Commander Fury

Hey, it’s great to be back on the PlayStation.Blog. We’ve been working hard on <a href="http://blog.us.playstation.com/tag/need-for-speed-most-wanted/">Need for Speed Most Wanted</a>, our second Need for Speed game after 2011’s <a href="http://blog.us.playstation.com/tag/need-for-speed-hot-pursuit/">Hot Pursuit</a>. I’m pleased to tell you that we’ve just put the finishing touches on the game, and we’re winding up the online servers to take a beating from you guys come launch day -- October 30th. It’s a pretty exciting time for PlayStation fans, and we’re really excited to be able to talk not just about the <a href="http://blog.us.playstation.com/category/ps3/">PS3</a> game, but also our first for <a href="http://blog.us.playstation.com/category/ps-vita/">PS Vita</a>. If you don’t know anything about Most Wanted, here’s the deal. <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Need_for_Speed:_Most_Wanted_(2005_video_game)">The original Most Wanted</a> was our favorite Need for Speed game. We loved the epic cop chases, hot cars, and most of all that unbeatable sensation of fast, reckless driving while on the run from the law. More...

Hey gang - I’m back to announce a great new game that features a killer twist on the bubble genre. Something messy and contagious is festering in suburbia, and there’s only one hero who can save the day: The Germinator! No more of that old school Match-3. While three of a kind won’t help you in Germinator, you will need to crash your germ bubbles into those of the same color. Upon collision, they’ll combine and grow, GROW, <strong>GROW</strong> until they POP -- gooey, splotchy, splattering pops. Be sure to pop them quickly before they get too big and overrun the house. Timing and accuracy is the key to preventing the various germs from rising too high. Germinator features a crazy cast of multi-colored bubble germs with their own personalities and traits. Making them pop the right way triggers combos to explode them all and make a mess of your screen. Dozens of levels and power-ups will keep you coming back to clean house. Local multiplayer lets you battle your friends or the AI. More...

If you pick just one unique, fun element that truly stands out in a Hitman game, it's got to be the ability to suit up in various disguises in order to fool passersby and infiltrate protected areas undetected. At <a href="http://www.ioi.dk/">IO</a>, we've always had a lot of fun with disguises, which probably culminated in <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hitman:_Blood_Money">Hitman: Blood Money</a>’s white suits, clown outfits, and full-body chicken costumes. With <a href="http://blog.us.playstation.com/tag/hitman-absolution/">Hitman: Absolution</a>, we're following up on that tradition and we're adding new wrinkles as well. Most importantly, we've added the ability to “blend in,†which allows you to act out your disguise more convincingly. Whereas a disguise would fool people at a distance in the old games, Agent 47 can now use his Instinct powers to fool people up close. More...

This week, the <a href="http://www.sonyentertainmentnetwork.com/music-unlimited/why-music-unlimited/">Music Unlimited</a> service features <a href="http://blog.sonyentertainmentnetwork.com/2012/10/17/new-releases-on-the-music-unlimited-service-101612/">new releases</a> from <strong>Brandy</strong> and <strong>Jason Aldean</strong> as well as <strong>Ben Harper</strong>, <strong>Trey Anastasio</strong>, and <strong>Civil Twilight</strong>. The Artist Channel Fan Vote polls are closed and your votes have been counted. The people have spoken and <a href="http://blog.sonyentertainmentnetwork.com/2012/10/16/eminem-takes-the-music-unlimited-service-artist-channel-fan-vote/">the next artist channel</a> will be all about <strong>Eminem</strong>! Look for this artist channel, featuring his best hits and many other tracks, to be available next month on the Music Unlimited service! More...

<blockquote><strong>Subscription Links:</strong> <ul> <li>Subscribe via <a href="http://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/official-playstation-blogcast/id483223024?mt=2">iTunes here</a></li> <li>Subscribe via <a href="http://feeds.feedburner.com/TheOfficialPlaystationBlogcast">RSS here</a></li> <li>Download the MP3 <a href="http://traffic.libsyn.com/playstation/47_Episode_047__Everybody_Loves_Frob.mp3">here</a> on PS3, PS Vita or PC (Right-Click->Save As)</li> </ul> </blockquote> No big-name guests this week, I'm afraid. But we make up for it with lots of geeky game talk focusing on our experiences with great new releases <a href="http://us.playstation.com/games-and-media/games/xcom-enemy-unknown-ps3.html">XCOM: Enemy Unknown</a>, <a href="http://blog.us.playstation.com/tag/dishonored/">Dishonored</a>, and <a href="http://blog.us.playstation.com/2012/10/02/the-walking-dead-episode-4-coming-soon-new-trailer-and-screens/">The Walking Dead: Episode 4</a>. We even delve into some recent favorites from the silver screen (<a href="http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1276104/">Looper</a>!) and a few from the small screen (The Walking Dead season three!). More...

So, you wanna buy a nice collector’s edition? I can get it for you retail. Thanks, I’m here all week. The veal is on special. Imagine you get to work with <a href="http://irrationalgames.com/tag/robb-waters/'>http://irrationalgames.com/tag/robb-waters/">Robb Waters</a>, the concept artist who visualized the cover of <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/System_Shock">System Shock</a>. The Trickster in <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Thief:_The_Dark_Project">Thief</a>. Man-Bot in <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Freedom_Force_(2002_video_game)">Freedom Force</a>. <a href="http://blog.us.playstation.com/tag/bioshock/">BioShock</a>’s Little Sisters. Sander Cohen. And <a href="http://blog.us.playstation.com/tag/bioshock-infinite/">BioShock Infinite</a>’s Songbird. Now imagine you can get him to personally conceive and oversee the production of the coolest statue in the world. Then imagine we put that huge sucker in a period-style box, with custom artwork by Robb and <a href="http://irrationalgames.com/">Irrational</a> concept artist Jorge Lacera. And that box went <em>in</em> the collector’s edition box, so you could leave that guy unpunched in his original packaging while you tear happily into the rest of the goodies. More...

In <a href="http://blog.us.playstation.com/tag/assassins-creed-iii-liberation/">Assassin’s Creed III: Liberation</a>, you play as Aveline de Granpré, an assassin of mixed French and African heritage. Her assassination skills span multiple disciplines, and she is especially adept at manipulating the perceptions of others in order to move stealthily through all levels of 18th century New Orleans society. In order to understand Aveline’s talents, it helps to have an accurate picture of the world in which she lived. 18th century New Orleans was a tumultuous place, having just transitioned from Spanish to French occupation. People from all over the world and all walks of life interacted with one another on a daily basis in all sorts of capacities: rich landowners rubbed elbows with freshly imported colonists and wealthy merchants mingled with indentured servants. It was a roiling hodgepodge of nationalities, ideologies, religions, social castes and political affiliations -- perhaps more so than any other part of the burgeoning United States. More...

Uproar is a frantic and fun third-person shooter exclusive to <a href="http://blog.us.playstation.com/tag/playstation-home/">PlayStation Home</a>. Why play cover to cover when you can free roam? Uproar is the first avatar based free-roaming third-person shooter in PlayStation Home and it pulls out all the stops to bring you an experience unlike anything seen on the platform before. The game is extremely easy to jump into and play, the controls and gameplay will be instantly familiar to anyone who has played a third-person shooter before, however there are some very interesting tweaks to spice up the gameplay and keep it all feeling fresh. We think it’ll give you and your friends countless hours of fun battling it out within the Uproar Arena. <strong>Pick your side.</strong>You can choose to fight on the side of either of our two gangs; the Outlaws or the Swyfts, as they battle for respect within the Uproar Arena. Each gang has its own unique set of clothing available within the inventory screen (all of which is wearable outside of the game), as well as a set of gang booths in the Uproar Lobby to hang out in with your fellow gang members and chat before you go and battle it out in the Arena. Be sure to let your rival gang know what you think of them with the full range of taunts available for use within the Arena! More...

Last week we gave you a sneak peek of the completely redesigned <a href="http://blog.us.playstation.com/tag/playstation-store/">PlayStation Store</a> for <a href="http://blog.us.playstation.com/category/ps3/">PlayStation 3</a>. Along with the re-imagined user interface, we added predictive search and improved filtering to make finding content easier and faster. The new store also offers more in-depth information about games, add-ons and apps, as well as movies and TV shows, letting you browse and discover new types of content effortlessly. The redesigned <a href="http://us.playstation.com/psn/playstation-store/">PlayStation Store</a> launches in the U.S., Canada, Mexico, and Brazil on October 23. In the meantime you can get a taste of what’s coming in this walkthrough video: More...

Like a lot of folks, I first saw the tech demo for <a href="http://blog.us.playstation.com/tag/the-unfinished-swan/">The Unfinished Swan</a> when it made the rounds online in 2008. The idea stuck in the back of my head but it wasn't until later when <a href="http://blog.us.playstation.com/tag/giant-sparrow/">Giant Sparrow</a> put up a job posting that I decided: I had to make that game. I had just graduated from college without much professional experience, so I did what I do best and made a game for them. You can <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nUt6PBcGEJI">check it out here</a> if you'd like. The video cuts off because the end of the game says "Call me" and has my phone number on it. It got the attention of the Giant Sparrow team, and I ended up flying out to Los Angeles to work on the game. I was elated and a little shocked, but I came to learn that at Giant Sparrow, the player experience always comes first - and my little game was designed to create a very specific experience. Now, in October 2012, The Unfinished Swan is out in the wild (well, to <a href="http://us.playstation.com/psn/playstation-plus/">PlayStation Plus members</a>) and we're proud that we were able to make a truly experiential game. More...

If you’re in the mood for a little James Bond you’ll be happy to see that 007 Legends is releasing today on PlayStation Store. Even better, if you’re a Plus Member you’ll receive 10% off the purchase price during launch week. If that’s not to your liking, there’s also DOOM 2 BFG Edition, complete with DOOM, DOOM II, DOOM 3, DOOM 3: Resurrection of Evil and the Lost Mission. For a more family-friendly experience, both Jeopardy! and Wheel of Fortune are hitting the store today. Of course, if you own a PS Vita you’ve probably been looking forward to Silent Hill: Book of Memories. Well, the wait is finally over, the game is available for download now, so go bunker down with the creepy survivor horror. Aside from the discount on 007 Legends that I’ve already mentioned, Plus members have quite a bit of treats this week. PAYDAY: The Heist joins the Instant Game Collection, there’s an exclusive beta for PlayStation All Stars Battle Royale and you can purchase The Unfinished Swan a week before anybody else. More...

Hi there! It's <a href="http://blog.us.playstation.com/author/amenshikov/">Alexey Menshikov</a> from <a href="http://blog.us.playstation.com/tag/beatshapers/">Beatshapers</a> and I’m pleased to reveal our next game - BreakQuest: Extra Evolution is coming to North American PlayStation Stores today as a PlayStation Minis exclusive (<a href="http://blog.us.playstation.com/category/ps3/">PlayStation 3</a>, <a href="http://blog.us.playstation.com/category/ps-vita/">PlayStation Vita</a>, and <a href="http://blog.us.playstation.com/category/psp/">PlayStation Portable</a>), priced at $3.99. This game has a long story: the original game was released back in 2004 on PC by Spain-based Felix Casablancas and Nurium Games, and was the best breakout-style game at its time featuring something very unique for the genre – fully interactive physics. We were one of the biggest fans of the game and when Sony approached with introduction of PlayStation Minis; we decided to bring this game to minis in 2010, which was quite successful. More...

<a href="http://blog.us.playstation.com/tag/lights-camera-party/">LCP</a> fans rejoice! Today we are launching a whole bunch of new stuff for Lights, Camera, Party! This new DLC, called The Good, the Bad and the Monkey contains ten new mini-games as well as a new game mode:The Duel. Six additional trophies and 40 additional ingame awards are also part of the package. You do not want to miss this opportunity to PARTY ON! Duel mode lets you play 6 rounds of mini games head to head against another player in order to defeat your opponent and win a classic high noon showdown. Of course all 60 LCP mini games can show up in the Duel. The team has decided to give an interesting twist to this DLC by focusing on exploiting the most challenging and entertaining gestures with the <a href="http://us.playstation.com/ps3/playstation-move/">PS Move</a>. The themes of the new mini-games, as silly as ever, will let you: More...

As we continue to create more exciting applications and services for you to enjoy on your PS Vita, we‘re looking forward to introducing you to an interactive game we’ve crafted with you in mind – <a href="http://us.playstation.com/psvita/apps/frobisher.html">Frobisher Says</a>. This quirky party game, available exclusively on PS Vita, will make its debut on October 23. Obey the rowdy and childish demands of a peculiar little man named Frobisher. You may find yourself poking otters with sticks, delivering puddings, drawing on eggs or smiling at ladies. With Frobisher, anything is possible. More...

Deadly Premonition was the ultimate "love it or hate it" game back in 2010, to the extent that it currently holds a <a href="http://www.gameinformer.com/b/features/archive/2011/12/30/guinness-world-records-2012-gamer-s-edition-preview.aspx">Guinness World Record</a> for "Most Critically Polarizing Survival-Horror Game, and the game continues to see the tremendous support from fans all over the world. On that note, we really took into consideration feedback from our loyal fan base and are thrilled to announce Deadly Premonition: The Director's Cut. Deadly Premonition: The Director's Cut focuses on the story of FBI special agent Francis York Morgan as he investigates the murder of a young woman in the town of Greenvale. In this small town, players have to solve a murder mystery and survive against the killer and supernatural creatures that have taken residence. More...

<a href="http://www.007legends.com/">007 Legends</a> is a videogame celebration of the James Bond film franchise’s 50th anniversary, featuring five classic Bond movie-inspired missions along with a downloadable mission based on the next Bond film, <a href="http://www.skyfall-movie.com/site/">Skyfall</a>. Skyfall is an integral part of 007 Legends story, the action from the film bookends the other missions and we’ve built the overarching narrative of the game around a pivotal event that occurs early on in the film. EON Productions, the production company who produce the James Bond films, have been fantastic partners to work with, granting us exclusive behind-the-scenes access to many of the film’s stunts and action sequences, allowing us to recreate those breathtaking moments you’ll see on the big screen within the game as fully interactive segments within the game. More...

In my <a href="http://blog.us.playstation.com/2012/09/14/dokuro-on-ps-vita-this-little-skeletons-got-guts/">last PlayStation.Blog post</a>, I talked a bit about the origins of my favorite numbskull, Dokuro, and the story surrounding his heroic exploits. My ever-diminishing pool of skeleton-themed puns notwithstanding, I’d like to go a bit deeper into the gameplay elements of Dokuro as well as the concepts that spurred development choices. Although Dokuro was inspired by children’s books -- <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Velveteen_Rabbit">The Velveteen Rabbit</a> and a Japanese children’s book called Kuma to Yamaneko -- don’t let the adorable chalk-laden game fool you into thinking the Dark Lord’s castle is child’s play. At first, Dokuro may look like a pretty straightforward 2D side-scrolling puzzler: You’ve got a clear goal of escorting the princess from point A to point B, and a seemingly narrow list of what you can and cannot do to accomplish it. You push a few boxes around, toggle a switch or two, and bash a few bozos who try to hurt your precious princess. The game wouldn’t be a fraction as interesting as it is, however, if it simply stopped there. More...

The roll-out of <a href="http://blog.us.playstation.com/2012/08/27/the-art-of-journey-releases-in-september/">The Art of Journey</a> up to this point has been simply amazing! Today though, we're here to announce the release of the Art of Journey and its availability from <a href="http://www.amazon.com/The-Art-Journey-Matthew-Nava/dp/0985902213/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1350335467&sr=8-1&keywords=the+art+of+journey">Amazon</a> for fans both in the US, and in countries <a href="http://shop.bluecanvas.com/merchandise/art-of-journey">around the world</a>. We are so excited about the book and all of its special features that we wanted to share one of them with you today by giving away some of the exciting technology that is included in The Art of Journey. Our talented friends at <a href="http://site.daqri.com/">daqri</a> have out done themselves and put together a truly unique experience for the Art of Journey. The daqri team has developed an app that you can download for iOS <a href="http://itunes.apple.com/us/app/journey-ar-viewer/id556727588?mt=8">here</a> or for Android <a href="https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.daqri.journey">here</a> and use it to enhance the book in a way we've never seen done. More...

By now, you should have already tackled NFL Blitz which came in free for Plus members <a href="http://blog.us.playstation.com/2012/10/01/playstation-plus-update-nfl-blitz-joins-the-plus-roster/">earlier this month</a>. You should also make sure to download one of the best fighters in the genre, King of Fighters XIII, which is also <a href="http://blog.us.playstation.com/2012/10/08/playstation-plus-update-king-of-fighters-xiii-free-for-members/">free for Plus members</a>. With tomorrow’s PlayStation Store update, you’ll want to get your blueprints out and cover up those fingerprints because you’ll be robbing some banks (in video game form of course) courtesy of PAYDAY: The Heist, coming free to Plus members! You’ll also be able to get Unfinished Swan before anyone else this week. That said, there’s much more so let’s get to it. Don’t have PlayStation Plus? Go to the PlayStation Store on your PS3 or click <a href="http://us.playstation.com/psn/playstation-plus/">here</a> to get access. More...

This Wednesday, October 17th, new free-roaming, third-person shooter, “Uproar,†hits Home, Konami brings some devilishly delightful Halloween-themed outfits, we proudly introduce new Home publisher JAM Games, <a href="http://pstalent.com/">PSTalent.com</a> releases another of their fantastic machinimas and more! Uproar is a frantic new third-person shooter exclusive to PlayStation Home. It pulls out all the stops to bring you an experience unlike anything seen on the platform before. The game is extremely easy to jump into and play -- the controls and gameplay will be instantly familiar to anyone who has played a third-person shooter before. However, there are some very interesting tweaks in place to spice up the gameplay and keep it all feeling fresh. We think it’ll give you and your friends countless hours of fun, battling it out within the Uproar Arena. More...

I’m happy to announce the release of Arkedo Series on the <a href="http://blog.us.playstation.com/tag/playstation-store/">PlayStation Store</a> for PS3 tomorrow, October 16th! Arkedo Series is a collection of three tightly crafted arcade games that will douse your console in a colorful world and challenge you with some serious old-school action! First comes “JUMP!â€, a platformer where your 8-bit hero must collect bombs before they blow up, while avoiding nasty little bats, 2-way powered crabs, sharp stalactites, spikes from hell, and a bunch of other oddities. The game is so truthful to the old-school experience that it has no ‘continue’: once you’ve lost all your lives, you have to start it all over again – but in a good mood! More...

Working with the rather brilliant <a href=" http://lbp.me/u/Chimpanzee'>http://lbp.me/u/Chimpanzee" >Chimpanzee</a> and his <a href="http://rocketcheetah.com/2012/10/tuesday-queuesday/" >RocketCheetah</a> blog, we are proud to announce that Tuesdays for LittleBigPlanet will now become <a href="http://twitter.com/i/#!/search/realtime/%23queuesday" title="Queuesday">#Queuesday</a>. What does this mean exactly? Every Tuesday, all you have to do is Tweet us @LittleBigPlanet with your favorite levels, and include those handy <a href="http://lbp.me/" title="LBP.me">LBP.me</a> links along with the #Queuesday hashtag. That’s it -- just share a bunch of your favorite levels with the rest of the LittleBigPlanet community on <a href="http://twitter.com/i/#!/search/realtime/%23queuesday">Twitter</a>! If we see a #Queuesday list that we like, and we retweet it from @LittleBigPlanet, then we’ll also send one of our popular <a href="http://www.littlebigplanet.com/en/game_guide/ps3/downloadable_content/littlebigplanet_cap/">LittleBigPlanet Caps</a> your way for your Sackboy or Sackgirl, to show off their community spirit. More...

Hi everyone! I’ll let you into a secret. When I’m not busy in my role as President of Worldwide Studios I live a secret double life! I’m a pro treasure hunter and was even at one point ranked number one in the world. My specialist field is an app only available on PS Vita called <a href="http://blog.us.playstation.com/2012/04/17/paint-park-treasure-park-and-wake-up-club-coming-to-ps-vita-for-free/">Treasure Park</a> (although I can also be found searching for Drake’s Fortune in the <a href="http://blog.us.playstation.com/tag/uncharted-golden-abyss/">Golden Abyss</a>). I’m always on the lookout for new challengers, so today I’d like to share some of my experience with fledgling treasure hunters around the globe so that one day, you too might become a world-class pro. More...

We hope you've been keeping track of all the recent updates on <a href="http://us.playstation.com/games-and-media/games/playstation-all-stars-battle-royale-ps3.html?CMP=soc_us__ac_sm_05_21_12">PlayStation All-Stars Battle Royale </a>news, from an in-depth update on the <a href="http://blog.us.playstation.com/2012/09/28/best-of-both-worlds-stage-mashups-in-playstation-all-stars/">PS Vita version</a> to our behind-the-scenes look at <a href="http://blog.us.playstation.com/2012/09/19/playstation-all-stars-on-ps-vita-puts-the-fight-in-your-pocket/">mashing up different worlds</a>, we've shown you what this game is shaping up to be...and we think it's high-time you got to try it out for yourselves! Today, we're happy to announce that the PlayStation All-Stars Battle Royale Beta will be kicking off for <strong>PlayStation Plus members this October 16th</strong> and available to <strong>everyone October 23rd</strong> through <a href="http://blog.us.playstation.com/tag/playstation-store/">PlayStation Store</a>! More...

Hey guys, Jonathan from Gearbox here! I was walking around the office the other day and wouldn’t you know it -- Sir Hammerlock came up to me and handed me a letter and asked if I could share it with you. Here’s what he had to say: <blockquote> Dear Vault Hunters, I’m well aware of your never-ending thirst for things to shoot and or loot, and I’m positively thrilled to announce some news nestled firmly in that avenue. Not one, but TWO pieces of downloadable content (or “DLC,†for the acronym-fond amongst you) for Borderlands 2 will soon be available for your procurement.</blockquote> More...