“With Heavy Rain it was right, but after Heavy Rain the question can be asked whether we should stick to one platform or open out to different platforms.”

“Now that we’re established why are we limiting ourselves to one share of the market when we can reach more? There are pros and cons and it’s not an easy decision.”

Cage then went on to thank Sony profusely for the help and support that they extended to Quantic Dream during Heavy Rain’s development, claiming that the title may not have been possible without them. The company founder has said previously that he is reluctant to create a direct sequel to the best seller, but claims that a new title has already been written and is all but ready go into the development phase. However there was no hope offered to gamers hoping to see a Xbox 360 version of Heavy Rain, confirming that it will remain a PS3 only title.

I think Sony are going to have fight tooth and nail to keep Quantic Dream firmly on their side of the fence. Heavy Rain has been one of the only decent exclusives on Playstation 3 for quite some time! Still, it is exciting to know that if nothing else, a spiritual sequel to this cracking game is on the way!

Heavy Rain is available now for PS3, and the new Move Edition is due for release in time for Christmas 2010.

When asked if its mistake on Xbox Live was to assume Microsoft would let Valve update its games more often, Newell said:

“We thought that there would be something that would emerge, because we figured it was a sort of untenable… Oh yeah, we understand that these are the rules now, but it’s such a train wreck that something will have to change.That’s why we’re really happy with the current situation with the PS3,” he said. “We’re solving it now in a way that is going to work for our customers, rather than assuming something is going to emerge later that will allow us to fix this.”

Microsoft has a notoriously closed approach to its online service compared to PSN, with developers allowed as little as one free title update (though there are exceptions) and limitations on the amount of free game content they can release.

Source: PC Gamer

Bashy – Black Boys (UK exclusive)
Busta Rhymes – Put Your Hand’s Where My Eyes Can See
Devlin – Giant (UK exclusive)
DMX – Ruff Ryder’s Anthem
Fat Joe featuring Terror Squad – Lean Back
Ja Rule featuring Ashanti – Always on Time
Lil’ Jon – Get Low

The New Producers Confirmed Include:
Bangladesh – Gutter
DJ Premier – Go Back
Just Blaze – 8 Bit

The game also allows you to use the Xbox Live Camera to film yourself to make videos of your performance which can be uploaded to www.defjamrapstar.com.

The game is being co-published by Konami Digital Entertainment Inc. and Autumn Games and being released on October 5 2010 for the Wii, Playstation 3 and Xbox 360.

Def Jam Rapstar Confirms Busta Rhymes, DMX, Lil’ Jon, Fat Joe and More in Game

New Freestyle Beats From Bangladesh, DJ Premier and Just Blaze Announced

NEW YORK and EL SEGUNDO, Calif., Sept. 9 /PRNewswire/ — Today, 4mm Games, Def Jam Interactive and Terminal Reality are excited to announce additional tracks available in Def Jam Rapstar, the first true interactive Hip Hop music game experience coming October 5th to the Xbox 360(TM) video game and entertainment system from Microsoft, PlayStation®3 computer entertainment system and Wii(TM).

The ultimate emcee experience, Def Jam Rapstar is the only music game that focuses exclusively on Hip Hop, you and your social networks. With more than 40 of the greatest Hip Hop songs available at release, from Busta Rhymes “Put Your Hands Where My Eyes Can See” to “Ruff Ryder’s Anthem” by DMX, Lil’ Jon’s crunk classic “Get Low” and Fat Joe featuring Terror Squad’s smash hit, “Lean Back”, Def Jam Rapstar allows YOU to be the star by rhyming, using your console camera, and uploading your video to the fully integrated Def Jam Rapstar community at www.defjamrapstar.com.

Def Jam Rapstar is also pleased to announce that Bangladesh will be providing exclusive instrumental beats for Def Jam Rapstar’s Freestyle Mode, as well as confirm additional tracks by DJ Premier and Just Blaze. Def Jam Rapstar’s Freestyle Mode allows aspiring emcees the chance to deliver their own original rhymes over never before heard tracks by some of today’s hottest producer’s.

New Confirmed Tracks Include:

ARTIST TRACK

Put Your Hand’s Where My Eyes Can
Busta Rhymes See
DMX Ruff Ryder’s Anthem
Fat Joe featuring Terror Squad Lean Back
Ja Rule featuring Ashanti Always on Time
Lil’ Jon Get Low
Public Enemy Can’t Truss It
———— ————–
Twista featuring Kanye West and
Jamie Foxx Slow Jamz
——————————- ———

New Producers Confirmed Include:

PRODUCER TRACK

Bangladesh Gutter
DJ Premier Go Back
———- ——-
Just Blaze 8 Bit
———- —–

Co-published by Konami Digital Entertainment Inc. and Autumn Games, Def Jam Rapstar will offer a software only version of the game that will retail for $59.99 for the Xbox 360 and PlayStation®3 and $49.99 on Wii, as well as a bundled version that will include software and one wired microphone for $69.99 for the Xbox 360 and PlayStation®3 and for $59.99 on Wii.

For more information of Def Jam Rapstar, including all tracks announced to date, please go to www.defjamrapstar.com.

To follow Def Jam Rapstar on Twitter please visit www.twitter.com/defjamrapstar.

Dissidia Duodecim: Final Fantasy (at least we think that’s what it’s going to be called and yes, it is a bit of a mouthful) will feature a brand new roster of classic characters including Final Fantasy XIII‘s kick-ass leading lady Lightning and much-loved dark knight gone rogue Kain, from Final Fantasy IV. More information is expected next week following the title’s appearance, in playable form, at the Tokyo Game Show.

Dissidia: Final Fantasy was originally released for PSP in Japan in 2008, before making its way to Western shores in 2009. Starring an eclectic mix of heroes and villains from the series 20-year history including Final Fantasy VII‘s amnesiac swordsman Cloud Strife and Final Fantasy VIII‘s scantily-clad sorceress Ultimecia, Dissidia centers around the ferocious battle between Cosmos and Chaos, two gods of good and evil.

Dissidia Duodecim: Final Fantasy is tipped for release in 2011. The original game, Dissidia: Final Fantasy is available to download from the PlayStation Store for £19.99.

Well, it’s a working title.

During E3 earlier this year, we were all introduced to a teaser trailer, but not much else. Now today, more official details have been announced.

Our troubled lead this time around is a prison inmate who manages to “escape” after his prison transport vehicle lurches off the road, which ultimately lands his butt in Silent Hill. For anyone who has played any of the series, you already know that he’s probably there for a reason and he hasn’t gotten himself much of an escape.

The game will feature all new wonderfully disturbing creatures and mind-bending puzzles, as well as a new feature never before seen in the series: side quests! According to the Konami press release, these side quests can change throughout the game depending on how you play. It’s not the first time that this has been featured, as something similar was present in Shattered Memories.

Shinji Hirano, President of Konami Digital Entertainment Inc, has re-assured loyal fans by saying they are hard at work to “build a next generation horror game that the fans truly deserve.” In the past few games, there has been an imbalance of combat: some say Homecoming had too much, while Shattered Memories had no combat to speak of (I can’t tell you how badly I wanted to beat some of those creatures, but was sadly unable to. Grr.) To balance this with the new game, the choice of ‘fight or flee’ has returned in order to appeal to fans of the classic Silent Hill series. (Thank goodness!)

Sadly the series famed composer, Akira Yamaoka, did leave Konami back in December 2009. It’s hard to imagine what the soundtrack will be like without him, but I have to hope that this new game can still retain its creepy atmosphere without Akira’s wonderful score to back it up with. We’ll just have to wait and see.

We can expect to be seeing the 8th installment of the series sometime in 2011 on both the Xbox360 and PS3.

Survival Horror Series Returns to Next-Gen Platforms With New Level of Mind-Bending Terror

EL SEGUNDO, Calif. – XX, 2010 – Konami Digital Entertainment Inc. today unveiled Silent Hill 8 (working title), the eighth installment of the Silent Hill franchise. Scheduled to launch in 2011 on the PlayStation®3 computer entertainment system and Xbox 360® video game and entertainment system from Microsoft. Staying true to the franchise’s original roots, the game returns with another third person horror experience, and an all new thought provoking storyline. Players will once again find themselves face to face with their deepest sins and fears in the strange world of Silent Hill.

“In honoring the rich history and strong following of Silent Hill, we’re working hard to build a next generation horror game that the fans truly deserve,” said Shinji Hirano, President of Konami Digital Entertainment Inc. “This Silent Hill introduces an all-new storyline and unique evolutions in gameplay, building on innovations and successes from over a decade of true survival horror and terror.”

The survival horror experience begins after a prison transport vehicle careens off the road, leaving lone inmate Murphy Pendleton stranded in Silent Hill. Gamers will encounter mind-bending puzzles, as well as horrific creatures and otherworld terrors using everyday objects from wooden chairs to glass bottles to fend off their enemies. The natural response, fight or flight is left to the player as they unravel a dark, thought-provoking storyline which will appeal to fans of the early, classic Silent Hill series, as well as anyone who enjoys a deep, psychological horror experience. In addition to the main storyline, players will also be presented with variable side quests along the way that can change depending on their play style, revealing unknown evils within the town.

Silent Hill 8 (working title) is scheduled to launch in 2011 on the PlayStation®3 computer entertainment system and Xbox 360® video game and entertainment system from Microsoft. For assets and additional information, please visit http://www.konami.com/downloads/.

About Konami

Konami is a leading developer, publisher and manufacturer of electronic entertainment properties and traditional trading card games. Konami’s software titles include the popular franchises Metal Gear Solid, Silent Hill, DanceDanceRevolution and Castlevania, among other top sellers. Konami is also the manufacturer of the wildly popular Yu-Gi-Oh! TRADING CARD GAME, which has sold more than 22 billion cards worldwide. The latest information about Konami can be found on the Web at www.konami.com. Konami Corporation is a publicly traded company based in Tokyo, Japan with subsidiary offices, Konami Digital Entertainment Co., Ltd. in Tokyo, Japan, Konami Digital Entertainment, and Inc. in the United States and Konami Digital Entertainment GmbH in Frankfurt, Germany. Konami Corporation is traded in the United States on the New York Stock Exchange under the ticker symbol KNM. Details of the products published by Konami can be found at www.konami.com.

KONAMI is a registered trademark of KONAMI CORPORATION

Microsoft, Xbox, Xbox 360, Xbox LIVE, and the Xbox logos are trademarks of the Microsoft group of companies.

“PlayStation”, “PLAYSTATION” and “PS” Family logo are registered trademarks of Sony Computer Entertainment Inc.

Media Contacts:
Brandon Cox
Konami Digital Entertainment, Inc.
(310) 220-8674
cb32603@konami.com

If you are one of the many who enjoyed (or at least played) Mass Effect 2, it’s been recently shown that you were sort of an anonymous guinea pig for the gaming company. While your male or female Shepard went traveling around space, making friends (and enemies), shooting some while saving others, BioWare was quietly gathering data to see how exactly you play.

Executive Producer, Casey Hudson, spoke to IGN about this, explaining, “The only data that we get are in terms of events — little things that happen in the game. Let’s say if we want to know whether players skip lines of dialogue, we can have that become a little event that gets sent up. It’s all completely anonymous, so all we get is raw numbers for how many times these kinds of events occur.”

The main goal behind this data is for the company to gauge what exactly you like in the game and what you don’t like, so that in future games they can make adjustments towards the way the game plays. An example of some of the date included the fact that 80% of the Shepards played were all male; meaning either a lot of females prefer to step into the shoes of a guy, or not a lot of girls play Mass Effect. For shame, girls!

source-ign

If you’re also in the habit of skipping dialogue, that too has been taken into consideration. It seems most players skipped 15% of conversations in Mass Effect 2. If that had been any higher, there may have been a trip back to the drawing board. Hudson explained this by saying, “If we found that 80% or 90% of the lines were being skipped, we would have to reevaluate the work that we were putting into the digital acting.”

The statistics also showed that the game was often played more than once. Some PC players hold a record of playing the game a total of 28 times, while some 360 players did it a total of 23 times. I can’t even fathom how those players had the time to do so, but it’s certainly impressive. However, the stats also showed that only 50% of players finished the game.

So, what does this mean for the future of Mass Effect? Well, it certainly seems to be a good thing. BioWare will be able to take these stats and with them, be able to figure out a way to make Mass Effect 3 perfect for all of us who already love the series.

Source: IGN

The Kinect hardware is being released independantly and with it’s console bundles from November 10th, with a stand alone price of £129.99.

The announcement refers to CHESS as one of the games new systems. Either this means that you can play chess or it works to help solve crimes like the Logic feature of the original Ace Attorney Investigations series.

The games release date is currently unknown, and Capcom have yet to state whether it will be localised. However, as they have localised all of the series on DS so far, this looks pretty likely. I’m certainly excited for some CHESS, how about you?

Andriasang

“Oldman, Harris and Goyer are considered some of the finest talents and they perfectly complement Call of Duty: Black Ops’ ambitious and immersive single-player experience,” said Treyarch head Mark Lamia in the press release. “Their contributions have helped us to push the boundaries of our story telling and character development far beyond anything we have ever attempted before in the franchise.”

Oldman will be coming back as Viktor Reznov (World at War) while Harris will be playing CIA operative, Jason Hudson.

Call of Duty: Black Ops will be released on November 9th and will be available on the Xbox 360, Playstation 3, PC and Wii.

Via 1up

Epic Games have published the figures raised as a result of this campaign, and estimate $150,000 (approximately £98,000) overall, with all proceeds donated to gaming charity ‘Child’s Play’. The charity dedicated to providing toys and games of all kinds to children’s hospitals globally.

Project designer director Cliff Bleszinski issued a comment of thanks to all who had their avatars buying and flying the flag:

“It’s crazy. I want to thank everyone who bought the shirts online on Xbox Live Marketplace, as well as those who bought our real-life shirts.”

I am a Gears player, but I don’t really care if they bring back this character or not. Still, this is a nobal cause and a generous gesture on behalf of Epic Games- makes me wish I’d bought one!

Gears of War 3 is due for release on Xbox 360, April 8th 2011.