Last week the good people over at Titan Studios announced on this here blog the completion and imminent release of Patch 1.03 and the highly anticipated Demo.

Alas, the time has come and we are pleased to announce that the patch and demo will be out on the PlayStation Network today.

In case you didn’t hear, Patch 1.03 contains a brand new map, New Pork, which we’re providing absolutely free. Yep, FREE. We’re extremely grateful to all the fans for their support of Fat Princess and we hope that many of you will spread the love and entice your friends who have not yet tried the game to give it a go.

We hope our beloved royal subject is only going to get bigger and better, and you all play a major part in making that happen. So thanks for your support, enjoy New Pork, and keep the feedback coming.

Until then, and as always…

Cake for everyone,
The Fat Princess Team

Today is a great day indeed. Your faithful developers at Titan Studios and team at Sony Santa Monica Studio are extremely happy to announce that after careful thought and great labor, Patch 1.03 is complete and ready for imminent release.

Patch 1.03 contains the awesome New Pork city level, and due to the amazing support we have received from the community, we have decided to release the map for free! Yes you heard us right, for free!

Just as important, we have implemented many fixes and tweaks to make the game better than ever. The Fat Princess demo will also go live with the release of 1.03, so everyone who has been dying to try out the game can finally check it out. Huzzah, cake and candy confetti (see below, if you please) for everyone!

1.03 Patch Notes

After playing innumerable games, reading the forums and piles of email, and reviewing all the great feedback we received from you, the fans, we have made a variety of tweaks to the gameplay balance and systems to ensure the game stays fair, fresh and as fun as ever.

Here is a full breakdown of all the changes that can be found in the upcoming patch:

New Map

• A brand new awesome city map has been added called New Pork…and it’s free!

Game System Tweaks

• The host’s ability to kick and ban players has been removed.
• The ability for players to switch teams post-game is now restricted so that sides cannot be unbalanced by more than 2 players.
• A new switching team system has been implemented during matches:

* If there is a deficit of 2 players between teams, the weaker team will drop a team colored ball on the death of a player.
* Picking up the colored ball switches a player’s team and rewards them with a 300 point bonus.
* So…get the ball.

• The 10 game average ranking system has been removed.
• A new ranking system has been implemented, which adds rank points for every game based on the player’s score.
• Awarded ranking titles will now never go down once earned.
• Online leaderboards have been increased to display all players not just the top 1000.
• All online leaderboards are to be reset shortly after patch 1.03 is released, but all unlocked customizations and trophies will remain unlocked. You will not lose them.

Main Bug Fixes

• The Princess disappearing bug has been fixed.
• The issue with statistics and trophies not saving correctly has been fixed.

Character Balancing

• The Dark Priest’s lock-on range has been reduced.
• The Dark Priest’s drain ability has been slightly reduced.
• The Ranger now has larger movement penalty when locked on and charging attacks.
• The Adv. Ranger has a smaller shot dispersion and increased damage per shot.
• The Warrior’s attack damage has been increased slightly.
• The Warrior’s movement speed has been increased slightly when locked on and charging attacks.
• The Warrior’s 360 degree protect when his shield is raised has been increased from 20% to 40%
• Warrior’s Lock on range increased to match Ranger to stop class being hit from behind when retreating
• Warriors weapon collision box increased in size to aid with hit detection
• Adv Warrior speed increased slightly when locked on and charging to match his normal movement speed
• Adv Warrior damage increased
• Adv Worker’s bomb knockback force removed
• Princess calorie burn decreased slightly in weight state 3 and 4

Control Tweaks

• Two new control schemes have been implemented to allow players to use the R1 button to attack and to free the player’s right hand for target switching. This is AWESOME.

Scoring Updates

• New switching team bonus added of 300 points.
• Princess rescue score increased to 300 points.
• Princess rescue assistance bonus increased to 150 points.
• Princess escort bonus increased to 75 points.
• Win game scoring reduced to 150 points.
• Match completion bonus added of 75 points.
• Average Rank bonus award removed for games won under 3 minutes.
• Bonus score for winning games in under 3 minutes removed.

Additional Tweaks

• Candy confetti added as a special effect when blood is turned off. Check this out – it is really cool.
• All loading screens now in color.
• Loading screens now allow players to scroll to next and previous tips during the load.

We look forward to slaughtering you – ahem, seeing you – on the battlefield!

Cake for everyone,

The Fat Princess Team

Last week at PAX, I ran into Chris Millar and Craig Leigh from Titan, who demoed the addition to this top-selling PSN game on camera. Unfortunately, the folks at Penny Arcade are creatures of the night, and it was super dark (you’ll see that in a minute) in the Washington State Convention & Trade Center. Fortunately, Titan scraped together some hi-def footage of the new level, which we edited on top of the walkthrough this morning. Technology, she is wonderful.

So take a look at New Pork in action, and if you miss what Chris and Craig look like, you can see them here :-)

Yes, I know your questions: When can you play this? How much might it cost? I asked, and there are no concrete details at this time. When there are, you’ll learn them here.

First off, we want to thank all of you for playing and supporting Fat Princess with all of your suggestions and responses on the boards. You have given us a ton of very valuable information which has helped us to track down the majority of the connection issues.

We’re happy to announce that we’re releasing a patch late tonight, Friday August 7, to help fix some of these connection issues. This will be released for N. America region, with patches for Europe and Asia to follow as soon as possible.

We’re also going to be tweaking some of the point balances and classes based on fan feedback. Several of you have also been asking about the player ranks. Here’s an explanation:

Rankings are awarded as you accrue the following points:

• Squire – 500-599
• Private – 600-699
• Corporal – 700-799
• Sergeant – 800-899
• Ensign – 900-999
• Lieutenant – 1000-1249
• Captain – 1250-1499
• General – 1500-1749
• Warlord – 1750-1999
• Sir (Dame) – 2000-2249
• Baron (Baroness) – 2250-2499
• Earl (Countess) -2500-2999
• Duke (Duchess) – 3000-3499
• Lord (Lady) – 3500-3999
• Prince (Princess) – 4000-4499
• King (Queen) – 4500+

Please keep pinging us and posting to the Fat Princess forum on PS.com with your suggestions and ideas. We mean it when we say that we’re really glad to have such a great fan base.

After the patch goes live, we’ll be jumping into some games with all of you to see how things are going and continue to address any major issues that crop up. For detailed information from the development team, check out Titan Studios.

This is just the beginning of Fat Princess and we hope to continue to support our fans.

Regards,
The Fat Princess team

We’re proud to announce another major core space update. The Movie Theater brings you ten times as much exciting content [including from the PS.Blog! -Jeff] with a brand-new 10-screen layout, a new lobby, and the ability to unlock rewards in select screening rooms. Be sure to check out the screening rooms often – you never know when one of them will be giving something away. Stay tuned for lots of exclusive new videos over the coming months, including the future possibility of full-length TV shows or movies, with new features debuting on a regular basis.

But that’s not all! The Burn Zombie Burn space brings its classic cartoony graveyard style to PlayStation Home with a crypt for lounging in while you watch Burn Zombie Burn videos, a zombie-infested maze mini-game where you’ll be challenged to find your way out before you get zombified, and as always, an exclusive reward. Don’t get lost in the graveyard!

Next, the first wave of MotorStorm content will be swerving into PlayStation Home with MotorStorm Pacific Rift Game Launching functionality topping the bill. If you’re new to Game Launching, click here for more info on how this great functionality works.

There will be more MotorStorm news coming your way very soon; in the meantime, check out the screenshots below for a tantalizing snippet of some of the great MotorStorm content coming to PlayStation Home over the coming weeks.

Next (and this is very exciting) as of tomorrow, we will be launching a new event in PlayStation Home – the Fat Princess “Quest for Cake.” Based upon the brilliant PSN title which launches today, all you have to do is click on the PlayStation Events Space chip on your World Map to join in this very special confectionary quest.

In the fully redecorated space you will find eight pieces of cake, locked away in cages. To unlock the cake and feed your Princess you need to search the space high and low for clues. If you do manage to unlock all eight pieces of cake, and feed the Princess, a special reward will be yours – the Fat Princess’ very own throne for your personal apartment. Here are a few screenshots of the space to whet your appetite…

Finally, be sure to cruise through the Mall to check out still more updates to our lovely new stores…sources say there will be some cool new items to pick up to show your friends, both free and for sale!

See you in Home!

~CydoniaX, PlayStation Home Community Manager

Fat Princess will be released simultaneously worldwide in N. America, Europe and Asia. A Japan release is also in the works, and we’ll have more information on that in weeks to come.

The sheer amount of questions submitted was fantastic, and we really appreciate everyone taking the time and effort to come up with some really good ones.

Please check out this interview with Chris Millar and Craig Leigh from Titan Studios for answers to your most burning questions. We’ll do our best to follow up and respond to some of the others we weren’t able to cover during the interview soon.

We mean it…see you on the battlefield soon!

This is Deb Mars, Managing Producer at SCEA Santa Monica Studio. We know many of you are anxiously awaiting the sweet PlayStation Network arrival of none other than Her Royal Highness: Fat Princess.

You have been very patient, and we really do appreciate all your support. Since E3 back in early June, we and the fantastic development team at Titan Studios have been working very hard to get the fine lady and her beloved subjects all ready for their much-anticipated debut.

So here’s the deal: We have tons of info to share with you, but we want to take this opportunity to let you all ask the questions. So, go ahead…ask us. Let us know what you want to know.

Post questions below in response to this blog entry, and then we’ll gather a bunch of them to put forth to Titan Studios. They will answer these questions directly during a PlayStation Eye video chat interview with our good pal, Jeff R, next week.

Enjoy some of the new screenshots, and we’ll be seeing you on the battlefield soon!

This is Deb Mars, Managing Producer at SCEA Santa Monica Studio. Some of you may know me from spreading all that PixelJunk love around this here blog space. But I’m here now to introduce you to a brand new PSN title that we’re pleased as punch…well, really…pleased as cake to talk about Fat Princess.

Some of you may have seen this video already in the Theater in HOME between May 7 and May 14. There was a small mention of it in this post about HOME updates. We put up the video in HOME first as an exclusive for you eager souls looking to get a bigger, better, badder glimpse of our dear Fat Princess in all its glory.

The video is an in-depth look at the creation and inspiration behind Fat Princess, told through interviews with Craig Leigh from developer Titan Studios, and little ‘ole me and Matt Morton. We talk about how the concept for the game came about, the distinctive and charming art style, and loads more including some of the hilarious and irreverent stuff you’ll find in the game.

The video is coming to the PlayStation Store this Thursday in all its big, fat, sweet, awesome HD glory for you to download and watch over and over.

Look for more information about Fat Princess in the coming weeks. We’ll be at E3 showing off the game, so stay tuned for more info soon!

By popular demand, we have brought the Siren: Blood Curse space over from Japan (this space will appear in the European region at a later date). The basic overview is this: The Siren Home space is broken up into three basic zones. When you first enter the Siren space, you’re outside the Ward of Despair, in what looks like an old, rundown carnival space. The entrance to the Ward is just a few steps away. Upon entering it, you’ll find yourself in the mini-game’s lobby. Inside you’ll see video screens on the walls and places to sit and mingle with other players waiting their turn to enter the Ward of Despair mini game. When you’re ready to play, simply approach the receptionist and she’ll send you into the Ward (assuming that the background downloading is complete, which begins upon entry to the lobby scene and can take a few moments).

The Ward of Despair is the Saiga Hospital stage from this PSN downloadable game, recreated as a mini-game for Home, and playable with up to 5 players. Everyone is tasked with objectives that must be completed within the 5 minute time limit. If a Shibito, or zombie, catches you, it’s game over. Also, if you can’t complete the game before the time limit runs out, it’s game over for everyone. Successful completion of all objectives presents the player(s) with reward items in the form of some super creepy costumes.

Take time over the weekend to visit this space and earn these reward items, as we’ll be throwing a special event for those of you that manage to successfully complete the Ward of Despair mini-game. See, on Tuesday, May 12th, between the hours of 4:00pm and 7:00pm PT (6:00pm and 9:00am EST), we’ll be throwing the Siren: HorrorBowl bowling tournament. Users that show up for this bowling tournament outfitted with the Siren reward items will qualify for a random giveaway of the first Siren: Blood Curse bundle (episodes 1-4), which we’ll be passing out via PSN vouchers throughout the event.

In coordination with this space launch and event, the PlayStation Store will be offering a special sale on the full game and the episode bundles. The full game is now only $29.99, and each of the 3 episode bundles is only $10.99. So now’s the time to head over to the store and pick up the game if you haven’t already, or to snatch up those last remaining episodes to complete your collection. There’s even a demo available on the PS Store, so you can try it out before you buy it.

By now, you’re probably well aware of the Patapon 2 event/t-shirt launch also going on in Home on Thursday, May 7th. But I’m here to tell you that we have even more in terms of exclusive vids playing in-world for you this weekend. The fine folk behind the hilarious upcoming PSN multiplayer game Fat Princess have given us an exclusive “behind-the-scenes” developer diary video, delving into the inspiration behind this comic medieval battle royale, to air for one week in the Theater. This video will only be up for a limited time—one week only—before it makes its way to the PS Store later this month. So make sure you log in to Home and head over to the Theater to check it out before anyone else.

Moving away from this week’s events and into the realm of apartments, we are pleased to announce two new premium areas coming your way this Thursday. These two apartments are a new “Log Cabin”-themed area and the Living Room Stage Set.

The Living Room Stage Set will go on sale in the PlayStation Home Mall and will be loaded with interactive lights, cameras, backdrops and movie-related equipment to simulate a real-life studio production environment. The versatile lighting and camera systems allow for a wide range of desired angles, movements, transitions, cuts and lens set-ups that allow you to take control of the technical and artistic aspects. Combined with 12 props that come with the space to decorate the set, you’ll have access to the tools necessary to create your own film. Priced at $4.99, the Living Room Stage Set will be available at the Estates store in PlayStation Home Mall for your directorial debut.

On top of all this, we have a metric boatload of virtual items coming down the pike including Tekken costumes and figurines and 14 Killzone 2 shirts (plus a bunch of other gear in the Threads store). We also think you’ll pleased to find that the inFAMOUS pre-order and reward outfits will begin unlocking right on time.

There’s more stuff to do in Home than ever before, so come on in and give it all a spin. We’ll be looking for you.

This is a “real” beta; the developers don’t just want you to play, they value your feedback. You should only participate if you’re willing to report your experiences on the closed beta forums, discussions, surveys, etc. You won’t just be having fun, you’ll be helping to make Fat Princess an even better game when it debuts on PSN this summer.

Also, you’ll get to brag to your friends. Over and over.

Being a closed beta, access is limited; so we want to make sure the most fervent, determined fans benefit from our allotment of 250 beta codes. We struggled with deciding how to determine which PlayStation.Blog readers want it the most. Then it hit us: cake.

The first 250 people to upload a picture of themselves eating cake (cheesecake, cupcakes and fruitcakes are all acceptable) to our Facebook fan page will get in. Please make sure that the picture is of YOU, and that you include a piece of PlayStation paraphernalia in the pic (a DualShock controller, T-shirt, PS3, PSP, etc). Just upload your pic(s) to the gallery and tag them with “Fat Princess″ – you’ll need to ‘Fan’ the page first – to let us know you want in! Then, once the beta gets underway, we’ll contact you via Facebook with information on how to join in on the fun.

In case you’re lacking for inspiration, we took some practice pics in the office. Now head out to the bakery – these spots won’t last!

UPDATE: Looks like we’ve got enough photos now! The response has been awesome and overwhelming, so thanks to all of you that have entered. We’ll go through the entries now, sort out the duplicates and whatnot, and contact the approved photo-submitters via Facebook by noon (Pacific) tomorrow. If you didn’t make it, pay attention to our Twitter account for other sites that may be granting access to the beta. Thanks!!