Exciting stuff this, sony has patented a system that would allow two people to view two different images from either side of the same television. Apparently the tech would require a 3D screen, thus meaning glasses would have to be worn along with ear phones for separate audio feeds. The applications could range massively, splitscreen could be far more emersive without the squeezing onto half of the original screen, someone could watch TV whilst another plays games, or two different games might even be able to be enjoyed.

The patent was filed a year ago so the tech may be coming along nicely by now. However, with almost everyone not having the benefits of 3D TVs just yet, its going to be a while before either sony deems it a good idea to release it, or before the majority of people can enjoy it. Cool though.

Sound: With this being primarily a rythm action game, the soundtrack must be done perfectly – integrating into the gameplay and on screen visuals simultaneously, and i can say with great glee that it does this perfectly. The songs performed in the game each have a unique sound and style and none ever feel bland or boring. The songs in this game are in the JPOP genre, so if you aren’t into that sort of thing then this game is not meant for you at all.

Gameplay: This is a rythm action game so expect something along the lines of Rock Band Unplugged or Gitaroo Man in terms of actual gameplay. The Game is split into 3 main modes; “free play” this allows you to play each song and unlock more as you finish each song, “Miku’s Room” this mode lets you customize Miku’s bedroom with room style and furniture and finally “song edit” lets you edit not only the songs on the UMD to make them easier/harder, but also the player’s own songs can be edited if they are in the music folder on the memory stick.

Playability: As this is an import game this is an important subject, because the game is menu driven and there is no real story to the game the fact that it is entirely in Japanese does not really matter once you have learnt the menu layout.

Overall: This is a very import friendly game and also provides hours of fun. The only real downside is that there is no real story mode or any other characters for that matter. To finish, this game is highly recommended to all who enjoy listening to JPOP.

Disclaimer: this review was done at the 15 hour mark.

Graphics: This is a 2d sprite based game with static backgrounds. I gotta say that the environments do not look top par especially for a PS2 game. I can say however that the event scene graphics are very well presented with individual character art, the anime style of the characters is very pretty and can be appreciated by many.

Sound: this game’s soundtrack is just awesome it balances the cheery tunes with the J-pop and then with the opera metal battle scenes, it is clearly obvious that a lot of work went into creating the music for this game.

The voice acting in this game is inconsistent in where it is used, but where it is used it really brings the characters to life. From the cheery cat girl with an awesome singing voice to the wannabe hero with a booming voice. I have to say the voice acting in this game is the very best i have heard short of persona 4.

Gameplay: This game takes a novel approach to levelling up, this is handled by using alchemy to create specific items and then register them in a book that is specific to each character, each item unlocks a slot in the book that holds a set number of upgrades or a skill. Then you use points earned from battles to purchase new skills and stat upgrades that were unlocked by alchemy. The battle system of the game is very similar to Final Fantasy 10 in the sense that there is a timeline of planned actions on the screen and the player can plot their moves and see how they affect the turn structure in real time. The battles are turn based and fairly easy to get your head around. The game is split up into a series of assignments to keep up with the school setting of the game this also makes it easy to pick up and play the game if you just have a small amount of game time a day.

Story: Finally a game that pulls away from the generic “save the princess/world” story line and is about a socially recluse boy who attends school at Al Revis academy to learn alchemy just as his father did. The main point of the game and its story is for the boy to get through the school year in one piece and to learn more about his father and himself.

Conclusion: Overall despite the lower visual presentation this game pulls through and ultimately entertains constantly. This is a highly recommended title.

Graphics: This game is a standard 2D sprite based RPG. This means that the chracter sprites are low quality, but this also means that memory is saved for the environments and story. Speaking of environments, this game is fairly beautiful, it is set ona floating continent that is falling apart and has pieces of weird machinery sticking out of the ground. The battle animations are just stunning, each magic spell in the game has a unique look and feel from a cute little sprite weilding dual SMGs to a slash happy demon. Event graphics are amazing along with the anime cutscenes – I have yet to see a game do better than this in the anime department, save Valkyria Chronicles and Persona 4.

Music: The soundtrack to this game is phenominal, each piece has a unique feel and suits the situation. I quickly found the music in this game was in general rotation in my mp3 player. This is a battle theme from the game.

05 – Agni

Gameplay: Battles are a unique affair – you have a team of 4 members (2 vanguard and 2 mages). The mages select a single speel to cast between them, and the vanguard must protect the mages whilst they charge the spell. The charging can be stopped at any time during the player’s turn. The vanguard can also attack using a directional button and either square or x (square for one vanguard character and x for the other), each different attack has a different effect on the mage characters, from giving the charge gauge a massive boost to restoring the mage’s MP. Character chemistry is also a big part of the game, if characters do not get along then it will have a detrimental effect on their battle performance. Chemistry can be improved by triggering set events or levelling up the mages together. The vanguard levels up the usual way (they gain XP from battles and level up) whilst the mages level up by bathing together and using different bath salts (that’s right, bathing). To learn new spells the main character must heal the mental scars of each mage by diving into her sub-conscious, these events can be rather entertaining.

Story: The story for this game is definitely unique. You play as Croix – A young knight who is protecting the two holy maidens who are charged with creating a new land by singing the song “Metafalica”. They do this because the world that they inhabit, “metafalss”, is dying and falling from its place in the sky, however a goddess tries to stop you and it is not revealed why until later on in the game.

Overall: I would say this game is worth a buy, it takes the 2d art style and runs with it never looking back, and for a 2009 ps2 game it certainly feels fresh.

Sony have finally done it, they are releasing older PSP games for download at the lovely price of £9.99. Some of the games announced for the first week of the essentials program are:

Daxter

Evertbody’s Golf

Naruto Ultimate Ninja Heroes 2

Patapon 2

This pricing program is set to start on the 2nd of June, most likely as part of the store update.

Two of PlayStation’s most popular IPs came away with some gold! Killzone 2 won the prestigious PlayStation Game of the Year award among heavy competition and Sackboy and his LittleBigPlanet ruled the Family Game of the Year category over some well established competitors!

Here’s a run down of all the winners from the 27th Annual Golden Joystick Awards:

• Family Game of the Year: LittleBigPlanet
• Handheld Game of the Year: Grand Theft Auto: Chinatown Wars
• Retailer of the Year: GAME
• Mobile Game of the Year: Metal Gear Solid Touch
• Nintendo Game of the Year: Call of Duty: World at War
• Multiplayer Game of the Year: Call of Duty: World at War
• Soundtrack of the Year: Guitar Hero: World Tour
• Xbox Game of the Year: Gears of War 2
• PC Game of the Year: Fallout 3
• UK Developer of the Year: Jagex
• PlayStation Game of the Year: KillZone 2
• Publisher of the Year: Activision Blizzard
• Online Game of the Year: Left 4 Dead
• One to Watch: Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2
• Ultimate Game of the Year: Fallout 3

With well over a million votes this year’s event was the biggest yet and as the awards are decided by you, the audience, they definitely mean so much more!

They Invadin' Yo Space

Picked this up from GAME after a Uni visit in Brighton (I’m not gay). Also picked up 4 PS2 games, find out what they are on episode 19!

Nut jobs.