I’ve got a gaming confession to make: I’ve never played a Silent Hill game. Never really had much of an interest in the series, even… until now. Silent Hill: Book of Memories is a Survival Horror Action-RPG coming to PS Vita later this month. Like chocolate and peanut butter, this is a mashup I can get into. After sampling the game at PAX Prime, I met up with the game’s producer, Tomm Hewlett, in San Francisco to find out how Konami plans to please fans of both genres.
Jeff Rubenstein, PlayStation.Blog Social Media Manager: How do you adapt an incredibly scary survival horror series into this action/RPG format? Why did you choose this genre?
Tomm Hewlett, Game Producer: We heard about PS Vita, and we really wanted to make a Silent Hill that was specially suited for that. We really wanted to experiment with multiplayer.
Little King’s Story is back and better than ever – now on PlayStation Vita. Featuring a brand new storyline and online functionality, New Little King’s Story offers players a royal role playing game with enhanced PS Vita system graphics and features.
New Little King’s Story follows players as they assume the role of King Corobo, tasked with reclaiming his kingdom from the Devil King, “The Nightmare.” Players will experience an incredible journey as they visit seven different kingdoms and battle against evil dark lords that have captured the royal princesses. As King, gamers will need to lead their Royal Guard in every grand battle, and plan attacks wisely as they grow their populations and broaden their territories.
The new PS Vita version will allow players to engage more deeply with their fellow characters, compared to the highly popular Wii version of the game. All characters have experience points, and fighting as a group will help them grow.
Let’s not mince words. Metal Gear Rising: Revengeance is in most ways the polar opposite of the Metal Gear Solid series, abandoning restraint and resourcefulness in favor of unapologetic brutality. If Metal Gear Solid was an elegant switchblade, Revengeance is a rip-roaring chainsaw.
The opening tutorial mission wastes no time in showing off the game’s much-touted Blade Mode, a surprisingly intuitive mechanic that boasts palpable precision. You press and hold L1 to slow time, then hold the right analog stick to wind up your slice. Hold the stick to the right and Raiden will draw his sword to the right; release the stick and he’ll slash from right to left, cleaving obstacles and baddies in two. It’s a devastating and deeply satisfying attack, but it’s slow and expends fuel cells so it’s best reserved for surgical strikes.
Blade Mode has been much discussed, but less has been said regarding Revengeance’s impactful combo system.
Leading into the release of Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of the Patriots, Kojima Productions tantalized MGS fans with an iconic trailer that depicted a cybernetically augmented Raiden (a la Gray Fox) slicing and dicing hordes of foes using a razor-sharp sword and acrobatic flips. MGS4’s Raiden was a refreshing departure from his whiny, abrasive turn in MGS2: Sons of Liberty, and before long series fans fantasized about controlling him in a dedicated adventure. Luckily, that fantasy will become reality thanks to Kojima Productions and Platinum Games.
Metal Gear Rising: Revengeance takes place nine years after the fall of the Patriots in MGS4. We played a demo at E3 2012 and tested Blade Mode, which you probably saw in the game’s trailer. Blade Mode is very simple: you activate it using L2, which triggers slow-mo and a zoomed-in camera view while Raiden gets into slashing position. You control the sword with the right analog stick: Everything in the path of the sword will be severed, whether it’s a structure, the body of an unfortunate combatant, a vehicle…even a girl’s dress (ooh-la-la!)
A few weeks ago, we traveled to Sao Paulo, Brazil to meet with our fellow PlayStation bloggers in Brazil and to attend the debut of Pro Evolution Soccer 2013. This was the first time we had an opportunity to play the game, and some members of the development team were there to answer our questions. A few games later, here’s what we learned:
This year, the PES team has lots of new people onboard who are sure to inject new life into this soccer simulation game, which already has millions of fans around the world.
This Wednesday, May 23rd is brimming with excitement. We welcome a new developer Bigyama to the fold, Novus Prime releases some new game-enhancing weapons, the x7 Nightclub updates, Lockwood brings new Delirious Squid items, and Konami releases a new collection of dazzling auras.
Novus Prime gets four new game-enhancing virtual items this week with the Alpha Squadron Arsenal! Deck out your pilot’s jacket with the menacing Twin Pulse Cannons for an added XP bonus, and fill your hands with the stylish new Disruption Shot Pistols, complete with animated barrels and permanent in-game Nebulon boost!
Blend into your surroundings and boost your XP by 5% with the holographic Avatar Projection System outfit, and harness the destructive power of the Handheld Arc Drill to increase your Nebulon gains even further. Head over to the Novus Prime space station to get your hands on the Alpha Squadron Arsenal today!
This Wednesday, April 25th, PlayStation Home gets an exciting core client update to version 1.65, the gorgeous Island Bungalow Personal Space releases to the public, beats by dr. dre arrive, new x7 exclusive early-access items release (and another freebie!), Konami releases more Secret Agent items, Juggernaut releases a down-to-earth companion, more Granzella Samurai items, and more! (Whew! This is a big week)
Let me get to the biggest news of the week—PlayStation Home gets an exciting new core client update. With it come a bunch of new features and improvements, including:
I’m a sucker for horror games, so I jumped at a recent opportunity to watch a short demo of Konami’s upcoming PS3 survival-horror epic Silent Hill: Downpour. In a development applauded by series fans, Downpour strongly emphasizes creeping psychological horror over the twitchy action of recent entries like Silent Hill: Homecoming.
You play as Murphy, a maximum-security inmate with a deeply troubled past. You awaken on the fringes of the cursed town of Silent Hill after your prison transport bus crashes. True to Silent Hill form, you’ll spend the rest of the game evading the town’s monstrous denizens while piecing together Murphy’s deepest secrets — including the dark truths that brought him to Silent Hill.
I spoke with Producer Devin Shatsky, who answered some key questions while playing through the first section of the game. If you have questions, leave them in the comments and I’ll do my best to get you answers!
