Joystiq

Many Netflix subscribers will find a rather inconspicuous red envelope in the mail today. It may look like a standard Netflix package, but inside PS3 owners will discover the "Instant Streaming Disc" which enables Netflix's instant streaming service on Sony's console.

We've embedded a video overview of the service above. We'll admit that there are a few qualms with the presentation so far. First, the activation process is slow and requires the use of a computer -- there is no way to activate Netflix directly from the PS3. (You won't be able to use the PS3 internet browser for activation purposes either.) Second, the loading of cover art is suspiciously slow. Finally, there is no way to directly manage your Queue from the interface. While you'll be able to browse various categories, there is no Search capability. One benefit the PS3 has over the 360 in this regard is the built-in browser. You will be able to use the PS3's internet browser to manage your Queue. It's a baffling additional step, but it certainly is an added convenience. (ProTip: Use SELECT to add a bookmark to your PS3 internet browser.)

While the previous video we posted suggested otherwise, we can confirm that HD video works on PS3, and it works well. In fact, it's a bit faster than watching SD content, simply because you won't have to wait for the PS3 to switch between resolution modes. When browsing your queue, look for a tiny HD icon at the bottom of the screen to see if it will play in high-def. (The selection can be quite limited.) When judging the overall experience, however, we'd say starting movies required a longer buffer than when using the service on the 360 or PC. Netflix is a terrific value-add for the PlayStation 3, but minor interface issues make it clear that there's a lot of room for improvement -- perhaps when Netflix becomes a standard built-in feature of the OS next year?

Three PSP titles appear on the PSN bestsellers list for October. It makes sense, considering the launch of the all-digital PSP Go. Surprisingly, the much-anticipated Gran Turismo PSP didn't top the charts. Instead, PSone classic Final Fantasy VII took the lead once again, undoubtedly boosted by nostalgic RPG players wanting to relive Cloud Strife's cross-dressing adventure on the Go. Here's the full list:

1. Final Fantasy VII (PS3/PSP)
2. Zombie Apocalypse (PS3)
3. TMNT: Turtles in Time Re-Shelled (PS3)
4. .deTuned (PS3)
5. UNO (PS3)
6. Gran Turismo (PSP)
7. Marvel Vs. Capcom 2 (PS3)
8. Ratchet & Clank Future: Quest For Booty (PS3)
9. Critter Crunch (PS3)
10. God of War: Chains of Olympus (PSP)

Konami's Zombie Apocalypse stood as the top new entry, while interactive art experience .deTuned managed to snag a few purchases from Trophy hunters looking for some of the easiest achievements ever created. Critter Crunch's low sales numbers managed to snag it a 9th position -- which either means sales picked up after the free demo, or October was not a very good month for PSN sales at all.

What do Sony's Michael Denny, Square Enix's Yoichi Wada, and Codemasters' Rod Cousens have in common? Okay, they're all middle-aged men that happen to work in the video games industry -- but they also share a common belief in pursuing original IP. "For me the answer is clear, simply, we must support new IP creation to survive as an industry. Consumers crave new things. If we want to stay relevant in an increasingly competitive marketplace, we have to continue to produce new experiences," Denny told GI.biz. Certainly, SCEE has been pushing a lot of new IPs this generation, with Denny overseeing games like Heavy Rain and EyePet.

Wada agrees with Denny's sentiment, noting that "as an entertainment company the business won't be viable if we don't continue to nurture new IPs." This may be ironic coming from a company that's releasing a game called Final Fantasy: Crystal Chronicles: The Crystal Bearers this holiday, and both Final Fantasy XIII and Final Fantasy XIV next year, but we can credit them for making The World Ends With You, right?

Cousens goes a step further, saying innovation has always been at the heart of the industry. "From day one since we walked in the door we've always tried to be experimental, to be innovative, to take things into new areas and to make it interesting." Obviously, the reason why publishers need to invest in new IPs is clear -- let's not forget that games like Madden used to be an original IP at one point.

Source - Sony: Industry needs new IP to survive
Source - Wada: Business 'not viable' without new IP
Source - Cousens: Industry must pursue new IP

EA's John Riccitiello has a bit of advice for the anxious investors, analysts, and fanboys who eagerly await the monthly NPD numbers: "There's an entire other world of download, online, all the things that are going on that doesn't really show up in the surveys and I think that's the future." NPD figures only track retail sales, a market that has been challenged by the downturn in the global economy. Games like Madden 10 may sell fewer copies than previous versions, but that doesn't mean investors should jump ship.

"Online games that you download, games you would get by way of iPhone for example, that totally digital business is up so strong that it's actually offsetting the challenge we see at retail," Riccitiello tells FOX Business. Offerings like Madden 10 on iPhone, the upcoming Madden NFL Arcade, and Madden 10 DLC should go far in helping the company's bottom line. "The retail business is down," Riccitiello admits, but "the combination [of both retail and digital] is up."

Riccitiello's belief that digital is the future of the industry echoes earlier sentiments from EA Sports boss Peter Moore, who called the retail model "a burning platform." See Riccitiello's full interview with FOX after the break.

[Via Edge]

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PS3 owners don't have much to download, with Numblast (pictured above) and Military Madness the sole new games on PSN this week. For your retro thrills, Gex crawls out of the Not-Very-Popular-PS1-Mascots Archive. Make sure you get the free LBP birthday costume, and don't miss out on the Trine demo (especially if you're on the fence!). PSP owners have a lot more to choose from with the addition of Numblast, Dissidia, Ghostbusters and a free MotorStorm: Arctic Edge demo.

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We know many Joystiq readers don't want to read spoilers on the site. That's why, for your sake, we've carefully posted the intro movie to New Super Mario Bros. Wii after the break. The upcoming 2D platformer returns the series to its roots, but adds a number of features that make it "new" -- it says so on the box. New power-ups and the addition of multiplayer radically change the feel of NSMBW, but we're not sure if gamers are prepared for the revolutionary new story featured in this latest adventure.

Check it out after the break.

[Via GoNintendo]

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"omg they're selling out. they are humpin' the cash cow like activision has been till shes dried up . they're gonna beat the rock band name to a pulp until we are absolutely sick and tired of instrument rhythm games." –fffunfarm06

"I'm so sick of these corny games. All of you people should just learn to play with REAL Legos." –Troy Powers

LEGO Rock Band's very existence is something that both the Joystiq staff and community couldn't help but question. However, animator Matt Palmer revealed that developer TT Fusion also had doubts about the bizarre collaboration. "I know people were saying, 'Oh, they're flogging a Lego license again,'" he recalled during a Develop panel. "I'd say about 50 percent of our studio were for the idea, and about 50 percent were against it."

Considering the game actually came out (this week!), it's apparent that the team eventually banded together to finish the project. Why the change of heart, though? "Many of us started realizing that we weren't just skinning one franchise on another," Palmer explained, noting the need to hand animate the blocky Lego celebrity characters to capture their various "signature styles." That's ... something. Right?

Here are some of the creatures that will be wiping out humanity in Mass Effect 2:

• Collectors – an insect-like race, controlled by a single leader, that has access to the technology that "no one else in the galaxy" has. They can paralyze humans, and according to the video dev diary above, can abduct entire colonies. Oh, and they have beam weapons.
• Abominations – Husks from the first Mass Effect, but now on fire and 100-percent more suicide bomber-y.
• Scions – Three transformed human beings that have been grafted together onto a weapon. Essentially, super-zombies. With guns.
• Batorians – A "flying suit of armor" apparently made of thirty Husks that can "obliterate everything."

The Geth will also make a return in Mass Effect 2. Legion, a Geth that has gained sentience, will hunt the player through the adventure, and it'll be up to you to figure out why. Provided your Commander Shepard, um, doesn't die first.

"We had to find a martial art that fits the characters and the situations he would find himself in," animation director Gilles Monteil tells us in this new dev diary for Splinter Cell Conviction. "We needed something very quick, efficient and brutal -- something without any rules. That's why we chose Krav Maga."

"Krav Maga is not a big flashy martial art," game designer Steve Masters adds, which may explain its relative obscurity. Turning to Wikipedia, we discover it has its origins in street fighting and literally means "close combat" in Hebrew, and that the Israeli Defense Force and Special Forces use the martial art to this day. Apparently, stabbing someone in the hand is kosher in a form that has "no rules."

Twelve months, one million community levels, and a PSP spin-off later, some are wondering if it's time for Media Molecule to begin working on an honest-to-goodness sequel to PS3 platformer LittleBigPlanet. The answer seems to be a very clear no. "We'd never want to do that," level designer told Danny Leaver told Critical Gamer. "That'd be the most counterproductive thing you could do I think."

Certainly, the release of a sequel would splinter one of PlayStation's most dedicated online communities. Would user-created levels be compatible with a future game? Would DLC costumes carry across into a new title? These questions, thankfully, won't need to be addressed. Instead, Media Molecule plans on supporting LBP with additional downloadable content. "I think what you've seen so far from LittleBigPlanet, that's the way it's going to continue." said producer Martin Lynagh. We already know of two major patches: water and support for the PlayStation Motion Controller. However, Lynagh explains that there's much more to expect, especially in 2010. "We have a lot of stuff coming out, especially next year. We can't really talk about specifics for a lot of it at the moment, because a lot of it hasn't been announced."

One of Media Molecule's unannounced expansions may be similar in execution to the Metal Gear Solid pack from earlier this year. "We're looking forward to some really good original content, and some really strong brands we're working with," Lynagh teased.

If you haven't heard, the PlayStation Wii is so successful, it pretty much prints money. Wait, Sony didn't make the Wii? Then how did the market analysts of DFC Intelligence come to the conclusion that "Sony was saved by the success of the Wii?"

According to DFC, the Wii's mainstream appeal forced Microsoft into a successful, but not entirely dominant position. "The main danger Sony faced was that the Xbox 360 would become embedded as the system of choice. Instead consumers flocked to the Nintendo Wii. The Xbox 360 had solid sales, but they have not been enough to give Microsoft anywhere near a breakout market position," the report explains.

Should enthusiasm for the Wii wane this holiday season, the recent price drop, coupled with with impending release of God of War III, finally positions the PS3 as a viable choice for mainstream consumers, the report notes. EEDAR's Jesse Divnich agrees, pointing out that Sony can finally utilize its leverage from the previous generation. "People who purchase a PS2 are more likely to purchase a PS3 in the future. Consumers, believe it or not, are pretty loyal."

Three years after the launch of the PS3, Blu-ray is also finally becoming a marketable feature for mainstream consumers, the report argues. "This holiday season Blu-ray movies are finally getting a major focus at retail ... Blu-ray clearly now becomes a strong selling point for the PlayStation 3." Undoubtedly, SCEA will create an ad that focuses on this aspect of the system that "only does everything."

While DFC's report comes off as incredibly bullish, it's understandable to see why there's some doubt over Sony's ability to capitalize on the moment. Let's not forget, this is a company that managed to fall from first to last place in the course of a year. "The cards are in Sony's favor and now is the time to make the most of them ... Now is the time for Sony to shine ... or else."

[Via CVG]

Source - Is it Time for the PlayStation 3 to Shine?
Source - How the venerable PlayStation 2 made it to 9 years old

It only took 15 months, but Braid has finally found its way to the PlayStation Network. Jonathan Blow's critically acclaimed puzzle-platformer may be late, but its time-shifting gameplay mechanics certainly make the old adage "better late than never" all the more apropos.

The Hothead-developed port will be available on the North American PlayStation Store on November 12th, "with a European version to be announced shortly thereafter." The PSN version of Braid will cost $14.99, the same price as its XBLA equivalent.

The Metal Gear saga is not the easiest thing to follow. However, it's far more difficult to understand when it's not in English. Thankfully, Kojima Productions is going to make the Peace Walker demo a lot more accessible by rectifying that crucial problem. The latest Kojima Productions podcast reveals that an English demo is already in the works. Makes sense, considering the English voice casting is already complete.

"One could also argue that Peace Walker could be the most innovative title in the series yet," Ludwig stated in his TGS hands-on. Perhaps, after playing the upcoming demo, you will be that hypothetical "one" he spoke of.

[Via Siliconera]

Japan Studios has had little impact on the PlayStation software library this generation. The platform's greatest hits so far have, instead, come from America and Europe. Titles like Uncharted, Killzone, LittleBigPlanet, Ratchet & Clank, Resistance, God of War, and WipEout all come from various studios at SCEA and SCEE. But what has Japan Studio created thus far? Siren, Trash Panic, and The Eye of Judgment -- noteworthy games perhaps, but hardly a collection of system-selling blockbusters.

Sony Worldwide Studios boss Shuhei Yoshida explained to Gamasutra that "their focus was shifted onto the PSP, which reflects the success of the PSP as a platform in Japan ... It's completely opposite of the way how US and European teams moved onto working on the PS3 and we see the fruits of those efforts, while Japan studios shifted their focus onto the PSP." Of course, handheld owners have much to be thankful for: system-defining hits like Patapon and LocoRoco were created out of Japan Studio's dedication to the platform.

However, the next year (and beyond) should be very different for Sony's Japanese developers. With The Last Guardian and Gran Turismo 5 coming from Sony's other Japanese studios, the pressure is on for other developers to follow suit. "We are now re-energizing teams and coming up with new ideas for PS3 development," Yoshida said. "We'll be able to show fruits of this work sometime next year."

"At E3, we got a lot of positive buzz for God of War III. We read the blog posts, forums and editorials, and it was clear that fans really wanted to see God of War 1 & 2 on PlayStation 3," Santa Monica Studios director John Hight recently told Game Hunters. We're not entirely sure why this would come as a surprise to anyone at Sony, considering the franchise is arguably the most beloved first-party property for the PlayStation brand. But apparently, it was only after the fan response to God of War's E3 showing that someone at Sony thought, "Hey, that's a really good idea."

"Bluepoint used our PlayStation 2 game code and data and their own rendering pipeline," Hight explained of the porting process, which only "lasted 15 weeks" and "went into manufacturing two days ahead of schedule with no issues." With a scheduled November 17 release, that means porting for the God of War Collection started in late July or early August, verifying Hight's claims that the project began only after the conclusion of this year's E3.

While the God of War Collection's financial success is pretty much guaranteed, it'll probably take a while before a certain Sony executive realizes, "Hey, we should do more of these." Sure, there are a lot of PS2 games worthy of an HD remix, but it should be very clear what the next collection should be.