What’s New

When we announced this tour, many of you took to the PS.Blog comments section and Twitter to try to get your school added to our list of stops. Well, ask and you shall receive! We’ve added many of the schools you requested to our routing, including the University of Arizona, Mizzou, the University of Kansas, and more. You can find an up-to-date list of remaining confirmed schools below, but be sure to check the PS Campus Tour page or our Events tab on Facebook, as we’re still adding schools to the list all the time.

In addition to new schools, we’re also bringing new games to our lineup often. This week we added Bioshock Infinite (WARNING: if you play this game, you will end up buying it). Of course, we like to sprinkle in some competitive spirit, so keep an eye out for daily contests with awesome prizes that range from a PS3 or PS Vita bundle to copies of the games we’re featuring. One of our most popular contests is the MLB 13 Home Run Derby, where we’ll crown a winning school, as well as one nationwide individual champion. Currently, the individual high score belongs to Richard B from CSU San Marcos with 42 home runs, but the overall school leader is the University of Arizona with 1,795! Do you think you and your school can top that?

This will likely be our final PS.Blog update for the Spring tour, but stay connected with us on Twitter at @HeyPlayStation for the latest PlayStation Campus Tour news. Let us know in the comments below what other schools you think we should go to — we’ll do our best to get them added!

Attention music lovers! PlayStation is heading to the Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival on April 12th-14th, and again on April 19th-21st. Come check out unreleased games like Tearaway and Injustice: Gods Among Us, or play new releases like God of War: Ascension and PlayStation All-Stars for a chance to get a VIP Pass upgrade. On top of that, we will be giving away PS3s, PS Vitas, trials for PS Plus and Music Unlimited, as well as free DLC for featured games at the event. Aside from the ability to play awesome games, this will be your only chance to score some unique PlayStation gear.

Some of you might be thinking, “But PlayStation, Coachella has been completely sold out for months. How do you expect me to go and have one of the greatest times of my life?” Well you’re in luck! With the help of Music Unlimited, we are hooking up a couple lucky PlayStation fans with VIP tickets to Coachella. You will have two opportunities to win:

Music Unlimited Playlist Challenge

Starting today, you can go to the PlayStation @ Coachella event page on Facebook and post your personal Coachella playlist from the Music Unlimited catalog. On March 8th, 25 random playlists will be selected for people to vote on. The playlist with the most votes will be featured in the PlayStation footprint at Coachella, and the creator of the playlist will score two VIP tickets to Coachella, including travel and hotel fare. Details and official rules can be found here.

PlayStation Character Challenge

Between March 18th – March 27th, you can post a picture of yourself cosplaying as your favorite PlayStation character on Instagram. If you tag the picture with #PlayStationFan and #CoachellaVIP, you will be entered for a chance to win two VIP tickets to Coachella, as well as a PlayStation Entertainment Pack! Details and official rules can be found here.

Finally, be sure to follow @HeyPlayStation on Twitter for updates on what we’re doing at Coachella. Who knows, there might be even more opportunities to win tickets to the sold out festival there! Good luck everybody. I can’t wait to listen to your playlists and see what creative PlayStation cosplays you come up with!

On top of that, you can get hands-on with some awesome PSN titles like Guacamelee, Ibb and Obb, and Runner 2! And that’s just a taste of what’s to come. We will be adding more of this year’s biggest and most anticipated PS3 and PS Vita games to the lineup over the course of the tour.

If you’re the competitive type, you can test your skills in our daily God of War: Ascension speed run challenge, PlayStation All-Stars tournament, or represent your school in the MLB 13 Move Home Run Derby. And you don’t have to compete to win. There will be plenty of ways to take home some genuine PlayStation goodness – like the God of War: Ascension Legacy Bundle with the Garnet Red PS3, the Classic White PS3 Instant Game Collection Bundle or the PlayStation Vita Instant Game Collection Bundle. To make a long story short, if you play something on the PlayStation Campus Tour, you’ll have the chance to win it. That red PS3 would look awfully good in your dorm room, wouldn’t it?

Finally, everybody who RSVPs on Facebook and shows up will receive a one-month PlayStation Plus trial and their choice of an exclusive, unique discount code that can be redeemed for some serious savings on various PlayStation products.

When we announced the last PlayStation On Campus Tour, many of you voiced that you wanted to see more love for West coast schools – well, ask and you shall receive! This time around we made sure to include some great schools along the Golden Coast in the schedule. Here is a list of the first 11 out of over 40 stops on our tour:

Don’t forget to RSVP to your school on Facebook for detailed info and free PlayStation prizes. If you don’t see your school on the list yet, be sure to check the PlayStation Campus Tour page for updates regularly because we will be adding colleges to the tour frequently. We will also be announcing new stops through @HeyPlayStation on Twitter as they get added.

Tell us which games you’re most excited to play in the comments below, or give us suggestions on what additional schools you think we should go to. Who knows, maybe we’ll drop by! We look forward to seeing all of your game faces on the road.

School is back in session, and while I love my job here at PlayStation, I’d be lying if I said I wasn’t jealous of all of you playing video games in your dorms, getting ready for big home football games, and sleeping till noon. Even though I can’t go back to school this year, PlayStation certainly can! Starting this Thursday, September 20th, we’re launching the PlayStation On Campus Tour, sending two vans packed with PlayStation goodness to college campuses across America. At each stop on tour, we will be rolling out four decked out gaming spaces, each dedicated to an awesome PS3 or PS Vita title:

Battle Royale Ultimate Dorm Room

There’s no better way to relieve the stresses of college than to whomp on your friends with your favorite PlayStation characters. That’s why we’ve created the ultimate gaming dorm room, complete with couches, two 50” TV’s and six PS3s for maximum cathartic healing! The Campus Tour will be one of the only places you can get your hands on PlayStation All-Stars Battle Royale before it comes out in November, so make sure you check out the Battle Royale Ultimate Dorm Room when we come to your school!

Assassin’s Hideaway

Step off your campus and into colonial America, 1775. That’s right, we’ve created an entire gaming space dedicated to Assassin’s Creed III and Assassin’s Creed III: Liberation – two of the most highly anticipated games of the year. Whether you’re new to the franchise or a die-hard fan, I’m positive you will find yourself glued to the screen for these beauties.

PlayStation Stadium

Are you ready for some football? We hope so, because a college tour wouldn’t be complete without paying homage to its great football culture (we’re even crashing a few tailgate parties on this tour). When you step onto the AstroTurf field at PlayStation Stadium, you better bring your ‘A’ game because you’ll need to rep your school and take out your rivals in NCAA Football 13 on PS3. For all you pro football fans out there, we’ll have eight PS Vitas for head-to-head gameplay in Madden NFL 13.

PlayStation Plus Members Club

The fourth and final space in this tour has the largest array of games to play. We’re letting everybody get a taste of what it’s like to be a PlayStation Plus member by showing off all twelve titles in the PS Plus Instant Game Collection. To top it all off, we’re giving everybody who stops by one month of PlayStation Plus for free so you can take the experience home with you, or extend your subscription if you’re already a member.

Not only will you check out the awesome gaming spaces and get hands on with some of the hottest PlayStation titles, you’ll also be able get access to exclusive offers and deals, created specifically for you, the college student. Check here for a list of campuses we’ll be visiting in the first two weeks. We will be adding stops to this list over time, so check back regularly to stay up to date or follow @HeyPlayStation on Twitter for live updates. Also, be sure to RSVP here and show a staff member, because they will hook you up with some awesome PlayStation swag.

Take a break from studying, grab some friends, and come hang out with us!

Attention PlayStation Nation: we’re back with the biggest gaming tournament of the year – the $1 Million EA Sports Challenge Series powered by Virgin Gaming! Last year, we blew the doors off of the sports gaming scene and now we’re giving you another chance to take home huge cash prizes for playing FIFA 13, Madden NFL 13 and NHL 13.

To get a taste of what last year’s experience was like, check out this video recap from the 2012 tournament finals in New York. Last year in NYC, we made legends out of Adam Winster (FIFA 12 Challenge Champion), Tyler Glen (Madden NFL 12 Challenge Champion) and John Grasso (NHL 12 Challenge Champion). These gamers took home life-changing prizes and will be defending their titles in 2013. Bring your best game and you could be crowned this year’s champ.

So How Does it Work?

This year’s tournament structure has been simplified, so even if you’ve never played in a video game tournament before it won’t take you long to get into the action. In fact, it only takes six wins to secure your spot at the live tournament finals taking place in Las Vegas!

1. Online Qualifiers (October 9Tth 2012 – January 1st 2013)
First, with your purchase of FIFA 13, Madden NFL 13 and/or NHL 13 at GameStop, you will receive free entry into the tournament. Next, sign up for an account at VirginGaming.com. Once you have an account and log in, you’ll find a place to put in your code for the game specific challenge that you are interested in. Then you find a match on VirginGaming.com and challenge your opponent in the EA Sports Arena on your PS3. These qualifiers run 24/7 and you only have to win four matches in a row to secure your spot in the semi-finals. But hurry—there are a limited number of seats to be won in the semis.

2. Online Semi-Finals (January 7th and 8th, 2013)
The first 1,024 players to qualify (512 for NHL 13) will compete in scheduled, bracketed tournament play for a spot in the finals. It only takes TWO wins at this stage to move on.

3. Live Finals in Las Vegas (February 9th, 2013)
The top 256 players from the semi-finals (128 for NHL 13) will meet in Las Vegas to compete for cash and enjoy a day of gaming, music and entertainment in this legendary party town.

What You Can Win

Make it to the live tournament finals and you’ll compete for cash prizes up to $140,000. Everyone at the finals will walk away a winner, with a guaranteed minimum cash prize of $500. Here’s a complete rundown of what’s up for grabs:

If you want to learn more, head over to ChallengeSeries.com for full rules and details, plus the latest tournament news, special strategy content to help you improve your game and more.

Ready for a piece of the big prize pool? Then grab your controller, fire up your PS3, and compete to join us in Vegas for the sports gaming party of the year.

I’m excited to announce that the PlayStation Experience is back on tour for 2012 and we have some awesome games and experiences planned for you, our community. For those of you new to the PlayStation Experience, every year we tour the country’s biggest concerts and festivals to show off all of our latest games and gadgets. This is your chance to meet other local PlayStation enthusiasts, compete in your favorite PlayStation titles, and most importantly, get your hands on unreleased games! I guess there are also the live performances to check out too, but who goes to music festivals for that? Especially when you can play:

• LittleBigPlanet Karting
• PlayStation All-Stars Battle Royale
• Starhawk
• Twisted Metal
• MLB 12 The Show
• PixelJunk 4am
• Journey
• Mortal Kombat
• Street Fighter X Tekken
• Soul Calibur V
• Madden 13
• FIFA 13
• NBA 2K13
• NHL 13

…and that’s just the list of games that I can share with you! To top it all off, we will be giving away loads of PlayStation prizes everywhere we go. Trust me when I say, if you love video games and PlayStation, you will definitely want to make your way to the PlayStation Experience. Here’s a list of our confirmed stops:

We’re constantly adding new stops to the tour, so be sure to check the PlayStation Experience page regularly for updates. You can also follow @HeyPlayStation on Twitter for live Tweets from the road as well as other event updates and weekly giveaways.

I hope to see each and every one of your game faces out on the road!