Released for the Nintendo DS earlier this year, "Grand Theft Auto: Chinatown Wars" debuted on the PSP this week. The new version of "Chinatown Wars" offers much of the same experience as far as your ability to blow up, assassinate, terrorize and drug-hustle your way through Liberty City's underworld as its DS counterpart, with a variety of tweaks to the graphics and controls, as well as some extra missions exclusive to the PlayStation format.

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"Pixel Junk Monsters Deluxe," which looks a heck of a lot better on the PSP's screen than it does in the above screenshot, has apparently fallen to the fate experienced by most PSP software: Obscenely high rates of piracy. Dylan Cuthbert, the president of Q-Games (the Pixel Junk developer), made a brief Twitter post talking about his disappointment:

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In this week's Game Plan, we have what could arguably be the best game of the year, as well as me with a cold. I say some goofy things, 'cause of the medicine. Don't mind me. "National Treasure" really is awesome, though.

My PSP and I? We get along fine… but we don’t really spend much time together anymore. In fact, I haven’t picked up a PSP game from a brick and mortar shop in over a year (and that may never change thanks to the increasing number of downloadable titles launching with the PSPgo). But there’s one game that’s looking to change that this fall, and that’s "SOCOM: Fireteam Bravo 3."

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Just one week after the PSP go's launch, retailers are already slashing prices on Sony's new portable venture over the UK. The UMD drive-less, download-only system premiered with a slightly higher price tag at £225 (roughly $355), compared to the MRSP of $250 in the U.S. Numerous online retailers in the U.K., including Amazon and Gamestation, are already ratcheting that price point down to £200, however.

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With any franchise of sports games, there's a certain level of difficulty in reviewing a given year's release—even moreso if you haven't played each and every edition from year to year. I fall into that latter category with Sony San Diego's "NBA 10 The Inside" for the PSP, so gauging what's been added, what's been improved and what other features have changed from "NBA 09" isn't really an option. Instead, I can offer up a "clean slate" review from someone new to Sony's NBA franchise.

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"FIFA 10" outperformed last year's "FIFA 09" and dethroned "Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas" in its first week on the UK sales charts. The EA Sports release, which enjoys a far bigger following on the east side of the Atlantic than its sister franchise "Madden NFL," knocked of "San Andreas" as the number two first-week performer of all time in the UK, placing second only to "GTA IV."

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Russ broke down the best and worst of Sony's new PSP go earlier today, and the price tag definitely falls in the latter category. Sadly for owners' wallets, the downloadable casual-gamer-oriented releases now available for the system followed suit. PSP Minis, seven of which premiered along with the PSP go, currently sport price points up to twice what their counterparts ask for on the iPhone App Store.

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In an extra special, sassy episode of Game Plan, I give a spot-on impersonation of Mickey Mouse and Tim actually agrees with me for once. Also I, occasionally, have the voice of the devil.

Sidenote: Tim really liked the fact that you can use the alt fire on "Dead Space Extraction" by turning the remote sideways. It got cut in the final edit, but he wanted you all to know that. There, my conscience is clear.

We already knew that "Assassin's Creed 2" has some sex talk and cartwheels, but it looks like the game will be able to pull coins from the PSP as well. New box images from the "Assassin's Creed: Bloodlines" PSP Entertainment Bundle leaked a few new details about what the game will be able to do when you put it in communication with "Assassin’s Creed 2" on the PS3. In addition to transferring currency and weapons to the PS3, "Bloodlines" will also be able to receive blade and health upgrades from its big console brother.

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