That’s it for 2010! The PlayStation.Blog team (me) is hunkering down in front of the hearth to eat Wine Gums and watch a liberal amount of sport on TV. However, rest assured that I’m leaving you in good hands: together with Jeff, Sid and Rey from the US PlayStation.Blog, we have invited some of world’s greatest game developers to take over both blogs for a day.

We’re kicking off tomorrow, when Guerrilla Games will be telling us about Christmas in Amsterdam, and finishing on New Year’s Eve, when the SingStar Team will be explaining why they are not boring and providing a set-list to help you sing in the new year in style. In-between, Insomniac Games, Naughty Dog and more will all be wearing our editorial hats for a day – don’t miss it.

Looking back over 2010, it’s very difficult to pick out a highlight. Obviously, taking charge of this very blog and receiving many kind comments from you guys was a great moment and there have been some fantastic overseas trips, including LA for E3, Cologne for gamescom and Madrid for the Gran Turismo 5 launch event.

Despite all of those incredible events and the news they generate, it’s humbling to know that the most read story on the blog in 2010 was the revelation that even the most intelligent software developers in the world can struggle with the concept that there are actually 365.24 days in a year.

It has been another fantastic year to be a PlayStation 3 owner, with a banquet of exclusive games, third-party blockbusters and varied services such as MUBI and VidZone. To pick a game of the year out of the hundreds I play is a challenge, with God of War III and Gran Turismo 5 obvious candidates to anyone that has grown up with PlayStation (and the person who had to deal with millions of furious people demanding to know when one of those games would be released) and MAG being the surprise personal hit, as I don’t usually play many FPS games.

However, I’ve got to give it to Heavy Rain. I could reference the storytelling, which is leagues above almost every other game out there; the graphics; the huge array of locations; the tense moments where deciding to shoot a person – something we do thousands of times in other titles – suddenly carries the emotional weight that it should; and the fact that it can be enjoyed just as much by a person watching as a person playing, making it a surprisingly social experience.

But the reason I love it so much is that’s it’s different, and when you play as many games as I do then that’s a quality that you really appreciate. Also, it was fun to overhear conversations in the office along the lines of “yeah… I jumped out of the window too” and seeing people called Jason swinging their heads around as their name was randomly called out in different tones of voice.

That’s quite enough rambling from me. All that’s left to say is have a fantastic Christmas and be good to each other. I’ll leave you in the more than capable hands of Guerrilla Games and I look forward to chatting to you all in 2011, when I’ll be a little wiser and a lot fatter.

Score:

• 35 Comments
• Share on Twitter
• Share on Facebook

Long time no see! Since Gravity Crash Portable was launched we’ve kept our heads down while working on a bunch of stuff. During the summer we started working exclusively on Oddworld projects, and I’m here today to talk about the first title we announced: Oddworld Stranger’s Wrath.

You may have heard of this game before – it was originally released in March 2005, but we’re doing an HD remake for PSN. Recently there have been a whole raft of HD remakes coming to the PS3, and to be able to work on this project and take the definition of “HD Remake” to the next level has been a dream come true.

Not only are we revamping various aspects of the game such as texture resolution, user interface and game audio, but we’re also overhauling the character models. You’ll no doubt have seen the visual update we’ve done to the main character, Stranger. We’re updating every character in the game in similar style, and today I’d like to introduce you to a couple more.

First up we have the Clakkerz, the general population from the towns at the start of the game all the way to New Yolk City. The guy pictured above is the Store Keeper, he runs the General Store where you get to buy ammo and upgrades, and is always wise cracking, ahem, with you. A lot of my passion for this game is the story and the script, there is so much humour in there that you can’t help but laugh out loud at times!

Next we have the Grubb Natives. These guys are afraid of their own shadows and mistrust anyone, especially a tall Stranger that comes into their settlement, but is there a reason for that? Their story unfolds farther in the game.

In Stranger’s Wrath you play a bounty hunter, tracking down various villains and capturing them. To do this, you don’t use a gun but LIVE ammunition. And by “live” we really mean that – your ammo are little critters with special abilities, and at times the damned things even back chat you. So the critters sit on your crossbow and talk to you, then when the time’s right, you press the trigger and send them on their way.

This little guy is my favourite, the Chippunk, cause he’s a wise-cracking chipmunk-like guy!

Over the coming weeks and months, we will be back to talk to you more about the PS3 version of Stranger’s Wrath, including other updates and additions to the game we are making.

Thanks, and we hope you all have a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year!

Score:

• 21 Comments
• Share on Twitter
• Share on Facebook

This Thursday morning will be our last update for 2010, and comes with a range of new content. Leading the charge is the new Xi Museum where veterans can return to many Xi spaces that were a highlight of 2009, and those who missed Xi can experience some of the games and unique personalities (I’m looking at you, Stapler!).

So without further ado, here’s what you can expect with the long awaited launch of the Xi Museum which consists of a series of spaces from Xi, the epic PlayStation Home Alternate Reality Game played by over 750,000 people. Along with an updated Alumni hub space, the Xi Museum consists of all three AlphaZone 1 spaces (Hexopolis, Maximum Tilt and the Text Adventure room) plus all four AlphaZone 3 mazes. The hub also sees the addition of the Xi Museum Shop, which has eleven unique items for sale – from full-size Maximum Tilt bikes for your apartment to your own version of Jess’s Xi party apartment (can you work out how to open the safe?). You can also buy your own active Stapler for your apartment, who will share new words of wisdom with you every day, as well as an incredibly cute Stapler companion. Throughout the Xi Museum you’ll find a variety of tasks: complete them all to obtain eleven collectible Xi ornaments! To celebrate the Xi Museum launch, nDreams will be giving away ten Stapler companion items in a special quiz – check out their Twitter feed at 7pm GMT this Thursday (@patrickol) to take part!

With the success of Sodium, a one year anniversary under their belt and the announcement of SodiumTwo fresh in people’s minds, many might have thought the Lockwood Publishing Team were off for a well deserved holiday break. Well we couldn’t have been more wrong. Just in time for Christmas Eve the Lockwood team have released the answer to every Home user’s Holiday Shopping woes, the Lockwood Gift Machine and what’s more it’s free. So if you’re about in Home over the Holidays, grab a gift machine and send a friend a present. The Gift Machine comes with 64 Free Lockwood Tokens and a range of preloaded gift options, you’ll never queue at the store again.

SingStar fans should look out for a special festive update to the SingStar space on Thursday, including music and that special wintry feel. Looking for a new look for your personal space? The MyDeco store updates again this week, with thirteen new items joining their range. They’ve been teasing it for a while in their shop front, now the V-store brings a smile to everyone … smiley style! Finally, it appears even zombies celebrate the festive season, as Double Six release a new range of items.

Score:

• 23 Comments 5 Replies
• Share on Twitter
• Share on Facebook

Hi guys,

We have a brand new DCUO video for you below which showcases a new gameplay mode known as ‘Alerts’.

‘Alerts’ are high action, quick grouping, experiences where you can get together with your friends (whether they’re playing as a hero or villain) and, as a team, embark on unique in-game missions.

I’ll hand over now to Chris Cao – Game Director for DCUO – to explain this mode to you in more detail:

DC Universe Online is coming early 2011 to PS3 and PC.

See you in Metropolis.

Score:

• 32 Comments 2 Replies
• Share on Twitter
• Share on Facebook

Hello all,

This month I am all about LittleBigPlanet 2. I was lucky enough to get to write the world exclusive review and I can tell you now, it’s brilliant. How brilliant is something you’ll have to find out about in the mag. That said making this little target shooting game has been one of my gaming highlights of the year. Anyway, on to the issue!

The big news this month (aside from Uncharted 3: Drake’s Deception) is our 2010 Game Of The Year feature. Or GOTY to its friends. These are the ones you voted for. We count down the top ten in detail, talk about our choices and hand out some ‘alternative’ awards. Including Biggest Disappointment and – fanfare – Biggest Install! There’s also a complete top 40 of all the games voted for.

Probably the best thing you’ll read this month is news ed Rachel’s rapping adventure. After a bit of brash boasting about her Def Jam Rapstar skills we called her bluff and bundled her off to learn real wordplay with British rapper XO Man. He’s seven-foot and, according to Flavour magazine, is the “UK’s answer to Andre 3000″. Rachel’s five foot four in heels and has a fluffy animal calendar on her desk. It’s like the odd couple with beats.

As a counter to our best of 2011 feature we also have a 2011 preview special. All the big games of next year from Batman to LA Noire and everything in-between with interviews, new screens and hands on.

And then there’s the rest. In The Mood For… Beards is a whiskery treat this month as we celebrate the hairier side of PlayStation. We also have previews of Rage and Dungeon Siege III. We look at Yakuza creator Toshihiro Nagoshi’s new robot blasting shooter. There are new shots of Red Faction: Armageddon; a look at the worst games on PS3 and a timeline covering Gran Turismo 5‘s long, but ultimately worth it, journey from 2005 to now.

We’ve also launched a new Facebook page to replace our old group. Check it out here, where we’ll feed you all the latest info, pics and videos as we get them. Plus we’ll answer questions and generally hang out. See you there.

That’s all on sale now for £5.99 with a playable demo disk. Or you can save up 50% if you subscribe.

And if you want to tell us anything, call us names or say want you want in the mag, then drop us a line on Twitter @OPM_UK, email OPM@Futurenet.com or get involved with our Facebook page.

Score:

• 16 Comments
• Share on Twitter
• Share on Facebook