Most Recent: PS3

Vagrant Story joining Square Enix’s PSOne Classics tomorrow

Posted on February 28, 2011 by Mike Gutierrez

If you’ve been watching Warp Zoned over the last week or so, you’ve probably seen me geek out about all the awesome content Square Enix has been bringing to the PlayStation Store. Xenogears made the transition last week, Parasite Eve got an ESRB rating to do the same, and Tactics Ogre got a digital PSN release for the PSP. Now, they’re re-releasing another legendary title from the same team behind Tactics Ogre. Vagrant Story, which is estimated to take place some time after Final Fantasy Tactics and thousands of years after Final Fantasy XII, is finally coming to the US PlayStation Store as a PSOne Classic. Already released on the European PlayStation Store a few months ago, Vagrant Story is an action RPG/dungeon crawler, noted for its beautiful music and heavy focus on weapon customization. Highly immersive, it’s also known as one of the harder Square games from the golden age of PlayStation RPG’s.

While Vagrant Story may be less of a surprise than Parasite Eve or Xenogears, this is certainly an exciting time for classic RPG fans. Anyone wanna take bets on the next one? I’ll be hoping for Dragon Quest VII. Let us know in the comments which classic Square Enix game you’d like to see next.

Posted in News, PS3, PSP | Tagged

Sony announces Rochard for PSN, first Recoil Games title

Posted on February 28, 2011 by Mike Gutierrez

It took a while to get off the ground, but Recoil Games has officially announced their first title, Rochard, published by Sony Online Entertainment, exclusively for the PlayStation Network. Recoil was founded a few years ago by members of Remedy Entertainment, the developers of Alan Wake and the Max Payne series. Rochard will be a side scrolling puzzle/platformer focusing on space miner John Rochard as he attempts to find his missing friends and dispatch space pirates at an excavation site where an alien structure was discovered. Instead of focusing on space marines, Rochard is just an everyday miner who needs to use his tools to overcome challenges, injecting sarcastic humor whenever he can.

The good folks at Recoil are at GDC this week, so hopefully more info on the game will surface soon. Rochard is scheduled for a Spring release on the PlayStation Store.

Posted in PS3 | Tagged

Tecmo to unmask Ninja Gaiden III at E3

Posted on February 28, 2011 by John Scalzo

Publisher Tecmo Koei and developer Team Ninja have unsheathed the first teaser for Ninja Gaiden III. The very short video is actually a POV shot from the eyes of a rival ninja that has just been skewered by series protagonist Ryu Hayabusa. As he thrusts again and again, more and more blood fills the screen causing Ryu to reach for his mask. The video then cuts to the words “Unmask E3 2011″… where Tecmo Koei no doubt plans to reveal more about Ryu’s next adventure.

Ninja Gaiden III will be the first game in the series not developed by Tomonobu Itagaki, who left Team Ninja in 2008.

Posted in News, PS3, Xbox 360 | Tagged ,

Killzone 3 Review: Next Generation Gaming

Posted on February 28, 2011 by Mike Gutierrez

Almost two years to the day after their last game set the PlayStation 3 on fire, Guerilla Games returns to the universe of their sci-fi franchise with Killzone 3. Despite its gritty realism, brutal encounters, and unparalleled production values, Killzone 2 suffered a lot of criticism from mainstream shooter fans who called for more conventional gameplay and were tired of the grey and monochromatic settings. The production values are still unmatched, but Guerilla went above and beyond accommodating the concerns of the wider console demographic, for better or for worse. While the final product departs significantly from its predecessor, Killzone 3 still manages to honor its spirit by once again raising the bar for first person shooters and pushing the boundaries of the imagination. (more…)

Posted in PS3, Reviews, Top Story | Tagged

Square Enix keeps it up, Parasite Eve likely joining PSOne Classics

Posted on February 27, 2011 by Mike Gutierrez

Square Enix has been on quite a roll lately. After reinstating digital PSP downloads on the PlayStation Store with Tactics Ogre and re-releasing the elusive and legendary Xenogears as a PSOne Classic, another masterpiece from Square’s golden age is joining Sony’s retro corner. Parasite Eve recently received an ESRB rating for the PlayStation 3 and PlayStation Portable (the two platforms you can bring your PSOne Classics on), likely M for Mature as it was when it originally released on the PlayStation in 1998.

Parasite Eve followed in the footsteps of Final Fantasy VII, innovating the cinematic RPG sub genre, popularizing the use of FMV cutscenes and intense set pieces. A new entry in the series, The 3rd Birthday, is coming March 29 on the PSP.

Posted in News, PS3, PSP | Tagged , ,

SOCOM 4 Full Deployment Edition detailed, curiously missing headset

Posted on February 26, 2011 by Mike Gutierrez

Before Halo would take players to Xbox Live, SOCOM introduced the console demographic to online multiplayer shooters, giving them a headset with the game to encourage tactical play. Yesterday Sony detailed the Full Deployment Edition for SOCOM 4: U.S. Navy Seals, which regrettably is missing a mic. On the bright side, this is actually a really great Move bundle, considering SOCOM 4 was one of the first games announced with Move support. Along with the game, the bundle includes the PlayStation Eye Camera, a Motion controller, a Navigation controller, and the PlayStation Move Sharpshooter. $150 is kinda steep, but it’s everything you need, and a little more (Killzone 3 plays fine with Move without any plastic gun peripheral), to get in on Sony’s take on motion controlled gaming.

Also, your SOCOM 4 Beta information should be coming next week for all of us who’ve already picked up Killzone 3 or plan to. SOCOM 4 is oscar mike April 19.

Posted in News, PS3 | Tagged

Activision declares Modern Warfare 3 countdown a hoax

Posted on February 26, 2011 by John Scalzo

In hindsight, the images used on findmakarov.com may have been a bit too obvious for a reveal that was still five days away.

An Activision spokesperson has told Joystiq that they have no plans to make an announcement about the future of the Call of Duty franchise and that any information claiming otherwise is a hoax:

There seems to be a great deal of speculation about the next Call of Duty project. Let me be clear that we are not revealing yet. Anything indicating otherwise is a hoax.

I still think this might be the real deal. Activision executives have constantly reinforced the belief that a new Call of Duty game is coming this Fall. They have to announce it eventually and the Game Developers Conference is a good place as any.

Posted in News, PC, PS3, Xbox 360 | Tagged

God of War III, Heavy Rain, Uncharted 2 become Greatest Hits

Posted on February 26, 2011 by John Scalzo

Sony has added a quintet of new titles to the PlayStation’s Greatest Hits line and it’s hard to argue about the greatness of any of them.

The latest Greatest Hits include God of War III, Heavy Rain, ModNation Racers, Uncharted 2: Among Thieves – Game of the Year Edition (which includes a voucher for all of the game’s downloadable contenst) and THQ’s UFC Undisputed 2010. All of the games will now retail for the insanely great price of $29.99. As you can see on the left, the games look pretty snazzy in red with their new Greatest Hits cases.

Sony has promised that more games will be added to the Greatest Hits lineup as 2011 progresses.

Posted in News, PS3 | Tagged , ,