PlayStation News, Articles and Information for the UK and Europe

Oblivion’s 5th Anniversary re-release was released in North America last week but until now there’s been little sign of a UK release. Fortunately, the BBFC has come to the rescue and posted a new listing for Oblivion yesterday. Coupled with a press release from Bethesda that mentions that “Details on the versions that will be available in the rest of the world and their contents will be released soon”, it’s pretty clear that the Oblivion 5th Anniversary Edition is working its way to the UK.

While Oblivion veterans will be dismayed to find that this is just a repackaged version of the Game of the Year Edition and won’t contain any of the missing DLC, nor Trophy support, newcomers to the series should definitely take this as an opportunity to experience one of the finest RPGs of the current generation.

Two Worlds II, released earlier this year in the UK and North America (mainland Europe were lucky enough to see a release in 2010), is getting a full-on expansion entitled ‘Pirates of the Flying Fortress’, as well as a special edition that will include both the full game and the expansion. Known as the ‘Velvet Edition’, the forthcoming re-release will be housed in a limited edition red velvet box, with metal corners in the style of antique brass and a bold relief Two Worlds II logo at the top of the box. Both the expansion and the Velvet Edition are due for release in mid-October.

While the original Two Worlds II had a few problems with bugs and crusty dialogue, underneath the surface lies a very rewarding and expansive game (you can see our review here). Going back to the game for the expansion, developer Reality Pump is hoping to iron out any problems this time around by revamping the engine with new features including updated dialogue animations and all new voice over talent, as well as adding the new quests and environments.

For the ‘Velvet Edition’, Topware Interactive is going one step further, and including a huge double-sided world map and a pirate head collectible pin, which is also available in-game and will boost the player’s parameters if hefted to armor. Also included is a bonus disc containing artwork, wallpaper, videos, an extended soundtrack and two additional PvP multiplayer maps – enough to keep even the most hardcore of fans satisfied. Until then, feast your eyes on these sparkly new screenshots from the Pirates of the Flying Fortress expansion:

The eagle-eyed folks over at RipTen have just received word from a tipster that the supposed $10 Skyrim discount voucher that comes with the new Oblivion 5th Anniversary Edition re-release will actually require you to spend $115 before they’ll let you have the money off. Here’s how it works:

1) You need to buy Oblivion 5th Anniversary Edition ($29.99).

2) You need to buy Skyrim ($59.89)

3) You need to buy the Official Skyrim Strategy Guide at the same time as Skyrim ($24.99)

4) You need to CUT OUT (!!!) the barcodes from all three products

5) You need to send all your barcodes as well as your till receipts

6) Patiently wait for a $10 Visa Prepaid Card Read more

Back in 2003 there were some great titles released in the run up to Christmas, with games like Prince of Persia and Splinter Cell, both released by Ubisoft. There was however another Ubisoft game, released around the same time, which received great ratings and reviews but was largely overlooked by the game-buying public. That game is Beyond Good and Evil.

Beyond Good and Evil, made by the same team that created the Rayman series and released on PS2/Xbox/GameCube and PC, received widespread acclaim for its story telling and fantastic visuals, especially back in 2003. Now it’s been released in HD for PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360, this is a great chance to play the game if you missed out first time round.

The plot takes places in the world of Hillys where a war has broken on the peaceful planet due to the cantankerous DomZ; they attack the lighthouse where the main protagonist Jade is working. She’s a reporter, and during the attack tries to protect the Orphans from the DomZ. With help from a pig called Pey’j (who is her uncle), Jade and Pey’j start to get suspicious about what’s really going behind the DomZ attacks and the secret rumours in The Alpha Sections about people being kidnapped on the planet. Throughout the main story, you’ll be going under-cover and taking photographs in facilities in Hillys.

Gameplay: Beyond Good and Evil is an action-adventure with a mix of puzzle-solving and stealth. You play as Jade, and the gameplay is set in a third-person perspective. You can run by holding the R2 button down and using the left analog stick to move; you can move stealthily by holding down L2 to crouch down. During stealth missions, while sneaking around enemies, you can kick them behind their back if they have are wearing a Green-Tank, which itself can make it less easy to sneak around or distract other enemy’s attention.

During combat your only weapon is your Dai-jo combat stick, used for fighting enemies, monsters and bosses; your partner will also help you out during combat, and when trying to solve a puzzle you can press the Triangle button to perform a special attack which will be in slow-motion, and lets you aim where you want to attack or swing away at.

During the game you’ll be required to collect Pearls, which are the currency you’ll be using to upgrade your Hovercraft, which is like your main vehicle to move around the world of Hillys and get through places you’re not supposed to go to. You will need a certain number of Pearls to upgrade your Hovercraft to press on to the story, and you’ll automatically collect many of them by defeating a boss or getting support from the citizens.

There will certain times where you’ll need to buy Pearls from market stands, or if that’s not your thing you can enter Hovercraft races or chase down looters. Another feature which is added in which is taking photos of different kind of animals on the planet; this is a great way to earn some money, as each role of film will earn you a prize from a camera piece or a Pearl.

Graphics and Sound: Anyone who played the original Beyond Good and Evil won’t see any real changes but the graphics do look a clearer and look totally well done in the higher resolution. For a game that was released back in 2003, you can see a huge difference from the original version and the HD version. The art direction and animation have aged gracefully and the world, while static, is very cleverly designed.

It still has the odd problem when it comes to camera control, and this can occur at any point in the game, where the camera will go freely anywhere, but you can use the right analog stick to move the camera around. Since it’s only released as a downloadable title you can try the demo before purchasing the full game, and this will take 1503 MB on your PS3.

The voice acting is still the same as it was back, which is will please long-time fans of the series who like to repeat quotes and memorable lines from the game. But for those who have not played the original, the world of Hillys is set in a European style environment and you may hear the odd Spanish and French accents from various characters and townspeople.

Eight years later the soundtrack is still unique and memorable to hear, from the battle theme music to the Mammago’s Garage, and some of the tracks are quite emotional and make you feel real shock as you witness what you see in various parts of the game.

Overall: If you missed out on the original, now would be the best time to pick up the HD version. Fans who have played the original might be pleased or disheartened to see that there hasn’t been any huge changes but there is trophy support, and there’s only 12 Trophies so it is easy to get 100% for it.

Beating the game can easily take you 12 hours or less, but there are a lot of secrets, leaderboards and collectables to hunt down. As a fan of the original game, I was really happy to see a HD version of Beyond Good and Evil and it really did bring back a lot of memories for me; for £7.99 it’s worth your money to pick up this classic for your collection.

Both PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360 have their own jealously guarded exclusives, most of which are probably over-rated or under-rated depending on which side of the fence you sit on. Then there are those exclusives that even the most hideous green-eyed fanboy will admit is actually pretty good, even though it’s only available on a rival system. One such game is LIMBO. LIMBO is a highly stylisted black and white puzzle game, built around the concept of ‘trial and death’, or trial and error as it’s known to real people. It’s won several awards already, including GameSpot‘s “Best Downloadable Game” and “Best Platformer” by IGN.

First showing up on the Koren Rating Board, LIMBO has now been confirmed by the CEO of developer Playdead, who said:

“Limbo is in production for Steam and PSN, and is coming very soon.”

So there you go PSN players, LIMBO is on its way, and if rumours are to be believed, it’ll be some time in July.

Puzzle Dimension is a brand new PSN puzzle game that’s made its way onto PlayStation 3 after its initial release on PC/Mac. The concept is simple enough: collect all the sunflowers and make your way to the exit. However, all manner of traps and puzzles lie in front of you as you attempt to finish each level, some of which will test your spatial awareness to the limit.

You control a single ball, which you move along a series of slabs of various materials and contexts. You can roll in any direction but not diagonally, and you can jump. You can even roll upside down, as if the slabs have their own independent gravity or magnetism – however, roll or jump over an edge and you’ve had it. Different types of slab have different effects, for example some ‘ice’ slabs will generate infinite inertia so you won’t stop sliding on them until you reach a non-ice slab. There are also weak slabs that break underneath you after one roll, and a variety of switches, fire plates, gizmos and other interactive hazards to watch out for. Read more

Originally released a staggering five years ago, Oblivion is being re-packaged and re-released as a 5th Anniversary Edition in North America, with Europe and the rest of the world possibly to follow. The new edition contains the Game of the Year version of Oblivion, along wtih the original ‘making of’ DVD, a map, and a $10 off Skyrim coupon – all packaged in a steelbook case.

Being a relatively old game, the PS3 version of Oblivion didn’t have any Trophy support and for some reason was never given access to any of the extra DLC that the PC and Xbox 360 versions had. Bethesda eventually confirmed that they had ceased work on Oblivion altogether and there was no chance that the PS3 version would get the extra DLC, nor Trophy support. Then a glimmer of hope arrived with an early scan of the box art for the forthcoming 5th Anniversary Edition of Oblivion, set for release next month in North America…

As you can see, the box art clearly states ‘Trophies’ as one of the features of the game. Has Bethesda finally gone back to Oblivion to add Trophy Support? Could they have added support for the extra DLC at the same time? Alas, no. Read more

It can be hard to review a book without simply retelling the plot, and with the inevitable twists that come with the Deus Ex territory, it’s extra important not to give too much information away. That said, it’s probably safe to say that you will find a few familiar characters in The Icarus Effect, and the storyline sets up Deus Ex: Human Revolution nicely. It offers a nice backstory to the series, but still feels like its own self-contained story that can be read without any prior knowledge of the series.

The Icarus Effect is generally well written, and easy to read. It’s also not too long (about 350 pages, with decent size text) but there’s enough to sink your teeth into for several nights or more. It starts out with a bang, giving us some pretty intense action scenes within the first few pages. In a film, that’s a great tactic as it grabs the audience’s attention. In a book however, it feels slightly awkward, and makes it very hard to get a feel for the characters when all they are doing is running around shooting stuff. This style continues for quite a while, and is complicated by the dual storylines that are progressing simultaneously. However, about a third the way through the book, things settle down quite a bit and we start to really get to know the main characters and explore their motivations. Read more

Two Worlds II, a game already brimming with content, has yet more exciting adventures on the way for fans – this time in the form of Pirates of the Flying Fortress, a brand new expansion pack. We’ve got six brand new screenshots for you and, as you can see, they pack quite a punch in the visual department. If TopWare Interactive can iron out some bugs found in the main game, Pirates of the Flying Fortress could really be one to watch.

Before games are released to the public, game publishers send out review copies in order for a game to be reviewed in time for its release date. There tends to be a gap of a few days between when the reviews are published, and when the game is finally released. This is usually enforced by an embargo date set by the game’s publisher, which ensures that reviews aren’t published too early. This is a very sensible idea, and is a very good way of maximising publicity for a game. However, there seems to be a trend to set the embargo date so close to a game’s release date that people who pre-order the game aren’t able to see any review scores until after their pre-order has been dispatched. What’s more, some publishers set the embargo date to be the same day as the release date of a game, leaving people who pre-order or buy on launch day to go on blind faith that the game they’re buying will be as good as they’re hoping for.

Now, I pre-ordered Duke Nukem Forever a long time ago, as I’ve been waiting to play it for over ten years and I’ve been a big fan of Duke Nukem since I first played Duke Nukem 3D way back in 1996. I understand that, due to the incredible delays it has suffered, there are unrealistic expectations of Duke Nukem Forever. It is never going to live up to the hype that surrounds it. I am happy with that. I am looking forward to playing Duke Nukem Forever one day, and enjoying a bit of old-school shoot ‘em up fun, but that’s all I’m expecting. However, that won’t be for some time yet. Read more