Amidst all the E3 announcements happening this week, we have a special one of our own – introducing Destiny of Spirits, a new free-to-play social experience that integrates strategic fantasy battles with your everyday PS Vita activity.

Our teams in Japan, in conjunction with Q Entertainment, have been working hard to bring a gaming experience that you can play every day, but more importantly, provide a community where you’ll be able to contribute, even when you’re not playing.

Collaborate with Friends in Battle

In Destiny of Spirits, evil Spirits lay claim to areas around the globe, and it’ll take the collaboration of friends around the world to remove these threats, known as Chaos Spirits. Battle by customizing your own team with powerful elemental Spirits, trade Spirits with friends around the world to diversify your squad, or let your friends borrow from your collection – the game is much more dynamic as you connect with more friends.

Hunt for Spirits with Location-Based Technology

As Spirits are all around us, there are several ways to obtain new Spirits and add them to your collection. By using the Vita’s location-based technology and traveling real-world distances with your PS Vita – on the bus, in the car, on the train – you can unlock new Spirits with every journey. Interaction with fellow players from around the world will enable you to trade spirits and obtain unique Spirits ONLY available in certain regions – your friends in Japan and Europe will have an entirely different set of Spirits that you’ll want to get a hold of!

Find Your Daily Destiny

One feature we’re particularly excited about is the Destiny Engine. Everyday, you’ll receive a unique fortune that will guide your destiny in a number of ways. In battle, your fortune could increase or decrease certain Spirits or elemental attacks, so you’ll need to plan your assaults wisely. On another day, your destiny may affect your travels by increasing the chance to obtain extremely rare Spirits. With a new fortune everyday, you’ll be constantly on the hunt for new Spirits or defeating evil ones, and you’ll want to be checking back every day to see what your fortune will hold

Let us know what you think of the game and we’ll get back on the blog to give you more details about the Spirits and your Destiny that awaits…

And if you’re interested in learning more about some of the social features, check out more, including additional videos, by heading over to our game page on PlayStation Japan.

The Knack World

One essential element of a character-based action game, whether it be Crash Bandicoot or Jak and Daxter, is the vibrant and varied environments to explore. With Knack, we took the increased power of the PS4 as an opportunity to increase the depth and richness of these environments, with enemies and challenges around every corner. We also worked to add a deeper and more involving story – in many ways, the game is a mashup between a classic platformer and a CGI movie starring the very distinctive character of Knack.

One Hero, Many Sizes

The playable demo in the E3 booth focuses on the different challenges and combat scenarios in the game, which call for unique abilities that only Knack possesses. Transform to use Stealth Knack to slip past lasers, defeat goblins guarding the ice caves by collecting ice parts to build your strength, or collect thousands of relics and become a giant wrecking machine on a rampage – on the game team, we’ve really enjoyed exploring all of the variations of gameplay that come out of Knack’s abilities.

Secrets, Gadgets and Crystal Relics

There’s another aspect to the game that we revealed for the first time at E3. Sixty secret rooms found throughout the game hold treasure chests, which contain a variety of special items. Some of these are parts of gadgets; collect enough, and you can complete a gadget that will aid Knack in various ways, including the ability to heal faster, increase the strength of his super moves, or help him grow in size. Others of these special items are crystal relics, which unlock six alternate Knack variations to use in the second playthrough of the game, each with its own unique strengths and weaknesses.

Get Connected

With PlayStation 4, we’re moving to a friends network based on real-world friends, and with Knack we are adding some connected play that brings a new dimension to what has traditionally been a very single-player type of game. Not only can players see how their friends are faring in the game, but friends can also collaborate to help each other along the way.

When you find one of the sixty secret rooms in the game, you are presented with the choice to either take the crystal relic or gadget part that you personally found, or elect to take the item your friend found in that same location. Need a specific part to complete a gadget? Trying to complete a specific alternate Knack costume? The more friends you have that are playing the game, the faster you’ll be able to complete the items you want.

Stay tuned for more updates from the Knack universe, and look out for the game this holiday on PlayStation 4!

The setup is simple – you play as a lone boy who finds himself alone in a mysterious rain-soaked city. The twist? He’s completely invisible, except for the outline of the precipitation running off his body. You’ll guide him through this strange world as he goes in pursuit of a girl who’s seemingly suffering the exact same predicament, while also trying to evade malevolent hostile forces.

I sat down with the game’s producer Noriko Umemura when she was in London last week and dug a little deeper into this fascinating title.

PlayStation.Blog: Rain has one of the more unusual set-ups in recent memory. Where did the idea come from?

Noriko Umemura: When we gathered together, we had one thing in common – we wanted to surprise to our PS3 customers with a new action adventure game. We came up with the idea of having an invisible character – that’s where we started and from that point design and story just came out very naturally.

PSB: I imagine having an invisible character threw up all sorts of challenges, both in terms of art and game design…

NU: Yes! We didn’t want to impose stress on the player because the character was invisible. We wanted to give them challenges and new experiences, so we had to make sure that even when the character is completely invisible there should be hints to tell the player where he is. The player should be able to guess. We crafted the game design very carefully.

PSB: From what we’ve played so far, it seems like a very sad, melancholy game. Is that a fair assessment?

NU: Yes, we’re trying to evoke the feelings of melancholy and nostalgia throughout the game. Everyone at one point when they were a child got lost outside their neighborhood, and were scared, and it was raining, and they were all alone. Yet at the same time as wanting to get home, you also have this curiosity to see a little bit further and see what’s beyond the area you’re in. That’s the feeling we’re trying to evoke.

PSB: Gamers in Northern Europe have plenty of rain to contend with in real life. Can you promise the game won’t be too depressing? Is there any prospect of a little sunshine?

NU: [Laughs] Indeed! As the story advances the boy explores many different places with different atmospheres, so please look forward to how the story goes. Will the boy and the girl meet? Will they help each other? Will they go separate ways? Please look forward to finding out.

PSB: The game has a very beautiful, distinctive score. How did you approach the soundtrack?

NU: From the very beginning we knew the world we were creating was a mysterious place with constant rain, so we needed rain sounds throughout the game. We looked for music that would go very well with the sound of rain and enhance the atmosphere.

You will hear classical music throughout the game but not just the pieces you hear at the beginning. As the game changes and the atmosphere evolves, the music will also change to enhance that. You heard Debussy in the opening scene, but there will be original music too. As for the name of the composer, we will announce that later this year.

PSB: For a game developed in Japan, it has a very European feel. Was that a deliberate decision?

NU: Yes. We took references from many places around Europe and mixed them together. Also, because we are a Japanese studio, you will also see some Japanese elements as well. We wanted to mix everything and create this one world where anyone can find some sort of connection or similarity to their neighborhood – and yet it’s totally different at the same time.

PSB: What are your thoughts on how long a game like Rain should be?

NU: Right now we are adjusting the length of the game. We don’t want to make it too long or too short. But please consider it a full-sized game. It’s not something you can finish in two or three hours.

PSB: The game is a PlayStation C.A.M.P project – the same group that released Tokyo Jungle last year. Can you explain exactly what C.A.M.P is?

NU: PlayStation C.A.M.P is a section of Japan Studio. We recruit people from many different backgrounds. They come up with all sorts of ideas and then pitch them to us. Some of them are not even from a games background, so their ideas are often very flexible. Working with them has been very exciting – their way of thinking is sometimes totally different and quite new. We’re trying to deliver these new experiences with these new talents.

It’s that wonderful time of year where the gaming world goes crazy in L.A. — E3 2013. We’ll be showing off Puppeteer at the PlayStation booth, and we can’t wait for people to finally experience our strange and fantastical world for themselves!

At GDC this year, we revealed two of the four “Hero Heads” that Kutaro will employ on his thrilling adventure: the Shield Power of the Moon Knight and the Bomb Power of the Moon Ninja.

Today we are revealing the final two powers: the Hook Power of the Moon Pirate and the Brute Power of the Moon Wrestler!

These powers are vital in Kutaro’s terrifying adventure. Without them, he will never be able to defeat the Moon Bear King and find his way home.

I’d also like to tell you about our wonderful Theatrical Pack, which you can get by pre-ordering Puppeteer. It includes lots of special DLC goodies, such as:

The Original Soundtrack of Puppeteer: By world-famous composer Patrick Doyle.

Exclusive PSN Avatars: Kutaro, the Moon Witch, and the villain we all love to hate, the Moon Bear King

Dynamic Custom Theme: Featuring hand-drawn concept art from all seven acts of Puppeteer.

If you are lucky enough to be going to E3 this year, we would love for you to swing by the PlayStation booth and gets some hands on time with Puppeteer. Kutaro and his perils will be waiting for you.

I’m just back from the wonderful city of San Francisco and the 2013 Game Developers Conference. Whilst I was there, I met with some members of the press to give them an exclusive look at the first two acts in Puppeteer, and also share an exciting gameplay reveal… Hero Heads!

As Kutaro, you’ll find all sorts of amazing heads to act as your noggin as you journey to get your head back from Moon Bear King. Be careful to collect and keep the right ones, as some have the power to change and shape the world around you, while others unlock bonus stages – adding even more adventure and hilarity to this dark and fantastical tale!

I’m excited to finally let the cat out of the bag (no, not Ying-Yang…I mean a metaphorical cat) about four very special heads that Kutaro will encounter on his journey and aid him in his quest. Each Hero Head possesses a power that once belonged to one of the four legendary “Moon Heroes” who fought valiantly to protect the Moon Goddess from being overthrown by the evil Moon Bear King. Alas, their powers were no match for Moon Bear King’s twelve generals who ultimately defeated the heroes… but what if someone were brave enough to attain all four of those powers and use them together?

At GDC we officially unveiled the first two Moon Heroes and their powers; the Shield Power of the Moon Knight, and the Bomb Power of the Moon Ninja! When Kutaro collects these Hero Heads, it adds some truly transformative mechanics to Puppeteer, which you won’t see coming! For more on that, stay tuned to PlayStation.Blog for more Puppeteer coverage from GDC.

I’m also very excited to share our final box art, and to let you know that Puppeteer will be available at your favorite local retailer September 10th, 2013 for $39.99!

Lastly, I couldn’t just drop by with all of this awesome news without bringing you something extra, so check out our new Story Trailer for a deeper insight into the dark happenings on the Moon.

That leaves two more Moon Heroes and their game-changing powers for Kutaro to quest after, doesn’t it? Well then, you’ll want to check back here in a few weeks for more on the strange tale of a boy named Kutaro!

If you haven’t played Hot Shots Golf: World Invitational in a while, now is the time! As some of you may already know, we recently released a feature update (patch 1.05). This long awaited update adds the following features:

Turn Based Challenge

Too busy to join a tournament online at a given time/date? Not to worry! By introducing this “Turn Based Challenge” mode, you can now challenge your friends in an asynchronous competition and play head to head, hole by hole.

Players can now also set up 20 different parallel games at any given time. To avoid cheating, there are no re-dos, similar to Daily Tourneys. Short messages (like SMS) are also now enabled, as well as competitive score history between friends.

Additional gameplay updates include:

• Four-player stroke mode enabled in the multiplayer rooms.
• A slot mode added to the online/adhoc, enabling a slot machine style handicap system applied per hole to keep the game interesting in case there is an imbalance between player skills.
• We’ve also added a new visual lobby in the online space, and tweaked the game balance a little bit.

DLC Content

The classic Mt. Sakura returns from Hot Shots Golf Fore!, great for advanced and novice players alike. Those of you who have been with us over the years can reminisce, while those of you who are just joining us can experience some of our great courses from the past. Another course we are bringing back is Northern Fox. This too is a novice-friendly course, but don’t be fooled — there are some tricky course designs here and there. Both Mt. Sakura and Northern Fox have been revamped completely and look great in today’s resolution standards.

Last but not least, we’re also adding a brand new golf course named Mar Cielo. Surrounded by emerald green waters, this pretty beach resort style golf course is sure to keep the intermediate and advanced players challenged. Don’t get too relaxed on this beautiful golf resort, and watch for the landscapes and obstacles we’ve thrown in there.

We’re also adding new characters to the game: Erika, Gloria, and Kat from the PS Vita fan-favorite Gravity Rush. Kat is very much intrigued with her discovery of golf, and is gravitating to the sport with a great deal of curiosity.

These new courses and characters will be available next Tuesday when PlayStation Store updates. Each character will cost $0.99, with the courses going for $2.99 apiece. You’ll be able to grab the whole set for $11.99, and PlayStation Plus members will get 25% off that price, bringing it down to $8.99.

So once again, a big thanks to everyone for your patience. We’re happy to finally offer the extended features and DLC available on Hot Shots Golf: World Invitational. Happy golfing!

Today, we are releasing four additional animal characters (Crocodile, Giraffe, Kangaroo, Panda) and giving away more costumes, so please be sure to check out PlayStation Store this afternoon.

In other news, we’ve received many questions about TOKYO JUNGLE’s premise and gameplay, so we asked Game Director Yohei Kataoka from Crispy’s and Producer Masaaki Yamagiwa from Japan Studio to elaborate on the game’s concept and inception.

Dais Kawaguchi, Assistant Producer: Can you please explain how you came up with the idea for TOKYO JUNGLE?

Yohei Kataoka, Game Director: The business philosophy for “Crispy’s Corporation,” the studio I established, is to “develop a new product that nobody has ever seen before.”

However, just because it’s new doesn’t mean it will be well received. When I was struggling to figure out how to create something that’s innovative and compelling, I came across an article of famous singer-songwriters in Japan and how they conceive their inspirations when creating lyrics. The method was to first come up with the “nouns” and “adjectives” separately, and then combining them later to create the song titles and lyrics.

For example, you have an adjective, “long,” and a noun, “cat.” Everybody is familiar with each of these words, but when you combine them, you will get, “Long Cat,” which is strange but catchy. When I read that article, I had a theory. If we combine a “common theme” and another “common theme,” would it become something unique and catchy? That’s how it came about.

Just making something new will not sell. I believed that in order to successfully sell a new title, we need to present something new, and something that everybody likes (something catchy). So, we came up with the following combinations: “Animals,” which are in common existence and something that most people like.
Plus, “a city where humans have disappeared,” a popular science fiction theme.

By combining these two themes, we believed that we could create an innovative and universally appealing new game IP.

DK: TOKYO JUNGLE is so unique. What was the most entertaining part about making the game?
YK: The background images are made by processing photo images, and the photo shooting was quite a handful. If there were people in the photo images, we needed to edit them out, so we chose to shoot at dawn when there aren’t any people.

We took the photos by standing on top of the center divider, in the middle of the street, taking side steps as we took photos, one shot per step… we looked like complete psychopaths out there (lol). We took over 500 shots, per photo session and ended up with tens of thousands of pictures.

DK: Are you nervous about the reaction over in the United States? Do you think the game will translate here?

Masaaki Yamagiwa, Producer: When we saw the smile on everyone’s face when we showcased TOKYO JUNGLE at E3 and Gamescom, we were convinced that it will be accepted overseas as well. Please enjoy TOKYO JUNGLE, a game where we strived to embrace Japanese uniqueness.

How many playable animal characters are there as in the U.S. version? Will you have the same downloadable animal feature?
MY: There will be 52 types of characters available and yes, all the animals available in the Japanese version will be available in the US version.

Are there any animals that you wish you could have included in the game?
YK: I wanted to have a T-Rex because I love monster movies like Godzilla. Our prototype actually had a stage where a T-Rex crashes through the freeway and chases animals.

I know this is a silly question, but if you were an animal in the game which one would you be?
YK: I think it’s important not to get hunted, so a hippopotamus (LOL). In real life and in game, hippos are very strong, so be careful!
MY: Baby chick… because when we announced TOKYO JUNGLE in Japan, the Baby Chick was just as popular as the Pomeranian. (LOL)

In this dark, mysterious world, you take on the role of a boy who becomes invisible, so his figure can only be seen in the rain. Freshly revealed at Gamescom, watch the announce trailer for a first look at this wondrous story.

That’s all for now, but keep an eye out for more news about rain in the coming months.

Gravity Rush incorporates the theme of Bande Dessinee (BD), a popular Franco-Belgian comic book art style. There are various types of BD style and they can be perceived in many ways. We first approached an element of BD we thought would fit well into the pre-existing game art. One of the differences between realistic expression and schematic expression represented by BD is that BD exaggerates the information that author wants to convey to the audience. By doing so, it conveys more of the accurate information that the author wants to be recognized.

While considering the gravity mechanic in the game, we brainstormed with these elements in mind. If a player can move around freely, the level should not only be big horizontally, but also vertically. Therefore, we designed the city with multiple levels of layers and structures.

Additionally, the line drawing method was used to exaggerate buildings and allow them to be more easily recognized. We also enhanced the color of the sky in order to give additional sensory information to the players.

The direction we chose to use for the game’s graphics conveys the necessary information with exaggeration that matches the player’s sensation. Taking that into consideration, we also wanted to use line drawings, the characteristic of BD and the simulation of beautiful air effects. I think the broader the game art expression becomes, the more interactive a game becomes.

Another important factor is the concept of a “living background.” This is the idea of bringing the game world itself to life so that users can actually ‘feel’ it. Basically, players can interact with certain objects in the game and they can actually get into the scenery within the remote background. Environmental background is not a piece of a picture, but it actually exists within the game, and we can use that background with our gameplay. That was our ultimate goal. By combining the unique art style of BD and the idea of living background, we created a sensation that could only be brought to life with a video game.

As a special treat, I am happy to share this concept movie that we created during the early stages of Gravity Rush’s development. Click on the video below for a sneak peek at the game’s unique art style in motion before it launches in North America on June 12th.

What do you think? Leave your thoughts in the comments!

Extra Missions:
Once you complete Episode 17 of the main story, you’ll unlock the new “Game Rules” side mission. In this mission, Kat has been asked by Commander Yuri to train as a military officer. As she trains with her rival, Seawasp, a message comes in saying that the Nevi have appeared and it is up to you to defeat them. After you clear this mission, you’ll receive Kat’s unique military costume!

Complete the “Game Rules” side mission and you’ll be able to access a second side mission: “Visionary courage.” In this mission, D’nerica has ordered for the capture of a massive amount of Nevies. En route, a disaster strikes and Hekseville is swarmed. Amidst the chaos that ensues, Kat must decide which is more important – her mission, or her friends.

Challenge Missions:
Once you’ve completed Episode 8 and Episode 11 of the main game, you’ll also be able to access the “Factory Energy Gate Race 2” and “Slide Race in Another Dimension” challenge missions respectively.

Gravity Rush’s launch is right around the corner, so be sure to take advantage of the exclusive Military DLC Pack by pre-ordering at any of our participating retailers.