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This week’s show is guest-hosted by the dashing co-founders of Gaijin Games, creators of the celebrated Bit.Trip series. In our new chat, we discuss the origins of Bit.Trip and this week’s release of Bit.Trip Presents: Runner2 Future Legend of Rhythm Alien, out now on PSN (with a 20% discount for PlayStation Plus members for a limited time). Then Assassin’s Creed IV: Black Flag‘s Mission Director Ashraf Ismail tells us why it’s a pirate’s life for him in our discussion on Ubisoft Montreal’s latest epic. Plus: The new PSN releases for March 12th, listener questions and comments, and a (farm) fresh selection of new voicemails.

Send us questions and tips: blogcast@playstation.sony.com

The Cast

• Sid Shuman – PlayStation Social Media Manager
• Nick Suttner – PlayStation Account Support Manager
• Alex Neuse – Gaijin Games Co-Founder
• Mike Roush – Gaijin Games Co-Founder

[Editor’s note: PSN game release dates are subject to change without notice. Game details are gathered from press releases from their individual publishers and/or ESRB rating descriptions.]

• Thanks to Cory Schmitz for our beautiful logo and Dormilón for our rad theme song and show music. Special thanks to Astro Gaming headsets for providing audio gear.

Being a small developer like Gaijin Games can sometimes force us to take things a bit more slowly, and this is why we are both apologizing for taking so long to start making games for PlayStation 3, and why we’re hoping you’ll welcome us with big ol’ greasy hugs when we get there. You see, we have something very special with Runner2, and we’re incredibly excited to share it with you on PSN on March 5th.

Also, if you’re brave and keep reading, you might find a little nugget of gold at the end of this blog post…

The Magic of Runner2

While working on the original BIT.TRIP series, we knew we had something special, and we loved making those six games. But it wasn’t until all was said and done and we had time to reflect on the mess we’d made when we realized that BIT.TRIP RUNNER was one of the funnest projects we’d ever worked on, and as we contemplated our next steps, we looked at each other and thought, “You know, I bet we could murder peoples’ fun-glands with a sequel to this beaut.”

But we didn’t want to do a chintzy sequel that felt like more of the same. We wanted to go in a whole new direction while retaining the whimsy of the first game that we loved so much. Mike came up with a fantastic new art style reminiscent of classic cartoons, while Alex worked on new, subtle design elements. Once we pitched everything to the team, we had an epic brainstorming session and everyone was on board.

Top it off with incredible cutscenes narrated by the inimitable Charles Martinet, a handful of unbelievable characters, and a beat you can’t deny, and we think we landed somewhere special.

Finally in bed with Sony

After all these years, we’re incredibly excited to spread our wingflaps and venture from familiar realms and dive headfirst into the mysterious waters known as PSN. We’ve long fantasized about making a PlayStation 3 game (laserlife anyone?), and with Runner2, the choice to expand our development to the platform was obvious. It’s a new game in the BIT.TRIP franchise, with a new look, and with a new appeal. For a brand new audience, it seems like a great point of entry to a series of games previously unavailable on the platform.

Living Mi Vita Loca

We are proud to announce that Gaijin Games will be bringing BIT.TRIP Presents… Runner2: Future Legend Of Rhythm Alien to PlayStation Vita. PS Vita is a platform that all of us at Gaijin Games adore, so getting Runner2 on the device was a priority. We truly believe PS Vita is a perfect format to enjoy Runner2 on; the game is simply gorgeous on that OLED screen.

PS Vita is the only place for Runner2 on the GO! Look for it this summer on PSN.

Not sharing our flavors with you on PS3 until now has always felt a little wrong to us, and we’re excited to make our PSN debut with Runner2. To help make it right, we’re offering Runner2 at a 20% discount for all PlayStation Plus members for two weeks!

We hope you give Runner2 a try, and please bug us to death with your witty commentary below, both before and after you play the game! We’ll do our best to answer every last comment.*

*Comments not demanding answering may go unanswered by our answerhands.