Welcome to the first in our weekly recap pertaining to all things Inside PlayStation Network. Every MON-FRI, PSU shines the spotlight on a piece of content plucked from the digital delights of Sony’s online service, be it a chunk of DLC, PSOne Classic or regular PSN release. In case you’ve missed out on any of this week’s entries, here’s the chance to catch up and see what titles we dissected under the microscope.
Monday – The Clash: London’s Calling (Rock Band 3 DLC)
If you fancy a slice of quintessential, ear-assaulting 1970s/80s Brit rock, then pioneering punk-rockers The Clash should be right up your street. The group’s political-heavy lyrics combined with their roaring, obstreperous nature made for quite the striking juxtaposition on the music scene, quickly cementing their status as the ‘Thinking Man’s Yobs’ by NME. Much like the Sex Pistols, their no-nonsense attitude immediately endured them to the nation’s youth, elevating the band’s status from cult hit to one of the country’s top touring acts. Their highly lauded effort, London’s Calling, stands shoulder-to-shoulder with the likes of Never Mind the Bollocks as one of the most celebrated punk-rock efforts of our time. As a testament to its popularity, it made it into the top ten on Rolling Stones’ prestigious ‘Top 500 Hundred Albums of all Time’ back in 2003, and has flogged two million copies globally. Fitting it is, then, that The Clash is just the latest in a long line of venerable bands to make the jump to the digital realm with the release of London’s Calling on Rock Band 3 (Click here for full article).
Tuesday – Tekken 2
As one of the most venerable beat ‘em ups to date, Tekken’s remained synonymous with the PlayStation brand since its Genesis way back in 1994. After all, the inaugural game formed part of the lauded launch line-up for Sony’s grey box of tricks, with sequels being churned out every couple of years thereafter. Tekken 2, however, remains unequivocally one of the franchise’s highlights, dwarfed only by the genre-defining third installment. Tekken 5 wasn’t half bad either, mind. But back on track. Regardless of your punch-up preferences, the second game marked the beginning of the golden years for the celebrated series, and unsurprisingly became a solid success upon its release in 1996 (Click here for full article).
Wednesday – Bionic Commando Rearmed 2
Capcom’s attempts to reinvigorate the classic Bionic Commando series have proved a mixed bag to say the least. While the retro-inspired Rearmed proved a colossal success over on PlayStation Network and Xbox LIVE Arcade, last year’s full-blown eponymous console outing didn’t resonate all that well with the gaming public. Let’s not beat around the bush – it flopped. A pity too, as the game managed to create a successful amalgamation of both new and old ideas, making for a compelling Commando package. It wasn’t perfect by any means, but offered a peak at the potential direction the IP could have taken had it not nose-dived at retail. Still, after taking a step back to survey the wreckage, Capcom’s licked its wounds and returned to the 2D landscape with a follow up to 2008’s Bionic Commando Rearmed – titled, rather unimaginatively, Bionic Commando Rearmed 2 (Click here for full article).
Thursday – The Last Guy
Who would have thought man’s saviour would end up being some reclusive chap from the Himalayan Mountains? As inconceivable as this may seem, that’s exactly the picture painted by The Last Guy; a delightful search and rescue title for PlayStation Network released back in summer 2008. Stepping into the shoes of the eponymous have-a-go-hero, the game tasks players with the seemingly insurmountable task rescuing hundreds of civilians after the globe’s been overthrown by zombies. The Last Guy makes use of Google Earth to recreate 14 intricately detailed maps, ranging from cities including Los Angeles, London and San Francisco. Your objective is simple: avoid the undead hordes and safely escort the copious amounts of survivors back to the evacuation zone. If you happen to come into contact with one of the creatures, however, then it’s the end for our pint-sized hero (Click here for full article).
Friday – Castle Crashers
Castle Crashers had been a long time coming upon its release in mid-2010. Having previously been made up for grabs on Xbox LIVE back in 2008, many PS3 owners were starting to wonder if developer The Behemoth would ever lower the drawbridge on a PSN release. Fortunately they did, and the two-year gap did little to stunt the game’s success on Sony’s online service, with the medieval romp racking up over 181,000 downloads as of December 2010. Not too shabby. A critical darling, Castle Crashers tells the tale of four Knights tasked with overthrowing an unscrupulous Wizard chap, who’s ruffled a few feathers by stealing a mystical gem and capturing several princesses to boot (Click here for full article).
Tune in again Monday as we kick off yet another week of poking around Inside PlayStation Network.