Joystiq

PSP E3 2008 screenshot roundup

James Ransom-Wiley — 2008-07-16T06:30:00+00:00

Liberation? Retribution? There's definitely something up with the jump to handheld third person ... Dive deeper into the mystery in the gallery below, and then check out Super Stardust (um, not in HD), and a pair of colorful sequels posted after the break.

Gallery: Resistance: Retribution

Gallery: Super Stardust Portable

Gallery: Resistance: Retribution

Gallery: Super Stardust Portable

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Famitsu: Patapon 2 marches on Japan PSPs this Winter

Ross Miller — 2008-07-09T09:00:00+00:00

Filed under: Sony PSP

The latest issue of Famitsu (via PSPHype) reveals a sequel to Patapon is in the works and coming to Japanese PSPs this Winter (no US or Europe release mentioned). The game is being developed by Pyramid Studios, who made the previous game and LocoRoco. The magazine also has a two-page spread of LocoRoco 2, although gives no release date for any region. No matter how many times you shout pata-pata-pata-pon, the game won't get here any faster.

[Via PSP Fanboy; Image via Penny Arcade]

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Readers pick best webcomic: 100 Kirbies

Ross Miller — 2008-03-05T20:00:00+00:00

Filed under: Culture, Online, Polls

One hundred Kirby amalgams make for one hundred different avatars. Special thanks to VG Cats' Scott Ramsoomair for the Grim Fandango-inspired Kirby. As prize, we (and the Joystiq voters) crown the strip best webcomic of the week.

Second and third place go to 2P Start (another great source of avatars) and Penny Arcade, respectively. Thanks to everyone who voted and be sure to let us know of any game-related webcomic you stumble upon this week!

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Metareview: Patapon (PSP)

Alexander Sliwinski — 2008-02-29T03:00:00+00:00

Filed under: Sony PSP, Action, Strategy, Metareviews, Rhythm

Ready the troops, it's time to march (pata-pata-pata-pon) into battle (pon-pon-pata-pon) with Patapon, a delightful rhythm-based action/strategy game standing proud and alone in a new genre. Patapon is another jewel in the ever-increasing library of notable games for the PSP and at only $20 you shouldn't even bother reading the reviews below -- just go get it! Pata-pata-pata-pon!

IGN (92/100): "While LocoRoco appeared to have the cuteness crown with enjoyable play for the PSP, it looks like it will have to move over - the time for Patapon has come. If you own a PSP, make sure you go to the stores and you get a copy of this game. Your game collection will thank you, and you won't be disappointed."
1UP (90/100): "Patapon poses a serious challenge over its 15 hours (some arcane objectives and explanations don't help); it's not very portable (no pausing, headphones required), and some players won't enjoy the backtracking necessary to buff up their army or the unforgiving economy of the collectibles (you'll often find yourself with far too many items and not enough ka-ching). But it atones for its faults with understated strategic depth, an astounding sense of reward (both literal and whimsical), and an inspired difficulty curve that sticks with you to the end."
EuroGamer (80/100): "While Patapon has got the same quirky sense of style and visual charm as [LocoRoco], it doesn't offer the same easy breezy gameplay. Instead, it offers an imposing amount of depth and a considerable amount of micromanagement. Which isn't necessarily a criticism - it's just that forewarned is forearmed, and if you're nuts about LocoRoco there's no guarantee that you'll go bonkers for Patapon, because it's complicated, and it can be frustrating. But then it can also be rewarding and yes, it's absolutely charming and that counts for a lot."

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PSN Thursday: Sadists rejoice with new PAIN character

Alexander Sliwinski — 2008-02-28T15:15:00+00:00

Filed under: Sony PlayStation 3, Sony PSP, Online

Not through pummeling your pixelated pals with PAIN? Well, this week the PSN update will allow you to procure for a pittance a pirate to persistently pound into pavement. Skurv Dogg is a new downloadable character for PSN's PAIN at a mere $.99. Beyond that there's your normal serving of Rock Band DLC with a side order of No Doubt for Guitar Hero III. Want more? Um, there's the Star Trek teaser trailer in glorious HD to fill your television screen for a little over a minute.

Check out the complete list of content after the break and go say hi to the gentlemen at PS3 Fanboy for European update details.

Add-on Content:

PAIN: Skurv Dogg Character ($.99)
Rock Band DLC (and patch if you need to)
Guitar Hero III -- No Doubt Track Pack ($6.25): Featuring Don't Speak, Excuse Me Mr. and Sunday Morning

Game Videos:

MLB 08 The Show Music Video
MLB 08 The Show Blog Video
NBA 08 Amare Stoudmire Bio
Condemned 2: Bloodshot Trailer 1
Lost Planet Trailer 2

Movie and Blu-ray Disc Trailers:

Star Trek Teaser Trailer

PS3 Themes:

PAIN: Skurv Dogg Theme (Free)

PS3 Wallpaper:

Rocketman: Axis of Evil (Free)

PC Store (for PSP):

Patapon Trailer
Secret Agent Clank Trailer

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Win an exclusive Patapon Be@rbrick figure!

Andrew Yoon — 2008-02-25T20:00:00+00:00

Filed under: Sony PSP, Joyswag

This super-rare Patapon figure is not available outside of Japan. Enter our giveaway for your chance to win one!

Are you as excited for Patapon as we are? (Read our review to see why we're in love with the game!) To celebrate the release of this unique PSP-exclusive music action game, SCEA has provided us a very exclusive Be@rbrick figure to give away. To enter, have a Patapon avatar on your Blogsmith profile, and leave a comment here. The comment must be left before Wednesday, February 28th, 5PM EST. You may enter only once on PSP Fanboy, and once on Joystiq. Two winners will be selected in a random drawing, one from each site. Grand Prize Winners will receive this Be@rbrick figure. Click here for complete Official Rules. Eligibility is restricted to the legal residents of the 50 United States (including DC). You must be 18 years or older to enter.
Patapon Avatars

Right click image of choice and choose "Save Image As." Save to a location that's easily accessible, like the Desktop.

How to Access Your Blogsmith Profile
Leave a comment on any Weblogs Inc. blog.
Click on your profile image to access:

Look for "Profile" on the right.

Sign in with your Blogsmith password.
* Your initial Blogsmith password is sent to you via a confirmation e-mail. Once you log-in, you'll be able to bypass the confirmation system and change your password.
Once signed in, you can upload an avatar. Choose a Patapon avatar to enter this contest. Good luck!

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PSN Thursday: Demo MLB 08 twofer, Patapon

James Ransom-Wiley — 2008-02-14T18:15:00+00:00

Filed under: Sony PlayStation 3, Sony PSP

As Roger Clemens returns from hawking wolf tickets before Congress, baseball gears up for spring training with MLB 08 demos for both PS3 and PSP available on the PS Store today. If bats and balls aren't you thing, the Patapon demo has finally been released from the evil grips of the GameStop pre-order. Go get your genre-bending-tribal-warbanding on!

Check out the complete list of content after the break, including PC Store additions -- or head over to PS3 Fanboy for European update details.

Demos:

MLB 08 The Show
MLB 08 The Show (PSP)
Patapon (PSP)

Add-on Content:

Rock Band DLC

Game Videos:

MLB 08 Road To The Show Tutorial
LittleBigPlanet Create-A-Level
Tony Hawk's Proving Ground
Conflict: Denied Ops Diary 2
Conflict: Denied Ops Diary 3
Burnout Accolades
Turok "Weapons"
Turok "Creatures"

Movie and Blu-ray Disc Trailers:

The Ruins

PS3 Themes:

Super Stardust HD

PC Store (for PSP):

Twisted Metal: Head On ($14.99)
Patapon demo
MLB 08 The Show Demo demo
Twisted Metal: Head On Behind the Scenes 3 (video)
Twisted Metal: Head On Behind the Scenes 4 (video)
Twisted Metal: Head On Wallpaper #2

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Try on Patapon: demo comes to PSN today

Ross Miller — 2008-02-14T02:00:00+00:00

Filed under: Sony PSP, Rhythm

In honor of Valentine's Day, the folks at Sony have given you a demo for Patapon, a strategy-laden, color-filled, happiness-inducing rhythm game from the crazy minds behind LocoRoco. According to the official PlayStation blog, the demo is set to come out sometime today for you to download through either the PlayStation Network PC store or the PS3 store.

It also has the "same save-to-final feature" as the UMD version, which we assume is the exclusive weapon we heard about in late January. In the time it took you to read this post, you could've downloaded the game already. What are you waiting for?

Gallery: Patapon

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Patapon demo includes exclusive weapon

Justin McElroy — 2008-01-28T11:00:00+00:00

Filed under: Sony PSP

If you're a PSP owner who wasn't planning on buying Patapon, you're out of your mind and you need to seriously evaluate your priorities. If you weren't planning on pre-ordering it though, we can't exactly say we blame you. (When was the last time you had trouble getting a PSP game you wanted?) But after some considerable pot sweetening on Sony's part, this is one pre-order we don't think you'll want to miss.

If you pre-order at your local GameStop, not only will you get a demo for the game, but you'll get also get the demo-only item the "Spear of Protection." The bad news? Demos aren't in stock yet, but are due this week or next, so you'll need to keep calling your local GameStop every 20 minutes until they arrive or your phone number is blocked, whichever comes first.

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Get your Patapon on for $20

Ludwig Kietzmann — 2008-01-21T17:30:00+00:00

Filed under: Sony PSP, Strategy, Rhythm

Though we haven't had a look at the final packaging just yet, Sony has given us an excellent idea as to what Patapon's back-of-the-box bullet points might say:

Intriguing and utterly unique blend of strategy and rhythm gameplay!
From the creators of the critically acclaimed LocoRoco!
Bizarre, yet entirely endearing art style!
Costs a mere $19.99!
"Excellent" -- Joystiq, 21 Jan. 2008

Sony hopes that the lower price point will push Patapon to a broader audience, one perhaps unswayed by the unusual gameplay and our glowing, out-of-context recommendation. It's a wise move that also favors those of us already keen on rhythmically conquering the lands of Patapon.

Gallery: Patapon

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Patapon trailer delights some, terrorizes rest

Griffin McElroy — 2007-12-23T13:30:00+00:00

Filed under: Sony PSP

The Joystiq staff is somewhat divided in our reactions to Patapon, the rhythm/real time strategy Frankengame coming to the PSP early next year. If you listened to the last Joystiq podcast, you know there are those of us who are completely entranced by its addictive gameplay, its charming visuals, and its catchy music. Still, there are some of us who watch the above trailer for the game and feel like we're staring down the barrel of a nightmare gun. Those pitch-black, cycloptic abominations are unsettling enough -- why do they have to sound like Furbys in a microwave?

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Joystiq Podcast 030 - Holiday edition

Justin McElroy — 2007-12-21T12:10:00+00:00

Filed under: Podcasts

It's nearly Christmas and we've got a gigantic, jam-packed, hour-and-a-half long Joystiq Podcast to mark the arrival of the Yule. Featuring: Another quick Suicide Girl visit, Patapon hands-on and our very special video-game related holiday memories. Also, your usual Brush With Fame, listener emails and so much more. If you've never listened to the show, this is the time to start.

Get the podcast:
[iTunes] Subscribe to the Joystiq Podcast directly in iTunes (MP3)
[RSS] Add the Joystiq Podcast feed to your RSS aggregator
[Digg] Like the show? Digg it.
[MP3] Download the MP3 directly

Hosts: Chris Grant, Ludwig Kietzmann and Justin McElroy

Music: "Get Ready for Love" by Nick Cave, "Red Eye" by Ben Kweller.

See all of this week's links after the jump.

The Links:
Duke Nukem Forever teaser perpetuates cycle of non-delivery
Stringer: PS3 games 'infinitely more fun' than Wii
The November NPDs
Matt Casamassina and Nintendo PR rep

BIG THREE:
3. Crysis sales in crisis; UT3 gets fragged too
2. Big changes coming to Call of Duty 4 this month
1. BioShock kindly receives AP's game of the year award

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Joystiq hands-on: Patapon (PSP)

Andrew Yoon — 2007-12-16T18:00:00+00:00

Filed under: Sony PSP, Action, Strategy

Beneath its charming exterior is a complex, deep game. Patapon is not as simple as its childish graphics may lead on. The dying tribe of the Patapon need their God to command them, and after a mysterious absence, you are ready to return to their lives and lead them.

We've been spending some time with a localized near-final version of this PSP exclusive, and we have to say we're impressed. We wouldn't expect any less from the team that brought us LocoRoco. It's hard to pinpoint a genre to this innovative title, as it fuses elements from the music and strategy genre. At its core, it's a rhythm title, as you're required to input commands using various drums at your disposal. At first, you only have two: the Pata and the Pon drums. By inputting notes on the beat, players will be able to command their growing Patapon army. For example, by pressing Pata-Pata-Pata-Pon, the creatures will advance forwards. Then, attacks can be executed by inputting Pon-Pon-Pata-Pon.

There are a number of drum entires possible, and we've yet to learn them all. Eventually, you'll be able to tell the Patapon to hold, or retreat. We're certain that more advanced moves will be unearthed when we unlock the other drums. (Each drum is assigned to a face button, for four drums in all.) Crucial to successful gameplay is keeping with the beat. As you input commands in sequence, the combo meter increases. When a 10 combo is reached, the Patapon enter Fever mode, which greatly increases their killing power. The spears they throw, for example, can traverse from one side of the screen to the other (as seen in the image above). Timing is crucial, as telling the Patapon to advance at the inopportune moment can lead to a number of unfortunate deaths.

Gallery: Patapon

Seeing the Patapon join forces to take down such towering foes reminds us of the Gamecube classic, Pikmin. The two games share more than a few similarities. As mentioned earlier, Patapon is as much a strategy game as it is a music game. Before each mission, you have the ability to customize your outing, by choosing appropriate creatures, and equipping them with equipment. There are multiple kinds of Patapon you can create, and within each type, there are variations based on the ingredients used to concoct them. For example, one Patapon might use a small piece of meat to summon. However, throw in a fresher, larger piece of meat when creating the creature, and you'll get a souped up fighter, colored differently from the rest. Before each level, you're free to arrange your Patapon formation and change the weapons each type is carrying. You may want archers in the back, or you may want to protect a catapult-wielding soldier by placing spear-wielding Patapon around it. Each level will require some forethought in order to maximize your spoils at the end.

It's a bit jarring to see how much depth the character customization tools provide. Who knew that such a colorful, animated game would have us play in a similar style to a SOCOM game? Granted, there's also an "Optimize" feature, which allows the computer to decide what it thinks may be best for your current team. Hopefully, the game is balanced enough to be accessible to both casual and hardcore gamers alike.

The game appears to be quite lengthy, at least if we can trust the world map shown to us. In addition to standard kill-and-conquer levels, there are a few other diversions to take upon. Our favorite is a PaRappa-styled music mini-game, where you must listen to a song of a great deity, and you must play it back exactly. The art and animation of these segments are truly inspired, and the unforgiving gameplay makes it a fun challenge we love to try again and again.

Patapon isn't coming out to the US until early next year, but already we see it has the legs to be a winner. The localization of the title is superb so far, effectively capturing the game's unique spirit and mood. We're pretty sure that Patapon will get the same amount of love, if not more, as its LocoRoco predecessor.

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Patapon to arrive in U.S. in February 2008

Justin McElroy — 2007-12-11T10:45:00+00:00

Filed under: Sony PSP, Rhythm

If the above trailer for Patapon that we showed you a few days ago got you salivating for the odd rhythm game, we've got good news: Sony announced this morning that it would be soon be coming to the U.S. The game, developed by Sony Computer Entertainment's Japan Studio (the same house that brought you LocoRoco), is currently slated for a February 2008 release.

We took it for a spin at TGS 07, and were entranced, if just a bit perplexed by the intricacies of the gameplay. As you can see, it's ... well, it's bizarre, allowing you to control a little army of one-eyed dudes by hitting buttons in rhythm and making music. It's just like being a Civil War-era fife player, except with drums. ... Oh, and also, you're insane.

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Today's most tribal video: Patapon

Scott Jon Siegel — 2007-12-08T00:59:00+00:00

Filed under: Sony PSP, Video, Rhythm

Rhythm games seem to be in abundance these days, but Patapon's a little different than most. For starters, it's cute, reminiscent of the super-huggable LocoRoco. It's also not about being in a rock band, or just tapping buttons to the beat of your MP3s -- It's about war.

As seen in the trailer above, players control a tiny army of one-eyed minions of by pounding on drums, which the little men respond to by performing certain actions. It's part Lemmings, part Space Channel 5, and after spending some time with it at this year's Tokyo Game Show, it's definitely got our attention. To adorable battle!

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TGS hands-on: Patapon

Jem Alexander — 2007-09-26T17:30:00+00:00

Filed under: Sony PSP, TGS, Rhythm

Patapon, a PSP title which we've seen very little of so far, is proving a great hit at the Tokyo Game Show. With a line that was sometimes longer than Metal Gear Online we were curious to see what all the fuss was about. Finally we braved the Dreaded Public and got our hands on the goods.

Stepping into the Patapon enclosure a Sony booth attendee talked us through the gist of the game. We couldn't understand some of the Japanese, though we did enjoy it whenever she sang instructions to us. "Pon pon pata pon ... pata pata pata pon." Lovely.

Your tribe of one-eyed worshippers are required to go from one end of the level to the other (with two levels in the demo on the show floor). The only method of getting them there is to command them to act by performing different beats with the circle and square buttons, which correspond to the sounds "pata" and "pon", respectively. By stringing combinations of these two sounds together your minions will perform different actions.

For the demo two combinations are available. "Pon pon pata pon" will make your tribesmen attack anything that is in front of you whilst "pata pata pata pon" moves them further through the level. The buttons must be pressed in rhythm and, when linked together without error, add to your combo meter.

The demo suggests that the game gets much deeper, with more commands to enter, interactions with the environment and characters to join your tribe. Our team of three spear throwers was expanded with the addition of a sword-wielding cyclops which proved much stronger in battle. Additions such as these can potentially add so much to the tactical nature of the game.

We still have many questions about Patapon with regards to its expandability and feature list. Currently there's a danger of the game becoming a bit repetitive. Despite that, we're intrigued to see more and look forward to doing so in the near future.

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