Hi everyone,

We’re excited to share that over the next two weeks, our subscribers will be receiving a download of a highly anticipated PlayStation Network game and demos for two upcoming PlayStation 3 exclusives. With that said, let’s jump into our two upcoming PlayStation Plus publishes.

Tim Schafer and the brilliant minds over at Double Fine are releasing Stacking next Tuesday, and PlayStation Plus subscribers are getting a free download of the game the day it hits the PlayStation Store! Take control of Charlie Blackmore, a small matryoshka dolls, as you explore the diorama-like levels. Much like previous Double Fine games (Costume Quest & Psychonauts), expect some great humor and gameplay in this new adventure title.

Along with Stacking, PlayStation Plus subscribers are receiving exclusive demos to two upcoming PlayStation 3 exclusives. On February 8, we will be releasing a special PlayStation Plus update giving all PlayStation Plus subscribers exclusive access to a single player demo for Killzone 3. Killzone fans will get the first look at how the war between the ISA and Helghast has changed now that the fight has been moved to the Helghast’s homeland. The demo will be an Auto Download, so make sure you have the feature enabled (Check this post for more info on Automatic Downloads). On February 15, in our regular publish, we will be offering a demo for the upcoming sequel to SEGA’s Yakuza series, Yakuza 4. Fans of the series will get a taste of the criminal underbelly of Japan as four playable characters.

We are also offering a download of Let’s Golf, a golfing PlayStation minis title from Gameloft, a full game trial of ATV Pure, and several discounts on PSN games DLC, including new downloadable content for R.U.S.E. and Crash Bandicoot.

With the special publish coming up next Tuesday, be sure to check the full list below for all the items that are going up and being taken down for the PlayStation Plus publishes:

PlayStation Plus Highlights for 2/8:

Automatic Download
Killzone 3 Single Player Demo (Free and exclusive to PlayStation Plus subscribers)

Featured Game
Stacking (Free to PlayStation Plus subscribers, regular price $14.99)

Featured Qore Episode
Qore February Episode 33 (Free to PlayStation Plus subscribers, regular price $2.99)

Featured Avatars
Pocket Fighter Avatars (x6) (Free to PlayStation Plus subscribers, regular price $0.49 each)

PlayStation Plus Highlights for 2/15:

Full Game Trial
ATV Pure (Free and exclusive to PlayStation Plus subscribers)

Featured Demo
Yakuza 4 Demo

Featured Games
Let’s Golf – Playstation minis (Free to PlayStation Plus subscribers, regular price $4.99)

Discounted Games & DLC
Blacklight Tango Down (PlayStation Plus price $7.99, regular price $9.99)
R.U.S.E. – Pack of the Sun (PlayStation Plus price $7.49, regular price $9.99)
Gravity Crash (PS3) (PlayStation Plus Price $5.00, regular price $9.99)
Crash Bandicoot (PlayStation Plus price $3.00, regular price $5.99)
MAG Starter Kit (PlayStation Plus price $7.50, regular price $14.99)

Featured Themes & Avatars
Devil May Cry 4 Avatar Bundle (18 avatars ) (Exclusive to PlayStation Plus subscribers for $1.99)
DarkStalker Avatar Bundle (13 avatars) (Exclusive to PlayStation Plus subscribers for $0.99)
Femme Abstraction Theme (Free and exclusive to PlayStation Plus subscribers)
Snowman Dynamic Theme (Free and exclusive to PlayStation Plus subscribers)
Chinese New Year Dynamic Theme (Free and exclusive to PlayStation Plus subscribers)

Last Chance, Get Them While You Can – Coming down on February 8:

Featured Offers to PlayStation Plus Subscribers
Qore January Episode 32

Last Chance, Get Them While You Can – Coming down on February 15:

Featured Offers to PlayStation Plus Subscribers
Killzone 3 Single Player Demo
Hero of Sparta – PlayStation minis
Argyle Girls Theme
Hockey Theme

Discounted Games/DLC
Mega Man (PlayStation Plus price $3.00, regular price $5.99)
Juiced 2 PSP (PlayStation Plus price $10.00, regular price $19.99)
R.U.S.E. – The Chimera Pack (PlayStation Plus price $5.24, regular price $6.99)

As we played through the first levels of Stacking, Project Lead Lee Petty delighted in pointing out the tiny diorama-scale props that dot the game’s environments: marbles for lights, cigars for smokestacks, soda caps for stools. That sense of visual detail extends to the characters themselves, which are surprisingly detailed and expressive for being, you know, Russian dolls.

Why dolls? “We tried to condense the adventure game experience,” Petty explained, “so the dolls themselves are the characters, your inventory, and your abilities. You know that any given problem is going to be solved with dolls.” And these dolls just so happen to have powerful problem-solving abilities, whether it’s seducing a guard, plowing through a crowd, throwing a “proper uppercut,” or strategically using a bodily function. You play as Charlie, a tiny but plucky doll on a quest to save his kid brother from forced child labor at the hands of a dastardly industrial baron.

To advance the story, Charlie must “stack” into other dolls to assume their appearance and control of their all-important special ability. Simply walking up to a doll’s exposed backside and pressing a button does the job. From there, problem solving takes over in the form of Challenges, whether it’s using a doll’s skill to empty a room or outrage a safety inspector. If you’d rather not stick to the script, Stacking also features sandbox side quests called “Hijynx” that reward you for wantonly experimenting with the various character abilities. “What we found was that a lot of people enjoy slapping,” Petty said, “so the Hyjinx provide some structure to that.” That means earning rewards for punching, slapping, or emitting foul odors at characters you meet in the game. “Bodily functions are a running gag in this game,” Petty promised. “We have all sorts of them.”

While Challenges serve as the meat and potatoes of the gameplay in Stacking, your overarching goal is to collect complete sets of matching Russian dolls to advance the story and, ultimately, save Charlie’s family from the baron. A prime example comes early in the game at the Royal Train Station, with Charlie reuniting a traveling German family who got lost on their way to the Schnitzel Museum. The Royal Train Station has further significance in that it serves as the central hub for Stacking’s levels, including a “secret hideout” where Charlie stores the more than 100 collectible dolls hidden in the game.

The quirky and charming Stacking hits PSN on February 8th. What do you think of Double Fine’s latest PSN project? Be sure to leave your thoughts in the comments.