Capcom thinks Resident Evil 5 will sell 3.2 million, Street Fighter IV 1.7 million

Capcom's unsurprisingly confident that Resident Evil 5 will sell well, estimating that the title will shift 3.2 million copies. Given that it's part of a well established franchise and that it's getting a multiplatform release, this sounds like a pretty safe bet. According to Capcom, Resident Evil 4 managed to sell around 3.6 million copies for Gamecube and PS2. They think that Street Fighter IV is going to shift around 1.7 million copies, which sounds like a pretty safe bet. They're a bit more optimistic when it comes to Bionic Commando though, guessing that it'll shift 1.5 million. Given that the franchise it's based on is pretty old, a really good critical reception's going to be key in making sure it sells well. As for Dead Rising Wii, Capcom projects 500,000 sales.

Resident Evil 5's undeniably the star of the Capcom's lineup. It's gotten a lot of media attention, not always for good reasons, and it's been several years since Capcom rewrote the survival horror genre. It's due for release on the 13th of March.

via Kotaku

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LittleBigPlanet - Hands-On Impressions

LittleBigPlanet is an enigma of a game. So much of its curiously self-contradictory identity is summed up in that oxymoronic title: it's either a little game which feels big or a big game that feels little, an oddball experiment from a untested studio that's become the great white hope for an entire platform. It's a game that takes the frothiest fripperies of the casual games market and the most tangled technicalities of the hardcore, and embraces both in one unique package. It's near-indescribable, impossible to pigeon-hole, and it wouldn't have it any other way; whether developers Media Molecule can spread the distinctive message of its PS3 platformer to the public at large, however, remains the six-million dollar question.

Sony have gone on record in describing LBP as a game whose target audience is "everyone", and at a glance, it's easy to see why: from its dreamy, soft-focus cinematography and cardboard-fabric textures, to its cute-deranged toast monsters, gentle music and wryly reassuring Stephen Fry narration, it's difficult to conceive of a game with a more arrestingly and forcefully charming frontend. Key to this irresistibility is, of course, the inimitable Sackboy and his many colourful, flamboyantly-dressed variants; in the context of a market going crazy for Miis and Nintendogs, it's not hard to see the intent behind LBP's burlap-bodied avatars, kitted out in skirts and afros and nodding their bulbous heads to the swing of your Sixaxis, challenging you not to fall in love.

Review: Haze - a magical trip to mediocre land

Haze is the latest first person shooter to grace the PlayStation 3. You play the role of Shane Carpenter, a Mantel Trooper, dosed up to the eyeballs on the private military corporation's war spunk known as Nectar. Long before the game's launch it was well publicised that a short way through the game you'd be shedding the Mantel mantle (hohoho), siding with the peace loving rebels and getting the Nectar monkey off your back.

As the first exclusive FPS on PS3 in a long time, there were high hopes for Haze. The words 'Halo-killer' were whispered tentatively around it, which was probably as sure a way of jinxing the project as possible. But the developer Free Radical has an excellent heritage to back up the optimism. It was born out of Rare in the aftermath of classic N64 shooters GoldenEye and Perfect Dark, and has proved its independence on PS2 with Second Sight and more importantly the Time Splitters series. All this pointed the way to a landmark debut on the latest console generation.

Unfortunately it seems that for Free Radical, the 'next-generation' is just something that happened to other people.

Opinion: One month in Liberty City is a very gloomy experience

GTA IV has now been out for just over one month. By now, most of the serious fans will have finished up the single player story (assuming they haven't been too distracted by the multiplayer) and the really serious ones will have probably dinged 100% completion. So, was it worthy of its portfolio of perfect scores? Is it the epitome of next-gen gaming? Beware, some vague spoilers ahead.

For the record, I have mostly enjoyed the game, completed the main story (choosing to stick the principle driven approach at the end) and have now basically left it to gather dust. That's just me - if I had more spare time I would probably go back to it, but I'm not making time, which I think is also important. Also note this is just a think-piece to promote discussion and not intended to offend you if you think the sun shines out of Rockstar's arse.

So why am I not picking up the controller and finishing off the assassination missions or cruising Liberty City's streets for more entertainment? Well, for starters I just find the place so horribly depressing.

Siren demo: detailed impressions

The Siren demo is finally up on the Japanese PSN store, and I've just spent the last hour and a half playing it through five or six times. As you might be able to tell from that, it's a fairly short demo - though for a 550Mb I was expecting that - but that's not to say it's not worth setting up a Japanese account to play. As appetite-whetters go, it's damned effective.

When you've downloaded and installed the demo, it's worth leaving on the XMB screen for a while. There's an echoey female voice making all sorts of strange noises and it's incredibly creepy. It's a light morning, so I imagine I'd have been even more scared if I'd left it until tonight to play. But anyway, onto the demo - hit the jump for my detailed impressions.

Opinion: A Wii-remote controller for 360 is a sure sign that Microsoft is giving up the console fight

There's excitement in Xbox land thanks to MTV breaking news that Microsoft is gearing up to release a motion sensing Wii remote wannabe by the end of the year. The news is a long way short of an official Microsoft announcement and it comes from some shady 'insider source', which could mean anything from a high ranking Rare employee blowing the whistle to the wildest imaginings of the latest work experience kid.

But for the moment we'll assume it's true - that Microsoft is releasing its own motion sensing accessory which gives a Wii remote like experience to Xbox 360 owners. We'll also assume that because Rare is supposed to be in charge of it, it'll be a reasonably solid design with some half way decent launch titles.

Now, how and why does that affect the PS3? Because it indicates that Microsoft is giving up the battle for the high end market and that it is moving its focus to the larger, so-called 'casual' player base.

Happy Birthday PS3! The Ten Best Games (part two)

....and here's where it gets really exciting. Five down, five to go. Feel free to berate us in the comments thread for any blinders you feel we've unfairly overlooked, or even praise us for our excellent taste if you happen to agree with our choices. Looking at the ten, it's clear we've had to leave out some quality games - unlucky, Heavenly Sword; hard lines, Motorstorm - which proves that PS3 isn't as short of brilliant titles as some people would have you believe.

Anyway, enough waffling - here's our Top Five. Enjoy!

Happy Birthday PS3! The Ten Best Games (part one)

It's Bank Holiday weekend, but no rest for the wicked. Especially when PlayStation 3 is celebrating its first birthday. Yep, Sony's sleek stunner of a console is one on Sunday, and we thought we'd put together a top ten list of the very best games you can buy.

We've aimed for a good mix of retail titles and some cult PSN hits, and the vast majority of games on this rundown are PS3 exclusive - but there's a very good reason for that. For one, we wanted to celebrate the titles that make PS3 unique, and the best way to do that is to pick games which aren't available elsewhere. Secondly, a lot of the multiformat releases are (whisper it) better on 360. But as developers slowly start finding their way around the PS3's architecture, we're bound to see such titles really making the most of the added power under the PS3's shiny hood. Indeed one of the titles you'll see in the second part of this list - which will arrive later this weekend - is a multiformat game that perhaps has a slight edge on PS3 over its rival versions (and which is just so damn good, we couldn't possibly ignore it).

So here goes, then...the first part of our Ten Best PS3 Games. Enjoy!

Opinion: A one-console future is the way forward - welcome it with open arms

Denis Dyack has laid out the economic reasons why a single open console platform is an almost inevitable outcome of the current console market. But arguably it isn't really the utopian future it's cracked up to be. In Part 3 of our grand excuse to take Friday off™, Chris Pickering explains why we gamers should looking forward to the next great leap forward in console gaming:

A one-console future eh? There aren't too many folks that see that as the future. Al's given quite a few good reasons and theories as to why it couldn't really work. But for me, it's the way forward. Seriously. It's the way forward for both gamers, and those buggers making millions out of our hard earned pennies.

Let's talk dollar first of all (did I sound all streetwise there? Or just an aging git?). With the current set-up, there's little doubt that there are constant millions of man hours and cash being ploughed into creating the next big thing. The console that's going to win the next generation war. The one that's going to have all the big publishers backing it. The one that's going to have the best games, and flog the most units.

Gaming is, as were all constantly reminded, big business in this day and age. Yet the major bucks are going into developing, producing, and marketing a ridiculously large number of consoles.

Opinion: The one-console theory is rubbish, we've already seen it in action and it doesn't work

Denis Dyack has been waxing lyrical about his vision of a 'one-console' future. Here in part two of our special feature (aka excuse to schedule this post and knock off early for the bank holiday), Al Warmington lays out the reasons why it's a bloody terrible idea and should be shunned at all costs:

There's a bloody good reason why developers and publishers are behind a single unified console concept: both parties stand to gain a lot more financially if there is just a single platform. Publishers want to reach as large an install base as possible and that is difficult in the current console climate given that there are three very different machines out there all taking up different spaces in console land. Developers also want it because conforming to the wishes of the publishers means dedicating more valuable resources to adapting games for multiple platforms rather than focussing on making the core game itself even better.

But there's an equally good reason for having distinct closed platforms: it gives the platform owners - the console manufacturers - the ability to control exactly what content appears on the system. They can decide how games should work, they can determine the quality and content of the titles they allow onto their systems and ensure that they conform to standard methods of interface. If we throw that open to a single unified platform, we consumers are going to lose most if not all of the things that make games consoles gaming the easy-to-use, highly accessible devices they currently are.

Five PS3 titles at risk of becoming vapourware

Developers live in fear of the icy hand of vapourware, the self perpetuating development cycle that spirals ever downward, sucking cash and creativity into a bottomless pit of despair. There are plenty of good things headed to PS3 over this year and more than few pencilled in for the years to come. But which of those risks never seeing the light of day? Of course we can only speculate, but here’s a few that might be feeling the frosty touch drawing ever nearer...

Gran Turismo 5

Polyphony Digital does enjoy taking its sweet time over its games. That’s not necessarily a problem; full blown Gran Turismo titles tend to be fairly exhaustive in terms of how many different varieties of ultra realistic racing you’d actually like to undertake over the course of a single game and the graphics have certainly never been anything to moan about.

However, by the time GT5: Prologue crawls on to the PS3 in Europe and America, it will be three years since the last ‘proper’ version came along. In that time, we’ve already lost one game to the chill embrace of vapourware: Gran Turismo Mobile, which was originally intended as a PSP launch title. Go figure. While we dither around with Prologue, which looks like a technical marvel in its own right, the prospects of Gran Turismo 5: Proper actually making it are beginning to feel extremely slim.

An EA Take2 buyout could be good for gamers, good for GTA

Over the past couple of days, there’s been a lot of excitement surrounding Take2 and mega-publisher Electronic Arts. So far EA has been sniffing round Take2 like it’s a bitch on heat, even announcing its unholy intentions to the tune of $2 billion, but Take2 isn’t having any of it. In fact it’s putting a big middle finger up at EA following a tactfully worded but thinly veiled pissing match, making good on its promise to publish details of its correspondence with EA and announcing a public rejection of the offer. No Means No EA, geddit?

Naturally, what with this being business and everything, No doesn’t actually mean No, it means they’re both going to keep trying to fleece each other for as much as humanly possible. I’m no expert on these matters by any stretch but here’s how I see it: Take2 has basically said (using considerably more words) that it won’t consider anything till after GTA IV launches. Take2 wants to delay because the share prices are bound to shoot up if GTA comes out and lives up to even half of what it has been promising.

EA of course wants it now so that it can benefit from the phenomenal power of said launch but it’s dressing it up in all sorts of nice things like ‘the work’s pretty much done so it won’t interrupt things’ and less nice things like ‘there’s a strong likelihood Take2 will be sold anyway so sell to us. Now.’

All very exciting stuff and no doubt a little nerve wracking if you own shares in Take2, which most of us probably don’t. The main concern for the ordinary gamers is what exactly will happen to Take2’s games if the company is absorbed into EA’s bloated body. Many publications and blogs are taking the sensible angle that this is probably a Bad Thing. Not us though – we reckon there’s a good number of reasons why EA being at the helm of GTA and, importantly, other Take2 franchises could only lead to good things all round. Hit the turn to find out why:

An install, an install, my PS3 craves an install

Mutterings around the web have been hugely critical of the mandatory installs that have been appearing with certain PS3 games, particularly one major recent release by the name of Devil May Cry 4. A blooming brilliant game that required a 20 minute long install of 5GB alongside your initial try of said title.

Most gamers and critics have unsurprisingly immediately jumped on this as a sign that the PS3 is a load of old tosh that doesn’t pack the kind of dazzling power Sony might have us believe. But you know what, are these mandatory installs really as bad as that vocal minority claim?

A big boast from the Microsoft fanboys has been the difference in drive speeds between the Xbox 360’s DVD drive, and the PS3s Blu-ray equivalent. And the facts (PS3 72Mbps/8MBps, Xbox 360 132Mbps/8.2 – 16.5MBps) do indeed give those knocks a little in the way of weight.

Reader Poll: which version of GTA IV will YOU buy?

Microsoft reckons it will ‘own’ the launch, our highly dubious evidence suggests that more PS3 owners are pre-ordering copies, so we want to know the truth: which version are you the gaming the public going to buy?

The majority players are simply going to be limited by the fact that they only own one console – but we still want to hear from you anyway. But there are undoubtedly people who are in the fortunate position of having both an Xbox AND a PS3, and many who haven’t got either console but are thinking of getting one simply to be part of the one of the biggest game launches of this generation.

A quick reminder of the pros and cons. The Xbox 360 has one big ace in its sleeve – an exclusive deal means that Xbox players will have access to downloadable episodic content. Can't get around that really. We'll have to wait and see if Xbox has PS3 at a disadvantage graphically - bear in mind that no PS3 footage has been shown yet though.

But PlayStation is seen by many as the home of GTA. If we assume that each looks identical then the PS3 may be at an advantage in terms of loading times (thanks to the built-in HDD as standard) and performance (because the console won’t drop dead within five minutes of playing). And, should the multiplayer aspects look like they’ll be particularly ground breaking, then the PS3 has an edge because you’ll be able to play online for FREE.

And just to prove that we are champions of fairness and honesty, this same poll will be running at our sister site Xboxer, to gauge opinions from the other side of the fence.

Top ten lovers in video gaming

It’s Valentine’s day and so, for whatever tentative reason, love is strongly tipped to be in the air. Alas, video gaming is one area where love struggles to find its place. Arguably that’s a good thing as singletons across the globe can at least find some respite in video games from the day’s barrage of cards, roses, bears, hearts, bears holding hearts, cards of bears holding hearts, bears holding cards... you get the idea.

But there are a few games that have a decent stab at some romantic interest – it varies from implicit sexual tension boiling in the subtext to full blown inter-character hanky-panky. So, we’ve compiled a list of the most heart-warming, bizarre, kinky, tragic and enthralling lovers in gaming. Bear in mind that there are some spoilers ahead.

10. Carl Johnson & Catalina (Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas) – The love between a man and woman can be a beautiful thing, to be nurtured like a tender flower. But not for CJ and Catalina. She’s a badly messed up puppy with highly psychotic inclinations, persistent feelings of abandonment and persecution, and a penchant for S&M. Mind you, by the time you meet her, you’ve guided C.J. through no small amount of cop-killing, gang-banging and hit-and-run antics so I’m sure that his own mental state is highly questionable too. The part that amuses me the most is that the game never even explicitly mentions why C.J. and Catalina hook up – he is only looking to score some quick cash and finds her understandably annoying.

PS3rd class citizens: why is Europe still Sony’s bitch?

Al Warmington writes

Back in November, Sony was celebrating the PS3’s very first birthday. There was even cake. It had reason to celebrate too – the PS3 had survived a debut year that was as tough as they come. Even before a launch could be considered, production problems with the infamous Blu-ray laser diodes left Sony faced with a difficult decision and in the end, it was the European launch that was pushed back a full quarter.

We weren’t happy about it at the time, and Sony’s once promised ‘simultaneous worldwide launch’ was shot to shit. But these things happen, so we took one for the team. The trouble is that since then little has changed. We’re now approaching the European PS3’s first birthday and in that short history we can catalogue episode after painful episode where Sony makes it abundantly clear that Europe is a pretty lowly factor in its grand plan.

PSP Slim Skype arrives - firmware 3.90 available now

The much anticipated Skype functionality for the PSP Slim is finally available, with firmware update version 3.90 adding the much craved piece of software to the PSPs plethora of portable goodness.

If you’ve somehow managed to miss the mass of news surrounding the exciting announcement of PSP Skype, it basically surmounts to a free piece of software that allows you to call fellow Skype users over the internet for brand spankingly free. Plus, if you’re so way inclined, you can pay a minimal charge to call folks on their mobile or traditional landline phones.

It’s not the only addition for the PSP with version 3.90 mind you. Apparently “additional Playstation Store functionality” has also been included. Whatever that is.

Oh, and you’ll also spy the Go!Messenger icon too, though you’ll not be able to use that until the end of next month. Which is a bit rubbish really.

Related posts: Microphone issue puts Skype PSP launch in Japan on hold, CES 2008: Hands on with Skype for PSP

Skype on PSP confirmed - but it only works on PSP Slim

Sony knows words often aren't enough to convince a sceptical planet of its intentions - so at CES 2008 it chucked out actual, real, undeniable photographic proof of Skype running on PSP.

Don't worry about those funny little symbol things - they're just what the Japanese use instead of words. They will almost certainly get changed to proper words we know and recognise before Skype comes out in the UK via a PSP firmware update currently scheduled for late January.

Bizarrely, Skype is only compatible with the new PSP Slim for reasons Sony passes on explaining. But Sony has cleared up a bit of the confusion over how it works - the package will require the same hardware microphone add-on used to play mega-niche Japanese curiosity game Talkman. It's a little silver thing that plugs into the top of PSP. You talk into it. You look a bit silly.

The full press release with all the specs and stuff about what you're able to do for free with PSP Skype can be found by clicking that little "continue reading" button there:

Ten years of games being BETTER than art

All has been quiet on the games art debate for some time so, following the Turner Prize winner announcement, it’s about bloody time to bring it all back to the surface again.

There’s always a sense of urgency for games to be recognised as a mature art form, but what does art actually have to offer video games, other than the chance to churn out half finished muck entirely devoid of entertainment value? Frankly, if you judge from the shite churned out annually from Turner Prize, art hasn’t got a patch on the achievements made in terms of narrative, immersion, emotionality and long-term benefits to the industry that video games have made over the past ten years. Allow me to demonstrate:

1997

Turner Prize winner: Gillian Wearing – 60 Minutes of Silence. There’s really nothing I can add to that title to make it any more priceless. Oh no, wait, the actors in the video were all dressed as police men. They stood around for an hour scratching themselves. God, this piece is writing itself.

From the video game world: Final Fantasy VII (Square Enix). An RPG adventure that truly defined ‘epic’ both in terms of physical scale but also in its depth of characters, and the mature, engaging plot. Graphically – possibly the best the PlayStation had to offer. FF7’s sheer wow factor at the time is still something that modern games struggle to compete with.

Top five insane video game characters

Kane & Lynch: Dead Men is out today in the UK. The game has taken its share of criticism for its dodgy combat engine and cover system, but it does have something that clearly makes it stand out from all the other cookie-cutter action shooters around at the moment. Kane and Lynch’s characters are among the strongest – not to mention most violent – ever seen in video game narrative, which points at good things on the horizon for anyone bored of battling alongside same generic set of butch marines on the same battle for humanity in every game.

Our personal favourite, Lynch, is a medicated psychopath, whose happy pills aren’t so effective that he’s willing to restrain from regularly shooting cops and passers-by on his mission to keep an eye on Kane. Add in numerous blackouts and hallucinations and you’ve got yourself one messed up puppy.

In celebration of its debut, we’ve cobbled together a list of our favourite video game loonies who can give Lynch a run for his money in the dangerously unstable stakes. Beware, there are some minor SPOILERS, so we’ve tucked the full list away on the turn:

Basic tips and strategy for Call of Duty 4 online play

With Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare now a little over a week old, new players and those that have taken their time pacing through the single player campaign might find taking to the bullet frenzy of the online multiplayer a slightly daunting prospect.

CoD4’s ranking system is both a strength and weakness of the game – weak in the sense that a new player without all the equipment and perks that come with hours of play time can find themselves horrible out gunned, but that’s more than made up for by the fact that you are continuously rewarded with fresh goodies as you keep at it.

Having whiled away a few hours at the helm, we’ve put together a few hints and tips that will help you with your play. They won’t turn you into Teh Uberpwner of the online world, but they should hopefully give you a much needed edge to get you off the ground and safely holding your own in firefight. Hit the turn for some basic strategies:

Opinion: PSN ‘TV and beyond’ won’t be seen on this generation

Yesterday, Sony’s Chief Exec Sir Howard Stringer was talking up the future of the PlayStation Network, outlining its plans for a glorious future crossing over from the PS3 and PSP consoles on to TVs “and beyond” offering music, movies and TV show downloads. The reality is that although the idea of one glorious unified PlayStation Network taking root across all of Sony’s wide ranging consumer technology products is undoubtedly appealing – and most importantly it sounds great to share holders – we’re a very long way from actually seeing it happen.

The main thing that Sony is apparently overlooking with these lofty goals is, ironically, the PS3’s elephant in the room: Blu-ray. Sony gambled heavily on the PS3 giving legs to its new all-singing, all-dancing high definition disc format. Now that the PS3 is taking hold in the market place at last, slowly starting to overcome all of its teething problems and price concerns, the last thing that Sony is going to do is undermine the one thing it has done most successfully – actually putting Blu-ray players in people’s homes.

Something for the weekend

The week is over which means it is time to be looking at those games that you could be investing those hard earned notes in, should you be so inclined!

Obviously as always there are the various bits and pieces on the PSN for your entertainment however, most of this seems to be video content this week. Check out the details here.

Muppet of the Week - Hollywood Execs

This week we're letting rip at Hollywood executives - can't they make a decent game tie-in?

We keep waiting and it just isn't happening, as our hopes get dashed with every new game-based movie they make.

Resident Evil 1, 2 and 3 - Could have been much better.

Every Uwe Boll attempt - just pants

And the latest... Hitman. Personally I think it was a very good choice to go with, but then Hollywood just tried to turn it into a blockbuster. From what we hear so far, they've taken away everything that made the game good, and tried to squish and squash the concept into the 'blockbuster' mould; bad move.

Debate of the Week - Is Sony alienating gamers with all this PS3 hardware confusion?

Its a simple question really; what is Sony doing? Since day one with the PS3 there has been confusion, frustration and sometimes even anger from gamers and your average Joe Bloggs consumer when it comes to the PS3's price and abilities.

At launch people thought it was overpriced for what it was, and well, in my opinion at least, Sony did not market the machine well. The majority of people thought of the PS3 as an over expensive console, and weren't aware or didn't care for its other entertainment features.

Then the frustration kicked in as globally, different countries saw different price cuts and models appear. What?! Why?! It wasn't clear what made the different regions so special, and gamers, well, got angry - especially in Europe where everything is so damned expensive anyway!

PS3 IPTV has a roll out date at last!

New features for the PS3! Before you state your jubilations the PS3 IPTV has only managed to get a launch window in Korea...

Obviously the Camp Xbox has its own plans and dreams for an IPTV service and as reported previously the PlayStation 3 will be getting the same kind of treatment. During November Sony Computer Entertainment Korea (SCEK) and KT, one of the regions leading telecoms operators, will be launching the IPTV service named Mega TV.

Lee Young-hee of the Media Center at KT is obviously very optimistic in their partnership with SCEK. To quote, "Mega TV will include high-definition games and Blu-Ray media in its periphery. We will seek more cooperation with SCEK to create synergy."

What has not been revealed unfortunately are the details on the pricing of the service or its terms under which it would be supplied. This is the biggest blow as it might have given us some ideas on what European users might have to fork out.

Are you interested in IPTV is it a valid use of Sony's time and do you think it will make the PS3 more attractive to those uses who do not currently own the next gen machine?

Top 10: Of the last gen

Readers of Australian website PALGN have voted for the top 10 games of the last generation of consoles, handhelds and PC. The Gamecube and PS2 dominate the list with 4 titles each, with the PS2 taking the top 3 spots!

It got me wondering if there was any chance that Sony holding onto those top 3 spots if a top10 of the current gen machines were to be conducted? Perhaps we will run that as a reader poll in the new year after the barrage of PS3 titles for Christmas!

The full list of PALGNs top ten after the break so take a look and let us know if you agree or if something is glaringly missing? I somewhat controversially thought that Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas was sadly over rated and that its predecessor Vice City was the better title (though I suspect this might actually be mostly to do with the sound track more than anything!)

Something for the weekend

One more week has passed us by and with it the comes the rising realisation that supermarkets are already selling Christmas decorations and that this weekend may well be the last vestiges of sunshine for the remainder of the year...

So, with this in mind (coupled with some quite slim pickings on the PS3 new release shelf) my strongest recommendations would urge you to get out of the house this weekend! Take your PSP with you of course and get stuck into Final Fantasy Tactics: The War Of The Lions. This fantastic strategy title will help you while away the lazy afternoons unfolding a very reasonable and politically charged story of two men attempting to reshape the course of history!

Obviously, being based in the Final Fantasy universe makes this game instantly appealing to anyone who avidly collects all things Square Enix but there is a rock solid strategy game here for those who are less enamored with the more traditional Final Fantasy jaunts.

The other plus point is that you can pick this up in some places for as little as £17.99 which is an absolute steal!

But if alfresco gaming is not something that makes you tick then there is always the weekly PSN update to keep you amused!

Have a good one!

Opinion - Give it up already! Industry now calling for PS2 price cut

I don’t know about you, but I’m getting sick of all the demands and the rumours on price cuts. Now, that doesn’t mean I’m against them – I think the PS3 would do well for a cut, and its just getting annoying with all this ‘no we wont, no we wont, ok yes we will’ malarkey. But even though a UK price cut hasn’t been confirmed, the industry is now suggesting that the PS2 should be lowered in price too. Don’t they think that right now that’s pushing it?!

Again, I don’t disagree (or agree to be honest) that the PS2 should see a price cut, but I’m not sure that now with all the furore around the PS3’s models and prices, is the best time for the industry to be suggesting this. Maybe they should have let this come to a head, and then calmed down first?

Anyway, here are the facts. Sony’s big selling system is now seven years old, and although still pretty sprightly for its age, is seeing some publishers declare ongoing support and others wishing it a fond farewell.

Muppet of the Week - Rockstar

This week we award Rockstar the crown of Muppet; for not having a sense of humour.

This surprises us as we’ve played all the Grand Theft Auto games, and well, it seems these guys like to have a laugh…but only at other peoples expense we think.

Electronic Arts recently got a bit of a chastising from Rockstar over a GTA parody in its new Simpsons game. But it wasn’t as if the series was being picked out; other games like Guitar Hero had the p**s taken out of them too, but ‘Sitar Hero’ was allowed to stay in, but Rockstar ‘politely asked’ EA to remove ‘Grand Theft Scratchy’ from the game.

Opinion: Unreal Tournament’s delay is good for Epic and good for Sony

Midway’s announcement yesterday that Unreal Tournament 3 for the PS3 had been delayed until 2008 was a killing blow for Sony’s Xmas 2007 offensive. Back at E3, the timed exclusive was revealed as a spearhead for the then-promising line up of titles due out in time for the crucial holiday period. But as uber-heavyweight GTA IV, analyst heartthrob LittleBigPlanet, and Home – PlayStation’s very own answer to an Orwellian society – disappeared into the great beyond of 2008, the console giant was left with a rather tepid selection of games to rally around.

Still, consoles tend to dislodge themselves from shelves a little easier when Santa’s about and we’re all remortgaging our houses just to kit out our loved ones with shiny electronic goodies. Two big names were on the imminent horizon, designed to flesh out that disheartening PS3 games selection – Heavenly Sword and Lair. Well, we all know how that ended up: Heavenly Sword – too short, Lair – too fiddly (has Sony even bothered to release Lair in the UK yet? Do we even care?).

Which leaves? Unreal Tournament 3 and Haze, both due to arrive in November 2007. Or rather that was until Midway called a halt to that idea and thus rendered Sony’s timed exclusive utterly pointless and all-but neutered its Christmas offensive. However, this sudden change of tack may very well turn out to be a clever move designed to improve the prospects of both the game and the PlayStation 3 after its punishing debut year.

Debate of the Week - Is there any truth behind videogame violence leading to real life violence?

It worries me that I’m even giving this thought, but with so many stories regularly popping up that blame videogames for real life violence, I’m beginning to wonder if there is any justification for these claims. I mean, seriously, can so many people believe that games lead to violence if there isn’t any truth in the idea?

The thing is, I do enjoy the odd violent game. So do many of my friends and the majority of my work colleagues and fellow gamers have all enjoyed a good GTA or Resi Evil session. But I’ve never known any of these guys to have real life violent tendancies, or that the anger they let loose in these games would ever surface in the real world. So knowing hundreds of gamers, and none of them violent people, I do wonder where the ‘games equal violence’ ties come from.

Well, there are two big schools of thought when it comes to this at the moment. The first is that in-game violence leads to desensitisation. This is an argument currently held by US Lt Col Dave Grossman, a law enforcement trainer and author of On Combat and On Violence who blames videogames for the rising number of US cop killings each year.

Something for the weekend

It is that time again and with the temperature dropping fast this would seem to be a good weekend to be shut inside with some great games to keep you company!

So what exactly is on offer!? Well the simple answer is quite a lot! Obviously the PSN has had its various updates and Sega Rally is there for your racing enjoyment... and should you feel its arcade style, track deforming beauty is for you then you can run off to the local game shop to pick up the full game! Result!

With a reasonable number of tracks and a super fast and fun gameplay Sega Rally will keep any fans of racing games more than happy this weekend. It really is the first game since the original that has been worthy of the title!

Muppet of the Week - Germany's Unterhaltungssoftware Selbstkontrolle

Hey there Germany, feeling a bit overzealous? You’re quite well known for your openness when it comes to porn, and you have cigarette machines on street corners where anyone of any age could sneak up and buy some, but you’ve partially banned Jericho ‘cos it’s a bit violent. You what?

Yes, for being a bit OTT in our opinion, we’re awarding you the coveted title of Muppet of the Week. Well, not really Germany; the entire country, but basically Germany’s version of the BBFC – the Unterhaltungssoftware Selbstkontrolle, who did the ‘banning’
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As we reported earlier this week, Jericho now joins the elite camp with members including Dead Rising and Gears of War; titles that haven’t been allowed to be advertised or promoted in any shape or form in the wonderful land of Deutch.

Debate of the Week - What will be the PS3's 'Halo 3'?

Well, we cant escape it can we. Today sees Halo 3's launch and the Master Chief is everywhere. Now, I'm not gonna cuss the game because I do love Halo, but at the same time I'm a bit sick of the hype. Maybe its because I felt that Heavenly Sword deserved more hype/support and didn't get it, but the big thing i've been wondering today is when is Sony going to get its killer title, and what the hell will it end up being?

Pre-launch the industry believed it would either be Resistance: Fall of Man or Motorstorm, but these didn't go down as amazingly as expected. On a more positive note both have been nominated in the gaming BAFTAs, but still, in the 'real world' they weren't huge hits.