It’s that special time of the week again as the European PSN Store update goes live with another heap of content. This week includes the launch of Planet Minigolf and Death Track: Resurrection, along with a playable demo for Green Day: Rock Band and additional DLC.
Read on for a complete round-up of this week’ European PSN Store update.
It’s always good to see healthy competitions that spawn awesome indie games and the Make ‘Em Up competition is no exception. Sponsored by Turborilla and Blue Systems, the contest aims to find the best indie game prototype and award that team with $80,000 in order to make their game a reality.
The kicker here is that you don’t even need to have a finished game to enter. The idea is to find a team with a great idea to bring the game to life. The only requirements are a great prototype and a competent team to take said prototype from design to finish if the idea is chosen.
Let’s face it, we have all been intrigued by the thought of an adult Mario Kart, right? I can’t be the only one dreaming about racing down my friends with something more powerful than a red turtle shell. For many gamers, especially those in their twenties and thirties, Mario Kart was nothing short of multiplayer bliss. And a gamer that fits such a profile should be welcoming Blur with open arms.
Bizarre Creations has made an attempt to provide gamers with an addictive racer that feeds off one of our favorite pastimes. However, within one week, we have received three racing games: Modnation Racers, Split/Second, and now Blur. Each game offers a different type of racer, but Blur holds its own despite some shortcomings. Read more… »
Smashmouth Games has partnered with the Blitz1Up initiative to bring their ambient music game Ongaku to PC and possibly other platforms such as Xbox Live Arcade soon.
Ongaku is a 2D rhythm game combining elements of Patapon and the Guitar Hero series to create a new brand of musical gameplay. Players assume the role of a crystal known as Ongaku and must paint each level by popping the colored paint bubbles in time to the musical beat. With each successful bubble popped, the world behind Ongaku comes to life in vibrant colors and shapes.
The flash version of Ongaku is available for play here, but the partnership with Blitz1Up promises to bring about several changes to the game.
Remember last year’s disastrous disaster movie 2012? Aside from being a clichéd, two and a half hour bore-fest, there was at least one standout scene that salvaged some 10 minutes of worthwhile viewing. I’m talking of course about the harrowing driving sequence in which, in a bid to escape the end of the world, the protagonist drives through a crumbling city while narrowly avoiding an onslaught of airborne cars and collapsing buildings.
Now imagine that scene applied to a video game, and you have a good idea of how Split/Second: Velocity (Black Rock’s latest endeavour on the race track since 2008’s Pure) plays out. In essence, it hopes to become the definitive Hollywood driving experience, but does it live up to its blockbuster budget?
Another week, another PSN Store update. June 1st, or 06/01 as we state it in the US (enough of our European date format in the US PSN Store update), brings us a PSP price drop frenzy. Americans, rest assured that I will be stepping up my game in keeping you up to date as consistently as the great Martin Bigg does for our folks in the UK.
So hit the jump and enjoy the full list of updates in the US PSN Store for 06/01! Read more… »
When the original RayStorm hit the Sony Playstation in 1997, it was met with a strong critical reception. As publishers who are increasingly looking to capitalize on past successes continue to comb through their back catalogs for likely candidates for re-release, it makes sense that Taito (now owned by Square Enix) would call their highly lauded shmup out of retirement.
Although RayStorm featured a few gameplay mechanics that were compelling at the time, the vertical shooter has advanced greatly in 13 years. With games like Ikaruga and Espgaluda I & II becoming the innovators and standards of the genre, it was unclear at first if the recent HD port of RayStorm could regain some measure of its former luster.
Does RayStorm HD bring enough improvement to the table to stand out in a crowd of the modern Hell of a Thousand Bullets offerings, or is it just relying on nostalgia to coax another $15 out of the pockets of sentimental gamers?
If you’re a fan of ambient strategy games, this is one release you are going to want to look out for. Alex May and Rudolf Kremers announced their 2009 Independent Games Festival finalist Eufloria will be released on the PlayStation network sometime next year.
According to the press release, this new version of Eufloria will feature new content and several improvements over the PC version that was released late last year. There are scant details on what sort of new content we will be seeing, but because the game is divided up into levels one would assume you will see new environments to explore and conquer.
Today Electronic Arts announced a new hockey title for the Wii. Dubbed NHL Slapshot, the title marks EA’s “first ever NHL hockey title for the Wii.”
As you would expect, NHL Slapshot will utilize a “revolutionary” hockey stick controller. According to EA, the new controller “allows players to shoot, pass and body check just like the pros.” Read more… »
Nintendo have just announced that the official follow up to Pokemon Pearl/Diamond will be released in North America and Europe in Spring 2011. The game is set to apparently re-invent the franchise in every way possible, featuring a vast open world to explore in 3D graphics.
The game was showcased earlier in the year on a Japanese television show, surprising both the players and gaming community, albeit from a technological aspect the game still looks relatively similar to previous incarnations. Will they still include the cheap Game Boy sound effects for the next generation of Pokemon? Will the main character sport more than four directions of movement? Only time will tell.
