VampireG’s Blog

Sony Computer Entertainment Inc. (SCEI) announced today that it will expand the Closed Beta testing for PLAYSTATION®Home in Summer 2008, inviting a further number of registrants from the PLAYSTATION®3 (PS3®) users. Following completion of the Expanded Closed Beta test, the PLAYSTATION Home Open Beta service will commence in Fall 2008.

“We understand that we are asking PS3 and prospective PS3 users to wait a bit longer, but we have come to the conclusion that we need more time to refine the service to ensure a more focused gaming entertainment experience than what it is today,” said Kazuo Hirai, President and Group CEO, Sony Computer Entertainment Inc. “Our overarching objective is to provide users with new gaming experiences that are available only on PLAYSTATION Home. Spending more time on the development and on the Closed Beta testing reaffirms our commitment to bringing a quality service, maintaining the PlayStation® tradition.”

The PLAYSTATION Home Open Beta service that will become available in Fall 2008 will be built around providing new and fun community gaming experiences.

Details of the Closed Beta testing features, registration for the test and the opening of the service will be announced as they become available.

Konami Digital Entertainment has announced the official title of its first Silent Hill game for PLAYSTATION®3 and Xbox 360. Entitled Silent Hill: Homecoming, the game will be released end of September this year across Europe.

The sixth installment in the classic video games series, Silent Hill: Homecoming introduces another protagonist to the mythos. The story follows Alex Shepherd, returning to his hometown of Shepherd’s Glen to investigate the sudden disappearance of his brother. From Shepherd’s Glen to Silent Hill, Alex must face the darkest of horrors in order to find his brother. Struggling with his own grip on reality, Alex must unravel the mystery behind his nightmares, discover the truth behind his brother’s disappearance, and confront the evil lurks in the seemingly empty streets of Silent Hill.

Homecoming is the first Silent Hill title for the new wave of ‘next generation’ consoles, featuring all-new graphics that bring the fear and terror of Silent Hill alive like never before. Alex must survive attacks from the misshapen denizens of the town using an all-new enhanced combat system that provides a wide array of attacks and counters. Along the way, Alex will encounter a variety of weapons to battle these horrific monsters and must also solve deadly puzzles as he uncovers the darkest secrets of Silent Hill.

Silent Hill: Homecoming also features an all-new soundtrack by acclaimed series composer Akira Yamaoka.

Here are some Xbox 360 Screens to get you excited!

Ubisoft, one of the world’s largest video game publishers, today announced the imminent release of a fully playable demo for Haze, the new first-person shooter set in a harsh future where war is never quite what it seems. Coming exclusively to the PLAYSTATION® Network in early May, this playable demo will give gamers a taste of not only the single-player campaign in Haze, but will also allow up to four-player, drop-in drop-out co-op play online. Developed by shooter experts Free Radical, creators of the critically acclaimed TimeSplitters® series, Haze is scheduled for release exclusively on the PLAYSTATION®3 entertainment system on 23rd May 2008.

Take a look at this brand-new screenshot from Haze to get a sneak peek at what’s in store for gamers when the playable demo drops in early May. Single-player campaign or four-player co-op…just name your poison. It is nearly time to get your fix…

Leading official strategy guide publisher, BradyGames^TM hitches a ride with Rockstar Games to produce Grand Theft Auto IV^TM Official Strategy Guide – the only publication to guarantee you won’t miss a thing in Liberty City.

Official strategy guide expert, BradyGames today announces it has been working exclusively with Rockstar Games on the Grand Theft Auto IV Official Strategy Guide – the ultimate accessory to the year’s most highly anticipated game. Published by Dorling Kindersley, for PAL regions, the guide, which is the only choice for gamers looking to discover everything Liberty City has to offer, will be released the same day as the game on 29th April 2008, with an RRP of £12.99.

Read more…

Konami Digital Entertainment announced Metal Gear Online Premiere Beta for Kojima Productions’ online epic.

Konami Digital Entertainment has announced its plans for a public beta program across Europe for its forthcoming Metal Gear Online title for PLAYSTATION®3. Konami will release Metal Gear Online Premiere Beta via the PlayStation Store from April 17th, with online tests running from April 21st through May 6th. An all-new Metal Gear title specifically designed as a multi-player online experience, Metal Gear Online will be released worldwide as part of Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of the Patriots on June 12th.

The beta program will offer players a unique chance to sample the innovative multi-player experience of Metal Gear Online, which emphasizes cooperative team-based play. Those downloading the beta will be invited to explore two maps – “Blood Bath” and “Groznyi Grad” – each of which requires unique strategies in order to achieve victory.

Metal Gear Online will launch as part of Guns of the Patriots in June as a Starter Pack, comprising five unique stages: “Ambush Alley,” where trenches and sandbags litter an arena built for close and medium range combat; “Blood Bath,” a two-tier battle setting; and “Groznyi Grad,” the expansive Shagohod development complex from Metal Gear Solid 3: Snake Eater which features human catapults that propel players to different areas of the environment. Rounding out the five stage set are the dusty, Middle Eastern alleyways found in Guns of the Patriots entitled “Midtown Maelstrom,” and the rooftop settings of “Urban Ultimatum.” Konami is committed to the release of additional Expansion Packs to be released throughout the year.

Up to 16 people can play simultaneously, with game worlds created using Guns of the Patriots’s incredible 3D engine. Retaining the classic stealth combat gameplay of the Metal Gear series, players are dropped in a series of war zones wherein different challenges await. Five game modes await players on stages that span the globe and the history of MGS: Deathmatch, Team Deathmatch, Capture and Base and Sneaking missions. Additional information on Metal Gear Online and the beta program can be found at www.konami-mgo.com.

Ok so, is anyone else getting really pissed off with the lack of games being released for the PS3? The killer titles such as Kill-zone 2, MGS, Home etc have yet again been delayed. I can understand there is some marketing bullshit taking place here!

Microsoft for example have announced that Gears 2 is being released in the latter part of the year and literally that week Kill-zone 2 gets pushed back to roughly the same time.

Yes I appreciate that games such as COD4 and Rainbow 6 Vegas 2 have been released, but the PS3 games that I went a bought a PS3 for are yet still to come out and seem to be constantly delayed.

I have recently purchased GT5 Prologue which is a great looking game but lacks any kind of punch til the real thing come out in 2009.

Welcome to Paradise! EA today released a fully explorable slice of the award-winning racing game, Burnout Paradise.

Available now at the PLAYSTATION®STORE and XBOX LIVE™ MARKETPLACE, the downloadable demo will allow players to experience a piece of Paradise City before the game hits retail stores in the UK on January 25, 2008.

Discover jumps, billboards and smashable targets all over Motor City, Big Surf Beach and Ocean View in search of the fastest Burnout Route in the Hunter Cavalry car. Also, attempt your shot at a race and check out the all-new Stunt Run mode. If you’re online, invite up to three friends into your game and connect with them instantly using the EasyDrive online system. Once online, players can work cooperatively to complete three FreeBurn challenges or simply smash each other up and grab their Burnout Mugshots with the PLAYSTATION®Eye and Xbox LIVE™ Vision cameras.

The development team at Criterion pushes the boundaries to make each Burnout game stands on its own – reinventing the franchise with every iteration. The Paradise experience is all about freedom and exploration. The game has been designed to embrace speed, freedom, social online play and spectacular crashing, but now with all new modes, a completely open world and events at every intersection.

So make action your middle name and take to the streets of Paradise City.

Found some cool GTA IV images on the press release site I use hence the “GP” stamp on them, as I am far to tight to pay for their premium service to get rid of watermarks just to upload images to a hobby site!

The images show a little more of the game also, more boats etc.

Anyways thought I would share them with you, you may have already seen them, but hey! This game is really starting to make me feel  like it is a must buy when it finally comes out.

Image below!

• GTA IV Image 1
• GTA IV Image 2
• GTA IV Image 3
• GTA IV Image 4
• GTA IV Image 5
• GTA IV Image 6

I am now officially excited about this game after seeing the latest trailer!

If they keep the free roaming and the game looks and plays as good as the trailer it is going to be amazing.

Shame we have to wait until April next year for it. I know the debate will begin soon on whether to buy it on PS3 or Xbox 360?

For those of you that have Warhawk for the PS3, you will be happy to hear that the first expansion pack is coming next month! The press release is as follows:

Announcing Operation: Omega Dawn
Get a brand new map and a new aircraft: the awesome KT-424 Combat Dropship.

All this in one download from PLAYSTATION®NetworkThe battle began this August when Warhawk™ went online on PLAYSTATION®Network (PSN). Since then, the fighting has spanned the globe as PLAYSTATION®3 (PS3™) gamers of all nationalities battle for supremacy in this world of multiplayer military confrontation. Whether you’re fending for yourself or enlisting in a team of Eucadian or Chernovan forces to wage war on foot, at the controls of a tank or from the cockpit of the fearsome Warhawk, there’s non-stop action ahead in Warhawk – and it’s about to get even better with the PSN release of Operation: Omega Dawn, the first downloadable Warhawk expansion pack exclusively available from PLAYSTATION®Store. Operation: Omega Dawn delivers a new gameplay experience that expands the title’s strategic gameplay elements by offering a new world to explore and introducing a unique aircraft to the Warhawk universe: the awesome KT-424 Combat Dropship.

With Operation: Omega Dawn, the war between the Eucadians and the Chernovans forces continues as the two countries fight to control the high-tech facilities of a critical new battlefield – the Omega Factory. The battle takes place in an entirely new world - an industrial night-time setting where players will fight through five new layouts of advanced building complexes and huge industrial towers. The new map supports all existing game modes – including Team Deathmatch, Zone Mode and Capture the Flag – and is the largest combat zone to date for Warhawk!

But that’s not all; no new battlefield would be complete without a new piece of kit, and Operation: Omega Dawn comes complete with a serious toy which will enhance the already intense Warhawk experience: the KT-424 Combat Dropship. You’ll activate the vehicle once you gain control of one of the many weapons factories on the world; once you have it, you’re in charge of an advanced aircraft capable of carrying seven soldiers and a ground vehicle at once. The KT-424 Combat Dropship transports 1 pilot, 6 soldiers and 1 ground vehicle; and features a deadly new weapon – the MBEC-3 Heavy Support Cannon. You’ll have loads of opportunity to take full advantage of the new KT-424 Combat Dropship because the new world is full of vertical gameplay which integrates ship decks, raised platforms, and factory rooftops accessible only by airborne deployment.

Are you ready for Operation: Omega Dawn? Only the fiercest, most visionary and most disciplined teams of soldiers can hope to carry the day. We’ll see you there – locked and loaded - on PSN this December.

Operation: Omega Dawn pack features:

Set at night for added impact and tension, the Operation: Omega Dawn pack for Warhawk™ features an enhanced level of teamwork, tactics and coordinated aerial assaults with the new KT-424 Combat Dropship.

• Omega Factory battlefield includes 5 new map layouts featuring advanced building complexes and huge industrial towers.
• KT-424 Combat Dropship transports 1 pilot, 6 soldiers and 1 ground vehicle; and features a deadly new weapon – the MBEC-3 Heavy Support Cannon.
• The 5 large layouts from the original battlefields have been modified to include the KT-424 Combat Dropship.
• All this in one single download from PLAYSTATION Network this December