New weekly special from play asia:

Weekly Special: Dragon Quest: Shonen Yangus to Fushigi no Dungeon for PlayStation2™ at US$ 12.90 only - offer valid for 1 week

From the publisher: Yangus, the former brigand in "Dragon Quest VIII" was also young and lovable once. As his father was the leader of the infamous band of thieves, "Yang Lion", so young Yangus aspired to be a legendary brigand too. One day, his father brought back a mysterious magical pot that embroiled 12-year-old Yangus in an adventure involving the finding of treasures in dungeons. Besides encountering various monsters, the player will also meet with Yangus's female fellow thief in "Dragon Quest VIII", Geruda, who has a close relationship that went back to their childhood in the game. What were they like when they were kids? What promises did they make with each other?

Square-Enix's PlayStation2™ RPG Dragon Quest: Shonen Yangus to Fushigi no Dungeon is now available at discounted US$ 12.90 only.

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

Hey, thanks, Capcom! After oodles of potential zombie killers deprived of HDTV started complaining that the text in Dead Rising was so small that a single letter could be comfortably mapped upon the convexity of a single micron, there was great hope for a patch.

Will there be? Ha. No. According to 1UP:

Yeah, those font file sizes are just killer. Bastiches. ...

Via Kotaku

Sneaker maker Puma has teamed up with Sony for the latest addition to the designer "PS Pictogram" line of PSP carry cases. There's a "three way" UM Cargo Bag, which can be used as a tote, turned into a shoulder bag or a computer carry. Plus, there's a UM CB Bag, a shoulder bag. The Cargo Bag and the CB Bag both come in black and "Dark Shadow," have special pockets for UMDs and the PSP and will retail for 14,700 yen (US $125) and 7,140 yen (US $62) respectively. Did we say "Japan only"? Oh, well, these are Japan only.

Screenshot Via Comments ...

Heres the press release:

Sony Computer Entertainment America today announced the PSP(R) (PlayStation(R) Portable) Entertainment Pack, a new "all-in-one" offering for portable gaming and entertainment. Available beginning September 13, the package features a PSP system along with the best-selling off-road racing game ATV Offroad Fury(R): Blazin' Trails, the
"Lords of Dogtown" UMD(TM) movie, and a Sony 1GB Memory Stick Pro Duo(TM). With an SRP of $249.99, the PSP Entertainment Pack offers great value to consumers ahead of the holiday shopping season. "The PSP system's success stems from its ability to combine console-quality gaming with multimedia applications, and this new package
showcases all of the system's strengths," said Peter Dille, senior vice president, marketing, Sony Computer Entertainment America. "Whether consumers want to pick up and play one of our top racing franchises, watch a movie, or enjoy their own music, photos, downloadable content and more, the PSP Entertainment Pack delivers it all in one convenient package."Beyond demonstrating the PSP system's multi-functionality, the combination
of software and storage along with the PSP hardware creates a compelling product with significant value. The total cost for each of the components, if purchased separately, would be $300 or more, so the PSP Entertainment Pack
delivers $50 of added value to consumers.
"While the PSP system has out-sold all other next-generation gaming handhelds in the period since its launch, we expect this new offering to drive
additional consumer interest and sales, particularly as the holiday shopping season approaches," Dille said.The PSP Entertainment Pack provides everything you need to enjoy the ultimate in portable gaming and entertainment right out of the box, making it an ideal gift for everyone from students to gadget fans to business and leisure travelers. With the included Sony 1GB Memory Stick Pro Duo, there's plenty of storage for gift-givers to customize the system by downloading personal photos, favorite songs and video clips. ...

Via Kotaku

In Japan, mahjong is largely a male preserve. Thus, explaining game publisher D3's bikini-wearing, tile flipping gambling-slash-floor sweeping bonanza. Dubbed THE Dokodemo Gal Mahjong, the game is a PSP version of the Simple 2000 title Love * Mahjong. The game offers a chance to chit-chat with your virtual competitor, an array of customizable costumes, and "Service Time" in which the female characters are given tasks that need completion. Call it a hunch, but no doubt the game's producer pitched this as "Dead or Alive meets mahjong."

Screenshot Via Comments ...

Via Kotaku

Sony just sent word that Killzone: Liberation will be hitting the Playstation Portable on Halloween. The PSP sequel to the PS2 shooter, has gotten a major redesign for the portable. This time around the game looks more like an isometric tactical shooter with a third-person view and seems to emphasize the tactical side of things.

The game will feature some neat new features as well including the ability to issue commands to an AI player through a Tactical Command System, an assortment of six-player Ad-Hoc multiplayer modes and support for downloading content from the official website.

Gaming Target reports that shortly after the game launches gamers will be able to download Infrastructure support and two new mulitplayer maps.

This sounds like a game worth checking out. It's good to see Sony totally overhauling a popular franchise instead of just making a straight port for the PSP. ...

Originally expected to be hitting the Xbox Live Arcade court sometime this year, Amsterdam-based Streamline Studios' HoopWorld has been benched until 2007 to allow for a bit of development teamwork.

Streamline Studios told GameSpot that it has entered into a partnership with Spanish studio Virtual Toys to finish up development on the Unreal Engine-powered HoopWorld. Work on the game between the two studios has already begun, according to Streamline cofounder Hector Fernandez.

Over the past five years, Streamline Studios has made a name for itself as a development support house, assisting in the production of games such as Unreal Tournament 2004, Ghost Recon 2, and the recently released Saints Row. Last year, the studio announced HoopWorld as its first original game, and the over-the-top basketball game was shown off both at the 2006 Game Developers Conference in San Jose as well as at the 2006 Electronic Entertainment Expo.

Virtual Toys, characterized by Fernandez as a "hardcore engineering house," has been charged with making sure HoopWorld conforms to the guidelines set forth by Microsoft for Xbox Live Arcade games, including a 50MB size limit. The Madrid-based developer previously worked on Torrente for PC (which was released in the US in 2004), and was one of the first European developers to work on the PlayStation 2.

"We're basically looking to have their engineering expertise to make sure we get all our content within [the mandated] limitations," Fernandez said.

According to Fernandez, this won't mean a dramatic rethinking of the basketbrawl concept that is at the heart of HoopWorld. As for whether the additional development time will result in new content for the game, he's keeping his options open on that as well.

"It's speculative," he said, when asked if the game will include addition content. "We'll have everything we intended and then we'll see."

When asked about the experience developing for Xbox Live Arcade, Fernandez was enthusiastic, especially in light of the recent release of the XNA Game Studio Express development platform. "It really empowers a lot of next-gen developers," Fernandez said. "When we first started [HoopWorld], we didn't even have final hardware. Now [developers] have a general idea of the framework. It's beneficial for everyone." ...

Jamie MacDonald to discuss PS3’s ‘network-centric future’

Sony is rolling out the big guns in support of the PS3, with vice president of SCE Worldwide Studios Jamie Macdonald due to keynote at London’s Games Developers Conference, GamesIndustry.biz can exclusively reveal.

Macdonald’s keynote will explore the shift from a ‘package-centric world to a network-centric future’. With emphasis on the PlayStation 3, Macdonald will focus on new forms of content, organisation development, nurturing a development ecosystem and exploring new revenue streams.

Macdonald was founding director of SCE London Studio, where he was responsible for the EyeToy, SingStar and Getaway franchises. Prior to Sony, he held a key position at Criterion charged with planning the RenderWare middleware solution.

Electronic Arts will also be in attendance at the LGDC, with a session entitled Harry Potter: Film Meets Game.

Presented by Harry Potter animation director Wayne Stables and art director of Battlefield Modern Combat Will Byles, the session will discuss the challenges faced by artists and engineers, and how to produce more sophisticated content within timeframes and on budget.

GDC London takes place October 2nd – 4th. Those registering by September 15th are eligible for a discount. ...

Via GIbiz

All three next-generation format holders are expected to have an equal footing in the next-generation console battle, according to publisher Electronic Arts.

In the eyes of the world’s largest games publisher, Sony’s traditional dominance of the home console market will not continue in the face of the launch of Nintendo’s Wii and the steady growth of Microsoft’s Xbox 360.

“Over the course of the new cycle, EA expects a more even playing field among the three video game consoles in contrast to Sony’s dominance during the previous two cycles,” said Colin Sebastian, senior research analyst at Lazard Capital Markets.

The publisher has also expressed minimal concern over the delayed launch of the PlayStation 3 in Europe, according to Sebastian.

“EA management does not appear surprised by Sony’s announced delay of the PS3 launch in Europe, though we believe there could be a few tweaks to EA’s launch line-up.”

“However, we do not expect a meaningful impact on the fiscal year outlook,” he added.

With the playing field levelled, publishers and retail look set to benefit from three strong performing consoles.

“Based on our conversations with EA, we maintain our overall positive view of the company, specifically the prospects for healthy long-term growth,” said the analyst.

“According to EA, the retail channel remains relatively clean ahead of the important holiday selling season,” said the analyst. ...