There's nothing we enjoy quite as much after a long evening of gaming than tending to our resident houseplants, one of which teeters on the edge of death while the other, greener replacement waits for when the original inevitably shuffles off its leafy coil. Now, however, it seems that players in Japan may soon be able to take on this diversion with controller in hand as well, as Famitsu has revealed a new PSN title from SCEJ and movie house Premium Agency called Shikitei(literally translated as "Four Seasons Garden"), that premises to let us plant a garden and watch it grow.
Watch being the operative word here, as it seems that even virtually Sony doesn't trust our green thumbs, the report revealing that the game, or "environmental simulator" according to IGN, will focus more on letting players design gardens before letting the program have its way with them. In fact, according to producer Rie Nakamura, the title will include no gaming elements at all. Fun! Still, for all of its hands-offness, Shikitei will include elements such as custom soundtracks, as well as the ability to take a stroll through the virtual eden, no doubt offering solace in the fact that this is one garden that won't meet an untimely end at our hands. At least until we turn off the power.
While most of us here in the States continue to try to wipe the sleep from our eyes after a long Memorial Day weekend, Sony's Japanese arm has announced that the PlayStation Network has seen its one millionth user account created in Japan. The company adds that the service, which first went live in the region November 2006, is used by nearly 400,000 players each month.
The celebrate the achievement, SCEJ is offering up a thousand ¥1,000 PSN promotional tickets to use online, meaning if you happen to have access to a Japanese PSN account you have until June 9 to throw your virtual hat into the ring for a freebie.
While it may seem seem like just yesterday that we first played Sony's love note to console gear heads in Gran Turismo, it was actually ten years ago ... a realization that made us feel incredibly old as Sony and developer Polyphony Digital announced that the sim, that first got its license in December 1997, has shipped more than 50 million units across the globe.
This figure, of course, includes the recently released Gran Turismo 5 Prologue, which according to Sony has shipped out more than 2 million units. The company is playing coy, though, as to whether this number includes just physical products or digital downloads over PSN as well. We'd like to extend our hand and congratulate the series for making it this far, but unfortunately it didn't stop between the two yellow lines on the pavement so it's going to have to go back to the start and try again.
We know that Final Fantasy games, much like fine wine and Radiohead albums, take some time to come together nicely -- still, it's hard for us to believe that Final Fantasy XIII (in all its shapes and forms) will be dropping any time soon. We've had our hearts broken so many times by delays for hotly anticipated titles that we've sadly come to expect them.
Fear not, for the long wait for the Fabula Nova Crystallis collection will be over soon enough. According to FinalFantasyVersusXIII.net's translation (there appear to be conflicting versions), game director Motomu Toriyama teases that a playable demo for FFXIII would be arriving in 2008 to show off the game's revamped battle system. So don your steepled hat and cuddle tight your cactuar plushie -- your chance to sit down with the unluckiest chapter in Square Enix's seminal RPG franchise may have just gotten a teensy bit closer.
[Update: We originally posted an incorrect interpretation of the original translated comments. The post has been corrected and Joystiq apologizes for the error.]
[Update 2: Square Enix has released an official response – and we eat more crow.]
We admit that the opening of a new studio is not the most terribly exciting event under the sun, but that news becomes decidedly more intriguing when said studio dedicates itself to a single market, or in the case of British developer Kuju's newly opened doublesix studio, a single distribution channel.
With a moniker always referred to in lowercase, we expected doublesix to be quietly reserved regarding its plans, which include developing titles exclusively in the downloadable space for Xbox Live Arcade, the PlayStation Network, WiiWare and the PC. What we found, however, was a studio that is enthusiastic about its positioning in this young, but rapidly growing segment of the video game industry. To find out more, we managed to speak with doublesix studio head James Brooksby on a number of topics, including the price of downloadable games today and in the future, the importance of platform exclusives in the digital space, and of course, where the team likes to eat.
Speaking to Newsweek's N'Gai Croal, Q-Games founder Dylan Cuthbert has discussed some of the challenges facing PixelJunk Monsters, a real-time tower defense title for the PlayStation Network. Cuthbert, who has contributed to everything from Ape Escape to Starfox, noted that beyond the usual control and balancing issues, the real difficulty involves getting Japanese gamers to purchase bite-sized games online.
"So far, it really hasn't caught on in the same way it has in the West--the problem in Japan is a traditional aversion to using credit cards, as opposed to the West where it is second nature," he explained. "A lot of restaurants over here don't accept any credit card at all, and when you order things online to be delivered the majority of people pay on delivery or even by online bank transfer as opposed to using a credit card. Pre-paid cards are definitely the way to go forward to solve these problems, but they only rolled out recently, so we'll just have to wait and see."
It's odd to see the game (which arrives on our PSN in January) facing this external obstacle, especially since it was designed with Japanese sensibilities in mind -- those folks aren't too keen on real-time strategy either, it seems. Perhaps PixelJunk Monsters will find success on our shores, preying on our habit of whipping out the plastic whenever instant gratification is in view.
Fresh off of Midway's laboriously titled and unanimously pannedAqua Teen Hunger Force Zombie Ninja Pro-Am for the PlayStation 2, who can blame Creat Studios from wanting to try something different? The studio, which operates out of both Massachusetts and Russia, has announced a new deal with Sony that will allow it to develop and publish both its own and other company's games over the PlayStation Network.
While no specific titles have been announced so far, we're hedging our bets that N-Cube and Warbit, two mysterious titles from Creat that appeared on last September's DualShock 3 compatibility list, are among them. Just back away from those Adult Swim licenses and we'll all stay friends.
Getting gifts and embarrassing ourselves while under the influence of copious amounts of alcohol are reasons enough to count down until the new year, but Capcom has given us another reason to continue to mark through days on the kitchen calender, announcing plans to release a free playable demo of Devil May Cry 4 over both the Xbox Live Marketplace and PlayStation Store in early 2008.
It's unclear exactly what will be included in the demo, with Capcom saying only that the download will serve to introduce the game's new hero, Nero, and feature levels "chosen to showcase Devil May Cry 4's varied locales and allow gamers to familiarize themselves with Nero's unique abilities." The demo will also include in-game instructions on how to use DMC4's Exceed sword charge system and various superhuman abilities, made possible by Nero's "Devil Bringer" powers, and will be capped off with a fight against a surly boss named Berial. We hope the boss has insurance, because players have been waiting a long time revisit Devil May Cry, and we imagine Berial is going to buried many times before the game's February 5, 2008 release.
Some good news this morning for PS3 owners across the pond: Though Sony Europe has promised that the demo for Uncharted: Drake's Fortune would appear on the European and Japanese PlayStation Stores November 22, Naughty Dog has dropped the region specificity on the American demo, opening it up for everyone.
According to Christophe Balestra, co-president of Naughty Dog, the whole ordeal originated from a lack of knowledge about the PSN infrastructure. He claims they didn't know that European and Japanese PS3 owners couldn't access the US PlayStation Store and download demos - an oversight that Balestra himself corrected with the quickness. Now if Naughty Dog can just get the game out without boobies in their opening logo (link NSFW), they should be in the clear.
With all eyes turned to Tokyo this week, Sony has thrown North American PlayStation 3 gamers a bone in the form of the charming, but perhaps overly complicated "screensaver" game LocoRoco Cocoreccho, as well as a handful of new game demos including Sega Rally Revo, the first title in development from Sega Driving Studio.
Those wanting to pick up the successor to Sony Japan's delightful PSP original LocoRoco can do so for $6.99, a bit of a leap from the game's previously confirmed £1.99 price in the UK. In addition to the already mentioned rally racer, PSN users can also snag demos for EA's Tony Hawk competitor Skate, as well as THQ's Stuntman: Ignition and Sony's own forthcoming NBA 08.
And as if that isn't enough, it also looks like Sony has tossed up some wallpapers, videos, and trailers from such eagerly anticipated eye candy as GT5 Prologue, Devil May Cry 4, and Ratchet and Clank Future, making this a meaty update indeed.
Little LocoRocos, you're so happy, you make us happy, too. We love watching you bounce and squish. Oh, to tickle a LocoRoco would make us burst with joy. We'd explode with rainbows, of course. (That's a mildly NSFW link, all you weekend laborers.)
Sony's PS3 LocoRoco Cocoreccho! "interactive screensaver" um, thing will launch next week in many parts of the world. But the Sixaxis might not let us pet the little creatures. Cocoreccho! isn't quite a game, and we're still not quite sure what it is. But this newest trailer at least annotates some of things players can do, while the earlier video left us guessing.
Watch the cuteness after the break, or imagine it on a crisp HDTV with the direct HD feed.
Sony Europe has announced that Gran Turismo 5 Prologue will be out this year as both a traditional Blu-ray release and as a PlayStation Network download.
The game will feature 40 cars. Racing locations noted in the press release include Eiger Nordwand, the London City Track and Suzuka. As previously discussed, Prologue will feature 16-player online matches. Unsurprisingly, the game will run at 1080p and 60fps, though the replays will only play back at 30fps. Also mentioned in the press release is Gran Turismo TV, a channel for the PlayStation Network that gives access to "a world of great motoring TV programming online."
No details have been announced as to whether the Blu-ray release will, like Warhawk, contain extra content. If Prologue isn't enough for you, the full Gran Turismo 5 is due out in 2008.
Sure, you can pick up Warhawk tomorrow in stores, but if you want to save on the gasoline, the title will be available for download via the PlayStation store tonight at 12:01 a.m. EST. That's a bonus for West Coast gamers, who can get the game at 9:00 p.m. PST tonight.
Going the traditional route isn't a bad option, however, as the retail version is priced $20 more but includes more video content and a Bluetooth headset.
Pastel-colored chickens are trapped in pastel-colored eggs and the only way to save them is to match four colored eggs and let the Magic of Physics handle the rest! Piyotama is available today on the US PlayStation Network for $2.99. European PS3 owners are not so lucky, having been denied egg-popping this week.
Two Heavenly Swordvideos -- the first part of a Behind-the-Scenes featurette and the first episode of the animated series -- are also out today for the low, low cost of nothing.
Looking for more challenge with Ninja Gaiden Sigma? Eidos, the European publisher, has announced that the first of three planned content packs will be available for download on September 6. Tecmo has also announced the packs are due out in Japan, starting with the first on August 30. All three are forms of Survival Mode, where you battle an infinite swarm of enemies.
The first one to be made available will be Weapon Master. In each of the five challenges, you will be given a limited weapon set for survival. Other packs include Speed Master and Rachel Master, each with five challenges apiece. Those packs will be released at an as-of-yet unknown later date.
The first pack in Japan will cost 315 yen (approx. US $3). No word on the pricing of the European content or if we can expect similar release dates / pricing for the US.
