The beta will be available from Saturday, February 22, 2014 to Sunday, March 2, 2014. Characters created during the beta are limited to level 20 and progress will not be saved after the beta ends.
Create your own unique FINAL FANTASY hero and embark on the adventure of a lifetime to help forge the fate of Eorzea.
PS2 Classic Neo Contra ($9.99) It is the year A.D. 4444 and Earth has been transformed into a prison planet filled with criminals and political rebels. A new threat called Neo Contra arises from this underworld society, and Bill Rizer has been awakened from his almost 2,000-year long slumber to destroy this evil menace. PSOne Classic Mr. Driller ($5.99) Purchase this PS one Classic and play it on your PS3, PS Vita and PSP (PlayStation Portable) systems!Big bright blocks have buried Downtown! Digging through Is going to take a professional. Mr. Driller is the perfect choice and he’s ready to drill.
Tomba! 2 ($5.99) Tomba! 2 marks the return of our pink-haired punk caveboy. Tomba’s BBF Tabby has been pig-napped by those darn diabolical swine. Now Tomba must solve mysteries as he endeavors his way into the pig’s liar. Tomba! 2 is a deep and satisfying game that has earned consistently high scores. Let your pink hair down and have fun in the wacky world of Tomba! DemosIf you’re already active in the PlayStation Forums, any of the various multiplayer communities, or even other gaming sites across the internet, then you might have heard of the PlayStation MVP Program.
For those of you who aren’t familiar with the program, the PlayStation MVPs are a team of PlayStation gamers who volunteer to help us host exclusive game events and online tournaments, create content such as walk-throughs and help articles for fellow gamers on the PlayStation Forums, and share their expert opinions on PlayStation products through exclusive panels and discussion sessions with the PlayStation Community Management team.
Quick Look: PlayStation ForumsMany of our PlayStation MVPs got in to the program based around their activities in the PlayStation Forums. Whether you’re a PlayStation Forums veteran, or are just now learning of their existence, check out the new look and learn how you can build your own community reputation on the PlayStation Forums, and share your gaming stories, tips, and insights.
PlayStation General hosts a variety of discussions across the entire spectrum of gaming.
You’ll also find the official home of community for Naughty Dog for each of their marquee titles including The Last of Us and Uncharted.
Santa Monica Studios, developers of some of PlayStation’s biggest and brightest titles including God of War, Sound Shapes and PlayStation All-Stars Battle Royale also host their official forums here as well.
We’ll be building out more new areas and functionality on the PlayStation Forums in the coming year, so we hope you’ll join us!
- Morgan Haro, Community Manager
At E3 2013 we invited members of the PlayStation MVP program to attend our press conference and meet with key people from PlayStation, World Wide Studios and our third party developer community on the show floor and in private feedback sessions. This past November we brought some of our MVPs out to join us at the Standard High Line in NYC for the launch of PS4. And recently our MVPs have even helped assist in the development of community programs for Guerrilla Games and Naughty Dog.
It’s truly been an awesome year for PlayStation, and our PlayStation MVPs have been there with us every step of the way. We have big plans for 2014, so if you’re a passionate PlayStation gamer who would like to contribute to the PlayStation MVP program beginning this Spring, you can apply here.
Many of you have been waiting a very long time for the release of Earth Defense Force 2025, and I’m proud to say that the game is available for PS3 starting today! Acclaimed Japanese developer Sandlot is back at it again, creating the best EDF experience yet.
Many of you know what makes EDF great, and that’s crushing giant insects and destroying everything in sight. But what many of you didn’t know is that the Earth Defense Force series started way back in 2003 for PS2, and EDF 2025 is the 7th game in the series.
EDF 2025 takes place eight years after peace from the last attack in 2017. That peace is suddenly shattered when giant, burrowing ant-like creatures burst from the ground and begin attacking the populace. The EDF is called back into action and this is where the fun begins.
So what’s new in EDF 2025?
Like Earth Defense Force 2017, we expect players to return to their PS3 for years to come to not only save Earth from the insects, but to introduce their friends to the awesomeness of EDF.
With the launch of EDF 2025 today, we have a ton of fun things available to players. The first of three mission packs is now available to download. Titled the Special Ops Mission Pack, players can play five additional levels of EDF and be introduced to new locations. And we’re running a special promotion on our Facebook page right now where players can participate in an EDF 2025 newscast and earn the Special Ops Mission Pack for free.
Also available today for free are the Wing Diver and Fencer Weapons Packs.
The Wing Diver Weapons Pack
The Fencer Weapons Pack
So let us know what you think of the game! And when you’re getting rid of those pesky bugs, give out a yell of “EDF! EDF! EDF!” just for me.
Hi PlayStation community!
Since we launched the Redbox Instant by Verizon app on PS3 and PS4 late last year, we’ve noticed that the PlayStation community is one of the most engaged groups of movie lovers we’ve ever seen!
To show our appreciation and to make sure you’re getting the best possible experience with our service, we want you to tell us what types of movies you want to stream most on your PS3 or PS4.
Our next update to Redbox Instant by Verizon’s The Playlist collection will go live on your PS3 and PS4 systems Tuesday, February 25th. While we have a ton of ideas for the movies we want to feature, we want to let you drive the decision and put our team to work to find the best movies for you.
Place your vote now through Sunday, February 23rd, and we’ll come back to you on Monday with the winning Playlist theme and the movies that come with it on the following Monday!
Note: There is a poll embedded within this post, please visit the site to participate in this post's poll.Thanks for your vote and for being part of the Redhead Nation!
Over the past few months, we shared with you our vision of a Neo-Victorian London in The Order: 1886, an alternate version of human history filled with mystery and advances in technology that take center stage in an age-old war.
This conflict that started centuries ago pitted mankind against half-breeds in a battle for survival. This became the catalyst for the noblest warriors of their time to come together in an alliance, an Order that waged war and held the line for hundreds of years. Through the centuries, their vigil has kept humanity safe and the war in a status quo while The Order’s members remained hidden behind history and legend.
But everything changes with the advent of the Industrial Revolution. The tide of war shifts as the Knights finally bring the battle to the half-breeds with the help of new weaponry.
A glimpse of the Thermite Rifle, a key weapon in the Order’s arsenal
But with progress comes civil unrest and rebellion, by the very people they have sworn to protect. Oppressed by what they perceive to be a dictatorship, the Rebellion rises out of the streets of Whitechapel and quickly prove themselves a dangerous foe, taking up arms against the Monarchy and The Order.
Concept art of Rebels
The Order now lives in a world where they must face and fight their fellow man while protecting their kind from the half-breeds. In The Order: 1886, you will be confronted by a diverse group of adversaries and use your weaponry against different factions.
We recently shared a first look at gameplay that illustrates the rebel uprising and that coverage is hitting today so be sure to check it out. Everyone here at Ready At Dawn is hard at work on the game. It’s been great to see all the excitement and we promise to share more of the game soon!
Hello fellow PlayStation fans! It’s a pleasure to be here. My name is James Vance, and I’m the Capcom Japan producer on Strider for PS4 and PS3. For those of you who are new to the Strider universe, please allow me to give you a quick rundown of just how awesome it is. For those of you who already know, take a moment to revel in your superior gaming knowledge, and stick around to learn what surprises the all-new Strider has in store.
Originally introduced in 1989, Strider was a seminal Capcom game starring Special-A class, indestructible cypher sword swinging, climb on virtually anything, all around coolest video game character ever, Strider Hiryu. Strider took the gaming world by storm with its ultra-fast and responsive controls, first of its kind dynamic traversal, crazy boss characters and amazingly detailed and unique graphics that were truly in a league of their own. The fast and frenetic arcade tradition continued some ten years later in Strider 2, but many of the younger Marvel vs. Capcom players may know Strider Hiryu best as one of the series’ most respected fighters.
Fast-forward to now! Strider Hiryu is back in his very own adventure, and is bringing the lightning-fast, ultra-responsive and relentless side-scrolling action of his arcade pedigree to a massive, non-linear game world. Core cypher combat, acrobatic climbing and traversal mechanics are a gateway to exploration, where an arsenal of hidden abilities, power-ups and items unlock deeper combat and traversal options, as well as paths to other areas of the game world. Whether freezing an enemy in place with the Ultra-Cold plasma cypher, then instantly blowing them to pieces with the Explosive Plasma Kunai, or bursting through an enemy and into an unexplored area with a mid-air Plasma Catapult burst, every split-second action and elegant combo is yours to command.
An army of minions and a legion of twisted, insane and often immense boss characters stand between you and your mission to eliminate Grand Master Meio. Whether you accomplish your mission all depends on how far you push your combat skills, and how far they can carry you into the depths of the world to unlock its secrets.
In addition to the robust story mode, Strider arrives with a truck-load of unlockable concept art, character and location intel, costumes, character customization, a Platinum Trophy, additional Challenge Modes and worldwide score and speed-run leaderboards, which is more than enough reason to keep you coming back for more. PS4 owners can also look forward to a visual feast in native 1080P, and silky smooth gameplay at 60FPS. The intuitive game controls and vibrant visuals are also a perfect fit for PS Vita Remote Play.
Please downhill run, star jump or slide to your PS3 or PS4 to download the demo, or slice right into the full game for just $14.99 starting today!
Hi PlayStation.Blog readers! I’m Mauro Fanelli, cofounder of the two person italian indie studio MixedBag, and I’m super excited to be here today to announce that our first game, Futuridium EP, is coming to PS Vita in an all new, enhanced, expanded, turbo charged edition titled Futuridium EP Deluxe.
We started working on Futuridium as a side project with the idea of paying an homage to the retro classic Uridium, a 2D top-down shoot’em up by Andrew Braybrook (and one of our favorite Commodore 64 game from the 80s), with a total reinvention aimed to mix its fast paced action and the unique feeling of flying back and forth on enormous space dreadnoughts with full 3D gameplay and a retro, flat shaded look with tons of glitchy graphic effects.
We put together a prototype of the game with the basic game mechanics in place and… it worked! That’s not always guaranteed in game development, so we continued to build on the formula, polish, play, rebalance, play a lot more, and, when we were presented with the opportunity to bring the game to PS Vita we were like… ok, it’s a perfect match, can we please start working on it NOW?
In Futuridium you are a lone starship pilot who gets lost in a dimensional loop just before a big space battle. With a limited and constantly depleting energy bar, your only hope is to fly as fast as possible over enormous space dreadnoughts and destroy power cubes to replenish your energy tank and reveal the dreadnought’s power core, which must be destroyed to move on to the next ship.
You have no power-ups and limited control over your speed, so you can only count on your reflexes, your dual lasers, the nimbleness of your starship, and the ability to turn 180° on the spot — an essential technique when navigating the dreadnoughts’ intricate passages.
Futuridium’s gameplay is heavily score based; you can gain big multipliers by destroying cubes and chaining cubes together. You can play it safe, but only taking big risks and learning the right path on the dreadnoughts will lead you to the top of the online leaderboards.
So what are we bringing to this new Deluxe version on PS Vita? Tons of new stuff:
On the musical side, we’re adding new tracks to the 45 minute long original soundtrack, by the very talented musicians Qubit and le dégout. Here are two tracks for your listening pleasure:
Thanks for reading, we’ll share more information about Futuridium EP Deluxe in the coming weeks and we’ll be back soon with another game announcement. Until then, check us out on Facebook, Twitter, and our blog.
See you in the comments section — I’ll be glad to reply to all your questions!
It has been a wild and fun six weeks releasing classic game after classic game with the Retro Rush. What’s the Retro Rush? We’ve been releasing a new import PSone Classic on the PSN for PlayStation 3, PlayStation Vita and PSP. So far, the Retro Rush has included Double Dragon, Lucifer Ring, The Firemen 2: Pete and Danny and Wolf Fang.
We’ve gotten a lot of great response from everyone and it’s made us happy to see these games being enjoyed again.
However, the Retro Rush has all been leading to this point, the game that we’ve gotten the most requests for out of any other game we’ve released: Tomba! 2. Tomba! 2 is a title we’ve wanted to release for the longest time but we’ve had to overcome some technical hurdles first.
On February 18th, you can download the Japanese import version of Tomba! 2 for your PS3, PS Vita and PSP. Since the title is in Japanese, we’ll be providing a complete walkthrough on our website for players.
Tomba!, for those who are just learning of our wild jungle boy, was created by Tokuro Fujiwara, who many gamers will recognize having a hand in other classic games like Ghosts ‘n Goblins and MegaMan. Tomba! 2 picks up where the first title left off and puts our hero on a magical platforming journey full of memorable moments.
Tomba! 2 continues the adventure of the wild, pink haired jungle boy but this time, he is out to save a friend that mysteriously disappeared. That will lead Tomba! on a quest through some unique locations that will highlight the blend of 2D/3D platforming gameplay that makes the series so unique.
The critically acclaimed sequel brings with a slew of improvements along the way like suits that give Tomba! special powers and heavier use of 3D models to bring the game world to life. The Adventure Point system makes its return too that keeps the gameplay fresh all the way to the last boss.
The Retro Rush will start to slow down now that Tomba! 2 is out but that won’t stop our commitment to classic, retro games. Video games have such a rich history and we’ve made it our mission to continue to digitally release titles like Double Dragon, Lucifer Ring, The Firemen 2, Wolf Fang and Tomba! 2.
Have suggestions of games you want to see next? Find us on Twitter at @MonkeyPawGames and let us know!
Hey everyone! I’m extremely excited that Gunslugs is finally coming to its natural home, PS Vita, on February 18th. To celebrate the launch, we’re offering a 20% discount for all PlayStation Plus members during the first week, so don’t miss out!
For the occasion, I figured I’d give you guys a sneak peek at the porting process of Gunslugs; or as we like to call it, an “adaptation” process. As I have no technical skills whatsoever, I interviewed Rutger Janssen, one of our elite programmers, and Ralph Egas, CEO and Abstraction Games Mastermind. Both developers were involved with the Gunslugs adaptation.
Tj’ièn Twijnstra: Rutger, could you tell us a bit about the adaptation process? How does something like that work?
Rutger Janssen: After we determined the base version, the first step is to strip the game code of all the platform specific functions; only the game code remains. Then we take it through our in-house developed tool chain so the basic language is converted from Objective C to C++. Unfortunately, tools are never perfect, so here and there I needed to manually update the code.
As the original platform handles things differently than PS Vita, we need to add placeholder code, called “stubs,” to make sure the code starts to compile. Once all the things that prevent the code from compiling are fixed, we slowly replace the stubs with actual functioning code to make sure we get something visual on that beautiful OLED. This process continues up until we have the original game running on its new home.
Tj’ièn Twijnstra: Then the fun begins, right?
Rutger Janssen: Yeah, then it’s time to add the PS Vita-specific functions. We spent a lot of time tailoring the game. We’ve added leaderboards, Trophies, and cloud saving, and we made sure the game text was properly localized to different languages. I know you spent ages finding the right font to work with the special characters!
Tj’ièn Twijnstra: Don’t remind me, it took forever…
Rutger Janssen: That basically leaves us with a complete game, but the process doesn’t stop there. We then take it through some serious testing, both in house and using a specialized testing agency to fix bugs in both the PS Vita specific code, as well as some bugs in the original code. After that rigorous testing, Sony QA tracked down some final bugs which we cleared as well.
Tj’ièn Twijnstra: Did you think it was an easy adaptation?
Rutger Janssen: Yeah, we did it pretty fast. We learned a lot thanks to our earlier experience with Hotline Miami on PS Vita, so this was a smooth ride.
Tj’ièn Twijnstra: Ralph, you told me Gunslugs was a special kind of adaptation for us, could you tell us a bit more?
Ralph Egas: Well, this is one of the first adaptations where we created a special tool chain that allowed us to convert one coding language to another, allowing the basics of one language to easily be translated to another. When we did Hotline Miami we gained experience using some of these tools, so we further developed this tool chain for Gunslugs, which worked really well.
In fact, now that we did Gunslugs, other Orange Pixel games will benefit and become easier to adapt to PS Vita.
Some of you might have heard that Heroes of Loot, Orange Pixel’s latest piece of sheer brilliance, is due later this year on PS Vita, so be sure to check this place out in the future.
We hope you’ll enjoy Gunslugs when it arrives, but we’re also curious to hear from you guys what other games from Orange Pixel you might be interested in. Feel free to let your voice be heard in the comments below (or send us a tweet at @AbstractionGame) — we’re listening!
It’s hard to believe that PlayStation Plus is nearly four years old. Since its launch, we’ve continued to add benefits, including our wildly popular Instant Game Collection, deep game discounts, cloud storage and online multiplayer on PS4. We’ve continued to up the ante with recent Instant Game Collection offerings such as Game of the Year nominee BioShock Infinite, PS3 action epic DmC, headspinning PS Vita adventure Gravity Rush, and most recently, PS4 favorites Resogun and Outlast.
Today, I’m delighted to show you our very first TV spot for PS Plus, which debuts this week and celebrates the fact that with PS Plus you can experience more together.
I hope you enjoy it and thanks to you all for your amazing support.
Turtle Rock’s highly coveted co-op/competitive shooter hybrid Evolve is coming to PS4 this fall and we’ve bagged us a big one — an interview with Turtle Rock co-founder Phill Robb! Then catch up on TowerFall Ascension and Final Fantasy XIV: A Realm Reborn in two new developer interviews, plus the new releases for February 18th and a bare minimum of Dark Souls talk. For reals!
Subscribe via iTunes or RSS, or download here
Stuff We Talked About[Editor’s note: PSN game release dates are subject to change without notice. Game details are gathered from press releases from their individual publishers and/or ESRB rating descriptions.]
The world has fallen under the tyrannical rule of Grand Master Meio. As people suffocate in his steely grip, Special A-Class Strider Hiryu is sent into the wintry winds of Kazakh City to assassinate the dictator. The arcade classic series returns with Strider, which launches for PS3 and PS4 this week.
Guide Hiryu through an expansive map and cut down Grand Master Meio’s forces in a flurry of strikes. Using Hiryu’s indestructible plasma Cypher — and a host of unlockable special moves — players can traverse the dark halls, harrowing heights, and gleaming towers of Kazakh City with speed and skill.
For those gamers hungry for a more old-fashioned quest, the PS4 beta of Final Fantasy XIV: A Realm Reborn also launches this week. Saddle up a chocobo and ride through Eorzea in this staggering MMO from Square Enix. Interested parties can head here for more information about the beta.
There’s plenty more coming to PlayStation, so head below for the full list. And enjoy the Drop!
The information above is subject to change without notice.
Slim PS Vita! Gimme gimme gimme! Seriously, LOOK AT IT. This week’s other “big thing” was the release of The Last of Us: Left Behind. If you’ve played TLOU, you’d be silly not to play this new chapter of the story.
In other news this week, Ryan is apparently a robot, because he wrote four hands-on stories: EA Sports UFC, Evolve (which I got to play too — it’s lookin’ mighty fine so far), inFAMOUS Second Son, and a boatload of upcoming games from NIS America (including Disgaea 4 on Vita and Danganronpa 2).
Lightning Returns: Final Fantasy XIII is out now on PS3, baseball is indeed better on PS4 with MLB The Show 14, and our pals at Naughty Dog dropped off some sweet (and kinda sick) Valentines for us.
What are you playing this weekend? Have you finished Left Behind yet? What did you think? No spoilers!
This Week’s PlayStation Store Update
This Week’s PlayStation Plus Update
Most-Watched Video of the Week
Hi everyone! Chocolates, flowers and romantic movies are nice, but here at PlayStation we’re celebrating Valentine’s Day with a Flash Sale. Get up to 75% off a great lineup of co-op and multiplayer games. The Valentine’s Day Flash Sale starts right now and runs through Monday, February 17th, so hurry and grab these games while they’re on sale.
What better way to spend Valentine’s Day than playing ibb & obb, LEGO Marvel Super Heroes or Scott Pilgrim with your loved one or a friend? Check out the full lineup below:
Title
Sale Price
Original Price
Castle Crashers (PS3)
$3.49
$14.99
Cloudberry Kingdom (PS3)
$2.49
$9.99
Divekick (PS Vita, Cross-Buy)
$2.49
$9.99
Divekick (PS3, Cross-Buy)
$2.49
$9.99
Fat Princess (PS3)
$3.49
$14.99
House of the Dead Overkill: Extended Cut (PS3)
$4.99
$19.99
ibb & obb (PS3)
$4.99
$9.99
Kane & Lynch 2: Dog Days (PS3)
$4.99
$19.99
Kane & Lynch: Dead Men (PS3)
$3.99
$14.99
LEGO Marvel Super Heroes (PS Vita)
$19.99
$29.99
LEGO Marvel Super Heroes (PS3)
$24.99
$49.99
LEGO Marvel Super Heroes (PS4)
$29.99
$59.99
NBA 2K14 (PS3)
$39.99
$59.99
NBA 2K14 BLUE DIAMOND JEWELRY COLLECTION (PS3)
$12.49
$24.99
NBA 2K14 GOLD JEWELRY COLLECTION (PS3)
$2.49
$4.99
NBA 2K14 PLATINUM JEWELRY COLLECTION (PS3)
$4.99
$9.99
PlayStation All-Stars Battle Royale (PS3)
$9.99
$39.99
Renegade Ops (PS3)
$2.49
$9.99
Scott Pilgrim (PS3)
$2.49
$9.99
Toy Story Mania (PS3)
$9.99
$39.99
What games are you looking forward to playing? The Valentine’s Day Flash Sale starts now and runs through Monday, February 17th