The engineers at Sony can't be too thrilled with fighting the constant battle against PSP hackers, issuing firmware updates that "strengthen security" in a futile attempt to curb piracy and homebrew applications. Going by a recent survey commissioned by Sony Computer Entertainment, passed on to us by a reader who was asked to take part, the company seems to be looking into the reasons why PSP owners are opening up their portables.

Sony reps call the survey a part of "ongoing PSP consumer research", attempting to learn more about the size of the PSP hacking population and the mentality behind the behavior. Questions like "Do you know of anyone who has "hacked," or modified, transferred and customized their PSP firmware and software?" were included elsewhere in the poll.

We're following up with Sony to learn more about its research.

http://kotaku.com/377090/sony-wants-...cking-your-psp ...

New from SuccessHK



Official Dual Shock 3 wireless controller
Connects via bluetooth (wireless) or USB (wired)
Lithium Ion rechargeable battery pack built-in
Play & Charge technology: Recharge battery pack when connecting via USB

A very complete wireless controller that is compatible with Playstation 3, Playstation 2 and PC. It is packed with features such as rumble. ...

New from Play Asia



From the publisher: Mario Kart is heading to the Wii and it's bigger than ever. The game boasts a new exprience including this time the intense Mario Kart action you've come to know and love with a few added bonuses including online, including battle mode for the first time ever and motocycles. New tracks, vehichles, characters are also added to the experience.

Nintendo's Mario Kart Wii (w/ Wii Handle) is in stock today, shipping as NTSC J encoded Japanese version for US$ 64.90 only.

Please note that the Japanese edition of Mario Kart is only compatible with Japanese Nintendo Wii consoles, which are in stock at Play-Asia.com at US$ 299.00 only. Tests that we have performed on a US and PAL Wii™ machine using Datel's Freeloader only resulted into a black screen!



Game Features:


Wii Wheel: Transform your Wii Remote in to a steering wheel that feels natural in anyone's hands.
Worldwide Racing: Play with up to three friends locally or challenge up to 11 friends via Nintendo Wi-Fi Connection in the biggest Mario Kart race yet! All tracks and modes of play are available for online races.
Mario Kart Channel: Visit the Mario Kart Channel on your Wii Menu to check regional and worldwide stats, friend rankings, download ghost data, participate in worldwide Time Trial events, and more!
New Wheels and Courses: cruise brand-new tracks and arenas, or enjoy a blast from the past going fender-to-fender on one of the classics. Tired of riding on four wheels? Bust out one of the all-new motorbikes for special tricks and techniques.
For multiplayer action, spare Wii Handles are also sold seperately at US$ 19.90 only.

The NTSC U/C encoded US version of Mario Kart Wii (w/ Wii Wheel) is arriving soon and is currently available as for preorder at US$ 59.90 only.

To learn more about your racing courses and karts, purchase a copy of Mario Kart Wii Prima Office Game Guide from Play-Asia.com. The book is arriving at the end of the month and is currently on preorder for US$ 19.90.

For those of you with an addiction to Mario Kart and want to live, or relive the history of this game, several Mario Kart games for classic systems are available at Play-Asia.com:

GameCube™
Mario Kart: Double Dash US US$ 34.90

GameBoy™ Mario Kart Advance JPN US$ 48.90

Different versions of Mario Kart are also available on Nintendo's newest portable system:

Nintendo DS™
Mario Kart DS KOR US$ 49.90
Mario Kart DS US US$ 39.90
Mario Kart DS JPN US$ 48.90

Mario Kart is also taken from the TV screen and brought to the actual world through toys numerous of times. If participating in the races through a TV screen does not sate your addiction, two race sets, together with karts and race courses are available for preorder at Play-Asia.com:

Mario Kart DS Mario vs Donkey Kong Race Set ASIA US$ 29.90
Mario Kart DS Mario vs Yoshi Race Set ASIA US$ 29.90

http://www.play-asia.com/SOap-23-83-...9-en-84-n.html ...

Welcome to this week's toys update. Check out the wonderful collectibles we just got in stock and all the new products made available for preorder.

As toys, especially collectible ones, are produced in limited numbers and are often sold out prior to the actual release date, we strongly recommend to preorder the figures of your desire as early as possible.

Masterpiece of Shunya Yamashita No 1: Rudy 1/7 Scale Figure (HK Comic Fair Special Version) is the bargain of the week. Designed by the celebrated illustrator/character designer Yamashita Shunya who has been working on hot game titles such as Final Fantasy X and Valkyrie Profile2: Silmeria. The beauty of the women in his illustrations and figures are well known for the expressiveness of their facial features and their body proportions.

Be captivated by the innocently demure yet coquettish expression of Rudy. This special edition of her, released for a HK's biggest comic fair is now sold at a discounted price of US$ 19.90 only and the maximum purchase is limited to 1 piece per customer. As usually, this weekly special is valid for exactly 1 week (if not sold out earlier).

Warriors and action heroes are in style this week. Real Action Heroes - Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of the Patriots - Solid Snake is ready for shipping. Although he has aged due to years and years of fighting, his eyes remain sharp and his body flexible.

The figure designer Sawada Keisuke ensures that his creation remain loyal to the game by installing metal joints into his body. Matsui Jun, his costume designer completed his tactical vest, pouches and straps to the last detail. The pack comes with his handy weapons, the assault rifle, hand gun and CQC stun gun. Together with Solid Snake, Real Action Heroes - Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of the Patriots - Raiden is also available at Play-Asia.com. The preorder is expected to arrive next month.




Street Fighter Ryu 18-Inch Polystone Mixed Media Statue is another special product that has arrived this week. Limited to six hundred pieces only, World Wide He is not only eighteen inches tall but also in incredible detail. Like gemstones, or music instruments from famous brands, this figure comes with a birth certificate to prove his elevated status.

The assasin 47 has also arrived with his arsenal. Player Select Hitman Pre-Painted Action Figure: Blood Money Hitman comes with a hand gun, four rifles for all occasions and accessories, and is more than ready to wreak havoc.




Excellent Model One Piece Neo-5 - Portraits of Pirates 1/8 Scale Pre-Painted Figure: Nico Lobin and Soge King are lined up for release and are now available as preorders.

Due to his immense popularity, Mega House has decided to put Excellent Model One Piece Neo-EX Tony 1/8 Scale Pre-Painted PVC Figure: Tony Chopper up as a re-run. For his fans and all One Piece fans who did not manage to get their hands on him last time, be sure to preorder him this time.

Benisu, the maid from the dating simulation game They Are My Noble Masters, is made into a figure. Her designers have captured her grace by sculpting out her sweeping red hair, her flowing skirt and lacy apron.

Please also take a look at our complete bargain list as a huge amount of restocks came in this week and are sold at bargain prices, for example, God of War Action Figure: Kratos 13" (Push Button Sound) and other popular products.

The lists below show what has been released this week and what is available for preordering.

Toys & Figures (38)

Aliens Vs Predator Requiem Hybrid Action Figure US US$ 15.90
Busou Shinki Pre-Painted PVC Figure: Asuka JPN N/A
Busou Shinki Pre-Painted PVC Figure: Mulmeltia JPN N/A
Busou Shinki Pre-Painted PVC Figure: Zelnogrard (Grapp Lap EX Weapon Set) JPN US$ 39.90
Diamond & Pearl Pokemon 1/40 Scale Real Pokemon Gashapon Figure JPN US$ 2.49
Dragon Ball Z - Majin Buu Plush Doll JPN N/A
Dragon Destiny Ikkitousen 1/7 Scale Pre-Painted PVC Figure: Kanu Unchou (China Dress Version) JPN US$ 99.90
Fate/hollow ataraxia 1/8 Scale Pre-Painted PVC Figure: Rider Delusion/Modest maid Edition JPN US$ 59.90
Final Fantasy VII - Play Arts Vol. 1: Cloud Strife & Hardy Daytona JPN N/A
Godmars Non Scale Pre-Painted Figure: Soul of Chogokin GX-40 Godmars JPN N/A
Ikkitousen Comic Gum Collection Scale 1/7 Pre-Painted PVC Figure: Ryomo Shimei (Pearl Black Version) JPN US$ 69.90
Konami Figure Collection Sky Girls Non Scale Trading Figire JPN US$ 5.90
Magical Girl Lyrical Nanoha StrikerS 1/8 Scale Pre-Painted PVC Figure: Teana Lanster JPN US$ 59.90
New Year Special e-Hobby Transformers Pre-Painted Figure: Encore Ironhide Protection Limited (Black Version) JPN US$ 64.90
One Piece Chopper Man Key Chain Figure JPN US$ 4.90
One Piece DX Chopper Plush Doll Type A JPN US$ 15.90
One Piece DX Chopper Plush Doll Type B JPN N/A
Player Select Hitman Pre-Painted Action Figure: Blood Money Hitman US US$ 15.90
Real Action Heroes - Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of the Patriots - Solid Snake US$ 179.00
Sengoku Basara 2 ...

Misdirection isn't just for magicians anymore ... apparently Nintendo Power practices it too. While everyone was focused on the hints of a U.S. localized Final Fantasy IV DS in the magazine's ten-page cover feature on the game, no one seemed to notice that the game was listed with a "July" release date in that same issue's "Game Watch Forecast."

Well, no one except RPGFan.com, which then in turn got noticed by our own DSFanboy, which in turn got noticed by us so you fine readers can notice it for yourselves. This could just be a typo on Nintendo's part, but more likely it's a slip-up that reveals a release window a little earlier than Square-Enix would have liked. Either way, just another pebble on the growing mound of evidence that a localized version is coming.

http://www.joystiq.com/2008/04/09/ni...oming-in-july/ ...

Did you know that Oblivion and Fallout 3 dev Bethesda had a sibling named Vir2L Studios? Known primarily for releasing games for cellular phones, the ZeniMax-owned outfit has announced plans to bring a pair of titles to the Nintendo DS this summer. However, while this would have been great news had the company decided to bring its Elder Scrolls Travels mobile titles to the handheld, life has taught us that life is seldom that generous.

Vir2L will instead release touchable versions of its AMF Bowling and Ducati motorcycle racing series on the DS. Both AMF Bowling Pinbusters! and Ducati Moto promise multiple characters and Wi-Fi connectivity, and will each carry a budget price of $19.99. Still, our hope is that Vir2L is simply testing the waters with these titles, and we may someday be able to save Oblivion's Tamriel, stylus in hand.

http://www.joystiq.com/2008/04/09/be...ts-pair-to-ds/ ...

A new survey finds that more than half of K-12 students believe that educational video games in school would help them learn (no surprise), although only 15% of teachers and 19% of parents agree. Adults might not want to scoff, however, because 11% of teachers are already using video games in class and they report great results. 'Only 3% of elementary school students say they do not play video games of any kind. Students surveyed say learning via video games would help them better understand difficult concepts, become more engaged in the subject matter and practice skills. There's no mention of the games being fun, but that goes without saying.

http://news.slashdot.org/article.pl?.../04/09/2039258 ...

The folks at ZiPhone spotted some code in the brand new 2.0 beta iPhone firmware that could point to the chip to be used in the upcoming 3G iPhone. The code makes mention of "SGOLD3," which could very well refer to Infineon's followup chip to the S-GOLD2 which powers the current iPhone. Infineon's less fancy name for the S-GOLD3H chip is the PMB8878, a 7.2Mbps HSDPA chip with all the video acceleration and media playback features iPhone users have come to expect. Advantages over its predecessor include higher resolution camera support (5 megapixels instead of 2), a 2x speed MMC / SD interface and DVB-H module support, but that doesn't necessarily mean any of those specs will end up in the ensuing iPhone 3G -- S-GOLD2 has plenty of features the current iPhone doesn't take advantage of. The processor speed, however, remains the same.

http://www.engadget.com/2008/04/08/i...chip-revealed/ ...

That video we saw the other day of two iPod touches running a networked Quake 3 deathmatch sent ripples through the iPod / iPhone community. Those of you doubting the authenticity of the clip can probably put some fears to bed, as GameCyte has gotten a hold of the programmers, and they make it fairly clear it wasn't some elaborate hoax. According to developers Cameron and Marcia Tofer of Hermitworks, they managed to get the game up and running on the touches in, "Between eight and twelve hours," using jail-broken units, no official SDK, and modified code that added basic accelerometer support. The game in the video is being hosted on one of the devices and played over a local network -- and the Tofers claim that running a full 64-player match wouldn't be out of the question. Unfortunately, there aren't any plans to make this demo public, as the team is working on original content for the platform.

http://www.engadget.com/2008/04/09/m...he-ipod-touch/ ...