via Computer and Video Games


We've no idea what's going on in these screenshots, but according to some blurb that's accompanied them PixelJunk Eden is a "truly innovative platform game" involving leaping and swinging between lush alien vegetation.

It "constantly evolves over time as you move through the perfectly realised undergrowth, hunting treasures and smashing enemies from his path. Destroyed enemies scatter pollen across the landscape, which the player must collect and use to pollinate seed pods before using the new growth to progress further."


Screenshots ...

via Eurogamer


SCEE boss David Reeves has admitted he is unsure if Sony will stick to offering only the 40GB PS3 unit.

Speaking to Eurogamer, he hinted towards the possibility of introducing official external hard drives as he delivered his vision of consumer storage choice.


You can plug external hard drives into the PS3 using a USB cable attachment, as Reeves pointed out, as well as buy 2.5 inch SATA (laptop) hard drives and swap them with the one inside your console.

The key in all of this for Sony is simplicity, because it knows that works. It also has a very low system failure rate and is in no rush to upset it.

...

via Computer and Video Games


The Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) has deemed that a misleading PC World television advert for PlayStation 3 should not appear again in its current form.

The ASA deemed the ad in question to be "misleading" because it implied that 60GB PS3s were backwards compatible with all PS2 games.

The phrase "and it plays your PS2 games as well" was highlighted by the ASA, which said that the ad breached CAP TV Advertising Standards Code rule 5.1 (misleading advertising) and should not appear again in its current form.

According to both PC World parent DSG Retail and the ASA, around 80 percent of PS2 software is compatible with 60GB PlayStation 3s. ...

via Games Industry


Sony has revealed that the PS3s PlayStation Network now has over 3.2 million registered users, who between them have downloaded over 57 million items.

Back in January, the figures stood at 2.9 million registered users and 52 million pieces of content.

During Sony's PlayStation Day in London yesterday, the company also revealed that on average players of SingStar on PS3 are buying 6.3 songs via the PlayStation Store.

Resistance: Fall of Man has over 1.4 million users playing online, with the sequel looking to capitalise on online play as developer Insomniac overhauls MyResistance.net and adds social networking features to the site.

Sony also said that launch title Motorstorm has sold over 3 million units. ...

via Games Industry


GTA IV, which sold a record-breaking 926,000 copies over its first five days of release, has - unsurprisingly - captured the top of the UK sales charts.

GTA IV outsold Wii Fit, last week's number one title, by a margin of over 9 to 1. Sales of Nintendo's title were down 58 per cent, which can be partially attributable to low stock.

After GTA IV, however, the remaining top five best-selling titles were Nintendo exclusives.

Just over 61 per cent of the value of all software sold this past week was for GTA IV - which Chart-Track said itself is bigger than the total software market figure of every other week so far in 2008 apart from week one.

The only other new release to reach the All Formats Top 40 chart this past week was Sega's Iron Man: The Official Videogame, which entered at number eleven.

The Top Ten best-selling games in the UK for the week ended May 3 were as follows:

1. Grand Theft Auto IV
2. Wii Fit
3. Mario & Sonic at the Olympic Games
4. Wii Play
5. Mario Kart Wii
6. Gran Turismo 5 Prologue
7. Pro Evolution Soccer 2008
8. Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare
9. Dr. Kawashima's Brain Training
10. Tom Clancy's Rainbow Six: Vegas 2 ...

via Computer and Video Games



Box art from CVG

Box art for Sega's rhythm action game Samba de Amigo has emerged online, complete with a revealing little icon up in the top-left hand corner for Nintendo's new 'Pay To Play' service.

The 'Pay To Play' logo is a new indicator that at some point content will be available which will not be covered by the retail price.

Nintendo technical expert Takashi Aoyama said last February that Nintendo would be "collecting fees for some services [that] will allow us to adapt flexibly." Samba is one of the first.

Being a music rhythm game, we suspect that the services will be extra tracks to download. The revelation prompts us to wonder where Sega plans to store these songs, given that Harmonix claimed in an interview with us that the reason they couldn't do downloadable content was the lack of a hard drive on Wii.

Either that or we're way off the mark on this one. Who knows - maybe the content will come in the form of new clothes for Samba or different maracas he can use. Another Horse Armour scenario? ...

via Games Industry


Wii Fit has shot into the Spanish and German charts - claiming the top spot and knocking Mario Kart Wii down to second place in both instances according to figures from Media-Control GfK International.

The Nintendo Wii and DS continued to dominate both charts, taking eight positions in Germany and six in Spain. Meanwhile, neither chart saw an entry for the Xbox 360.

The Spanish charts saw Gran Turismo 5 Prologue for the PS3 in fourth place, followed by Pro Evolution Soccer 2008 for the PSP, Time Crisis 4 for the PS3 and God of War: Chains of Olympus for the PSP in fifth, sixth and seventh places respectively.

The German charts saw Assassin's Creed for the PC take third place and the Sims 2: Kitchen and Bath Interior Design Stuff in fourth place.

The German Charts for the week ending April 27 are as follows:

1. Wii Fit (Wii)
2. Mario Kart Wii (Wii)
3. Assassin's Creed: Directors Cut Edition (PC)
4. The Sims 2: Kitchen and Bath Interior Design Stuff (PC)
5. Dr. Kawashima's Brain Training (DS)
6. Wii Play (Wii)
7. Mario & Sonic at the Olympic Games (DS)
8. Mario Kart DS (DS)
9. More Brain Training with Dr. Kawashima (DS)
10. Mario Party DS (DS)

The Spanish Charts for the week ending April 27 are as follows:

1. Wii Fit (Wii)
2. Mario Kart Wii (Wii)
3. Wii Play (Wii)
4. Gran Turismo 5 Prologue (PS3)
5. Pro Evolution Soccer 2008 (PSP)
6. Time Crisis 4 (PS3)
7. God of War: Chains of Olympus (PSP)
8. Dr. Kawashima's Brain Training (DS)
9. More Brain Training with Dr. Kawashima (DS)
10. Pro Evolution Soccer 2008 (Wii) ...

via Computer and Video Games


A number of parents have expressed concerns over Nintendo creating bad body images after a concerned family member complained that Wii Fit labeled her relative overweight.

"My [relative] came round this weekend and we let her play on our Wii Fit", a member of the DISBoards wrote. "We have all laughed and joked about being told that we're fat and need to lose weight but I was gobsmacked when it told her that she is overweight."

According to the poster, the girl in question is a healthy 4"9 10-year-old who swims, dances and weighs only six stone. "She is solidly built," the poster adds, "but not fat."

But she "was devastated to be called fat," the poster said, "and we had to work hard to convince her that she isn't. I know it is just a game but seriously we already have to worry about young girls starving themselves to look like the magazine models and now we have a game that tells them they're fat."

Shocked forum users responded angrily, spurring the user on to write an email to Nintendo. At the time of writing, they have yet to reply.

We reckon this could make a good story line in an upcoming episode of Hollyoaks. 'Good' by Hollyoaks' standard anyway... ...

via IGN


Last month Square Enix trademarked the title "Chapters of the Chosen" with the United States Patent and Trademark Office. Trademark enthusiasts were abuzz with what this title could be planned for. Was it a new IP? A subtitle for an existing game?

Looks like the answer is "B." The latest additions to the Entertainment Software Ratings Board (ESRB) include Dragon Quest IV: Chapters of the Chosen for the Nintendo DS. The remake of DQIV was released in Japan last November, and this is the first official indication that it will make it overseas.

The original Dragon Quest IV appeared on the NES back in 1992. For the remake, the visuals have been updated and the player now has control of the camera.

As of this writing, Square Enix could not be reached for comment. ...