by John Constantine

Sony Online Entertainment treated me to a short demo of their massively multiplayer online shooter “The Agency” today and while they’ve certainly made themselves a multiplayer online shooter, it’s unclear just how massive it’s going to be.

Read more...

by John Constantine

The “Ratchet & Clank” series is the Volkswagon Golf of video games, an unassuming, funny, reliable little machine that gets a new model every twelve months, quietly improving with each passing year. When project lead Brian Alger fired up a demo of this fall’s “Ratchet & Clank Future: A Crack in Time”, I was expecting the usual: more weapons, new jokes, etc. “A Crack in Time” turned out to be a lot more than this year’s model.

Read more...

by John Constantine

It doesn’t matter how many times Jack Tretton says that 2008 was a banner year, full of momentum and good times, for the Playstation family. There’s no escaping the truth: times are tough for Sony. The PSP continues to sell while its software continues to stagnate. The Playstation 2 enjoyed an Indian summer when its priced dropped, but the system has undeniably entered its twilight. And the Playstation3? Well, growing your audience by forty percent is all well and good but that audience is still very small compared to those of your competitors. Sony needed a big show at E3 2009 and, while the actual show dragged here and there, they had a giant one. Here’s the breakdown.

The Big Demos

Sony’s conference was bookended by spectacular single-player demos of “Uncharted 2: Among Thieves” and “God of War III”. Naughty Dog’s made themselves a looker with “Uncharted 2”, which is no surprise, but the action shown in a demo of an early level easily outdid the graphics. Nate Drake and his new AI companion Chloe Frazer had to scramble down a crumbling baddie-infested hotel being dismantled by an assault helicopter. The level was full of the death-defying leaps, shooting, and witty banter that made the original “Uncharted” such a treat, but packed into a dense and dramatic sequence that rarely took control out of the demoer’s hands. “God of War III”’s opening level was classic stuff for the series, with Kratos mauling his way through a city under siege by a giant lava covered Titan. What was new play-wise was Kratos’ new crowd control moves (enemies will dogpile Kratos and he has to throw them off), the new lion-headed gauntlet weapons, and Harpy platforming. (Hop on a harpy, stab it in the wings, leap to the next one. Wholesome family fun, truly.) The demo had two big confrontations against a centaur and a chimera that ended with grisly disembowelings. The game looks like what it needs to be: big, gorgeous “God of War”. There were also demos of “Assassin’s Creed 2”, “MAG”, and the new user-generated-content-driven kart racer “ModNation Racing”, but none of them impressed like “Uncharted” and “God of War”.

Read more...

Our intern thinks that gamers who compare "Killzone 2" to "Call of Duty 4" and "Gears of War 2" are way off the mark. See why. Read more...

On the professional website of "God of War" concept artist Cecil Kim, he's posted an image of the "Fire Titan" from "God of War III." From what we can tell, he's a large and fiery creature with lava spewing from various orifices. The description merely says, "Fire Titan battles against Zeus and his allies." Think this is an epic boss we can look forward to?

Related Posts:
New 'God of War III' Trailer, Screens — It's Epic
We Count 31 Guys Attacking Kratos In New 'God of War III' Trailer
Sony's 2009 Lineup Extends Into March 2010

MTV Multiplayer intern Sal Basile just got his PS3, and as a huge "SOCOM" fan (he started the now-defunct SOCOMscene.net), we decided to let him sound off since he was finally able to play "SOCOM: Confrontation." But after waiting so long, he was met with disappointment. Read more...

Sony just announced a ton of new PSP games, including a portable version of "LittleBigPlanet." From the official press release:

-- LittleBigPlanet -- Developed in conjunction with MediaMolecule, the critically acclaimed game LittleBigPlanet makes its way to the PSP, offering new SackBoy adventures with the same play, create, share experience for gamers on-the-go, in addition to brand new levels and environments specifically created for the platform.

Sounds like an expanded port, no? Except that elsewhere in the release, it's stated that the game will be built "from the ground up" for the system. It's slated for a fall 2009 release. More on this when we have it. Hit the jump for the full Sony press-release, which is stuffed with PSP announcements: Read more...

Today Sony announced, among many other titles, an exclusive "Rock Band" title for the PSP called "Rock Band Unplugged." From the press release:

Publisher support for the PSP system will continue throughout the year with Rock Band Unplugged, launching exclusively on PSP. MTV Games and Harmonix announced separately that gamers will be able to take Rock Band Unplugged on the road with the first ever portable version of the popular music and gaming experience. Rock Band Unplugged will take center stage as it leverages the PSP system's Wi-Fi capabilities and becomes the first PSP game to include a fully-featured in-game store for downloadable content in the North American and Europeans markets.

No other details were provided, and MTV Games declined to comment further at this time.

Related Posts:
Assassin's Creed PSP Announced
'LittleBigPlanet' PSP Announced, Plus Tons Of Other Major Titles

From a Sony press release, just sent over the wires, "Assassin's Creed" is coming to the PSP:

Assassin's Creed PSP Entertainment Pack -- Ubisoft will debut an exclusive installment of the popular Assassin's Creed franchise on PSP later this year. To commemorate this highly anticipated title, SCEA will launch a new bundle that includes the game, a "Piano Black" PSP, and other content that will be announced later.

No release date was provided. Sony's release included news on a slew of other PSP games, including a new "Rock Band," "MotorStorm," "LittleBigPlanet" and more.

Related Posts:
'LittleBigPlanet' PSP Announced, Plus Tons Of Other Major Titles
Exclusive 'Rock Band' PSP Title Announced

The developers of "DC Universe Online" explained how they're making their new DC Comics MMO more appealing to women. They also talk about how their game differs from "World of Warcraft." Read more...