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Developer Behind The Unfinished Swan Tease Next Project

Submitted by Ian Fisher on Wed, 03/20/2013 - 17:39
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The developer behind one of the more unique games to come out last year is slowly getting the hype gears moving for their next title.  After wowing PS3 users with an abstract but addicting game in the form of The Unfinished Swan, the team at Giant Sparrow has revealed that they’re in the early stages of their follow-up title.

Ovosonico Teams Up With Sony To Produce New IP

Submitted by Ian Fisher on Tue, 03/19/2013 - 08:16
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Sony is once again teaming up with a talented indie studio to develop an original title for the PlayStation.  Today the indie based firm of Ovosonico announced that they’ve signed a contract with Sony Computer Entertainment Worldwide Studios Europe to release an original IP for yet to be revealed PlayStation platforms.

God of War: Ascension [Review]

Submitted by Ian Fisher on Sat, 03/16/2013 - 07:51
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Overall Feeling: 

Once again technically impressive, the ever amazing visuals can’t save God of War: Ascension from being a rather tepid and disappointing game.  Lacking a true sense of soul and direction, Ascension seems to be all over the place with pacing that never finds its footing, combat that is riddled with small issues that prevent it from feeling refined or evolved, and a story that literally does nothing to advance or deepen the existing God of War mythos.  Aside from a surprisingly deep and fun multiplayer mode, this latest entry in the God of War series sadly shows major franchise fatigue that will likely have the biggest fans of Kratos disappointed with what has been delivered to them.

The Pros: 

+ Beautifully rendered worlds with varied art design.
+ Set-piece moments are impressive for their sheer size and scope.
+ Voice acting is solid as always, even in the case of Kratos being scaled back.
+ Multiplayer mode is implemented well and is rather addicting.

The Cons: 

- Pacing feels uneven and in some cases comes across as padded to lengthen the experience.
- Story is disappointing as it fails to expand the lore and further build up Kratos as a character.
- Combat feels uneven due to weak sub-systems and frustrating enemy habits.
- A lot of the puzzles and even the boss battles feel like they’re on autopilot since there’s no spirit to them.
- Sound design is horrendous and the soundtrack is lackluster compared to the works of Gerard K. Marino.

ShogunGamer.com Rating : 
7

The ever fierce warrior that is Kratos has returned for battle once again, yet this time the adventure he embarks on isn’t as memorable as his past efforts. As gamers I think we always have a lingering fear in the back of our minds that one of our favorite franchises may grow tiring, even if it maintains a level of quality that puts other titles to shame.  Rarely do we see top-tier games fall into a rut of things seeming complacent, but with God of War: Ascension such a thing is apparent in a game that despite the stunning visuals feels a bit stale and simply tired.

Diggs Nightcrawler Will Soon Arrive On Sony's Wonderbook

Submitted by Ian Fisher on Mon, 03/04/2013 - 13:10
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The next title for Sony’s unique Wonderbook device has finally been revealed. While a few titles and partners have been previously revealed as part of the Wonderbook initiative, such as the BBC and Disney, Sony has nonetheless been quiet on the matter after the release of Wonderbook: Book of Spells, which despite its magical premise failed to gather much of an audience in the North American market.

New Cast Member Announced For Beyond: Two Souls + Release Date

Submitted by Ian Fisher on Fri, 03/01/2013 - 11:05
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Since being unveiled at E3 last year details on Beyond: Two Souls have been rather scarce.  Sony has shown the new game from Quantic Dream here and there, but we’ve been missing on key announcements such as the remaining cast and when the game would finally grace us with its presence. Now Sony has announced a key actor set to appear in Beyond as well as when we can finally pop it into our PlayStation 3.

Gran Turismo 6 May Not Appear On PlayStation 4 [Rumor]

Submitted by Ian Fisher on Thu, 02/28/2013 - 08:37
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Something could be amiss in the world of Gran Turismo which may not please the many members of the racing elite.  After the stumbling that Gran Turismo 5 went through in part to a shoddy online infrastructure and gamers being less than happy about certain elements, the next installment in Polyphony Digital’s ode to racing may arrive without the next-gen sheen that we all expected it would.

Sly Cooper: Thieves in Time [Review]

Submitted by Ian Fisher on Wed, 02/27/2013 - 07:56
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Overall Feeling: 

Opting not to re-invent the series into something it isn’t, Sly Cooper: Thieves in Time instead takes a few side paths that lead to a game which feels a bit muddled and unfocused compared to past installments in the series.  The new element of providing gameplay variety in the form of Sly’s descendants is nice, though it ultimately doesn’t add much since the game feels very linear and not as skillful as the series once was.  Developer Sanzaru Games has done a nice job of continuing the work they started in the Sly Collection in retaining the vibe originally created by Sucker Punch, but if we’re lucky to receive another Sly game I hope they stick to the basics instead of throwing in half a dozen elements that don’t work well together.

The Pros: 

+ The classic Sly banter is still present in well written dialog.
+ With a fresh coat of paint applied to it the graphics and art style are still dazzling.
+ Controls feel tight since platforming as a master thief is still accessible.

The Cons: 

- Certain mini-games don’t work that well as they disrupt the flow of everything.
- Platforming sections are extremely brief and limited in their scope.
- Missions feel too restrictive and have a similar tone to them.
- Load times are long both on the PS3 and PS Vita versions.
- Some characters fall a bit flat in their execution thanks to iffy writing and poor conceptualization.

ShogunGamer.com Rating : 
6

Expectations can be an absolutely evil thing when you think about it. While it’s almost human nature for all of us to get excited about something, hyping ourselves up too much often results in one thing: disappointment.  Every now and then our feelings about a game will be justified in a positive way, but more often than not we find ourselves yearning for more and wishing things were different once we finally play a game. I know I felt such things as I played Sly Cooper: Thieves in Time as the game sadly failed to live up to the immediate magic of the past entries in the series.

The Evolution and Maturity Of Sony With The PlayStation 4

Submitted by Ian Fisher on Wed, 02/20/2013 - 22:37
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Yesterday Sony decided that being first does matter since they opted to show us their hand, or at least a partial glimpse of it, with their reveal of the PlayStation 4.  It was bound to happen at some point, but after months of rumors, speculation, and the internal hopes that we all had Sony thought it was best to get the jump on the next-generation as opposed to tip-toeing around it until the presumed mega-event that is E3.

LittleBigPlanet 3 Reportedly In Development With New Studio [Rumor]

Submitted by Ian Fisher on Thu, 02/07/2013 - 13:34
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The world of LittleBigPlanet may continue from an unlikely source based on a new rumor.  While LBP creator Media Molecule may have parted ways with the world of imagination in favor of new IPs such as Tearaway, Sony is nonetheless focused on keeping things going - even if it means changing developers.

The Studio Conundrum Of Sony

Submitted by Ian Fisher on Tue, 02/05/2013 - 12:37
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Seeing things evolve and change over time is expected since it’s part of our culture.  Such evolutionary changes are of course present in the world of business since consumer tastes or hot trends will often dictate how things are both created and presented to the masses, sometimes resulting in the next big thing surfacing or an embarrassing flop being thrown our way which won’t be forgotten any time soon.  Companies doing the things they do may forever remain mysterious and perhaps unpredictable to us, but in the case of Sony the company is almost making a notorious name for thems

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