIFA 12” there was a flurry of people adopting the tactic of overloading the front of their team and pumping the ball down to the wings. Is there a temptation to redress the balance in favour of certain styles of play?

 

David Rutter: One of the worst exploits last year, which we immediately fixed because it was really annoying, was being able to switch to the goalkeeper at any time in play. I mean, why wouldn’t you want that? It’s a great idea. But when some players lost possession they’d switch to the goalkeeper and let the AI control their defence for them – the AI was better than some people. And you’re like, d’oh! A quick update later and we had to take that out, which spoilt a really nice feature.

 

The second part of this is that people tinker with their line-ups and formations. We could limit the number of formations to counter the tactic you mentioned. One of the reasons there are all those squad update checks and spinning wheels is because we’re making sure you haven’t hacked your squad files before playing online. All of that kind of stuff we spend an inordinate amount of time each year trying to plug. Yet the simple fact is the humans that play our game are amazing. I’m confident that this year’s game will go out, and it will be brilliant.

The all-time popular PlayStation®3 shooting game “Starhawk” is rolling out its official app for iOS and Android devices!

With the Starhawk Uplink app you can easily check out detailed player and clan stats while staying current on the all of the latest “Starhawk” announcements and community news/events, all on the go, anytime, anywhere. That’s just too cool!

Android Version

iOS Version

Once you’ve downloaded the Starhawk Uplink to your mobile device, you’ll find a wealth of information available on all of the player weapons, Hawk weapons, and Build & Battle structures.

Even if you haven’t bought “Starhawk”  or haven’t tried it though you have heard about the credits of this title, you can still download this app and be one of the first to and learn more about the game and the exciting community of Starhawk followers.

Here’s a look at our Starhawk Uplink trailer…

Features of Starhawk Uplink app:

◆ Access to clan information

You can view your clan invitations, clan leaderboards and statistics, and search for new clans to join or challenge.

◆ View player and weapon stats

You can view your player and weapon stats from all of your online action in Starhawk.

◆ Track other players

Want to see how your stats compare? Look at stats for your PSN friends, clanmates, and other players you meet online.

◆ View the Starhawk leaderboards

See how you rank against your friends, clanmates, and the rest of the Starhawk community.

◆ Access Starhawk community strongholds

You can link to various Starhawk social sites, as well as directly link to gameplay videos and other Starhawk community-driven sites.

◆ Browse The Armory

An encyclopedia of information on all troop and Hawk weapons and Build & Battle structures.

◆ Stay up to date

Our news ticker and game announcements section ensure that you are completely up to date on all the latest and greatest Starhawk news.

The Starhawk Uplink runs on the following devices:

iTouch, iPhone 3G/3GS/4/4S, as well as all versions of iPad and Android devices, including the Sony Tablet S and Sony Xperia Play mobile phone and all Gingerbread Android devices. Kindle Fire support is coming soon.

Go download the free Starhawk Uplink and an edge over your fellow Starhawk players! Lastly, we just deployed another great balance update on PSN for our “Starhawk” fans around the world! To see all of the great stuff included in this week’s release of update 1.02.002, check out our latest LightBox Interactive developer blog here.

We have a nice chat with Lollipop Chainsaw Creative Director SUDA51 before the game launched!

In 1986, James Cameron’s Aliens hit theaters, instantly becoming one of the most iconic science fiction movies in cinematic history. This movie was a huge success and was nominated for seven Academy Awards. The film that had so many great elements to it: blistering action, Marine camaraderie, creeping tension, and of course, the xenomorphs.

When people ask me what it is like working on a game based on Aliens, a game that is the actual sequel to the movie Aliens, it is tough to put the experience into words. First of all, “passion” is a key word in the development of this game. The team at Gearbox is very passionate not only about Aliens but storytelling and the game experience. It is so important to all of us to do this game right -- the Aliens franchise deserves an awesome video game. Another key word is “intimidating,” because Aliens is a revered franchise with fans all over the world. I have been lucky enough to show Aliens: Colonial Marines to fans at PAX, E3, Gamescom, Igromir and more. And I have found that people all around the world, people of all ages, love Aliens. When fans see our demo they tell me that it’s looking great...but then warn us not to “mess it up.”

Today we have released our new trailer, which we have dubbed “Suspense.” Our earlier ACM demos and videos showed some of the action in the game but a big part of the Aliens world is also tension and suspense - the universe of Aliens is a scary place. In Aliens: Colonial Marines you get to play the part of Winter, a Marine on the ship Sephora responding to the rescue beacon that was sent out in the movie Aliens. You might remember this scene from the movie:

Ripley: How long after we're declared overdue can we expect a rescue? Hicks: Seventeen days. Hudson: Seventeen days?! Hey man, I don't wanna rain on your parade, but we're not gonna last 17 hours!

Now, 26 years after the release of the movie Aliens, you are part of that rescue mission – returning to LV-426 17 weeks after the beacon was sent out. But during those 17 weeks, Weyland Yutani has been busy: They found the Sulaco, brought it back to LV-426 and have restarted their operations to capture and control the xenomorph. That is, as you know, easier said than done. Chaos ensues.

One of the very exciting parts of this new trailer is that we are also firmly announcing our street date: February 12th, 2013. All of us on the development team see the end of this project coming closer, and this cycle of development is always very exciting. Everyone involved with ACM wants to make an Aliens game that does justice to a vision James Cameron started so many years ago. We want to make a game that all of us can be proud of.

I hope you enjoy the trailer. We will continue to release more information about the game in times to come. In the meantime, back to work for me. I have a game to finish.

San Diego Studio and Zindagi Games were blown away by the success of the multi-million unit-seller Sports Champions and with the newly announced Sports Champions 2, we’re looking forward to providing new experiences for everyone to enjoy with an expanded sporting lineup featuring Skiing, Boxing, Tennis, Golf, Bowling, and a fully updated Archery experience. Get a sneak peek in our newest trailer:

Sports Champions 2 revives favorite features, including the surprisingly deep and challenging single player Cup Play, and the customizable Free Play mode, plus fun arcade Challenge rounds for each event. We’ve made a ton of improvements, too: Three-point PS Move calibration is no longer required (and it won’t sacrifice gameplay;) player avatars can be created and customized per event; a new profile system enables everyone in the house to play together with their own avatars and settings; and the photo booth is more customizable and easier to use.

There’s also an all-new Party Play mode that I can’t wait to show off. It’s the perfect way to play with your friends and family on game night. You can play matches from any combination of events, including Challenge Rounds, and add up your score to see who can become the party champion. You can create your own match playlist, see photos and voices from each player during the game, and draw something humiliating (or nice) on the hapless loser.

We can’t wait to show more on Sports Champions 2, coming to PS3™ this fall. Check back soon on PlayStation.Blog for more updates!

Do you know what Nathan Drake is most afraid of? How about why, when, and where he first met Elena Fisher? Uncover these truths and much more via Drake’s first two critically-acclaimed PS3 adventures when they arrive as digital downloads on the PS Store. UNCHARTED: Drake’s Fortune® and UNCHARTED 2: Among Thieves™ Game of the Year Edition will land on the PS Store in the downloadable PS3 game section on June 26^th. 

In UNCHARTED: Drake’s Fortune, A 400-year-old clue in the coffin of explorer Sir Francis Drake leads Nathan Drake on a wild adventure to a forgotten island in the middle of the Pacific Ocean. Here Drake hunts for the fabled treasure of El Dorado. Learn the backstory of the colorful cast of UNCHARTED characters and the ancient secrets El Dorado hides.

UNCHARTED 2: Among Thieves Game of the Year Edition is the winner of over 200 Game of the Year awards, and one of the most highly acclaimed video games of all-time. In this sequel, Drake is drawn back into the treacherous world of thieves and treasure-seekers. A mystery artifact propels him to undertake an expedition to the legendary Himalayan valley of Shambhala where he finds himself embroiled in a dangerous game of cat-and-mouse against a fugitive war criminal. Pushed to his limits, Drake will be forced to risk everything.

Soon you can have two of Drake’s most epic adventures available to you on your PS3 XMB that can be launched at the push of a button. Buy them June 26^th!

To celebrate the pending arrival of both of Drake’s adventures as downloadable digital titles, all playable DLC for UNCHARTED 2: Among Thieves is available for free NOW.. Everyone worldwide will be able to download the following DLC content for UNCHARTED 2 absolutely free of charge: 

• UNCHARTED 2: Among Thieves "Drake's Fortune" MP Pack
• UNCHARTED 2: Among Thieves "Golden Guns"
• UNCHARTED 2: Among Thieves "PlayStation Heroes" Skin Pack
• UNCHARTED 2: Among Thieves "Sidekick Skin Pack"
• UNCHARTED 2: Among Thieves "Siege Expansion Pack"

This free UNCHARTED 2 DLC program will run until the digital launch of the two titles on June 26^th. Once the PSN store updates on June 26^th, all this DLC will only be available via purchase on the PS Store or when you buy the digital version of UNCHARTED 2: Among Thieves Game of the Year Edition. Mark your calendar for June 26th and be sure to practice your witty comebacks, daring leaps, and fortune hunting tactics as Nathan Drake’s first two blockbuster hits will be just a download and a button press away!

Several Final Fantasy XIII-2 add-ons have been released on PSN on 15^th May, among which Lightning’s additional scenario; Requiem of the Goddness has been under the spotlight. We have conducted an interview with Mr. Motomu Toriyama, Director of FFXIII-2, who has shared with us some insights into this new add-on.

It’s been nearly six months since we announced The Last of Us and development has been a beehive of activity. If you have seen any of the coverage, you might have read about Joel and Ellie’s time spent in an abandoned city they have driven to. We are excited to share a fresh video with you today. This video should answer some of the questions you had after reading the stories about what went down inside those city walls. You’ll get a glimpse into the lethality of the world Joel and Ellie are surviving in and what being a survivor in that world truly means.

Joel and Ellie won’t have an easy road ahead on their journey across the U.S. Their path will intersect with other remaining survivors, some of whom won’t be so friendly. In this scene Joel and Ellie continue the journey west in a salvaged pickup truck. The sombre tune of Hank Williams Sr. echoes the desolation of the world of The Last of Us. As they drive towards the next destination on their route, really just another place to find resources that will help them survive, they run into some hunters. What happens next is something you have to witness to understand. Check it out:

What you watched here is only a peek into how alone and forsaken the world has become. Our world is a brutal, lethal place in The Last of Us. Be ready for things to get much worse.

We can’t wait to share this genre defining game with you. The hounds have started to bay. Get prepared for the coming months and look out for more information at E3.

I like the very cute Sarah a lot. But as a longtime fan of FF series, I still miss Lightning when I play FF XIII-2, especially the long-legged Lightning clad in Goddess Knight Armor in this title! And finally! On 15^th May I can finally “meet” Lightning again, as new add-ons will be released in Hong Kong and Japan on the same date.  Among them is Lightning’s additional scenario, Requiem of the Goddness, in addition to Snow: Perpetual Battlefield, Serah's Outfit: White Mage, Noel's Outfit: Black Mage and Mog's Outfits: A Wondrous Wardrobe. All are available at HK$28 -$57.

The first scene you see after launching the game is a heated battle between Lightning and Caius at Valhalla. But such a short battle cannot satisfy those whole like Lightning such as me! Finally here comes the 3^rd additional scenario of Lightning: Requiem of the Goddness, which tells of the battle between Lightning and Caius that is not touched upon in the main game. At last, I can play the role of Lightning in a cool and exhilarating fight! Your lightning level will increase the more you play. As long as beginners do this, they are sure to be able to complete the scenario. Even after you’ve completed the game, even higher scores can be reached by playing on a lower lightning level. For this reason, beginners and expert gamers can all enjoy this episode.

Apart from viewing hidden contents, this add-on also allows Lightning in Goddess armor to become your ally so you can see her everyday even in the main game! But I do recommend you to finish the game before moving on to this additional scenario to have a better understanding why the story ends in such a way, which is closely linked to the main game.

While downloadable contents have become more and more popular in the gaming scene, only attractive contents manage to persuade gamers to willingly open their wallets. This 4^th patch of DLC also includes the Perpetual Battlefield for you to fight against Sarah’s fiancée in this battlefield and win a crystal. Of course there are also new costumes. But sexiness is not what this 5^th set of costume boosts about, which includes the widely-known job costume released for the hero and heroine. Instead they remind me of the good old days as a student when these games were my company every night. Finally, even Mog’s got a costume pack that comes with 16 sets of costumes. Mog’s just so cute in these costumes! So for sure it will be a hit among girl gamers out there. So guys, if you want to have girls playing this title with you, you’d better save some cash for this add-on…

One of the coolest things you can do in Starhawk, LightBox Interactive and SCE Santa Monica Studio's third-person shooter, is to crush an enemy tank by calling for a heavy structure - mobile barracks, giant steel wall, etc - to be dropped right on top of it.

As you might expect, this flattens the tank like a pancake, destroying it in one fell swoop.

Or - as I like to say - the tank's been turned into "roti prata", which is a delicious Indian pancake that's served with a hot plate of curry at many coffee shops across Singapore (where I live) and Malaysia.

Why go with a roti prata metaphor when the simple pancake one would suffice?

So that when I inevitably pull off the variant to this maneuver - crushing an enemy tank not by dropping a heavy structure, but by landing on it in a drop-pod - it'd make sense to say that "revenge is a dish best served with hot curry."

Every time you die and respawn in Starhawk, you're inserted back into the battlefield via a drop-pod from outer space.

As you enter the planet's stratosphere, you can steer the drop-pod and, with good aim, crush the enemies who killed you with it.

Those are just two of the many ways you and your clan buddies can dispatch enemies with when the game comes out on May 8. There's plenty of reason to be excited about Starhawk, if you're a fan of team-based shooters.

(Even if you're not, LightBox Interactive is promising a solid single-player campaign that won't simply serve as a series of tutorials for the multiplayer component).

Please watch the overview trailer of STARHAWK,

In the futuristic universe of Starhawk, mankind has entered the space-faring age, colonising numerous planets across the galaxy and discovering on them the existence of a valuable vapour-like resource they call "rift energy".

Though valuable, rift energy is extremely dangerous. Too much unprotected exposure to it turns human beings into Outcasts - a breed of mutants who do not want to see rift energy harvested.

These two factions - Rift harvesters ("Rifters") and Outcasts - now fight over the alien source of energy, going after each other's throats with an assortment of weapons and advanced machinery.

Think "Wild West in space". Except instead of riding on horseback, these cowboys mount Sidewinder jet bikes.

Other vehicular options include the two-man Razorback combat jeep, Vulture jet pack, and the Ox heavy tank.

Then there are Hawks, which rightfully belong to a class all of their own: these high-speed fighter jets can transform into a bi-pedal mech when they need to engage in ground-based combat, similar to the Valkyrie Fighters in Macross (Japanese anime).

And unlike in most other shooters, you won't need to share vehicles with your team mates, or make a scramble for the nearest one the moment you start the game. If you want to fly a Hawk, all you have to do is call for one through a Build & Battle menu, accessible by hitting the Triangle button.

Build & Battle lets you call in vehicles and an assortment of battle structures - barracks that provide you with weapons and ammo, walls to keep vehicles out - at the cost of rift energy. You build up rift energy as long as you stay within your team's headquarters.

This gives Starhawk a unique gameplay element that hasn't really been seen very much in other team-based shooters. At the beginning of a match, you'd ideally want to coordinate your plan of attack with the rest of your team, and build the right structures accordingly.

You could just storm off on your own, sure, and many snipers do in fact go at it like lone wolves, calling in a Vulture jet pack or a Hawk so that they may fly off to a cordoned area of the map with a good view on the action.

But if you choose to coordinate with your team, you could pull off stunts like storming into the opposing team's base with an entire armament of Razorback jeeps, or constructing a trap for your enemies to walk into.

The great thing about Build & Battle is that you can use it even while you're in a vehicle. So, if your team wanted to, you could send a squadron of Hawks into the enemy base, drop off a bunch of Beam Turrets - sentries that automatically target enemy vehicles - to stall them while you build up even more rift for your next phase of attack.

A number of proven tactics has already emerged from the multiplayer beta tests for Starhawk held late last year and earlier this year. That said, the game has since been tweaked for better balance, so we'll see yet as to what works in the final version.

Regardless, on Starhawk's launch day my multiplayer shooter buddies and I will be competing to see who among us can make the most roti pratas in a match - even if it isn't really much of a viable tactic.

So if you'll be picking up Starhawk on day one - and trust me, this is one multiplayer experience you won't want to miss out on - make sure to check the skies every now and then.

Who knows? You might just spot me swooping around in a Hawk, dropping off walls and other structures at random, trying to turn other players - and you, if you happen to be in the opposing team - into a delicious Indian pancake.

And really now, how could you say no to (being turned into) such a tasty treat?

From the depths of crunch-time, I emerge to share with you and all other “nodes” on the internets a wonderful tale. A tale of a game with hot multiplayer action yet, unbeknownst to most players, a fun-as-hell solo campaign as well. So peel back your eyelids and let the video below impregnate your brain! (Yes, your brain can get pregnant!)

The team has been working all hours at Santa Monica Studio and here at LightBox Interactive to finish up Starhawk and we wanted to take a bit of time to share our latest Singleplayer trailer. Most people out there really only know Starhawk for its online multiplayer, which totally kicks ass and was certainly our team’s focus. But the fact is that Starhawk has a very fun and unique solo campaign too… and NO, it’s not just an MP tutorial with bots!

Starhawk’s Build & Battle mechanics are fully supported by the Universe we’ve created. The war between the Rifters and the Outcast. The conflict between Emmett and Logan. Even humanity’s rush for “blue-gold” that spans the Frontier. The Starhawk solo campaign puts you right in the middle of it and I can’t wait for you guys to get your hands on it when it drops here in North America on May 8th!

Oh, and if you haven’t yet… GO PRE-ORDER THE GAME! And if you do it at GameStop you’ll get upgraded to the Limited Edition for free!… Go…. pre-order…. game…. must…. generate… sales….. numbers…

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So yeah, keep tabs on www.StarhawkTheGame.com and the Blog for the latest Starhawk deats. Sorry I can’t write more but I gotta get back to work! Rock on!

By Matt Levine // Score Producer, Starhawk 

When Lightbox Interactive’s President Dylan Jobe came to us to discuss the musical score for Starhawk, he had one of the best quotes I've ever heard from a game director: "The music should not simulate combat; it should remind you what you're fighting for."

It is rare for so many things to come together on a project, but Starhawk has proven to be a perfect storm for creating a truly inspirational score. With a great story, a visionary developer, a brilliant composer, The Skywalker Symphony Orchestra, and a fantastic collection of soloists, we knew that this score would be something really special.

Chris Lennertz's score is bursting with character and memorable themes. Lyrical melodies soar through the orchestra, juxtaposed against feral percussion, gritty guitars, ethnic vocals and an eclectic mix of exotic wind instruments, each contributing to a score that is as memorable as it is unique.

At its core, the story is a classic western tale of two brothers torn apart by a tragic event. Chris composed a theme for the brothers, which you can listen to right here.

*Video contains infomation of "pre-order" for Europe/US regions

For Asia regions, please refer to http://asia.playstation.com/hk/en/news/pressDetail/269730