As you know, the epic return of Twisted Metal is less than a week away and we’re going launch it with a bang … literally. Ever since the announcement at E3 2010, we’ve been fighting over who gets to keep the real Sweet Tooth truck, and we had an idea … let’s shoot at it till it blows up! So that’s exactly what we’re gonna do.

We happened to get our hands on a couple M249-SAWs (for the layman: fully automatic machine guns) and enough ammo and explosives to wipe out a small nation. Put those things together and we’re gonna make the truck go boom (for the layman: we’re blowing Sweet Tooth’s ice cream truck off the face off the earth). But here’s the kicker: it’s not gonna be us who are shooting it. It’s gonna be you!

That’s right, we’ve hooked these guns up to a satellite so you can control them remotely from your computer. Yes, you read that correctly. You can shoot a real gun with real bullets at a real truck from your computer, in a crazy, two-day, shoot-till-the-truck-goes-up-in-a-gigantic-ball-of-flames-style internet spectacular. It’s all happening at shootmytruck.com via live stream.

So go to shootmytruck.com right now to sign up for a chance to shoot. I can’t think of a better way to spend Valentine’s Day than shooting up a truck from your computer and then going out and buying Twisted Metal. Get your trigger fingers ready, America. It’s shooting time.

Today’s lesson focuses on risk vs. reward in the high-stakes world of vehicular combat. Experienced Twisted Metal players have long known that the highest-damage attacks require quite a bit of risk, and this 2012 revival is no exception. Whether you’re swooping in close to deliver a point-blank Shotgun blast or charging up the devastating Swarmer missile, Twisted Metal’s sprawling arsenal requires a firm, steady hand.

Watch today’s new video to learn how to best manage high-risk special attacks such as Roadkill’s devastating Blood Missile Barrage and Reaper’s Flamesaw — two of the most lethal weapons in the game. Then use this knowledge to give you a headstart on multiplayer combat this February 14th when Twisted Metal finally lands on PS3!

With a little luck, and a lot of pluck, you’ll catapult yourself to the top of the multiplayer leaderboards this February 14th. Check back soon to learn more killer tricks and tactics for this long-awaited revival.

Valentine’s Day is coming, and with it, all of the gory goodness you can expect from Twisted Metal. You may be asking yourself, what’s missing from my Twisted Metal experience? A vehicle with gore dripping out of infected wounds? An ice-cream truck that showcases Sweet Tooth’s sensitive side? You’re in luck.

Specially marked NOS Energy Drinks will have a special code under the cap redeemable for exclusive vehicle skins from the twisted mind of game creator David Jaffe. Just enter the code under the tab at drinknos.com, and you’ll be playing through the night with badass new versions of your favorite Twisted rides.

As you play as Dollface and gun down all those who oppose you in your machine gun-equipped mac truck, spare a moment for those you love. Pre-order your copy from GameStop and 1800Flowers.com will hook you up with $10 off of any purchase of $39.99 and up. If you pre-order at GameStop.com, they will email the code; in person, it will print on your receipt. As much carnage as Twisted Metal’s launch day is sure to serve up, remember: it *is* still Valentine’s Day.

We know your appetite for destruction is growing as we draw closer to Twisted Metal‘s Valentine’s Day release (2/14), so we’re pleased to announce that the Twisted Metal Multiplayer Demo goes live on the PlayStation Store this afternoon!

Once the demo hits the Store, you’ll get a taste of Twisted Metal’s online play with:

• Eight vehicles to choose from, each with their own unique special weapons
• Two multiplayer modes: Classic free-for-all Death Match, and team-based Nuke mode—a Twisted take on Capture the Flag that’s brand new to the series
• Challenge mode, where you can practice with each vehicle to hone your destructive skills

Be sure to try out all the vehicles and modes available in the multiplayer demo and let us know your favorites. Servers will be up today through February 7th, so you’ve got a week to practice before the full game comes out on February 14th. Get killin’!

To celebrate today’s release, Game Director David Jaffe chimed in with answers to some popular user questions. This Q&A relates to the final retail game, not today’s multiplayer demo, but it will give you a closer look at what to expect this February 14th.

Will Twisted Metal feature a Party System for easy play with friends?
100%! The new Twisted Metal supports Party and Clan systems allowing players to easily jump into ranked and unranked matches together. The party system was key, not just because it’s a staple for online games, but because we heard from so many players who came up playing this game with friends (be it as little kids, or college students) and now their crew have scattered across the globe and they were asking us for a fast, easy way to jump into games with friends so they could relive some of those fun memories (and ideally make a lot more new ones)!

Will Twisted Metal have splitscreen coop missions?
Split screen local co-op has been a staple of the series since TM2 and it’s back and better than ever. The campaign that you and a buddy can go through together is more varied than any other TM campaign we’ve done. And the other split screen modes- for 2 to 4 players on the same tv- allow for free for all and team games with lots of host options for players so they can tweak and adjust the game so it always says fresh. In 2 player split the players have 30+ levels to choose from. In 3 and 4 player split, players can choose from 10 battlegrounds.

Is there any gameplay relevance related to the pedestrians in the environments, mechanics and trophies?
Yes to all three questions :). A good example: in the level called BLACK ROCK STADIUM- which is this ‘hi tech meat grinder-meets-Roman Gladiator Colosseum’ players can park their vehicles on pressure plates. Sitting on these plates long enough causes audience members to get ejected from the stands. Each audience member that is ejected is wearing one of two kinds of vests: a vest with a cross on it and a vest with a question mark. Hitting cross vested peds yields health. Hitting mystery peds yields a random weapon pick up.

If you kill an enemy, the drive and gunner eject from the explosion and their burning bodies go running around in terror. After a few seconds they die, but if you can hit the gunner before he dies, you get a random weapon. If you hit the driver before he dies, you get a little extra health.

Which characters are some of the Twisted Metal team’s other favorites?
All of the human characters in the new Twisted made it in mainly because they represent the team’s favorite from a 50+ roster of characters that live in the Twisted Metal universe. So besides Tooth, we’re all big fans of Calypso, Mr. Grimm, Dollface, and Preacher. We also tend to dig No Face and Minion. As for vehicles, we love the cast of vehicles in the new Twisted and that’s a big reason they made the cut. We do miss some of our old friends however, such as Thumper, Pit Viper, Yellow Jacket, Twisted, and Mr. Slam.

Here’s what you need to know:

Who: You! This event is open to the PlayStation community, but you must be 21+ to attend. Bring ID!
What: Twisted Metal Multiplayer Tournament and Community Meetup
When: Thursday, February 2nd from 6:00pm to 9:00pm (Protip: Come early!)
Where: Mezzanine, located at 444 Jessie St. in San Francisco)
Why: Multiplayer competition and gameplay, plus sweet rare prizes
How: Participants can RSVP here or sign-up at on-site check-in.

I advise that you bring your A-game: The multiplayer tournament champion will win a very swanky and very rare Twisted Metal laser-etched PS3. But if you’re self-conscious about your skill level, never fear. Attendees will also be getting special Twisted Metal items (exclusive to this event!) all night long. You’ll need to be present to score them, though.

Oh, and a special treat for the Twisted faithful: Game Director David Jaffe will be in attendance, so bring those dusty old copies of Twisted Metal: Black and Twisted Metal 2…

To make things easy, why not RSVP? See you next Thursday!

But the good news doesn’t stop there. Our friends over at LightBox Interactive have been cooking up something really amazing, and I’m excited to show it to you all today—the Sweet Tooth Outcast Multiplayer skin for Starhawk, coming May 8th! Every copy of Twisted Metal will include a voucher for this awesome skin. On top of that, if you pre-order Twisted Metal you’ll get early access to Axel and a free upgrade to the Limited Edition that comes with a code to download Twisted Metal: Black.

We’ll be sharing even more news up through Twisted Metal’s February 14th launch, so be on the lookout! Until then, let us know—what about Twisted Metal are you most excited for?

After an extended holiday break, PULSE returns today with a look at some of the big games coming in 2012. From the gorgeous Final Fantasy XIII-2 scheduled at the end of this month, Twisted Metal on Valentine’s Day through Spring releases such as the highly anticipated crossover Street Fighter X Tekken, the intriguing Journey, and the ‘build and battle’ of Starhawk, we hope you enjoy these reminders of the year ahead. Christina Lee also takes a look at some of the PlayStation Vita games just over the horizon and also looks back at top game downloads of 2011 with a Top 11 list of the best.

Watch the full edition of PULSE in the “What’s New” section under the PlayStation Network icon when the PlayStation Store updates later today. Remember, you can also download in full HD or to you PSP.

Jesse Blaze Snider gears up for an extensive ride (and preview) through Twisted Metal. Sweet Tooth and company have lots of new tricks (and weapons) ready to bust out on PS3 and Jesse gets his hands all over them. He also gets his hands on the PS Vita for a sweet preview on how upcoming games are taking advantage of the front and rear touch screens, dual cameras, motion sensors, and cross-platform play.

With so little snow here in California and a warm winter over much of the US, the only way to make some tracks this year might be with SSX. With insane new tricks and environments crafted from actual NASA data, the Qore preview travels to the highest summits of this extreme sports world to experience this thrilling new version.

Last month, Qore dove into Final Fantasy 13-2. Now another RPG is on the horizon from baseball legend Curt Schilling’s 38 Studios with Kingdoms of Amalur. Qore takes a look into the rich world and leveling system of this upcoming debut title.

To commemorate Twisted Metal’s debut on PS3 next month, check out the Twisted Metal theme in the DL center of this episode. Did you miss December’s Episode 43? You can still download it for FREE from the PlayStation Store, or visit Qore’s new episode pages to view individual feature stories right here.

We hope you enjoy the January episode of Qore.

While Dave and the team are hard at work finishing up Twisted Metal, he wanted to take this opportunity to wish everyone a happy holiday and make a special holiday announcement!