Things rarely stay quiet in the videogames industry for a prolonged period of time, and this week has proven a fine testament to that fact. Indeed, after suffering the aftershock of E3 last week, we naively assumed it’d be some time before things kick up a gear. How wrong we were. Indeed, just this week Konami has lifted the lid on its line-up for August’s Gamescom event, SEGA has let slip that it may actually release Saturn games on PSN, and one of the biggest releases of the year has been delayed (and no, it’s not Gran Turismo 5, thank the lord). With Gamescom and Tokyo Game Show on the horizon, expect a busy couple of months on the news front. See below for this week’s biggest stories.
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Dead Rising 2 delayed in U.S., Europe
Blimey, what a way to start the week. As is likely the case for many of you, Capcom’s zombie sequel remains one of our most eagerly anticipated releases of 2010, though fortunately undead followers, the game has only been pushed back by a month. We’ve heard mumblings around the web that the delay is a result of the developers wanting to polish up the PS3 version of the game, though we advise you lot to take these claims with a pinch of salt. Hopefully, they’re just adding some extra split and polish to both conversions to ensure maximum pleasure in our zombie dismemberment endeavours. Look out for Dead Rising 2 in North America at the tail end of September, with a European release due in early October.
Sony keen on more HD Collections
Now this brightened our day immensely. God of War Collection was a stonking effort on Sony’s part, so we’d welcome the possibility of further HD Collections to the PS3’s vastly growing software library. Obviously the first that springs to mind is the previously rumored Team ICO Collection, which packages two of the PS2’s greatest achievements – namely ICO and Shadow of the Colossus – in one swanky high-definition combo. With Sly Cooper on the way, these are exciting times for anyone who was unlucky enough to miss out on some gaming’s finest efforts from the previous generation of consoles. Bring it on, Sony.
Sony: PS3 is finally profitable
About bloody time too! After nearly four years on the market (at least, in the U.S. and Japan), Sony’s black behemoth is finally turning in a profit for the mighty hardware manufacturer. Obviously the introduction of more cost effective hardware components (specifically, the graphics chips) paid off in the end. Indeed, the only way is up from here on out.
Another Yakuza in development for PS3
There’s three things you can be certain of in life – taxes, death, and SEGA milking the Yakuza cash cow until it’s bone dry. This is all despite the fact we’ve only just got our mitts on a third instalment and Yakuza 4 having barely been out a few months in its native Japan. Oh, and there’s a PSP version on the way. Fortunately, we’re huge followers of the brawler/adventure here at PSU Towers, so this news has got us pumped. Fingers crossed that Yakuza 4 does the business in the West so SEGA will see fit to bring this latest outing to U.S. and UK shores in a few years time.
Rumor – New Tomb Raider coming next Christmas
While the concept of a co-op adventure staring Lara Croft and chum sounds intriguing (see Lara Croft and the Guardian of Light), we have to come clean – the only thing we’re interested in is the next proper instalment in the Tomb Raider franchise. Underworld was, for the most part, a decent enough adventure with some eye-popping set pieces, but it ultimately didn’t quite deliver that quintessential TR experience we were hoping for. From what we’ve read, the next game will apparently turn back the hands of time and place gamers in the shoes of a younger Miss Croft in an adventure that has her raiding a series of tombs in Japan – sounds like a winner to us. Of course, this is all subject to whether or not Eurogamer’s super sleuth sources are on the mark, but it sounds pretty promising to us. A possible Christmas release carries an appropriate sense of nostalgia, too; after all, there was a time back in the late 90s – early 00s that you could expect a new Croft outing every holiday season. Make it happen, Crystal Dynamics.
SEGA considering Saturn ports for PSN/XBL
Perhaps we’re showing our age by expressing our undying love for the beleaguered Saturn console, but this news had us giddy as a high school girl who’s just had the chance of coming face to face with Robert Pattinson. Yep, we got it bad. Sure, the Saturn was pretty much a commercial disaster everywhere outside of Japan, but that didn’t stop it from housing some of the most polished arcade ports of that generation, plus some meaty in-house offerings to boot. Burning Rangers, Panzer Dragon, House of the Dead, Virtua Fighter 2 were all landmark releases in their day, and we’d love to see them make the transition to the digital delights of PSN. In fact, look out for our dedicated feature on this very subject in the coming weeks.
Insomniac would back Ratchet & Clank Collection
We know Sony’s keen on churning out more HD Collections, so the news that developer Insomniac would back a HD revamp of its early Ratchet & Clank outings sounds like a match made in heaven. While the company – who recently announced they would be making the transition to multiplatform territory – stated they wouldn’t be involved in the development of the HD revamps, the team pledged their full support for such a compilation if it were to happen, so hopefully Sony’s taking notes.
inFamous 2 gameplay video is mind blowing
New trailers are always a welcome addition to anyone’s daily news consumption — especially when it’s a trailer on something as positively earth-shattering as inFamous 2. Check it out here. If you like what you see, then maybe this is a good time to pick up the original if you haven’t already done so? You won’t be disappointed.