It may be nerd-core, but there’s something very special about witnessing a truckload of PS Vita units being unloaded, unpacked, and prepped for final shipping to retail. Yes, we’re now officially in the final days leading up to the PS Vita launch in Australia, and ladies and gentlemen, the stock has well and truly arrived.

Here’s a rare behind-the-scenes glimpse into the operations of a major games company. As you can see, the PS Vita units arrive in very large quantities. Palettes to be exact, each containing somewhere in the order of 500 PS Vita units per palette. That’s a lot of PS hardware (drool).

Operational staff carefully unpack each of the palettes, separating stock into relevant groups (3G versus WiFi models and so forth). Then begins the arranging of actual orders for each of the major retailers. The same needs to be done for each of the hundreds of cartons containing the various software titles and peripheral accessories that will also be available for PS Vita at launch.

So there you have it. If you’re anxiously waiting to get your hands on a PS Vita on Feb 23rd, rest assured, the delivery trucks are probably on their way to your favourite game stockist this very minute. Now I’m off back to the factory to sniff those freshly opened PS Vita cartons once more!

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Australians launched DanceStar Party in style last week with international megastar ‘Cat Deeley’ visiting the country to host a public dance-off to all those who were keen to ‘give it a go’. The charming presenter of ‘So You Think You Can Dance US‘ helped the PlayStation team to celebrate the new ‘party’ game by greeting fans, hosting the event, and judging the final dance off between finalists. People of all ages took part – gamers and punters alike, with the final four contestants battling it out on the actual DanceStar Party game on stage. The lucky winner of the whole event, 14 year old Bianca Calarco, who heard about the competition on Facebook, impressed the judges with her moves, and will jet off to the US in 2012 to watch So You Think You Can Dance live filming. Bianca also gets to take home a year’s supply of PlayStation games. OK, now that got my attention!

“Today’s search for Australia’s PlayStation DanceStar really captured the true spirit of dance, and that is to just get up on your feet and have loads of fun!” Cat Deeley said. “I see so many talented dancers on the show, but the cool thing is you don’t have to be a pro to play DanceStar Party. In true PlayStation style this game brings you experiences that no other game can – it’s got a killer 40 song track list set to original music video clips, and a whopping 160 choreographed dance routines. Plus, it’s even got the ability to create your own moves – so one thing is for sure, you’ll not only get fit, you’ll also never get bored! It’s going to be a massive hit this Christmas,” she said.

Cat continued: “Using the PlayStation Move motion controller, you can virtually step into the shoes of artists like Basement Jaxx, Usher and Willow Smith and become a dance diva in the comfort of your own living room”.

DanceStar Party is out for PS3 now

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X-Men First Class is the prequel film that blew away audiences around the globe earlier this year – so when 20th Century Fox Home Entertainment invited us to an exclusive media event for their Australian Blu-ray launch of the movie this week, we quickly accepted!
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Never before has there been a more appropriate ice sculpture. This was the centrepiece at EA‘s exclusive Battlefield 3 community event which took place at Sydney Australia’s Potts Point this week. With just under 2 weeks to go until the game’s launch, a select group of invitees were treated to special hands-on gameplay with Battlefield 3 on the dozen or so display units that were set up at the appropriately themed venue. The feedback from attendees was clear – Battlefield 3, with it’s powerful Frostbite 2 engine, is set to deliver an unparalleled gaming experience. Special guests at the event included some of the actual DICE development team, including Daniel Matros – Community Manager, and also Lars Gustavsson – the game’s Creative Director. I spoke to Lars about his work on Battlefield 3, and he ended the interview with a candid thank you to all of the PlayStation fans in Australia who are patiently anticipating this game’s release:

Nino: Pleasure to meet you Lars Battlefield 3 has been a massive undertaking for you guys – how many years in total development on this project?

Lars: Well it was three, or close to three and a half years just building the Frostbite 2 engine, and then about 2 years (at least) to build the actual game. We’ve been a very busy studio!

Nino: How has it been working with PlayStation 3 and Blu-ray Disc on this particular title?

Lars: Overall it’s been pretty good. As always, you want everything in a game, and there’s the usual struggle making sure that you get things into memory – especially with everything that we have crammed into this particular game. So it is a real challenge, and our team has done an amazing job at prioritizing correctly to keep pushing it.

Nino: These days it’s all about online features, and the PlayStation Network is becoming increasingly important to gamers. How did you find working with the PlayStation Network on this title, and what sort of online experience can gamers expect?

Lars: It’s been great to work with, and we’ve just been hammering away at all platforms really. Overall, I would say that the online features OWN this game, particularly the communication centre where you can connect with friends, join with friends, and then also the Battlelog which constantly keeps you up to date with what your buddies are doing. There are lots of online goodies that we are trying out now as well, which we really hope people will pick up on.

Nino: Downloadable content for FPS titles does big business on PlayStation Network. Having said that, how much effort have you guys placed on the DLC strategy for Battlefield 3, and what can consumers expect from BF3 DLC?

Lars: I can’t, at this point, go into what might appear in the future… but if you know the franchise, and our previous titles, then you’ll know that shipping our titles is only just the beginning. It used to be that when a game ships to retail, then that would be the end of the project for the developers. Now, when we ship a game, it is really only just the start. Right now however, we are only focusing on the game’s launch.

Nino: The PR behind Battlefield 3 has been amazing. EA have almost achieved the impossible in creating so much buzz and support for this title, months before it has even hit the shelves. What message would you like to give to your Austrlian fans who are waiting with such buzz and anticipation for this title?

Lars: First and foremost, just thank you. Thank you for believing in us. Going into a massive undertaking like this, creating a game, pushing the boundaries in so many areas, it’s sometimes a really frightening thing. But to have a dedicated audience who believes in you, and longs for your product, definitely helps on those dark nights when you’re just sitting there, wondering, will it fly? So again, thankyou everyone for believing in us.

Battlefield 3 ships in Australia on October 28th. (Note: Epic Frostbite 2 ice sculpture not included!)

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The Australian PlayStation community have celebrated the launch of Killzone 3 at an exclusive ‘invitation only’ event at Sydney’s Waterloo. Hosted by none other than ‘Commando Steve’ himself, the warehouse location provided the ideal setting for an ‘ISA Training Camp’ designed to give the 100+ attendees from around Australia, a true glimpse of the Helghan home world.

Upon entry to the event, guests were treated to a 15 minute exclusive developer video produced by Guerrilla Games, detailing the development process behind the game, and shedding some light on the key new features that have been incorporated. This included new details on the multiplayer portion of the game also which particularly excited the community. Next, Commando Steve took to the stage to brief the attendees on the actual training activities of the evening. He ushered them through a red curtained area to reveal a massive Killzone themed world, complete with authentic Helghast trooper in an amazing costume (with fully lit orange eyes).

Commando Steve personally ran all of the attendees through a number of gruelling activities aimed at recreating the harsh conditions of the Helghan home world. This involved for example, playing Killzone 3 while being ‘blasted’ by high output wind fans and snow-making machines. Also, playing Killzone 3 inside a giant ‘wind freezer’ designed to recreate the arctic-like temperature on Helghan. Of course it wasn’t all just about the elements. Weapons assembly was another key activity, with attendees having to learn how to disassemble and reassemble their Killzone weapon at double time, all while being blasted with strobe lighting designed to mimic the ‘flash fire’ of live combat.

Activities aside, the event was truly about Killzone 3 the game, and there were approximately a dozen Killzone 3 demo units set up, allowing attendees to play the finished Killzone 3 game for the first time (using the new Sharp Shooter gun peripheral combined with Stereoscopic 3D televisions no less). There was also a multiplayer challenge where users were able to put the online modes through their paces, and see who the real pros were. One lucky winner at the end of the event even walked away with a Killzone 3 Special Helghast Edition pack.

This was a fantastic event and a worthy celebration for a title that is among the very best that PlayStation 3 has to offer. Killzone 3 launches across Australia on Feb 24th.

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