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The popular baseball title delivers the perfect blend of unique gameplay features, authenticity and realism.

Sony Computer Entertainment America Inc. (SCEA) announced today the North American launch of MLB ‘08: The Show, available exclusively for PlayStation 3 (PS3), PlayStation 2 and PSP (PlayStation Portable). Already widely considered the most authentic baseball franchise on the market, MLB ‘08: The Show comes out swinging for the fences to deliver an unrivaled simulation with broadcast quality presentation. Developed by Sony Computer Entertainment’s Worldwide Studios, San Diego Studio, MLB ‘08: The Show looks to build on its critical acclaim and its history as the longest-running officially licensed baseball title on PlayStation platforms.

To provide the closest experience possible, next to actually trying to
make it in the Majors, MLB ‘08: The Show introduces a more immersive Road to The
Show mode. As gamers attempt to make a starting line-up in the Big Leagues,
playing on both offense and defense from a custom-created player’s
perspective, a more robust dynamic goal system and a new career advancement
system will determine when a player is eligible for a promotion.
Additionally, the custom-created players are more interactive, with pitchers
now experiencing mound visits, catchers enduring more defense situations, and
with gamers being able to further adjust a player’s positioning — all making
Road to The Show mode even more realistic.

“Baseball fans know that the MLB franchise has a long-standing winning
tradition and that we strive to create highly-innovative and intuitive
features in order to deliver the best baseball title on the market,” said Jeff
Reese, director, software marketing, SCEA. “With the advancements made to the
feature set, along with the lighting, textures and the added little nuances in
the game, MLB ‘08: The Show sets a new bar for authentic play and unsurpassed
realism.”

Providing players with some additional performance incentives, the MLB
franchise introduces the new Progressive Batting Performance feature, which
will both reward players for superior performance and penalize them for
hitting slumps. Specific to each individual batter, players will be rewarded
or punished, based on how that batter that performs beyond his “natural
ability” while under user control. Adding to the online feature set, which
includes customizable Online League Play, scrolling MLB Score Ticker and more,
MLB ‘08: The Show introduces SCOUT (SportsConnect Online User Tracking), which
allows gamers to set and store their game preferences on the MLB server, and
then enables the system to look for a Quick Match with opponents that fit
similar competitive criteria.

As the only first party franchise officially licensed by Major League
Baseball Properties Inc. (MLBP), Major League Baseball Advanced Media (MLBAM)
and the Major League Baseball Players Association (MLBPA), MLB ‘08: The Show
features more than 3,000 individual player animations, including personalized
stances, pitching animations, individual swings, batting rituals and motion
captures from MLB players. Additionally, the franchise adds to the realism
by including Umpire Personalities combined with Interactive Hot and Cold Zones
and Player-scaled Strike Zones, Release, and comprehensive commentary,
featuring the three-man booth of Rex Huddler, Matt Vasgerian and Dave
Campbell.

Joining an elite group of MLB All-Stars that have graced the cover of the
MLB franchise, such as New York Mets third baseman David Wright, Boston
Red Sox designated hitter David Ortiz, and Angels outfielder Vladimir
Guerrero, this year’s cover athlete and spokesman, Philadelphia Phillies
All-Star first basemen Ryan Howard, is known for his personality and work
ethic, which exemplifies the MLB franchise. Howard is just the second player
in Major League Baseball history to win the Rookie of the Year honors and
a Most Valuable Player award in successive seasons.

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The third installment of the multi-million unit franchise is a prequel to the story of Kratos and his epic odyssey against the Gods.

Sony Computer Entertainment America Inc. (SCEA) announced today the North American release of God of War: Chains of Olympus, exclusively for PSP (PlayStation Portable). Collaboratively developed by Sony Computer Entertainment’s Worldwide Studios, Santa Monica Studio and Ready at Dawn Studios, the acclaimed development team that brought you the best-selling Daxter for PSP, the highly-anticipated God of War: Chains of Olympus combines stunning graphics, intense action and an intricate new storyline that delivers yet another tale of epic proportions from the dark and brutal world of Greek Mythology. Following in the footsteps of its predecessors, God of War: Chains of Olympus is set to deliver everything that fans have come to expect from the God of War franchise. With high fan anticipation and a 94% rating on GameRankings.com, supported with the following review scores from leading gaming media outlets: PlayStation the Official Magazine — 5/5 and the Editor’s Choice Award, Game Informer — 9/10 and the Handheld Game of the Month Award, Game Pro — 4.75/5 and the Editor’s Choice Award, IGN.com — 9.4/10 and the Editor’s Choice Award, 1Up.com — 9.5/10, and Gamezone.com — 9.5/10, God of War: Chains of Olympus is poised to set a new standard for PSP titles.

“God of War: Chains of Olympus is a stellar achievement that truly shows
off the capabilities of PSP and fully demonstrates our efforts to bring
highly-innovative and unique content to PSP,” said Jeff Reese, director,
software marketing, SCEA. “If you’re a fan of the God of War universe or even
just the action-adventure genre, God of War: Chains of Olympus delivers an
epic gameplay experience and is a-must-own title.”

About God of War: Chains of Olympus

God of War: Chains of Olympus is a prequel to the first installment of the
franchise, and begins with Kratos embarking on a journey across mysterious new
environments that are engulfed in darkness and completely untouched by
mortals. The Gods have been rendered powerless from the state of their world,
leaving Kratos with only one choice — he must square off against the most
vicious of demonic creatures from Greek Mythology and choose between saving
his soul or the ancient world from imminent and total destruction. Armed with
a set of brand new combat moves, magics and weapons that compliment existing
favorites, players must lead the Spartan Warrior through foreboding
environments, while unraveling story-driven puzzles and battling creatures
from the dark underworld. Packed with intense action, epic backdrops and set
pieces, and a new captivating storyline, God of War: Chains of Olympus
delivers an engaging gameplay experience from start to finish, emblematic to
that which fans have come to expect and love of the franchise.

About God of War: Chains of Olympus Marketing Campaign

To celebrate the launch of God of War: Chains of Olympus, SCEA has
created an integrated marketing campaign incorporating an advertising program
with a major television push, full online, out of home, in-store and print
support. The campaign features epic and atmospheric creative’s centering on
the impossible task that faces Kratos in bringing his own vicious style of
revenge.

The independent Entertainment Software Rating Board (ESRB) rates
God of War: Chains of Olympus is rated “M” for “Mature 17+” (Descriptors:
Blood and Gore, Intense Violence, Nudity, Sexual Themes, Strong Language). For
more information about the ESRB, visit http://www.esrb.org.

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Sony’s favorite game show goes portable this summer.

The days of you being on a bus and getting pissed off because you can’t participate in a virtual game show are coming to an end, my friend. Sony announced today that Buzz! is headed for the PSP this summer.

Developed by Relentless Software, Buzz! will keep the wonky antics from the previous Buzz! games that tested your general knowledge acumen and toss them onto a UMD for one to six players to enjoy on the go.

The game will pack more than 5,000 questions covering topics such as music, celebrities, and more to tackle in six new round types specifically designed for PSP. Sony descried Quickfire Challenge as a “speed-is-of-the-essence” challenge, Picture This as a “picture-puzzler” and Virus Challenge as “mind-boggling.” Each round comes complete with pictures and videos.

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Find out what happens next, this April.

Square Enix announced today a final Japanese release date for Star Ocean 2 Second Evolution. The PSP remake of the PlayStation classic will hit Japan on April 2, carrying the standard price point of 4,800 yen.

Those who pre-order the title will get a very special bonus. Square Enix will be giving away a DVD containing promotional clips for future tri-Ace titles, along with the latest footage of Star Ocean 4. Maybe this means we’ll at last have learned a platform for the mysterious fourth entry in the series in time for the remake’s release.

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New Gangs, Vehicles, Weapons and Stunts Make for One of the Most Action-Heavy Games to Come to PSP.

Sony Computer Entertainment America Inc. (SCEA) announced today that Pursuit Force(TM): Extreme Justice is now available exclusively for the PSP(R) (PlayStation(R)Portable) handheld entertainment system. The pulse-pounding driving adventure franchise increases the thrills with new multiplayer capabilities, more than 50 criminal cases across multiple gameplay modes, 30 weapon types and 12 different vehicle types. Developed by Bigbig Studios, Ltd., this second installment in the Pursuit Force(TM) franchise brings even more over-the-top Hollywood-blockbuster-style action to the small screen.

“Pursuit Force: Extreme Justice is exactly the kind of game that PSP owners want,” said Jeff Reese, director, software marketing, SCEA. “It offers incredible value in terms of re-playability, is a perfect pick-up-and-play experience in both single-player or multiplayer mode, and most importantly is extraordinarily entertaining.”

Pursuit Force: Extreme Justice will have players taking the role of a commander, the highest ranking operational officer, and partnering with four other new playable characters, all of whom are responsible for tracking down and bringing to justice five hardcore street gangs that are out of control in Capital City. It is up to the player to, literally, drive them out of town. To rid the city of gang crime, players must engage in high-speed action to traverse land, air and sea. Players can also leap between motorbikes, cars and trucks in the pursuit of justice.

Featuring more than 50 criminal cases set among seven distinct environments, players will have access to 12 different vehicle types which include hovercrafts and outrageous vehicles that are each unique and specifically designed for epic boss encounter missions. Pursuit Force: Extreme Justice also offers an expanded weapons arsenal to assist players.

Pursuit Force: Extreme Justice will launch with more than 20 hours of diverse gameplay, with the future availability of downloadable content packs for players to continue to extend their enjoyment of the game. In addition, increasing the already impressive re-playability of the title, the game will also introduce multiplayer capabilities to the franchise with up to four players in Ad Hoc mode.

The independent Entertainment Software Rating Board (ESRB) has rated Pursuit Force: Extreme Justice “T” for “Teen”. For more information about the ESRB, please visit http://www.esrb.org.

About Sony Computer Entertainment America Inc.
Sony Computer Entertainment America Inc. continues to redefine the entertainment lifestyle with its PlayStation and PS one(R) game console, the PlayStation(R)2 computer entertainment system, the PSP(R)(PlayStation(R)Portable) handheld entertainment system, and the ground-breaking PLAYSTATION(R)3 (PS3(TM)) computer entertainment system.

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Final Fantasy VII spin-off lands in Spring.

EU-based Square Enix fans may want to take a seat because it was revealed today that Crisis Core - the PSP follow-up to the original PSOne FFVII that represents everyone’s favourite way to kill 70 hours of their life - is being released this Spring. Which is near enough the same time it will be unleashed in US stores.

European gamers are used to waiting prolonged periods for Square Enix games to drip through other territories. Final Fantasy XII for the PS2 took a year to wind its way here, with Americans getting the game some five months before their EU brethren, and the imminent FFXI spin-off - Revenant Wings on the DS - has also been subject to a prolonged journey to these shores, with the EU release coming out three months after the US version.

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New firmware update in Japan makes dreams come true.

Sony Japan announced today plans for a year-end firmware update for the Japanese PSP that will add some major functionality to the system just in time for Christmas.

On 12/18, Japanese PSP owners will be able to download the version 3.8 update. This update adds the following features:

BB Mobile Point Demos
When in the vicinity of an access point for Yahoo BB Mobile Point, a paid wireless internet service that’s available at 3,500 retail and public locations throughout Japan, you’ll be able to access the PlayStation Spot retail download service directly from your PSP. This will give you access to demos of upcoming games. This service appears to be available even to those who aren’t subscribers to the BB Mobile Point service, as you won’t be prompted for an SSID/WEP key, ID, or password.

Record Television Programs
Those with the PSP’s 1seg tuner will be able to record television programs to their Memory Stick Duo. Some programs will allow you to flag them in advance for recording as you browse the 1seg channel guide.

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Unique rhythm game marching here early next year.

If you’ve been looking for some interesting new titles for your PSP, you may be in luck. Sony Computer Entertainment America announced today that Patapon, a stylized 2D platformer/rhythm game, would be coming exclusively to the PSP in February. Developed by Sony Computer Entertainment’s Japan Studio, Patapon places you in charge of commanding an army of small, quirky warriors as they march towards the end of the world to fulfill their ancestral destiny.

Patapon will offer over 30 missions with more than 20 different environments to traverse, all while building, maintaining and controlling your army of fierce warrior Patapons. Facing the Zigoton Army and overcoming massive bosses will all be done through “various button-timed drumbeats in real-time,” blending rhythm games with platforming and strategy titles.

“Music is a huge part of the PSP’s multifunctional feature set,” says Jeff Reese, Director of Software Marketing for SCEA, “and we are excited to deliver a new genre of music and action gaming that further adds depth to the PSP software lineup.”

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Extra hours for both original and Slim.

In addition to shrugging off some weight and depth, the PSP Slim improves upon the original design by sipping a bit less power. Theoretically the new version will run longer than the original, but only if used with similar battery packs, not the smaller (1200-mAh) Li-on rechargeable that’s included with the Slim.

For those who really need their PSPs to go the distance, Sony today announced the PSP Extended Battery Kit, which is composed of a 2200-mAh and replacement battery doors in both black and silver. The new battery will pop right into old model PSPs and the replacement doors accommodate the larger battery’s bulge in Slim models. The Extended Battery should come close to doubling the PSP Slim’s usable battery life compared to the battery that’s included in the system.

The PSP Extended Battery Kit will arrive in mid-December priced around $45.

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Three bucks for a (budget fishing) game.

Sony Japan’s impressive lineup of PlayStation Classics for download to the PlayStation Portable and PlayStation 3 took an unexpected twist today with the announcement of the second set of November downloads.

Included amongst the standard 600 yen games like MidiEvil, Armored Core Master of Arena, and Wild Arms 2nd Ignition, are the first 300 yen titles for the service. Success has set its three SuperLite budget fishing titles at 300 yen, meaning a quickie PSP and PS3 download for just three bucks!

The full list of titles available as of today in the Japanese PlayStation Store follows.

Seireiki Live Red (Winky Soft)
Poitter’s Point (Konami)
SuperLite Fishing: Port no Tsuri-hen (Success)
SuperLite Fishing: Bouhatei no Tsuri-hen (Success)
SuperLite Fishing: Hama no Tsuri-hen (Success)
Wild Arms 2nd Ignition (SCEJ)
MediEvil (SCEJ, PSP-only)

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Redesign beats original PSP to the platinum milestone.

A little over two months following its release, and the PSP-2000 has reached a major shipment milestone. Sony Computer Entertainment announced today that as of 11/22, the redesigned portable has crossed the one million units shipped mark in Japan.

The original PSP took two weeks longer to reach the mark, according to Sony.

Since its official Japanese release on 9/20 (the one million units in today’s announcement does not include sales from the limited edition Crisis Core pack, released a week earlier)

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U.S. Navy SEALs Tactical Strike sneaks into stores.

SOCOM: U.S. Navy SEALs Tactical Strike is now available for the PlayStation Portable, Sony and Slant Six Games announced today.

The latest game in the series has players commanding a four-man SEAL team set in the midst of rising instability in South America after having been called on to rescue the ambassador to Panama, who has been abducted by radical insurgent forces.

Gamers can also engage in multiplayer games of up to four players in both ad hoc and online infrastructure modes.

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New color, and new bundle for Japan.

The PSP-2000 launched to Japan with a rainbow of colors back in September, but Sony has already gotten around to announcing a new color. The system will turn “Deep Red” in limited quantities starting 12/13.

Those wanting the new color will have to purchase it one of two packages. The PSP Deep Red Value Pack includes a pouch, strap, cleaning cloth and 32 megabyte Memory Stick Duo. The PSP Deep Red 1seg Pack adds a 1seg tuner to all that, and swaps in a gigabyte Memory Stick Duo and a larger case capable of housing both the tuner and system.

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PSP remake of the original Japanese role-player coming in 2008.

Square Enix has finally confirmed that its Final Fantasy and Final Fantasy II PSP remakes are set to hit Europe early in 2008. Each game will be released separately and has been completely revamped for Sony’s handheld.

Alongside enhanced visuals, designed to fit the PSP’s 16:9 screen, character art has been updated and, more importantly, there are new areas to explore. For instance, Final Fantasy sees the introduction of Labyrinth of Time while Final Fantasy II gets two new dungeons, namely Arcane Labyrinth and Arcane Sanctuary. The latter also features new equipment and enemies - including a never-before-seen boss - to battle.

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Oscar-winning actor makes game debut alongside Ray Winstone, Brendan Gleeson, and Sebastian Roche in Ubisoft’s upcoming action adventure.

Paramount Pictures scored an all-star cast of highly acclaimed actors for its upcoming big-screen adaptation of the quintessential Anglo-Saxon heroic epic Beowulf, which is due out in theaters next month. Today, Ubisoft announced that a few of those actors would be reprising their roles in the upcoming action adventure tie-in, due out for the PlayStation 3, PlayStation Portable, Xbox 360, and PC in November.

Having already established himself as one of Britain’s most prolific stage and screen actors, Sir Anthony Hopkins will make his in-game voice-acting debut articulating the role of King Hrothgar. A highly decorated actor, Hopkins won an Academy Award for his role as the maniacal cannibal Hannibal Lector in Silence of the Lambs and was nominated for the prestigious honor for his supporting role in Amistad, as well as leading roles in Nixon and Remains of the Day.

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Now you, too, can be a jackass.

Jackass the Game needs no introduction, but we’ll give it one anyway, because it’s an excuse for us to write “jackass” a bunch of times.

Inspired by the hit MTV series Jackass and the subsequent films, Jackass and Jackass Number Two, Jackass the Game lets you play as Johnny Knoxville, Steve-O, Jason “Wee Man” Acuna and other stars of the bone-breaking stunt series.

Developed for the PlayStation Portable and PlayStation 2, Jackass the Game will have you racing down refrigerator mountains, covering yourself in bodily secretions, playing “rock-paper-nuts,” and participating in other good, clean, wholesome activities.

Jackass features dynamic physics, rag-doll modeling and an in-game injury tracking system The more punishment you inflict on the Jackass characters, the higher your score. Jackass also offers multiplayer modes that allow players to compete jackass-to-jackass.

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PlayStation Portable version of the survival horror franchise mysteriously absent from TGS show floor.

One of the more noticable absences at this year’s TGS was Konami’s Silent Hill Origins, the first PlayStation Portable iteration of the company’s long-running survival horror series.

Despite appearing in Sony’s TGS brochure alongside Metal Gear Solid: Portable Ops +, the game - being developed in the UK by Climax - failed to make an appearance at either Sony’s PSP showcase or Konami’s own booth. Origins’ no-show was confirmed by a Konami representative, although no explanation was available.

Despite rumoured development troubles, Silent Hill Origins (or Zero, as its known in Japan), a prequel to the original Silent Hill game, was shaping up nicely when we had chance to play the first few hours during a recent studio visit.

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Version 1.93 of console code to fix Internet connection issue introduced by 1.92, while portable version 3.71 adds themes

It’s not uncommon for developers of game software to find that adding or fixing one feature in a game winds up breaking something else entirely. That holds true for hardware as well, as shown by last week’s version 1.92 firmware update for the PlayStation 3.

The system update was released in order to address some unspecified playability issues with the PS3’s backward compatibility, but some gamers who downloaded it found they were soon having a hard time keeping the system connected to the Internet. On the PlayStation Blog yesterday, PlayStation Network operations director Eric Lempel advised affected users that help is on the way “in the next few days” with firmware update 1.93. Lempel mentioned no other changes set to be included in the new firmware, but did say it would address the last update’s connection issues.

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It’s the first three minutes of the game, people!

NEWSFLASH: Star Wars Battlefront: Renegade Squadron is going to be a big deal. We didn’t know if the Darth Vader-branded PSP Slim gave it away or not.

If you’re like most members of the Sony portable public, you’re eagerly awaiting the latest opus from LucasArts as it pits a group of intergalactic scoundrels picked by Han Solo up against the evil scurrying about the universe, but questions remain — who is Col Serra? What will your role in the game be? Where the heck is Jar Jar?

Thankfully, a new video has arrived to answer some of your questions — and probably raise a few more.

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Plus, the origins of Crisis Core.

The latest chapter in the Final Fantasy VII saga is almost at hand over in Japan. Just in time’s for Crisis Core’s 9/13 release, the editors of Famitsu managed to gather executive producer Yoshinori Kitase, producer Hideki Imaizumi, director Hajime Tabata, and character designer Tetsuya Nomura for an interview touching upon all areas of Crisis Core’s development, and possible future developments from the staff members.

On the topic of Crisis Core, Tabata disclosed just how huge the game is, noting that it almost fills up a full UMD-ROM. He feels that the game is well balanced so that players of all level will be able to clear it. However, advanced players can look forward to over 300 missions outside of the main storyline. These are tough, but players can get a bit of extra help on their second time through, as the game lets you start a new game with your past character data.

A bit of trivia for those interested in how Crisis Core came about. Tabata disclosed that the project originally began with the idea of making a port of Before Crisis, the mobile entry in the Compilation series. Before Crisis (as well as Final Fantasy Agito XIII) are Tabata’s projects, so Kitase approached him with the idea. Brought into the discussion, Nomura suggested instead that they make something with more meaning to the Compilation, and so was born the idea of making a game about a soldier who’d previously not been addressed in the Compilation, Zack. This entire decision process took just two days, Kitase joked.

Outside of Crisis Core, Famitsu editors asked about new developments in the Compilation series, noting that players are hoping for a FFVII remake. Yes, questions about a remake of FFVII are required whenever interviewing Nomura and Kitase.

Tabata avoided the remake issue entirely, instead pointing out that Square Enix will be distributing a new episode of Before Crisis for mobile players simultaneously with the Crisis Core release. This episode features Reno as the main character.

A remake of FFVII is a question of timing, Imaizumi said, noting that Kitase, Nomura and Tabata are all busy with the Final Fantasy XIII series. He added that a new game of some form will be announced at the Tokyo Game Show. We’re not sure if he’s referring to a new game in the FFXIII series or a general new title from Kitase, Nomura and Tabata. Either way, we’re already excited.

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