Kingdom Hearts: 358/2 Days for Nintendo DS
-appears to star Roxas from Kingdom Hearts II
-looks like there is four-player simultaneous play using members of Organization XIII.
-It will be in full 3D.

Kingdom Hearts: Coded for Mobile Game:
-Looks like it's for Japanese cell phones.
-It stars the main characters. (Sora and Co.)
-Seems to be set between the first and second PlayStation 2 titles. [Bits like this are speculation from the presentation of course]

Kingdom Hearts: Birth by Sleep for PSP:
-Looks like a singleplayer game similar to the Playstation 2 games.
-This is not Kingdom Hearts III.
-1UP is guessing the protagonist of this game is a young man that looks a lot like Zack from Final Fantasy 7. KHInsider is guessing they mean Terra from the Famitsu scans today.

TOKYO--On the fourth floor of Sony's Japanese offices in the posh district of Minato-ku, the PlayStation 3 maker held a party Wednesday night to show off 30 of the PS3's upcoming games to an audience of international journalists.

Phil Harrison, briefly not praising MotorStorm.

The company remained tight-lipped about what to expect in tomorrow's Sony Computer Entertainment keynote address, which starts at 10:30 a.m. Tokyo time on Thursday (2:30 a.m. BST Thursday, 6:30 p.m. PDT Wednesday). However, speculation is widespread that SCEI CEO Kaz Hirai will use his presentation to unveil a rumble-enabled Dual Shock 3 for the PS3, amongst other announcements.

At tonight's event, though, the atmosphere was informal. Informal enough, in fact, for GameSpot to corner Sony Worldwide Studios president and World's number one MotorStorm fan Phil Harrison over a cold drink. He politely discussed the constant comparisons of the PS3 and Wii, and how Sony plans to move on from the negative press the company has attracted over its latest console's bumpy ride at retail.

GameSpot UK: So can you talk to us about what's going to be announced during Kaz Hirai's keynote tomorrow?

Phil Harrison: No. And I wouldn't remember anyway. [Laughs.]

GS UK: We keep seeing stories from Japan about the Wii outselling the PlayStation 3 here 3-to-1 or 5-to-1 or whatever. Does that worry you?

PH: I'm not worried about it, no. Obviously I would like it to be the other way round, but it's not really fair to compare two products that serve different markets and are at different price points. So, it's not something that concerns me when you look around at a place like this and see the depth and quality of talent in games we've got coming through, so I'm pretty happy, actually.

GS UK: So you think it's unfair that people keep comparing the Wii and the PS3 when the Wii is so much cheaper?

PH: Yes. I don't know what the analogy is. If I make an analogy I'll probably make an unreasonable analogy, so I won't bother.

GS UK: Let's talk about the new PlayStation Portable. Why was this launched this summer?

PH: Constant improvement and innovation in design is what drives us, so why wouldn't we pass on to the gamer the advantages we can have in terms of making something smaller and lighter. In a handheld device, something that is smaller and lighter is a pretty highly regarded feature, and people seem to like it, so I think it's cool. Have you actually held one?

GS UK: Yes.

PH: People at E3 were going, "Is there anything in this? Is this just a mock-up or is this the final one?" Yep, it's the real one.

GS UK: Nintendo's strategy right now seems to be to widen the gaming audience and bring more widely appealing things to the market like educational games, and even non-game software. Any plans to do something similar?

PH: Since you are UK-based, you will know how influential games like EyeToy and SingStar and Buzz are, not just [to] the PlayStation 2 format, but growing the market generally cross-category. So, we're continuing to work on those for the PlayStation 2, we're bringing them all to PlayStation 3 in new, networked, innovative ways, which you saw at [the Leipzig] Games Convention with SingStar on the PlayStation 3 and Buzz! TV--which is going to be phenomenal with the ability of user-generated content for quizzes.

GS UK: I've been wondering about that. What if someone puts the wrong answer in?

PH: Then there will be a way to complain about that and rank it lower, which will then push it down in the recommendation engine to a lower ranking. It's all about the community. And I think there's going to be a button where you can actually challenge an answer.

GS UK: For the PS3, would you say it makes more sense to you to just focus on the hardcore gaming market?

PH: I think if you look back at the history of our platforms, they will all follow very similar trends where your initial audience is very different to the audience you have buying into the console seven, eight, or nine years later. So, we try to make software which is slightly ahead of that trend, software that enables younger users or new users to come in. I think what characterises PlayStation 3 is there's actually more variety and [a] more diverse genre mix that's available on the PS3 earlier in the life cycle than we saw on PS2 or PSone. So I think we're pushing into new areas more quickly than we've done before.

GS UK: Peripherals seem to be increasingly important. Have you guys got any plans to make any innovative new peripherals for the PS3?

TOKYO--On the fourth floor of Sony's Japanese offices in the posh district of Minato-ku, the PlayStation 3 maker held a party Wednesday night to show off 30 of the PS3's upcoming games to an audience of international journalists.

Phil Harrison, briefly not praising MotorStorm.

The company remained tight-lipped about what to expect in tomorrow's Sony Computer Entertainment keynote address, which starts at 10:30 a.m. Tokyo time on Thursday (2:30 a.m. BST Thursday, 6:30 p.m. PDT Wednesday). However, speculation is widespread that SCEI CEO Kaz Hirai will use his presentation to unveil a rumble-enabled Dual Shock 3 for the PS3, amongst other announcements.

At tonight's event, though, the atmosphere was informal. Informal enough, in fact, for GameSpot to corner Sony Worldwide Studios president and World's number one MotorStorm fan Phil Harrison over a cold drink. He politely discussed the constant comparisons of the PS3 and Wii, and how Sony plans to move on from the negative press the company has attracted over its latest console's bumpy ride at retail.

GameSpot UK: So can you talk to us about what's going to be announced during Kaz Hirai's keynote tomorrow?

Phil Harrison: No. And I wouldn't remember anyway. [Laughs.]

GS UK: We keep seeing stories from Japan about the Wii outselling the PlayStation 3 here 3-to-1 or 5-to-1 or whatever. Does that worry you?

PH: I'm not worried about it, no. Obviously I would like it to be the other way round, but it's not really fair to compare two products that serve different markets and are at different price points. So, it's not something that concerns me when you look around at a place like this and see the depth and quality of talent in games we've got coming through, so I'm pretty happy, actually.

GS UK: So you think it's unfair that people keep comparing the Wii and the PS3 when the Wii is so much cheaper?

PH: Yes. I don't know what the analogy is. If I make an analogy I'll probably make an unreasonable analogy, so I won't bother.

GS UK: Let's talk about the new PlayStation Portable. Why was this launched this summer?

PH: Constant improvement and innovation in design is what drives us, so why wouldn't we pass on to the gamer the advantages we can have in terms of making something smaller and lighter. In a handheld device, something that is smaller and lighter is a pretty highly regarded feature, and people seem to like it, so I think it's cool. Have you actually held one?

GS UK: Yes.

PH: People at E3 were going, "Is there anything in this? Is this just a mock-up or is this the final one?" Yep, it's the real one.

GS UK: Nintendo's strategy right now seems to be to widen the gaming audience and bring more widely appealing things to the market like educational games, and even non-game software. Any plans to do something similar?

PH: Since you are UK-based, you will know how influential games like EyeToy and SingStar and Buzz are, not just [to] the PlayStation 2 format, but growing the market generally cross-category. So, we're continuing to work on those for the PlayStation 2, we're bringing them all to PlayStation 3 in new, networked, innovative ways, which you saw at [the Leipzig] Games Convention with SingStar on the PlayStation 3 and Buzz! TV--which is going to be phenomenal with the ability of user-generated content for quizzes.

GS UK: I've been wondering about that. What if someone puts the wrong answer in?

PH: Then there will be a way to complain about that and rank it lower, which will then push it down in the recommendation engine to a lower ranking. It's all about the community. And I think there's going to be a button where you can actually challenge an answer.

GS UK: For the PS3, would you say it makes more sense to you to just focus on the hardcore gaming market?

PH: I think if you look back at the history of our platforms, they will all follow very similar trends where your initial audience is very different to the audience you have buying into the console seven, eight, or nine years later. So, we try to make software which is slightly ahead of that trend, software that enables younger users or new users to come in. I think what characterises PlayStation 3 is there's actually more variety and [a] more diverse genre mix that's available on the PS3 earlier in the life cycle than we saw on PS2 or PSone. So I think we're pushing into new areas more quickly than we've done before.

GS UK: Peripherals seem to be increasingly important. Have you guys got any plans to make any innovative new peripherals for the PS3?

TOKYO--Developers for the Nintendo Wii seem determined to get gamers up and off the sofa while they play games.

First there was Wii Sports, although that may be relatively docile compared to Wii Fit, which was announced at this year's E3 Media and Business Summit.

And now there's an even more energetic Wii game coming to the console--with a working title of Active Life: Athletic World for the western world.

Called Family Trainer: Athletic World in Japan, the Wii-exclusive game uses a special custom mat controller, and will feature a series of mini-games for one or two players.

Namco Bandai then demonstrated some of the mini-games at the company's offices in Shinagawa. The first was called River Rapid, and gamers use the Wii remote like an oar to paddle left or right, which steers the boat through the rapids.

Other games shown briefly included a snowboarding game, a two-player log jumping game, and a barrel jumping game. Players use the mat to run on the spot, which makes characters run, jump, and move around.

Active Life: Athletic World will be released in 2008, although pricing details have yet to be confirmed.

Namco Bandai also showed off some new levels of Ace Combat 6: Fires of Liberation, and a trailer of the weapon-based brawler Soul Caliber IV. The new Soul Caliber IV video introduced a brand new character, Hilda, who was dressed head to toe in armour. The title is being developed for the Xbox 360 and the PlayStation 3, and is due for release in 2008. Other games shown in the presentation video were DragonBall Z Budokai Tenkaichi 3, and Time Crisis 4.

For all the latest news and previews from the Land of the Rising Sun, be sure to check out GameSpot's complete coverage of the 2007 Tokyo Game Show.

While the flesh-and-blood-and-fur protagonist Ratchet has always had top-billing in Sony's Ratchet & Clank series of games, the endearing robot sidekick Clank has ironically given the series much of its heart. Now Clank is getting a chance to shine on his own, as developer High Impact Games is hard at work on Secret Agent Clank, a solo adventure starring the diminutive deadpan droid.

"And that, my friends, is why you never juggle fire while decanting kerosene!"

At the game's outset, Ratchet stands accused of a crime he didn't commit, and Clank takes it upon himself to clear his friend's good name. With Ratchet behind bars, Clank dons his suave spy suit and proceeds to test his action hero mettle. The game features a variety of levels, from action-heavy sequences where Clank uses cufflink bombs and other spy gadgets to clear enemies in his path to rhythm-based minigames that let him pass through scripted sequences unharmed.

It wouldn't be in keeping with the Clank's modest personality to hog the entire spotlight, so gamers can expect to take control of legendary blowhard Captain Qwark, as well as Ratchet himself in several levels.

Secret Agent Clank is set for release in 2008. For more on the game, check out GameSpot's hands-on impressions, direct from the Tokyo Game Show.

Square Enix's Tokyo Game Show presentation is currently going down in Japan and we've got the first details on the new Kingdom Hearts title.

Kingdom Hearts: Birth by Sleep for PSP looks to be a single-player adventure in the vein of the PlayStation 2 iterations, though not "Kingdom Hearts III." Birth by Sleep's protagonist was not explicitly named in the presentation, but he looked an awful lot like Zack of Final Fantasy VII/Crisis Core fame.

For some reason I have put the guts of a wireless Xbox 360 controller inside of an original, huge, 2001-model Xbox 1 controller - commonly referred to as “the Duke”, though what it has in common with John Wayne is beyond me.


Batteries. Much more useful up there than the memory slots or whatever the heck it was for.

Believe it or not this mod is suggested to me every once in a while so I figured I might as well take a crack at it and see what happens. It’s not often you get to work on a controller so large it’s classified by NASA as a low-level Earth-orbit object. For this reason, during the modding, I was careful not to drop it as this would have created an impact crater sufficient to snuff out all life on Earth and the dinosaurs, whichever comes first. Aerosmith and Bruce Willis were standing by to save the day in case of mishaps.

All ripping aside, it ended up being about as difficult as the PS360 controller, nothing I couldn’t handle. Since I did this on my own accord it is unclaimed and up for grabs. Best price gets it, so make an offer! Could ship just in time for Halo 3.

Based off the difficulty of this mod (harder than I would have liked) and the number of other projects I have going on I probably won’t duplicate this anytime soon, so first come, only served. More pics and a video below.


It's more than meets the eye. Especially in weight.

Looks quite normal from the front, except for the added guide button (between/above back and start) and the headset jack at the base. Couldn’t forget that, what’s trash-talking without one?


Back is also fairly normal, except for a small, recessed “sync” button below where the cord used to come out. Remember, if a burglar or elephant is in your house you can throw this controller at them for an easy knockout. (See your local state laws before carrying it in your purse, however)


Click here to download a short, yet thrilling, video of this amazingly backwards controller in action. And no, I don’t have an HDTV set yet, sorry. Think of it, in just minutes a day, by lifting and playing with this controller, you can burn off twice the calories of the regular Xbox 360 alone! Now how much would you pay?