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“Ubiquitous” gameplay from PS3 to PSP2.
The PSP2 perhaps the worst-kept secret in gaming can reproduce visuals on par with those seen in early PlayStation 3 games, a new report claims.
The handheld console rumoured to release next Christmas features two thumbsticks with concave indentations, IGN reports.
“As far as graphics are concerned, the PSP2 is a beast, packing enough processing hardware to produce graphics comparable to early PlayStation 3 titles,” the site claims.
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Interpret LLC survey finds number of handheld gamers still increasing, but mobile phone audience is making up ground quickly.
It doesn’t take a research firm to know that more people are playing games on their mobile devices than ever before, but it might take a research firm to say how many more people are getting their gaming fix on phones. Research firm Interpret LLC today released a report suggesting that the number of smartphone gamers is growing faster than the audience for traditional handheld systems like the PSP and DS.
Interpret determined a user base of roughly 12 million active players gamed exclusively on smartphones in the second quarter of 2010, up from 7.4 million for the same period the year before. While the PSP and DS commanded a larger dedicated player base of 21.5 million, it had grown only slightly from the previous year’s 21 million total. The number of players who gamed on both smartphones and handhelds also jumped, going from 3.5 million in 2009 to 4.7 million earlier this year. The findings were based on a demographically representative survey of 9,000 consumers between the ages of 12 and 65.
According to the report, “While numbers of PSP/DS gamers have remained relatively stable, the explosive proportional growth of the phone gaming market could signal a potentially significant threat to or even coup of the reigning handheld sovereigns: Sony and Nintendo.”
Interpret concluded that traditional gaming companies are losing out to phone makers in the bid to attract new audiences, that DS and PSP gamers are increasingly abandoning their systems in favor of mobile phone gaming, or both. Backing up the notion of defecting gamers, Interpret said that more than 27 percent of consumers who gamed exclusively on their phones actually own a DS or a PSP but hadn’t used those systems in the previous three months.
Read and Post Comments | Get the full article at GameSpot
“Smartphone gaming catching up with DS-PSP – Report” was posted by Brendan Sinclair on Tue, 07 Dec 2010 17:01:20 -0800 -
News
Assassin’s Creed: Brotherhood trailer ‘reveals’ Raiden costume; we do it one better (Assassin’s Creed: Brotherhood)
Assassin’s Creed and Metal Gear have had an unusual cross-promotional relationship for a while now, what with Altair’s hooded robe and Leap of Faith showing up in Metal Gear Solid 4 and MGS: Peace Walker, respectively. So when a rumor that Raiden’s robot exoskeleton from MGS4 would appear in Assassin’s Creed: Brotherhood turned out to be true, we weren’t the least bit surprised. The news item even revealed how to get the costume, making it one of the few “secrets” we knew how to unlock before we’d even played the game.
Just in case you didn’t already know about it, publisher Ubisoft released a trailer today that gives the curious a brief glimpse of the costume. It’s elegant and all, but if Ubi’s going to tease stuff that’s already out, we figured we might as well go the extra mile and just show you what the publisher’s trying to be coy about… …
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EA has high hopes for the longevity of its forthcoming Star Wars MMO. In his speech at the UBS Annual Media and Communications Conference in New York, EA’s CFO Eric Brown stated that Star Wars: The Old Republic has the potential to stay active and relevant for at least 10 years… …
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So you’ve got a console, probably a smart phone and maybe even a gaming-quality PC. Sure are a lot of options for gaming nowadays, huh? But one major player has been mysteriously absent from the game scene, which brings us to Google’s recent reveal of the Chrome Web Store, yet another place where you can buy and download various new games and apps. The service just went live this week so there’s not a massive deluge of content just yet, but c’mon, it’s Google. There’ll be a shitload of stuff in no time, including all kinds of cheap (or free) games that will hopefully have more meat than a typical iPhone or Android app. …
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PlayStation Move-based puzzle game will arrive on PlayStation Network in two weeks; price still TBD.
With World of Warcraft: Cataclysm now out of the gate, there are few games left on the 2010 release calendar. One of them, Echochrome II, today received a release date, courtesy of the PlayStation Blog. The downloadable puzzle game will go on sale December 21 via the PlayStation Store, which will also receive a series of NeoGeo rereleases on the same day.
Like its predecessor, Echochrome II is visually minimalist and heavily influenced by the mind-bending works of Dutch graphic artist M.C. Escher. However, the new installment adds an additional layer of gameplay by incorporating the PlayStation Move, the PlayStation 3’s motion-sensing system. Players will use the PlayStation Move controller like a flashlight, casting shadows on a wall behind an obstacle course. The shadows will create bridges that players can traverse in order to navigate onscreen mazes.
Echochrome II will have 100 levels, each of which can be played in a different mode. In Escort mode, players will navigate the maze by creating a shadow path. In Echo mode, the object is to collect the translucent shadow characters to pass a level. Finally, in Paint mode, the goal is to “paint” a certain percentage of the maze by having characters of a particular color cross a corresponding section.
No price point for Echochrome II has been announced. For more on the game, read GameSpot’s previous coverage.
Read and Post Comments | Get the full article at GameSpot
“Echochrome II due Dec. 21” was posted by Tor Thorsen on Tue, 07 Dec 2010 15:58:34 -0800 -
Includes REM, Goo Goo Dolls, more.
REM and the Goo Goo Dolls are among the acts featured on the new ’90s Rock Track Pack going live for Guitar Hero: Warriors of Rock today.
According to Activision’s OneofSwords blog the full line-up looks something like this:
The full track pack will set you back $9.49 on PlayStation 3, 760 Microsoft Points or 950 Wii Points.
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EA is in it for the long haul.
EA is hoping that its forthcoming MMO, Star Wars: The Old Republic, will have a 10 year lifespan.
CFO Eric Brown told the UBS Annual Media and Communications Conference in New York, “Our assumptions for break-even and profitability are not seven digit subscribers. We think we can run and operate a very successful and profitable MMO at different levels.
“The key thing here is to really perfect the product. We’re shooting for an extremely high quality game experience. We view this as a 10 year opportunity.”
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Adds smart new Multiqueue feature.
Online PlayStation 3 shooter MAG is about to get yet another update, but this time new features are promised alongside bug fixes.
The biggest new addition is a Mulitqueue feature that replaces the old Directives deploy option, giving players the opportunity to queue up for any or all game modes at the same time.
According to a post on the game’s official site, “This allows users to jump into the action quickly without forcing them into gametypes they don’t want to play. All you have to do is uncheck the modes you’re not interested in playing and the Multiqueue will take care of the rest.
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Jimp and I are hard at work on Sushi Cat 2 and we wanted to give the fans something to enjoy while they waited. John was kind enough to make these wallpapers featuring Sushi Cat, his Wife, and the brand new character Bacon Dog.
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2560×1600Look out for the game sometime early next year.
