Wow, that’s a mouthful! I enjoy reading interesting tidbits about the video game industry, particularly finding out things I didn’t know (but probably should!).

Looking through Tweetmeme this morning, I stumbled upon this interesting article about some very big businesses involved in the gaming industry. How many of these scintillating facts did you not know?

Me – I’m sitting on about 4/4 at the moment – and yeah, I know how slack of me!

Here’s the article if you’re interested. Thanks to JoyStiqDivision for the article.

It looks like Game Industry News editor John Breeden isn’t having a fun time of things with Sony. He’s admitted in this article (reported on several websites including N4G) that Sony could be in for even more of a financial loss if they don’t consider dropping the price of the PS3 console. He even goes so far as to state that Sony should give up the race to beat Microsoft and Nintendo and start developing games alongside Sega!

Sounds like a bit of sour grapes to me, Mr Breeden.

Here’s the article in full if you’d like to read it, thanks to N4G for the news.

Platform: PS3
Publisher: Sony Computer Entertainment
Developer: Slant Six Games
Rating: R16
Players: 32 (Multiplayer only)
Website: http://www.socom.com

Bored with the single-player campaign life? Want to skip through the painful cut-scenes and the terrible, fake-sounding voice acting once and for all? Well, we might just have what the doctor ordered because SOCOM Confrontation is multiplayer only.

It’s difficult to pick apart a game that is only multiplayer capable when so many games released these days focus on driving home the majority of the game content via story-driven, single-player campaign. SOCOM doesn’t have any characters to degrade or revere. It’s simply a no-holds-barred, in-your-face, online multiplayer fragfest.

What’s good about it? Well, it’s SOCOM although admittedly, I am not an overly huge fan of the franchise myself. That aside, I like guns, I like warfare and I like killing so as long as you can put ticks next to all three of those things, you shouldn’t have any problems playing this either.

You connect via the Playstation Network and you’re given a rank depending on your skill (basically, if you’ve played alot, you’ll have a higher rank). There are different game type options but by pressing ‘Quick Match’ you’ll be instantly thrown into a game without delay.

As with every multiplayer online experience, your opponents are real and therefore there’s no skill level to adjust, you simply aim and fire and pray you hit your target. The words ‘Spray and Pray’ spring to mind here. SOCOM is excessively realistic and well-known for the ‘one hit one kill’ gameplay. Controls are basic – R1 to shoot and the thumb sticks control movement left and right.

The game supports eight players so four on each side. The only gripe I do have however, is that no matter how much I fiddled with the controls (both in the game and on my TV), the game seemed really dark. It made killing people particularly difficult because I just couldn’t see anybody until they were right up in my face!

SOCOM Confrontation doesn’t have a lot of frills to it but for what it represents, it can be a hell of a lot of fun, especially if you have a headset attached for voice input – you know, so you can scream your victory cry across to anyone who has their headset on… or something like that.

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Platform: PS3 (PS2 version soon to be released)
Publisher: Sony Computer Entertainment
Developer: SCE
Rating: PG
Players: 8
Website: http://www.singstargame.com

Who could forget the popstar phenomenon that was Queen? And much as I enjoy most of the Singstar games, I am thrilled to finally see a Singstar tracklist that doesn’t have a single bad song on it! Of course, if you’re not a fan of Queen (and I’m not entirely sure how that could be possible) you won’t be on the same wavelength here, but I’m betting there won’t be very many fans of music in general that won’t like at least one song of Queen’s. And that’s what makes this game particularly appealing to a wider audience.

That said, Freddie Mercury’s vocal range is probably going to be a real challenge for most of us social crooners to deal with. If you’re a Queen fan then you’re probably already wondering how you’re going to hit most of those notes without breaking something in the process. I know I am, but hey, that’s half the fun! What’s a good Singstar game without the challenge?

After having played most of the Singstar games,one of the standout factors of Singstar Queen is the presentation. The menus have had a serious facelift and look extremely polished. With video clips of the band playing in the background and the songs easily accessible via the main menu, you’ll be away and singing in no time at all, even if you’re new to Singstar.

For those of you unsure of what Singstar is, Singstar can be classified as a simulation game that is suitable for all ages and requires game peripherals as well as the game disk to play. You will need a set of Singstar microphones (which can be purchased from almost anywhere that stocks video games for retail) and an adapter to connect your mics to your Playstation console. Once you’ve got the game and the peripherals you’re set to begin your Singstar singing career.

The scoring system for Singstar integrates several levels of difficulty which are Easy, Medium and Hard. The object of the game is to hit the notes on time and on key by following the words from the song onscreen in time to a pattern that displays for each song. If you hit the notes correctly, you gain points.

Singstar Queen follows the same basic structure as all the previous Singstar games so you won’t have to learn anything new. The only thing you’ll need to do is sing in tune. The fantastic thing about Singstar Queen is that it features all the hits Queen were made famous for and includes all of their music videos (up-scaled to High Definition) as well! This is definitely one of the coolest aspects of the game. I was very happy to see so many of my favourite Queen songs featured accompanied with music videos I had never seen before.

Singstar Queen includes some of their greatest hits such as “I Want it All”, “Killer Queen”, “Bohemian Rhapsody”, “I Want to Break Free”, “Under Pressure” and “Who Wants to Live Forever”. It’s hard to find a song that you won’t want to try and playing duet on some of these songs, in particular “Bohemian Rhapsody” is a whole heap of fun, especially when attempting some of the more difficult ‘harmonising’ portions of the song. If you’re looking for a way to strain your voice, you’ve certainly found it!

I was thoroughly impressed with every aspect of Singstar Queen and like the previous Singstar Abba, if you’re a fan of Queen, you will more than enjoy this addition to Singstar. If you find yourself wanting to add to your Singstar collection but you’re not quite sure what to buy, I highly recommend Singstar Queen as a very solid purchase.

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Platform: PS3
Publisher: Sony Computer Entertainment
Developer: SCE
Rating: R16
Players: 8
Website: http://www.us.playstation.com/PSP/Games/Resistance_Retribution

Being a resistance fighter is a never-ending fight. At least that’s what the developers at Sony seem to think and I’m happy to see a playable version of the ‘Resistance’ storyline successfully ported over to the PSP platform.

Resistance: Retribution is not so much a continuation of the previous Resistance game but rather a side-plot involving a new protagonist named James Grayson. The events of Resistance: Retribution take place soon after the fall of the Chimeran tower in London which features at the end of Resistance: Fall of Man, the first game in the franchise released in 2006.

The basic structure of each game seems relatively similar and features a main protagonist and a storyline based around the invasion of an alien race called the Chimera. The Chimera are hell-bent on the total annihilation of the human race, either through warfare or assimilation. The previous games focused on the Chimeran virus infecting humans and therefore effectively turning human beings into Chimera.

Resistance: Retribution is a third-person shooter where you play as the main character, James Grayson. After locating his infected younger brother at a chimera conversion centre, James Grayson is forced to shoot and kill him. As a result, James Grayson suffers a nervous-breakdown. He then embarks on a violent rampage of vengeance and retribution for his brother’s death.

The storyline of Resistance: Retribution is one of the strongest aspects of the game and also one of the most enjoyable. The characters are well developed and with appropriately timed action sequences throughout the game, Resistance: Retribution is easily one of the best third person shooters available for the Playstation Portable.

Movement in the game is a little different to previous control schemes. For instance, the ‘duck and cover’ mechanic has been slightly altered to accommodate ‘auto cover’ where you will automatically approach cover if it’s available. This is extremely handy when fire-fights in the game require you to exterminate multiple targets.

General movement is also controlled differently with the analog stick to control movement and the X and triangle buttons controlling your view up and down. The square and circle buttons control strafing movements, left and right. The auto-aim feature is also present in Resistance: Retribution and again is extremely handy during massive battles with Chimera. You can also change targets by using the standard control buttons. You may find the movement mechanic a little strange at first (or at least, I did) especially if you’re used to using the directional pad to move around. However, it’s a small learning curve and one that doesn’t take too long to work around.

Be on the lookout for things such as health packs in the game as you really don’t want to be dying all the time. You’ll also need to navigate and manoeuvre yourself around all sorts of interesting terrain so the sooner you get used to moving in the game, the better.

The navigation and menu system is detailed yet easily structured for new players and veteran gamers alike. You will be able to alter game options such as aim assist, audio and video as well as controls.

As Resistance: Retribution is story-driven, the game content is extremely immersive, requiring you to regularly check on ‘intel’ (game hints) and to take note of any specific game plot clues during the cut-scenes. The cut-scenes and voice acting are also excellent.

There is also another very cool game feature called ‘Infect your PSP’ that allows you to unlock new content within the game if you own the previous game, Resistance 2. This feature also allows you to play this content via your Playstation 3 console and on your TV screen which is just awesome!

Resistance: Retribution has it all – great and immersive game content, lots of action and a fantastic storyline to match. The added game content and functionality boosts the replayability of Retribution through the stratosphere! We anticipate you’ll be hard-pressed to find another third-person shooter with as much content as this one. Resistance fan or no, Resistance: Retribution is a must-have for your playstation portable.

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Platform: PS3
Publisher: Sega
Developer: Backbone
Rating: M
Players: Singelplayer/multiplayer
Website: http://www.sega-australia.com

‘Retro gaming overload’ is the only way one could describe the Sega Mega Drive Ultimate Collection. If you’re looking for this game anywhere on the internet, you may be hard-pressed to find it as it seems to have been renamed for the NZ/Australian market. The game that IGN and every other major website reviewed is called ‘Sonic’s Ultimate Genesis Collection’ but looks suspiciously similar to this game. That aside, the list of sega classics on this disk will undoubtedly have many retro-gamers drooling.

As there are 40 titles on this disk, it was evident early on which games out of the ‘ultimate’ collection are truly worthy of such a title. Games like ‘Goldenaxe’ are a no-brainer as is ‘Streets of Rage’ and ‘Sonic the Hedgehog’ (1, 2 and 3 are included on disk). Multiplayer support is included (and you’ll have a bash with Goldenaxe multiplayer) even if you’re constantly reminded of how old some of these games are by the obviously ‘pixelated’ graphics and midi file sound effects in the background. There’s no denying these games are old but they’re still a whole lot of fun.

Some of the special additions on disk include trivia about the games and developer interviews for those hardcore gamers looking for that little extra information on their favourite sega retro game.

Sega Mega Drive Ultimate Collection is the defining game collection for the PS3 (also released on the Xbox 360) and you won’t find another with so many classics packed away on one disk. Don’t miss out on this one!

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